Messianic Education Trust
		Living in Exile     Terumah   (Ex 25:1 - 27:19)

Shemot/Exodus 25:15   The staves shall be in the rings of the ark; they shall not be removed from it.

View whole verse and interlinear translation ...

Immersing once again in the many detailed instructions for building the Mishkan - the Tabernacle or more literally, "place of dwelling" - its physical structure, furniture and courtyard, to be built by the Israelites at the foot of Mt. Sinai before they moved off across the desert to complete their journey to the land of Israel, it is easy to gloss over our text as being simply one more archaic regulation that surely became obsolete once the ark was deposited safely in the Jerusalem Temple. Who Is ...

Rashi: Rabbi Shlomo Yitzchaki (1040-1105 CE), French rabbi who wrote commentaries on the Torah, the Prophets and the Talmud, lived in Troyes where he founded a yeshiva in 1067; focuses on the plain meaning (p'shat) of the text, although sometimes quite cryptic in his brevity
Rashi wants us to know that that would be an invalid assumption. In his usual laconic style, he adds just one word: "forever." This commandment remains one of the 613 permanent mitzvot and while there is currently no ark, no temple or tabernacle to house it and no tablets of testimony for it to hold, should there be, then this command will apply and must be observed. In the meantime, as we will observe later, this command has important lessons to teach exiles in their journey.

What were the staves or poles for? For carrying the ark when it was being moved. The ark was carried by the Kohathites, one of the divisions of the house of Levi. The other two divisions, the Gershonites and the Merarites, were given carts and oxen to carry their allotted parts of the Tabernacle and its surrounding courtyard, but the Kohathites carried the furniture of the Tabernacle and the outer bronze altar - the most holy things - so "they carried them בַּכָּתֵן on the shoulder" (B'Midbar 7:9). Nahum Sarna suggests that the staves "probably originated as a precautionary measure to protect the Ark from contact with profane hands" even, we might add, if the hands were the nominated and authorised hands to carry the ark. The Levites were not permitted to touch the ark or even to see it uncovered; the priests always covered and uncovered it while it was in the Holy of Holies. Once covered, the Kohathites would come and pick it up by the carrying poles, transport it to the next resting place and then leave before it was uncovered.

Surely the staves could be removed once the ark had reached its next destination? No, says Who Is ...

The Re'em: Rabbi Elijah Mizrachi (c. 1455-1525/6), born in Constantinople of Ottoman Greek stock; a Talmudist, astronomer and mathematician, he became Grand Rabbi of the Ottoman Empire; most famous for his supercommentary - called Sefer HaMizrachi - on Rashi's commentary on the Torah.
Mizrachi, "they must not be removed from it even when it is not being carried." We can see that this instruction was followed even when the ark was permanently sited in the Jerusalem Temple: "The poles projected so that the ends of the poles were visible in the sanctuary in front of the Shrine, but they could not be seen outside; and there they remain to this day" (1 Kings 8:8, NJPS). Who Is ...

The Rashbam: Rabbi Samuel ben Asher (1085-1174 CE), a grandson of Rashi; lived in Northern France; worked from the plain meaning of the Hebrew text even when this contradicted established rabbinic interpretaton
Rashbam explains that "the poles stuck out into the sanctuary as the long sides of the ark were oriented north-south and that the poles ran east-west." Needless to say, some commentators disagree. Working from the detailed procedure that The Name ...

HaShem: literally, Hebrew for 'The Name' - an allusion used to avoid pronouncing the Tetragrammaton, the so-called 'ineffable' name of G–d
HaShem gives Moshe before the first move away from Sinai, Aharon and his sons are to take down the parochet, the curtain, and use it to cover the ark, followed by dolphin skins and then a blue cloth; at that point, "וְשָׂמוּ בַּדָּיו they shall put its poles" (B'Midbar 4:6), Who Is ...

Abraham Ibn Ezra: (1089-1167 CE), born in Tudela, Spain; died in the South of France after wandering all around the shores of the Mediterranean and England; a philosopher, astronomer, doctor, poet and linguist; wrote a Hebrew grammar and a commentary on the Bible
Ibn Ezra says that "despite Shemot 25:15, the poles are in fact removed from the ark so that it can be covered." However, he also concedes that, "some, however, say that [the later verse] means the poles are set on the shoulders of those who would do the carrying."

Logically, there would be no need to command that the staves are not removed unless they can be removed. However, Rabbi Jose bar Hanina says that "they were movable but could not slip off" (b. Yoma 72a). Who Is ...

Chizkuni: Rabbi Hezekiah ben Manoah (13^th century), French rabbi and exegete; his commentary on the Torah was written about 1240 in memory of his father, based principally on Rashi, but using about 20 other sources
Chizkuni helps us out by suggesting that "it is obvious that the poles must have sat tightly in the rings, so that when the porters climbed up a hill or down into a valley the Ark would not slide into their shoulders. The poles were thicker at the ends than in the middle, so that once inserted (by force) they could not slide out." The staves were to be seen as an indispensable part of the ark - as if the ability to be carried and moved was as important as its contents. Gunther Plaut comments that the ark "shall always be ready to be carried." But, at the same time, that carrying must be done in the right and appropriate way; the ark is not to be just picked up, thrown on a cart and casually bumped from one place to the next. Who Is ...

Abravanel: Don Isaac Abravanel (1437-1508 CE), Statesman and biblical commentator; born in Lisbon, died in Venice; wrote commentaries on the whole of the Hebrew Scriptures
Abravanel emphasises that "the point was that the priests should be able to lift it on their shoulders without touching it" - it was only to be carried with due care and reverence.

Mobility, then, is demonstrated to be a key property of the ark - the symbol of G-d's presence and the container of the Torah. What Is ...

Sefer HaChinuch: Originally ascribed to Rabbi Aharon HaLevi of Barcelona (1235-c.1290CE); a book that examines each of the 613 mitzvot in detail, following Maimonides' list and ordered by the weekly Torah portions; includes sources, biblical quotes and halacha
Sefer HaChinuch explains that "at the root of the precept lies the reason that the ark is the dwelling place of the Torah ... therefore we were commanded not to remove the poles of the ark from it, for fear we might need to go with the ark out to some place swiftly." This takes us to a different level, as Rabbi Who Is ...

Hirsch: Rabbi Samson Raphael Hirsch (1808-1888 CE), German rabbi, author and educator; staunch opponent of the Reform movement in Germany and one of the fathers of Orthodox Judaism
Hirsch explains: "The staves, the means of carrying the Ark, symbolically represent the command and the mission to carry the Ark and its contents, if it becomes necessary, away from the precincts of its present position. The command that these means of transport may never be lacking is to emphasise in our minds the fact that from the very beginning it must be made clear that this Torah and its mission is in no way bound or confined to the place or existence at any time of the Temple or the Sanctuary." He goes on to add that "while the Table and the Menorah" - representing Israel's material and spiritual life - "are bound to the soil of the Holy Land, Israel's Torah is not."

Are we to understand then that the Torah and the presence of HaShem are not tied to a particular place? The Who Is ...

The Netziv: Rabbi Naphtali Zvi Yehuda Berlin (1816-1893), also known as Reb Hirsch Leib Berlin; born in Mir, Russia; rabbi, and dean of the Volozhin Yeshiva (Russia, now Belarus) during its most prestigious years (1849-92); his Torah commentary is known as Ha'amek Davar.
Netziv claims that "the Jewish people have throughout their wanderings undertaken the twin commitment of Torah and Avodah (worship)." Wherever the Jewish people have gone during nearly two thousand years of exile, they have always taken the Torah with them and have always formed communities of prayer and worship, living as a distinct people, set apart for the L-rd G-d of Israel. Who Is ...

Nechama Leibowitz: (1905-1997 CE), born in Riga, graduate of the University of Berlin, made aliyah in 1931; professor at Tel Aviv University; taught Torah for over 50 years
Nechama Leibowitz tells us that "the Torah's transcendence of spatial limitations, the spread of its message to every corner of the globe are irrefutable facts." Whenever the Jewish people are gathered and the Torah scroll is taken from the ark to be read out loud to the congregation, the liturgy proclaims the words of the prophet: "כִּי מִצִּיּוֹן תֵּצֵא תוֹרָה וּדְבַר־יהוה מִירוּשָׁלָיִם The Torah shall go forth from Zion and the word of YHVH from Jerusalem" (Isaiah 2:3).

Looking back to the time of Solomon and the kings who followed him in Jerusalem, Walter Brueggemann sees "the establishment of a controlled, static religion in which G-d and His temple have become part of the royal landscape, in which the sovereignty of G-d is full subordinated to the purpose of the king." G-d's character has been radically revised, so that He is "fully accessible to the king who is His patron and the freedom of G-d is completely overcome. It is almost inconceivable that the G-d domiciled in Jerusalem would ever say anything substantive or abrasive." The king has a monopoly on G-d and controls access so that there is no resistance, protest or disturbance of the king's peace.¹ The Torah and the presence of G-d Himself had been localised, domesticated and confined behind the bars of the king, the vested interests of the temple authorities and the political and economic expectations of the established hierarchy in Jerusalem. No opposition is tolerated and the prophets of HaShem spoke alone, outside the authority structure, opposed and suppressed by the powers of the day.

Can we see a similar situation that has developed among the established churches in our day, where the gospel has been subjugated by the liberal, progressive theologians of the mainstream denominations - be they traditional or pentecostal - in their relentless drive to be fully tolerant and inclusive. Independent so-called evangelical churches are often no better, holding firm on biblical inerrancy but stifling the gifts of the Spirit lest the enemy should misuse them to bring disunity and threaten the iron grip of the sixteenth century reformers. In both cases, G-d is effectively silenced as His word must always be read and heard through the lens of the dominant political correctness. No opposition is tolerated; those who ask questions are marginalised and those brave souls who, like the biblical prophets, cry out to call G-d's people back to His word - to justice and righteousness in harmony with grace and mercy - are excluded and silenced lest they shatter the hollow illusion of peace within the walls.

As exiles, both from the world and from the religious institutions of church and synagogue, we are like the ark with its carrying poles always inserted. As followers of Yeshua we carry both His presence and His Torah inside us. We are the ones of whom G-d said, "I will put My Teaching into their inmost being and inscribe it upon their hearts. Then I will be their G-d, and they shall be My people" (Jeremiah 31:33, NJPS); we are the ones of whom Rav Sha'ul writes, "They show that the work of the law is written on their hearts, while their conscience also bears witness" (Romans 2:15, ESV). Whether Jew or Gentile, the prophecy of Ezekiel - "And I will give you a new heart, and a new spirit I will put within you. And I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh. And I will put My Spirit within you, and cause you to walk in My statutes and be careful to obey My judgements" (Ezekiel 36:26-27), ESV) - is realised in us: "written not with ink but with the Spirit of the living God, not on tablets of stone but on tablets of human hearts" (2 Corinthians 3:3, ESV).

We are of no fixed abode, always ready to move as we carry the words of the living G-d - the good news of Yeshua and His invitation to be part of the kingdom of G-d - with us and take them to the ends of the earth, so that the words of the Psalmist may be fulfilled: "The L-rd reigns, let the earth be glad; let the coastlands rejoice" (Psalm 97:1). We are always restless in this world because we don't 'belong' here, in an institutional context; we are citizens of the eternal city, "whose designer and builder is G-d" (Hebrew 11:10, ESV). Like John the Baptiser, we echo the words of the prophet Isaiah: "The voice of one crying in the wilderness: 'Prepare the way of the Lord; make His paths straight'" (Matthew 3:3, ESV).

Woe betide us if we try to remove the carrying poles and settle down, prepared to compromise with any current situation against the word of G-d. Like the ark travelling in the wilderness, we can only move when the pillar of cloud and fire rises and calls us forward, but we must always be ready to move and available for His call. In the meantime, like the builders in the time of Nehemiah - "each had his sword girded at his side as he was building" (Nehemiah 4:12, NJPS) - we work alongside our fellows, shift and shift about to build the walls of the city, always alert to sound the alarm to defend the work of our G-d. We play our part to fulfil the words of Isaiah, "The Torah shall go forth from Zion and the word of YHVH from Jerusalem", in our days.

1. - Walter Brueggemann, The Prophetic Imagination (Minneapolis, MN: Fortress Press, 2001), pages 28-29.

Further Study: 1 Chronicles 15:11-15; Luke 24:45-49

Application: How can you be a faithful representation of the ark in these days - carrying the Torah and the presence of Yeshua - for the part of the forest where you are currently planted? Be prepared to call others to the priority of the gospel and you may find others whose hearts are also stirred by the Spirit.

Buy your own copy of the Drash Book for Exodus/Shemot now at Amazon US or Amazon UK.

© Jonathan Allen, 2025

Messianic Trust Home Page	Join Weekly Email	More Weekly Drashot
Last Week	Support the work of producing this weekly commentary	Next Week
Last Year - 5784	Scripture Index	Next Year - 5786