Shabbos Parashas Terumah - 5776

Shabbos Parashas Terumah - 5776

Rabbi Hal Miller

On the Table shall you place Show Bread before Me continually. [Shemos 25:30]

In Hebrew, the words are lechem panim. Lechem is bread, but panim has many meanings.

Most commonly it refers to face, that part of the body that includes eyes, nose and mouth.

But it can also mean surface, front, facade, level, and a number of other options. Lechem

panim is usually translated as show bread, but what does our verse really mean?

In the Mishnah [Menachos 96a], Ben Zoma says "Bread of faces: it must have faces." Ramban calls it bread of surfaces, and says "because it has surfaces looking both ways

toward the sides of the Temple in either direction." Both of these commentators seem to be

applying it to positioning of the bread and the Table.

Rashbam says panim refers to the quality of the bread, that it must be such that one

would serve to royalty.

Torah Temima thinks our verse sets up the last word, that the Torah is warning us not to

ever touch the Table, as it cannot be made spiritually pure if impacted by impurity. Sefer

HaChinuch thinks this verse is to remind us always that bread is how man lives, and it

comes from G-d.

Ibn Ezra notes this last word in our verse, and calls this the bread of presence, because

G-d says that it should be in His Presence always. Rav Hirsch follows this when he

writes, "Only on such a Table, and for such a Table, does bread become Presence bread."

This does seem to tie together all the parts of our verse, but what does it mean?

The Sfas Emes discusses the verse that mentions Moshe's shining face upon his

return from speaking face to face with G-d. The Torah uses the exact same word, panim,

in that situation. He asks, "What did this shining of Moshe's panim signify? Radiance comes

from enhanced spirituality. But more is going on here. Remember that the word panim has

two meanings. It means both face (external appearance) and inner being (essence)." He

also refers to Koheles 8:1, "A man's wisdom lights up his face, and the boldness of his face

is transformed."

From this we see that all of these commentators are correct. Our verse has a physical

aspect, dealing with position and measurement in the Sanctuary, but it also refers to

spiritual light. The bread of panim is "bread of light". Our spirituality is always attributable

to G-d. Our physical survival as well as our spiritual survival come from Him. The Table

refers to us, both our physical body and our spiritual aspect.