Illustration credit: Rivka Tsinman

In our parashah, we see the mishkan achieve its goal. Aharon offers the sacrifices, Aharon and Moshe give Benei Yisrael a blessing, and then God’s presence appears to everyone (Vayikra 9:23). That was the whole point of making a mishkan!

You might wonder, what was the blessing that Moshe and Aharon gave the people in this moment? Rashi (quoting a midrash) says it was this verse:

This pasuk, וִיהִי  נֹעַם (vi’yehi noam, May the favor), is part of a prayer that we say at Ma’ariv every Saturday night, right when Shabbat ends.

For Moshe and Aharon, saying vi’yehi noam was a way of asking God to help the work of their hands–all the work Benei Yisrael had put into the mishkan–really be successful in bringing God’s holiness into the world.

For us, when we say vi’yehi noam every Saturday night, we start to think about the work we will do in the week ahead now that Shabbat is over. When we do that, we remember the work of building the mishkan, and we wonder how we might use our own effort and energy to bring God’s holiness into the world as well.

Try it! On Saturday night right after Shabbat ends, think about the words in this tefillah: מַעֲשֵׂה יָדֵינוּ (ma’aseh yadeinu, the work of our hands). What are some things that you are working on with your hands that could help increase God’s presence in the world, just like the mishkan did? Can you set some specific goals for your שֵׁשֶׁת יְמֵי הַמַּעֲשֶׂה (sheishet yemei ha-ma’aseh, six days of work)?