After first listing the items that G-d asked the Children of Israel to donate (Sh’mos 25:3-7), the Torah then tells us what these donations will go towards: “And you shall make for Me a sanctuary, and I will dwell amongst you” (25:8). This is the case not only when G-d commands Moshe about the Mishkan, but also when Moshe relays the commandment to the nation (35:5-9). There, the list ends with the general request that “all wise-hearted should come and do all that G-d has commanded” (35:10) before finally letting everyone know what the donations will be for, “the sanctuary,” (35:11) et al. Shouldn’t G-d have first informed them what the appeal was for, and then, after motivating them to give to the worthy cause, listed what needed to be donated? Would a fundraiser ask for donations before describing where the money will go or how it will be used?

Not only wasn’t the “big picture,” the sanctuary, mentioned until after all the materials were listed, but the specific uses of each material wasn’t mentioned either, except for the last few; “oil for lighting, spices for the anointing oil and for the incense” (25:6), and precious stones for the “ephod” and “chosen” (25:7), two of the garments worn by the Kohain Gadol. Why were the purposes of these items included, but not those of any other materials? The way oil is listed is a bit strange as well; since oil was needed for lighting and for anointing, why was only the lighting mentioned? Both purposes of the spices are included (they were used in the anointing oil and for the incense); why is the anointing oil only included with the spices, but not with its main ingredient, the oil? What about the oil for the meal offerings? Why wasn’t it mentioned as well? Or the flour for the “show bread” and the meal offerings? Or the animals needed for the offerings? Or the firewood? Why are only some of the materials needed for the sanctuary service mentioned, but not all of them?

Tosfos addresses this last issue (see also Oznayim L’Torah), explaining that only materials needed for the structure itself (including the priestly garments) are listed, but not materials used exclusively for offerings. The anointing oil was needed to consecrate the Mishkan and its vessels, so is considered a “structural need.” Royal palaces (and perhaps pagan temples in the ancient Near East) were kept lit and fragrant; it would be inappropriate for the earthly home of the King of kings to be in a less honorable state than that of human kings. Therefore, the oil used to light G-d’s sanctuary and the incense used to keep it pleasant-smelling are also considered “structural needs.”

Rabbi Yitzchok Sorotzkin (Rinas Yitzchok II), sh’lita, quotes Rabbi Dovid Soloveitchik, sh’lita, who suggests that the purposes of the last few items were given to avoid their being donated for one purpose but used for a purpose with a lower level of holiness (which is problematic, see Rambam, Hilchos T’murah 4:11). For example, the precious stones were only used for the priestly garments, not for the Mishkan itself. Upon hearing that these were needed for the Mishkan, a potential donor might think that they would adorn the structure itself and donate them for that purpose, thereby making them ineligible to be used for the priestly garments. By mentioning what these items would be used for up front, this issue was avoided. However, as Rabbi Sorotzkin points out, some of the materials that are listed without specifying their purpose(s) were used for making the priestly garments as well. If the dyed wool was donated for the sanctuary itself, and using it for garments instead is a problem, why wasn’t its purpose spelled out too? (Rabbi Sorotzkin leaves this issue unresolved.)

Perhaps this was why the purpose of the donations, that they were going towards a sanctuary for G-d, was left unsaid until after the list of materials was given; they could not be donated specifically for the sanctuary, or for any specific item in the sanctuary, but were donated “to G-d” (“for My name,” see Rashi on 25:2, adjusting the expression to mean “for G-d to use in any way He sees fit” rather than “for His benefit, not personal benefit or satisfaction”). Just as one couldn’t donate gold and insist that it be used for the holy ark rather than being for the gold-plated wall beams, it couldn’t be expected that any material donated would be used for the structure rather than for one of the vessels or garments. By asking for donations before explaining what the donations would be used for, G-d made it known that the donations should not be intended for anything specific.

This still leaves us with the question of why the specific purpose of some of the materials is mentioned (and why oil is only implicitly connected to the anointing oil). Even though one could not specify which item the materials donated were for, it is normal for an individual to hope that his donation would be used for the most holy, prestigious parts of the Mishkan. One could donate gold and hope it would be used for the ark, even though he knew it could be used for the gold threads of the priestly garments. All of the items listed were used, or also used, in the structure of the Mishkan, with the exception of the oil, spices and precious stones. There may be no halachic issue with using any material donated for any purpose, but that doesn’t mean an individual who donated something for the Mishkan wouldn’t be disappointed if he knew that what he donated was put to a lesser use. In order to avoid a situation where someone donated something thinking it could possibly be used for the Mishkan itself only to find out that the material he donated wasn’t even used for the structure, G-d specified which materials were needed for the Mishkan without being part of the structure itself; oil, spices, and precious stones. There was no need to list all of the uses of these items explicitly, as long as it was clear that these materials were not needed for the structure. Therefore, despite not mentioning the Mishkan until after listing the materials needed, the purposes of these items was mentioned, thereby avoiding anyone being disappointed when they found out that the item they donated couldn’t be used in the construction of the Mishkan or its vessels.

Ten years ago (in 5763), I suggested another possible reason why G-d didn’t mention what the donations would be used for until after listing the materials; while preparing this piece I saw that the Chasam Sofer (in Toras Moshe) makes the same comparison, baruch she’kivanti. The Mishkan was built after Moshe was able to persuade G-d to (at least partially) forgive the sin of the “golden calf” (see Rashi on 35:1), indicating that the relationship between the Children of Israel and the Creator was still intact, despite the setback. In fact, our sages tell us that the gold given for the Mishkan (the very first substance asked to be donated) atoned for the gold given to make the “golden calf” (Tanchuma 8). However, one of that sin’s lasting effects was the loss of the status attained at Mt. Sinai- the “crowns” the nation had earned when they accepted the Torah (33:4-6). The Talmud (Shabbos 88a) tells us that these crowns were placed on the head of each member of the nation because they first said “we will do” and then said “and we will listen” (24:7), i.e. they did not need to hear what it was that G-d expected of them before committing themselves to do it.

Asking for donations prior to explaining what the donated materials would be for re-established (to some extent) this commitment to “do” even before knowing the details. It may have taken only a few seconds for the list of substances to be read, but in that short amount of time the people were able to commit to giving even before knowing what they were giving to. As soon as gold was mentioned, those with gold were able to think to themselves, “I have gold, and if G-d wants it for something, He can have it” without questioning what He wanted it for. By recreating the commitment prior to knowing the details, similar to what they had done when they accepted the Torah, the nation proved it was still (or once again) worthy of its special connection to G-d, as symbolized by the Mishkan. Delaying relaying what the donations were for allowed the donors to willingly part with their possessions knowing only that G-d wanted it, without having to know why He wanted it.