The Ramban believes the Mishkan to be a direct continuation of maamad Mount Sinai-it is a "moving Mount Sinai," that constitutes ongoing divine revelation amongst the people
-the prooftext: similarity between the description of the resting of God's Shechina on Mount Sinai and that of the resting of G-d's Shechina in the Mishkan.
וסוד המשכן הוא, שיהיה הכבוד אשר שכן על הר סיני שוכן עליו בנסתר וכמו שנאמר שם (שמות כ״ד:ט״ז) וישכן כבוד ה' על הר סיני, וכתיב (דברים ה כא) הן הראנו ה' אלהינו את כבודו ואת גדלו, כן כתוב במשכן וכבוד ה, מלא את המשכן (שמות מ׳:ל״ד). והזכיר במשכן שני פעמים וכבוד ה' מלא את המשכן, כנגד ''את כבודו ואת גדלו,; והיה במשכן תמיד עם ישראל הכבוד שנראה להם בהר סיני. ובבא משה (שמות ל״ד:ל״ד) היה אליו הדבור אשר נדבר לו בהר סיני. וכמו שאמר במתן תורה (דברים ד לו) מן השמים השמיעך את קולו ליסרך ועל הארץ הראך את אשו הגדולה, כך במשכן כתיב (במדבר ז פט) וישמע את הקול מדבר אליו מעל הכפרת מבין שני הכרובים וידבר אליו:
ונכפל ''וידבר אליו'' להגיד מה שאמרו בקבלה שהיה הקול בא מן השמים אל משה מעל הכפרת ומשם מדבר עמו' כי כל דבור עם משה היה מן השמים ביום ונשמע מבין שני הכרובים, כדרך ודבריו שמעת מתוך האש (דברים ד לו), ועל כן היו שניהם זהב וכן אמר הכתוב (להלן כט מב מג) אשר אועד לכם שמה לדבר אליך שם ונקדש בכבודי, כי שם יהיה בית מועד לדבור ונקדש בכבודי:
The secret of the Tabernacle is that the Glory which abode upon Mount Sinai [openly] should abide upon it in a concealed manner. For just as it is said there, And the glory of the Eternal abode upon Mount Sinai, and it is further written, Behold, the Eternal our G-d hath shown us His glory and His greatness, so it is written of the Tabernacle, and the glory of the Eternal filled the Tabernacle. Twice is this verse, and the glory of the Eternal filled the Tabernacle mentioned in connection with the Tabernacle, to correspond with His glory and His greatness. Thus Israel always had with them in the Tabernacle the Glory which appeared to them on Mount Sinai. And when Moses went into the Tabernacle, he would hear the Divine utterance being spoken to him in the same way as on Mount Sinai. Thus just as it is said at the Giving of the Torah: Out of heaven He made thee to hear His voice, that He might instruct thee; and upon earth He made thee to see His great fire, so it is written of the Tabernacle, and he heard the voice speaking unto him from above the ark-cover…from between the two cherubim; and He spoke unto him. The expression “speaking unto him” is mentioned here twice in order to indicate that which the Rabbis have said in the Tradition that the Voice would come from heaven to Moses from upon the ark-cover, and from there He spoke with him; for every Divine utterance with Moses came from heaven during daytime, and was heard from between the two cherubim, similar to what is said, and thou didst hear His words out of the midst of the fire. It is for this reason that the two cherubim were made of gold. And Scripture so states: where I will meet with you, to speak there unto thee; and it shall be sanctified by My glory, for there [in the Tabernacle] will be the appointed place for the Divine utterance, and it will be sanctified by My glory.
- Mishkan as a response to the sin of the golden calf:
- This midrash teaches that the "Mishkan of testimony" is testimony that God forgave the people for their sin. The next midrash teaches that the Mishkan itself facilitated that reconciliation:
It can be compared to a young man who came to a city and found the people thereof collecting money for charity, and when they asked him also to subscribe, he went on giving until they had to tell him that he had already given enough. Further on his travels, he lighted on a place where they were collecting for a theater, and when asked to contribute towards it, he was also so generous the he had to be told, "Enough." Israel, likewise, contributed so much towards the golden calf that they had to be told "Enough," and they also contributed gold so generously towards the construction of the Mishkan that they again had to be told "Enough," as it is said: "For the stuff they had was sufficient for all the work to make it, and too much" (Shmemot 26:7). The Holy one, blessed be He, thereupon said: "Let the gold of the Mishkan atone for the gold they brought towards the making of the golden calf." Further did God say to Israel: "When you made the calf, you provoked Me to anger by exclaiming: "This (eleh) is your god," but now that you have built the Mishkan with the word "eleh," I have become reconciled to you." Hence, "These (eleh) are the accounts of the Mishkan." God said unto Israel: "Just as in this world I have become reconciled unto you by means of the word "eleh," so in the World-to-Come," because it says: "Behold these (eleh) shall come from far; and, lo, these (eleh) from the north and from the west, and these (eleh) from the land of Sinim (Yeshaya 49:12); and also: "Who are these (eleh) that fly as a cloud, and as the doves to their cotes?" (ibid. 58:8). (Shemot Rabba 51, 8) [vbm translation]
- The Mishkan,restores to Israel 'the faith of testimony' ( a first level in faith) – and that's why it is called "the Mishkan of testimony.":
"And similarly we find in parashat Tisa in the command regarding the work of the Mishkan that it was stated following the sin, as Rashi explains there on the verse, "And He gave to Moshe, when He had made an end" (Shemot 31:18). And even according to what the Ramban of blessed memory says (beginning of parashat Vayakhel) that everything appears in order and they were commanded about the work of the Mishkan prior to the sin of the [golden] calf, nevertheless the matter of the command of the work of the Mishkan was only because God, blessed be He, saw in advance that they would sin, and to repair the sin they would need the Mishkan. For were it not for the sin, it would have been proper for the Shekhina to be in the lower world everywhere that Israel dwells, as was the case prior to the sin of the first man, and for the entire camp of Israel to have the sanctity of the place of the Mishkan."
R. Tzadok ha-Kohen of Lublin categorically states that the Mishkan was a direct response and result of the sin of the golden calf. Were it not for that sin, there would have been no need for the Mishkan, and God’s mode of governance would have been entirely different. The fitting mode of Divine governance, according to R. Tzadok ha-Kohen is "for the Shekhina to be in the lower world everywhere that Israel dwells… and for the entire camp of Israel to have the sanctity of the place of the Mishkan." The Mishkan, teaches us R. Tzadok, is an aspect of contraction, for while on the one hand the very building of the Mishkan allows for a revelation of the Shekhina, on the other hand it restricts it to place, time, and person. Only in the Mikdash, only at a certain time, and only to certain people.
This contraction, according to R. Tzadok, is a direct result of the sin of the golden calf. Thus, the Mishkan is an expression of the descent of Divine governance from the aspect of "there is no place empty of Him," at least with respect to the Jewish people, to the aspect of "And they shall make for Me a sanctuary." R. Tzadok does not explain why it was specifically the sin of the golden calf that caused this fall, but there seems to be no difficulty finding the connection. The process leading to the golden calf began with Moshe's absence and with the difficulty that it raised for the people of Israel:
And when the people saw that Moshe delayed to come down from the mountain, the people gathered themselves together to Aharon, and said to Him, Rise up, make us gods, which shall go before us; for as for this man Moshe, who brought us up out of the land of Egypt, we know not what is become of him. (Shemot 32:1)
These are the accounts of the Mishkan, the Mishkan of testimony." It serves as testimony that the Holy One, blessed be He, forgave [Israel] for the sin of the [golden] calf. And in the Gemara: It is testimony that the Shekhina dwells in Israel. For the Mishkan was a repair of the sin; before the sin there was no need for service through acts and work. Because they had stated "We shall do" before "We shall hear," the strength of doing was entirely abolished. After they sinned with an action, it was necessary to clarify the matter by way of an action, by constructing the Mishkan in accordance with the will of the Omnipresent, blessed be He, as it is written, "As He commanded."
Sefat Emet, Teruma, 5644
For the root of the Torah is above, as it is written: "It is hidden from the eyes of all living" (Iyyov 28:21). Only through effacement in Him, blessed be He, do the people of Israel merit to draw the light of Torah among them. The people of Israel merited this when they said "We shall do" before they said "We shall hear." For through such dedication, the people of Israel rise above the material garment. Just as they were at the giving of the Torah like ministering angels. But after the sin we lost this level.
The Mishkan, according to this, contains two opposites. On the one hand, it reveals the Shekhina and allows for God's presence in the world; on the other hand, it restricts that presence. This restriction expresses itself on various levels.
First, on the level of the distinction between miracle and nature; between particularism and all-embrasiveness; between "the faith of testimony" and recognition of its truth.
Second, on the level of God's presence in the world, in the distinction between place, time and person, and full holiness having the aspect of "there is no place void of Him"; between "and in His palace, everything says, 'Glory,'" and "the entire world is filled with His glory."
Third, on the level of religious service, in the distinction between material service, by way of the mitzvot, by way of actions, by way of the sacrifices, and service that is entirely spiritual, having the aspect of communion and placing "We shall do" before "We shall hear."