The Buck Starts and Stops Here

These are the inventories over the Tabernacle — the Tabernacle, a testimony — assigned by Moses. The work of the Levites under the direction of Itamar, son of Aaron the priest. [Exodus 38:21]

Sometimes, one word makes all the difference. In this week’s Torah portion, that word is pekudei.

Some translate pekudei, also the title of the Torah portion, as “appointments,” or the assignments given the artisans to construct the Tabernacle and its vessels. Other commentators prefer “inventory,” an accounting of all the incoming material and how they were used.

As it turns out, the man in the hot seat was Moses. Although he did not participate in the accounts receivables, he was appointed the boss of the entire Tabernacle project. That made him responsible to the Israelites, some of whom were harsh critics of the prophet-king. They consistently, and without basis, accused him of siphoning off the gold, silver and copper for himself. The more zealous would follow Moses everywhere he went. Soon, even his appearance became the talk of the town.

Rabbi Chama said: They were speaking disparagingly, saying: “Look at his neck! Look at his legs! He eats from the Jews, drinks from the Jews, and everything he has comes from the Jews!” His friend would respond: “A man who was in charge of the work of the Tabernacle — would you not expect him to be wealthy?” [Midrash Tanhuma]

At that point, Moses ordered a complete accounting of all the silver and copper donated for the Tabernacle. He left out the gold because the precious metal was still being utilized for the priestly garments. He didn’t want to be sullied by the slightest trace of suspicion.

At the end of the day, Moses went to his spread sheet and began to compute the contributions and compare them what had been used in the Tabernacle. He was in for a shock — the equivalent of 1,775 silver shekel coins were missing from the tally. Naturally, this was leaked to the morning talk shows, and the critics had their ammunition — Moses was an embezzler.

At this point, writes Shlomo Ephraim Ben Aaron Luntschitz, the 16th Century sage known by his work Kli Yakar, G-d intervened. A voice boomed from the heavens that Moses had not taken a thing. The missing 1,775 shekels had been used to produce hooks for the pillars of the Tabernacle. In his accounting, Moses had forgotten about them. The critics backed down.

Rabbi Lunschitz knew a bit about accountability: He had been a student of Rabbi Yehuda Loew, known as the Maharal. In 1604, Shlomo Ephraim was appointed chief rabbi of Prague, a position he held until his death some 15 years later. This was regarded as the golden age of Jews in Bohemia, but amid the devastation of the Thirty Years’ War the threat of persecution and expulsion always simmered. With mounting pressure came rising criticism of their leaders. Some of them fled Prague.

The Kli Yakar writes that the accountability Moses demonstrated to the Jewish people was not lost on the Almighty. The divine spirit never left the Tabernacle, and the structure never fell to the enemy. In contrast, the First Temple built by King Solomon came under a different set of standards. The temple was the work of gentile laborers from Tyre and eventually fell into disrepair. After 410 years, the temple was destroyed by the Babylonians.

The Second Temple, which lasted 420 years, was also built by gentiles, namely those from Tyre and Sidon. Authorized by Persian Emperor Cyrus, construction did not include the priests and Levites. The process of corruption and deterioration was even more rapid than that of the First Temple. Finally, when there was little more than a shell left, the Romans moved in and razed the complex.

Moses’ behavior served as the template. Ezra offered an accounting of everything he had brought from Persia to the Land of Israel. During the Second Temple, the sages sought to bolster transparency and accountability in dealing with communal funds. Those counting the contributions could not wear shoes or clothes with pockets. Charity collectors and distributors worked in pairs to ensure oversight. Questions by ordinary people were not ignored as public servants were ordered to be “absolved of obligation before the Lord and Israel.”

Then, there is the leader who rejects any accounting, denies responsibility and at best shifts blame to his aides. Tens of millions, or maybe hundreds of millions, of dollars pour in from an enemy state and the leader insists he knows nothing. Ironically, those spearheading the accusations were for years beneficiaries of funds from another foreign country that sought to significantly weaken the Jewish people. Their money, however, ran out in February when a new president entered the White House. That’s when the latest affair known as Qatargate, which also swamped the European Union, emerged. It turns out the hyperactive, albeit pint-size, emirate has been gobbling up much of the Western elite.

In the end, the Torah portion of Pekudei stays true to its word. There is a complete accounting of every aspect of the Tabernacle — whether the metals, precious stones, wool, linen and hides. Much of the Torah portion repeats what had been reported previously. But that doesn’t matter. The need for an accounting is a divine mission and cuts through any rules of clear writing — with apologies to Strunk and White. And when the tally matched, the Tabernacle was truly completed. The ordinary folk were finally satisfied that their money had been well-spent.

The Israelites brought everything exactly in the manner that G-d had commanded Moses. [Exodus 39:32]