Below is a collection of Parashat Tetzaveh resources created by The Lookstein Center staff or contributed to the site by Jewish educators.

This is a growing collection. Check back soon or write to us at content@lookstein.org if you didn’t find what you’re looking for. 

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PARASHA POINTS

  • The kohanim (priests) wear four articles of clothing when they serve. There are pants, a tunic, a belt, and a turban, all made of undyed linen.
  • The kohen gadol (high priest) has special versions of the regular kohen clothes; his have patterns woven in, also of undyed linen. In addition, there are four special garments. There is a tunic made of blue-dyed wool; an efod, which is like an apron, made of woven threads of gold, wool dyed blue, purple, and red, and plain linen; a hoshen, which is a breastplate made of the same material as the efod, into which are embedded twelve stones and inside of which are placed the urim and the tumim; and a gold band on his head called a tzitz. The hoshen and the efod are to be tied together so that they appear as one.
  • Daily, the menora is to be lit, incense is to be offered on the golden mizbeach (altar) inside the Mishkan (Tabernacle) building, and two sacrifices are brought, one in the morning and one in the evening on the bronze altar (in the courtyard of the Mishkan).

EDUCATIONAL THEMES

  • What we wear affects how we behave. 
  • To be sanctified means to be set aside from the ordinary.
  • The kohen gadol, even through his clothing, represents Israel before God.

NOTABLE QUOTES

Describing the purpose of the clothing for the kohen gadol:
ועשית בגדי קדש לאהרן אחיך לכבוד ולתפארת

DISCUSSION AND REFLECTION QUESTIONS

Question #1: There is one person who is in every single parasha from Shemot until the end of Devarim, except for this parasha! Can you guess who it is? Why is he missing? One reason is that this parasha deals with the clothes of the Kohanim (priests) and their inauguration. Perhaps Moses, in his modesty, lets the Kohanim (priests) have center stage. The Midrash offers another reason. After the sin of the golden calf, Moses tells God, “If you don’t forgive your people erase me from your book.” The Rabbis explain that the words of a righteous person are taken very seriously. Even though God did forgive the people, Moses’s name was not included in Parashat Tetzaveh. Can a person be careful about everything they say? How important is this?

Look inside the text, (Shemot 32:32),

וְעַתָּה אִם תִּשָּׂא חַטָּאתָם וְאִם אַיִן מְחֵנִי נָא מִסִּפְרְךָ אֲשֶׁר כָּתָבְתָּ – If you don’t forgive your people erase me from your book.

Question #2: Do you think it’s important for people with certain jobs to have a uniform? Why? What kind of uniforms can you think of? In Parashat Tetzaveh, we read about the special clothing that Aaron and his sons, the Kohanim (priests) wore. Many people wear uniforms in their jobs. While a uniform offers a mark of distinction, it also sets the individual apart. Why did they need to wear special clothes when they served in the Mishkan (Tabernacle)? Do uniforms separate different levels of society? Do people wearing special clothes feel superior to those who are not wearing them? Is it possible to bridge the gaps within society without removing the special place each individual has?

Question #3: On the one hand, the Kohen Gadol (High Priest) is to be totally dedicated to God, sanctified to God, and on the other, he was to wear a number of garments whose function was for him to carry a symbol representing the people before God. Is the job of public officials – Rabbis, politicians, judges, etc. – to protect and preserve the ancient traditions, the things which are considered sacred in their culture, or to serve the needs of the people?