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Why does the Torah (תורה) present the menorah commandment in three separate places—Tetzaveh, Emor, and Beha'aloscha? The shiur develops the principle that each parsha represents a distinct dimension: ner mitzvah (מצוה) (the keser shem tov—acting purely for the mitzvah's sake), Torah or (the menorah's connection to wisdom and the Kodesh HaKodashim), and the menorah's actual construction through Aharon's unique configuration of the wicks.
The shiur begins with a fundamental question: Why is Moshe Rabbeinu's name deliberately omitted from Parshas Tetzaveh? Chazal teach that this omission stems from Moshe's conditional curse in Parshas Ki Sisa—"If You will not forgive them, erase my name from Your book." Even though this was a conditional statement, the curse of a talmid chacham has power even conditionally, and therefore must be fulfilled. But the difficulty is compounded: Moshe asked to be erased from the entire Torah (תורה), yet his name only disappears from one parsha. Why here specifically, and why not throughout? A second major puzzle concerns the repetition of the menorah commandment. The instructions for lighting the menorah appear three times in the Torah: in Parshas Tetzaveh, in Parshas Emor (Vayikra 24), and in Parshas Beha'aloscha (Bamidbar 8). This seems illogical—ordinarily, all details about a single topic should appear together. Furthermore, each presentation contains unique elements and different emphases. In Tetzaveh, there is no explicit mention of the menorah itself—only instructions about lighting. Rashi (רש"י) explains that Tetzaveh is merely foreshadowing a future command that will be given in Emor. But why foreshadow at all? No other vessel receives this treatment.
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Parshas Tetzaveh (Shemos 27:20-21), Parshas Emor (Vayikra 24), Parshas Beha'aloscha (Bamidbar 8)
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