“Pekudei” – Accounts/Notations
Exo 38:21
These were the appointments (pekudei)
of the Dwelling Place, the Dwelling Place of the Witness, which was appointed (pukad) by the command of Mosheh, for
the service of the Lĕwites, by the hand of Ithamar, son of Aharon the priest.
כא אֵלֶּה פְקוּדֵי הַמִּשְׁכָּן מִשְׁכַּן הָעֵדֻת, אֲשֶׁר פֻּקַּד עַל-פִּי
מֹשֶׁה: עֲבֹדַת, הַלְוִיִּם, בְּיַד אִיתָמָר, בֶּן-אַהֲרֹן הַכֹּהֵן.
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These are the ones who were enabled to give a full
accounting of the Taberacle (that were enabled to make sure all instructions
and materials were correctly performed and accounted for) – the Tabernacle of
witness, that was enabled to be accounted for by the mouth of Moshe – service
of the Levites in the hand of Ithamar son of Aaron the priest.
The title of our
parasha “pekudei” comes from a root Hebrew word “pakad” if we look carefully at the various
definitions given in BDB (S6485) we will see that this is a very complicated
word and various scholars interpret it differently. Perhaps this word in its
“Pual” form could mean – “to be called to account or to be paid in full”. In
the light of the perfect tense verbs used in the last two portions, I believe we need to look a little deeper
at something which directs us to a finished work.
“Parash’ot T’rumah, Tetzaveh, and Ki Tissa signifies the instructions (as can be observed by the fact that the verb tenses are in the future), whereas the latter two portions Vayekel and Pekudei are in the past tense, signifying the work that was completed according to instructions. “ Sages.”