Who invented the light bulb? If you call a friend, they’ll tell you, “Edison. Obviously!” Google will reveal that it was Humphry Davy in 1802. Never heard of him? That’s because his Arc Lamp may have been the first artificial light; it was too bright and dangerous to use at home. Edison didn’t invent the light bulb. He made it commercially viable.
Karl Benz built cars before Henry Ford, personal computers were around before Steve Jobs, and Starbucks sold coffee beans before Howard Schultz turned it into a $100 billion business.
Success is not about being the first to have a good idea; it’s about turning a good idea into a great idea. In Talmudic terms, it’s not how you start the race, but how you finish. That’s why the Torah credits the Israelites with burying Joseph in Israel, even though it was only thanks to Moshe that his remains left Egypt. Moshe started the process, but the Bnei Yisrael completed it.
Those little finishing touches make all the difference, like the chocolate on your hotel pillow. Missing a minor detail, like securing the lid on your juicer, could have messy consequences.
That’s why the Torah makes a fuss about copper stakes. Imagine being asked to build Hashem’s home. Sir Herbert Baker would have killed for that opportunity. Betzalel, architect of the Mishkan, built with acacia wood, coated the structure in fine gold and draped it with bespoke, multi-coloured pelts. His creation dazzled against the yellow desert sand.
His team layered the elaborate drapery over the roof. Then, they secured the edges with copper pegs that they drove into the ground. Designing and producing the resplendent marquee took formidable skill. Making stanchions sounds like blue-collar work. Yet, the same experts who fashioned the elegant tapestries atop the Mishkan also affixed the little brass anchors on its hems.
Why?
The Torah is teaching us two things. Firstly, doing Hashem’s work is never below your paygrade. No matter how capable you are or how simple the task appears, even a simple custom could be the anchor of your Judaism. We can’t focus on high-level ideals and ignore the basics. Sometimes, a simple custom keeps our Judaism alive through the storms of life. Far more Jewish women light Shabbos candles than observe Shabbos. More of us fast dip apples in honey than attend Shul on Rosh Hashanah.
Secondly, your little peg could secure Hashem’s home. Earlier generations enjoyed the likes of Moshe, Mordechai and Maimonides. We’re Chat GPT Jews. If the sages of the Talmud couldn’t bring Moshiach, what chance do TikTok Jews have?
Long before Edison or Jobs, the Torah intuited that ordinary folk would nail the Jewish Project. Prophets and sages would launch the prototype, but we’d refine the finished version. We’re not skilled enough to craft the Divine home, but we’re empowered to secure it. None of us could have launched the effort to bring Moshiach. But we will carry it over the finish line.
