Musar על שבת 98:19

We have previously demonstrated Israel's relationship to the Tabernacle; here we may add Israel's specific relationship to the Sabbath legislation. Seeing that the Tabernacle was a re-enactment of the work of creation, and Israel, as the carrier of the מרכבה, is closely intertwined with the forces represented in the construction of the Tabernacle, we can understand why the 39 kinds of work prohibited on the Sabbath are the ones which were employed in the construction of the Tabernacle. [In the interest of preventing confusion, I have taken the liberty of considerably abbreviating the intricate series of allusions used by the author in this presentation. I trust that I have preserved the thrust of his argument intact. Ed.] Because the Sabbath represents a mystical element of the Ineffable Name, we have been forbidden to carry items from the "private domain," i.e. the domain represented by the Ineffable Name as י, as we showed earlier, to the public domain (which represents the number 4, as cubits) as we described. In a nutshell, before G–d created the physical universe, there was only a single domain, G–d's domain, the private domain; since G–d created a universe, there is an additional domain, the public domain, since G–d- by having created the universe- "shared" part of His previously exclusive private domain with His creatures. The principle of private and public domain thus became part of the creation, and is reflected in restrictions placed on the interaction of these domains on the Sabbath. Israel is described in numerous Midrashim as the בת זוג, mate of the Sabbath; this is because both Israel and the Sabbath are holy. In this portion Betzalel and the other divinely inspired artisans are commanded to observe the Sabbath regulations even during such a holy endeavour as the construction of the Tabernacle, because the Torah (31,13) says: אך את שבתותי תשמורו, "But you must observe My Sabbath days." We will come back to this subject in our discussion of פרשת ויקהל and פקודי.