ספר שמות

‎Baal Haturim points out already that the numerical ‎value of the letters in the word ‎אלה‎ is 36 and not 39. He explains ‎that the word ‎דברים‎, minimum plural for “words,” adds another 2, ‎and that the prefix ‎ה‎ in that word adds another 1 making a total ‎of 39. He adds that though the expression ‎הדברים‎ occurs in the ‎Torah repeatedly and the commentators saw nothing noteworthy ‎in that expression, so that we must wonder why it is considered ‎out of place here, the reason is that in connection with the ‎Tabernacle itself, [the basis for the forbidden work ‎categories on the Sabbath, Ed.] the Torah uses the ‎expression: ‎זה הדבר‎ in the singular mode, whereas here it uses the ‎plural mode, ‎אלה הדברים‎.‎ Elaborating on the words of the Baal Haturim, our ‎author continues: although in connection with the Tabernacle ‎the reference was to physical work performed in the construction ‎of that building, on the Sabbath, although our “activities” are ‎restricted primarily to the mind and the expressions of our ‎thoughts by words, i.e. making Kiddush, praying, reading ‎from the Torah, etc., nonetheless these “activities” are considered ‎as even more significant than the actual deeds when building the ‎Tabernacle. This “superiority” of the Sabbath to the performance ‎of the commandment to build the Tabernacle is hinted at by the ‎word ‎דברים‎ here being used in the plural mode, whereas in the ‎parallel paragraph dealing with the construction of the ‎Tabernacle it is in the singular mode. (Compare 35,4). When ‎observing the Sabbath by studying Torah, etc., the contribution ‎we make to ‎תקון העולם‎, “repairing any damage” to the world we ‎live in, is even greater than the contribution made by Betzalel ‎when he built the Tabernacle using his hands to perform physical ‎tasks. ‎