Timeless: Boundless Connections
6:9 The word of the Lord came to me as follows: 6:10 “Choose some people from among the exiles, namely, Heldai, Tobijah, and Jedaiah, all of whom have come from Babylon, and when you have done so go to the house of Josiah son of Zephaniah. 6:11 Then take some silver and gold to make a crown and set it on the head of Joshua son of Jehozadak, the high priest. 6:12 Then say to him, ‘The Lord who rules over all says, “Look – here is the man whose name is Tzemach, who will sprout up from his place and build the temple of the Lord. 6:13 Indeed, he will build the temple of the Lord, and he will be clothed in splendor, sitting as king on his throne. Moreover, there will be a priest with him on his throne and they will see eye to eye on everything. 6:14 The crown will then be turned over to Helem, Tobijah, Jedaiah, and Hen son of Zephaniah as a memorial –“l’zikaron” – in the temple of the Lord. 6:15 Then those who are far away will come and build the temple of the Lord so that you may know that the Lord who rules over all has sent me to you. This will all come to pass if you completely obey the voice of the Lord your God. (Zechariah 6:9-15)
“Cedar posts were fixed between the wall of the Sanctuary and the wall of the porch that it might not bulge. And golden chains were fixed to the roof-beam of the Porch by which the young Kohanim could climb up and see the crowns, as it is written, “The crown will then be turned over to Helem, Tobijah, Jedaiah, and Hen son of Zephaniah as a memorial –“l’zikaron” – in the temple of the Lord.”
The young Kohanim would climb these golden chains and examine the golden ornaments to see if any needed repair. Different golden ornaments, crowns, would constantly be donated and added to the windows of the Temple, so that the donors would forever be remembered in God’s Temple. (Responsa of Rashba, Volume 1 #581: This is the source that allows us to have names of donors inscribed on the walls of a synagogue.)
The young Kohanim would be sent to climb up the golden chains so that they could see how each generation added to the Temple, and that they were connected to a Timeless tradition, to each generation that had participated in the construction of the Temple, its upkeep and service.
The Zichronot of Rosh Hashana connect us with all the generations that stood in judgment before God on this day. We stand with our parents, grandparents, ancestors, and all the great leaders of all generations. We connect with them and join forces in Coronating the King and praying for a Perfect World.