words of , "And the height five cubits," meant from the upper edge of the altar to the top of the hangings. And according to Rabbi Jose, the words of , "and the height thereof shall be three cubits," meant that there were three cubits from the edge of the terrace (on the side of the altar) to the top of the altar. Rabbi Judah, however, granted that the priest could be seen outside the Tabernacle, but argued that the sacrifice in his hands could not be seen. The Mishnah taught that the incense offering of was not subject to the penalty associated with eating invalidated offerings. In medieval Jewish interpretation The parashah is discussed in these medieval Jewish sources: Exodus chapter 28 Interpreting , "And you shall make holy garments for Aaron your brother, for splendor and for beauty," Nachmanides taught that the High Priest's garments corresponded to the garments that monarchs wore when the Torah was given. Thus, Nachmanides taught that the "tunic of checker work" in was a royal garment, like the one worn by David's daughter Tamar in , "Now she had a garment of many colors upon her; for with such robes were the king's daughters that were virgins appareled." The miter in was known among monarchs, as notes with reference to the fall of the kingdom of Judah, "The miter shall be removed, and the crown taken off." Nachmanides taught that the ephod and the breastplate were also royal garments, and the plate that the High Priest wore around the forehead was like a monarch's crown. Finally, Nachmanides noted that the High Priest's garments were made of (in the words of ) "gold," "blue-purple," and "red-purple," which were all symbolic of royalty. Maimonides taught that God selected priests for service in the Tabernacle in and instituted the practice of sacrifices generally as transitional steps to wean the Israelites off of the worship of the times and move them toward prayer as the primary means of worship. Maimonides noted that in nature, God created animals that develop gradually. For example, when a mammal is born, it is extremely tender, and cannot eat dry food, so God provided breasts that yield milk to feed the young animal, until it can eat dry food. Similarly, Maimonides taught, God instituted many laws as temporary measures, as it would have been impossible for the Israelites suddenly to discontinue everything