הכתב והקבלה — וזה מעשה המנרה מקשה זהב עד ירכה עד פרחה

Q — 'עד ירכה עד פרחה' violates Hebrew's normal range-construction. Where you'd expect 'מן ירכה עד פרחה' (from X until Y, like 'מגדיש ועד קמה' or 'מן הארז ועד האזוב'), the verse has 'עד...עד...' — two endpoints, no starting point. What is 'עד' doing here?

A — HaKtav VeHaKabbalah re-parses 'עד' entirely. It is not the preposition 'until' but the noun עֲדִי — *ornament, adornment* — as in 'וַתַּעַד נִזְמָהּ וְחֶלְיָתָהּ' (Hoshea 2:15) and in 'בַּבֹּקֶר יֹאכַל עַד וְלָעֶרֶב יְחַלֵּק שָׁלָל' (Bereshit 49:27), where 'עד' refers to *fine spoils* (jewelry, ornaments — as in the spoils of Midyan), parallel to but distinct from 'שלל' (generic loot). The verse therefore reads: 'and this is the construction of the menorah — beaten work of gold, [including] the *ornaments* of its thigh and the *ornaments* of its blossom.' The chiddush: not only the menorah's large structural parts but even its fine decorative elements — the gevi'im, kaftorim, perachim — had to be מקשה, beaten from one piece, not separately attached. The verse legislates the precision of the artistry.