Sforno on Exodus
Sforno on Exodus 29:45
Sforno emphasizes that the Mishkan was designed to facilitate the Israelites' service to God, ensuring that their worship was conducted in a manner befitting His sanctity.
וְשָׁכַנְתִּי בְּתוֹךְ בְּנֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל. לְקַבֵּל עֲבוֹדָתָם בְּרָצוֹן וְלִשְׁמוֹעַ אֶת תְּפִלָּתָם. וְהָיִיתִי לָהֶם לֵאלֹהִים. מַנְהִיג עִנְיָנָם בִּלְתִי אֶמְצָעִי, וּמֵאוֹתוֹת הַשָּׁמַיִם לֹא יֵחָתּוּ, לִהְיוֹתָם נִכְבָּדִים לְפָנַי יוֹתֵר מִן הַשָּׁמַיִם שֶׁהַנְהָגָתָם עַל יְדֵי מְנִיעֵיהֶם, וּמִזֶּה יִתְחַיֵּב נִצְחִיּוּתָם:
ושכנתי בתוך בני ישראל. There to receive their service with goodwill and in order to listen to their prayers. והייתי להם לאלוקים, and I will supervise their affairs without resorting to an intermediary. They will have no reason to be afraid of what astrology portends, seeing that they (the Jewish people) are far more honoured by Me than are the celestial planets, etc. The very fact that I guide others’ fate only by means of agents, intermediaries, testifies to the eternal existence of the Jewish people.