ועשית את הקרשים למשכן עצי שטים עמדים
The Midrash (Shemos Rabba 35:2) derives an important lesson from the Torah’s requirement that wood used for the Mishkan be shittim, acacia wood. The acacia tree is a non-fruit bearing tree. Hashem said, “If a person wants to use wood to build for himself a house, he should take into account that the King of Kings, to whom everything belongs, chose non-fruit bearing trees as a source of wood for the Mishkan; likewise, man should do the same.” Just because we want to build a house for ourselves, it does not mean that we have the right to destroy a…