פרשת תרומה - כתר תורה מקורות

(10) They shall make an ark of acacia wood, two and a half cubits long, a cubit and a half wide, and a cubit and a half high.

Another matter, “they shall craft an Ark of acacia wood.” What is written above? “They shall take Me a gift” (Exodus 25:2). Immediately, “they shall craft an Ark of acacia wood.” Just as the Torah preceded everything, so too, in the crafting of the Tabernacle, the Ark preceded all the vessels. Just as light preceded all the acts of Creation, as it is written: “God said: Let there be light” (Genesis 1:3), in the Tabernacle as well, the crafting [needed to house the] Torah, which is called light, as it is written: “For the commandment is a lamp, the Torah is light” (Proverbs 6:23), preceded [the crafting of] all [other] vessels. Another matter, “they shall craft an Ark.” Why is it that regarding all [other] vessels, “you shall craft” is written, and regarding the Ark, “they shall craft” is written? Rabbi Yehuda ben Rabbi Shalom said: The Holy One blessed be He said to [Moses]: ‘Let everyone come and be involved in the Ark so that all of them will acquire the Torah.’ Rabbi Shimon ben Yoḥai said: There are three crowns: The crown of kingship, the crown of priesthood, and the crown of Torah. The crown of kingship, this is the table [for the showbread], in whose regard it is written: “A golden crown [zer] all around” (Exodus 25:24). The crown of priesthood, this is the altar, in whose regard it is written: “A golden crown [zer] all around” (Exodus 30:3). The crown of Torah, this is the Ark, in whose regard it is written: “A golden crown [zer]” (Exodus 25:11). Why is it written zar and pronounced zer? It is to say to you that if a person merits, they become a crown [zer] for him, but if not, they become estranged [zar]. Why is it written regarding all of them, “you shall craft for it” (Exodus 25:24; 30:3), and regarding the Ark, it is written: “you shall craft upon it”? It is to teach you that the crown of Torah is superior to all of them. If a person acquires Torah, it is as though he acquired all of them.

(1) וצפית אותו זהב טהור מבית ומחוץ תצפנו, “you are to overlay it with pure gold, from the inside and the outside you are to overlay it.” This verse is used by our sages (Yuma 72) to demand that Torah scholars must be able to demonstrate that they practice what they preach. They base this on the Ark which was gold on the inside as well as on the outside. Although no one actually saw the inside, it had to correspond to its exterior. Another verse which alludes to this subject is Job 29,14: “I clothed myself in righteousness and it robed me; Justice was my cloak and turban.” The repetition in this verse means that one’s inside must match the image one creates for oneself on the outside. Our sages add further on this subject: “why were the words of Torah compared to glass?, i.e. (Job, 28,17) “gold or glass cannot match its value?” Answer: just as glass is transparent and allows you to see not only the outside but also the interior, so bearers of Torah must be able to be equally transparent, not hiding character weakness not visible to their students or to their peers. (2) ועשית עליו זר זהב סביב, “you are to construct on it a golden crown all around it.” When the Torah issues similar instructions concerning the table and the altar, the wording is not עליו, ”on it,” but לו “for it.” The reason is that the table itself was a symbol of the “crown” of Royalty, whereas the altar was a symbol of the “crown” of priesthood (compare Avot 4,13). The “crown” of priest-hood as well as the “crown” of Royalty is acquired by its wearer at birth, through inheritance. The “crown” of Torah is not acquired by birth. The word לו implies that this crown is an integral part of the table or altar respectively, i.e. “it belongs.” Seeing that the crown of Torah has first to be earned by the eventual wearer, the word עליו, “upon him” indicates that it will be placed on the Torah scholar at the appropriate time, at his ordination. Hereditary Royalty in Israel was the exclusive right of Kings descended from David, whereas hereditary priesthood was reserved for the descendants of Aaron. The word לו in a similar sense is used by the Torah in connection with the duty of the King to write two Torah scrolls for himself. We read in Deut. 17,18 וכתב לו את משנה התורה וגו', “he is to write for himself two copies of the Torah, etc.” The Torah immediately (verse 20) continues to supply the reason for this by writing למען יאריך ימים על ממלכתו, “in order that the days of his dynasty be long ones, etc.” We find something similar in connection with the priesthood where the Torah writes in Numbers 25,13 after Pinchas had been elevated to the priesthood: והיתה לו ולזרעו אחריו, “and it shall be his and for his offspring after him a covenant of an eternal priesthood, etc.” Seeing that the crown on the Ark represents a different kind of concept, one based on יחוס עצמו, “personal achievement,” the preposition the Torah chose to use in connection with it is עליו instead of לו. (3) A Midrashic approach to this wording (Shemot Rabbah 34,2): the reason the Torah writes the word עליו in connection with the crown on top of the Ark as distinct from the way it describes the crowns of the table and the altar respectively, is that the crown of Torah is considered the most superior of the three (4) crowns mentioned in the Mishnah in Avot we quoted before. By writing the word עליו, “above,” the Torah indicates that he who has acquired the crown of Torah is as if he had also acquired the other crowns mentioned in that Mishnah. This thought is also expressed in the word סביב, “around it,” i.e. the crown of Torah is all-embracing. Note that the word זר for “crown” is spelled without the letter י. This is a hint that unless a person merits wearing this crown Torah is considered alien to him, i.e. זר, “strange, uninitiated.” [The assumption is that because of the vowel tzeyreh under the letter ז, the normal spelling of the word ought to have been זיר. Ed.]