The previous Torah portion concluded with the counting of the Leviim from the family of Kehat. This week’s Torah portion continues with the counting of the Leviim from the families of Gershon and Merari. The order, however, raises an obvious question. Gershon was the oldest of Levi’s sons. Shouldn’t his family have been counted first? Usually the Torah gives the firstborn special honor and recognition. Jewish history is full of firstborns getting extra attention. (Sometimes deserved, sometimes just because they yelled “I was here first!”)
So why here does the younger brother go ahead of the older one?
Medrash Rabbah explains that the family of Kehat was counted first because they carried the Aron Kodesh during the travels in the desert — the holiest item in the Mishkan, containing the Luchot themselves.
Still, it almost feels unfair to Gershon. If firstborn status is such a big deal, why not let Gershon carry the Aron (ark) and keep the birth-order hierarchy intact?
The Kli Yakar explains that Kehat earned this distinction because his family was the most devoted to Torah study. By giving Kehat the honor of carrying the Aron Kodesh — and counting them first — Hashem was teaching a powerful lesson: the greatest honor belongs not to the oldest, but to those who dedicate themselves to Torah.
Had Gershon carried the Aron, we might have assumed that honor belongs automatically to the firstborn. We would have missed the message entirely.
The Rambam famously teaches that there are three crowns in Judaism: the crown of Kehuna, the crown of Kingship, and the crown of Torah. The crown of Kehuna belongs only to descendants of Aharon. The crown of Kingship belongs to the tribe of Yehuda. But the crown of Torah is different — it is available to every Jew willing to work for it.
No pedigree required. No application process. No waiting list.
Of course, life is busy. Between work, family, errands, carpools, WhatsApp messages, and spending twenty minutes looking for the charger that was “right here a second ago,” finding time for Torah learning can feel difficult.
If we can carve out ten minutes a day to learn something meaningful, read a Jewish thought during lunch, or listen to a Torah podcast or shiur on the drive home we’ll be on our way to acquiring the crown of Torah.
Just last week we celebrated Shavuot and relived the giving of the Torah. Now comes the important part: taking the Torah with us into daily life.The crown of Torah is still sitting there waiting. And unlike most crowns, this one actually looks good on everyone.
Shabbat Shalom,
Rabbi Avi Parsons
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