The Sons of Levi

"These were the sons of Levi, by their names; Gershon, Kehat, and Merari." (Num. 3:17)

The Levites were divided into three clans, the descendents of Levi's three sons. These clans were assigned the job of erecting, dismantling, and transporting the different components of the Tabernacle when it had to be moved. The clan of Gershon was charged with the curtains of the Tabernacle and the veils of the enclosure; the clan of Merari was charged with the walls of the Tabernacle and the pillars of the enclosure; and the clan of Kehot carried the vessels used in the Tabernacle and the screen. The components...reflect…the spiritual Tabernacle we are to construct for G‑d…

These three divisions of the components of the Tabernacle reflect the three spiritual components of the spiritual Tabernacle we are to construct for G‑d within the context of our own lives. The rigid walls and pillars are the skeletal structure that provides the Tabernacle and its courtyard their form.

The basic, rigid structural foundation of our spiritual Tabernacle is our selfless devotion to G‑d's will. This devotion is born of the resentment we feel toward egocentricity and its empty promises of fulfillment, which leads us to turn instead to G‑d as the true reality. This facet of our spiritual life was personified by Merari, whose name is derived from the Hebrew word for "bitter", "mar".

The fluid curtains and veils of the Tabernacle and its courtyard are the pliant flesh that covers the skeleton. The flesh of our spiritual Tabernacle is our emotional involvement with G‑d, which flows naturally from our growing focus on G‑d as the only true reality. It is also our loving expression of this emotional relationship in performing His commandments. This aspect of spiritual life was personified by Gershon. The ark…is our guide for transforming both ourselves and reality…

The Tabernacle's furnishings are the instruments used for the specific activities for which the Tabernacle serves as a setting. In our spiritual Tabernacle, the furnishings are the particulars of how our relationship with G‑d changes our lives and enables us to spiritualize reality. The central feature of this component of the Tabernacle was the ark, which housed the Tablets of the Covenant, the quintessence of the Torah, which is our guide for transforming both ourselves and reality. This aspect of spiritual life was personified by Kehot.

In the Song at the Sea, the Tabernacle was referred to as "The Tabernacle which Your hands, O G‑d, have established" (Ex. 15:17). The phrase "Your hands" alludes to the three ways G‑d's hand is described in Scripture, describing the three basic ways G‑d acts in the world:

• the "great hand" (Ex. 14:31), signifying G‑d's kindness (chesed), the source of His beneficience

• the "strong hand" (Deut. 7:19), signifying G‑d's strength or severity (gevura)

• the "uplifted hand" (Ex. 14:8), signifying G‑d's beauty (tiferet)

It is upon these three hands that the Tabernacle rests.

Spiritually, the three Levite clans reflect these three hands in the service they performed in the sanctuary.

• Levi's first son, Gershon, personified the "great hand", since the long final nun with which his name is spelled depicts G‑d's bestowal of beneficence to the lowest levels, which is motivated by kindness.

• Merari, whose name is related to the word for "bitterness", personified the "strong hand" that metes out punishment.

• Kehot personified the "uplifted hand", since Kehotites carried (or "uplifted") the ark and the tablets on their shoulders, as opposed to the other sons, who were allowed to transport their respective parts of the Tabernacle on wagons.

Yocheved, Moses' mother and Levi's daughter, had three children: Miriam, Aaron, and Moses. These three children resembled Yocheved's three brothers, Gershon, Kehot, and Merari, since, according to the Talmud, children generally take after their mother's brothers (Bava Batra 110a). [Note: The reason for this is that women are intrinsically modest and therefore do not flaunt all their personality traits; the traits a woman inherits from her parents are therefore more visible in her parents' male children - her brothers - than in her.] Thus, Moses, Aaron, and Miriam also correspond to the three pillars of divine service:

• Moses, who received the Torah and is therefore associated with daat, which is in turn aligned with tiferet, resembled Kehot.

• Aaron, the "man of kindness", resembled Gershon.

• Miriam, whose name means "bitterness", resembled Merari.

Thus, the numerical value of Yocheved is 42, which is 3 X 14, 14 being the numerical value of the Hebrew word for "hand" ("yad"), alluding to the three "hands" that she bore.

[Adapted by Moshe Yakov Wisnefsky from Likutei Torah 3:20b-21a-21b; Torat Levi Yitzchak p. 292.
Copyright 2001 Chabad of California / http://www.LAchumash.org]