Midrasch zu Schemot 30:3

It is written: And they shall make an ark of acacia-wood (Exod. 25:10). R. Simeon the son of Yohai said: There are three crowns, the crown of Torah, of priesthood, and of kingship. How do we know about the crown of Torah? It is written concerning the ark: And thou shalt overlay it with pure gold (ibid., v. 11); we know about the crown of priesthood because it is written concerning the altar: A crown of gold (Exod. 37:26); and we know about the crown of kingship from the fact that it is written concerning the table: And made thereto a crown of gold (ibid., v. 11). Why is the word (in the preceding verse) written as zar (“stranger”) but read as zer (“crown”)? To teach us that if a man is worthy, it is his crown of gold, but if he is unworthy, he is to be considered a stranger among you.

...Another opinion: And they shall make an ark of gopher wood. And immediately after: and they shall make an ark of wood. What is written above? And take for Me gifts. Just as the Torah comes before everything, so too here, in the deeds of the Tabernacle, the Ark comes before any vessel. Just as light came before all the deeds of Creation, as it is written "And E-lohim said 'let there be light' (Genesis 1) so too regarding the Tabernacle, in the Torah that is called light, as it is written 'Because a mitzvah is a candle and Torah is light' (Proverbs 6), all the deeds came after the Torah. Another opinion: 'And they shall make the ark' - why regarding all these vessels it is written 'and you [singular] shall make' but regarding the ark it is written 'and they shall make'? R. Yehudah the son of Shalom said: The Holy One said to him [Moses] - all can come and busy themselves with the ark, so that all come and merit the Torah. And R. Shimon b. Yochai said: There are three crowns -- the crown of royalty, the crown of priesthood and the crown of Torah.The crown of royalty -- this is the shulchan (Table), about which it says, "a gold crown all around."The crown of priesthood -- this is the mizbe'ach (Altar), about which it says, "a gold crown all around."And the crown of Torah -- this is the aron (Ark), about which it says, "a gold crown [all around]"...Why does it say about all of them, "You shall make for it," whereas about the Ark it says, "You shall make on it?" [This is] to teach you that the crown of Torah is superior to all of them. If a person merits Torah -- it is as if he merited them all.