The commandment to sanctify the Kohen implies that an emphasis must be made regarding the prestige of the Kohen and the honor due him. Perhaps, as the Kesav Sofer writes, people were often tempted to show disrespect towards the Kohanim, because the Kohanim were dependent upon other Jews for their livelihood, in the form of the twenty-four priestly tributes.
This tendency to disdain the Kohanim is the reason that the Torah stresses the role of the Kohanim as trustees of the sacrificial service. The nation must be cognizant that this service is the vehicle that attracts Hashem’s blessing over them. Thus, in reality the Kohanim give to the people much more than they receive in return. The people’s duty to pay homage to the holiness of the Kohanim, however, is not dependent upon the performance of their priestly functions. On the contrary, even after the cessation of ritual sacrifices, it remains our moral obligation to preserve the holiness of the Kohanim. This obligation is derived from the Torah‘s stress upon he shall remain holy. He shall be afforded primacy in all matters of holiness.
