…a remarkable detail in the Book of Shoftim. The context is this: The Judge Gideon (c. 1169 BCE) has been waging war against the Midianites. He asks the people of the town of Succot to give his troops food. They are famished and exhausted. The people refuse. First, they say, win the war, and then we will give you food….
…march anew, off to the land where dreams come true. Shoftim: Judges rule with fair decree, justice for all, strong and free. The Book of Devarim: Devarim’s words, a covenant call, binding hearts, one and all. Parsha Practical Establishing a justice system is crucial for maintaining order and trust in any society. That much is clear. The book of Devarim…
Our parsha talks about monarchy: “When you enter the land that the Lord your God is giving you, and have taken possession of it and settled in it, and you say, “I will set a king over me, like all the surrounding nations,” set over you a king whom the Lord your God chooses.” (Deut. 17:14-15). So it should be…
There is no subject on which the Torah is more ambivalent than the issue of monarchy in particular, and politics in general. The starting point of any discussion of the subject is in today’s sedra: When you enter the land the Lord your God is giving you and have taken possession of it, and settled in it, and you say,…
In his enumeration of the various leadership roles within the nation that would take shape after his death, Moses mentions not only the priest/judge and king but also the prophet: “The Lord your God will raise up for you a prophet like me from among your own brothers. You must listen to him.” Moses would not be the last of…
The contribution of Tanach, the Hebrew Bible, to political thought is fundamental, but not well known. In this study I want to look at the institution of monarchy. What does it tell us about the nature of government as the Torah understands it? The command relating to a king opens with these words: “When you enter the land the Lord…
There is a fascinating detail in the passage about the king in this week’s parsha. The text says that “When he takes the throne of his kingdom, he must write for himself a copy of this Torah on a scroll before the levitical priests.” Deut. 17:18 He must “read it all the days of his life” so that he will…
…her freedom was opposed to the collective freedom because she was concerned about herself and completely unconcerned about the freedom – indeed the health and the safety – of others. You cannot have a society built on individual freedom. The Tanach tells us about such a society, and this is the last verse in Sefer Shoftim: “BaYamim hahem, ein melech…
…immodest, but there it is. So we had this wonderful vision of a world in which everyone would be literate, as Adin himself always pointed out. If you look at the eighth chapter of Sefer Shoftim, Gidon is about to fight a battle with the Midianites. He comes to a town called Sukkot. He says, ‘My men are hungry. Give…
…gift we can give to another human being. RE’EH: Never define yourself as a victim. There is always a choice, and by exercising the strength to choose, we can rise above fate. SHOFTIM: To lead is to serve. The greater your success, the harder you have to work to remember that you are there to serve others; they are not…