{"id":50854,"date":"2019-03-06T14:05:33","date_gmt":"2019-03-06T12:05:33","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/?p=50854"},"modified":"2022-09-29T07:52:11","modified_gmt":"2022-09-29T04:52:11","slug":"do-we-need-a-human-ruler","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/en\/do-we-need-a-human-ruler\/","title":{"rendered":"Do We Need A Human Ruler?"},"content":{"rendered":"
<\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[281],"tags":[835,839],"acf":{"old_id":"50854","type":"no","iframe":"","writer":48616,"related_cahpter":"170","type_929":"2","show_author_image":false,"old_create_date":"","old_url":"","post_main_content":{"description":"The ambiguities of the text, and how one word can change worlds","content":"

When I\u2019m asked questions like \u201cwhat does Judaism say about [insert subject]\u201d I get frustrated. Judaism is too complex to be taught while standing on one foot. There is no one Jewish answer to anything!<\/span><\/p>\n

This is true even within one chapter, such as Deut 17. If one were to ask \u201cwhat is chapter 17\u2019s perception of kingship? Does it present it as a positive or a negative? Is kingship the best kind of leadership, based on chapter 17?\u201d, I would not know what to answer.<\/span><\/p>\n

The laws of kingship appear in verses 14-20. Many commentators proudly focus on verses 18-20 where we learn that even a king is not above the law. This was, of course, a groundbreaking idea 2600 years ago. Just before that, in verses 16-17, we learn about the importance of moderation to a king. \u201cDon\u2019t have too many wives\u201d, \u201cdon\u2019t have too many horses\u201d. Again, another revolutionary idea back then. <\/span><\/p>\n

But the truth is, that I don\u2019t understand the law on the most basic level. Is a king a necessity or a compromise? Meaning is the law REQUIRING us to have a king or is the law creating guidelines IN CASE we ask for a king?<\/span><\/p>\n

The center of this confusion comes from the first word of this law the word is \u201c<\/span>\u05db\u05bc\u05b4\u05d9<\/span>\u201d – <\/span>ki<\/span><\/em>. This word is the opening clause to many biblical laws. The problem is that it has two meanings: One is \u201cif\u201d and one is \u201cwhen\u201d. So the first verse of the law can be read in two very distinct ways. If we read \u201cif\u201d then the law states \u201cIf you enter the land […] and [if you] say I will set a king over me…\u201d. If we read \u201cwhen\u201d then the law states \u201cwhen [or: after] you enter the land […] you will [or: should] say I will set a king over me.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

The first option makes it sound like a king is an option but not a necessity. The second option sounds like a king is a requirement. <\/span><\/p>\n

This is not just a hypothetical legal question. This changes the way we understand stories that echo this law and our own history. For example, how do we interpret Samuel\u2019s anger toward the people after they request a king in chapter 8 of the first book of Samuel? If the law requires a king, then his anger should be understood as coming from a self-promoting agenda. But if the law only allows a king to be elected if one is asked for, then his anger comes from his true belief that the people of Israel have only one God.<\/span><\/p>\n

I don\u2019t know what the right answer is here. But I do know that many times, one word can change worlds.<\/p>\n

<\/span><\/p>\n

Image: King David, by Giovanni Francesco Barbieri (il Guercino) c. 1768. Inscription reads: \u201cGlorious things are spoken of you, O city of God\u201d (Ps 87:3 ).<\/span><\/p>\n

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