{"id":57687,"date":"2019-06-18T22:09:42","date_gmt":"2019-06-18T19:09:42","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/?p=57687"},"modified":"2023-01-11T08:27:46","modified_gmt":"2023-01-11T06:27:46","slug":"we-get-the-leaders-we-ask-for-and-that-we-deserve","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/en\/we-get-the-leaders-we-ask-for-and-that-we-deserve\/","title":{"rendered":"We Get The Leaders We Ask For – And That We Deserve"},"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":[384,402,839,885],"acf":{"old_id":"57687","type":"no","iframe":"","writer":36277,"related_cahpter":"244","type_929":"2","show_author_image":false,"old_create_date":"","old_url":"","post_main_content":{"description":"Who would not want the righteous rule exemplified by Samuel to continue? The people.","content":"

The valedictory address that Samuel gives at Gilgal on Saul\u2019s public appointment as king is pathos-filled and painful to read. On first reading, it can sound a little like the concession speech of a political candidate on election night which is so noble, magnanimous and dignified that you realize he or she was far worthier to fill the office in question than the actual winner.<\/span><\/p>\n

Except, that is not the right analogy. For this is not the concession speech of a candidate but of a political system. Samuel is acknowledging that the era of the Judges has come to an end. However selfless, devoted and principled he and some of his better predecessors had been in serving Israel, it has not been enough.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cWhose ox have I taken, or whose ass have I taken? Whom have I defrauded or whom have I robbed?\u201d (v3) Samuel demands, echoing Moshe\u2019s avowal of his own complete integrity in the face of Korach\u2019s rebellion (Num. 16:15).<\/span><\/p>\n

Rashi amplifies the prophet\u2019s question, describing how he rode his own donkey around the country when he went to judge the people rather than accepting favors, and even offered his own animals as sacrifices for others\u2019 atonement. \u00a0Samuel is a pure public servant, untainted by corruption and wholeheartedly dedicated to God and the people. His modest life-style, selflessness and dedication contrast embarrassingly with the habitual extravagance and rapacity of kings as described in chapter 8. Who would not want the righteous rule exemplified by Samuel to continue?<\/span><\/p>\n

But the people have decided. They want a king and their will is to be done. While God at first deplored the people\u2019s preference and saw it as a betrayal of divine leadership (I Samuel 8), once the decision is made, Providence gets behind it. The serendipitous meeting of Saul and Samuel in chapter 10 brought God\u2019s chosen candidate for the kingship to public notice.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cGod leads us in the path we wish to go,\u201d says the Talmud (Makkot 10b.). This is a more religious way of saying in a political context, \u201cwe get the leaders we deserve.\u201d God may disapprove, yet gives us the freedom to choose leaders and even systems that are not the best ones for achieving justice, fear of God and integrity in public life.<\/span><\/p>\n

But as Samuel concludes his speech, \u201cFor the sake of His great name, the LORD will never abandon His people, seeing that the LORD undertook to make you His people\u201d (v.22). The prophet promises that God will remain with the Jewish people and its leaders, rebuking them, guiding them and teaching them through hard experience so that ultimately they may \u201crevere the LORD and serve Him faithfully with all your heart\u201d (v.23).<\/span><\/p>\n","image":{"ID":57688,"id":57688,"title":"isam12-accept reject","filename":"isam12-accept-reject.png","filesize":0,"url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/isam12-accept-reject.png","link":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/en\/we-get-the-leaders-we-ask-for-and-that-we-deserve\/isam12-accept-reject\/","alt":"","author":"7","description":"","caption":"","name":"isam12-accept-reject","status":"inherit","uploaded_to":57687,"date":"2019-06-18 19:09:28","modified":"2021-02-21 14:50:57","menu_order":0,"mime_type":"image\/png","type":"image","subtype":"png","icon":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-includes\/images\/media\/default.png","width":1280,"height":640,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/isam12-accept-reject-150x150.png","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/isam12-accept-reject-300x150.png","medium-width":300,"medium-height":150,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/isam12-accept-reject-768x384.png","medium_large-width":768,"medium_large-height":384,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/isam12-accept-reject-1024x512.png","large-width":1024,"large-height":512,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/isam12-accept-reject.png","1536x1536-width":1280,"1536x1536-height":640,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/isam12-accept-reject.png","2048x2048-width":1280,"2048x2048-height":640,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/isam12-accept-reject-1200x600.png","post_full_size-width":1200,"post_full_size-height":600,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/isam12-accept-reject-840x420.png","home_baner-width":840,"home_baner-height":420}},"embedded_video":"","video_duration":"","show_fb_comments":true,"credit_media":""},"tile":{"top_caption":"","main_caption":"We Get The Leaders We Ask For - And That We Deserve","main_caption_size":"1","sub_caption":"Who would not want the righteous rule exemplified by Samuel to continue? 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