{"id":100168,"date":"2018-07-09T18:03:19","date_gmt":"2018-07-09T15:03:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wall\/wall-1182\/"},"modified":"2022-02-02T19:46:00","modified_gmt":"2022-02-02T17:46:00","slug":"wall-1182","status":"publish","type":"wall","link":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/en\/wall\/wall-1182\/","title":{"rendered":"weekend-from-20250727-to-20250802"},"parent":0,"template":"","acf":{"type":"weekend","wall_id":"1182","date_from":"20250727","date_to":"20250802","book":"II Chronicles","books_group":"Writings","posts":[{"order":1,"id":"100328","color":"#f8ebe3","size":"2","name":"Bo: In Times Of Darkness, Can We Share Our Light? ","post_title":"Bo: In Times Of Darkness, Can We Share Our Light?","slug":"bo-in-times-of-darkness-can-we-share-our-light","old_id":"100328","type":"song","iframe":"","writer":{"id":100325,"post_title":"Yali Szulanski","slug":"yali-szulanski","old_id":"100325","first_name":"Yali ","last_name":"Szulanski ","description":"Yali Szulanski is a teacher, writer, spiritual educator, and life-long learner. She is the Youth Director at The Hebrew Institute of Riverdale and founder of The \"I Am\" Project\/\"\u05d0\u05e0\u05d9 \"\u05e4\u05e8\u05d5\u05d9\u05e7\u05d8 , an integrative program which introduces four-body (spiritual, emotional mental, and physical) self-care into the secular and Judaic classroom. Yali received her Masters in Psychology and Education from Teachers\u2019 College, Columbia University, and is currently enrolled in Yeshivat Maharat\u2019s Core Semicha program. \r\n\r\n","short_description":"Yali Szulanski is a teacher, writer, spiritual educator, and life-long learner. She is the Youth Director at The Hebrew Institute of Riverdale and founder of The \"I Am\" Project\/\"\u05d0\u05e0\u05d9 \"\u05e4\u05e8\u05d5\u05d9\u05e7\u05d8 , an integrative program which introduces four-body (spiritual, emotional mental, and physical) self-care into the secular and Judaic classroom. \r\n","credit":"","image_url":"","hide_writer":false,"link_for_pay":false,"image":{"id":100326,"alt":"","title":"yuli szulanski","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/12\/yuli-szulanski.jpg","width":250,"height":301,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/12\/yuli-szulanski-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/12\/yuli-szulanski-249x300.jpg","medium-width":249,"medium-height":300,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/12\/yuli-szulanski.jpg","medium_large-width":250,"medium_large-height":301,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/12\/yuli-szulanski.jpg","large-width":250,"large-height":301,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/12\/yuli-szulanski.jpg","1536x1536-width":250,"1536x1536-height":301,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/12\/yuli-szulanski.jpg","2048x2048-width":250,"2048x2048-height":301,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/12\/yuli-szulanski.jpg","post_full_size-width":250,"post_full_size-height":301,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/12\/yuli-szulanski.jpg","home_baner-width":250,"home_baner-height":301}},"tags":false},"related_cahpter":"1182","type_929":"2","show_author_image":false,"old_create_date":"","old_url":"","post_main_content_description":"The plague of darkness evokes imagery of desperation, fear, and of dark times. It is the plague, perhaps, that most echoes the time we live in now","post_main_content_content":"

Parashat Bo occurs in anticipation of Bne\u2019i Israel\u2019s exodus from Egypt. Here, the last three plagues coincide with a divine hardening of Pharaoh\u2019s heart to bring our ancestors into freedom. This journey, which brings us to Torah and mitzvot, is led by a beam of light that bursts forth after generations of darkness. The penultimate plague - where the Israelites enjoy light, while the Egyptians suffer thick, stifling darkness (Exodus 10:23), must have left many Israelites grappling with an existential crisis - of faith and the\u00a0 future. The plague of darkness evokes imagery of desperation, fear, and of dark times. <\/span>It is the plague, perhaps, that most echoes the time we live in now. The world currently oscillates between darkness and uncertainty and pockets of light. <\/span>\u00a0Yet while some experience this light, others still suffer. <\/span>When we aren\u2019t quite sure about what moves about in the shadows, we fear what is there - and what it wants from us. Sometimes, though, the unknown of the darkness can bring about the possibility of hope - that light lives somewhere, even if not with us in this moment.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

In a sense, the Israelites - and us - are given a chance at this renewal every seven years with Shmita. We are asked to think about our obligations to the environment that surrounds us, which expands out to the broader Jewish world, and to our neighbors in each of our communities. Shmita exists to evoke togetherness, cooperation, and the lifting up of others; yet in times of travail, how does one keep from only focusing on the self? On our own light?<\/span><\/p>\r\n

We live in a pandemic time, a reality of darkness that still envelops the Earth, morphing into deeper, harder to understand iterations. Even as light dawns, we will be left with the deep wounds of the deep disruption of the lives of millions of people, entire communities ravaged by housing insecurity, unemployment, and socioeconomic devastation, and the lingering trauma that we have yet to understand. The echoes of Parashat Bo in this shmita year implore us to look out into this uncomfortable darkness, and share from our light. It may manifest in nations caring for nations, neighbors for neighbors or simply in the <\/span>chesed<\/em> <\/span>of sharing light with those that cannot see what is in front of their eyes. We can\u00a0 work towards a world of cooperation, understanding, one where we emerge from darkness to freedom. <\/span><\/p>\r\n

This year is the shmita year: Shmita means a sabbatical year for the Earth but also for ourselves, our communities, and our world. Each week we continue to share thoughts on how the weekly parsha can help guide our thinking around shmita themes of work and rest, wealth and debt, responsible land use, fair labor practices, private and public property ownership, and physical and spiritual revitalization.<\/em><\/p>\r\n

See here for more information on the Hazon Shmita project, and its blogs.<\/a><\/p>","post_main_content_image":{"id":81608,"alt":"","title":"shmita","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/10\/shmita.jpg","width":711,"height":708,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/10\/shmita-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/10\/shmita-300x300.jpg","medium-width":300,"medium-height":300,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/10\/shmita.jpg","medium_large-width":711,"medium_large-height":708,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/10\/shmita.jpg","large-width":711,"large-height":708,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/10\/shmita.jpg","1536x1536-width":711,"1536x1536-height":708,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/10\/shmita.jpg","2048x2048-width":711,"2048x2048-height":708,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/10\/shmita.jpg","post_full_size-width":711,"post_full_size-height":708,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/10\/shmita-422x420.jpg","home_baner-width":422,"home_baner-height":420}},"post_main_content_embedded_video":"","post_main_content_video_duration":"","post_main_content_show_fb_comments":"1","post_main_content_credit_media":"","tile_top_caption":"A Weekly Series: The \"Shmitah Parasha\" Blog","tile_main_caption":"Bo: In Times Of Darkness, Can We Share Our Light?","tile_main_caption_size":"1","tile_sub_caption":"in conjunction with Hazon.org","tile_preview_embedded":"","tile_preview_image":{"id":81608,"alt":"","title":"shmita","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/10\/shmita.jpg","width":711,"height":708,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/10\/shmita-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/10\/shmita-300x300.jpg","medium-width":300,"medium-height":300,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/10\/shmita.jpg","medium_large-width":711,"medium_large-height":708,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/10\/shmita.jpg","large-width":711,"large-height":708,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/10\/shmita.jpg","1536x1536-width":711,"1536x1536-height":708,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/10\/shmita.jpg","2048x2048-width":711,"2048x2048-height":708,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/10\/shmita.jpg","post_full_size-width":711,"post_full_size-height":708,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/10\/shmita-422x420.jpg","home_baner-width":422,"home_baner-height":420}},"tile_preview_video":"","tile_external_link":"","tile_link_for_pay":"0","tile_tile_gallery_items":"","tile_credits":"","alternate_tile_top_caption":"","alternate_tile_main_caption":"","alternate_tile_main_caption_size":"1","alternate_tile_sub_caption":"","alternate_tile_hide_media":"0","tile_group_preview_image_url":"","tile_group_main_caption":"","tile_group_sub_caption":"","tile_group_popup_package_extra_content":"","tile_group_read_time":"","home_color":"","home_gallery_top":"","home_gallery_middle":"","home_gallery_book":"","home_gallery_bottom":"","seo_seo_title":"","seo_seo_description":"","seo_seo_default_title":"","seo_seo_default_description":"","links":false,"chapter_info":{"books_group":"Writings","book":"II Chronicles","chapter":false,"chapter_main_number":false,"date":false,"wall_id":"1182"},"link_for_pay":false,"tags":false},{"order":2,"id":"100348","color":"#e2f4fa","size":"1","name":"King Abijah ","post_title":"King Abijah","slug":"king-abijah","old_id":"100348","type":"no","iframe":"","writer":{"id":33877,"post_title":"Marc Bregman","slug":"marc-bregman","old_id":"33877","first_name":"Marc","last_name":"Bregman","description":"Marc Bregman received his Ph.D. from The Hebrew University in Jerusalem in 1991. He taught at the Hebrew Union College (Jerusalem), The Hebrew University in Jerusalem, the Schechter Institute for Judaic Studies in Jerusalem, and at the Ben-Gurion University in Beer Sheba, Israel. During 1993 he was Visiting Associate Professor at Yale University, and during 1996 he was the Stroum Professor of Jewish Studies and Visiting Research Fellow at the University of Washington in Seattle. During 2005, Bregman served as the Harry Starr Fellow in Judaica at Harvard University and was awarded a Teaching Fellowship at the Center for Advanced Judaic Studies at the University of Pennsylvania. He also has served as Forchheimer Visiting Professor in the Faculty of Humanities at The Hebrew University in Jerusalem. He is the author of The Tanhuma-Yelammedenu Literature: Studies in the Evolution of the Versions (Gorgias Press, 2003). In 2006, Bregman was appointed the Herman and Zelda Bernard Distinguished Professor of Jewish Studies at the University of North Carolina in Greensboro, where he also headed the program in Jewish Studies, until 2013. Bregman retired from UNCG as of July 31, 2017. He has now returned to Jerusalem where he is continuing his research and teaching activities.","credit":"","image_url":"","short_description":"Marc Bregman is the Herman and Zelda Bernard Distinguished Professor of Jewish Studies emeritus, at the University of North Carolina in Greensboro.","hide_writer":false,"link_for_pay":false,"image":{"id":33878,"alt":"Marc Bregman","title":"Marc Bregman","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/Marc-Bregman.jpg","width":361,"height":488,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/Marc-Bregman-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/Marc-Bregman-222x300.jpg","medium-width":222,"medium-height":300,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/Marc-Bregman.jpg","medium_large-width":361,"medium_large-height":488,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/Marc-Bregman.jpg","large-width":361,"large-height":488,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/Marc-Bregman.jpg","1536x1536-width":361,"1536x1536-height":488,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/Marc-Bregman.jpg","2048x2048-width":361,"2048x2048-height":488,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/Marc-Bregman.jpg","post_full_size-width":361,"post_full_size-height":488,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/Marc-Bregman-311x420.jpg","home_baner-width":311,"home_baner-height":420}},"tags":false},"related_cahpter":"906","type_929":"2","show_author_image":false,"old_create_date":"","old_url":"","post_main_content_description":"He married fourteen wives and begat twenty-two sons and sixteen daughters - but ruled for only three years\r\n\r\n","post_main_content_content":"

Our<\/span> chapter<\/span><\/a> deals entirely with the reign of King Abijah, who ruled over Judah for just three years (915\u2013913 BCE) after the death of his father King Rehoboam, who was the son and successor of King Solomon. In<\/span> I Kings Chapter 15<\/span><\/a>, Abijah is referred to as Abijam. Indeed, there are nine different persons named Abijah in the Hebrew Bible. The popularity of this name may be because in Hebrew <\/span>Avi-Yah<\/span><\/em>, means \u201cYa (the Lord) is my father.\u201d In the Book of Kings, Abijah is portrayed as consistently wicked (see particularly<\/span> I Kings 15:3<\/span><\/a>). However, in the more extensive narrative of Abijah\u2019s short reign, here in Chronicles, he is portrayed more sympathetically.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\r\n

Though<\/span> Kings<\/span><\/a> merely mentions that there was war between Abijah and Jeroboam, the first king of the Northern Kingdom of Israel,<\/span> Chronicles<\/span><\/a> provides a detailed description of this war. The Chronicles narrative notes that vast forces of hundreds of thousands of valiant, handpicked warriors were engaged in battle. In this portrayal of the war between the kingdoms of Judah and Israel, King Abijah, standing atop<\/span> Mount Zemaraim<\/span><\/a> \u201cthat is in the hill country of Ephraim\u201d, delivers a powerful address to King Jeroboam and his assembled troops,<\/span> concluding<\/span><\/a>: \u201cO children of Israel, do not fight the Lord God of your fathers, because you will not succeed\u201d. In what<\/span> follows<\/span><\/a>, King Abijah and his Judean troops crush the Israelite army, and King Jeroboam of Israel is struck down by God and dies.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

Our chapter<\/span> concludes<\/span><\/a> by informing us that \u201cAbijah grew powerful; he married fourteen wives and begat twenty-two sons and sixteen daughters\u201d, that the events of his reign are \u201care recorded in the <\/span>midrash<\/span><\/i> of the prophet Iddo\u201d and finally that King Abijah \u201cslept with his fathers and was buried in the City of David\u201d.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

Josephus<\/span><\/a> preserves an extensive portrayal of the reign of King Abijan and adds that, having ruled for only three years, he lived only briefly to enjoy the fruits of his remarkable military victory.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

In<\/span> Midrash Leviticus Rabbah<\/span><\/a> the Rabbinic Sages ponder why such a powerful Judean king ruled so briefly. On the basis of<\/span> II Chronicles 13:17<\/span><\/a>, where it is stated that \u201cAbijah and his army inflicted a severe defeat (<\/span>makah rabah<\/span><\/em>) on 500,000 picked men of Israel\u201d, the Midrash asserts that King Abijah of Judah prevented the halakhically required burial of the slain Israelite troops. Moreover, after the<\/span> conquest of Bethel<\/span><\/a>, Abijah did not destroy the idolatrous golden calves worshiped there, as would have been required according to<\/span> Deut. 7:25<\/span><\/a>. The sages assert that it was improper for Abijah to accuse all of Israel of opposing the Lord by worshiping the golden calves at Bethel (<\/span>II Chronicles 13:8)<\/span><\/a>. Rabbi Shimon ben Laqish suggests that Abijah\u2019s brief reign was a result of his having insulted the prophet<\/span> Ahijah the Shilonite<\/span><\/a> by including him among the \u201criffraff and Sons of Belial\u201d who had gathered around the rebel King Rehoboam (<\/span>II Chronicles 13:7<\/span><\/a>).<\/span><\/p>\r\n

image:\u00a0Guillaume Rouille - Promptuarii Iconum Insigniorum \/ wikipedia<\/p>","post_main_content_image":{"id":100349,"alt":"","title":"2chron13-abijam","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/png","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/2chron13-abijam.png","width":391,"height":391,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/2chron13-abijam-150x150.png","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/2chron13-abijam-300x300.png","medium-width":300,"medium-height":300,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/2chron13-abijam.png","medium_large-width":391,"medium_large-height":391,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/2chron13-abijam.png","large-width":391,"large-height":391,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/2chron13-abijam.png","1536x1536-width":391,"1536x1536-height":391,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/2chron13-abijam.png","2048x2048-width":391,"2048x2048-height":391,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/2chron13-abijam.png","post_full_size-width":391,"post_full_size-height":391,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/2chron13-abijam.png","home_baner-width":391,"home_baner-height":391}},"post_main_content_embedded_video":"","post_main_content_video_duration":"","post_main_content_show_fb_comments":"1","post_main_content_credit_media":"","tile_top_caption":"","tile_main_caption":"King Abijah","tile_main_caption_size":"1","tile_sub_caption":"He married fourteen wives and begat twenty-two sons and sixteen daughters - 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In 2 Chronicles 13, we read about the reign of Abijah over the Kingdom of Judah. At the end of the chapter, there is a verse that tells the reader where to find additional information about King Abijah: \u201cThe other events of Abijah\u2019s reign, his conduct and his acts, are recorded in the story of the prophet Iddo\u201d (13:22).<\/span><\/p>\r\n

This verse is not very surprising. There are mentions of the histories of other kings \u2013 for example, in the previous chapter it says that the \u201cdeeds of Rehoboam, early and late, are recorded in the chronicles of the prophet Shemaiah and Iddo the seer\u201d (12:15).<\/span><\/p>\r\n

But what is noteworthy about our verse is the Hebrew words translated here as \u201cstory\u201d: <\/span>midrash<\/span><\/em>. Other translations offer \u201ctales,\u201d \u201ccommentary\u201d and \u201cnarration.\u201d However, most readers will recognize the word <\/span>midrash<\/span><\/em>\u00a0as the rabbinic interpretation and exegesis of biblical texts, which became very popular after the destruction of the Second Temple, centuries after this verse was written. The only other mention of <\/span>midrash<\/span><\/em>\u00a0in the Bible is also in our book (2 Chronicles 24:27), also summarizing the history of a king. Neither mean <\/span>midrash<\/span><\/em>\u00a0in the familiar sense to us today.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\r\n

So how did the word change?<\/span><\/p>\r\n

To get to an answer, we need to look at <\/span>darash<\/span><\/em>, the root of the word <\/span>midrash<\/span><\/em>. Unlike <\/span>midrash<\/span><\/em>, the verb <\/span>darash<\/span><\/em>\u00a0appears (in various forms) over 150 times, throughout the entire Bible. Its meanings include \u201cto seek,\u201d \u201cto search\u201d and \u201cto inquire of.\u201d In Aramaic, the root means \u201cto examine, instruct, teach.\u201d And perhaps influenced by this Aramaic meaning, Rabbinic Hebrew adopted the sense of \u201cto expound\u201d and the word <\/span>midrash<\/span><\/em>\u00a0took on the meaning of homiletical interpretation.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

We do see <\/span>darash<\/span><\/em>\u00a0meaning \u201cto study\u201d in another late Biblical book: \u201cFor Ezra had dedicated himself to study (<\/span>lidrosh<\/span><\/em>) the Teaching of the L<\/span>ORD<\/span> so as to observe it, and to teach laws and rules to Israel\u201d (Ezra 7:10).<\/span><\/p>\r\n

Some scholars suggest that in earlier Biblical books, people would seek out God via prophets. But in Ezra\u2019s time, as prophecy began to fade, they would search out God\u2019s will by studying His texts.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

Others say look at verses where <\/span>darash<\/span><\/em>\u00a0meant \u201cto examine,\u201d like Leviticus 10:16 and Deuteronomy 13:15. They see a progression from examining testimony to examining Biblical texts through study.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

Whatever the origin, it is certainly fitting that as we read the final book of the Bible, we see evidence of the growing centrality of interpreting the Biblical texts.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

 <\/p>","post_main_content_image":{"id":98207,"alt":"","title":"ez7-midrash","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/ez7-midrash.jpeg","width":1361,"height":1116,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/ez7-midrash-150x150.jpeg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/ez7-midrash-300x246.jpeg","medium-width":300,"medium-height":246,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/ez7-midrash-768x630.jpeg","medium_large-width":768,"medium_large-height":630,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/ez7-midrash-1024x840.jpeg","large-width":1024,"large-height":840,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/ez7-midrash.jpeg","1536x1536-width":1361,"1536x1536-height":1116,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/ez7-midrash.jpeg","2048x2048-width":1361,"2048x2048-height":1116,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/ez7-midrash-1200x984.jpeg","post_full_size-width":1200,"post_full_size-height":984,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/ez7-midrash-512x420.jpeg","home_baner-width":512,"home_baner-height":420}},"post_main_content_embedded_video":"","post_main_content_video_duration":"","post_main_content_show_fb_comments":"1","post_main_content_credit_media":"","tile_top_caption":"","tile_main_caption":"The Roots Of Midrash","tile_main_caption_size":"1","tile_sub_caption":"A progression from testimony to text","tile_preview_embedded":"","tile_preview_image":{"id":98207,"alt":"","title":"ez7-midrash","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/ez7-midrash.jpeg","width":1361,"height":1116,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/ez7-midrash-150x150.jpeg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/ez7-midrash-300x246.jpeg","medium-width":300,"medium-height":246,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/ez7-midrash-768x630.jpeg","medium_large-width":768,"medium_large-height":630,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/ez7-midrash-1024x840.jpeg","large-width":1024,"large-height":840,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/ez7-midrash.jpeg","1536x1536-width":1361,"1536x1536-height":1116,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/ez7-midrash.jpeg","2048x2048-width":1361,"2048x2048-height":1116,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/ez7-midrash-1200x984.jpeg","post_full_size-width":1200,"post_full_size-height":984,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/ez7-midrash-512x420.jpeg","home_baner-width":512,"home_baner-height":420}},"tile_preview_video":"","tile_external_link":"","tile_link_for_pay":"0","tile_tile_gallery_items":"","tile_credits":"","alternate_tile_top_caption":"","alternate_tile_main_caption":"","alternate_tile_main_caption_size":"1","alternate_tile_sub_caption":"","alternate_tile_hide_media":"0","tile_group_preview_image_url":"","tile_group_main_caption":"","tile_group_sub_caption":"","tile_group_popup_package_extra_content":"","tile_group_read_time":"","home_color":"","home_gallery_top":"","home_gallery_middle":"","home_gallery_book":"","home_gallery_bottom":"","seo_seo_title":"","seo_seo_description":"","seo_seo_default_title":"","seo_seo_default_description":"","links":false,"chapter_info":{"books_group":"Writings","book":"II Chronicles","chapter":"13","chapter_main_number":"906","date":"20290218","wall_id":"906"},"link_for_pay":false,"tags":false},{"order":4,"id":"100376","color":"#efefef","size":"1","name":"Alternatives To Native Altars ","post_title":"Alternatives To Native Altars","slug":"alternatives-to-native-altars","old_id":"100376","type":"no","iframe":"","writer":{"id":78133,"post_title":"Josh Blechner","slug":"josh-blechner","old_id":"78133","first_name":"Josh ","last_name":"Blechner ","description":"Josh first finished the Tanach during Yeshiva in Mevaseret Zion. He and his daughter studied the Tanach again for her bat mitzvah. Josh has taught many classes on Tanach throughout the years and currently in the New Rochelle 929 group. When not studying for 929, Josh works as an in-house lawyer in New Jersey.","short_description":"Josh has taught many classes on Tanach throughout the years and currently in the New Rochelle 929 group, and is an in-house attorney in New Jersey. ","credit":"","image_url":"","hide_writer":false,"link_for_pay":false,"image":{"id":78134,"alt":"","title":"josh blechner","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/josh-blechner.jpg","width":276,"height":351,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/josh-blechner-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/josh-blechner-236x300.jpg","medium-width":236,"medium-height":300,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/josh-blechner.jpg","medium_large-width":276,"medium_large-height":351,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/josh-blechner.jpg","large-width":276,"large-height":351,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/josh-blechner.jpg","1536x1536-width":276,"1536x1536-height":351,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/josh-blechner.jpg","2048x2048-width":276,"2048x2048-height":351,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/josh-blechner.jpg","post_full_size-width":276,"post_full_size-height":351,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/josh-blechner.jpg","home_baner-width":276,"home_baner-height":351}},"tags":false},"related_cahpter":"907","type_929":"2","show_author_image":false,"old_create_date":"","old_url":"","post_main_content_description":"Asa was incensed at the incense stands","post_main_content_content":"

\u201cHe abolished the alien altars and shrines; he smashed the pillars and cut down the Ashera trees [sacred posts]. He ordered Judah to turn to the LORD God of their fathers and to observe the Teaching and the Commandment. He abolished the shrines, and the incense stands throughout the cities of Judah, and the kingdom was untroubled under him\u201d (14:2-4).\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\r\n

Why does the text mention twice that Asa destroyed the shrines? The exact same Hebrew word appears in both verses, <\/span>bamot<\/span><\/em>. Metzudat David seems to pick up on this issue and explains that the word <\/span>bamot<\/span><\/em> here is used to describe the house of the idol worship. The first verse is the house of worship for the Ashera tree worship and in the second verse, the <\/span>bamot<\/em> <\/span>are the houses of worship for the incense shrines. The only issue here is that bamot<\/em> throughout Tanach refers to the homemade backyard altars. It would seem odd that now the text would shift the meaning.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\r\n

There is another difference between the two verses that may offer some insight. In the first verse, Asa simply destroys the altars and <\/span>bamot<\/span><\/em>. Then he asks all of Judah to turn to God. Then he abolishes the shrines and <\/span>bamot throughout the cities of Judah<\/span><\/em>.<\/span><\/i> The third verse describes Asa\u2019s actions after he asks Judah to turn toward God. The first verse, therefore, must have been Asa\u2019s actions in areas outside the cities of Judah. This could have been in borderlands or areas recently conquered. He then turns his sights on his own people. When he abolishes these <\/span>bamot<\/span><\/i>, then God makes sure there is peace in the land. The lesson is that it was not good enough to make an outward show in the borderlands. Asa needed to show God that he was willing to do the hard work at home of destroying these <\/span>bamot<\/span><\/em>.<\/em>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\r\n

image:\u00a0Kudurru (stele) of King Melishipak I (1186\u20131172 BC), Louvre \/ wikipedia<\/p>","post_main_content_image":{"id":100377,"alt":"","title":"2chron14-idolotry-Kudurru_Melishipak","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/2chron14-idolotry-Kudurru_Melishipak.jpg","width":800,"height":970,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/2chron14-idolotry-Kudurru_Melishipak-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/2chron14-idolotry-Kudurru_Melishipak-247x300.jpg","medium-width":247,"medium-height":300,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/2chron14-idolotry-Kudurru_Melishipak-768x931.jpg","medium_large-width":768,"medium_large-height":931,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/2chron14-idolotry-Kudurru_Melishipak.jpg","large-width":800,"large-height":970,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/2chron14-idolotry-Kudurru_Melishipak.jpg","1536x1536-width":800,"1536x1536-height":970,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/2chron14-idolotry-Kudurru_Melishipak.jpg","2048x2048-width":800,"2048x2048-height":970,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/2chron14-idolotry-Kudurru_Melishipak.jpg","post_full_size-width":800,"post_full_size-height":970,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/2chron14-idolotry-Kudurru_Melishipak-346x420.jpg","home_baner-width":346,"home_baner-height":420}},"post_main_content_embedded_video":"","post_main_content_video_duration":"","post_main_content_show_fb_comments":"1","post_main_content_credit_media":"","tile_top_caption":"","tile_main_caption":"Alternatives To Native Altars","tile_main_caption_size":"1","tile_sub_caption":"Asa was incensed at the incense stands","tile_preview_embedded":"","tile_preview_image":{"id":100377,"alt":"","title":"2chron14-idolotry-Kudurru_Melishipak","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/2chron14-idolotry-Kudurru_Melishipak.jpg","width":800,"height":970,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/2chron14-idolotry-Kudurru_Melishipak-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/2chron14-idolotry-Kudurru_Melishipak-247x300.jpg","medium-width":247,"medium-height":300,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/2chron14-idolotry-Kudurru_Melishipak-768x931.jpg","medium_large-width":768,"medium_large-height":931,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/2chron14-idolotry-Kudurru_Melishipak.jpg","large-width":800,"large-height":970,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/2chron14-idolotry-Kudurru_Melishipak.jpg","1536x1536-width":800,"1536x1536-height":970,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/2chron14-idolotry-Kudurru_Melishipak.jpg","2048x2048-width":800,"2048x2048-height":970,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/2chron14-idolotry-Kudurru_Melishipak.jpg","post_full_size-width":800,"post_full_size-height":970,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/2chron14-idolotry-Kudurru_Melishipak-346x420.jpg","home_baner-width":346,"home_baner-height":420}},"tile_preview_video":"","tile_external_link":"","tile_link_for_pay":"0","tile_tile_gallery_items":"","tile_credits":"","alternate_tile_top_caption":"","alternate_tile_main_caption":"","alternate_tile_main_caption_size":"1","alternate_tile_sub_caption":"","alternate_tile_hide_media":"0","tile_group_preview_image_url":"","tile_group_main_caption":"","tile_group_sub_caption":"","tile_group_popup_package_extra_content":"","tile_group_read_time":"","home_color":"","home_gallery_top":"","home_gallery_middle":"","home_gallery_book":"","home_gallery_bottom":"","seo_seo_title":"","seo_seo_description":"","seo_seo_default_title":"","seo_seo_default_description":"","links":false,"chapter_info":{"books_group":"Writings","book":"II Chronicles","chapter":"14","chapter_main_number":"907","date":"20290219","wall_id":"907"},"link_for_pay":false,"tags":false},{"order":5,"id":"100393","color":"#f2e9df","size":"1","name":"The King And His Subjects ","post_title":"The King And His Subjects","slug":"the-king-and-his-subjects","old_id":"100393","type":"no","iframe":"","writer":{"id":62571,"post_title":"Yaakov Bieler","slug":"yaakov-bieler","old_id":"62571","first_name":"Yaakov ","last_name":"Bieler ","description":"Rabbi Yaakov Bieler has been involved in Jewish education and the synagogue Rabbinate in New York, NY and Silver Spring, MD since being ordained by Yeshiva University in 1974. He has lectured and written extensively on Modern Orthodoxy, and blogs daily at https:\/\/yaakovbieler.wordpress.com ","short_description":"Rabbi Yaakov Bieler has been involved in Jewish education and the synagogue Rabbinate in New York, NY and Silver Spring, MD since being ordained by Yeshiva University. ","credit":"","image_url":"","hide_writer":false,"link_for_pay":false,"image":{"id":62572,"alt":"","title":"OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/yaakov-bieler.jpg","width":141,"height":180,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/yaakov-bieler-141x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":141,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/yaakov-bieler.jpg","medium-width":141,"medium-height":180,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/yaakov-bieler.jpg","medium_large-width":141,"medium_large-height":180,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/yaakov-bieler.jpg","large-width":141,"large-height":180,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/yaakov-bieler.jpg","1536x1536-width":141,"1536x1536-height":180,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/yaakov-bieler.jpg","2048x2048-width":141,"2048x2048-height":180,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/yaakov-bieler.jpg","post_full_size-width":141,"post_full_size-height":180,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/yaakov-bieler.jpg","home_baner-width":141,"home_baner-height":180}},"tags":false},"related_cahpter":"908","type_929":"2","show_author_image":false,"old_create_date":"","old_url":"","post_main_content_description":"He was wholehearted. Them? Not so much\r\n\r\n","post_main_content_content":"

Chapter 15 notes that the beginning of Asa\u2019s righteous rule as king over Judah and Benjamin, was marked by his taking seriously the prophecy of Azariah, who encouraged him to restore the Torah \u00a0 within his kingdom: <\/span>\u201c<\/b>the LORD is with you as long as you are with Him. If you turn to Him, He will respond to you, but if you forsake Him, He will forsake you\u201d (verse 2).<\/span><\/p>\r\n

Asa proceeded to enact an activist agenda that included removing \u201cthe abominations from the entire land of Judah and Benjamin and from the cities that he had captured in the hill country of Ephraim. He restored the altar of the LORD in front of the porch of the LORD\u201d (verse 8).<\/span><\/p>\r\n

However, the text also notes something that Asa did not do, \u201cthe shrines (<\/span>bamot<\/span><\/i>), indeed, were not abolished in Israel\u201d (verse 17), and yet, nevertheless, \u201cAsa was wholehearted (<\/span>with the LORD<\/span><\/i>) all his life\u201d (ibid.).<\/span><\/p>\r\n

Isn\u2019t verse 17 self-contradictory? That is if Asa did not eradicate something that was considered an abomination, how can the text say about him that he was wholehearted?<\/span><\/p>\r\n

Malbim draws a distinction between the King and his constituents with respect to faith and observance:<\/span><\/p>\r\n

The hearts of the people were not appropriately wholehearted, but the heart of Asa was wholehearted\u2014he (<\/span>Asa<\/span><\/i>) did not sacrifice at the shrines. On the contrary, he brought the sacrifices of his father to the Temple to support his rule. And this was the opposite of those who sacrificed at shrines who would leave their sacrifices in the temples of the shrines.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

Apparently, even when the leader of a community personally models proper behavior and belief, there is no guarantee that his followers will do the same. What individuals practice in secret cannot be attributed to the leader. And rather than blame the king for his people\u2019s shortcomings, assuming that he has made the requisite effort to at least outwardly guide them correctly, his reputation as a righteous individual is assured.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\r\n

For instance, the continuation of underground witchcraft, despite the monarch\u2019s best efforts at eradicating it, is evidenced by the woman of Endor\u2019s suspicious comments to that monarch, King Saul, who has been reduced to consulting her in a desperate attempt to summon up the spirit of Samuel: \u201cYou know what Saul has done, how he has banned [the use of] ghosts and familiar spirits in the land\u2026\u201d (I Samuel 28:9).<\/span><\/p>\r\n

In this regard, Asa becomes an exemplar of Deuteronomy 29:28: \u201cConcealed acts concern the LORD our God; but with overt acts, it is for us and our children ever to apply all the provisions of this Teaching.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\r\n

 <\/p>","post_main_content_image":{"id":53737,"alt":"","title":"jo11-hard-heart","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/png","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/jo11-hard-heart.png","width":330,"height":190,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/jo11-hard-heart-150x150.png","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/jo11-hard-heart-300x173.png","medium-width":300,"medium-height":173,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/jo11-hard-heart.png","medium_large-width":330,"medium_large-height":190,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/jo11-hard-heart.png","large-width":330,"large-height":190,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/jo11-hard-heart.png","1536x1536-width":330,"1536x1536-height":190,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/jo11-hard-heart.png","2048x2048-width":330,"2048x2048-height":190,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/jo11-hard-heart.png","post_full_size-width":330,"post_full_size-height":190,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/jo11-hard-heart.png","home_baner-width":330,"home_baner-height":190}},"post_main_content_embedded_video":"","post_main_content_video_duration":"","post_main_content_show_fb_comments":"1","post_main_content_credit_media":"","tile_top_caption":"","tile_main_caption":"The King And His Subjects","tile_main_caption_size":"1","tile_sub_caption":"He was wholehearted. Them? Not so much","tile_preview_embedded":"","tile_preview_image":{"id":53737,"alt":"","title":"jo11-hard-heart","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/png","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/jo11-hard-heart.png","width":330,"height":190,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/jo11-hard-heart-150x150.png","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/jo11-hard-heart-300x173.png","medium-width":300,"medium-height":173,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/jo11-hard-heart.png","medium_large-width":330,"medium_large-height":190,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/jo11-hard-heart.png","large-width":330,"large-height":190,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/jo11-hard-heart.png","1536x1536-width":330,"1536x1536-height":190,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/jo11-hard-heart.png","2048x2048-width":330,"2048x2048-height":190,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/jo11-hard-heart.png","post_full_size-width":330,"post_full_size-height":190,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/jo11-hard-heart.png","home_baner-width":330,"home_baner-height":190}},"tile_preview_video":"","tile_external_link":"","tile_link_for_pay":"0","tile_tile_gallery_items":"","tile_credits":"","alternate_tile_top_caption":"","alternate_tile_main_caption":"","alternate_tile_main_caption_size":"1","alternate_tile_sub_caption":"","alternate_tile_hide_media":"0","tile_group_preview_image_url":"","tile_group_main_caption":"","tile_group_sub_caption":"","tile_group_popup_package_extra_content":"","tile_group_read_time":"","home_color":"","home_gallery_top":"","home_gallery_middle":"","home_gallery_book":"","home_gallery_bottom":"","seo_seo_title":"","seo_seo_description":"","seo_seo_default_title":"","seo_seo_default_description":"","links":false,"chapter_info":{"books_group":"Writings","book":"II Chronicles","chapter":"15","chapter_main_number":"908","date":"20290220","wall_id":"908"},"link_for_pay":false,"tags":false},{"order":6,"id":"100397","color":"#f6edf6","size":"1","name":"The Gevira: Queen Mother And Cultic Leader? ","post_title":"The Gevira: Queen Mother And Cultic Leader?","slug":"the-gevira-queen-mother-and-cultic-leader","old_id":"100397","type":"no","iframe":"","writer":{"id":92960,"post_title":"Calev Ben-Dor","slug":"calev-ben-dor","old_id":"92960","first_name":"Calev ","last_name":"Ben-Dor ","description":"Having grown up in London, Calev Ben-Dor now lives in Jerusalem with his family. He writes and teaches about Israel and Judaism and is involved in a Whatsapp facilitated 929 learning group with members from across the world.","short_description":"Calev Ben-Dor lives in Jerusalem and writes and teaches about Israel and Judaism.","credit":"","image_url":"","hide_writer":false,"link_for_pay":false,"image":{"id":92962,"alt":"","title":"calev ben dor","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/05\/calev-ben-dor-1.jpg","width":428,"height":414,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/05\/calev-ben-dor-1-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/05\/calev-ben-dor-1-300x290.jpg","medium-width":300,"medium-height":290,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/05\/calev-ben-dor-1.jpg","medium_large-width":428,"medium_large-height":414,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/05\/calev-ben-dor-1.jpg","large-width":428,"large-height":414,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/05\/calev-ben-dor-1.jpg","1536x1536-width":428,"1536x1536-height":414,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/05\/calev-ben-dor-1.jpg","2048x2048-width":428,"2048x2048-height":414,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/05\/calev-ben-dor-1.jpg","post_full_size-width":428,"post_full_size-height":414,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/05\/calev-ben-dor-1.jpg","home_baner-width":428,"home_baner-height":414}},"tags":false},"related_cahpter":"908","type_929":"2","show_author_image":false,"old_create_date":"","old_url":"","post_main_content_description":"The earthly counterpart of Asherah, the king's heavenly mother\r\n\r\n","post_main_content_content":"

In 1967, during an excavation in Khirbet el-Qom, some 10 ten kilometers southeast of Lachish, American archeologist William Dever uncovered an inscription alluding to the biblical God of Israel and the idol Asherah, an ancient West Semitic goddess (and also a wooden cult object associated with her worship) considered consort of the supreme god.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

Several years later, in Kuntillet Ajrud in the eastern Sinai, a Tel Aviv University archeologist, Ze\u2019ev Meshel, found texts written around 800 BCE expressing something even more extraordinary:<\/span><\/p>\r\n

\"I bless you by God [Y,H,V,H] of Samaria and by his Asherah.\"<\/span><\/p>\r\n

Seemingly, both God as king, and Ashera as consort formed part of worship in ancient Israel.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

In fact, the Tanach says as much. King Asa may have tried to destroy Ashera, but over a hundred years later, King Hezekiah is trying to rid the kingdom of these idols. Three generations after that, Josiah reportedly cut down Ashera statues in the Temple.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

This can help us better understand what happens in Chapter 15:<\/span><\/p>\r\n

He [Asa] also deposed Maacah mother of King Asa from the rank of <\/span>gevira<\/em> <\/span>(queen mother), because she had made an abominable thing for Asherah. Asa cut down her abominable thing, reduced it to dust, and burned it in the Wadi Kidron.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

Academics argue over the extent to which the <\/span>gevira<\/span><\/em> was an informal position or possessed institutionalized status. Some even suggest it involved a cultic component. In \"The Queen Mother and the Cult in Ancient Israel\", Susan Ackerman suggests something remarkable \u2013 that the <\/span>gevira\u2019s<\/span><\/em> role in the eyes of the people was to lead worship of Ashera.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

\u201cAs the human mother of the king\u201d Ackerman writes, \u201cthe queen mother could be perceived as the earthly counterpart of Asherah, the king's heavenly mother. The queen mother might even be considered the human representative, even surrogate, of Asherah.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\r\n

An identification of the queen mother with Asherah \u201ccould give to the <\/span>gevira<\/span><\/em> power and authority which, like the king's, originate in the world of the divine. Such a divine legitimization would then allow the queen mother to function as the second most powerful figure in the royal court, superseded only by her son, the king.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\r\n

Maacha was obviously charismatic, savvy, sophisticated and politically astute. Great granddaughter of a king (Talmai of Gehsur), granddaughter to a king (David), daughter to a prince who sought the crown (Absalom), and wife of a king (Rehoboam\u2019s favorite out of 18!). Possessing as much (if not more) royal blood than Queen Victoria, Maacha maintained her position as <\/span>gevira<\/em> <\/span>during the reigns of her son and grandson.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

It thus shouldn\u2019t be surprising that as <\/span>gevira<\/span><\/em> Maacha was a leading worshiper of Ashera. Not only was it commonplace amongst most of Israel, but she may have been considered the kingdom\u2019s earthly embodiment of the divine\u2019s apparent consort.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

image: Figurine of Ashtoret-Tanit, from the Hecht Museum, CC BY-SA\u00a03.0 \/ wikipedia<\/p>","post_main_content_image":{"id":100400,"alt":"","title":"2chron15-ashera","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/2chron15-ashera.jpg","width":800,"height":1200,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/2chron15-ashera-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/2chron15-ashera-200x300.jpg","medium-width":200,"medium-height":300,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/2chron15-ashera-683x1024.jpg","medium_large-width":683,"medium_large-height":1024,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/2chron15-ashera-683x1024.jpg","large-width":683,"large-height":1024,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/2chron15-ashera.jpg","1536x1536-width":800,"1536x1536-height":1200,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/2chron15-ashera.jpg","2048x2048-width":800,"2048x2048-height":1200,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/2chron15-ashera-800x1200.jpg","post_full_size-width":800,"post_full_size-height":1200,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/2chron15-ashera-280x420.jpg","home_baner-width":280,"home_baner-height":420}},"post_main_content_embedded_video":"","post_main_content_video_duration":"","post_main_content_show_fb_comments":"1","post_main_content_credit_media":"","tile_top_caption":"","tile_main_caption":"The Gevira: Queen Mother And Cultic Leader?","tile_main_caption_size":"1","tile_sub_caption":"The earthly counterpart of Asherah, the king's heavenly mother","tile_preview_embedded":"","tile_preview_image":{"id":100400,"alt":"","title":"2chron15-ashera","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/2chron15-ashera.jpg","width":800,"height":1200,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/2chron15-ashera-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/2chron15-ashera-200x300.jpg","medium-width":200,"medium-height":300,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/2chron15-ashera-683x1024.jpg","medium_large-width":683,"medium_large-height":1024,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/2chron15-ashera-683x1024.jpg","large-width":683,"large-height":1024,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/2chron15-ashera.jpg","1536x1536-width":800,"1536x1536-height":1200,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/2chron15-ashera.jpg","2048x2048-width":800,"2048x2048-height":1200,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/2chron15-ashera-800x1200.jpg","post_full_size-width":800,"post_full_size-height":1200,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/2chron15-ashera-280x420.jpg","home_baner-width":280,"home_baner-height":420}},"tile_preview_video":"","tile_external_link":"","tile_link_for_pay":"0","tile_tile_gallery_items":"","tile_credits":"","alternate_tile_top_caption":"","alternate_tile_main_caption":"","alternate_tile_main_caption_size":"1","alternate_tile_sub_caption":"","alternate_tile_hide_media":"0","tile_group_preview_image_url":"","tile_group_main_caption":"","tile_group_sub_caption":"","tile_group_popup_package_extra_content":"","tile_group_read_time":"","home_color":"","home_gallery_top":"","home_gallery_middle":"","home_gallery_book":"","home_gallery_bottom":"","seo_seo_title":"","seo_seo_description":"","seo_seo_default_title":"","seo_seo_default_description":"","links":false,"chapter_info":{"books_group":"Writings","book":"II Chronicles","chapter":"15","chapter_main_number":"908","date":"20290220","wall_id":"908"},"link_for_pay":false,"tags":false},{"order":7,"id":"100404","color":"#e0e9ef","size":"1","name":"Meet A Prophet ","post_title":"Meet A Prophet","slug":"meet-a-prophet","old_id":"100404","type":"no","iframe":"","writer":{"id":34243,"post_title":"Moshe Sokolow","slug":"moshe-sokolow","old_id":"34243","first_name":"Moshe","last_name":"Sokolow","description":"Dr. Moshe Sokolow is Associate Dean of the Azrieli Graduate School of Jewish Education and Administration, Yeshiva University, and teaches a weekly class in parashat hashavu`a at Lincoln Square Synagogue. He is the author of TANAKH: An Owner\u2019s Manual (Jerusalem: Urim\/Ktav, 2015).\r\n\r\n","short_description":"Dr. Moshe Sokolow is Associate Dean of the Azrieli Graduate School of Jewish Education and Administration, Yeshiva University","credit":"","image_url":"","hide_writer":false,"link_for_pay":false,"image":{"id":34244,"alt":"","title":"sokolow","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/sokolow.jpg","width":302,"height":300,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/sokolow-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/sokolow-300x298.jpg","medium-width":300,"medium-height":298,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/sokolow.jpg","medium_large-width":302,"medium_large-height":300,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/sokolow.jpg","large-width":302,"large-height":300,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/sokolow.jpg","1536x1536-width":302,"1536x1536-height":300,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/sokolow.jpg","2048x2048-width":302,"2048x2048-height":300,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/sokolow.jpg","post_full_size-width":302,"post_full_size-height":300,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/sokolow.jpg","home_baner-width":302,"home_baner-height":300}},"tags":false},"related_cahpter":"908","type_929":"2","show_author_image":false,"old_create_date":"","old_url":"","post_main_content_description":"The strange case of Azariah the son of Oded. He was one in a million\r\n\r\n","post_main_content_content":"

The Talmud, somewhat hyperbolically, stipulates that Israel enjoyed the services of twice as many prophets as there were Jews who left Egypt\u2014of which there were about 600,000 adult males alone (Megillah 14a). (The same expression, \u201ctwice as many as those who left Egypt\u201d\u2014<\/span>kiflayim k\u2019yotzei mitzrayim<\/span><\/em>\u2014seems to have been a common one, as it is utilized, just as hyperbolically, in three other talmudic sources.) Our chapter introduces us to one of them, a prophet about whom there is no other biblical information: Azariah son of Oded (1), who inspired King Asa to rid Judah of its abominations (8).<\/span><\/p>\r\n

Josephus, in his <\/span>Antiquities of the Jews<\/span><\/em>,<\/em> reported on Asa\u2019s victory over Zerah the Cushite as follows: \u201c<\/span>So that they carried off much gold, and much silver, and a great deal of [other] prey, and camels, and great cattle, and flocks of sheep\u201d (Book VIII 12:2). Immediately thereafter, he noted:<\/span><\/p>\r\n

Accordingly, when Asa and his army had obtained such a victory, and suc<\/span>h <\/span>wealth from God, they returned to Jerusalem. Now as they were coming, a Prophet, whose name was <\/span>Azariah<\/span><\/i>, met them on the road, and bade them pause their journey: and began to say to them thus: \u201cThe reason why they had obtained this victory from God was that they had showed themselves righteous and religious men, and had done everything according to the will of God. That therefore he said, if they persevered therein, God would grant that they should always overcome their enemies, and live happily; but that if they abandoned his worship, all things shall fall out on the contrary and a time should come wherein no true Prophet shall be left in the whole multitude, nor a Priest who shall deliver you a true answer from the Oracle. But your cities shall be overthrown, and your nation scattered over the whole earth, and live the life of strangers and wanderers.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\r\n

According to a Midrash (Vayikra Rabbah 19:4), however, Azariah\u2019s words, which are translated as \u201cIsrael <\/span>has gone<\/span><\/em> many days without the true God, without a priest to give instruction and without Teaching\u201d (3), constituted a prophecy for the future and should be read as: \u201cIsrael <\/span>shall go<\/span><\/em> for many days without the true God,\u201d etc., implying that \u201cjustice will not be done, the priesthood will be abolished, and so will the Sanhedrin.\u201d Whereupon, a heavenly voice decreed: \u201cStrengthen the hands that are slack; make firm the tottering knees! Say to the anxious of heart, be strong, fear not; behold your God! Requital is coming, the recompense of God\u2014 He Himself is coming to give you triumph\u201d (Isaiah 35:3-4).<\/span><\/p>","post_main_content_image":{"id":62369,"alt":"","title":"1kings13-prophet","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/1kings13-prophet.jpg","width":1200,"height":627,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/1kings13-prophet-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/1kings13-prophet-300x157.jpg","medium-width":300,"medium-height":157,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/1kings13-prophet-768x401.jpg","medium_large-width":768,"medium_large-height":401,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/1kings13-prophet-1024x535.jpg","large-width":1024,"large-height":535,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/1kings13-prophet.jpg","1536x1536-width":1200,"1536x1536-height":627,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/1kings13-prophet.jpg","2048x2048-width":1200,"2048x2048-height":627,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/1kings13-prophet-1200x627.jpg","post_full_size-width":1200,"post_full_size-height":627,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/1kings13-prophet-804x420.jpg","home_baner-width":804,"home_baner-height":420}},"post_main_content_embedded_video":"","post_main_content_video_duration":"","post_main_content_show_fb_comments":"1","post_main_content_credit_media":"","tile_top_caption":"","tile_main_caption":"Meet A Prophet","tile_main_caption_size":"1","tile_sub_caption":"The strange case of Azariah the son of Oded. 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Her particular area of interest is biblical leadership. Molly participates in the 929 initiative with a dedicated group from the Beth Avraham Yoseph of Toronto congregation. \r\n\r\n","short_description":"Molly Morris holds a Masters degree in Leadership and Community Engagement. Molly participates in the 929 initiative with a dedicated group from the Beth Avraham Yoseph of Toronto congregation. \r\n\r\n","credit":"","image_url":"","hide_writer":false,"link_for_pay":false,"image":{"id":92561,"alt":"","title":"molly morris","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/molly-morris.jpg","width":2192,"height":2488,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/molly-morris-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/molly-morris-264x300.jpg","medium-width":264,"medium-height":300,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/molly-morris-768x872.jpg","medium_large-width":768,"medium_large-height":872,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/molly-morris-902x1024.jpg","large-width":902,"large-height":1024,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/molly-morris.jpg","1536x1536-width":1353,"1536x1536-height":1536,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/molly-morris.jpg","2048x2048-width":1804,"2048x2048-height":2048,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/molly-morris-1057x1200.jpg","post_full_size-width":1057,"post_full_size-height":1200,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/molly-morris-370x420.jpg","home_baner-width":370,"home_baner-height":420}},"tags":false},"related_cahpter":"909","type_929":"2","show_author_image":false,"old_create_date":"","old_url":"","post_main_content_description":"A good life is based on a balance of faith and action\r\n\r\n","post_main_content_content":"

Asa, the third king of Judah and fifth king from the house of David was being threatened by the northern king, Baasha, who was openly building a fortress on the border of the two Jewish kingdoms, to limit the movement of the Judeans in and out of Jerusalem. Asa\u2019s response was to take the gold and silver from the Temple coffers and use it to bribe the neighboring foreign king of Aram to break his peace treaty with Baasha. Asa asked the foreign king to switch his alliance from Baasha to himself. His tactic worked insofar as this king was bribable. An attack was launched against Baasha who subsequently withdrew from the border of Jerusalem.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

When a prophet came to admonish Asa for relying solely on this foreign king, to the exclusion of engaging with God through prayer, Asa would have none of it. Not only did Asa not want to hear about his wrongdoing, he threw the prophet in prison for accusing him of having wronged God. Immediately after this event, we are told that Asa developed a serious foot ailment, which traveled up through his whole body, causing him to seek the attention of a doctor. Again, there\u2019s no mention of seeking out God for help. Immediately thereafter, we are told of Asa\u2019s death.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

Reliance on a foreign power. Reliance on a doctor. Death. It\u2019s all recounted in a pretty linear way. The mistake of the foreign power alliance is pretty clear, but what\u2019s the sin in seeking medical attention? Well, nothing in and of itself. In fact, we are commanded to seek medical attention when it\u2019s needed. But note the addition of the word <\/span>gam, <\/span><\/i>\u201calso,\u201d in verse 12. It\u2019s not that Asa sought the help of a doctor, but \u201calso, in his illness, he did not seek God, but the physicians.\u201d That \u201calso\u201d serves as an indicator for how Asa led his life. First, he turned to the physical for help \u2013 foreign kings and doctors, and then, if at all, maybe he turned to God as an afterthought.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

There are two precepts in Jewish tradition: <\/span>bitachon<\/span><\/em> \u2013 faith in God; and <\/span>hishtadlut<\/span><\/em> \u2013 human effort. Both are considered necessary, and neither one, on their own, is sufficient. Human effort is successful only if it is predicated on faith. <\/span>Bitachon<\/span><\/em> is successful only if we\u2019re not relying solely on miracles. Had Asa turned to God and only then to the king of Aram, he\u2019d have demonstrated <\/span>hishtadlut<\/span><\/em> based on <\/span>bitachon<\/span><\/em>. He missed that mark when repelling Baasha, and God sent Asa a fairly gentle message through a prophet. Sadly, Asa didn\u2019t get the first message. God sent another message via an ailment. Another chance for Asa to prove his <\/span>bitachon<\/span><\/em>, but again, sadly, he didn\u2019t give any indication that he was seeking medical attention because he had faith - faith that God\u2019s hand would work through the physician\u2019s skill.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

Hishtadlut<\/span><\/em> with no <\/span>bitachon<\/span><\/em> isn\u2019t really doing our part so much as ignoring our primary spiritual job.<\/span><\/p>","post_main_content_image":{"id":100268,"alt":"","title":"2chron10-balance imbalance","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/12\/2chron10-balance-imbalance.jpg","width":1920,"height":1066,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/12\/2chron10-balance-imbalance-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/12\/2chron10-balance-imbalance-300x167.jpg","medium-width":300,"medium-height":167,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/12\/2chron10-balance-imbalance-768x426.jpg","medium_large-width":768,"medium_large-height":426,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/12\/2chron10-balance-imbalance-1024x569.jpg","large-width":1024,"large-height":569,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/12\/2chron10-balance-imbalance.jpg","1536x1536-width":1536,"1536x1536-height":853,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/12\/2chron10-balance-imbalance.jpg","2048x2048-width":1920,"2048x2048-height":1066,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/12\/2chron10-balance-imbalance-1200x666.jpg","post_full_size-width":1200,"post_full_size-height":666,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/12\/2chron10-balance-imbalance-756x420.jpg","home_baner-width":756,"home_baner-height":420}},"post_main_content_embedded_video":"","post_main_content_video_duration":"","post_main_content_show_fb_comments":"1","post_main_content_credit_media":"","tile_top_caption":"","tile_main_caption":"Asa\u2019s End: A Lesson In Right Living","tile_main_caption_size":"1","tile_sub_caption":"A good life is based on a balance of faith and action","tile_preview_embedded":"","tile_preview_image":{"id":100268,"alt":"","title":"2chron10-balance imbalance","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/12\/2chron10-balance-imbalance.jpg","width":1920,"height":1066,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/12\/2chron10-balance-imbalance-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/12\/2chron10-balance-imbalance-300x167.jpg","medium-width":300,"medium-height":167,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/12\/2chron10-balance-imbalance-768x426.jpg","medium_large-width":768,"medium_large-height":426,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/12\/2chron10-balance-imbalance-1024x569.jpg","large-width":1024,"large-height":569,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/12\/2chron10-balance-imbalance.jpg","1536x1536-width":1536,"1536x1536-height":853,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/12\/2chron10-balance-imbalance.jpg","2048x2048-width":1920,"2048x2048-height":1066,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/12\/2chron10-balance-imbalance-1200x666.jpg","post_full_size-width":1200,"post_full_size-height":666,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/12\/2chron10-balance-imbalance-756x420.jpg","home_baner-width":756,"home_baner-height":420}},"tile_preview_video":"","tile_external_link":"","tile_link_for_pay":"0","tile_tile_gallery_items":"","tile_credits":"","alternate_tile_top_caption":"","alternate_tile_main_caption":"","alternate_tile_main_caption_size":"1","alternate_tile_sub_caption":"","alternate_tile_hide_media":"0","tile_group_preview_image_url":"","tile_group_main_caption":"","tile_group_sub_caption":"","tile_group_popup_package_extra_content":"","tile_group_read_time":"","home_color":"","home_gallery_top":"","home_gallery_middle":"","home_gallery_book":"","home_gallery_bottom":"","seo_seo_title":"","seo_seo_description":"","seo_seo_default_title":"","seo_seo_default_description":"","links":false,"chapter_info":{"books_group":"Writings","book":"II Chronicles","chapter":"16","chapter_main_number":"909","date":"20290221","wall_id":"909"},"link_for_pay":false,"tags":false},{"order":9,"id":"100451","color":"#effaea","size":"1","name":"The Educator-King ","post_title":"The Educator-King","slug":"the-educator-king","old_id":"100451","type":"no","iframe":"","writer":{"id":94870,"post_title":"Ilana Stein","slug":"ilana-stein","old_id":"94870","first_name":"Ilana ","last_name":"Stein","description":"With degrees in Nature Conservation and English, and an MA in Environmental Jewish Education, Ilana works as a writer for conservation and ecotourism entities in southern Africa and around the world, and lectures about the relationship between Judaism, nature and the planet. Ilana is currently learning with the Rabbi Joe Wolfson 929 group. ","short_description":"With degrees in Nature Conservation and English, and an MA in Environmental Jewish Education, Ilana combines them all in her work as a writer for conservation and ecotourism entities in southern Africa. ","credit":"","image_url":"","hide_writer":false,"link_for_pay":false,"image":{"id":99710,"alt":"","title":"Ilana Stein","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/07\/Ilana-Stein.jpg","width":325,"height":319,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/07\/Ilana-Stein-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/07\/Ilana-Stein-300x294.jpg","medium-width":300,"medium-height":294,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/07\/Ilana-Stein.jpg","medium_large-width":325,"medium_large-height":319,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/07\/Ilana-Stein.jpg","large-width":325,"large-height":319,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/07\/Ilana-Stein.jpg","1536x1536-width":325,"1536x1536-height":319,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/07\/Ilana-Stein.jpg","2048x2048-width":325,"2048x2048-height":319,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/07\/Ilana-Stein.jpg","post_full_size-width":325,"post_full_size-height":319,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/07\/Ilana-Stein.jpg","home_baner-width":325,"home_baner-height":319}},"tags":false},"related_cahpter":"910","type_929":"2","show_author_image":false,"old_create_date":"","old_url":"","post_main_content_description":"One who walks among the people\r\n\r\n","post_main_content_content":"

Once again the Chronicler confronts us with a different story to that of the book of Kings. There, Jehoshaphat is seen as someone who, in his attempt to reunite the kingdoms of Judah and Israel, allies the house of David with the house of Ahab. The result is his grand-daughter-in-law Athaliah\u2019s attempt at wiping out the entire Davidic line, something she almost succeeds at.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

Here however, the Chronicler chooses to focus on his internal attempts at strengthening the nation, introduced in this chapter with the verse:\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\r\n

His mind was elevated in the ways of the LORD. Moreover, he abolished the shrines and the sacred posts from Judah. (17:4)<\/span><\/p>\r\n

The word \u201c<\/span>vayigbah<\/span><\/em>\u201d \u2013 and he elevated his heart\u201d (or mind in the JPS translation) is usually used to denote arrogance or pride. But here, it is qualified with the phrase \u201cthe ways of the Lord\u201d. In other words, this qualification changes the meaning \u2013 which Rashi points out on the verse:<\/span><\/p>\r\n

His heart was lifted up in this matter, that he went only in the ways of the Lord. An example of this is (Exod. 35:26): \u201cwhose hearts had uplifted them in wisdom.\u201d (The verse that Rashi brings is about the women who spun the goats\u2019 hair for the Tabernacle; it seems their hearts were uplifted, inspired for their work in beautifying the house of God.)<\/span><\/p>\r\n

The verses following this one (7-9) elucidate how he sought to change things in Judah\u2019s society: through education.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

In the third year of his reign he sent his officers Ben-hail, Obadiah, Zechariah, Nethanel, and Micaiah throughout the cities of Judah to offer instruction. With them were the Levites \u2026 with them were Elishama and Jehoram the priests. They offered instruction throughout Judah, having with them the Book of the Teaching of the LORD. They made the rounds of all the cities of Judah and instructed the people.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

It seems that Jehoshaphat\u2019s aim was to make use of the priests and the Levites in one of their primary tasks \u2013 to be educators of the people. Moreover, they were not to wait for the people to come to the Temple, but were to go out into the towns and teach.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

Not content with this, Jehoshaphat himself proceeds to walk amongst the people, in chapter 19:4:<\/span><\/p>\r\n

Jehoshaphat remained in Jerusalem a while and then went out among the people from Beer-sheba to the hill country of Ephraim; he brought them back to the LORD God of their fathers.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\r\n

Jehoshaphat reminds the reader of another educator \u2013 Samuel the prophet who \u201cmade the rounds of Bethel, Gilgal, and Mizpah, and acted as judge over Israel at all those places (1 Samuel 7:17). Jehoshaphat in Chronicles is held up as an example of a real leader \u2013 one that educates and inspires.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\r\n

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