The problem is that God presented a whole set of instructions back in Deuteronomy about a king (Deuteronomy 17:14-20). If God did not want the people to have a king, why set up a system of rules for a king? Also, what was the difference between a king and what Samuel was doing? Samuel seems to have been a judge over the whole nation. He traveled around to different places. The whole nation came together for his guidance.\u00a0 It is only when he tried to appoint his sons as assistant judges, that the people asked for a king.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\r\n The foibles of Samuel\u2019s offspring should have been a warning that a king is not a good idea. A king\u2019s offspring will be allowed to rule if they are good or if they are bad. Some commentators believe that God was upset because the people asked for a king so they could be like the other nations. Perhaps the issue here is that the people wanted a king for the stability that only a hereditary ruler can bring.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\r\n The people saw that Samuel\u2019s sons were not going to follow in his footsteps, just like Eli\u2019s sons. Now they were going to have to start again and wait for God to appoint someone else. They saw the pattern here, and they were tired of it, and maybe scared of another downturn. A king\u2019s sons would automatically take over and remove the instability that would follow the transition of one judge to the next. Of course, a hereditary ruler does not remove the concern of poor offspring, but the people wanted to be like the other nations. The people did not realize that they did not need a king. The downturns were because the people did not follow God.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\r\n Sforno explains that Deuteronomy\u2019s laws are optional, and not required. That is why Deuteronomy opens with the same reason as here: \u201cIf, after you have entered the land that your God has assigned to you\u2026 you decide, \u2018I will set a king over me, as do all the nations about me\u2019\u201d (Deut. 17:14).\u00a0 God knew that eventually the people would choose hereditary stability over faith, so God gave instructions for a king, even if not ideal.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\r\n Just because God allows it, does not mean God is happy with it.<\/span><\/p>","post_main_content_image":{"id":87552,"alt":"","title":"ps96-crown throne","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/png","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/ps96-crown-throne.png","width":1048,"height":780,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/ps96-crown-throne-150x150.png","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/ps96-crown-throne-300x223.png","medium-width":300,"medium-height":223,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/ps96-crown-throne-768x572.png","medium_large-width":768,"medium_large-height":572,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/ps96-crown-throne-1024x762.png","large-width":1024,"large-height":762,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/ps96-crown-throne.png","1536x1536-width":1048,"1536x1536-height":780,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/ps96-crown-throne.png","2048x2048-width":1048,"2048x2048-height":780,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/ps96-crown-throne.png","post_full_size-width":1048,"post_full_size-height":780,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/ps96-crown-throne-564x420.png","home_baner-width":564,"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":"Long Live the King?","tile_main_caption_size":"1","tile_sub_caption":"And more importantly - the king\u2019s children, and theirs","tile_preview_embedded":"","tile_preview_image":{"id":87552,"alt":"","title":"ps96-crown throne","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/png","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/ps96-crown-throne.png","width":1048,"height":780,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/ps96-crown-throne-150x150.png","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/ps96-crown-throne-300x223.png","medium-width":300,"medium-height":223,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/ps96-crown-throne-768x572.png","medium_large-width":768,"medium_large-height":572,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/ps96-crown-throne-1024x762.png","large-width":1024,"large-height":762,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/ps96-crown-throne.png","1536x1536-width":1048,"1536x1536-height":780,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/ps96-crown-throne.png","2048x2048-width":1048,"2048x2048-height":780,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/ps96-crown-throne.png","post_full_size-width":1048,"post_full_size-height":780,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/ps96-crown-throne-564x420.png","home_baner-width":564,"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,"send_noty":false,"chapter_info":{"books_group":"Prophets","book":"I Samuel","chapter":"8","chapter_main_number":"240","date":"20260730","wall_id":"240"},"link_for_pay":false,"tags":[{"term_id":"366","name":"Commentators","old_id":"766"},{"term_id":"835","name":"King","old_id":"1235"},{"term_id":"839","name":"Samuel","old_id":"1239"}]},{"order":4,"id":"111064","color":"#f6edf6","size":"1","name":"A King, Yes - But Why? ","post_title":"A King, Yes - But Why?","slug":"a-king-yes-but-why","old_id":"111064","type":"no","iframe":"","writer":{"id":101758,"post_title":"Naomi Bromberg Bar-Yam","slug":"naomi-bromberg-bar-yam","old_id":"101758","first_name":"Naomi ","last_name":"Bromberg Bar-Yam ","description":"Naomi Bromberg Bar-Yam is a social worker and advocate in maternal and child health. She explores her work and life through Torah drashot, rituals and children\u2019s stories.","short_description":"Naomi Bromberg Bar-Yam is a social worker and advocate in maternal and child health. She explores her work and life through Torah drashot, rituals and children\u2019s stories.","credit":"","image_url":"","hide_writer":false,"link_for_pay":false,"image":{"id":101760,"alt":"","title":"-62028435af471--62028435af472Naomi Bromberg Bar-Yam.jpg","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","url":"https:\/\/cetwpuploads.blob.core.windows.net\/wp929\/uploads\/2022\/02\/62028435af471-62028435af472Naomi-Bromberg-Bar-Yam.jpg.jpg","width":361,"height":449,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/cetwpuploads.blob.core.windows.net\/wp929\/uploads\/2022\/02\/62028435af471-62028435af472Naomi-Bromberg-Bar-Yam.jpg-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/cetwpuploads.blob.core.windows.net\/wp929\/uploads\/2022\/02\/62028435af471-62028435af472Naomi-Bromberg-Bar-Yam.jpg-241x300.jpg","medium-width":241,"medium-height":300,"medium_large":"https:\/\/cetwpuploads.blob.core.windows.net\/wp929\/uploads\/2022\/02\/62028435af471-62028435af472Naomi-Bromberg-Bar-Yam.jpg.jpg","medium_large-width":361,"medium_large-height":449,"large":"https:\/\/cetwpuploads.blob.core.windows.net\/wp929\/uploads\/2022\/02\/62028435af471-62028435af472Naomi-Bromberg-Bar-Yam.jpg.jpg","large-width":361,"large-height":449,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/cetwpuploads.blob.core.windows.net\/wp929\/uploads\/2022\/02\/62028435af471-62028435af472Naomi-Bromberg-Bar-Yam.jpg.jpg","1536x1536-width":361,"1536x1536-height":449,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/cetwpuploads.blob.core.windows.net\/wp929\/uploads\/2022\/02\/62028435af471-62028435af472Naomi-Bromberg-Bar-Yam.jpg.jpg","2048x2048-width":361,"2048x2048-height":449,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/cetwpuploads.blob.core.windows.net\/wp929\/uploads\/2022\/02\/62028435af471-62028435af472Naomi-Bromberg-Bar-Yam.jpg.jpg","post_full_size-width":361,"post_full_size-height":449,"home_baner":"https:\/\/cetwpuploads.blob.core.windows.net\/wp929\/uploads\/2022\/02\/62028435af471-62028435af472Naomi-Bromberg-Bar-Yam.jpg-338x420.jpg","home_baner-width":338,"home_baner-height":420}},"tags":false},"related_cahpter":"240","type_929":"2","show_author_image":false,"old_create_date":"","old_url":"","post_main_content_description":"Wanting what might be the right thing - but for the wrong reasons","post_main_content_content":" As Chapter 8 opens, we are told that Samuel had trained his two sons to be <\/span>shoftim<\/em> <\/span>\u2013 leaders, judges \u2013 and that they did not follow in their respected and much-loved father\u2019s footsteps. They \u201caccepted bribes and subverted justice.\u201d (8:3) The people did not mince words, \u201cYou are old and your sons have not followed in your ways, therefore appoint a king to govern us <\/span>like all the other nations<\/span><\/em>\u201d (8:5).<\/span><\/p>\r\n It seems that the people, and perhaps also Samuel, had hoped that, like a king, his sons would take over after Samuel. In the balance of power of the Israelites, high priests and kings inherit their roles from their fathers. Judges and prophets do not. They are unique divine appointments. It is important, and challenging, not to conflate the roles and appointments of kings, priests and prophets.<\/span><\/p>\r\n Samuel expresses his displeasure to God, though we are not told explicitly why he does not want a king. God tells Samuel to listen to the people, that they are rejecting God, not Samuel. Samuel tells the people what it will be like to have a king; the king will take your children to service, your crops, your flocks and even yourselves, as slaves (8:10-18). They hear Samuel and they still want a king. This is the fulfillment of Moses\u2019 prediction in Deuteronomy 17:14. \u201cWhen you have entered the land \u2026 and settled it you will say \u2018I will set a king over me, <\/span>as do all the nations about me<\/span><\/em>.\u2019\u201d (Why this is in the singular is a topic for another day.) In both texts, the reason the people want a king is to be like the surrounding nations.<\/span><\/p>\r\n The people want a king for the wrong reason. The Israelites are not like the other nations, something that still challenges us today.<\/span><\/p>\r\n In Judges, the refrain \u201cthere was no king and each person did what was right in their own eyes\u201d suggests that it is the responsibility of the king to determine for the people what is right. Through the laws and values transmitted in Torah and through the prophets, God has given the people the tools to be their own moral compasses, to know what is right. The kings\u2019 role is leadership and unification of a just people, military defense, building the Temple and infrastructure. This tension of roles and expectations plays out throughout Samuel and Kings. It begins with Saul. Naming his ancestors back six generations (9:1) indicates that Saul comes from a respected family. Saul was \u201ca fine young man, no one in Israel was handsomer than he, he was a head taller than any of the people.\u201d (9:2) A nice, tall, good-looking Israelite boy from a good family - just the person to be a king \u201clike all the other nations\u201d have. But as the story bears out, not the person to be the king of Israel.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>","post_main_content_image":{"id":111065,"alt":"","title":"-63b3eb3d6f989--63b3eb3d6f98a1sam8-why question.png","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/png","url":"https:\/\/cetwpuploads.blob.core.windows.net\/wp929\/uploads\/2023\/01\/63b3eb3d6f989-63b3eb3d6f98a1sam8-why-question.png.png","width":1920,"height":1920,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/cetwpuploads.blob.core.windows.net\/wp929\/uploads\/2023\/01\/63b3eb3d6f989-63b3eb3d6f98a1sam8-why-question.png-150x150.png","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/cetwpuploads.blob.core.windows.net\/wp929\/uploads\/2023\/01\/63b3eb3d6f989-63b3eb3d6f98a1sam8-why-question.png-300x300.png","medium-width":300,"medium-height":300,"medium_large":"https:\/\/cetwpuploads.blob.core.windows.net\/wp929\/uploads\/2023\/01\/63b3eb3d6f989-63b3eb3d6f98a1sam8-why-question.png-768x768.png","medium_large-width":768,"medium_large-height":768,"large":"https:\/\/cetwpuploads.blob.core.windows.net\/wp929\/uploads\/2023\/01\/63b3eb3d6f989-63b3eb3d6f98a1sam8-why-question.png-1024x1024.png","large-width":1024,"large-height":1024,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/cetwpuploads.blob.core.windows.net\/wp929\/uploads\/2023\/01\/63b3eb3d6f989-63b3eb3d6f98a1sam8-why-question.png.png","1536x1536-width":1536,"1536x1536-height":1536,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/cetwpuploads.blob.core.windows.net\/wp929\/uploads\/2023\/01\/63b3eb3d6f989-63b3eb3d6f98a1sam8-why-question.png.png","2048x2048-width":1920,"2048x2048-height":1920,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/cetwpuploads.blob.core.windows.net\/wp929\/uploads\/2023\/01\/63b3eb3d6f989-63b3eb3d6f98a1sam8-why-question.png-1200x1200.png","post_full_size-width":1200,"post_full_size-height":1200,"home_baner":"https:\/\/cetwpuploads.blob.core.windows.net\/wp929\/uploads\/2023\/01\/63b3eb3d6f989-63b3eb3d6f98a1sam8-why-question.png-420x420.png","home_baner-width":420,"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":"A King, Yes - But Why?","tile_main_caption_size":"1","tile_sub_caption":"Wanting what might be the right thing - but for the wrong reasons","tile_preview_embedded":"","tile_preview_image":{"id":111065,"alt":"","title":"-63b3eb3d6f989--63b3eb3d6f98a1sam8-why question.png","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/png","url":"https:\/\/cetwpuploads.blob.core.windows.net\/wp929\/uploads\/2023\/01\/63b3eb3d6f989-63b3eb3d6f98a1sam8-why-question.png.png","width":1920,"height":1920,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/cetwpuploads.blob.core.windows.net\/wp929\/uploads\/2023\/01\/63b3eb3d6f989-63b3eb3d6f98a1sam8-why-question.png-150x150.png","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/cetwpuploads.blob.core.windows.net\/wp929\/uploads\/2023\/01\/63b3eb3d6f989-63b3eb3d6f98a1sam8-why-question.png-300x300.png","medium-width":300,"medium-height":300,"medium_large":"https:\/\/cetwpuploads.blob.core.windows.net\/wp929\/uploads\/2023\/01\/63b3eb3d6f989-63b3eb3d6f98a1sam8-why-question.png-768x768.png","medium_large-width":768,"medium_large-height":768,"large":"https:\/\/cetwpuploads.blob.core.windows.net\/wp929\/uploads\/2023\/01\/63b3eb3d6f989-63b3eb3d6f98a1sam8-why-question.png-1024x1024.png","large-width":1024,"large-height":1024,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/cetwpuploads.blob.core.windows.net\/wp929\/uploads\/2023\/01\/63b3eb3d6f989-63b3eb3d6f98a1sam8-why-question.png.png","1536x1536-width":1536,"1536x1536-height":1536,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/cetwpuploads.blob.core.windows.net\/wp929\/uploads\/2023\/01\/63b3eb3d6f989-63b3eb3d6f98a1sam8-why-question.png.png","2048x2048-width":1920,"2048x2048-height":1920,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/cetwpuploads.blob.core.windows.net\/wp929\/uploads\/2023\/01\/63b3eb3d6f989-63b3eb3d6f98a1sam8-why-question.png-1200x1200.png","post_full_size-width":1200,"post_full_size-height":1200,"home_baner":"https:\/\/cetwpuploads.blob.core.windows.net\/wp929\/uploads\/2023\/01\/63b3eb3d6f989-63b3eb3d6f98a1sam8-why-question.png-420x420.png","home_baner-width":420,"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,"send_noty":false,"chapter_info":{"books_group":"Prophets","book":"I Samuel","chapter":"8","chapter_main_number":"240","date":"20260730","wall_id":"240"},"link_for_pay":false,"tags":[{"term_id":"384","name":"God","old_id":"784"},{"term_id":"458","name":"Nations","old_id":"858"},{"term_id":"835","name":"King","old_id":"1235"},{"term_id":"837","name":"Judges","old_id":"1237"},{"term_id":"839","name":"Samuel","old_id":"1239"}]},{"order":5,"id":"57290","color":"#e2f4fa","size":"1","name":"The King And Us: Eternal Ambivalence ","post_title":"The King And Us: Eternal Ambivalence","slug":"the-king-and-us-eternal-ambivalence","old_id":"57290","type":"no","iframe":"","writer":{"id":36277,"post_title":"Yedidya Sinclair","slug":"yedidya-sinclair","old_id":"36277","first_name":"Yedidya","last_name":"Sinclair","description":"Rabbi Yedidya Sinclair serves as Senior Rabbinic Scholar at Hazon, the leading US Jewish environmental organization. From 2011-16 he was Vice President for Research and Senior Economist at Energiya Global, a Jerusalem-based solar energy company focused on the developing world and he continues to consult on renewable energy and climate change preparedness. In 2014 he published together with Hazon, a translation of Rabbi Abraham Isaac Kook's great work on shmitta, the Sabbatical year, \"Introduction to Shabbat Ha'aretz.\" Yedidya holds a BA from Oxford University, an MPA from the Kennedy School of Government at Harvard and lives with his family in Jerusalem.","short_description":"Yedidya Sinclair is a Jerusalem-based rabbi and economist, and is Senior Rabbinic Scholar at Hazon. ","credit":"","image_url":"","hide_writer":false,"link_for_pay":false,"image":{"id":36278,"alt":"","title":"yedidya sinclair","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/yedidya-sinclair.jpg","width":200,"height":200,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/yedidya-sinclair-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/yedidya-sinclair.jpg","medium-width":200,"medium-height":200,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/yedidya-sinclair.jpg","medium_large-width":200,"medium_large-height":200,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/yedidya-sinclair.jpg","large-width":200,"large-height":200,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/yedidya-sinclair.jpg","1536x1536-width":200,"1536x1536-height":200,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/yedidya-sinclair.jpg","2048x2048-width":200,"2048x2048-height":200,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/yedidya-sinclair.jpg","post_full_size-width":200,"post_full_size-height":200,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/yedidya-sinclair.jpg","home_baner-width":200,"home_baner-height":200}},"tags":false},"related_cahpter":"240","type_929":"2","show_author_image":false,"old_create_date":"","old_url":"","post_main_content_description":"A fascinating look at the debate down through the ages","post_main_content_content":" Today\u2019s chapter (I Samuel 8) recounts probably the most fateful episode in all of Jewish political history \u2013 the decision to have a king.<\/span><\/p>\r\n The people, anxious about who or what will follow Samuel\u2019s leadership after he dies come to the aging prophet and demand, \u201cAppoint a king for us to govern us like all the other nations\u201d \u00a0(v. 5). Samuel is displeased by this request and delivers a hair-raising tirade, warning about the rapacious and tyrannical habits of kings, and how they seize your sons and daughters to serve as his soldiers and cooks, farmers and weaponsmiths. The people are unmoved. With God\u2019s assent, Samuel agrees to appoint a king \u2013 and the rest is history. <\/span><\/p>\r\n Samuel\u2019s extreme reluctance was an early moment in Judaism\u2019s eternal ambivalence about monarchy. The argument is crystallized in the Talmudic discussion in Sanhedrin 20a, about whether it is a <\/span>mitzvah<\/span><\/em>, a commandment, to have a king. Rabbi Yossi and Rabbi Yehudah said that it is. They read the verse in Deuteronomy 17:14, \u201cwhen you come to the land\u2026and you say, \u201cI will set a king over me, like all the nations\u201d\u2026then you shall set up a king over yourself,\u201d as a positive commandment.<\/span><\/p>\r\n Conversely, Rabbi Nehorai argued that this is no mitzvah. Rather the verse foresaw the situation in our chapter, where the people would clamor for a king, with the invidious motivation of being like all other nations. Samuel\u2019s urgent, but ineffective efforts to discourage this request strengthen Rabbi Nehorai\u2019s view.<\/span><\/p>\r\n This argument has ramified throughout Jewish history. Maimonides led the medieval supporters of Jewish kingship (Hilchot Melachim, 1:1), who held that monarchy was the most stable and effective form of government and that the kingship of the House of David was part of God\u2019s ultimate, messianic purpose. The most vehement of medieval Jewish opponents of monarchy, Abarbanel, who knew a number of kings personally (including Ferdinand of Spain who expelled the Jews in 1492) argued that kingship was usually tyrannical and that Jewish monarchy was a concession to the people\u2019s weakness. Abarbanel thought that the 15<\/span>th<\/span> century proto-democratic Italian republics where he ended his life embodied a more juster, efficient governmental system.<\/span><\/p>\r\n Where does God line up in this debate? According to today\u2019s chapter, God is not pleased by the demand to have a king, telling Samuel, \u201cit is not you that they have rejected; it is me that they have rejected as their king\u201d (v. 7). 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","post_title":"Kingship: A Necessary Apostasy?","slug":"kingship-a-necessary-apostasy","old_id":"71224","type":"no","iframe":"","writer":{"id":69185,"post_title":"Elliott Rabin","slug":"elliott-rabin","old_id":"69185","first_name":"Elliott ","last_name":"Rabin","description":"Elliott Rabin is Director of Thought Leadership at Prizmah: Center for Jewish Day Schools, where he edits Prizmah's magazine HaYidion, writes, produces podcasts and manages research projects. He formerly served as Director of Educational Programs for RAVSAK: The Jewish Community Day School Network and Director of Education for the 92nd Street Y\u2019s Makor\/Steinhardt Center. and served as Assistant Editor at Harper\u2019s Magazine. He is the author of two books on Tanakh: The Biblical Hero: Portraits in Nobility and Fallibility (JPS, March 2020), and Understanding the Hebrew Bible: A Reader\u2019s Guide (Ktav). \r\nPhoto by: Adele Rabin","short_description":"Elliott Rabin is Director of Thought Leadership at Prizmah: Center for Jewish Day Schools.","credit":"","image_url":"","hide_writer":false,"link_for_pay":false,"image":{"id":69187,"alt":"","title":"Elliott Rabin.Photo by Adele Rabin","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/01\/Elliott-Rabin.Photo-by-Adele-Rabin.jpg","width":3293,"height":2957,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/01\/Elliott-Rabin.Photo-by-Adele-Rabin-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/01\/Elliott-Rabin.Photo-by-Adele-Rabin-300x269.jpg","medium-width":300,"medium-height":269,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/01\/Elliott-Rabin.Photo-by-Adele-Rabin-768x690.jpg","medium_large-width":768,"medium_large-height":690,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/01\/Elliott-Rabin.Photo-by-Adele-Rabin-1024x920.jpg","large-width":1024,"large-height":920,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/01\/Elliott-Rabin.Photo-by-Adele-Rabin.jpg","1536x1536-width":1536,"1536x1536-height":1379,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/01\/Elliott-Rabin.Photo-by-Adele-Rabin.jpg","2048x2048-width":2048,"2048x2048-height":1839,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/01\/Elliott-Rabin.Photo-by-Adele-Rabin-1200x1078.jpg","post_full_size-width":1200,"post_full_size-height":1078,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/01\/Elliott-Rabin.Photo-by-Adele-Rabin-468x420.jpg","home_baner-width":468,"home_baner-height":420}},"tags":false},"related_cahpter":"240","type_929":"2","show_author_image":false,"old_create_date":"","old_url":"","post_main_content_description":"The clash of politics with theology\u00a0\r\n\r\n","post_main_content_content":" The last line from the book of Judges, which comes right before the rise of the monarchy in 1 Samuel, provides the final verdict on this form of governance and ultimate justification for the Israelite kingship: \u201cIn those days there was no king in Israel; everyone did what was right in his eyes\u201d (Jud. 21:25). During the reign of the judges (a name given to tribal chieftains), a degree of chaos took hold of Israelite society, leading to military weakness, exposure to enemy control, and increasingly widespread moral decay. The narrator offers an inescapable conclusion borne of historical experience: without a king exerting centralized power, society falls apart; therefore, Israel needs to appoint a king. From a purely practical political, social, and military perspective\u2014from a human vantage point\u2014there is no alternative. It is remarkable that the narrator offers this line at all, let alone so matter-of-factly, with such authority. It\u2019s not often that the Bible presents the human perspective alone, or affords it the last word. The theological perspective that would routinely undermine this assertion is entirely absent.<\/span><\/p>\r\n A mere eight chapters later, before the first king, Saul, is even installed, the Bible offers the opposing judgment on kingship: \u201cAnd the Lord replied to Samuel, \u2018Heed the demand of the people in everything they say to you [by asking for a king]. For it is not you that they have rejected; it is Me they have rejected as their king\u2019\u201d (1 Sam. 8:7). This quotation presents <\/span>only<\/span><\/i> the theological perspective. As far as God is concerned, it would seem, there can be no justification for a human king. The people\u2019s acclamation of a king is of a piece with the repeated rejection of God\u2019s authority in the Pentateuch. There is a tone of weariness in God\u2019s statement. God offers comfort to Samuel, who is both a priest and prophet, and Samuel must convey to the people God\u2019s disapproval of their choice, incurring their displeasure. God is in effect saying to Samuel: <\/span>Don\u2019t take it personally; you can give in to the people\u2019s misguided inclinations; they are rebelling against Me, not you, and I, God, am thoroughly used to it<\/span><\/em>.<\/span><\/i>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\r\n God makes it clear that kingship itself is the heart of the issue. God alone is king; there can be no other. When the people insist on having a human monarch, they are forgetting their King in Heaven.<\/span><\/p>\r\n Clearly, these two assertions clash in the boldest fashion. On a practical level, kingship is necessary; on a religious level, kingship is apostasy. Both assertions are valid and true, as both exist on entirely different planes of reality. The narrative of biblical history as played out in the books of Samuel and Kings is riven by these conflicting truths. Israel\u2019s kings are shown to be uniters, protectors, legislators, builders, symbols of strength and national pride. They are also idolaters, oppressors, dividers, fomenters of destruction in themselves and the nation\u2014accounting for the narratives\u2019 disjointed qualities, stark contradictions, and enduring fascination.<\/span><\/p>\r\n Excerpted from <\/span>The Biblical Hero: Portraits in Nobility and Fallibility<\/em> <\/span>by Elliott Rabin by permission of the Jewish Publication Society. \u00a92020 by Elliott Rabin.<\/span><\/p>","post_main_content_image":{"id":69430,"alt":"","title":"BiblicalHero","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/01\/BiblicalHero.jpg","width":3200,"height":2372,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/01\/BiblicalHero-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/01\/BiblicalHero-300x222.jpg","medium-width":300,"medium-height":222,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/01\/BiblicalHero-768x569.jpg","medium_large-width":768,"medium_large-height":569,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/01\/BiblicalHero-1024x759.jpg","large-width":1024,"large-height":759,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/01\/BiblicalHero.jpg","1536x1536-width":1536,"1536x1536-height":1139,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/01\/BiblicalHero.jpg","2048x2048-width":2048,"2048x2048-height":1518,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/01\/BiblicalHero-1200x890.jpg","post_full_size-width":1200,"post_full_size-height":890,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/01\/BiblicalHero-567x420.jpg","home_baner-width":567,"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":"Kingship: A Necessary Apostasy?","tile_main_caption_size":"1","tile_sub_caption":"The clash of politics with theology\u00a0","tile_preview_embedded":"","tile_preview_image":{"id":69430,"alt":"","title":"BiblicalHero","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/01\/BiblicalHero.jpg","width":3200,"height":2372,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/01\/BiblicalHero-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/01\/BiblicalHero-300x222.jpg","medium-width":300,"medium-height":222,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/01\/BiblicalHero-768x569.jpg","medium_large-width":768,"medium_large-height":569,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/01\/BiblicalHero-1024x759.jpg","large-width":1024,"large-height":759,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/01\/BiblicalHero.jpg","1536x1536-width":1536,"1536x1536-height":1139,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/01\/BiblicalHero.jpg","2048x2048-width":2048,"2048x2048-height":1518,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/01\/BiblicalHero-1200x890.jpg","post_full_size-width":1200,"post_full_size-height":890,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/01\/BiblicalHero-567x420.jpg","home_baner-width":567,"home_baner-height":420}},"tile_preview_video":"","tile_external_link":"","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,"tile_link_for_pay":"0","send_noty":false,"chapter_info":{"books_group":"Prophets","book":"I Samuel","chapter":"8","chapter_main_number":"240","date":"20260730","wall_id":"240"},"link_for_pay":false,"tags":[{"term_id":"423","name":"Politics","old_id":"823"},{"term_id":"832","name":"Theology","old_id":"1232"},{"term_id":"835","name":"King","old_id":"1235"}]},{"order":10,"id":"57301","color":"#e2f4fa","size":"1","name":"The Kingly Compromise? ","post_title":"The Kingly Compromise?","slug":"the-kingly-compromise","old_id":"57301","type":"no","iframe":"","writer":{"id":56490,"post_title":"Gary Rendsburg","slug":"gary-rendsburg","old_id":"56490","first_name":"Gary ","last_name":"Rendsburg ","description":"Gary Rendsburg serves as the Blanche and Irving Laurie Professor of Jewish History in the Department of Jewish Studies at Rutgers University. His teaching and research focus on \u2018all things ancient Israel\u2019 \u2013 primarily language and literature, though also history and archaeology. His secondary interests include post-biblical Judaism, the Dead Sea Scrolls, and the medieval Hebrew manuscript tradition. Rendsburg\u2019s most recent book is How the Bible Is Written (Hendrickson, 2019), with particular attention to the use of language to create literature.\r\n\r\n","short_description":"Gary Rendsburg serves as the Blanche and Irving Laurie Professor of Jewish History in the Department of Jewish Studies at Rutgers University.","credit":"","image_url":"","hide_writer":false,"link_for_pay":false,"image":{"id":56491,"alt":"","title":"Gary_A_Rendsburg","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/Gary_A_Rendsburg.jpg","width":220,"height":314,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/Gary_A_Rendsburg-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/Gary_A_Rendsburg-210x300.jpg","medium-width":210,"medium-height":300,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/Gary_A_Rendsburg.jpg","medium_large-width":220,"medium_large-height":314,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/Gary_A_Rendsburg.jpg","large-width":220,"large-height":314,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/Gary_A_Rendsburg.jpg","1536x1536-width":220,"1536x1536-height":314,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/Gary_A_Rendsburg.jpg","2048x2048-width":220,"2048x2048-height":314,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/Gary_A_Rendsburg.jpg","post_full_size-width":220,"post_full_size-height":314,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/Gary_A_Rendsburg.jpg","home_baner-width":220,"home_baner-height":314}},"tags":false},"related_cahpter":"240","type_929":"2","show_author_image":false,"old_create_date":"","old_url":"","post_main_content_description":"If God is King - then who is that person they want on the throne?","post_main_content_content":" Notwithstanding military success against the Philistines and the secure leadership of Samuel (see ch. 6), the people clamor for a king. Most telling is their statement, \u201cWe must have a king over us, so that we may be like all the other nations\u201d (vv. 19-20). <\/span><\/p>\r\n The expression \u201clike all the other nations\u201d reflects the reality of the ancient Near East. \u00a0All polities, large and small, from as large as Egypt (with the Pharaoh as king) to as small as Canaanite city-states (whose rulers used the title <\/span>melek<\/span><\/em> \u2018king\u2019), were ruled by a king \u2013 but not Israel. Evidence for kings of Canaanite city-states is forthcoming from the Amarna letters (a collection of documents from the 14th century B.C.E.) and from the Bible itself. \u00a0See, for example, Genesis 14, where each of the five cities of the Dead Sea region has its own king; Gen 20:2, for Abimelech, king of Gerar; Josh 2:2-3 for the king of Jericho; and most revealingly the list of 31 kings, one for each city-state in Joshua 12:9-24.<\/span><\/p>\r\n This lack of a human king in Israel (until this point) has to do with the fundamental theological difference between Israel and its neighbors. In the ancient Near East, generally speaking, the gods operated in a separate realm, manifested in nature, at a distance from humanity. \u00a0In the Bible, the covenant concept creates a close relationship between Yhwh and His people Israel. As such, YHWH serves as king of the people, for which see the following long list of passages: Num 23:21; Deut 33:5; Isa 6:5, 33:22, 41:21, 43:15, 44:6; Jer 8:19, 10:7, 10, 46:18, 48:15, 51:57; Zeph 3:15; Zech 14:9, 16, 17; Mal 1:14; Ps 5:3, 10:16, 24:7, 8, 9, 10 (2x), 29:10, 47:3, 7, 8, 48:3, 68:25, 74:12, 84:4, 95:3, 98:6, 99:4, 145:1, 149:2. \u00a0Many of these passages were incorporated into later Jewish liturgy, including Zech 14:9 as the closing line of the <\/span>\u02bfAlenu<\/span><\/i> prayer, Psalm 24 for the return of the Torah to the Ark on festival days, and Psalm 145 recited daily.<\/span><\/p>\r\n Samuel\u2019s opposition to the establishment of a human king was based on this core theological principle: only God could be king. In the end, though, the will of the people won the day. The monarchy was established (see ch. 9 for the introduction of Saul), and for the next 400-plus years the historical narrative of the Bible revolves mainly on the succession of kings, from Saul, David, and Solomon, down to the last king, Zedekiah, in 586 B.C.E. <\/span><\/p>\r\n As the long list of verses cited above demonstrates, however, at the same time, the poets and prophets of Israel continued to invoke the older theology of God as king \u2013 thereby constantly reminding the people that a human king was a compromise to true Israelite religious belief.<\/span><\/p>","post_main_content_image":{"id":57303,"alt":"","title":"isam8-king","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/png","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/isam8-king.png","width":755,"height":1280,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/isam8-king-150x150.png","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/isam8-king-177x300.png","medium-width":177,"medium-height":300,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/isam8-king-604x1024.png","medium_large-width":604,"medium_large-height":1024,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/isam8-king-604x1024.png","large-width":604,"large-height":1024,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/isam8-king.png","1536x1536-width":755,"1536x1536-height":1280,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/isam8-king.png","2048x2048-width":755,"2048x2048-height":1280,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/isam8-king-708x1200.png","post_full_size-width":708,"post_full_size-height":1200,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/isam8-king-248x420.png","home_baner-width":248,"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 Kingly Compromise?","tile_main_caption_size":"1","tile_sub_caption":"If God is King - 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Eli allowed Hofni and Phineas to serve as priests and they took advantage of their parishioners (2:12 ff.); Samuel appointed Joel and Abiyah as judges in a Beersheba district court and they used their positions to solicit bribes (vs. 3). In consequence thereof, the people clamored for a king in order to resemble all the surrounding nations (5). Samuel viewed their request with disfavor, appearing to take it personally, but God reassured him that it was He the people were rejecting, not the prophet (7), and acquiesced in their demand (9). There follows a long diatribe by Samuel enumerating the likely excesses of a monarchy (11-18) but the people were persistent (19) and God, too, affirmed their request (22).<\/span><\/p>\r\n Several questions present themselves here:<\/span><\/p>\r\n First of all, we need to acknowledge that there was an active principle of succession already in force in respect of the priesthood. It could be that its weakening after Eli\u2019s sons made it suspect and that its further deterioration after Samuel\u2019s sons was the last straw. The reason we never saw it implemented during the era of the judges may simply be that since so many of them had such extensive tenures (20 years, 40 years) by the time they needed to be replaced their sons may have been otherwise successfully occupied and uninterested in public service. <\/span><\/p>\r\n Secondly, it may not have been the failure of succession, per se, that was disturbing but the confusion and uncertainty that it had caused. Dynastic succession may simply have appeared longer lasting and more stable.<\/span><\/p>\r\n As to the Torah\u2019s prior provision for monarchy and, yet, God\u2019s disinclination towards it, this is the subject of extensive speculation from the Talmud through the medieval exegetes. To cite but one representative opinion, here is part of the comment of Radak (Rabbi David Kimchi):<\/span><\/p>\r\n Because they demanded it in the form of a grievance (<\/span>tar'omet<\/span><\/em>) rather than in fulfillment of a mitzvah. Had they said, \u201cGive us a king to judge us justly and righteously,\u201d Samuel would not have disagreed because his own sons were unjust magistrates.<\/span><\/p>","post_main_content_image":{"id":57294,"alt":"","title":"isam8-tree","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/isam8-tree.jpg","width":1920,"height":1280,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/isam8-tree-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/isam8-tree-300x200.jpg","medium-width":300,"medium-height":200,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/isam8-tree-768x512.jpg","medium_large-width":768,"medium_large-height":512,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/isam8-tree-1024x683.jpg","large-width":1024,"large-height":683,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/isam8-tree.jpg","1536x1536-width":1536,"1536x1536-height":1024,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/isam8-tree.jpg","2048x2048-width":1920,"2048x2048-height":1280,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/isam8-tree-1200x800.jpg","post_full_size-width":1200,"post_full_size-height":800,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/isam8-tree-630x420.jpg","home_baner-width":630,"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":"Sometimes the Apple Does Fall Far from the Tree","tile_main_caption_size":"1","tile_sub_caption":"Explaining the failure of succession, and clamoring for a king","tile_preview_embedded":"","tile_preview_image":{"id":57294,"alt":"","title":"isam8-tree","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/isam8-tree.jpg","width":1920,"height":1280,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/isam8-tree-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/isam8-tree-300x200.jpg","medium-width":300,"medium-height":200,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/isam8-tree-768x512.jpg","medium_large-width":768,"medium_large-height":512,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/isam8-tree-1024x683.jpg","large-width":1024,"large-height":683,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/isam8-tree.jpg","1536x1536-width":1536,"1536x1536-height":1024,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/isam8-tree.jpg","2048x2048-width":1920,"2048x2048-height":1280,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/isam8-tree-1200x800.jpg","post_full_size-width":1200,"post_full_size-height":800,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/isam8-tree-630x420.jpg","home_baner-width":630,"home_baner-height":420}},"tile_preview_video":"","tile_external_link":"","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,"tile_link_for_pay":"0","send_noty":false,"chapter_info":{"books_group":"Prophets","book":"I Samuel","chapter":"8","chapter_main_number":"240","date":"20260730","wall_id":"240"},"link_for_pay":false,"tags":[{"term_id":"835","name":"King","old_id":"1235"},{"term_id":"839","name":"Samuel","old_id":"1239"}]},{"order":13,"id":"57284","color":"#e2f4fa","size":"1","name":"Samuel Oversteps His Mandate ","post_title":"Samuel Oversteps His Mandate","slug":"samuel-oversteps-his-mandate","old_id":"57284","type":"no","iframe":"","writer":{"id":54356,"post_title":"Robert Alter","slug":"robert-alter","old_id":"54356","first_name":"Robert ","last_name":"Alter","description":"Robert Alter is the Class of 1937 Professor of Hebrew and Comparative Literature at the University of California at Berkeley, where he has taught since 1967. He has written over twenty books, focusing on such topics as the European novel from the 18th century to the present, contemporary American fiction, and modern Hebrew literature. He has also written extensively on the literary aspects of the Bible. His most recent work is his monumental three volume translation of the entire Hebrew Bible - The Hebrew Bible, W. W. Norton & Co., 2019 - from which the selections in 929 are taken. ","short_description":"Robert Alter is the Class of 1937 Professor of Hebrew and Comparative Literature at the University of California at Berkeley, and author of the three-volume translation of the entire Hebrew Bible - The Hebrew Bible, W. W. Norton & Co., 2019.","credit":"","image_url":"","hide_writer":false,"link_for_pay":false,"image":{"id":54357,"alt":"","title":"robert alter","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/robert-alter.jpg","width":184,"height":275,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/robert-alter-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/robert-alter.jpg","medium-width":184,"medium-height":275,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/robert-alter.jpg","medium_large-width":184,"medium_large-height":275,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/robert-alter.jpg","large-width":184,"large-height":275,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/robert-alter.jpg","1536x1536-width":184,"1536x1536-height":275,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/robert-alter.jpg","2048x2048-width":184,"2048x2048-height":275,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/robert-alter.jpg","post_full_size-width":184,"post_full_size-height":275,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/robert-alter.jpg","home_baner-width":184,"home_baner-height":275}},"tags":false},"related_cahpter":"240","type_929":"2","show_author_image":false,"old_create_date":"","old_url":"","post_main_content_description":"The dangers of nepotism","post_main_content_content":" \"And it happened when Samuel grew old that he set his sons up as Judges for Israel\" (8:1).<\/span><\/p>\r\n It is a signal expression of the ambiguity of Samuel\u2019s role as leader that he oversteps his mandate as judge (<\/span>shofet<\/span><\/em>-<\/span><\/i>both judicial authority and ad hoc political leader) by attempting to inaugurate a kind of dynastic arrangement. 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<\/p>\r\n\r\n\t