{"id":58017,"date":"2018-07-09T17:43:26","date_gmt":"2018-07-09T14:43:26","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wall\/wall-248\/"},"modified":"2023-01-17T10:06:14","modified_gmt":"2023-01-17T08:06:14","slug":"wall-248","status":"publish","type":"wall","link":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/en\/wall\/wall-248\/","title":{"rendered":"chapter-Prophets-I Samuel-16"},"parent":0,"template":"","acf":{"type":"chapter","wall_id":"248","date":"20260811","book":"I Samuel","chapter":"16","chapter_main_number":"248","books_group":"Prophets","hide_acf":true,"home_image":false,"home_posts":false,"home_posts_title":"","posts_home":[],"posts":[{"order":1,"id":"57836","color":"#f8ebe3","size":"1","name":"I Samuel Chapter 16 - Read by Jonathan Roumie ","post_title":"I Samuel Chapter 16 - Read by Jonathan Roumie","slug":"i-samuel-chapter-16-read-by-jonathan-roumie","old_id":"57836","type":"no","iframe":"","writer":{"id":34686,"post_title":"Soundcloud","slug":"soundcloud","old_id":"34686","first_name":"","last_name":"","description":"","short_description":"","credit":"","image_url":"","hide_writer":false,"link_for_pay":false,"image":{"id":34656,"alt":"","title":"491","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/491-2.jpg","width":300,"height":300,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/491-2-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/491-2.jpg","medium-width":300,"medium-height":300,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/491-2.jpg","medium_large-width":300,"medium_large-height":300,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/491-2.jpg","large-width":300,"large-height":300,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/491-2.jpg","1536x1536-width":300,"1536x1536-height":300,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/491-2.jpg","2048x2048-width":300,"2048x2048-height":300,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/491-2.jpg","post_full_size-width":300,"post_full_size-height":300,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/491-2.jpg","home_baner-width":300,"home_baner-height":300}},"tags":false},"related_cahpter":"248","type_929":"4","show_author_image":true,"old_url":"","post_main_content_description":"","post_main_content_content":"","post_main_content_image":"","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":"JPS Audio Bible","tile_main_caption":"I Samuel 16","tile_main_caption_size":"2","tile_sub_caption":"read by Jonathan Roumie","tile_preview_embedded":"","tile_preview_image":"","tile_preview_video":"","tile_external_link":"https:\/\/soundcloud.com\/929-bible\/JPS_Audio_Bible_I_Samuel_Chapter_16_read_by_Jonathan_Roumie","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":"","old_create_date":"","links":false,"chapter_info":{"books_group":"Prophets","book":"I Samuel","chapter":"16","chapter_main_number":"248","date":"20260811","wall_id":"248"},"link_for_pay":false,"tags":false},{"order":2,"id":"111676","color":"#f6edf6","size":"1","name":"Concerned In Canaan ","post_title":"Concerned In Canaan","slug":"concerned-in-canaan","old_id":"111676","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. 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God instructs Samuel to move on from Saul and to anoint someone else as king. Samuel\u2019s initial response is fear: <\/span>\u201c<\/b>Samuel replied, \u2018How can I go? If Saul hears of it, he will kill me\u2019\u201d (verse 2). Is Samuel\u2019s fear irrational? Samuel is the honored prophet. He anointed Saul. He already has told Saul, not once but twice that his kingdom will not endure, and neither time did Saul try to have him killed.He didn\u2019t even say anything against Samuel.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\r\n

Samuel, though, is not the only one fearful at the beginning of the chapter:\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\r\n

Samuel did what the LORD commanded. When he came to Bethlehem, the elders of the city went out in alarm to meet him and said, \u2018Do you come on a peaceful errand?\u2019 (verse 4).\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\r\n

Samuel approaches Jesse\u2019s town and the elders run out afraid. The text does not explain why they would be afraid to see the prophet approach their town, especially considering Samuel routinely traveled throughout the land. Abarbanel explains that they saw him approach the town with a young calf and assumed that a dead body had been found in the valley, and that he was arriving to perform the <\/span>\u2018eglah \u2018arufah<\/em> <\/span>ceremony. This, explains Abarbanel, was the reason God sent him with a calf: it was the perfect cover to be going to the city. But, again, why would Samuel be afraid? Why would the people be afraid of seeing Samuel, even if they had made the leap to the <\/span>\u2018<\/span><\/i>eglah \u2018arufah<\/em> <\/span>ceremony?\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\r\n

The answer to these two questions may come from God\u2019s pronouncement later on. Samuel has a sacrificial feast with Jesse and his family. He sets eyes on Jesse\u2019s first born who is tall and handsome, much like Saul. Samuel immediately assumes the first born is meant to be king. God responds,\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\r\n

\u2018Pay no attention to his appearance or his stature, for I have rejected him. For not as man sees does the LORD see man sees only what is visible, but the LORD sees into the heart\u2019 (verse 7).\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\r\n

What is irrational fear? Irrational fear is the irrational thoughts that the mind creates based on what the eyes see. It is the irrational thought that makes Samuel not want to listen to God despite the fact that Saul has never said a bad word to Samuel. It is the irrational thought that makes the elders of the town run out to Samuel in fear, instead of welcoming the traveling prophet to their town. God sees inside the hearts of every person. Thus, God knows who to select as the leader of the people. This time it will not be someone who looks like a king. Instead, it will be someone who is a king on the inside.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\r\n

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Mixed-media work by Michal Nachmany, courtesy of the artist<\/p>\r\n

Michal dedicates her work in memory to her father Shamai Zweigreich z\u201dl \u00a0and her grandfather \u00a0Yisrael Zweigreich z\u201dl, who loved studying Bible and Talmud.<\/p>","post_main_content_image":{"id":58036,"alt":"","title":"isam16","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/isam16.jpg","width":751,"height":914,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/isam16-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/isam16-246x300.jpg","medium-width":246,"medium-height":300,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/isam16.jpg","medium_large-width":751,"medium_large-height":914,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/isam16.jpg","large-width":751,"large-height":914,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/isam16.jpg","1536x1536-width":751,"1536x1536-height":914,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/isam16.jpg","2048x2048-width":751,"2048x2048-height":914,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/isam16.jpg","post_full_size-width":751,"post_full_size-height":914,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/isam16-345x420.jpg","home_baner-width":345,"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":"I Sam 16:2","tile_main_caption":"Take A Heifer With You","tile_main_caption_size":"1","tile_sub_caption":"The LORD answered, \u201cTake a heifer with you, and say, \u2018I have come to sacrifice to the LORD.\u2019","tile_preview_embedded":"","tile_preview_image":{"id":58036,"alt":"","title":"isam16","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/isam16.jpg","width":751,"height":914,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/isam16-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/isam16-246x300.jpg","medium-width":246,"medium-height":300,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/isam16.jpg","medium_large-width":751,"medium_large-height":914,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/isam16.jpg","large-width":751,"large-height":914,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/isam16.jpg","1536x1536-width":751,"1536x1536-height":914,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/isam16.jpg","2048x2048-width":751,"2048x2048-height":914,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/isam16.jpg","post_full_size-width":751,"post_full_size-height":914,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/isam16-345x420.jpg","home_baner-width":345,"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":"16","chapter_main_number":"248","date":"20260811","wall_id":"248"},"link_for_pay":false,"tags":[{"term_id":"369","name":"Visual Arts","old_id":"769"}]},{"order":4,"id":"58064","color":"#e2f4fa","size":"1","name":"Leadership Is Not Born in a Moment ","post_title":"Leadership Is Not Born In A Moment","slug":"leadership-is-not-born-in-a-moment","old_id":"58064","type":"no","iframe":"","writer":{"id":58023,"post_title":"Lianna Mendelson","slug":"lianna-mendelson","old_id":"58023","first_name":"Lianna ","last_name":"Mendelson ","description":"Lianna Mendelson is a fourth-year cantorial student at Hebrew Union College. 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In her memoir, <\/span>Becoming<\/span><\/em>, Michelle Obama describes an extreme reaction to her husband Barack\u2019s keynote address at the 2004 Democratic National Convention. \u201cCable pundits were dubbing him a rock star and an overnight success, as if he hadn\u2019t spent years working up to that moment onstage, as if the speech had created him, instead of the other way around.\u201d A prophetic moment, and suddenly, Barack Obama was the anointed one of the United States Democratic Party.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

In 1 Samuel 16, we first meet David, who is anointed Saul\u2019s successor by divine decree. David was the youngest of eight brothers, a shepherd and a musician, an altogether unlikely king. How had he spent his years working up to that moment? When Samuel comes looking for Saul\u2019s replacement, David isn\u2019t even home. If he even knew that there was an important visitor, he had prioritized tending to his flock over meeting a prophet. When he does return, still red-faced from work and probably smelling like sheep, God tells Samuel to anoint him right away. He does so, in a private ceremony attended only by his family.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

However, divine anointing alone is not enough to make a king. David keeps this incident secret, so that only he and his family know he is due to be king. He does not actually ascend the throne for another sixteen chapters, until he has both learned how to rule and proven his capabilities. A galvanizing speech can set a politician up for a successful race, but they still have to run. Perhaps the process of building a leader is comprised of both prophetic moments and unseen efforts.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

Image: Samuel Anointing David, Dura Europus, c. 245 C.E.<\/span><\/p>","post_main_content_image":{"id":58065,"alt":"","title":"isam16-anoint","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/isam16-anoint.jpg","width":757,"height":629,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/isam16-anoint-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/isam16-anoint-300x249.jpg","medium-width":300,"medium-height":249,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/isam16-anoint.jpg","medium_large-width":757,"medium_large-height":629,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/isam16-anoint.jpg","large-width":757,"large-height":629,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/isam16-anoint.jpg","1536x1536-width":757,"1536x1536-height":629,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/isam16-anoint.jpg","2048x2048-width":757,"2048x2048-height":629,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/isam16-anoint.jpg","post_full_size-width":757,"post_full_size-height":629,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/isam16-anoint-505x420.jpg","home_baner-width":505,"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":"Leadership Is Not Born In A Moment","tile_main_caption_size":"1","tile_sub_caption":"It consists in prophetic moments and unseen efforts, among other things","tile_preview_embedded":"","tile_preview_image":{"id":58065,"alt":"","title":"isam16-anoint","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/isam16-anoint.jpg","width":757,"height":629,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/isam16-anoint-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/isam16-anoint-300x249.jpg","medium-width":300,"medium-height":249,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/isam16-anoint.jpg","medium_large-width":757,"medium_large-height":629,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/isam16-anoint.jpg","large-width":757,"large-height":629,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/isam16-anoint.jpg","1536x1536-width":757,"1536x1536-height":629,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/isam16-anoint.jpg","2048x2048-width":757,"2048x2048-height":629,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/isam16-anoint.jpg","post_full_size-width":757,"post_full_size-height":629,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/isam16-anoint-505x420.jpg","home_baner-width":505,"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":"16","chapter_main_number":"248","date":"20260811","wall_id":"248"},"link_for_pay":false,"tags":[{"term_id":"402","name":"Leadership","old_id":"802"},{"term_id":"834","name":"David","old_id":"1234"}]},{"order":5,"id":"58056","color":"#e2f4fa","size":"1","name":"God Looks At The Heart ","post_title":"God Looks At The Heart","slug":"god-looks-at-the-heart","old_id":"58056","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. 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In our chapter, Samuel anoints David as the second king of Israel. This takes place after an extensive process of selection (16:1-13). After a number of likely looking candidates are considered, God tells Samuel: \u201cDo not consider his appearance or his height, for I have rejected him. The Lord does not look at the things people look at. People look at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart\u201d (verse 7).<\/span><\/p>\r\n

This verse serves as the conclusion to an extensive discussion of the word \u201cheart\u201d (lev<\/em>) in a late midrashic work, \u201cThe Alphabet of Rabbi Akivah\u201d: The 12<\/span>th<\/span> letter of the Hebrew alphabet -- Lamed is composed of three letters L-M-D, which can be read as an abbreviation of the Hebrew phase: Lev Meyvin Da\u2019at<\/em> \u201cThe Heart Understands Knowledge\u201d. This teaches that the human Heart is \u201cequivalent to\u201d all other parts of the human body. For example, Scripture suggests that the heart may be said to \u201csee\u201d: Kohelet says \u201cmy heart has seen much wisdom and knowledge\u201d, after having just said \u201cI spoke with my own heart\u201d (dibarti \u2018ani \u2018im libi<\/em>) (Ecclesiastes 1:16). Thus, the heart can be said to have the ability to \u201chear\u201d, as when Solomon prays for a \u201chearing heart\u201d (lev shomea<\/em>\u2019) (I King 3:9). The heart can be wise or foolish (Ecclesiastes 10:2). The heart can be \u201cbroken and contrite\u201d (Psalms 51:19 \u2013 lev nishbar ve-nidkeh<\/em>); but it can also \u201cheal\" (Proverbs 14:30 \u2013 lev marpe\u2019<\/em>).<\/span><\/p>\r\n

The Brown, Driver and Briggs, Biblical Lexicon, s.v. levav<\/em> defines lev<\/em> as \u201cthe inner man, mind, will, heart\u201d or \u201csoul\u201d.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

In modern times, we often think of the brain as the seat of the mind, i.e \u201cthought\u201d, and heart as the seat of the emotions, i.e. \u201cfeeling\u201d. As the French writer Andr\u00e9 Malraux (La Condition Humaine,<\/em> 1933) succinctly states: \u201cWhat the mind sees the heart feels\u201d.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

However, medical research in the developing field of neurocardiology has suggested that \"the heart is a state of intelligent consciousness\", apparently containing some 40,000 neurons -- greater in amplitude and intensity than the brain. The theory of \u201cheart-brain connection\u201d suggests that the heart is a highly complex system with its own functional \u201cbrain\u201d.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

This is perhaps the reason that God is said to \u201clook at the heart\u201d (yire\u2019h la-levav<\/em>) in selecting David to be the second king of Israel.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

Image by: Damian Niolet from Pixabay<\/span> \u00a0<\/span><\/p>","post_main_content_image":{"id":58057,"alt":"","title":"isam16-heart-brain","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/png","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/isam16-heart-brain.png","width":1920,"height":1920,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/isam16-heart-brain-150x150.png","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/isam16-heart-brain-300x300.png","medium-width":300,"medium-height":300,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/isam16-heart-brain-768x768.png","medium_large-width":768,"medium_large-height":768,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/isam16-heart-brain-1024x1024.png","large-width":1024,"large-height":1024,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/isam16-heart-brain.png","1536x1536-width":1536,"1536x1536-height":1536,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/isam16-heart-brain.png","2048x2048-width":1920,"2048x2048-height":1920,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/isam16-heart-brain-1200x1200.png","post_full_size-width":1200,"post_full_size-height":1200,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/isam16-heart-brain-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":"God Looks At The Heart","tile_main_caption_size":"1","tile_sub_caption":"Seat of wisdom, understanding and the human soul","tile_preview_embedded":"","tile_preview_image":{"id":58057,"alt":"","title":"isam16-heart-brain","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/png","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/isam16-heart-brain.png","width":1920,"height":1920,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/isam16-heart-brain-150x150.png","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/isam16-heart-brain-300x300.png","medium-width":300,"medium-height":300,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/isam16-heart-brain-768x768.png","medium_large-width":768,"medium_large-height":768,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/isam16-heart-brain-1024x1024.png","large-width":1024,"large-height":1024,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/isam16-heart-brain.png","1536x1536-width":1536,"1536x1536-height":1536,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/isam16-heart-brain.png","2048x2048-width":1920,"2048x2048-height":1920,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/isam16-heart-brain-1200x1200.png","post_full_size-width":1200,"post_full_size-height":1200,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/isam16-heart-brain-420x420.png","home_baner-width":420,"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":"16","chapter_main_number":"248","date":"20260811","wall_id":"248"},"link_for_pay":false,"tags":[{"term_id":"447","name":"Heart","old_id":"847"},{"term_id":"834","name":"David","old_id":"1234"}]},{"order":6,"id":"58098","color":"#e2f4fa","size":"1","name":"We Walk Together In Light And Darkness ","post_title":"We Walk Together In Light And Darkness","slug":"we-walk-together-in-light-and-darkness","old_id":"58098","type":"no","iframe":"","writer":{"id":56290,"post_title":"Sandra Cohen","slug":"sandra-cohen","old_id":"56290","first_name":"Sandra ","last_name":"Cohen","description":"Rabbi Sandra Cohen teaches, provides pastoral care, and works in mental health outreach. 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","short_description":"Rabbi Sandra Cohen teaches, provides pastoral care, and works in mental health outreach.","credit":"","image_url":"","hide_writer":false,"link_for_pay":false,"image":{"id":56293,"alt":"","title":"Sandra Cohen","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/Sandra-Cohen.jpg","width":279,"height":303,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/Sandra-Cohen-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/Sandra-Cohen-276x300.jpg","medium-width":276,"medium-height":300,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/Sandra-Cohen.jpg","medium_large-width":279,"medium_large-height":303,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/Sandra-Cohen.jpg","large-width":279,"large-height":303,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/Sandra-Cohen.jpg","1536x1536-width":279,"1536x1536-height":303,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/Sandra-Cohen.jpg","2048x2048-width":279,"2048x2048-height":303,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/Sandra-Cohen.jpg","post_full_size-width":279,"post_full_size-height":303,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/Sandra-Cohen.jpg","home_baner-width":279,"home_baner-height":303}},"tags":false},"related_cahpter":"248","type_929":"2","show_author_image":false,"old_create_date":"","old_url":"","post_main_content_description":"What to do when God\u2019s light, God\u2019s very Presence departs from you?","post_main_content_content":"

\u201cNow the spirit of the LORD had departed from Saul, and an evil spirit from the LORD began to terrify him\u201d (16:14).<\/span><\/p>\r\n

What to do, indeed, when God\u2019s light, God\u2019s very Presence departs from you? It is an invisible phenomenon, but a discrete and frightening occurrence that I know. Not that God has ever chosen me the way God chose King Saul, of course, but, in my own, small way, I feel God in \u00a0my life \u2014 and then, suddenly, not. <\/span><\/p>\r\n

It is reflected in the puzzlement in the doctor\u2019s gentle questioning: did something precipitate this drop in mood? \u201cNo,\u201d I say, anticipating his disbelief. \u201cI was fine, I was a bit manic for a few days, and then. . . well, then I dropped off the edge of the cliff and I am still falling.\u201d He may not understand, but he tries to help.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

I walk into shul on Shabbat, and I have no skin between me and my fellow congregants. \u00a0They are kind, they are loving, they see too much, and I cower in the bathroom before reading the Torah, and leave early to avoid the conversations at Kiddush.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

Saul had David and his music. I have a therapist whose kind words and open heart surround me, like a hammock beneath me while the evil spirit, the bad energy, if you will, breathes through me. Sometimes words can help; sometimes words fail. <\/span><\/p>\r\n

What do you do, what <\/span>should<\/span><\/i> you do, when God seems to desert you? Did the Holy One of Blessing completely leave King Saul, or simply try to show him to a new role in the world? \u00a0Sometimes we mistake an ending for <\/span>the<\/span><\/i> ending. But, then, for Saul, it was the beginning of the end. He couldn\u2019t find a way to be, without being king. He mistook his pain in the moment for unending pain. And no one, it seemed, could tell him differently.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

This, too, I understand. The depression comes and goes. I know this intellectually. But when I am in the middle of the fall, when I reach out for God and find only emptiness, a vast void where once was Presence, intellectual knowledge means little. It come and goes? It leaves only to return again. Where to put my faith: in the recurrence or the remission? In God\u2019s presence, or absence? <\/span><\/p>\r\n

The music worked for Saul while it worked. And then, his pain would return. But so would David and his lyre.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

So, too, do I, do all of us, put our faith in one another. We walk together in light and darkness, our voices and music creating a path in the night, reminding us of God\u2019s grace, of God\u2019s return. \u00a0Sometimes we are Saul, with an evil spirit squeezing our hearts so hard we can barely breath. Sometimes we are David, providing a message of hope, that a spirit from God, might yet return. <\/span><\/p>\r\n

And sometimes, we are blessed to be the lyre itself, string of connection between the worlds, between our souls and the Soul of the World.<\/span><\/p>","post_main_content_image":{"id":58099,"alt":"","title":"isam16-clouds","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/isam16-clouds.jpg","width":1920,"height":1442,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/isam16-clouds-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/isam16-clouds-300x225.jpg","medium-width":300,"medium-height":225,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/isam16-clouds-768x577.jpg","medium_large-width":768,"medium_large-height":577,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/isam16-clouds-1024x769.jpg","large-width":1024,"large-height":769,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/isam16-clouds.jpg","1536x1536-width":1536,"1536x1536-height":1154,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/isam16-clouds.jpg","2048x2048-width":1920,"2048x2048-height":1442,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/isam16-clouds-1200x901.jpg","post_full_size-width":1200,"post_full_size-height":901,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/isam16-clouds-559x420.jpg","home_baner-width":559,"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":"We Walk Together In Light And Darkness","tile_main_caption_size":"1","tile_sub_caption":"What to do when God\u2019s light, God\u2019s very Presence departs from you?","tile_preview_embedded":"","tile_preview_image":{"id":58099,"alt":"","title":"isam16-clouds","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/isam16-clouds.jpg","width":1920,"height":1442,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/isam16-clouds-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/isam16-clouds-300x225.jpg","medium-width":300,"medium-height":225,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/isam16-clouds-768x577.jpg","medium_large-width":768,"medium_large-height":577,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/isam16-clouds-1024x769.jpg","large-width":1024,"large-height":769,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/isam16-clouds.jpg","1536x1536-width":1536,"1536x1536-height":1154,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/isam16-clouds.jpg","2048x2048-width":1920,"2048x2048-height":1442,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/isam16-clouds-1200x901.jpg","post_full_size-width":1200,"post_full_size-height":901,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/isam16-clouds-559x420.jpg","home_baner-width":559,"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":"16","chapter_main_number":"248","date":"20260811","wall_id":"248"},"link_for_pay":false,"tags":[{"term_id":"384","name":"God","old_id":"784"},{"term_id":"585","name":"Soul","old_id":"985"},{"term_id":"629","name":"Light","old_id":"1029"}]},{"order":7,"id":"58059","color":"#e2f4fa","size":"1","name":"The Red Gene ","post_title":"The Red Gene","slug":"the-red-gene","old_id":"58059","type":"no","iframe":"","writer":{"id":42746,"post_title":"Michal Kohane","slug":"michal-kohane","old_id":"42746","first_name":"Michal ","last_name":"Kohane ","description":"Currently based in Israel, Rabbanit Michal Kohane is a graduate of Yeshivat Maharat, a writer, community leader and teacher of Talmud & Torah. She holds degrees in Israel studies , education and psychology, and has been a leader and educator in Northern California for over 25 years. Her first novel, Hachug (\"Extracurricular\") was published in Israel in 2016 and her weekly blog can be found at http:\/\/www.miko284.com\r\n\r\n\r\n","short_description":"Currently based in Israel, Rabbanit Michal Kohane is a graduate of Yeshivat Maharat, a writer, community leader and teacher of Talmud & Torah. ","credit":"","image_url":"","hide_writer":false,"link_for_pay":false,"image":{"id":42747,"alt":"","title":"michal kohane","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/michal-kohane-e1540448078529.jpg","width":214,"height":226,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/michal-kohane-e1540448078529-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/michal-kohane-e1540448078529.jpg","medium-width":214,"medium-height":226,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/michal-kohane-e1540448078529.jpg","medium_large-width":214,"medium_large-height":226,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/michal-kohane-e1540448078529.jpg","large-width":214,"large-height":226,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/michal-kohane-e1540448078529.jpg","1536x1536-width":214,"1536x1536-height":226,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/michal-kohane-e1540448078529.jpg","2048x2048-width":214,"2048x2048-height":226,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/michal-kohane-e1540448078529.jpg","post_full_size-width":214,"post_full_size-height":226,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/michal-kohane-e1540448078529.jpg","home_baner-width":214,"home_baner-height":226}},"tags":false},"related_cahpter":"248","type_929":"2","show_author_image":false,"old_create_date":"","old_url":"","post_main_content_description":"What is the relationship between David and his forebear Esau, the two redheads of the Tanakh?","post_main_content_content":"

There are two redheads mentioned in the whole Tanakh: Esau and David. The talmudic rabbis thought <\/span>that this is exactly what scared Samuel: something about David reminded him of Esau, the hunter who didn\u2019t care for the family\u2019s spiritual inheritance, and the idea of having a bloodthirsty king for Israel, just didn\u2019t sit well with him.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

Is it a coincidence that Esau and David are both described as <\/span>admoni<\/span><\/em> - redheads?<\/span><\/p>\r\n

A careful check up on the Abrahamic family\u2019s genealogy reveals the relationship between the two. When Abraham speaks to Avimelech about Sarah, he said (Genesis 20:12): \u201c<\/span>And besides, she is in truth my sister, my father\u2019s daughter though not my mother\u2019s; and she became my wife.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\r\n

If so, it seems like Terach, Abraham\u2019s father, had two wives: One who was Abraham\u2019s and Nachor\u2019s mom, and one, a redhead, who bore him Haran. The \u201cred gene\u201d then travels from Haran to Milkah, his daughter and Nachor\u2019s wife to Rivkah and then, to Esau. The other \u201cred gene\u201d travels through Haran\u2019s son, Lot, to his daughter who bore him Moav, and from there to Ruth \u201cThe Moabite\u201d and on, to her great-grandson, David.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

Will the future king be like his great, great (and more...) uncle? Just a few verses earlier, God tells Samuel that He, can see to a person\u2019s heart, and not be fooled by looks, which is true for both Saul and David: Saul, who was of impressive features but failed as a king, as opposed to David, who had an alarming feature, and turned out to be successful and begin an everlasting dynasty. David\u2019s \u201credness\u201d is a sort of redemption for Esau\u2019s: a similarly tough warrior and politician who cares, writes poems and plays music, the song of the soul.<\/span><\/p>","post_main_content_image":{"id":58062,"alt":"","title":"isam16-red","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/isam16-red.jpg","width":1020,"height":720,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/isam16-red-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/isam16-red-300x212.jpg","medium-width":300,"medium-height":212,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/isam16-red-768x542.jpg","medium_large-width":768,"medium_large-height":542,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/isam16-red.jpg","large-width":1020,"large-height":720,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/isam16-red.jpg","1536x1536-width":1020,"1536x1536-height":720,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/isam16-red.jpg","2048x2048-width":1020,"2048x2048-height":720,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/isam16-red.jpg","post_full_size-width":1020,"post_full_size-height":720,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/isam16-red-595x420.jpg","home_baner-width":595,"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 Red Gene","tile_main_caption_size":"1","tile_sub_caption":"What is the relationship between David and his forebear Esau, the two redheads of the Tanakh?","tile_preview_embedded":"","tile_preview_image":{"id":58062,"alt":"","title":"isam16-red","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/isam16-red.jpg","width":1020,"height":720,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/isam16-red-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/isam16-red-300x212.jpg","medium-width":300,"medium-height":212,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/isam16-red-768x542.jpg","medium_large-width":768,"medium_large-height":542,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/isam16-red.jpg","large-width":1020,"large-height":720,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/isam16-red.jpg","1536x1536-width":1020,"1536x1536-height":720,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/isam16-red.jpg","2048x2048-width":1020,"2048x2048-height":720,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/isam16-red.jpg","post_full_size-width":1020,"post_full_size-height":720,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/isam16-red-595x420.jpg","home_baner-width":595,"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":"16","chapter_main_number":"248","date":"20260811","wall_id":"248"},"link_for_pay":false,"tags":[{"term_id":"486","name":"Esau","old_id":"886"},{"term_id":"834","name":"David","old_id":"1234"},{"term_id":"892","name":"Red hair","old_id":"1292"}]},{"order":8,"id":"68359","color":"#e2f4fa","size":"1","name":"The Historical Background To David ","post_title":"The Historical Background To David","slug":"the-historical-background-to-david","old_id":"68359","type":"no","iframe":"","writer":{"id":67889,"post_title":"JLI - Rohr Jewish Learning Institute","slug":"jli-rohr-jewish-learning-institute","old_id":"67889","first_name":"JLI","last_name":"Rohr Jewish Learning Institute","description":"Founded in 1998, and affiliated with Chabad, the Rohr Jewish Learning Institute (JLI) is dedicated to creating a global network of informed students connected by bonds of shared Jewish experience. Serving learning centers in over 1,600 communities and on the internet, JLI is the world's preeminent provider of Jewish learning. JLI's courses are accredited for continuing legal, medical, and mental health education and all courses offer CEU credits. JLI's TorahCafe is a video website dedicated to making the best of Jewish scholarship accessible to the public. Torah Cafe offers over 6,000 video lectures, classes, and presentations by world-class Torah scholars and experts in their fields.\r\n","short_description":"Founded in 1998, and affiliated with Chabad, the Rohr Jewish Learning Institute (JLI) is dedicated to creating a global network of informed students connected by bonds of shared Jewish experience. ","credit":"","image_url":"","hide_writer":false,"link_for_pay":false,"image":{"id":67890,"alt":"","title":"JLI","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/png","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/JLI.png","width":413,"height":601,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/JLI-150x150.png","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/JLI-206x300.png","medium-width":206,"medium-height":300,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/JLI.png","medium_large-width":413,"medium_large-height":601,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/JLI.png","large-width":413,"large-height":601,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/JLI.png","1536x1536-width":413,"1536x1536-height":601,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/JLI.png","2048x2048-width":413,"2048x2048-height":601,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/JLI.png","post_full_size-width":413,"post_full_size-height":601,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/JLI-289x420.png","home_baner-width":289,"home_baner-height":420}},"tags":false},"related_cahpter":"248","type_929":"2","show_author_image":false,"old_create_date":"","old_url":"","post_main_content_description":"From Saul to David","post_main_content_content":"

 <\/p>\r\n

\"\"<\/p>\r\n

Click here for the video: Strength and Struggle\u00a0<\/a>and the background to the kingship of David<\/p>","post_main_content_image":"","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":"Video Overviews from Torah Cafe","tile_main_caption":"The Historical Background To David","tile_main_caption_size":"1","tile_sub_caption":"From Saul to David","tile_preview_embedded":"","tile_preview_image":{"id":68360,"alt":"","title":"isam-david background","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/01\/isam-david-background.jpg","width":947,"height":486,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/01\/isam-david-background-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/01\/isam-david-background-300x154.jpg","medium-width":300,"medium-height":154,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/01\/isam-david-background-768x394.jpg","medium_large-width":768,"medium_large-height":394,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/01\/isam-david-background.jpg","large-width":947,"large-height":486,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/01\/isam-david-background.jpg","1536x1536-width":947,"1536x1536-height":486,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/01\/isam-david-background.jpg","2048x2048-width":947,"2048x2048-height":486,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/01\/isam-david-background.jpg","post_full_size-width":947,"post_full_size-height":486,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/01\/isam-david-background-818x420.jpg","home_baner-width":818,"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":"16","chapter_main_number":"248","date":"20260811","wall_id":"248"},"link_for_pay":false,"tags":[{"term_id":"834","name":"David","old_id":"1234"},{"term_id":"885","name":"Saul","old_id":"1285"}]},{"order":9,"id":"57926","color":"#e2f4fa","size":"1","name":"Samuels\u2019 Personal And Political Predicament ","post_title":"Samuels\u2019 Personal And Political Predicament","slug":"samuels-personal-and-political-predicament","old_id":"57926","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":"248","type_929":"2","show_author_image":false,"old_create_date":"","old_url":"","post_main_content_description":"God gives Samuel the excuse he needs to safely locate Saul\u2019s successor","post_main_content_content":"

And Samuel said, \u201cHow can I go? For should Saul hear, he will kill me.\u201d (16:2)<\/span><\/p>\r\n

Commentary: <\/span>For should Saul hear, he will kill me<\/span><\/i><\/p>\r\n

Suddenly, a whole new political perspective is thrown on the estrangement between Samuel and Saul. The prophet may claim the higher ground of divine authority, but it is the king who has the armed divisions, and who might be ready to use them if Samuel should take any active steps to replace him. At this point, Samuel\u2019s \u201cgrieving\u201d over Saul begins to look like grieving over the mistake he made in first choosing him. God, understanding Samuel\u2019s political predicament, suggests to him a cover story for his trip from Ramah to Bethlehem, in the tribal territory of Judah.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

From: Robert Alter, <\/span>The Hebrew Bible<\/span><\/em>, <\/span><\/i>vol. 2: Prophets, W. W. Norton & Co., 2019, ad loc. By permission of the author <\/span><\/p>\r\n

 <\/p>","post_main_content_image":{"id":54890,"alt":"","title":"Alter-Cover","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/Alter-Cover.jpg","width":1200,"height":693,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/Alter-Cover-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/Alter-Cover-300x173.jpg","medium-width":300,"medium-height":173,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/Alter-Cover-768x444.jpg","medium_large-width":768,"medium_large-height":444,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/Alter-Cover-1024x591.jpg","large-width":1024,"large-height":591,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/Alter-Cover.jpg","1536x1536-width":1200,"1536x1536-height":693,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/Alter-Cover.jpg","2048x2048-width":1200,"2048x2048-height":693,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/Alter-Cover-1200x693.jpg","post_full_size-width":1200,"post_full_size-height":693,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/Alter-Cover-727x420.jpg","home_baner-width":727,"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":"From Robert Alter's Bible Translation and Commentary","tile_main_caption":"Samuels\u2019 Personal And Political Predicament","tile_main_caption_size":"1","tile_sub_caption":"God gives Samuel the excuse he needs to safely locate Saul\u2019s successor","tile_preview_embedded":"","tile_preview_image":{"id":54890,"alt":"","title":"Alter-Cover","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/Alter-Cover.jpg","width":1200,"height":693,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/Alter-Cover-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/Alter-Cover-300x173.jpg","medium-width":300,"medium-height":173,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/Alter-Cover-768x444.jpg","medium_large-width":768,"medium_large-height":444,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/Alter-Cover-1024x591.jpg","large-width":1024,"large-height":591,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/Alter-Cover.jpg","1536x1536-width":1200,"1536x1536-height":693,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/Alter-Cover.jpg","2048x2048-width":1200,"2048x2048-height":693,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/Alter-Cover-1200x693.jpg","post_full_size-width":1200,"post_full_size-height":693,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/Alter-Cover-727x420.jpg","home_baner-width":727,"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":"16","chapter_main_number":"248","date":"20260811","wall_id":"248"},"link_for_pay":false,"tags":false},{"order":10,"id":"58095","color":"#e2f4fa","size":"1","name":"The Youngest Son Chosen To Rule A Young Nation ","post_title":"The Youngest Son Chosen To Rule A Young Nation","slug":"the-youngest-son-chosen-to-rule-a-young-nation","old_id":"58095","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":"248","type_929":"2","show_author_image":false,"old_create_date":"","old_url":"","post_main_content_description":"The choosing of the eighth son is true to Biblical form","post_main_content_content":"

In yesterday\u2019s chapter, 1 Samuel 15, Samuel informed Saul, \u201cThe Lord has torn the kingdom of Israel from you today, and he will give it to your fellow who is better than you\u201d (v. 27). The reader, accordingly, is primed for the introduction of a new character. <\/span><\/p>\r\n

We meet said person in chapter 16: David son of Jesse, of the town of Bethlehem. But we jump ahead of ourselves.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

The chapter begins with God\u2019s instructing Samuel to journey to the house of Jesse, \u201cfor I have seen among his sons a king for me\u201d (v. 1). \u00a0When Samuel arrives at the house of Jesse, one by one the seven sons are paraded before Samuel, but in each instance, God informs Samuel that each one is not suitable to be king. <\/span><\/p>\r\n

At this point, Samuel asks Jesse, \u201care there any more lads?\u201d (v. 11), to which Jesse responds, \u201cthe youngest still remains, and behold, he is shepherding the flock\u201d (v. 11). The lad is brought before Samuel, at which point God says to the prophet, \u201carise, anoint him, for he is the one\u201d (v. 12) \u2013 and then the reader learns that the name of this youngest son is David (v. 13).<\/span><\/p>\r\n

What is this story about? \u00a0Why the youngest son? Why not any of the older sons of Jesse? <\/span><\/p>\r\n

Before attempting to answer the question, though, we note the parallel to all of the other younger or youngest sons who were favored over their older brothers in earlier biblical stories: \u00a0Abel, Isaac, Jacob, Joseph, Perez, Ephraim, Moses, et al. Clearly, the motif must have meant something to the people of ancient Israel. Two reasons, not mutually exclusive, come to the fore.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

First, the motif is worthy of saga. Which is to say, in the norm of life, primogeniture rules, so that first-born sons are expected to flourish. But who would want to read a story about the norm in life? The stuff of literature is the extraordinary, which thereby grasps the reader\u2019s attention. The reader is much more likely to be drawn to the unlikely hero, from David to Frodo Baggins. In fact, we have an ancient parallel to the David story. In Ugaritic epic poetry, dated to c. 1400 B.C.E., King Kirta elevates his eighth child, a daughter no less, to first-born status, as she thereby supersedes her seven older brothers.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

Secondly, in the literary motif of the younger or youngest son, one can see the very self-definition of the people of ancient Israel. The people of Israel understood that they were a younger nation, as opposed to much older and more established nations such as Egypt, Hatti, Assyria, and Babylonia. These nations had the natural advantage of \u201cfirst-born nationhood,\u201d as it were, with political, economic, and military might. Israel, by contrast, was a fledgling nation, recently come into existence. \u00a0And thus the stories were told and retold as a reflection of this fact \u2013 until they became canonical.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

image by: Paolo Veronese, <\/span>The Anointment of David, c. 1555 \/ 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We first encounter David in the chapter that follows Samuel\u2019s terminal breach with Saul. Expressing his determination to replace Saul, God ordered Samuel to travel to Bethlehem to Jesse\u2019s family and anoint Saul\u2019s successor, a command to which Samuel responded with great trepidation: \u201cHow can I go? For should Saul hear, he will kill me\u201d (1 Sam 16:2)... <\/span><\/p>\r\n

To protect the prophet from Saul\u2019s predictable fury, God suggests that Samuel pretend to be going to Bethlehem not to anoint the next king but simply to officiate over a festive ritual sacrifice to which Jesse and his family can be unobtrusively invited. Samuel adopts God\u2019s alibi and, after fruitlessly considering Jesse\u2019s eldest seven sons, has the youngest son David fetched from shepherding the herd and anoints him in the presence of his brothers. \u201cAnd the spirit of the LORD gripped David from that day onward (16:13).<\/span><\/p>\r\n

Saul\u2019s replacement has now been selected, and when he enters the scene he naturally appears to be a mortal rival to the sitting king. Our narrator heightens the dramatic and psychological effects of this rivalry by locating David, with virtually no transition, at the court of Saul and indeed in Saul\u2019s innermost circle. In such intimate proximity, a lethal rivalry over supreme political power becomes entangled in a complex web of personal relationships between Saul, his family, and David. The dramatic unfolding of these familial entanglements and confrontations allows the narrator to explore to ever-greater depth how the emergence of a centralized and inheritable sovereign authority over all Israel inevitably gave rise to a ruthless and, for Saul, emotionally fraught winner-take-all struggle for power.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

The Book of Samuel offers us two distinct accounts of how David, the shepherd from Bethlehem who has been secretly anointed, joined Saul\u2019s inner court. According to the first version, Saul, a doomed king holding desperately onto power, sank into a dizzying depression... To relieve the king\u2019s chronic melancholy, David was brought to Saul by his servants because of his reputation as a skilled lyre player. David\u2019s music had a comforting effect on Saul, exorcising his evil demons, and we are told that \u201cSaul loved him greatly\u201d (1 Sam 16:21). This particular way of introducing David to the court emphasizes Saul\u2019s emotional dependency on David. That Saul\u2019s mood swings were controlled by David\u2019s music foreshadows the way that Saul\u2019s emotional life will be defined by his struggle with David. Saul will vacillate uncontrollably between a bitter hatred toward his rival and a loving recognition of him as almost an adopted son.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

In the second account of how David joined Saul\u2019s court, David was brought into Saul\u2019s inner court not through David\u2019s soothing musical gifts but due to his heroic and ambitious qualities\u2026 Upon hearing Goliath\u2019s challenge to Israel and the prize that was promised by the king to the one who would dare to fight Goliath, David volunteered to face the giant and was brought before the skeptical king. David\u2019s confidence and ambition and the paralysis of the rest of the troops ultimately convinced Saul to allow the young shephard to fight. After David resoundingly defeated Goliath, he joined Saul\u2019s court, becoming one of the king\u2019s leading and most trusted officers.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

Excerpts from The Beginning of Politics: Power in the Biblical Book of Samuel<\/em>\u00a0\u2013 Moshe Halbertal and Stephen Holmes, Princeton University Press, 2017, pp.29-31. By permission of the author.<\/span><\/p>","post_main_content_image":{"id":56668,"alt":"","title":"halbertal-book cover.jpg","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/png","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/halbertal-book-cover.jpg.png","width":2000,"height":2000,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/halbertal-book-cover.jpg-150x150.png","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/halbertal-book-cover.jpg-300x300.png","medium-width":300,"medium-height":300,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/halbertal-book-cover.jpg-768x768.png","medium_large-width":768,"medium_large-height":768,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/halbertal-book-cover.jpg-1024x1024.png","large-width":1024,"large-height":1024,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/halbertal-book-cover.jpg.png","1536x1536-width":1536,"1536x1536-height":1536,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/halbertal-book-cover.jpg.png","2048x2048-width":2000,"2048x2048-height":2000,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/halbertal-book-cover.jpg-1200x1200.png","post_full_size-width":1200,"post_full_size-height":1200,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/halbertal-book-cover.jpg-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":"Excerpts from:\u201cThe Beginning of Politics: Power in the Biblical Book of Samuel\u201d ","tile_main_caption":"David: Secret Successor, Soothing Musician, Valiant Warrior","tile_main_caption_size":"1","tile_sub_caption":"David takes center stage, to Saul\u2019s unraveling","tile_preview_embedded":"","tile_preview_image":{"id":56668,"alt":"","title":"halbertal-book cover.jpg","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/png","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/halbertal-book-cover.jpg.png","width":2000,"height":2000,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/halbertal-book-cover.jpg-150x150.png","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/halbertal-book-cover.jpg-300x300.png","medium-width":300,"medium-height":300,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/halbertal-book-cover.jpg-768x768.png","medium_large-width":768,"medium_large-height":768,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/halbertal-book-cover.jpg-1024x1024.png","large-width":1024,"large-height":1024,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/halbertal-book-cover.jpg.png","1536x1536-width":1536,"1536x1536-height":1536,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/halbertal-book-cover.jpg.png","2048x2048-width":2000,"2048x2048-height":2000,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/halbertal-book-cover.jpg-1200x1200.png","post_full_size-width":1200,"post_full_size-height":1200,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/halbertal-book-cover.jpg-420x420.png","home_baner-width":420,"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":"16","chapter_main_number":"248","date":"20260811","wall_id":"248"},"link_for_pay":false,"tags":[{"term_id":"512","name":"Music","old_id":"912"},{"term_id":"834","name":"David","old_id":"1234"},{"term_id":"885","name":"Saul","old_id":"1285"}]},{"order":13,"id":"58067","color":"#e2f4fa","size":"1","name":"Nothing But The Truth? 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Samuel was so invested in Saul\u2019s monarchy that he was literally in mourning over its loss. God basically told him to get over it and ordered him to Bethlehem to anoint an as yet unnamed son of Jesse to succeed Saul. Samuel complained: \u201cHow can I go? If Saul hears of it, he will have me killed.\u201d God replied: \u201cTake along a calf and say you are going to offer a sacrifice to God\u201d (2).<\/span><\/p>\r\n

This verse features prominently in the following talmudic passage (Yebamot 65b):<\/span><\/p>\r\n

    \r\n\t
  1. Ile'a further stated in the name of R. Eleazar son of R. Simeon: One may (<\/span>mutar<\/span><\/em>) modify a statement (<\/span>leshanot<\/span><\/em>) in the interests of peace, for it is said in Scripture, \u201cYour father commanded before his death, so shall you say to Joseph: Please forgive your brothers\u2019 wrongdoing,\u201d etc.* R. Nathan said: It is a commandment (<\/span>mitzvah<\/span><\/em>), for it is stated in Scripture, \u201cAnd Samuel said: \u2018How can I go? If Saul hears it, he will kill me\u2019,\u201d etc.<\/span><\/li>\r\n<\/ol>\r\n

    Note, first and foremost, that the Talmud does not solicit or condone outright lying (<\/span>leshaker<\/span><\/em>), only being evasive. Since Samuel indeed prepared for a sacrifice (5), which became the \u201ccover\u201d under which he met the sons of Jesse and discovered young David, he was actually telling the truth. Perhaps, in this case, it was not the whole truth, but surely it was nothing but the truth.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

    *Genesis 50: 16. There is no textual evidence that Jacob actually gave these instructions to his sons, allowing for the insinuation that the words, designed to appease Joseph and preserve household harmony, were their own.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

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    In 2012 archaeologists uncovered this bulla, or seal impression, in Jerusalem. The bulla contains the first mention of Bethelehem in the archaeological record. The toponym, which is King David\u2019s ancestral town (1 Kings 16), is visible in the middle register of the bulla. The seal was likely used to identify shipments of taxable goods, such as grain and wine, to the capital of Judah in Jerusalem. The bulla itself can be dated to the 8th<\/sup> century BCE based on paleography (i.e., the shape of the letters).<\/p>\r\n

    image: IAA, courtesy of George Blumenthal<\/p>","post_main_content_image":{"id":61104,"alt":"","title":"1samuel16_bulla","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/png","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/08\/1samuel16_bulla.png","width":1045,"height":1145,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/08\/1samuel16_bulla-150x150.png","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/08\/1samuel16_bulla-274x300.png","medium-width":274,"medium-height":300,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/08\/1samuel16_bulla-768x841.png","medium_large-width":768,"medium_large-height":841,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/08\/1samuel16_bulla-935x1024.png","large-width":935,"large-height":1024,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/08\/1samuel16_bulla.png","1536x1536-width":1045,"1536x1536-height":1145,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/08\/1samuel16_bulla.png","2048x2048-width":1045,"2048x2048-height":1145,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/08\/1samuel16_bulla.png","post_full_size-width":1045,"post_full_size-height":1145,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/08\/1samuel16_bulla-383x420.png","home_baner-width":383,"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":"8th C. 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    \u201cPirke Avot: Who is Mighty?\u201d<\/span><\/a> by Josh Franklin: Jewish perspectives on strength.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

    \u201cJewish Ethics on Truth and Lying\u201d<\/span><\/a> by David Galpert: Is it ever all right to lie? <\/span><\/p>","post_main_content_image":"","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":"Go deeper into the chapter....","tile_main_caption":"Sefaria Source Sheets - I Samuel 16","tile_main_caption_size":"1","tile_sub_caption":"Click to get links to learning resources","tile_preview_embedded":"","tile_preview_image":{"id":42232,"alt":"","title":"sefaria-words-sunburst","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/png","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/sefaria-words-sunburst.png","width":608,"height":395,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/sefaria-words-sunburst-150x150.png","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/sefaria-words-sunburst-300x195.png","medium-width":300,"medium-height":195,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/sefaria-words-sunburst.png","medium_large-width":608,"medium_large-height":395,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/sefaria-words-sunburst.png","large-width":608,"large-height":395,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/sefaria-words-sunburst.png","1536x1536-width":608,"1536x1536-height":395,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/sefaria-words-sunburst.png","2048x2048-width":608,"2048x2048-height":395,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/sefaria-words-sunburst.png","post_full_size-width":608,"post_full_size-height":395,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/sefaria-words-sunburst.png","home_baner-width":608,"home_baner-height":395}},"tile_preview_video":"","tile_external_link":"","tile_tile_gallery_items":"","tile_credits":"Sefaria word sunburst visualization","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":"","old_create_date":"","links":false,"chapter_info":{"books_group":"Prophets","book":"I Samuel","chapter":"16","chapter_main_number":"248","date":"20260811","wall_id":"248"},"link_for_pay":false,"tags":false},{"order":18,"id":"58070","color":"#e2f4fa","size":"1","name":"Points to Ponder - I Samuel 16 ","post_title":"Points to Ponder - I Samuel 16","slug":"points-to-ponder-i-samuel-16","old_id":"58070","type":"no","iframe":"","writer":{"id":38102,"post_title":"929-English","slug":"929-english","old_id":"38102","first_name":"","last_name":"929-English","description":"","short_description":"","credit":"","image_url":"","hide_writer":false,"link_for_pay":false,"image":{"id":38333,"alt":"","title":"\u05dc\u05d5\u05d2\u05d5","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/png","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/08\/\u05dc\u05d5\u05d2\u05d5.png","width":1513,"height":860,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/08\/\u05dc\u05d5\u05d2\u05d5-150x150.png","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/08\/\u05dc\u05d5\u05d2\u05d5-300x171.png","medium-width":300,"medium-height":171,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/08\/\u05dc\u05d5\u05d2\u05d5-768x437.png","medium_large-width":768,"medium_large-height":437,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/08\/\u05dc\u05d5\u05d2\u05d5-1024x582.png","large-width":1024,"large-height":582,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/08\/\u05dc\u05d5\u05d2\u05d5.png","1536x1536-width":1513,"1536x1536-height":860,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/08\/\u05dc\u05d5\u05d2\u05d5.png","2048x2048-width":1513,"2048x2048-height":860,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/08\/\u05dc\u05d5\u05d2\u05d5-1200x682.png","post_full_size-width":1200,"post_full_size-height":682,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/08\/\u05dc\u05d5\u05d2\u05d5-739x420.png","home_baner-width":739,"home_baner-height":420}},"tags":false},"related_cahpter":"248","type_929":"2","show_author_image":false,"old_create_date":"","old_url":"","post_main_content_description":"","post_main_content_content":"

      \r\n\t
    1. Truth - or excuse?<\/span><\/i> When Samuel is commanded to go and anoint a new king, he responds: \u201cHow can I go? If Saul hears of it, he will kill me\u201d (v. 2). Are his fears real? Or is he just expressing his own difficulty in dealing with Saul\u2019s being deposed? How do you understand Samuel?<\/span><\/li>\r\n\t
    2. The tall one.<\/span><\/i> Eliav, who is taller than the rest, is reminiscent of Saul, who we will remember was \u201ca head taller than any of the people\u201d (9:2). Even the verb used to signify that he was not chosen - <\/span>me\u2019astihu<\/span><\/i>, \u201cI have rejected him,\u201d - alludes to Saul, and his being rejected. <\/span><\/li>\r\n\t
    3. A \u2018see\u2019 change<\/span><\/i>. What can we see? The root r-aleph-h, \u201csee,\u201d appears seven times in the chapter, making it of central significance. According to verse 7, good looks are not the criterion for choosing a king: what is needed is the divine gaze that sees to the heart. But even he who has been divinely elected, is described (for our benefit?) according to his appearance, including his lovely eyes: \u201cHe was ruddy-cheeked, bright-eyed, and handsome - <\/span>tov ro\u2019i <\/span><\/i>[same root]\u201d (verse 12).<\/span><\/li>\r\n\t
    4. Cinderfella<\/span><\/i>. David is a classic Cinderella story. While his brothers attend the ball, that is the sacrifice, he is out with the flocks. It is precisely the one they didn\u2019t want to bring to the prince, that is the prophet, who is the Chosen One. What does that say about David? What does it say in general about the character and characteristics of the elect? <\/span><\/li>\r\n\t
    5. The spirit moves on<\/span><\/i>. The spirit that shines on one, and departs from another. A good spirit and an evil spirit. David carries with him the secret of his anointing, Saul the secret of his having been deposed, and the changing directions of the spirit moves the narrative along. In the end, the evil spirit that descends on Saul, and his fears, bring into his court the very object of those fears: the musician, David. \u00a0<\/span><\/li>\r\n<\/ol>","post_main_content_image":{"id":86314,"alt":"","title":"Points to ponder","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/Points-to-ponder.jpg","width":1000,"height":1000,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/Points-to-ponder-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/Points-to-ponder-300x300.jpg","medium-width":300,"medium-height":300,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/Points-to-ponder-768x768.jpg","medium_large-width":768,"medium_large-height":768,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/Points-to-ponder.jpg","large-width":1000,"large-height":1000,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/Points-to-ponder.jpg","1536x1536-width":1000,"1536x1536-height":1000,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/Points-to-ponder.jpg","2048x2048-width":1000,"2048x2048-height":1000,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/Points-to-ponder.jpg","post_full_size-width":1000,"post_full_size-height":1000,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/Points-to-ponder-420x420.jpg","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":"I Samuel 16","tile_main_caption":"Points to Ponder","tile_main_caption_size":"1","tile_sub_caption":"Insights and questions for personal reflection and group discussion","tile_preview_embedded":"","tile_preview_image":{"id":86314,"alt":"","title":"Points to ponder","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/Points-to-ponder.jpg","width":1000,"height":1000,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/Points-to-ponder-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/Points-to-ponder-300x300.jpg","medium-width":300,"medium-height":300,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/Points-to-ponder-768x768.jpg","medium_large-width":768,"medium_large-height":768,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/Points-to-ponder.jpg","large-width":1000,"large-height":1000,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/Points-to-ponder.jpg","1536x1536-width":1000,"1536x1536-height":1000,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/Points-to-ponder.jpg","2048x2048-width":1000,"2048x2048-height":1000,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/Points-to-ponder.jpg","post_full_size-width":1000,"post_full_size-height":1000,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/Points-to-ponder-420x420.jpg","home_baner-width":420,"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":"16","chapter_main_number":"248","date":"20260811","wall_id":"248"},"link_for_pay":false,"tags":false}],"static_cube_title":"","static_cube_brief":"","static_cube_color":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/wall\/58017"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/wall"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/wall"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=58017"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}