Biblical Obligations
You shall appoint magistrates and officials for your tribes, in all the settlements that the LORD your God is giving you, and they shall govern the people with due justice.
(1) שפטים ושטרים JUDGES AND BAILIFFS — שופטים are the judges who pronounce sentence, and שוטרים are those who chastise the people at their (the judges’) order [beating and binding the recalcitrant] with a stick and a strap until he accepts the judge’s sentence (Sanhedrin 16b and Rashi thereon; cf. Sifrei Devarim 144:6). (2) בכל שעריך IN ALL THY GATES — i.e. in each town (Sifrei Devarim 144:3). (3) לשבטיך THROUGHOUT THY TRIBES — This is to be connected with תתן לך, thus: judges and bailiffs shall you make yourself for your tribes in all all your cities that the Lord, your God, gives you. (4) לשבטיך THROUGHOUT THY TRIBES — This teaches that judges must be appointed for each tribe separately and each city separately (Sifrei Devarim 144:4; Sanhedrin 16b). (5) ושפטו את העם וגו׳ AND THEY SHALL JUDGE THE PEOPLE [WITH JUST JUDGMENT] — This means, appoint judges who are expert and righteous to give just judgment (cf. Sifrei Devarim 144:7).
(14) If, after you have entered the land that the LORD your God has assigned to you, and taken possession of it and settled in it, you decide, “I will set a king over me, as do all the nations about me,” (15) you shall be free to set a king over yourself, one chosen by the LORD your God. Be sure to set as king over yourself one of your own people; you must not set a foreigner over you, one who is not your kinsman.
(א) ואמרת אשימה עלי מלך על דעת רבותינו (ספרי ראה סז, סנהדרין כ א) כמו ואמור אשימה עלי מלך, והיא מצות עשה, שיחייב אותנו לומר כן אחר ירושה וישיבה, כלשון (דברים כב ח): ועשית מעקה לגגך וזולתם. והזכיר ואמרת, כי מצוה שיבואו לפני הכהנים הלוים ואל השופט, ויאמרו להם 'רצוננו שנשים עלינו מלך'. ולפי דעתי עוד, שגם זה מרמיזותיו על העתידות, שכן היה כששאלו להם את שאול, אמרו לשמואל (שמואל א ח ה): "שימה לנו מלך לשפטנו ככל הגוים", וכן כתוב שם (שמואל א ח כ): "והיינו גם אנחנו ככל הגוים ושפטנו מלכנו וגו'", כי מה טעם שתאמר התורה במצוה ככל הגוים אשר סביבותי, ואין ישראל ראויים ללמד מהם ולא לקנא בעושי עולה! אבל זה רמז לענין שיהיה, ולכך באה הפרשה בלשון הבינוני, כאשר פירשתי כבר.
(1) And you [shall] say 'I will set a king over me' according to our rabbis (Sifri 67, Sanhedrin 20b) this is a positive commandment which obligates us to say this after inheriting and settling in the land, just as the phrase "And you shall make a parapet on your roof" (Deut. 22:8) and others. And the text uses 'say' because the mitzvah is that they shall come to the Levite priests and the judge and they should say 'it is our will to set a king over ourselves'. And in my humble opinion this is also a hint to the future generations, since it was when they asked for Shaul, they said to Shmuel: 'Appoint a king over us to judge us like all the other nations' (I Samuel 8:5), and so it is also written 'and we will be like the other nations, and our king will judge us' (I Samuel 8:20). And why would the Torah say in this mitzvah "like all the nations around me", and Israel is not permitted to learn from them nor to envy their deeds! But this is a hint of an issue in the future, and this is why this part comes in 'lashon havinoni' [language that implies a Divine assurance about future generations] as I explained elsewhere.
(א) אשימה עלי מלך ככל הגוים שתהי' המלכות לו ולזרעו לא כענין השופטים שהיה השופט מולך הוא בלבד אבל לא זרעו אחריו. ועל מנוי שופט למלך בזה האופן נצטוו בביאתם לארץ כאמרו ולא תהיה עדת ה' כצאן אשר אין להם רועה: (ב) אמנם שיהיה כמלכי הגויים מחזיק במלכות הוא וזרעו נמאס אצל האל יתברך. אבל צוה שכאשר יקשו ערפם להעמיד להם מלך בזה האופן, לא יבחרו אלא אדם כשר שיבחר בו ה' (פסוק טו), ולא יעביר ישראל על דת, ושלא יהיה איש נכרי (שם), אף על פי שיהיה אדם כשר, ואף על פי שיהיה גבור ואיש מלחמה. וכאשר חטאו בשאלת המלך שימלוך הוא וזרעו ככל הגוים (שמואל א ח, ה), היה העונש עליהם בתקלות הקורות להמון בשביל המלך כאמרו וצעקתם ביום ההוא מפני מלככם אשר בחרתם לכם, ולא יענה ה' אתכם ביום ההוא (שם שם פסוק יח), וכאמרו אתן לך מלך באפי, ואקח בעברתי (הושע יג, יא). והיה הרשות במנוי המלך כמו שהיה הרשות ביפת תואר, אשר רמז שסופו לשנאתה ולהוליד ממנה בן סורר ומורה, כמו שקרא לדוד בדבר אבשלום:
(1) אשימה עלי מלך ככל הגויים, a monarch whose authority will be transferred from him to his biological heir after his death throughout the generations. This is quite different from judges, each of whom is appointed for his lifetime, with his heirs having absolutely no claim to succeed their father. The people were commanded to appoint such a hereditary position of king after they had conquered and settled in the land of Israel, the principal reason being to ensure that the Jewish people would not be like a flock without a shepherd, (Moses’ words in Numbers 27,17.) (2) The fact is that G’d disapproved of a hereditary type of monarchy such as is customary among the gentile nations, so that He stipulated that if the people insisted on appointing a king who would start a dynasty, the initial king had to be approved not only by the people but by G’d’s representative on G’d’s behalf, as we know from Samuel I 8,18. The restrictions in appointing the original king were designed to ensure that such a king could not lead the people away from G’d’s Torah; on the contrary, they are meant for the people to see in him a shining example of Torah-observance, which in turn would inspire their own piety. Seeing that when the people asked Samuel for a king their purpose was far from what the Torah had legislated having a king for, the people were suitably punished as per the verse in Samuel I 8,18 that we referred to earlier. The prophet Hoseah 13,11 describes G’d granting the people’s wish as stemming from the fact that He was angry at them. Summing up, we may view the permission to appoint a king as being in the same category as the permission for a soldier to marry a physically attractive prisoner of war. G’d, the master psychologist, knows that sometimes in order to become wise enough to appreciate the Torah’s prohibitions, an individual, or even a whole nation, must find this out by having chosen in their own wisdom to ignore the Torah’s preferences. David’s experiences with his son Avshalom, born to such a prisoner of war whom he married because he was initially physically attracted to her, bears this out. In fact, his experience with his son Adoniah was not much better. (compare Tanchuma Ki Teytze, section 1).
Appointment of Betzalel
And Rav Yehuda said: Three things curtail a person’s days and years: One who is invited and given the Torah scroll to read and he does not read, one who is given a cup of blessing over which to recite a blessing and he does not recite a blessing, and one who conducts himself with an air of superiority. The Gemara details the biblical sources for these cases: One who is given the Torah scroll to read and he does not read, as it is written of the Torah: “It is your life and the length of your days” (Deuteronomy 30:20). A cup of blessing over which to recite a blessing and he does not recite a blessing, as it is written: “I will bless them that bless you” (Genesis 12:3); one who blesses is blessed and one who does not bless does not merit a blessing. And with regard to one who conducts himself with an air of superiority, as Rabbi Ḥama, son of Rabbi Ḥanina, said: Why did Joseph die before his brothers, as evidenced by the order in the verse: “And Joseph died, and all his brethren, and all that generation” (Exodus 1:6)? Because he conducted himself with an air of superiority, and those who did not serve in a leadership role lived on after he died.
Rav Yehuda said in the name of Rav: Three matters require a plea for mercy to bring them about: A good king, a good year, and a good dream. These three, kings, years, and dreams, are all bestowed by God and one must pray that they should be positive and constructive. The Gemara enumerates the sources for these cases: A good king, as it is written: “The king’s heart is in the hand of the Lord as the watercourses: He turns it whithersoever He will” (Proverbs 21:1). A good year, as it is written: “The eyes of the Lord, thy God, are always upon it, from the beginning of the year even unto the end of the year” (Deuteronomy 11:12). And a good dream, as it is written: “O Lord, by these things men live, and altogether therein is the life of my spirit; wherefore You will recover me [vataḥlimeni], and make me to live” (Isaiah 38:16). Due to their apparent etymological similarity, the word taḥlimeni is interpreted as deriving from the word ḥalom, dream. Similarly, Rabbi Yoḥanan said: Three matters are proclaimed by the Holy One, Blessed be He, Himself: Famine, plenty, and a good leader. The Gemara enumerates the sources for these cases: Famine, as it is written: “For the Lord has called for a famine; and it shall also come upon the land seven years” (II Kings 8:1). Plenty, as it is written: “And I will call for the grain, and will increase it, and lay no famine upon you” (Ezekiel 36:29). And a good leader, as it is written: “And the Lord spoke unto Moses, saying: See, I have called by name Bezalel, son of Uri, son of Hur, of the tribe of Judah” (Exodus 31:1–2).
With regard to Bezalel’s appointment, Rabbi Yitzḥak said: One may only appoint a leader over a community if he consults with the community and they agree to the appointment, as it is stated: “And Moses said unto the children of Israel: See, the Lord has called by name Bezalel, son of Uri, son of Hur, of the tribe of Judah” (Exodus 35:30). The Lord said to Moses: Moses, is Bezalel a suitable appointment in your eyes? Moses said to Him: Master of the universe, if he is a suitable appointment in Your eyes, then all the more so in my eyes. The Holy One, Blessed be He, said to him: Nevertheless, go and tell Israel and ask their opinion. Moses went and said to Israel: Is Bezalel suitable in your eyes? They said to him: If he is suitable in the eyes of the Holy One, Blessed be He, and in your eyes, all the more so he is suitable in our eyes. Rabbi Shmuel bar Naḥmani said that Rabbi Yonatan said: Bezalel was called by that name on account of his wisdom. When the Holy One, Blessed be He, said to Moses: Go say to Bezalel, “Make a tabernacle, an ark, and vessels” (see Exodus 31:7–11), Moses went and reversed the order and told Bezalel: “Make an ark, and vessels, and a tabernacle” (see Exodus 25–26). He said to Moses: Moses, our teacher, the standard practice throughout the world is that a person builds a house and only afterward places the vessels in the house, and you say to me: Make an ark, and vessels, and a tabernacle. If I do so in the order you have commanded, the vessels that I make, where shall I put them? Perhaps God told you the following: “Make a tabernacle, ark, and vessels” (see Exodus 36). Moses said to Bezalel: Perhaps you were in God’s shadow [betzel El], and you knew precisely what He said. You intuited God’s commands just as He stated them, as if you were there. Rav Yehuda said that Rav said: Bezalel knew how to join the letters with which heaven and earth were created. From where do we derive this? It is written here in praise of Bezalel: “And I have filled him with the spirit of God, in wisdom, and in understanding, and in knowledge, and in all manner of workmanship” (Exodus 31:3); and it is written there with regard to creation of heaven and earth: “The Lord, by wisdom, founded the earth; by understanding He established the heavens” (Proverbs 3:19), and it is written: “By His knowledge the depths were broken up and the skies drop down the dew” (Proverbs 3:20). We see that wisdom, understanding, and knowledge, the qualities with which the heavens and earth were created, are all found in Bezalel. On a similar note, Rabbi Yoḥanan said: The Holy One, Blessed be He, only grants wisdom to one who already possesses wisdom, as it is stated: “He gives wisdom unto the wise, and knowledge to they who know understanding” (Daniel 2:21). Rav Taḥalifa, from the West, Eretz Yisrael, heard this and repeated it before Rabbi Abbahu. Rabbi Abbahu said to him: You learned proof for this idea from there; we learn it from here: As it is written in praise of the builders of the Tabernacle: “And in the hearts of all who are wise-hearted I have placed wisdom” (Exodus 31:6).
From Samuel to Saul
10 (1) Samuel took a flask of oil and poured some on Saul’s head and kissed him, and said, “The LORD herewith anoints you ruler over His own people. (2) When you leave me today, you will meet two men near the tomb of Rachel in the territory of Benjamin, at Zelzah, and they will tell you that the asses you set out to look for have been found, and that your father has stopped being concerned about the asses and is worrying about you, saying: ‘What shall I do about my son?’ (3) You shall pass on from there until you come to the terebinth of Tabor. There you will be met by three men making a pilgrimage to God at Bethel. One will be carrying three kids, another will be carrying three loaves of bread, and the third will be carrying a jar of wine. (4) They will greet you and offer you two loaves of bread, which you shall accept. (5) After that, you are to go on to the Hill of God, where the Philistine prefects reside. There, as you enter the town, you will encounter a band of prophets coming down from the shrine, preceded by lyres, timbrels, flutes, and harps, and they will be speaking in ecstasy. (6) The spirit of the LORD will grip you, and you will speak in ecstasy along with them; you will become another man. (7) And once these signs have happened to you, act when the occasion arises, for God is with you. (8) After that, you are to go down to Gilgal ahead of me, and I will come down to you to present burnt offerings and offer sacrifices of well-being. Wait seven days until I come to you and instruct you what you are to do next.” (9) As [Saul] turned around to leave Samuel, God gave him another heart; and all those signs were fulfilled that same day. (10) And when they came there, to the Hill, he saw a band of prophets coming toward him. Thereupon the spirit of God gripped him, and he spoke in ecstasy among them. (11) When all who knew him previously saw him speaking in ecstasy together with the prophets, the people said to one another, “What’s happened to the son of Kish? Is Saul too among the prophets?” (12) But another person there spoke up and said, “And who are their fathers?” Thus the proverb arose: “Is Saul too among the prophets?” (13) And when he stopped speaking in ecstasy, he entered the shrine. (14) Saul’s uncle asked him and his servant, “Where did you go?” “To look for the asses,” he replied. “And when we saw that they were not to be found, we went to Samuel.” (15) “Tell me,” said Saul’s uncle, “what did Samuel say to you?” (16) Saul answered his uncle, “He just told us that the asses had been found.” But he did not tell him anything of what Samuel had said about the kingship. (17) Samuel summoned the people to the LORD at Mizpah (18) and said to them, “Thus said the LORD, the God of Israel: ‘I brought Israel out of Egypt, and I delivered you from the hands of the Egyptians and of all the kingdoms that oppressed you.’ (19) But today you have rejected your God who delivered you from all your troubles and calamities. For you said, ‘No, set up a king over us!’ Now station yourselves before the LORD, by your tribes and clans.” (20) Samuel brought forward each of the tribes of Israel, and the lot indicated the tribe of Benjamin. (21) Then Samuel brought forward the tribe of Benjamin by its clans, and the clan of the Matrites was indicated; and then Saul son of Kish was indicated. But when they looked for him, he was not to be found. (22) They inquired of the LORD again, “Has anyone else come here?” And the LORD replied, “Yes; he is hiding among the baggage.” (23) So they ran over and brought him from there; and when he took his place among the people, he stood a head taller than all the people. (24) And Samuel said to the people, “Do you see the one whom the LORD has chosen? There is none like him among all the people.” And all the people acclaimed him, shouting, “Long live the king!” (25) Samuel expounded to the people the rules of the monarchy, and recorded them in a document which he deposited before the LORD. Samuel then sent the people back to their homes. (26) Saul also went home to Gibeah, accompanied by upstanding men whose hearts God had touched. (27) But some scoundrels said, “How can this fellow save us?” So they scorned him and brought him no gift. But he pretended not to mind.
11 (1) Nahash the Ammonite marched up and besieged Jabesh-gilead. All the men of Jabesh-gilead said to Nahash, “Make a pact with us, and we will serve you.” (2) But Nahash the Ammonite answered them, “I will make a pact with you on this condition, that everyone’s right eye be gouged out; I will make this a humiliation for all Israel.” (3) The elders of Jabesh said to him, “Give us seven days’ respite, so that we may send messengers throughout the territory of Israel; if no one comes to our aid, we will surrender to you.” (4) When the messengers came to Gibeah of Saul and gave this report in the hearing of the people, all the people broke into weeping. (5) Saul was just coming from the field driving the cattle; and Saul asked, “Why are the people crying?” And they told him about the situation of the men of Jabesh. (6) When he heard these things, the spirit of God gripped Saul and his anger blazed up. (7) He took a yoke of oxen and cut them into pieces, which he sent by messengers throughout the territory of Israel, with the warning, “Thus shall be done to the cattle of anyone who does not follow Saul and Samuel into battle!” Terror from the LORD fell upon the people, and they came out as one man. (8) [Saul] mustered them in Bezek, and the Israelites numbered 300,000, the men of Judah 30,000. (9) The messengers who had come were told, “Thus shall you speak to the men of Jabesh-gilead: Tomorrow, when the sun grows hot, you shall be saved.” When the messengers came and told this to the men of Jabesh-gilead, they rejoiced. (10) The men of Jabesh then told [the Ammonites], “Tomorrow we will surrender to you, and you can do to us whatever you please.” (11) The next day, Saul divided the troops into three columns; at the morning watch they entered the camp and struck down the Ammonites until the day grew hot. The survivors scattered; no two were left together. (12) The people then said to Samuel, “Who was it said, ‘Shall Saul be king over us?’ Hand the men over and we will put them to death!” (13) But Saul replied, “No man shall be put to death this day! For this day the LORD has brought victory to Israel.” (14) Samuel said to the people, “Come, let us go to Gilgal and there inaugurate the monarchy.” (15) So all the people went to Gilgal, and there at Gilgal they declared Saul king before the LORD. They offered sacrifices of well-being there before the LORD; and Saul and all the men of Israel held a great celebration there.
Messages on Government
Alternatively, just as in the case of fish of the sea, any fish that is bigger than another swallows the other, so too in the case of people, were it not for the fear of the ruling government, anyone who is bigger than another would swallow the other. And this is as we learned in a mishna (Avot 3:2) that Rabbi Ḥanina, the deputy High Priest, says: One should pray for the continued welfare of the government, as were it not for the fear of the government, every man would swallow his neighbor alive.