Parshat Korach – 5764

The Nature of the Jewish King

The link between the Parashah, Korach, and its Haftarah seems to be that Korach and his followers were guilty of the sin of "Mored B'Malchut," Rebellion Against the King; Korach against Moshe, in the Parshah, and the People against Shmuel, who was the leader of the generation, in the Haftarah.

What is the nature of the Jewish King?

First of all, it is part of the Divine Plan that there be one, for it is one of the three commands that the Jewish people were commanded to fulfill upon their entry into the Land of Israel, as it says, “Surely appoint a King for yourselves.”

Yet Judaism, ultimately, is a Theocracy, an organization of individuals under the rule of Heaven. The Ultimate King is the Holy One, Blessed be He. What then is the significance of the human King?

We gain insight from the RAMBAM, in “Hilchot Melachim,” the Laws of Kings. In Chapter 1, Halachah 11, the RAMBAM writes, based on Masechet Horiyot (12), that the anointing of Kings from the House of David must be done by a stream of water, in order to symbolize the desired flowing and uninterrupted, eternal aspect of that Royal House. Here the human kingship resembles the Divine.

In addition, the RAMBAM writes in "Hilchot Melachim" 2:1, “Much honor is accorded the King. And awe and fear is cast into everyone's heart, as it is said, ‘Surely appoint…, in such manner that his awe be upon you.’ No one may ride on his horse, or sit upon his throne, or use his scepter, or his crown, or any of his personal belongings…” Awe and reverence are also qualities of HaShem, the Holy King.

In general, “… the King cannot decline the honor due him.” (RAMBAM, “Hilchot Melachim” 2:3)

However, other laws cited by the RAMBAM cast a different light on the nature and essence of the Jewish King, “…Anyone who does not behave with ‘Yirat Shamayim,’ Fear of Heaven, even if he possesses great wisdom, may not be appointed to any position of authority in Israel.” (RAMBAM, “Hilchot Melachim” 1:7)

“…All of the People must appear before the King when he desires their presence. And they must stand in his presence and bow down to the ground. Even a Prophet must stand before a King and bow to the ground, as it is said, ‘Behold, Nathan the Prophet! And he came before the King and he bowed to the King.' But the ‘Kohen Gadol,’ the High Priest, the Representative of G-d, only appears before the King when he wants to. And he doesn't stand before the King; rather, the King stands before the High Priest…” (RAMBAM, “Hilchot Melachim” 2:5)

“Even as the Torah accords the King great honor, and all are required to honor him, so does the Torah command him to be inwardly subservient and without substance, as it says, ‘and my heart is empty within me.’ And he should not behave with excessive pride among the People of Israel, as it is said, ‘so that he not raise his heart above that of his brothers.’ And he should be gracious and merciful to the ‘small’ and the ‘great,’ and he should occupy himself totally with their desires and welfare. And he should be concerned for the honor of the smallest of the small…At all times, he must conduct himself with the greatest humility. We have no one greater than Moshe our Teacher, and he says 'and we are nothing…’ And he should suffer their troublesomeness, and their pride, and their complaints, and their anger, as a 'nurse carries the infant;’ the Torah compares him to a ‘shepherd’ ” (RAMBAM, “Hilchot Melachim” 2:6)

In the above behavior, the King is called upon to emulate the ways of HaShem, as we say in the End-of-Shabbat Prayers, “Rabbi Yochanan says, ‘Wherever you find the greatness of the Holy One, Blessed be He, there also is found His humility. This principle is exemplified in the Torah, in the ‘Neviim,’ the Prophets, and in the ‘K'tuvim,’ the Sacred Writings. In the Torah it is written “for HaShem your G-d is the G-d of heavenly forces, and the Master of masters, the great, mighty and awesome G-d, Who shows no favoritism and accepts no bribe.” (Devarim 10:17). Afterwards it is written, “He performs justice for the orphan and the widow, and loves the stranger, to give him food and clothing.’ ” (Devarim, 10:18)

He is bound to the Torah; “When the King ascends the throne, he must write a Sefer Torah for himself…; he must take it to war, return with it from war; have it with him when he sits in judgment…” (RAMBAM “Hilchot Melachim” 3:1)

And he is subservient to the Laws of the Torah; “Kings from the House of David are prosecuted, and testimony is taken against them…” (RAMBAM “Hilchot Melachim” 3:7); they are not “above the Law.”

“He must not have too many wives… He must not have too many horses (perhaps because that would imply too large and powerful an army)…He must not have too much silver and gold…It is forbidden for him to drink himself into a state of drunkenness …; But rather, he must occupy himself with the Torah and the needs of Israel day and night as it says, ‘And it shall be with him, and he shall read it all the days of his life.’ ”(RAMBAM “Hilchot Melachim” 3:2-5)

“…The Torah is worried that his heart not be diverted, for his heart is the Heart of the entire Congregation of Israel; therefore, the Divine Instruction made him cleave to the Torah to a greater extent than the rest of the People, as it says, ‘all the days of his life.’ ” (RAMBAM “Hilchot Melachim” 3:6)

And that is the crux of the issue. The sin of “Mored B'Malchut,” Rebellion against the King, is a deviation from the “heart of the People,” a self-imposed national heart attack, a cardinal sin.

Rabbi Pinchas Frankel

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