Spiritual and
Ethical Issues in the Historical Books of Tanach;
JOSHUA, JUDGES, SAMUEL, KINGS (Nevi’im Rishonim) These four books ostensibly are merely the history of Israel from the entry into the Promised Land until the destruction of the Temple and the temporary loss of independent statehood. In fact they are actually, in a specifically Jewish sense, the most deeply religious and spiritual books of the Bible. One does not have to be specifically Jewish to see or feel the religion and spirituality in the revelations of the prophetic writings or in the words of the Tehillim. They speak to all people, as evidenced by the fact that the Bible is still the world's bestseller and there are millions of non-Jews who regularly recite the Psalms. However, it is specifically and intrinsically Jewish to understand that G-d is revealed in the prosaic material, in the political, social and military events in the lives of ordinary men and women, kings and leaders that are described in the Nevim Rishonim. Here are described the ideology and religious thoughts in Judaism, while in Chronicles we have the purely historical. The Barren Woman (Shmuel Alef 1) "Chana had no children" (1:2), "And the Lord closed her womb" (1:5). This was unlike Sara Imeinu of whom it is written, "But she was infertile, she had no child" (Genesis, 11:30). Sara did not have the physical possibility of conceiving and so required a miraculous intervention of G-d in order to have a son. So too, Chazalteach us that both Yitzchak and Rivka were barren (Yevamot 64a). Furthermore, the heir promised to Avraham and Sara could not be born through natural means; rather they were both, "Old and well stricken in years and it ceased to be with Sara after the manner of women" (Genesis, 18:11). Therefore the miraculous birth oftheir son would teach the world that their descendants would be above nature and that their whole history and existence was to be only through Divine intervention. Not so Chana. Physically she was quite able to have a child and there is no indication of old age, nor was her husband infertile, so there was no need for miracles. It was G-d Himself who prevented the birth, in order to move her to prayer and thus to show the strength of her belief in G-d and to test her devotion to having a son. Furthermore, there was no Divine promise of a son to Chana, unlike the Patriarchs and Matriarchs to whom Hashem had appeared and foretold that not only would they have a son but that nations and tribes would be descended from them. It is easy and common today to relate Chana's desire to have a son to purely human feelings. Perhaps her motivation was simply a mother's fulfillment through childbirth, or a woman's desire to please her husband and so achieve greater happiness in marriage or even only to obviate the stigma and inferior status attached historically in most societies to the barren woman. We hear all these possible ideas refuted by Chana's husband Elkana. "When she refused to eat and drink [in Shilo], and Elkana said to her, 'Why do you cry and why do you refuse to eat and why is your heart heavy? Am I not better to you than 10 sons? ' "(1:8). Chana's desire for a son, like that of the Matriarchs was founded in a deep-rooted spiritual concept. However, their efforts and prayers came from their awareness of a role to be fulfilled in laying the foundations of the Abrahamic family destined to be G-d's chosen people. Unlike Tamar and Ruth she was not motivated by the urge and need to carry to fruition the destiny of the Mothers of Jewish Kingship by being the ancestress of David. It was not even a reward for her acts of chesed like in the case of Elisha's miracle for the Shunemite woman (M'lachim Bet 4). Chana's desire for a son was only the conviction that what Am Yisrael needed at that time was a person who would be a Nazir, devoting his whole life to serving G-d and once again drawing Israel close to Him. She yearned to give birth to the son who would be that person. The story of Chana follows that of the idol of Micha and of the concubine at Giveah at the end of the book of Judges. In both these events Levites were central characters. Ralbag (Gershonides) comments that this lineage was the reason that they were told at the end of the book of Judges just before the book of Samuel begins, even though they actually took place at the beginning of that period. Elkana was a descendant of the sons of Korach, the Levite, of whom the Torah tells that they were not part of their father's rebellion against Moshe. They did not die in that revolt but rather they sing to this day, "Moshe and his Torah are true". Sotoo, Elkana was not a part of the perversions of his time, but rather the catalyst that strove to correct them. So, every year, for the Shalosh Regalim as commanded in the Torah and even an additional time of his own accord, he went up to the Mishkan at Shilo. Although, women are not halahkically required to go, nevertheless, Elkana went together with his whole family, never taking the same route. He did all this so as to gather as many of Israel to go with him and so to accustom them to draw close to G-d through prayer and study at His sanctuary (Megila 14a and Yalkut Shimoni). Thereby, he gave Israel the strength and education to overcomethe sins that had characterized the period. Chana's only desire was to have the son that would bring Elkana's dream to fruition. The text told us that the cause of Israel's sins in that period was that, "There was no king in Israel". Chana saw prophetically that her son would be the person who would correct that source of sin by his anointment of the first kings of Israel, Saul and David. Chana's search and prayer for a son comes solely to tell a story of devotion to HaShem and to enhancing His worship. This is the twelfth installment in Dr. Tamari’s series on “Tanach and its messages for our times” [The
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