No Peace Possible Without Third Temple in Jerusalem

Here we are midway through the eight 8 day Jewish Holiday of Chanukah. Last night we lit the 3rd candle, and tonight before Shabbat we light the fourth.

Jerusalem is the very heart of the Jewish Nation, People, Religion and Land, and this has been for thousands of years. And to repeat something very crucial, the Jewish religion, People, Nation etcetera have existed thousands of years before the advent/invention of Christianity, Islam, the USA and the United Nations.

We celebrate Chanukah because it commemorates the Jewish victory over the Ancients Greeks, who no longer exist. They tried to exterminate, defeat us, and they failed. What appeared to be mighty was actually weak. This template has repeated many times in Jewish History.

When the "experts" think we're down, we rise again. Here we are in the Modern State of Israel defying the Arab armies and their many supporters. Two thousand years of exile, and we are stronger than ever, bli eyin haraa.

It really doesn't matter what the world thinks of the Jewish and Israeli rights to Jerusalem. The last and possibly only time Jewish sovereignty in Jerusalem was after King Solomon built the very first Holy Temple. And maybe only when we build the Third Temple will we again get the acceptance that will bring the Moshiach. That's how it seems to me. We shouldn't fear. It's time for a Nachshon, the brave fleeing Jewish slave, who stepped into the water and caused Gd to make a dry passageway to facilitate the Exodus from Egypt.

Gd willing, speedily in our days....

Shabbat Shalom and Chag Urim Sameach

Jewish Morality and the "Two State Solution"

Honestly, I think that Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu's greatest and most tragic mistake is his declared support for the so-called "Two State Solution." By doing so he has opened a deep cavernous pit of a Pandora's Box which endangers the continued existance of the State of Israel and takes what was once the policy of the Extreme Left and puts it Center-Right.

Now, our enemies have an easy tool to use against us with the official approval of the Likud Prime Minister. Obama: 'Difficult path’ toward Palestinian statehood. United States President Barack Hussein Obama is no friend of Israel but he's a passionate supporter of the Arab terrorists who are slated to administer such a country if it G-d forbid comes into being.

This week I was interviewed for an educational program (I will reveal more when the program is released to the public) about how such a scenario would impact on my life in Shiloh. The person in charge wanted his audience to hear from a woman and told me to try to give a personal, rather than political slant.

The institute putting this program together stresses what they consider "Jewish Morality," so I began by questioning the definition of Jewish Morality. Simply put, I disagree completely with their interpretation. Like too many Jews and Jewish organizations, this one embraces the idea that Jewish Morality means caring more for strangers/non-Jews than ourselves. They claim that this is a Jewish precept, and they strongly fanatically identify with what they see as "Palestinian nationalism" sic which they consider their responsibility to bring to fruition.

They unquestioningly support the "Two State Solution" and consider it sacrilegious to do otherwise. So my aim was to try to poke major holes in their basic belief.

Jewish Morality

I reminded them of the Talmudic Law which tells us that if we are in the desert with another person and have just one bottle of water which could save only one person, and both of us would die if we shared it, our instructions are very simple. The water is to be drunk only by us. We are commanded to save our life, yes, even at the expense of another person's death. This and this only is Jewish Morality! We are not to endanger our life for the life of any other!!! 

That means that it is against Jewish Law to "sacrifice for peace!"

All who recommend "sacrifices for peace" contradict Jewish Morality!

Another example to try to explain this is the story of King Solomon's Wisdom and the Two Mothers:

Two women gave birth at the same time. One had a live baby and the other's died. They fought over the live baby, each claiming that it was theirs. King Solomon suggested compromise. He would take the living baby and divide it in half, giving each woman half a baby. One woman accepted the compromise and the other refused, because she said that dividing the baby would kill it.
King Solomon then decreed that the second woman was the true mother, because she cared for the living baby and knew that dividing it would cause death.

The Land of Israel is a living being, and dividing it would destroy its present society. I have no doubt that G-d would not save the State of Israel if we do something so suicidal. Jewish History is full of cycles of destruction and exile. It would just happen again, and Redemption and the Messiah would be delayed.

The Jewish Morality in giving our enemies a state in our historic Biblical Homeland is as Jewish as Pinocchio's "Honest John" is honest.

Bibi's "Peace" sic Negotiations, Mistakes of Biblical Proportions

Unfortunately there's nothing new in the mistaken  policies of Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu's government.  In Jewish History we've already had strong, impressive, highly intelligent leaders who made stupid, foolish dangerous mistakes.  I don't know if Bibi's well known brilliance and charm are up to the legendary Biblical King Solomon, but King Solomon quickly sent his kingdom and dynasty on its way down with a very serious mistake, 1 kings 9:11:

י  וַיְהִי, מִקְצֵה עֶשְׂרִים שָׁנָה, אֲשֶׁר-בָּנָה שְׁלֹמֹה, אֶת-שְׁנֵי הַבָּתִּים--אֶת-בֵּית יְהוָה, וְאֶת-בֵּית הַמֶּלֶךְ.	10 And it came to pass at the end of twenty years, wherein Solomon had built the two houses, the house of the LORD and the king's house--
יא  חִירָם מֶלֶךְ-צֹר נִשָּׂא אֶת-שְׁלֹמֹה בַּעֲצֵי אֲרָזִים וּבַעֲצֵי בְרוֹשִׁים, וּבַזָּהָב--לְכָל-חֶפְצוֹ; אָז יִתֵּן הַמֶּלֶךְ שְׁלֹמֹה לְחִירָם, עֶשְׂרִים עִיר, בְּאֶרֶץ, הַגָּלִיל.	11 now Hiram the king of Tyre had furnished Solomon with cedar-trees and cypress-trees, and with gold, according to all his desire--that then king Solomon gave Hiram twenty cities in the land of Galilee.

A short time after building and dedicating the Holy Temple, the Beit Hamikdash on Har Habayit, King Solomon's ceded twenty cities to Hiram the king of Tyre.

Not only doesn't it make sense as a commercial action, but Hiram wasn't impressed.

יב  וַיֵּצֵא חִירָם, מִצֹּר, לִרְאוֹת אֶת-הֶעָרִים, אֲשֶׁר נָתַן-לוֹ שְׁלֹמֹה; וְלֹא יָשְׁרוּ, בְּעֵינָיו.

12 And Hiram came out from Tyre to see the cities which Solomon had given him: and they pleased him not.

We've seen that in recent times.  Every single Israeli concession just brings out more demands from the Arabs and foreign "mediators."  The only way to reduce the pressure is to refuse 100% any more "deals." We haven't gotten peace, true peace any time we gave Land or autonomy to the Arabs.  We haven't gotten more security when trusting the United Nations or the United States to protect us.

Netanyahu's policies are no different from the now comatose Arik Sharon. Although Bibi is very knowledgeable in terms of the Bible and says he studies it regularly with his sons, he doesn't see it as a book of theology, which my teacher Dr. Yael Ziegler always stresses it is.  Without seeing the Hand of G-d in Biblical events, one cannot fully understand the history it records.

Just before King Solomon gives Hiram those cities, G-d warns him and explains in very simple terms what the conditions of his rule are:

ג  וַיֹּאמֶר יְהוָה אֵלָיו, שָׁמַעְתִּי אֶת-תְּפִלָּתְךָ וְאֶת-תְּחִנָּתְךָ אֲשֶׁר הִתְחַנַּנְתָּה לְפָנַי--הִקְדַּשְׁתִּי אֶת-הַבַּיִת הַזֶּה אֲשֶׁר בָּנִתָה, לָשׂוּם-שְׁמִי שָׁם עַד-עוֹלָם; וְהָיוּ עֵינַי וְלִבִּי שָׁם, כָּל-הַיָּמִים.	3 And the LORD said unto him: 'I have heard thy prayer and thy supplication, that thou hast made before Me: I have hallowed this house, which thou hast built, to put My name there for ever; and Mine eyes and My heart shall be there perpetually.
ד  וְאַתָּה אִם-תֵּלֵךְ לְפָנַי, כַּאֲשֶׁר הָלַךְ דָּוִד אָבִיךָ בְּתָם-לֵבָב וּבְיֹשֶׁר, לַעֲשׂוֹת, כְּכֹל אֲשֶׁר צִוִּיתִיךָ--חֻקַּי וּמִשְׁפָּטַי, תִּשְׁמֹר.	4 And as for thee, if thou wilt walk before Me, as David thy father walked, in integrity of heart, and in uprightness, to do according to all that I have commanded thee, and wilt keep My statutes and Mine ordinances;
ה  וַהֲקִמֹתִי אֶת-כִּסֵּא מַמְלַכְתְּךָ, עַל-יִשְׂרָאֵל--לְעֹלָם:  כַּאֲשֶׁר דִּבַּרְתִּי, עַל-דָּוִד אָבִיךָ לֵאמֹר, לֹא-יִכָּרֵת לְךָ אִישׁ, מֵעַל כִּסֵּא יִשְׂרָאֵל.	5 then I will establish the throne of thy kingdom over Israel for ever; according as I promised to David thy father, saying: There shall not fail thee a man upon the throne of Israel.
ו  אִם-שׁוֹב תְּשֻׁבוּן אַתֶּם וּבְנֵיכֶם, מֵאַחֲרַי, וְלֹא תִשְׁמְרוּ מִצְו‍ֹתַי חֻקֹּתַי, אֲשֶׁר נָתַתִּי לִפְנֵיכֶם; וַהֲלַכְתֶּם, וַעֲבַדְתֶּם אֱלֹהִים אֲחֵרִים, וְהִשְׁתַּחֲוִיתֶם, לָהֶם.	6 But if ye shall turn away from following Me, ye or your children, and not keep My commandments and My statutes which I have set before you, but shall go and serve other gods, and worship them;
ז  וְהִכְרַתִּי אֶת-יִשְׂרָאֵל, מֵעַל פְּנֵי הָאֲדָמָה אֲשֶׁר נָתַתִּי לָהֶם, וְאֶת-הַבַּיִת אֲשֶׁר הִקְדַּשְׁתִּי לִשְׁמִי, אֲשַׁלַּח מֵעַל פָּנָי; וְהָיָה יִשְׂרָאֵל לְמָשָׁל וְלִשְׁנִינָה, בְּכָל-הָעַמִּים.	7 then will I cut off Israel out of the land which I have given them; and this house, which I have hallowed for My name, will I cast out of My sight; and Israel shall be a proverb and a by word among all peoples;
ח  וְהַבַּיִת הַזֶּה יִהְיֶה עֶלְיוֹן, כָּל-עֹבֵר עָלָיו יִשֹּׁם וְשָׁרָק; וְאָמְרוּ, עַל-מֶה עָשָׂה יְהוָה כָּכָה, לָאָרֶץ הַזֹּאת, וְלַבַּיִת הַזֶּה.	8 and this house which is so high [shall become desolate], and every one that passeth by it shall be astonished, and shall hiss; and when they shall say: Why hath the LORD done thus unto this land, and to this house?
ט  וְאָמְרוּ, עַל אֲשֶׁר עָזְבוּ אֶת-יְהוָה אֱלֹהֵיהֶם אֲשֶׁר הוֹצִיא אֶת-אֲבֹתָם מֵאֶרֶץ מִצְרַיִם, וַיַּחֲזִקוּ בֵּאלֹהִים אֲחֵרִים, וישתחו (וַיִּשְׁתַּחֲווּ) לָהֶם וַיַּעַבְדֻם; עַל-כֵּן, הֵבִיא יְהוָה עֲלֵיהֶם, אֵת כָּל-הָרָעָה, הַזֹּאת.  {פ}	9 they shall be answered: Because they forsook the LORD their God, who brought forth their fathers out of the land of Egypt, and laid hold on other gods, and worshipped them, and served them; therefore hath the LORD brought all this evil upon them.'{P}

It's clear that King Solomon, haughty and over-confident with his power and foreign praise and wives didn't take G-d seriously.  The Jewish Kingdom under King Solomon which had begun so gloriously ended badly and quickly split into two, Israel and Judah.

We can't have a united Jewish People when we cede our Land, and we're ruled by those who don't observe the Mitzvot, G-d's Commandments to us.  The Land is the container and the glue is Judaism.

Shiloh Hakeduma, First Capital of the Jewish Nation
photo by Batya Medad

Unlike many, I have no doubt that if we continue on this dangerous path of concessions to Arab terrorists and obeying the whims of foreign leaders, G-d will punish us and allow the destruction of the State of Israel and another Exile.  For me the biggest question is how long this G-d forbid upcoming exile will last, because I have no doubt that we won't survive with an Arab terror state called Palestine in our Holy Land.

Shiloh Hakeduma, First Capital of the Jewish Nation
Holes that could have been used to hold/support the "Pergola" for the walls of the Mishkan, Tabernacle
photo by Batya Medad

What Have Israeli Leaders Been Cooking Up for Us?

David Bedein, one of the most reliable and accurate analysts commentators I know here in Israel has a very disturbing article in the Jewish Press about a government approved plan to endanger the State of Israel by destroying most of the Jewish Communities in Judea and Samaria.

In March, 2005, Yuli Edelstein, then a deputy government minister and now the speaker of the Knesset, appeared at the Alon Shvut community center in Gush Etzion in which he reported to a stunned audience that the February 20, 2005 retreat decision of the Israeli government did not only apply to Katif and to four small Jewish communities in Samaria. Edelstein warned that the February 20, 2005 Israeli government decision was to redraw the areas of Jewish residency in the almost all areas that Israel acquired in the 1967 war. The new map, approved by the Israeli government, he said, was immediately posted on the web site of the Washington Institute for Near East Policy, and is posted there to this day for all American government officials to peruse. That Israeli government approved retreat map means that an additional 63 Jewish communities can be expelled and dismantled in their entirety by an Israeli government decision that has already been made. Without any further government decision, the Israeli government is authorized to order the IDF to implement the next stages of the February 20, 2005 Israel government retreat decision Prominent members of that Israeli government included Benyamin Netanyahu, now the prime minister of Israel, Tzippi Livni, then and now the Justice Minister of Israel, and Shimon Peres, now the president of Israel.
Read more at: http://www.jewishpress.com/indepth/analysis/behind-the-news-in-israel-david-bedein/israels-secret-retreat-map/2013/11/07/

Here's the map, which I have posted "extra-large" so it can be read more easily.

I remember reading and hearing of additional "Disengagements," serious Israeli withdrawals and Jewish community destruction around the time of the Gush Katif-Northern Shomron Disengagement.  Israeli politicians, feverish in the heat of the power they felt in destroying Jewish communities were unabashedly voicing their megalomania. It was frightening to see that all intelligence and logic had left them, even those who had begun their political careers as pro-Jewish life in all of the Land of Israel.  It was like they were hyper from drugs.

Power can make people crazy and lose the ability to judge, set limits, know right from wrong.  In Matan I've been studying The Divided Kingdom and the Story of Elijah-Dr. Yael Ziegler which begins with the end of  King Solomon's reign.  We've been learning how his ignoring the limits G-d had ordered for kings, in terms of wives, horses etc., caused the kingdom to be divided.  We suffer this disunity until today.

I remember a few years ago learning from Rabbi Dov Berkovits that soon after King Solomon built the Holy Temple in Jerusalem he gave cities to a foreign leader.  That plus the marriage and allegiance to all of his foreign wives eventually split the nation.  So, unfortunately, nothing's new.  Human nature doesn't deal well with power.

G-d willing, our politicians will gain some real wisdom and we'll stop this dangerous "peace" farce and do what's best for the future of the Jewish People and State of Israel.

Shabbat Shalom u'Mevorach

May you have a Blessed and Peaceful Shabbat

Our Enemies Always Attack Us When We're Weak, Haughty and Overconfident

In my Tanach, Bible studies in Matan's Al HaPerek, we have just learned about Shlomo HaMelech, King Solomon's reign.  I must admit that as I study the Bible, and this is the second year of the program, I'm always seeing parallels to modern politics and history.  I certainly agree with the refrain in King Solomon's most important IMHO book, Kohelet, Ecclesiastes,

ט מַה-שֶּׁהָיָה, הוּא שֶׁיִּהְיֶה, וּמַה-שֶּׁנַּעֲשָׂה, הוּא שֶׁיֵּעָשֶׂה; וְאֵין כָּל-חָדָשׁ, תַּחַת הַשָּׁמֶשׁ. 9 That which hath been is that which shall be, and that which hath been done is that which shall be done; and there is nothing new under the sun.

The more I learn, the more I agree what King Solomon wrote in Kohelet at some point after major failures and tragedy, when he finally repented, admitted his sins and mistakes.

King Solomon, Son of King David and Batsheva inherited the throne, the Kingdom, the united People of Israel, all twelve tribes and all the Land that David had conquered and unified.  There was peace, and Solomon's job, assigned by G-d, was to build the Holy Temple and rule according to G-d's Mitzvot Laws.

This was a time of great potential, very much like post-1967 Six Days War Israel euphoria, on the day that Egypt, Syria and Jordan surrendered. 1 Kings Chapter 8 מְלָכִים א

טז מִן-הַיּוֹם, אֲשֶׁר הוֹצֵאתִי אֶת-עַמִּי אֶת-יִשְׂרָאֵל מִמִּצְרַיִם, לֹא-בָחַרְתִּי בְעִיר מִכֹּל שִׁבְטֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל, לִבְנוֹת בַּיִת לִהְיוֹת שְׁמִי שָׁם; וָאֶבְחַר בְּדָוִד, לִהְיוֹת עַל-עַמִּי יִשְׂרָאֵל. 16 Since the day that I brought forth My people Israel out of Egypt, I chose no city out of all the tribes of Israel to build a house, that My name might be there; but I chose David to be over My people Israel.
יז וַיְהִי, עִם-לְבַב דָּוִד אָבִי--לִבְנוֹת בַּיִת, לְשֵׁם יְהוָה אֱלֹהֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל. 17 Now it was in the heart of David my father to build a house for the name of the LORD, the God of Israel.
יח וַיֹּאמֶר יְהוָה, אֶל-דָּוִד אָבִי, יַעַן אֲשֶׁר הָיָה עִם-לְבָבְךָ, לִבְנוֹת בַּיִת לִשְׁמִי--הֱטִיבֹתָ, כִּי הָיָה עִם-לְבָבֶךָ. 18 But the LORD said unto David my father: Whereas it was in thy heart to build a house for My name, thou didst well that it was in thy heart;
יט רַק אַתָּה, לֹא תִבְנֶה הַבָּיִת: כִּי אִם-בִּנְךָ הַיֹּצֵא מֵחֲלָצֶיךָ, הוּא-יִבְנֶה הַבַּיִת לִשְׁמִי. 19 nevertheless thou shalt not build the house; but thy son that shall come forth out of thy loins, he shall build the house for My name.
כ וַיָּקֶם יְהוָה, אֶת-דְּבָרוֹ אֲשֶׁר דִּבֵּר; וָאָקֻם תַּחַת דָּוִד אָבִי וָאֵשֵׁב עַל-כִּסֵּא יִשְׂרָאֵל, כַּאֲשֶׁר דִּבֶּר יְהוָה, וָאֶבְנֶה הַבַּיִת, לְשֵׁם יְהוָה אֱלֹהֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל. 20 And the LORD hath established His word that He spoke; for I am risen up in the room of David my father, and sit on the throne of Israel, as the LORD promised, and have built the house for the name of the LORD, the God of Israel.

After the Six Days War, signs were posted all over Israel thanking the IDF for the victory, even though, we only won because of G-d's help, G-d's miracles.

Unfortunately after all those beautiful words, King Solomon was haughty and overconfident.  He considered himself above G-d's Law and sinned.

טז דִּבַּרְתִּי אֲנִי עִם-לִבִּי, לֵאמֹר--אֲנִי הִנֵּה הִגְדַּלְתִּי וְהוֹסַפְתִּי חָכְמָה, עַל כָּל-אֲשֶׁר-הָיָה לְפָנַי עַל-יְרוּשָׁלִָם; וְלִבִּי רָאָה הַרְבֵּה, חָכְמָה וָדָעַת. 16 I spoke with my own heart, saying: 'Lo, I have gotten great wisdom, more also than all that were before me over Jerusalem'; yea, my heart hath had great experience of wisdom and knowledge.

Not only did he take too many wives, but he took non-Jewish ones. He also purchased too many horses, and davka from Egypt, definitely against G-d's Laws, Deuteronomy Chapter 17 דְּבָרִים.

טז רַק, לֹא-יַרְבֶּה-לּוֹ סוּסִים, וְלֹא-יָשִׁיב אֶת-הָעָם מִצְרַיְמָה, לְמַעַן הַרְבּוֹת סוּס; וַיהוָה, אָמַר לָכֶם, לֹא תֹסִפוּן לָשׁוּב בַּדֶּרֶךְ הַזֶּה, עוֹד. 16 Only he shall not multiply horses to himself, nor cause the people to return to Egypt, to the end that he should multiply horses; forasmuch as the LORD hath said unto you: 'Ye shall henceforth return no more that way.'
יז וְלֹא יַרְבֶּה-לּוֹ נָשִׁים, וְלֹא יָסוּר לְבָבוֹ; וְכֶסֶף וְזָהָב, לֹא יַרְבֶּה-לּוֹ מְאֹד. 17 Neither shall he multiply wives to himself, that his heart turn not away; neither shall he greatly multiply to himself silver and gold.

King Solomon disobeyed both Laws. He bought horses from Egypt and married and made alliances with a total of a thousand women.

Even worse than that, just like then (1967) Prime Minister Levi Eshkol's Government, immediately after the Six Days War, gave the key to the Temple Mount to the Arabs, King Solomon soon gave away twenty cities to King Hiram, 1 Kings Chapter 9 מְלָכִים א. 

יא חִירָם מֶלֶךְ-צֹר נִשָּׂא אֶת-שְׁלֹמֹה בַּעֲצֵי אֲרָזִים וּבַעֲצֵי בְרוֹשִׁים, וּבַזָּהָב--לְכָל-חֶפְצוֹ; אָז יִתֵּן הַמֶּלֶךְ שְׁלֹמֹה לְחִירָם, עֶשְׂרִים עִיר, בְּאֶרֶץ, הַגָּלִיל. 11 now Hiram the king of Tyre had furnished Solomon with cedar-trees and cypress-trees, and with gold, according to all his desire--that then king Solomon gave Hiram twenty cities in the land of Galilee.

And just like all of the "peace gestures" Israel gives our enemies, Hiram wasn't pleased and just wanted more.

Read through the Bible and you'll see how G-d punished King Solomon and not only divided the Kingdom, he also sent in foreign enemies that had been biding their time, waiting for the Jewish King to weaken, 1 Kings Chapter 11 מְלָכִים א.

יד וַיָּקֶם יְהוָה שָׂטָן לִשְׁלֹמֹה, אֵת הֲדַד הָאֲדֹמִי: מִזֶּרַע הַמֶּלֶךְ הוּא, בֶּאֱדוֹם. 14 And the LORD raised up an adversary unto Solomon, Hadad the Edomite; he was of the king's seed in Edom.

And today, too, our enemies get strong, because we as a nation sin.  Our security is dependent on our obedience to G-d as a Nation.  We pray in the plural, not in singular.  It's not enough to say or think that just our personal Torah-Mitzvah observance is enough.  We're all on the same boat together.  We're all One People.  And when our leadership is faulty, we're all in danger.  Those Jews who think they're safer abroad, in Chutz la'Aretz, out of the HolyLand, are sadly mistaken.

Last night at Matan, David Sabato reminded us that the Jewish Nation hasn't been united since the days of King Solomon's rule.  G-d orchestrated the division as punishment for his sins.

We have a long way to go, so let's get started.

King Solomon's Parting Words

I've checked with some Biblical scholars, and nobody can prove me wrong, not right either to be perfectly honest...

I have no doubt that Shlomo HaMelech, King Solomon, wrote שיר השיריםת Shir HaShirim, Song of Songs in his old age.

First of all, in King Solomon's youth, he was involved with many women. He admits it in קהלת Kohelet, Ecclesiastes.

ח כָּנַסְתִּי לִי גַּם-כֶּסֶף וְזָהָב, וּסְגֻלַּת מְלָכִים וְהַמְּדִינוֹת; עָשִׂיתִי לִי שָׁרִים וְשָׁרוֹת, וְתַעֲנֻגוֹת בְּנֵי הָאָדָם--שִׁדָּה וְשִׁדּוֹת.
8 I gathered me also silver and gold, and treasure such as kings and the provinces have as their own; I got me men-singers and women-singers, and the delights of the sons of men, women very many.
ט וְגָדַלְתִּי וְהוֹסַפְתִּי, מִכֹּל שֶׁהָיָה לְפָנַי בִּירוּשָׁלִָם; אַף חָכְמָתִי, עָמְדָה לִּי.
9 So I was great, and increased more than all that were before me in Jerusalem; also my wisdom stood me in stead.
י וְכֹל אֲשֶׁר שָׁאֲלוּ עֵינַי, לֹא אָצַלְתִּי מֵהֶם: לֹא-מָנַעְתִּי אֶת-לִבִּי מִכָּל-שִׂמְחָה, כִּי-לִבִּי שָׂמֵחַ מִכָּל-עֲמָלִי, וְזֶה-הָיָה חֶלְקִי, מִכָּל-עֲמָלִי.
10 And whatsoever mine eyes desired I kept not from them; I withheld not my heart from any joy, for my heart had joy of all my labour; and this was my portion from all my labour.

For King Solomon, writing Kohelet was a crucial stage in his תשובה Tshuva, repentance. Afterwards he wrote Mishle, and only after that was he sufficiently "cleansed" to be able to write something as multi-leveled as Shir HaShirim.

Especially if you're used to Artscroll's English translation rendition, admitted interpretation, you haven't a clue to the sexual terminology and innuendos in the text. The Hebrew isn't your run of the mill, everyday shopping and clerical errands Hebrew.

Song of Songs Chapter 1
א שִׁיר הַשִּׁירִים, אֲשֶׁר לִשְׁלֹמֹה.
1 The song of songs, which is Solomon's.
ב יִשָּׁקֵנִי מִנְּשִׁיקוֹת פִּיהוּ, כִּי-טוֹבִים דֹּדֶיךָ מִיָּיִן.
2 Let him kiss me with the kisses of his mouth--for thy love is better than wine.
ג לְרֵיחַ שְׁמָנֶיךָ טוֹבִים, שֶׁמֶן תּוּרַק שְׁמֶךָ; עַל-כֵּן, עֲלָמוֹת אֲהֵבוּךָ.
3 Thine ointments have a goodly fragrance; thy name is as ointment poured forth; therefore do the maidens love thee.
ד מָשְׁכֵנִי, אַחֲרֶיךָ נָּרוּצָה; הֱבִיאַנִי הַמֶּלֶךְ חֲדָרָיו, נָגִילָה וְנִשְׂמְחָה בָּךְ--נַזְכִּירָה דֹדֶיךָ מִיַּיִן, מֵישָׁרִים אֲהֵבוּךָ. {פ}
4 Draw me, we will run after thee; the king hath brought me into his chambers; we will be glad and rejoice in thee, we will find thy love more fragrant than wine! sincerely do they love thee. {P}
ה שְׁחוֹרָה אֲנִי וְנָאוָה, בְּנוֹת יְרוּשָׁלִָם; כְּאָהֳלֵי קֵדָר, כִּירִיעוֹת שְׁלֹמֹה.
5 'I am black, but comely, O ye daughters of Jerusalem, as the tents of Kedar, as the curtains of Solomon.
ו אַל-תִּרְאוּנִי שֶׁאֲנִי שְׁחַרְחֹרֶת, שֶׁשְּׁזָפַתְנִי הַשָּׁמֶשׁ; בְּנֵי אִמִּי נִחֲרוּ-בִי, שָׂמֻנִי נֹטֵרָה אֶת-הַכְּרָמִים--כַּרְמִי שֶׁלִּי, לֹא נָטָרְתִּי.
6 Look not upon me, that I am swarthy, that the sun hath tanned me; my mother's sons were incensed against me, they made me keeper of the vineyards; but mine own vineyard have I not kept.'

If this really is the spiritual allegory that chazal, our wise men, claim it to be, it must have been written by the post-Kohelet Shlomo HaMelech.

It's possible that King Solomon wrote it as a personal plea to G-d to accept Tshuva, repentance.

These are my thoughts after we read Shir HaShirim this morning during Shabbat prayers.

Chag Kasher v'Sameach

Succot & Kohelet (Ecclesiastes) A Perfect Match

It's customary to read Kohelet the Shabbat of Succot. I must admit to reading the English translation, but I did study the Book in a Bible class, and in Hebrew. So my knowledge of the book isn't all that superficial.

A couple of years ago, there was a blogging debate about when King Solomon actually wrote it, before or after Shir Hashirim, (The Song of Songs,) and Mishlei, (Proverbs.) I hold a very minority view about it. I think he wrote it first. The writing of Kohelet was cathartic, helping him mature past his "excesses." Only afterwards could he have written the other books. But that's not the main subject here.

When King Solomon writes that the riches, the "good things in life" are all Havel Havelim, hot air, nothingness, norishkeit, he's preparing us to leave our comfortable, sturdy homes and move into temporary huts, succot. One of the main requirements for a succah is a special roof. It can't be solid. It must be fragile. The walls of the succah may be strong, even permanent, but not the roof. It's made of s'chach, leaves, branches, wood. You must be able to see the sky. The roof is the part of the house which protects, and davka, the roof of the succah is the most problematic.

When we're in the succah, we connect with G-d. G-d is our building engineer, the inspector.

During the Od Avinu Chai March, which this year took place in the hills near Shiloh, our local Rabbi, HaRav Elchanan Bin Nun spoke to us. He described the succah as protection. I wish I had recorded his words.

Back to King Solomon's words in Kohelet. King Solomon "had it all," and in the end he realized that it's hevel, nothingness. It isn't the fancy homes which keep us safe, it's living G-d's commandments in the succah, which seems so flimsy.

Rav Elchanan spoke to us two days after our neighbor, Yehudit's, funeral. The actual topic of the Rabbi's talk was the community of Givat Harel, named after one of his sons, who was murdered by Arab terrorists.

L'illui nishmatam:

Harel Oz ben HaRav Elchanan

Yehudit bat Shmuel Shachne