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Beit Midrash
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King Shaul, descending from Rachel’s Tribe of Binyamin, invested enormous efforts to prevent partnership in rule with David of Yehuda (from Leah). Shaul saw David’s presence as an existential threat, whereas his son Yonatan was prepared to concede primary rule to David and act as his assistant. Shaul also acted to prevent David’s marriage with his daughter Michal and to kill him. The attempt failed because Michal lowered David "through the window" (Shmuel I 19:12), a term we will return to. Shaul reacted extremely harshly – giving Michal to Palti ben Layish as a wife.
David’s response served as defiance toward Shaul – he married two additional women, thus declaring that he was fully alive and that his daughter now had rivals. Yet David’s wound did not heal. Years later, after Avner, army chief of Shaul’s son Ish-Boshet, turned away from his king, David made a covenant with Avner and promised to appoint him as his deputy, but David demanded that Avner bring Michal back to him.
Thus, hope for the creation of a partnership between Rachel and Leah was restored, with David, from Leah, as king and, from Binyamin, Michal as queen and Avner as deputy. The plan utterly failed because Yoav, David’s general, had Avner killed with the claim that his intentions were impure and that Avner would try to seize the kingship. This extinguished the light of unity.
The remaining chance to achieve unity depended on rehabilitating David and Michal’s relationship and producing a shared descendant with integrative lineage. While Michal returned to David’s house with joy, there were thorns in their side – David’s other wives: Avigail, Achinoam, Ma‘acha, Chagit, and Avital. Michal claimed that she alone was David’s true wife, while all the others were, at most, maidservants. The other women did not concede, and each sought to push her firstborn son to the status of heir apparent.
The ceremony of bringing the ark to Jerusalem brought the dispute to the surface with full force. Michal claimed that only she was meant to stand at David’s side, and David apparently did not agree. Michal boycotted the ceremony, remained at home, and stationed herself "at the window" (Shmuel II 6:16). In this way she demonstrated her resentment and reminded him of her rights as his first wife, the loving one, the king’s daughter who had saved his life. The long separation apparently exacted a heavy price; the relationship was not rehabilitated. The navi concludes that Michal, daughter of Shaul, had no child until the day of her death (ibid. 6:22-23).
Rabbis in Midrash
Lessons
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Kuzari -Rabbi Ari Shvat Kuzari class 9 - "Seeing is Believing" (parag. 21-30)
These paragraphs elaborate on the theme that seeing and knowing is better than any attempt to prove logically, and begins explaining the difference between Israel and gentiles.
Ein Aya Various Universal Stages of the Geula Process
Rav Kook examines the various stages of redemption, explaining how (in addition to the obvious oft-mentioned stages of ingathering the exiles, reviving the Hebrew language, army, state etc.) the messianic dream of world prosperity, the State of Israel and world unity can and are realistically and logically gradually coming true.
Kuzari -Rabbi Ari Shvat Kuzari class 8- "Answering Questions on the Kuzari's Proof from Mass Revelation
How do we know that the "claim" of mass revelation to 2,000,000 witnesses at Mt. Sinai is really true? This important class answers all of the questions skeptics ask about this claim of the Kuzari.
Ein Aya Armies Still Necessary for Balance & the War Against Wars
Rav Kook explains why the world was originally divided into the various seemingly contradicting ideologies and cultures, in order to develop each one respectively. Swords or armies symbolize how each respective ideology defends themselves, as well as deters their opposing ideologies and cultures. On the other hand, the messianic era will be one of peace, and Rav Kook explains the transition to that stage, which mankind is already undergoing.
The Land of Israel LGBT'S IN ISRAEL
The question was asked, how can one make Aliyah with the LGBT parades?
Kuzari -Rabbi Ari Shvat Kuzari class 7 - Five Accumulative Proofs of G-d
As a preparation for the Kuzari's classic proof of G-d from the mass-revelation at Sinai, we start here with 5 other directions to strengthen our belief which also contribute to what the Kuzari will present as well.
Ein Aya Muscle & Meaning: The Dual Nature of Gevurah (Physical Strength)
Is physical strength and fitness a necessity or an ideal? Although it if often totally overlooked among topics of Judaism, Rav Kook writes that it clearly is also a necessity to deter the many enemies of Israel, but even in Y'mot HaMashiach, in the Messianic era, to a certain extent, it's ideal continues even after our enemies will have been finished off.
