Chapter 23 (1) - THE KE'ILA AFFAIR
The
Book of Shmuel
LECTURE
44: CHAPTER 23 (PART II)
THE
KE'ILA AFFAIR
Rav
Amnon Bazak
I.
DAVID AGAINST SHAUL
Following
what happened at Nov, David returns to the region of
Ke'ila:
(1)
And they told David, saying, "Behold, the Pelishtim are fighting against
Ke'ila,[1]
and they rob the threshing-floors." (2) Therefore David inquired of the Lord,
saying, "Shall I go and smite these Pelishtim?" And the Lord said unto David,
"Go, and smite the Pelishtim, and save Ke'ila." (3) And David's men said unto
him, "Behold, we are afraid here in Yehuda; how much more[2]
then if we go to Ke'ila against the armies of the Pelishtim?"[3]
(4) Then David inquired of the Lord yet again. And the Lord answered him and
said, "Arise, go down to Ke'ila; for I will deliver the Pelishtim into your
hand." (5) And David and his men went to Ke'ila and fought with the Pelishtim,
and brought away their cattle[4]
and slew them with a great slaughter. So David saved the inhabitants of
Ke'ila.
It is clear from this account that by dedicating all his energy to the
pursuit of David, Shaul in effect abandons his people and subjects to the
mistreatment of the Pelishtim. The vacuum created by Shaul's dysfunction is
symbolically filled by David, who, even when fleeing from the king, does not try
to evade his responsibility to help the people of Israel in their struggle
against the Pelishtim.
The description of the Pelishtim's harassment of Ke'ila with the words,
"and they rob (shosim) the threshing-floors," stands in contrast to what
was stated about Shaul in the not too distant past, "And he did valiantly, and
smote the Amalekites, and delivered Israel out of the hands of those that
spoiled them (shosehu)" (14:48). While Shaul had recently occupied
himself with the deliverance of Israel, now he devotes all his efforts to the
pursuit of David and abandons the inhabitants of Ke'ila and their grain to be
plundered by the Pelishtim.
What is striking in these verses is the double mention of deliverance in
connection with David: "Go, and smite the Pelishtim, and save
(ve-hoshata) Ke'ila
So David saved (va-yosha) the inhabitants of
Ke'ila." As may be remembered, the deliverance of Israel from the hands of the
Pelishtim was, from the outset, the goal of Shaul's appointment to serve as
king: "Now the Lord had revealed unto Shmuel a day before Shaul came, saying,
'Tomorrow about this time I will send you a man out of the land of Binyamin, and
you shall anoint him to be prince over My people Israel, and he shall save
(ve-hoshi'a) My people out of the hand of the Pelishtim; for I have
looked upon My people, because their cry is come unto Me'" (9:15-16). The truth
is, however, that the word "deliverance" is not mentioned even once in
connection with Shaul, and it is possible that Scripture intentionally
emphasizes this point even when it relates favorably to Shaul's military
achievements: "So Shaul took the kingdom over Israel, and fought against all his
enemies on every side, against Moav, and against the children of Amon, and
against Edom, and against the kings of Tzova, and against the Pelishtim;
and wherever he turned himself, he put them to the worse" (14:47). "He
put them to the worse" (yarshi'a), but he did not deliver
(yoshi'a) Israel.
The first lesson of our story, then, relates to David's ability to
deliver Israel from the hands of the Pelishtim even when the responsibility is
not cast upon him as opposed to Shaul, who once again fails to fulfill this
function.[5]
Our chapter emphasizes another difference between David's conduct and
that of Shaul. As we have seen, David inquires twice of God, and in the
continuation there is a third inquiry of God: "And David knew that Shaul devised
mischief against him; and he said to Evyatar the priest, 'Bring hither the
ephod'" (v. 9). This wording brings to mind what is stated with respect to
Shaul's previous war against the Pelishtim: "And
Shaul said unto Achiya, 'Bring hither the ark of God'"
(14:18). There, however, the story ended in a different manner: "And
it came to pass, while Shaul talked unto the priest, that the tumult that was in
the camp of the Pelishtim went on and increased; and Shaul said unto the priest,
'Withdraw your hand'"
(ibid. v. 19). We already noted (lecture no. 24) the problematic nature of
Shaul's behavior, which reflects derision of inquiries made of God. David
follows a different path, repeatedly inquiring of God.[6]
II.
THE INQUIRY OF GOD
Despite
what was said above regarding Scripture's positive assessment of David in this
story, especially in comparison to Shaul, when we examine the story more
carefully, we find a certain complexity in David's actions as well. During the
first stage, David inquires of God whether or not he should go out and fight
against the Pelishtim, and the answer seems to be clear and unequivocal:
"Go,
and smite the Pelishtim, and save Ke'ila." David's men are not keen about going
out to battle against the Pelishtim, and so David makes a second inquiry of God,
and receives a very similar answer: "Arise, go down to Ke'ila; for I will
deliver the Pelishtim into your hand." Why does David inquire of God a second
time?
According
to the Radak, the second inquiry was made exclusively to satisfy the need of
David's men: "David asked again because of their words, and not because of
himself, for he trusted [in God] after the first time and only asked again
because of his men. And when his men saw that God assured him twice, they went
with him." This explanation is based on the assumption that the people received
the word of God in some way, or at least that they were aware that this was the
word of God, but that they were only prepared to accept it and act accordingly
after David received the message a second time. There is something forced about
this, for it is not at all clear how the people could know
this.
The
Ralbag proposed a different understanding. According to him, the first answer,
"Go,
and smite the Pelishtim, and save Ke'ila," was not sufficiently clear, for it
might have been understood that only if David smites the Pelishtim will Ke'ila
be saved; but no guarantee was given that he would in fact smite the Pelishtim.
Therefore, He God clarifies in the second answer "Arise, go down to Ke'ila;
for I will deliver the Pelishtim into your hand" after which there was no
longer any room for doubt.[7]
There is, however, something forced about this answer as well, for the first
response to David also seems unequivocal.
It
seems, then, that according to the plain sense of the text, it was not David's
men who needed support and strengthening, but rather David himself. After the
cold response that he received from his men, David inquired of God a second time
perhaps based on the assumption that once it became clear that his men were
not ready to go out to battle, the situation had changed. God, however, merely
repeated his instructions, thus sending a message to David that his second
inquiry had been out of place.
This
point seems to have had an effect on what happened
afterwards:
(6)
And it came to pass, when Evyatar the son of Achimelekh fled to David to Ke'ila,
an ephod came down in his hand.[8]
(7) And it was told to Shaul that David was come to Ke'ila. And Shaul said, "God
has delivered him into my hand; for he is shut in, by entering into a town that
has gates and bars." (8) And Shaul summoned all the people to war, to go down to
Ke'ila,[9]
to besiege David and his men. (9) And David knew that Shaul devised mischief
against him; and he said to Evyatar the priest, "Bring hither the
ephod."
David, who had acted in a praiseworthy manner, finds himself in an
embarrassing situation; saving the people of Ke'ila is liable to lead to his
capture by Shaul. David, therefore, quickly inquires once again of
God:
(10)
Then said David, "O Lord, the God of Israel, Your servant has surely heard that
Shaul seeks to come to Ke'ila, to destroy the city for my sake.[10]
(11) Will the men of Ke'ila deliver me up into his hand? Will Shaul come down,
as Your servant has heard? O Lord, the God of Israel, I beseech You, tell Your
servant." And the Lord said, "He will come down." (12) Then said David, "Will
the men of Ke'ila deliver up me and my men into the hand of Shaul?" And the Lord
said, "They will deliver you up."[11]
Here, the inquiry directed at God is long and detailed. David asks two
questions - "Will the men of Ke'ila deliver me up into his hand? Will Shaul come
down, as Your servant has heard?" - and then he adds another supplication: "O
Lord, the God of Israel, I beseech You, tell Your servant." The answer that
David receives here seems to be reserved and incomplete: "He will come down."
David is forced to repeat his question: "Will the men of Ke'ila deliver up me
and my men into the hand of Shaul?" and once again he receives a laconic answer:
"They will deliver you up." It is difficult not to conclude that God is
expressing here a certain dissatisfaction. What, then, was the problem with the
inquiry made of God?
The Gemara in Yoma (73a) argues that David veered from the usual
rules by asking two consecutive questions of the ephod. Moreover, he asked them
in a chronologically illogical order, for the question of whether Shaul would
come down should have preceded the question of whether he would be handed over
by the people of Ke'ila:
One
must not ask two questions at once, and if one asked, he is only answered
regarding one, and he is only answered regarding the first question. As it is
stated: "Will the men of Ke'ila deliver me up into his hand? Will Shaul come
down?
And the Lord said, He will come down." But surely you said: He is only
answered regarding the first question! David asked out of order, and [God]
answered him out of order. And once he understood that he had asked out of
order, he asked again in order. As it is stated: "Will the men of Ke'ila deliver
up me and my men into the hand of Shaul? And the Lord said, They will deliver
you up."[12]
The Gemara, however, fails to explain why David initially presented two
questions, especially if this contradicted common
practice.
It
seems, then, that the nature of the inquiry made of God in these verses follows
from what happened at the beginning of the chapter. The fact that David inquired
twice of God expressed a lack of sufficient trust and faith on his part.
Therefore, despite their importance, the additional questions that he posed
later in the chapter were not favorably received. The situation can be described
as follows. David first asks: "Will the men of Ke'ila deliver me up into his
hand?" out of a desire to receive an answer to the question that most interested
him, but his question was not answered. It stands to reason that David thought
that his question was problematic because it makes an assumption that has yet to
be proven, and he therefore emends his question and goes back one step: "Will
Shaul come down, as Your servant has heard?" But this question is also not
answered. At this point David understands that there is a problem with his
approach, and God is therefore not answering his questions; he thus adds a
prayer: "O Lord, the God of Israel, I beseech You, tell Your servant." Only
after this prayer does David receive an answer: "He will come down," which
relates to the second question, and the answer: "They will deliver you up"
which answers his basic question. But even these answers, in the way that they
are given, testify to a certain dissatisfaction, which gives expression to
Scripture's judgment about David's mistake in this story.
(Translated
by David Strauss)
[1] Ke'ila is mentioned in Yehoshua 15:44 among the cities in the
coastal plain of Yehuda. The fact that it is a fortified city, as is implied by
v. 7, suggests that it was situated in close proximity to the
Pelishtim.
[2] We have already seen (14:30; lecture 26, note 6) that the combination
"af ki" in Scripture is used in the sense of "kal va-chomer," "all
the more so." We have noted additional examples, e.g.: Devarim
31:27; I Shmuel 21:6; ibid. 23:3; II Shmuel 4:11; ibid. 15:11;
I Melakhim 8:27; II Melakhim 5:13.
[3] David's men appear here as they were described in chapter 22, as bitter
and oppressed people who are not particularly interested in saving the lives of
others.
[4] What are the Pelishtim's cattle doing in the middle of a battle? The
Radak writes: "Why was their cattle in the battle-[field]? Rather, when David
beat them with a mighty blow, he chased after those who fled to the land of the
Pelishtim, and brought away their cattle." According to the plain sense of
Scripture, however, it seems that the Pelishtim brought their cattle along in
order to feed them of the grain in the threshing floors, as it is stated above:
"And they rob the threshing-floors." This behavior is familiar to us from what
is related about the Midyanim: "And so it was when Israel had
sown, that Midyan and Amalek and the children of the east came up against them;
and they encamped against them, and destroyed the produce of the earth as far as
Aza, and left no sustenance for Israel, neither sheep, nor ox, nor ass. For they
came up with their cattle and their tents, and they came like locusts for
multitude; for both they and their camels were without number; and they entered
into the land to destroy it" (Shoftim 6:3-5).
[5] The root yod-shin-ayin also appears later with respect to David.
See II Shmuel 8:6, 14.
[6] David's inquiries of God are mentioned again below 30:8; II Shmuel
2:1; 5:19, 23.
[7] The Ralbag proves his point from what is related in the war against
Binyamin (Shoftim 20:17-35), where the second question receives the
answer: "Go up against him" (v. 23), although the next day they are beaten, and
only the third time is a clear answer received: "Go up; for tomorrow I will
deliver them into your hand" (v. 28). This story is indeed difficult, and the
commentators offer many different interpretations.
[8] a) This verse is difficult for several reasons: First, the end of the
previous chapter implies that Evyatar fled to David even before David went with
his men to Ke'ila, when they were still deeper in the land of Yehuda. Second,
why is this point mentioned here, and not before; already in the earlier verses,
David inquired of God. The Metzudat David explains that "Ke'ila" means
here "the territory of Ke'ila" and that the verse is brought here in order to
explain what was stated above: "Since it was stated above: 'Therefore David
inquired of the Lord,' therefore it says that Evyatar brought with him the
ephod, and with that he made the inquiry." This is difficult, for verses which
come to explain other verses usually appear before the explained verse and not
after it; moreover, this verse seems to explain v. 9, in which Evyatar is
explicitly mentioned.
It is possible that Evyatar is mentioned here because in verses 7-12 it
will be explained how David was saved by virtue of the ephod, and therefore, in
the end, the killing of the priests of Nov only hurt Shaul. This may be alluded
to by the words "to David to Ke'ila;" as it were, Evyatar's entire coming down
to Ke'ila was for the purpose of saving David.
b) The Radak explains that the combination, "an ephod came down in his
hand," emphasizes the chance happening: "That is to say, the ephod came down by
accident in his hand. Even though he brought it down, he did not do so
intentionally, but rather when he took his things with him when he ran away, he
was not careful about what he took and what he left, like a person who is
running away. And God caused it that the ephod was by chance among his things.
Therefore it says: 'it came down,' rather than 'he brought
down.'"
[9] This verse also seems to express irony regarding Shaul. It was also said
in connection with the obligatory war against Amalek: "And Shaul summoned
the people, and numbered them in Telaim
" (15:4). The use of the same word
in our verse creates the impression that Shaul is going out once again in an
obligatory war in defense of his people "And Shaul summoned all the people to
war, to go down to Ke'ila." Very quickly, however, it becomes clear that Shaul's
measure was directed in an entirely different direction: "to besiege David and
his men."
[10] David's words clearly indicate a repair of his behavior in the Nov
affair. David expresses concern that, once again, a city's inhabitants will
suffer on his account, even though they extended him no assistance whatsoever.
[11] This point also seems to be connected to the previous chapter (see
previous note). God's answer seems to present the people of Ke'ila in a very
negative light: If a fight breaks out in Ke'ila between Shaul and David, the
people of Ke'ila will hand over David, who had delivered them from the
Pelishtim, to Shaul, who had done nothing to save them. It seems, however, that
this assumption is based on the fact that following what happened in Nov, the
people of Ke'ila were afraid that they, too, would be accused of collaborating
with David; therefore, were things to come to that point, they would hand David
over to Shaul out of concern for their own lives.
[12] In the continuation, the Gemara adds: "If the two questions are
necessary, the two questions are answered. As it is stated: 'And David inquired
of the Lord, saying, Shall I pursue after this troop? Shall I overtake them? And
He answered him, Pursue; for you shall surely overtake them, and shall without
fail recover all' (I Shmuel 30:8)." On the level of the plain sense of
Scripture, however, the difference between that case and our case is not clear.
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