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Dina Gudai, Israeli Representative
Phone: 074-7800643
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The Schechter Institutes, Inc. (a 501(c) 3 tax exempt organization)
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Phone: 416-789-2193, ext. 2139
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Please mail a check to:
The Schechter Institutes
Attn: Dina Gudai, Finance Department
PO Box 16080,
Jerusalem, 9116002
Israel
For assistance, please call Dina Gudai at 074-780-0643 (8:00 AM – 3:00 Israel time Sunday through Thursday).
Your donation will be tax deductible in the US to the extent allowed by the IRS.
To make a tax-deductible donation by wire transfer in the US, please contact:
Avrum Lapin, North American Representative
Toll-free: 1-866-830-3321
Email: schechter@thelapingroup.com
To make a tax-deductible donation in Israel, please contact:
Dina Gudai, Israeli Representative
Phone: 074-7800643
Email: dina@schechter.ac.il
Please mail your check to:
The Schechter Institutes, Inc. (a 501(c) 3 tax exempt organization)
Box #3566
PO Box 8500
Philadelphia, PA 19178-3566
Attn: Mr. Avrum Lapin, North American Representative
Toll-free: 1-866-830-3321
Email: schechter@thelapingroup.com
Please indicate the donation is "for your joint Schechter Institutes program."
Checks should be made payable to the Jewish Theological Society of Canada and mailed to:
Jewish Theological Society of Canada
c/o Camp Ramah in Canada
3845 Bathhurst St., Suite 310
Toronto, ON, M3H 3N2
Phone: 416-789-2193, ext. 2139
E-mail: accounting@campramah.com
Please mail a check to:
The Schechter Institutes
Attn: Dina Gudai, Finance Department
PO Box 16080,
Jerusalem, 9116002
Israel
For assistance, please call Dina Gudai at 074-780-0643 (8:00 AM – 3:00 Israel time Sunday through Thursday).
The Jewish People as a Lion: Various Interpretations through the Ages and for Today, Dr. Etka Liebowitz
This Shabbat we read about the famous story of Balak ben Zippor, the king of Moab, who feared the power of the Israelites and asked the prophet Balaam ben Beor to curse them.
Amazingly, the biblical narrative concerning the prophet Balaam is one of the few cases which has some degree of archaeological support. An ancient inscription in Aramaic letters dating to circa 800 BCE was discovered in 1967 on the wall of a temple at Tel Deir Alla in Jordan. The inscription tells the story of a terrifying night vision of a seer named Balaam, who is mentioned several times. During the vision, the gods threaten to destroy the land and Balaam attempts to reverse their decision. Although the inscription is not entirely identical to the biblical text, nevertheless it heralded a revolutionary discovery!
Tel_Deir_’Alla_Inscription with references to Balaam, discovered in 1967, (image from Disdero CCA by SA 4.0 via wikicommons)
Let us return to the biblical account during which Balaam utters a prophecy, that includes the verse from which Benjamin Netanyahu took the name of the war with Iran: “Lo, a people that rises like a lion…” (Numbers 23:24).
The simile of Israel as a lion appears frequently in the Bible, including in this week’s haftarah, where the prophet Micah exclaims: “The remnant of Jacob shall be among the nations…Like a lion among beasts of the wild, Like a fierce lion among flocks of sheep…” (Micah 5:7).
In general, commentators have interpreted this verse as comparing the Jewish people to a lion whose strength and courage the beasts of the forest dare not oppose, and even a prediction of the Jewish people’s victory over their many enemies throughout the ages. Traditional commentators have offered both religious and military interpretations for the phrase “a people that rises like a lion.” Rashi asserts that it means: “To wear tzitzit and put on tefillin and recite the Shema.” Here Rashi compares rising to kill prey to rising to prayer. On the other hand, Ibn Ezra emphasizes the military aspect: “A hint that the kings of Canaan will prevail.”
The Ralbag, Rabbi Levi ben Gershom, adds God’s providence: “From the power of God’s providence, He will exalt them, and they will rise with wonderful might to destroy their enemies quickly, like the lion…” This week’s haftarah complements Balak’s prophecy, demonstrating that victory has both military and spiritual aspects.
The haftarah emphasizes the spiritual-moral feature: “…what the Lord requires of you? Only to do justice and to love goodness, And to walk modestly with your God” (Micah 6:8).
All our politicians would do well to remember this, even in times of war, and then we will be able to say, like the prophet Balaam: “How goodly are your tents, O Jacob, your dwellings O Israel!” (Numbers 24:5)
Shavua Tov from Schechter
(top image: Rembrandt, Bilaam and His Ass, in Musee Cognacq-Jay, Paris via wikicommons)
Etka Liebowitz is the Director of the Research Authority and a Coordinator of Development, including matters pertaining to Schechter’s activities in Ukraine. She received her PhD in Jewish History in 2012 (specializing in women in the Second Temple period) and has published several academic articles in her field. Dr. Liebowitz is fluent in English, Hebrew, Russian and Spanish.
