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II Samuel 12-14: Tamar and the Wise Woman of Tekoa

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On February 14, 2013, we studied 2 Samuel 14.  With the help of the wise woman of Tekoa, King David has to face a tough decision about his sons. Who is this woman, and is she really wise? What are the stakes for King David at this point?
“The Tekoan woman helps him reach a decision concerning the great struggle that was going on within him: the struggle between his personal feelings and his moral obligations. The parable provides David with a ladder with which to climb down from ‘the moral tree’ which he had climbed following Avshalom’s flight. This justification, however, has no grounding in concrete reality. As he had done in earlier stories, David once again makes an erroneous decision, one for which he will yet be forced to pay a heavy price.  https://www.etzion.org.il/en/88-chapter-14-i-woman-tekoa 

On February 6, 2013, we studied 2 Sam Ch 12:3-12 – the tragedy of Tamar. It’s an emotional roller coaster, and an amazing look at the corruption of power.  We compared with the story of Dinah (Gen 34).
“In this new monarchy, the weak can still be victimized by the powerful, girls are vulnerable to violence, and violence against them still spreads unchecked until it culminates in civil war.  The monarchy does not solve the problem that is its only reason for being: it cannot govern society so that outrage will not occur.”  – Tikva Frymer-Kensky Reading the Women of the Bible

How Six Women gave Moses His Start in Life – January 6 at Eitz Chayim

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Marc Chagall, "Pharaoh's Daughter and Moses, from The Story of Exodus"Consider the six powerful women who midwifed, mothered, and sistered Moses and gave him his start in life. Despite contrary decrees by the powerful Pharaoh of Egypt, they used their wits to gain power when they lacked authority and launched Moses as a prophet and leader.
Eitz Chayim member Penina Weinberg, who is both student and teacher of Hebrew Bible, will guide us on reading selected passages from Exodus and entering a lively discussion relating our texts to current politics, philosophy, or challenges of life.

Marc Chagall, “Pharaoh’s Daughter and Moses
from The Story of Exodus

Study session is participatory and accessible to people with no experience studying biblical texts, while providing an intellectual challenge to those with a broad background. Everyone is an expert at something; we will combine our insights and knowledge to unpack the biblical texts and to wrestle with questions such as: what is the meaning of our texts? What is authority vs power? Is living by our wits relevant today?

Please join us for bagels and coffee at 10am. Study and discussion at 10:30am.
Congregation Eitz Chayim is at 136 Magazine Street in Cambridge, MA.

II Samuel Ch 11-12: Bathsheba

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“The story of David’s taking of Bathsheba and murder of Uriah (chaps. 11-12) and the subsequent story of rape, murder, and rebellion (chaps. 13-20) tell us….it is a threat from within, a corruption that grows from within himself and his own family, that most menaces David’s exercise of power.  From this point on, despite enlivening moments, David’s story becomes increasingly bleak.”
    –The HarperCollins Bible Commentary, 2000.  David M. Gunn  “II Samuel”. pp 267-8)

Ay, that incestuous, that adulterate beast,
With witchcraft of his wit, with traitorous gifts-
O wicked wit and gifts, that have the power
So to seduce!- won to his shameful lust
The will of my most seeming-virtuous queen.

But that I am forbid
To tell the secrets of my prison house,
I could a tale unfold whose lightest word
Would harrow up thy soul, freeze thy young blood,
Make thy two eyes, like stars, start from their spheres,
Thy knotted and combined locks to part,
And each particular hair to stand on end
Like quills upon the fretful porcupine.
—-Hamlet Act I, Scene 5

II Samuel Ch 8-9-10: David, the Philistines, and Mephibosheth

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Chapter 8 ends with David at the absolute apex of his powers and reputation.   He finally subdues the Philistines who have been the mortal enemies of the Israelites.   From here David tackles the Ammonites, the Moabites, the Arameans…….  But does he start to lose himself?   Is there something suspicious about David hunting down Saul’s last remaining relative, Mephibosheth, and sequestering him at the royal table?

Pay attention to what battles David leads and which ones he sits out in Chapter 10.  Notably, while he defeats the Arameans, he leaves the Ammonites for Joab to defeat later.  This incomplete work on David’s part foreshadows his sitting out the entire season in which the kings normally go out to battle (Chapter 11).

The high point of David’s kingdom

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Chapters 6-8, which we will study on December 5th, bring us to the high point of King David’s kingdom. With much rejoicing, David brings the long lost ark to Jerusalem and YHWH promises David (Everett Fox translation)

“I will make you a great name,
like the name of the great-ones that are on the earth” [2 Sam 7:9]

“Secure is your house and your kingdom for the ages” [2 Sam 7:16]

David defeats the Philistines finally for good. And yet, there is something wrong – is David setting his own sons up as priests? Instead of a harmonious alliance with Michal, daughter of King Saul, David goes his own way, and his sons after him quarrel endlessly. As chapter 9 opens, it is unclear if David takes in Jonathan’s lame son to do him a kindness, or to kidnap him.

“Just as we sense completion at hand, the narrator unsettles us. David, chosen and supported by Yhwh, is no simple model of piety.” The HarperCollins Bible Commentary p. 267

Quote

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In preparation for reading Chapters 4-5, think about this:

“Three stages characterize the solidification of David’s ascension to power as Israel’s second king: the elimination of rivals, principally from the house of Sha’ul, the establishment of a capital, and the subduing of external enemies.  The accomplishment of the first is marred by three violent deaths: one in battle (David’s nephew Asa’el), one standing by a gate (Sha’ul’s general Avner), and one in bed “Sha’ul’s son Ish-Boshet).  All three are stabbed in the heart. While David absolves himself of these events, and we are inclined to believe him, the conclusion is inescapable: that, as Polzin (1993) points out, kingship in Israel is ‘a major cause of frequent fratricide on a tribal or national level.’  It is a pattern that will be repeated in the second half of the book, within the royal house itself.”  – Everett Fox Give us a King pp  153

Men and Women

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“‘If Rebekah’s deception of her husband is an example of ‘women’s cunning,’ then some of the men whose cunning is described in the Old Testament suffered from a sexual identity crisis! The list of such ‘feminine’ males would include Abraham… Jacob… Saul… David…This list is incomplete, but it should be enough evidence to refute the contention that cunning was a female trait in ancient Israel.”
—  John H. Otwell quoted in Steinberg, Naomi. “Israelite Tricksters, their Analogues and Cross-Cultural Study.” Semeia No 42, 1988, p 1-13

Authority vs Power

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“The classic statement of distinction between authority and power was developed by Weber. In the words of M. G. Smith,   “Authority is, in the abstract, the right to make a particular decision and to command obedience…Power…is the ability to act effectively on persons or things, to make or secure favorable decisions which are not of right allocated to the individuals or their roles.”
——— Naomi Steinberg. “Israelite Tricksters, their Analogues and Cross-Cultural Study.” Semeia No 42, 1988, p 1-13