“Abigail is an extraordinary woman who is ready to take risks in order to save her husbandand household members from David’s wrath.”    –Shulamit Valler “Neither Michal nor Abigail seem to have made idols of their husbands; they did not even consult them as to what they should think, say, or do.  They furnish a good example to wives to use their own judgment and to keep their own secrets, not make the family altar a constant confessional.”     –Elizabeth Cady Stanton (1898)

1 S 24:16  “Saul said: ‘Is this thy voice, my son David?’  And Saul lifted up his voice and wept.““Despite Sha’ul’s failures and his subsequent descent into monomaniacal pursuit of David, there is something that leads many readers to view the first king of Israel not as evil, but as tragically marred…Sha’ul is not a misfit but a ‘mighty’ warrior who has fallen, surely not a cause for rejoicing.”       —-Everett Fox

Wednesday, February 29, 1 Samuel Chapter 20Wednesday, March 21: Chapters 21 and 22 King David feigns madness before Achish  (1 Sam 21:14-16) “It is noteworthy that David feigns madness in order to survive, in contrast to Saul, whose genuine madness reflects his loss of control over the kingdom.”      —Robert Alter

Wednesday, February 15, we read 1 Samuel Chapters 18 and 19 in English   The theme for Chapters 18 and 19 is “What’s Love Got to Do with It”  (thank you Tina Turner!)   Michal helps David to escape from Saul In Chapter 16:21, we already learned that Saul loved David: “And David came to Saul, and stood before him, and he loved him greatly.”  In our next study session, we will read that Saul’s children loved David.  18:1 “And it came to pass…that the soul [nefesh] of Jonathan was knit with the soul of David, and Jonathan loved him…

Wednesday, February 1, we read 1 Samuel Chapters 16 and 17 in English   In Chapter 16 we at last meet David, soon to be King, a contradictory and complex characater. “The Bible certainly does not idealize him, but he is all the more appealing for that.  No bit of human hope and despair, bravura and foolishness and bitter melancholy, smoldering hatred and deepest love, is foreign to him.”     –James Kugel As recent interpreters have pointed out, he is a man whose feelings are often hidden from us, a man who is acclaimed and loved by others (including his readers)…

Wednesday, January 18, we read 1 Samuel Chapters 14:24 -15:35 in English “The old story of the battle of Michmash Pass and the cursing of Jonathan leaves us in a condition of gloomy uncertainty about Saul.  We do not yet know what is to become of him, but we look ahead to the events to come with little hope for him left.”    —-P. Kyle McCarter, Jr.  1 Samuel Chapter 15:22 But Samuel said [to Saul]:“Does YHWH delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices As much as in obedience to the command of YHWH? Surely, obedience is better than sacrifice, Compliance than…

Study with Penina Announcement                         1 Samuel Chapters 7-8Wednesday, November 2, 7:30pm to 9pm.  Eitz Chayim library.  Bring your Tanakh, snacks, wine. RSVPs appreciated No prior study or knowledge of text study or Hebrew is required!  Books provided if you don’t have your own. Review and study material can be found on Penina’s blogSee New York Times article in links:  “The Scrolls as a Start, Not an End” We meet each 1st and 3rd Wednesday evening to study the book of Samuel.

Study with Penina Announcement                                  1 Samuel Chapters 5-7Wednesday, October 19, 7:30pm to 9pm.  Eitz Chayim library.  Bring your tanach, snacks, wine. RSVPs appreciated No prior study or knowledge of text study or Hebrew is required!  Books provided if you don’t have your own.Review and study material can be found on Penina’s blog Throughout the year we will meet each 1st and 3rd Wednesday evening to study the book of Samuel. And they placed the Coffer of YHWH on the wagon,along with the chest and the…