Melachim Aleph 14-19
DVAR TORAH…
There is an extremely relevant mishna for this time of year and this period in Nach re Yeravam. Let’s try and offer and explanation of its meaning. The Mishna (Avos 5; 21) says that anyone who is mezakeh (causes merit) to the community (lit. multitudes) then no sin will come via him. Whilst anyone who causes others to sin, will not have the ability to do teshuva. Q1 – why is this so? The mishnah continues that Moshe brought merit upon the rabim, and their merits are accorded to him, whilst Yeravam caused the people to sin, and their sins are accorded to him. Q2 – what has this second part of the mishna got to do with the first part?
One approach is the following…We know that the dead too are judged on each Rosh Hashanah. How can that be – they have not done mitzvas since last RH? Since their effects in this world are still seen and create effects. This is a massive message in the influence that someone can have in itself. For example, if one smiles at someone, then that someone becomes happy and does someone a favour, who then gives tzedakkah, etc, parts of all those mitzvos will be credited to the original ’smiler.’ Or if someone donates a sefer/siddur to a shul, then they will continue to receive a reward every time someone uses this sefer. The best example is teaching people Torah, by the way. Anyway, what is Teshuva? Teshuva says that I remove and regret all the sins I have done. But that’s all very good for your sins (they are magically removed by the chesed of HaShem called Teshuva), but sins you caused others to do? You can’t do the Teshuva for that; either because sometimes you are not aware of what you caused, or even worse that it’s because you do not have the power to remove others’ acts. Thus, sins the sins of others were accredited to Yeravam, he (and others who cause people to sin) was unable to do Tehshuva.
And midah tovah merubah (reward for good is greater than punishment for bad); Moshe bestowed merit on the tzibbur, and thus no sin comes to him. This is because either 1) there’s nobody who will (even unwittingly) influence him to sin, since they know he is a man of mitzvos. Or, 2) since we have the concept of ’one mitzvah causes another’ and thus, even though one still has the free will to choose to sin, the more mitzvos one does then the more mitzvos one is given the opportunity to complete.
Summaries…
Perek 14 – Aviyah – son of Yerevan – gets ill, and his mother is sent to Achiyah the prophet. He tells her that HaShem has cursed the house of Yeravam and the child dies. Yeravam dies and Nadav his son takes over. The avodah zarah of Yehudah, and Rechavam dies and is replaced as king of Yehudah by Aviyam his son.
Perek 15 – Aviyam continues evil ways and dies; Assa his son takes over; who is yashar in eyes of HaShem; he removes the avodah zarah. Baasa, King of Yisrael (ie not Yehudah) builds a wall entrapping Yehudah, and Assah pays the King of Aram to invade to cause Baasa to halt the building of the siege wall and defend his borders. In their absence, Baasa and his men tear down the wall. Yehoshafat takes over from his father Assa after his death. Baasa’s history is given – he assassinated Nadav the king.
Perek 16 – Baasa is told of HaShem’s curse on him by Yehu ben Chanani the prophet. Zimri assassinates Baasa as well as his family, and rules, but the people chose Omri instead, and in the midst of a siege in the battle between the two, Zimri burns the building he is in and dies. We are told that Zimri continued the evil of Yeravam. The people again are split between Omri and Tivni, and they kill Timri – thus leaving Omri to rule as king. Omri dies and his son Achav replaces him. Achav is the most evil of the kings and builds an alter to baal (avodah zarah). Yericho is rebuilt (causing the builder’s sons to die; HaShem had said must not be rebuilt)
Perek 17 – Eliyahu HaTishbi (of Havdalah fame!) informs Achav that HaShem said there will be no rain. Eliyahu is told by HaShem to go to Nachal Kris, and is fed by ravens bringing bread and the water for a while. After it dries up, he is told to head north, where a woman feeds him, and he miraculously gives her wealth via her oil ad flour jars never running out. He cures her ill son.
Perek 18 – Eliyahu publicly shows that HaShem is the one G-d, by winning the public sacrifice competition; the prophets of baal did not have their sacrifice touched, but HaShem showed openly that He accepted that of Eliyahu. It rains. Eliyahu flees from Achav and his wife Izevel, for they killed all the prophets (and he was a prophet).
Perek 19 – An angel helps revive Eliyahu in the dessert. HaShem commands Eliyahu to appoint Elisha as the prophet and coronate Chazael as king of Aram, with Yehu ben Nimshi as king of Israel. Eliyahu meets Elisha.
