Nasi

נמצאו 5 תוצאות חיפוש

1. The Fate of the Kings of Yehuda

   Dr. Tova Ganzel

   Yehezkel’s prophecy to the kings of Yehuda in this chapter is conveyed through two parables: in the first, the royal family of Yehuda is compared to a family of lions; in the second, to a vine. To understand the significance of the first parable, the prophecy is compared with the historical events to which it refers.

   This second parable does not appear to be directed at any specific king of Yehuda; rather, it marks the end of the monarchy of the kings of Yehuda collectively. This parable is noticeably harsher than the previous one. The outcome in the first parable is the capture of the kings alive, whereas in the second parable nothing remains of the vine at all.

   This prophetic unit is entirely devoid of any mention of God’s Name. The parable does not mention His Name, and – unlike the other parables that Yehezkel uses to convey his messages – no interpretation is supplied at its conclusion. This omission is especially glaring given the many instances in which Yehezkel’s prophecy is attributed to God.

   The description of the fate of the last king of Yehuda, Tzidkiyahu, appears as part of a series of prophecies in Chapter 21 that describe the end of the kingdom of Yehuda. The message it suggests is that the kings of Yehuda have been arrogant; they have not maintained, along with their role as kings, their subjugation to God and His charge. They have not upheld God’s sanctity. In this way they have brought about the Destruction of Jerusalem and of the Temple.

2. The Soul that Sins – It Shall Die

   Dr. Tova Ganzel

   The people of Yehezkel’s generation claimed that since the destruction was inevitable, their individual actions no longer had any importance and it made no difference whether they remained loyal to God’s commandments or not. Others believed that “The way of the Lord is unfair”.  Therefore Yehezkel repeats and emphasizes the responsibility of every individual for his actions and the life-and-death consequences that follow. Yehezkel concludes by stating that the people’s claim – that the son dies because of the sins of the father – is simply incorrect.

   The prophet also declares that the gates of repentance remain open to the individual. These verses are quite unusual given that nowhere in the book is there any call for the people to mend their ways so that God will not destroy His Temple. Although the prophet here calls upon the people to repent, he offers no promise that this will prevent the destruction; he only speaks of deliverance from the death for the sinners when the destruction comes.

   The sins brought about the imminent destruction of the city according to Yehezkel are idolatry, sexual immorality and bloodshed. Yehezkel does not seem to attribute the destruction of the First Temple to the social transgressions of the nation as a whole – in neither the prophecies before nor after the Destruction.

    

   In Chapter 22 as the Destruction of Jerusalem draws nearer the prophet appears to place more of an emphasis on the personal responsibility that the leaders of the people bear for their actions, along with the dire consequences of their corrupt leadership for the nation as a whole. This chapter attributes sins both social and religious in nature to the office-bearers in leadership positions. Thus, the fate of the city is sealed because of idolatry, sexual immorality, bloodshed, and – finally – the deeds of the leadership.

3. The Shepherds of Israel, in the Past and in the Future

   Dr. Tova Ganzel

   Yehezkel records a harsh prophecy directed against the kings of Israel, the nation’s leaders, whom he compares to shepherds who do not tend to their flocks. In the future, the leadership will be taken from these shepherds who failed in the past to properly lead the nation. God Himself will gather up the flock, rehabilitate it and hand it over to a different shepherd who will fulfill his role faithfully.

   The new shepherd will be a descendant of David.  However, the present model of leadership will come to an end. It will not be a mere technical replacement of personnel, but rather a fundamental change in the essence of the role. Therefore in speaking of David’s future status he is not referred to as “king” but as a “Nasi” – prince.

   Since the institution of kingship has failed, an alternative form of leadership must replace it. One of the roles of the king of Israel is to bring about a situation that will facilitate the Divine Presence coming to rest amongst the nation. The kings of Israel, as depicted in Sefer Yehezkel, brought about the opposite situation: defilement and the distancing of the Divine Presence. Now it is too late; there is no repair for the corrupt kingship, and therefore it is replaced by the station of the “Nasi.”

4. The Vision of the Future Temple

   Part 2 - More Concealment than Revelation

   Dr. Tova Ganzel

   The description of the Temple and the city, has some concrete and precise elements, but at the very same time, lacks some very central details.  

   According to Yehezkel's prophecy, the changes in this Temple include not only the outer structure of the edifice, but also fundamental difference in who enters it. This change relates both to the measure of access afforded the people, but also the division of roles among the various leaders of the nation, and the degree to which they are connected to the Temple.

   The impression arising from Yehezkel’s prophecy is that the Temple is not a spiritual center for the entire nation. The Temple serves the kohanim and leviim, who perform their service within it as representatives of the people, while the only roles that are given to the people are the auxiliary functions and appearances: funding of the sacrifices, prostration, and a partial view of the Divine service.

5. The Concluding Chapters of Yehezkel

   Dr. Tova Ganzel

   The first part of Chapter 45 deals with the division of the land among the tribes of Israel. But the division here is fundamentally different to that familiar to us: the one dating to the period when the land was originally settled. This new division apparently serves two different purposes. First, the placement of the Levite inheritance between the inheritance of the other tribes and the Temple is meant to prevent the Temple from being defiled. In addition, this new arrangement will prevent the office-bearers from being dependent, to some extent, on the people – a situation which in the past had led to the misuse of the leaders’ power.

   There are some significant discrepancies between the laws that Yehezkel sets down and the laws of the Torah, specifically in the area of Korbanot. It is difficult to characterize all the differences between the sacrifices set down in the Torah and those we encounter in Yechezkel’s prophecy. However, the changes to the sacrifices listed in Yechezkel should be viewed as part of a broader totality of change, including a new order of leadership with the aim of preventing a repetition of the catastrophe of the departure of the Divine Presence and the subsequent destruction of the Temple.

   The changes extend from the Temple itself to Jerusalem and to the other parts of the country: the city becomes shared by all the tribes of Israel, and the land is divided among the tribes in an egalitarian manner. This redivision of the inheritances will help to reduce antagonism among the tribes, and perhaps help to prevent oppression and theft, since these, too, were among the reasons for God’s departure from the Temple in the past.

   Chapter 47 offers a surprising turning-point in the vision of the future Temple. The prophet speaks here neither of the structure nor of the order of service, but rather describes a wondrous stream that emerges from the entrance to God’s House and flows all the way to the Arava. Although Yechezkel has distanced the people from anything connected to the Temple, now he is also creating a Divine connection with the people that has never existed before.

   The wondrous river that appears at the end of the Sefer seems to be a way of bringing the Sanctuary into the very midst of the people more than ever before: through connecting with the miraculous abundance and healing forces of the river, powers not found in the usual course of nature.

   It turns out that in order to heal the people, the prophet foresees a fissure in the regular order of nature. Beyond purification - a  necessary condition for the revival of the people in the future - there will also be possible forms of healing that pass through the Sanctuary, but that do not require the people to approach.

   Now we see that the healing properties of the river in fact have the wondrous ability to repair the flaws that caused the Destruction. The distancing of the people from the Temple turns out to be a physical measure that does not reflect any spiritual distancing: God connects the people to the Temple by means of the river that flows from the very midst of the House, notwithstanding the geographical distance.

   So it turns out that ultimately the bond between God and His people is not only renewed unilaterally by God; but the entire nation is part of the process as they are nourished, by the river from the Temple, more directly than ever before.