Haftarat Shofetim

To whom does the phrase 'Is there a man who is afraid or faint-hearted]?' refer? The phrase should be interpreted simply, as applying to a person whose heart is not brave enough to stand in the throes of battle.

Once a soldier enters the throes of battle, he should rely on the Hope of Israel and their Savior in times of need. He should realize that he is fighting for the sake of the oneness of God's Name. Therefore, he should place his soul in his hand and not show fright or fear.

He should not worry about his wife or children. On the contrary, he should wipe their memory from his heart, removing all thoughts from his mind except the war.

Anyone who begins to feel anxious and worry in the midst of battle to the point where he frightens himself violates a negative commandment, as it is written (Deuteronomy 20:3): 'Do not be faint-hearted. Do not be afraid. Do not panic and do not break ranks before them.'

Furthermore, he is responsible for the blood of the entire Jewish nation. If he is not valiant, if he does not wage war with all his heart and soul, it is considered as if he shed the blood of the entire people, as ibid. 20:8 states: 'Let him go home, lest he demoralize the hearts of his brethren like his own.' Similarly, the prophetic tradition explicitly states: 'Cursed be he who does God's work deceitfully. Cursed be he who withholds his sword from blood.' Jeremiah 48:10

In contrast, anyone who fights with his entire heart, without fear, with the intention of sanctifying God's name alone, can be assured that he will find no harm, nor will bad overtake him. He will be granted a proper family in Israel and gather merit for himself and his children forever. He will also merit eternal life in the world to come as I Samuel 25:28-29 states: 'God will certainly make my lord a faithful house, for my lord fights the wars of God and evil will not be found with you... and my lord's soul will be bound in a bond of life with God.'

23 While he was talking to them, the champion, whose name was Goliath, the Philistine of Gath, stepped forward from the Philistine ranks and spoke the same words as before; and David heard him. 24 When the men of Israel saw the man, they fled in terror. 25 And the men of Israel were saying [among themselves], "Do you see that man coming out? He comes out to defy Israel! The man who kills him will be rewarded by the king with great riches; he will also give him his daughter in marriage and grant exemption to his father's house in Israel." 26 David asked the men standing near him, "What will be done for the man who kills that Philistine and removes the disgrace from Israel? Who is that uncircumcised Philistine that he dares defy the ranks of the living God?"

27 The troops told him in the same words what

would be done for the man who killed him.

28 When Eliab, his oldest brother, heard him speaking to

the men, Eliab became angry with David and said, "Why

did you come down here, and with whom did you leave

those few sheep in the wilderness? I know your impudence

and your impertinence: you came down to watch

the fighting! " 29 But David replied, "What have I done

now? I was only asking!" 30 And he turned away from him

toward someone else; he asked the same question, and the

troops gave him the same answer as before.

31 The things David said were overheard and were reported

to Saul, who had him brought over. 32 David said

to Saul, "Let no man's courage fail him. Your servant

will go and fight that Philistine!" 33 But Saul said to David,

"You cannot go to that Philistine and fight him; you are

only a boy, and he has been a warrior from his youth!"

34 David replied to Saul, "Your servant has been tending

his father 's sheep, and if a lion or a bear came and carried

off an animal from the flock, 35 I would go after it and fight

it and rescue it from its mouth. And if it attacked me, I

would seize it by the beard and strike it down and kill it.

36 Your servant has killed both lion and bear; and that uncircumcised Philistine shall end up like one of them, for he has defied the ranks of the living God. 37 "The LORD,"

David went on, "who saved me from lion and bear will.

also save me from that Philistine." "Then go," Saul said to

David, "and may the LoRD be with you!" 38 Saul clothed David in his own garment; he placed a bronze helmet on his head and fastened a breastplate on him. 39 David girded his sword over his garment. Then he tried to walk; but he was not used to it. And David said to Saul, "I cannot walk in these, for I am not used to them." So David took them off. 40 He took his stick, picked a few smooth stones from the wadi, put them in the pocket of his shepherd's bag and, sling in hand, he went toward the Philistine. 41 The Philistine, meanwhile, was coming closer to David, preceded by his shield-bearer. 42 When the Philistine caught sight of David, he scorned him, for he was but a boy, ruddy and handsome. 43 And the Philistine called out to David, "Am I a dog that you come against me with sticks?" The Philistine cursed David by his gods; 44 and the Philistine said to David, "Come here, and I will give your flesh to the birds of the sky and the beasts of the field." 45 David replied to the Philistine, "You come against me with sword and spear and javelin; but I come against you in the name of the LoRD of Hosts, the God of the ranks of Israel, whom you have defied. 46 This very day the LoRD will deliver you into my hands. I will kill you and cut off your head; and I will give the carcasses of the Philistine camp to the birds of the sky and the beasts of the earth. All the earth shall know that there is a God in' Israel. 47 And this whole assembly shall know that the LoRD can give victory without sword or spear. For the battle is the LoRD's, and He will deliver you into our hands." 48 When the Philistine began to advance toward him again, David quickly ran up to the battle line to face the Philistine. 49 David put his hand into the bag; he took out a stone and slung it. It struck the Philistine in the forehead; the stone sank into his forehead, and he fell face down on the ground. So Thus David bested the Philistine with sling and stone; he struck him down and killed him. David had no sword; 51 so David ran up and stood over the Philistine, grasped his sword and pulled it from its sheath; and with it he dispatched him and cut off his head. When the Philistines saw that their warrior was dead,

they ran.

(13) And not the tribe of Levi alone, but anyone at all, whose soul moves him and his intellect gives him the understanding [that it is necessary] to disconnect [from the world], to stand before God, to serve Him in order to know God and to act properly as God created him to do, and to abandon the various calculations that humans busy themselves with; this person has become sacrosanct, and God will be his portion and his inheritance for all eternity. He will merit, with God's help, some means to live on just as the kohanim and Levites did. As David said, "God is my portion and my sustenance (lit. "cup"), you support my lot."

(4) I will go down with you into Egypt; and I will also surely bring you up again; and Joseph shall put his hand upon your eyes.’

(15) "Depart, unclean!" they called out to them, "Depart, depart, do not touch!" for they are foul, even slipping; they said, "They shall no more sojourn among the nations."

Ribbi Eliezer says : If Israel does Teshuva they will be redeemed as it says, "Return, backsliding children, I will cure your backslidings." Ribbi Yehoshua replied: It already says, "God said: You were sold for no reason; And you shall be redeemed without money." Sold for no reason - on account of idolatry. Redeemed without money - without Teshuva and good deeds.