Chapter 23 of Shmuel II is a chapter of conclusion and summation. It begins with "the last words of David" - a kind of seal and conclusion to the Book of Tehillim, in which David announces who composed the songs, what they were composed about, and what their source was. From the prophecy concerning the kingdom of the House of David and the Messianic era, the chapter transitions to the list of David's mighty warriors, their heroic deeds, and their ranks, concluding with a tally of thirty-seven warriors.
וְאֵלֶּה דִּבְרֵי דָוִד הָאַחֲרֹנִים נְאֻם דָּוִד בֶּן־יִשַׁי וּנְאֻם הַגֶּבֶר הֻקַם עָל מְשִׁיחַ אֱלֹהֵי יַעֲקֹב וּנְעִים זְמִרוֹת יִשְׂרָאֵל׃ - And these are the last words of David: The utterance of David the son of Yishai, and the utterance of the man raised on high, the anointed of the God of Yaakov, and the sweet singer of Israel.
The Malbim explains: After David arranged the Book of Tehillim, he concluded it in order to make known who composed it, regarding what the words were composed and for what purpose they were written, and even what their source was. For a person can compose things from his own heart, but on the other hand, he can compose things that are from Hashem, Blessed be He, through Ruach HaKodesh.
David's songs are divided into three categories. There are songs he recited about himself, including those he said while he was still a shepherd, before he was anointed and before he reigned. Back then, he was not well-known at all and was not recognized by any accompanying title, but merely as "David the son of Yishai" - and this is "the utterance of David the son of Yishai." Then there are songs he recited after he was anointed and after he became king, whether while he was being pursued or when he was actually ruling; of these it is said, "and the utterance of the man raised on high" - for they elevated him on high, "the anointed of the God of Yaakov" - as he had already been appointed and anointed as king. And there are songs recited for the sake of the collective community, in which they would praise and extol the Creator of the universe, and this is "the sweet singer of Israel."
Most of our daily prayers are comprised of these songs. Aside from the Shemoneh Esrei, the bulk of the prayer service is built from David's songs: Pesukei D'Zimra before the blessing of Yotzer Or, the blessing of Yotzer Or itself, large portions of which are pesukim, the additional Shabbat zemirot, "Ashrei Yoshvei Veitecha" after the prayer, and the Shir Shel Yom (Song of the Day). A very significant portion of prayer consists of King David's songs, and this is "the sweet singer of Israel" - songs he recited on behalf of all of Israel, which Israel came to cherish and continued reciting throughout all generations.
The Radak explains why these are called here "the last words of David": because they were the last of all the songs and psalms, after which Ruach HaKodesh no longer rested upon David. This was the final occasion where Ruach HaKodesh manifested upon him in composing his songs. Furthermore, according to the Radak, "the sweet psalmist of Israel" means the songs that Israel recites: just as the Kohanim and Levi'im stood in the Beit HaMikdash on the fifteen steps and recited the fifteen chapters of "Shir HaMa'alot," in addition to the Song of the Day. These are the songs with which Israel praises Hashem in the Beit HaMikdash.
רוּחַ יְהֹוָה דִּבֶּר־בִּי וּמִלָּתוֹ עַל־לְשׁוֹנִי׃ - The spirit of Hashem spoke through me, and His word was upon my tongue.
Here the Malbim reveals a fundamental principle: the Divine spirit rests upon the poet in two distinct levels. There is a level where one is inspired by a Divine power regarding the theme of the song - meaning, a person experiences a Divine spirit resting upon him and breaks into song, but the words themselves are his own. In contemporary terms, people often say someone "had a muse," meaning a certain spiritual inspiration came upon him, though not referring to actual Ruach HaKodesh; but here, a person composes based on the Ruach HaKodesh resting upon him, and Ruach HaKodesh elevates him to sing, while the specific phrasing remains his own.
In contrast, the Malbim says, there is a state where the words themselves are from Hashem, Blessed be He, and the person is merely a vessel bringing them forth into reality. Just as no one takes a page out of a printer and says, "This printer writes beautiful things and tells lovely stories" - the printer merely printed, it wrote nothing itself. This is what David means by, "The spirit of Hashem spoke through me, and His word was upon my tongue" - in my case, the speech itself, every single word, and the very order of the words, stemmed from a Divine manifestation.
Our Sages teach that no two prophets prophesy in the identical style, because the prophet is given the core message, while the mode of expression and the exact phrasing reflect the individuality of each prophet. With David, however, it is explicitly stated that even the words and their arrangement were directly from Hashem, Blessed be He. From here one can understand why the Book of Tehillim is so universally embraced among us and why it serves as a segulah for everything: in this respect it is like a Sefer Torah, where the arranged words themselves are from Hashem. Just as with the Sefer Torah, the Holy One, Blessed be He, would dictate and Moshe would write at Hashem's bidding - and Moshe could never say, "A different word would be more fitting here" - so too was it here.
אָמַר אֱלֹהֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל לִי דִבֶּר צוּר יִשְׂרָאֵל מוֹשֵׁל בָּאָדָם צַדִּיק מוֹשֵׁל יִרְאַת אֱלֹהִים׃ - The God of Israel said, to me the Rock of Israel spoke: A ruler over mankind, a righteous one, rules in the fear of God.
This verse, for anyone paying attention, is very difficult in its plain sense. Rashi explains: David is saying, the Rock of Israel - the Creator - spoke and commanded me, telling me to be a "ruler over mankind [adam]," and "adam" refers to Israel, as it says, "You are mankind [adam]" - you are called adam. "A righteous one, rules in the fear of God" - and He commanded me to be a tzaddik, ruling over Israel and fearing God.
However, Chazal expounded this in a different and wondrous way: David said, the Rock of Israel spoke to me and said to me - I rule over mankind, and who rules over Me? A tzaddik! For I issue a decree and he annuls it. "A ruler over mankind" - that is Me; "a righteous one rules" - the tzaddik rules, as it were, over Me. This teaches us how great is the power of Israel, that a person in this world who reaches the level of righteousness can even annul the decrees that Hashem, blessed be He, in His glory and essence, has decreed.
The Malbim explains that here David begins with the prophecy Hashem gave him regarding continuity, concerning the kingdom of his descendants after him, which will endure until the Messianic era. "The God of Israel" - for He watches over them. And regarding the wording "to me the Rock of Israel spoke [dibber]": there is a distinction between dibbur (prolonged speech) and amirah (brief saying). Even in everyday speech this distinction is noticeable: when someone tells a friend, "I need to have a talk with you," he does not mean a single sentence and walk away, but a conversation of at least fifteen minutes; whereas "I told you" is brief. Therefore, "to me the Rock of Israel spoke" means He spoke with him at length, and "to me" means concerning me and for my sake - about my family and my continuity.
And what did He say about us? That in the future someone will arise who will be a "ruler over mankind" - this is Mashiach, who will rule over all human beings and everyone will listen to him. Furthermore, he will be a "tzaddik." And how does the tzaddik become a ruler over mankind? "Rules in the fear of God" - first of all, he rules over himself. A person who does not rule over himself has no chance of ruling over other people; he is in the status of a slave to his desires, and he lacks the capacity to be a king. Only one who masters his desires is capable of being a king and ruling over others.
It is written of Shlomo that at first he ruled over the entire world (be-kippah); later he ruled from Tiphsah unto Gaza; then over Eretz Yisrael alone; then over Jerusalem - "I, Kohelet, was king in Jerusalem"; then he ruled over his household; and finally it is written that he ruled over his staff. On the surface, this is astonishing: what does it mean to rule over one's staff? Do you give orders to a walking stick and it obeys? Rather, Chazal are teaching us that there is a reality where a person rules over his staff. There is a person who holds high office, who sits as the head of state, and yet he is essentially a slave - "slaves ruled over us" - because he is a slave to his desires. On the other hand, the Gemara asks, "Who are kings? The Rabbis." Are they without a crown? You see upon this great person, who masters his desires and inclinations, that he wears the crown of a king. A king is one who rules over all his soul's faculties; there is no "I suddenly felt like it" with him, but absolute self-control. Therefore we are told that Shlomo was never stripped of the title of king: even when he was left with only a staff, whoever saw him saw a king, a man with royal bearing.
Contrast this with Herod. Although he was a king, he arranged two rows of doves - known as "Herodian doves" after him - that whenever he passed by every morning from the royal palace, they would call out "Kyrie, Kyrie," which means king in Aramaic. How base was this man, and how full of an inferiority complex and slave-mentality, that he needed birds to shout to him, "You are king, you are king!"? Because within himself he possessed none of it. Who needs others to shout "You are king"? Someone who is decidedly not a king. But one who is truly a king does not need anyone to shout it to him; he knows it, and kingship is an innate part of his character.
This is what is being said here: the Holy One, blessed be He, said that there will be a tzaddik who rules in the fear of God - first he will master himself, and afterwards he will be able to rule over mankind. When a person is in the status of a slave, he needs a great deal of noise, fanfare, and publicity; but when he is a truly great person, his Torah proclaims him. There are people who were secluded in their homes, and until the age of sixty no one had heard of them; in the yeshiva they knew he came and learned, a rosh yeshiva, and there are many roshei yeshiva - and suddenly he became renowned and became the Gadol HaDor. And so it is with many Gedolim: from a young age he was known in his immediate surroundings, and suddenly you see that this person has become famous throughout the world. One who masters himself will ultimately be like a king, ruling over all mankind.
וּכְאוֹר בֹּקֶר יִזְרַח־שָׁמֶשׁ בֹּקֶר לֹא עָבוֹת מִנֹּגַהּ מִמָּטָר דֶּשֶׁא מֵאָרֶץ׃ - And like the morning light when the sun rises, a morning without clouds; from brightness, after rain, grass sprouts from the earth.
This verse too is difficult to understand on its own. The Malbim continues and explains that there is a difference between the kingdom of Melech HaMashiach, the future kingdom, and kingship in this world. Kingship is compared to the sun, and the rising of the sun represents the onset of kingship. In this world, kingship is like the rising of the sun - not all at once, but gradually. Incidentally, this is Hashem's kindness: imagine if it were night and in a single second the sun appeared - a person would be blinded. "He illuminates the earth and those who dwell upon it" with great kindness and compassion; kindness and compassion mean gradually, until you receive the sun in its full strength. If it happened in a single instant, it would be cruel to us.
Such was David's monarchy in this world. At first he was anointed as king, but did he rule immediately? He was still pursued, people still sought to kill him, and many times there was but a step between him and death. Afterwards, Shaul died, and yet David ruled only over Yehudah from Chevron. Finally, his kingship was accepted over all of Yisrael. Like the rising of the sun, step by step, gradually.
With Melech HaMashiach, however, it will not be so. For him, the sun will rise suddenly and shine with immense light, not gradually, but in that very instant. This is the meaning of "And as the light of morning when the sun rises" - the letter kaf indicates time, meaning at the very moment morning dawns, the sun will already shine in its full power, unlike today when the sun reaches its peak only at midday. Our anticipation of Mashiach's coming must be such that we do not say to ourselves, "Until now nothing has happened, so how could it suddenly happen now?" One of the great Torah leaders of Yisrael, perhaps the Netziv of Volozhin, once explained: The Gemara teaches that one of the things that comes when least expected (hesech hada'at) is the coming of Mashiach, like finding a lost object. And how will Mashiach arrive? You will be in the kitchen asking me what I want for lunch today, and I will say prepare this and that, and I will say yes, alright, do so - and suddenly he will arrive: Mashiach has come! In a single moment, unexpectedly. Unlike with Dovid HaMelech, where it took years for his kingship to be accepted.
There is another difference: "a morning without clouds." In this world, the sun is sometimes covered by clouds - just last night we could not recite Birkat HaLevanah because the moon was covered by clouds. But in the dawn of the Future Era, there will be no clouds; there will never be a state where the kingship does not shine with full radiance. Rather, right from the morning there will be a full sunrise, shining from the very beginning in all its might.
There is also the state of nogah (glow) - light filtered through clouds, not direct light, like an aura of light surrounding them. This is the meaning of "from brilliance, from rain, grass sprouts from the earth": at times there is sun here while rain falls there to sprout grass, and you do not see the light itself, only its glow, and the sun does not shine properly. But in the Future Era it will be "a morning without clouds": no clouds, no rains obscuring the sun's light, and not merely a faint glow, but an all-encompassing, immediate light in which everything will be revealed and made manifest. Then, "you shall return and discern between the righteous and the wicked, between one who serves God and one who does not serve Him," and the monarchy will be whole and complete.
כִּי־לֹא־כֵן בֵּיתִי עִם־אֵל כִּי בְרִית עוֹלָם שָׂם לִי עֲרוּכָה בַכֹּל וּשְׁמֻרָה כִּי־כׇל־יִשְׁעִי וְכׇל־חֵפֶץ כִּי־לֹא יַצְמִיחַ׃ - For is not my house so with God? For He has made with me an everlasting covenant, ordered in all things and secured; for all my salvation and all my desire, will He not cause it to sprout?
David now explains "a morning without clouds": the house that Hashem will establish for me will not be covered by clouds - the monarchy will never cease, and there will never be a situation where clouds obscure it, meaning that someone else would suddenly rise to rule. Rather, it is "ordered in all things and guarded" - Hashem will establish my kingship in such a manner that the monarchy will be ordered with great strength and splendor, and guarded so that it will never be overturned.
"For all my salvation and all desire, that He will not cause to sprout": in the previous verse, we learned that sometimes clouds bring rain that sprouts grass, thereby partially obscuring the sun. Here David says that there will be no clouds and rain that come to sprout, which create that darkening. Rain will not fall to cover the sun. The allegory is this: there will be no natural circumstance where the rulers of the nations can come and nullify the monarchy. Instead, the monarchy will be absolute and complete - the Davidic kingdom.
וּבְלִיַּעַל כְּקוֹץ מֻנָד כֻּלָּהַם כִּי־לֹא בְיָד יִקָּחוּ׃ - But the corrupt are all like driven thorns, for they cannot be taken by hand.
"Beliya'al" refers to the house of the wicked - such as Yarov'am and his like, or the house of Ach'av - who are called the house of beliya'al (lawlessness). The Holy One, blessed be He, will ensure that in the future there will be no such thorns; instead, they will be "like driven thorns," thorns tossed and shifted from place to place. "For they cannot be taken by hand" - there is no way to take hold of a thorn with bare hands, so people kick it around and nudge it with their feet from place to place. Such is the fate of the wicked. But my house will endure forever - not like a thorn kicked from place to place, but something possessing eternal standing and permanence.
וְאִישׁ יִגַּע בָּהֶם יִמָּלֵא בַרְזֶל וְעֵץ חֲנִית וּבָאֵשׁ שָׂרוֹף יִשָּׂרְפוּ בַּשָּׁבֶת׃ - And whoever touches them must arm himself with iron and the shaft of a spear, and they shall be utterly burned with fire on the spot.
When a person wishes to touch those thorns, he must arm himself with iron and spear, meaning he must have the strength to confront them. But in the Future to Come it is said, "And they shall beat their swords into plowshares," and weapons will no longer exist. Therefore, "and in fire they shall be utterly burned" - in the end, all those evil forces, all those thorns, will be consumed and burned away. And which kingdom will remain? Only the kingdom of the House of David, the complete and absolute kingdom.
אֵלֶּה שְׁמוֹת הַגִּבֹּרִים אֲשֶׁר לְדָוִד יֹשֵׁב בַּשֶּׁבֶת תַּחְכְּמֹנִי רֹאשׁ הַשָּׁלִשִׁי הוּא עֲדִינוֹ הָעֶצְנִי עַל־שְׁמֹנֶה מֵאוֹת חָלָל בְּפַעַם אֶחָת׃ - "These are the names of the mighty men whom David had: Yoshev-bashevet the Tachkemonite, head of the officers; he is Adino the Etznite, [who lifted his spear] against eight hundred slain at one time."
From here, the text proceeds to enumerate David's mighty men and the heroic deeds they performed. It divides them into squads, each consisting of three warriors: first the primary three, followed by a second three who did not attain the rank of the first, and then a third tier, all according to their strength and valor, and according to their deeds in David's wars.
Chazal expound this verse first and foremost as referring to David himself. "Yoshev bashevet Tachkemonite" - sitting in the Sanhedrin. "Rosh hashlishi" - that he was distinguished in three attributes: stature, wisdom, and strength. "Adino ha'Etzni" - this too is expounded regarding David: when he would sit and engage in Torah study, he would make himself delicate (ma'adin) like a worm, but when he went out to battle, he was hardened like wood (eitz). "Against eight hundred slain at one time" - that he would strike down eight hundred men in a single battle. And it is written that initially he would strike down a thousand, and ultimately only eight hundred, as it says, "except in the matter of Uriah the Hittite" - had it not been for the sin regarding Uriah the Hittite, the sin of Batsheva, he would have struck down a thousand at once, but after the sin, he struck down only eight hundred in a single battle.
However, the literal meaning of the text speaks of David's mighty men and not David himself: there was a warrior named Adino the Etznite, and he was the foremost of the three, the most distinguished among the first three mighty warriors.
וְאַחֲרָו אֶלְעָזָר בֶּן־דֹּדוֹ בֶּן־אֲחֹחִי בִּשְׁלֹשָׁה הַגִּבֹּרִים עִם־דָּוִד בְּחָרְפָם בַּפְּלִשְׁתִּים נֶאֶסְפוּ־שָׁם לַמִּלְחָמָה וַיַּעֲלוּ אִישׁ יִשְׂרָאֵל׃ - "And after him was Elazar the son of Dodo, the son of Achochi, one of the three mighty men with David, when they defied the Philistines who were gathered there to battle, and the men of Israel retreated."
The commentators explain that "ben Dodo" is not a title of family relation but his actual name - as Rashi writes: "Ben Dodo" is his name. "Ben Achochi" refers to his father's lineage. He was the second of the three mighty warriors with David: the first was Adino the Etznite, the third was Shammah, whom we will see shortly, and the middle one was Elazar son of Dodo, son of Achochi. "When they defied the Philistines" (becharfam baphilishtim) - meaning they risked their lives in that battle.
הוּא קָם וַיַּךְ בַּפְּלִשְׁתִּים עַד כִּי־יָגְעָה יָדוֹ וַתִּדְבַּק יָדוֹ אֶל־הַחֶרֶב וַיַּעַשׂ יְהֹוָה תְּשׁוּעָה גְדוֹלָה בַּיּוֹם הַהוּא וְהָעָם יָשֻׁבוּ אַחֲרָיו אַךְ־לְפַשֵּׁט׃ - "He arose and struck down the Philistines until his hand grew weary, and his hand cleaved to the sword; and Hashem wrought a great salvation on that day, and the people returned after him only to strip the slain."
The verse describes how they fought against the Philistines, and he struck them down in such great numbers that his hand cramped: his fingers and muscles stiffened around the sword, and he could not release it, as if the sword had cleaved to his hand. Others explain that from the sheer volume of blood shed, the blood congealed and his hand stuck to the sword. "And Hashem wrought a great salvation on that day" - all this accomplished by a single man. And the people came only "to strip" (lefasheit): when they triumphed in battle, they would strip everything from the fallen - their garments, which were of great value in those times, as well as their swords and weapons. They arrived solely to collect the spoils, for he had already finished the battle entirely on his own.
וְאַחֲרָיו שַׁמָּה בֶן־אָגֵא הָרָרִי וַיֵּאָסְפוּ פְלִשְׁתִּים לַחַיָּה וַתְּהִי־שָׁם חֶלְקַת הַשָּׂדֶה מְלֵאָה עֲדָשִׁים וְהָעָם נָס מִפְּנֵי פְלִשְׁתִּים׃ - And after him was Shammah the son of Agee the Hararite. And the Philistines gathered into a troop, where there was a plot of ground full of lentils; and the people fled before the Philistines.
Next to him in stature, the third of the first triad of warriors, was Shammah the son of Agee - Agee being his father's name. "And the Philistines gathered into a troop" - a Philistine garrison that gathered together as a single unit for battle. "Where there was a plot of ground full of lentils" - whereas in Divrei HaYamim (I Chronicles 11:13) it is written "full of barley." Metzudat David reconciles this by explaining that it was a different battle. Malbim, however, suggests that it may have been the very same battle: there was a plot of barley where Elazar stood, and a plot of lentils where Shammah stood. The deliverance was accomplished by all of them together, which is why the verse states "and he saved it" - for the salvation was wrought jointly by David, Shammah, and Elazar.
Radak explains that "full of barley" means full of sheaves: the field had already been harvested, but sheaves from other fields were gathered into it, some from lentil fields and some from barley fields; thus, the field was full of both lentils and barley. After all, one cannot say that the field was sown with both lentils and barley together (which would violate the prohibition of kilayim).
וַיִּתְיַצֵּב בְּתוֹךְ־הַחֶלְקָה וַיַּצִּילֶהָ וַיַּךְ אֶת־פְּלִשְׁתִּים וַיַּעַשׂ יְהֹוָה תְּשׁוּעָה גְדוֹלָה׃ - But he stood in the midst of the plot and saved it, and struck down the Philistines; and the Lord worked a great victory.
He took his stand in the middle of the plot and defended it - so that they would not burn it - and struck down the Philistines, and the Lord brought about a great victory. We will soon examine in greater detail what exactly unfolded in that battle.
וַיֵּרְדוּ שְׁלֹשָׁה מֵהַשְּׁלֹשִׁים רֹאשׁ וַיָּבֹאוּ אֶל־קָצִיר אֶל־דָּוִד אֶל־מְעָרַת עֲדֻלָּם וְחַיַּת פְּלִשְׁתִּים חֹנָה בְּעֵמֶק רְפָאִים׃ - And three of the thirty chief men went down and came to David at harvest time to the cave of Adullam, while the troop of the Philistines was encamped in the Valley of Rephaim.
These were three warriors of the second rank, who went down to David to aid him at the cave of Adullam, at a time when the Philistine camp was encamped in the Valley of Rephaim. Malbim notes that this battle occurred at the beginning of David's reign, as we already saw earlier in chapter 5, where David was in the stronghold and the Philistines were encamped in the Valley of Rephaim; here, Scripture details the valiant deeds performed in that same war.
וְדָוִד אָז בַּמְּצוּדָה וּמַצַּב פְּלִשְׁתִּים אָז בֵּית לָחֶם׃ - And David was then in the stronghold, and the garrison of the Philistines was then in Beit Lechem.
"The matzav of the Philistines" refers to the Philistine garrison or military commander. Targum Yonatan translates this as estrategos - the military commander, the strategist who dictates the campaign's battle plans. This commander was stationed in Beit Lechem at that time.
וַיִּתְאַוֶּה דָוִד וַיֹּאמַר מִי יַשְׁקֵנִי מַיִם מִבֹּאר בֵּית־לֶחֶם אֲשֶׁר בַּשָּׁעַר׃ - And David longed, and said: "Who will give me water to drink from the well of Beit Lechem, which is by the gate?"
Let us first explain according to the literal meaning, and afterward we will examine the rabbinic interpretation. David longed to drink water from the well of Beit Lechem by the gate. As noted, the Philistine garrison and military leaders were stationed in Beit Lechem, making it a heavily guarded, virtually inaccessible outpost; nonetheless, David yearned for water from there. The Metzudot explain that the water there was exceptionally cold and sweet.
וַיִּבְקְעוּ שְׁלֹשֶׁת הַגִּבֹּרִים בְּמַחֲנֵה פְלִשְׁתִּים וַיִּשְׁאֲבוּ־מַיִם מִבֹּאר בֵּית־לֶחֶם אֲשֶׁר בַּשַּׁעַר וַיִּשְׂאוּ וַיָּבִאוּ אֶל־דָּוִד וְלֹא אָבָה לִשְׁתּוֹתָם וַיַּסֵּךְ אֹתָם לַיהֹוָה׃ - And the three mighty men broke through the camp of the Philistines, drew water out of the well of Beit-Lechem that was by the gate, took it, and brought it to David; yet he would not drink of it, but poured it out as a libation to Hashem.
They break through the Philistine camp, reach the well, fight off the surrounding Philistines, draw water, and bring it to David - yet David refuses to drink it and pours it out to Hashem. "Vayasech" means that he poured it out before Hashem, like an offering. When do we offer water? On Sukkot, during the water libation (nisuch hamayim). Since there was no altar there, the commentators explain that he poured it onto the ground, but did so solely for the honor of Hashem, may He be blessed.
What is the deeper meaning behind this? The Malbim cites the Abarbanel: the ultimate value of an objective is measured by the intensity of the effort expended to achieve it. The greater the effort, the greater the importance of the goal. A person does not travel to America, work long months, and leave his family behind just to earn twenty dollars; if he invested so much effort, he surely has a grand objective and plans to achieve something immense. Nor does a person build a colossal machine simply to produce a plain sewing needle; if he built a massive machine, it is presumably intended to manufacture diamonds, at the very least.
By the way, this provides a fundamental principle for understanding what Olam HaBa (the World to Come) truly is. People often say: it is very difficult to be a Jew; it demands your full attention morning, noon, and evening; you are held accountable from the moment you wake up until you go to sleep; you must remain constantly focused so as not to stumble, striving to fulfill Hashem's will and minding every single action. But if the greatness of an objective is measured by the effort expended to attain it - just as Chazal state that "the Land of Israel is acquired through suffering," from which you deduce how immense Eretz Yisrael is, so too the World to Come is acquired through suffering. From this, one can appreciate how unimaginably immense Olam HaBa must be, if a person has to labor for seventy years just to merit it.
This is what David meant: these men risked their lives and went to battle - for what? For a cup of water for me to drink? Is it fitting that a person should risk his life and invest such tremendous effort for a fleeting cup of water that is consumed and gone? That is unworthy. And if such an intense battle was fought and such exertion was made for this cup of water, then that cup belongs properly only to the Creator of the universe. Therefore, he took the water and poured it out to Hashem, for such extraordinary effort and self-sacrifice should never be dedicated to a mortal man, but only to the Creator, may He be blessed.
Chazal explain that this entire account is an allegory, as the Torah is likened to water. When David said, "Who will give me water to drink?", his intention was that he needed to present a halachic query to the Sanhedrin - based on the verse, "Ho, every one that thirsts, come to the waters" - and the Sanhedrin were located in Beit-Lechem.
What was the question? There are two opinions in Chazal. One opinion is that the query concerned that field filled with lentils and barley, where the sheaves belonged to Israelites and the Philistines were hiding among them. David asked: Am I permitted to set fire to an Israelite's field of lentils and barley to burn the Philistines lurking inside, or is it forbidden to destroy an Israelite's property in order to win the battle? They answered him: A person is forbidden to save himself at the expense of another's property; however, you are a king, and a king has the right to breach fences to make a path for his army, and no one may protest against him.
The other opinion is that the barley sheaves belonged to Israelites and the lentil sheaves belonged to the Philistines. David asked whether he was permitted to feed the Israelites' barley to his cavalry mounts, who were famished and would not eat lentils, and subsequently compensate the Israelites with lentils taken from the Philistines. The fundamental question was: Is one permitted to take another's property without permission with the intention of paying it back? The Sages answered him that it is forbidden to steal even with the intent to repay, as it is written, "If the wicked restore the pledge, give back that which he had stolen" - even though he repays it, he is still called wicked. However, you are a king, and a king has the right to breach fences and no one may protest; that is, the exigencies of warfare permit it, even though under ordinary circumstances, saying "I will take from you and repay you later" is strictly forbidden. In the end, "he stationed himself in the midst of the plot and saved it": David refused to burn the sheaves or feed them to his animals, declining to utilize that royal prerogative.
Furthermore, the Sages said: David did not transmit the halachah in the names of the three warriors, even though they had brought it back from the Sanhedrin. Rather, David stated: "I have received this tradition from the Beit Din of Shmuel of Ramah: whoever risks his life unto death over words of Torah, no teaching may be recited in his name." And they had endangered their lives for a matter of Torah study. In other words, according to David's understanding, the moment they realized it was a life-threatening situation (pikuach nefesh), they should have turned back rather than stubbornly insisting on reaching the Sanhedrin. Therefore, David did not want to cite the ruling in their name, but instead taught it as an established halachic tradition ("mishmei de-gemara"): he stated the law itself, but not in their name. They did not merit to have it transmitted in their name because they performed an unnecessary act - risking their lives to be killed over a halachic query.
וַיֹּאמֶר חָלִילָה לִּי יְהֹוָה מֵעֲשֹׂתִי זֹאת הֲדַם הָאֲנָשִׁים הַהֹלְכִים בְּנַפְשׁוֹתָם וְלֹא אָבָה לִשְׁתּוֹתָם אֵלֶּה עָשׂוּ שְׁלֹשֶׁת הַגִּבֹּרִים׃ - And he said, "Far be it from me, Hashem, that I should do this! Is it not the blood of the men who went at the risk of their lives?" Therefore he would not drink it. These things did the three mighty men.
"Far be it from me (Chalilah li)" - it would be profane (chullin) for me to drink it. According to the literal meaning, he refused to drink the water because he said: It is as though I am drinking the blood of the men who went and endangered their lives, who gave their blood for this water. The very same explanation applies according to the homiletic interpretation (derash) that they went to ask a halachic ruling: these men endangered their lives for this ruling, and therefore it is not fitting for the teaching to be recorded in their name.
וַאֲבִישַׁי אֲחִי יוֹאָב בֶּן־צְרוּיָה הוּא רֹאשׁ הַשְּׁלֹשָׁה וְהוּא עוֹרֵר אֶת־חֲנִיתוֹ עַל־שְׁלֹשׁ מֵאוֹת חָלָל וְלוֹ־שֵׁם בַּשְּׁלֹשָׁה׃ - "And Avishai, the brother of Yoav, the son of Tzeruyah, was chief of the three; and he wielded his spear over three hundred slain, and he had a name among the three."
Now Scripture reveals to us who those three warriors were who risked their lives. The foremost among them was Avishai. We have already mentioned the first three - Adino HaEtzni, Elazar, and Shammah - and Avishai was the head of the second group of three. "And he had a name among the three": in relation to the first three, his reputation was esteemed, as if he were worthy to be counted even among them, approaching their level; the first three also held him in high regard.
מִן־הַשְּׁלֹשָׁה הֲכִי נִכְבָּד וַיְהִי לָהֶם לְשָׂר וְעַד־הַשְּׁלֹשָׁה לֹא־בָא׃ - "Of the three, he was the most honored, and he became their commander; yet he did not attain to the first three."
Of the second three, he was the most honored, for he was their leader. But "yet he did not attain to the first three" - to truly be part of the first three he did not reach; he had a name alongside them and they respected him, but he did not attain their rank.
וּבְנָיָהוּ בֶן־יְהוֹיָדָע בֶּן־אִישׁ־חַיִל רַב־פְּעָלִים מִקַּבְצְאֵל הוּא הִכָּה אֵת שְׁנֵי אֲרִאֵל מוֹאָב וְהוּא יָרַד וְהִכָּה אֶת־הָאֲרִי בְּתוֹךְ הַבֹּאר בְּיוֹם הַשָּׁלֶג׃ - "And Benayahu the son of Yehoyada, the son of a valiant man of many deeds, from Kabtze'el, he struck down the two lion-hearted men of Moav; and he went down and struck down the lion inside the pit on a snowy day."
Benayahu ben Yehoyada was the second of the second group of three warriors. "The son of a valiant man [ben ish chayil]" - his father was a mighty man; the written text (kethiv) is "chai" [alive or vigorous] and the read text (keri) is "chayil" [valiant], meaning energetic, someone who accomplishes great things and acts with alacrity. "He struck down the two lion-hearted men [ariel] of Moav" - according to the plain meaning, the two chieftains of Moav, the two greatest men of Moav.
Our Sages, however, expound "Ariel" as referring to the Beis HaMikdash. And why is the Beis HaMikdash called Ariel? Some say because the heavenly fire crouched upon the altar like a lion; and there is a simpler explanation: whoever looks at the Beis HaMikdash from above sees it shaped like a lion - narrow at the back and broad in the front, like a crouching lion. Thus Chazal expounded "he struck down the two Ariel of Moav" - that he left no equal either in the First Temple or in the Second Temple, for there was none like him in righteousness. And why is it called "Ariel of Moav"? Because Shlomo built the Beis HaMikdash, and Shlomo descended from Ruth the Moabitess.
According to the plain meaning of the verse, Scripture is describing several immense feats of courage. First, he struck down the two mighty warriors of Moav. Second, he struck down the lion inside the pit on a snowy day: slaying a lion is in itself an extraordinary feat; moreover, on a snowy day - when you are in snow, you flounder and sink, you cannot maneuver, and your strength wanes; furthermore, you are chilled to the bone by the sheer cold and your actions are much slower. In spite of all this, he performed this tremendous act of valor.
Chazal also expound these descriptions as referring to his spiritual greatness. "The son of a valiant man" - refers to his father Yehoyada, who was a valiant man and a complete tzaddik; and the Targum renders it: "the son of a man who fears sin." "Of many deeds" - that he was great in good deeds, performing numerous acts for the sake of Heaven. "From Kabtze'el" is the name of a place, but some expound that he gathered (kibetz) and multiplied laborers for Torah study. And "on a snowy day" is expounded as a reference to his righteousness and piety: Chazal taught that he broke the ice, entered, and immersed in the water on a snowy day to purify himself; others say that he studied Sifra Devei Rav on a winter day - meaning that even on the coldest days, he never neglected his Torah study.
However, the Radak notes that all of these are homiletical interpretations (derashot), and the plain meaning of the text is as we explained - a description of physical heroism, whereas Chazal expounded it as spiritual strength. In truth, the two are intertwined. Consider Yaakov Avinu, who was by no means a brawler, yet he rolled the stone from the mouth of the well like someone uncorking a bottle; a stone that required all the shepherds together, he rolled away single-handedly. Yaakov had spent fourteen years in the academy of Shem and Ever, and not only had he not engaged in weightlifting or sports, nor visited a gym, but Chazal tell us that during all that time he did not even sleep - for fourteen years he did not sleep in a bed. Where did this strength come from? "He directed his heart and rolled the stone," as the liturgical poet writes: a stone can be rolled away through single-minded devotion of the heart, by focusing all of one's inner powers.
Thus, the homiletical teaching of Chazal is closely tied to the literal meaning of the text: tremendous bravery was demonstrated here, and such bravery cannot stem from a fearful and timid heart. Much of bravery depends on a person's inner resilience and the significance of the cause for which he fights; then he finds within his soul the inner strength and fortitude to act courageously. Therefore, Chazal expounded all of this regarding the additional spiritual fortitude they possessed.
Incidentally, the books of the Ben Ish Chai are all based on this verse: "Ben Yehoyada", "Ben Ish Chai", "Ben Ish Chayil", "Rav Pe'alim", and "Mekabtze'el". Why did he title his works with these names? It is told that he visited the grave of Benayahu ben Yehoyada, felt a lofty spiritual illumination there, and understood that he was a spark of the soul of Benayahu ben Yehoyada. From then on, he decided to title all his works after him, after the words of this verse.
וְהוּא־הִכָּה אֶת־אִישׁ מִצְרִי אִישׁ מַרְאֶה וּבְיַד הַמִּצְרִי חֲנִית וַיֵּרֶד אֵלָיו בַּשָּׁבֶט וַיִּגְזֹל אֶת־הַחֲנִית מִיַּד הַמִּצְרִי וַיַּהַרְגֵהוּ בַּחֲנִיתוֹ׃ - "And he struck down an Egyptian man, a man of striking appearance. The Egyptian had a spear in his hand, but he went down to him with a staff, wrested the spear from the Egyptian's hand, and killed him with his own spear."
This was another heroic deed he performed. "A man of striking appearance" - a person whose appearance struck terror, looking gigantic and fearsome. "The Egyptian had a spear in his hand", whereas Benayahu was bare-handed, holding only a stick - "and he went down to him with a staff", a staff being a stick - and he managed to snatch the spear from his hand, and with it he stabbed and killed him.
From this verse, the Masters of Mussar derived an approach in the service of Hashem: the Egyptian represents the yetzer hara, the evil force that comes to wage war against us, and we must wrest this Egyptian's spear and use his own spear to slay him. That is, we must study the tactics of the yetzer hara. Today, the yetzer hara's methods involve various forms of media, through which he lures a person inward, deep into the pit. And how do we act today? "He wrested the spear from the Egyptian's hand": we wrest those very tools away, taking media channels and broadcasting holiness through them. We take television channels - today there is Hidabroot, which disseminates Torah to hundreds of thousands of people who were unfamiliar with Jewish concepts and are now beginning to listen and learn. We utilize all the technology that was once used for mundane songs, nonsense, and trivialities, and use it to distribute recordings and Torah shiurim. Today there is "Kol Halashon", highly advanced technology through which a person can load hundreds of Torah lectures onto a player and listen to words of Torah as he walks along the way. The very tool used by the yetzer hara is wrested from his hand, and that very technology is turned toward fulfilling the will of Hashem.
אֵלֶּה עָשָׂה בְּנָיָהוּ בֶּן־יְהוֹיָדָע וְלוֹ־שֵׁם בִּשְׁלֹשָׁה הַגִּבֹּרִים׃ - "These things did Benayahu ben Yehoyada, and he had renown among the three mighty men."
He was esteemed and renowned as a hero among the three mighty men - that second group of three we mentioned earlier.
מִן־הַשְּׁלֹשִׁים נִכְבָּד וְאֶל־הַשְּׁלֹשָׁה לֹא־בָא וַיְשִׂמֵהוּ דָוִד אֶל־מִשְׁמַעְתּוֹ׃ - "He was honored above the thirty, but he did not attain to the three; and David placed him in his inner council."
"He was honored above the thirty" - among all those warriors, he was the most distinguished; "but he did not attain to the three" - he did not reach the level of the first trio. In this he differed from Avishai, who also had renown alongside the first three even though he headed the second trio, whereas Benayahu did not attain the status of the first trio at all. "And David placed him in his inner council" - he was David's counselor, whom David took into his counsel and placed in charge of those closest to him, just as we saw that Benayahu ben Yehoyada was commander over the Kereti and Peleti. And what were the Kereti and Peleti? Chazal expound that this refers to the Urim VeTumim, while a simpler explanation is that they were the archers and slingers, as Targum explains.
עֲשָׂהאֵל אֲחִי־יוֹאָב בַּשְּׁלֹשִׁים אֶלְחָנָן בֶּן־דֹּדוֹ בֵּית לָחֶם׃ - "Asahel the brother of Yoav was among the thirty; Elchanan son of Dodo of Beit Lechem."
Asahel was slightly more honored than the thirty, but his stature was not significantly greater than theirs, and therefore he is counted among them. And let us note another explanation for "more honored than the thirty": we explained above that it refers to the first group of three officers, but some explain that it literally refers to the thirty mighty men who will be enumerated here below.
שַׁמָּה הַחֲרֹדִי אֱלִיקָא הַחֲרֹדִי׃ חֶלֶץ הַפַּלְטִי עִירָא בֶן־עִקֵּשׁ הַתְּקוֹעִי׃ אֲבִיעֶזֶר הָעַנְּתֹתִי מְבֻנַּי הַחֻשָׁתִי׃ צַלְמוֹן הָאֲחֹחִי מַהְרַי הַנְּטֹפָתִי׃ חֵלֶב בֶּן־בַּעֲנָה הַנְּטֹפָתִי אִתַּי בֶּן־רִיבַי מִגִּבְעַת בְּנֵי בִנְיָמִן׃ בְּנָיָהוּ פִּרְעָתֹנִי הִדַּי מִנַּחֲלֵי גָעַשׁ׃ אֲבִי־עַלְבוֹן הָעַרְבָתִי עַזְמָוֶת הַבַּרְחֻמִי׃ אֶלְיַחְבָּא הַשַּׁעַלְבֹנִי בְּנֵי יָשֵׁן יְהוֹנָתָן׃ - Shammah the Harodite, Elika the Harodite; Heletz the Paltite, Ira the son of Ikkesh the Tekoite; Aviezer the Anathothite, Mebunnai the Hushathite; Zalmon the Ahohite, Maharai the Netophathite; Heleb the son of Baanah the Netophathite, Ittai the son of Ribai from Gibeath of the children of Binyamin; Benaiah the Pirathonite, Hiddai of Nahale-gaash; Avi-albon the Arbathite, Azmaveth the Barhumite; Elyahba the Shaalbonite, the sons of Jashen, Jonathan;
שַׁמָּה הַהֲרָרִי אֲחִיאָם בֶּן־שָׁרָר הָארָרִי׃ - Shammah the Hararite, Ahiam the son of Sharar the Ararite;
"Harari" means from the mountains, and Targum translates it accordingly as "from the mountains" (mi-turaya). And in the second name, the alef is silent - "the Hararite" (written ha-Arari).
אֱלִיפֶלֶט בֶּן־אֲחַסְבַּי בֶּן־הַמַּעֲכָתִי אֱלִיעָם בֶּן־אֲחִיתֹפֶל הַגִּלֹנִי׃ חֶצְרַי הַכַּרְמְלִי פַּעֲרַי הָאַרְבִּי׃ יִגְאָל בֶּן־נָתָן מִצֹּבָה בָּנִי הַגָּדִי׃ צֶלֶק הָעַמֹּנִי נַחְרַי הַבְּאֵרֹתִי נֹשֵׂא כְּלֵי יוֹאָב בֶּן־צְרֻיָה׃ - Eliphelet the son of Ahasbai the son of the Maachathite, Eliam the son of Ahithophel the Gilonite; Hezrai the Carmelite, Paarai the Arbite; Igal the son of Nathan of Zobah, Bani the Gadite; Zelek the Ammonite, Naharai the Beerothite, armor-bearer to Yoav the son of Zeruiah;
"Armor-bearer to Yoav" refers to Naharai the Beerothite, who was the bearer of Yoav's battle weapons.
עִירָא הַיִּתְרִי גָּרֵב הַיִּתְרִי׃ אוּרִיָּה הַחִתִּי כֹּל שְׁלֹשִׁים וְשִׁבְעָה׃ - Ira the Ithrite, Gareb the Ithrite; Uriah the Hittite: thirty-seven in all.
And how do we arrive at the count of thirty-seven? The first three, the second three, Asahel who was counted on his own, and another thirty warriors - making a total of thirty-seven.
The chapter opens with the seal of David's songs and teaches us that David was not only inspired by divine spirit, but that the very words themselves were from Hashem, whence comes the sanctity and special merit of the Book of Tehillim. From the prophecy spoken to him regarding the kingdom of the House of David, we learned that a true ruler is one who first rules over himself, and that the tzaddik rules, as it were, even over the decrees issued by the Holy One, Blessed is He. The kingdom of this world rises like a slow sunrise obscured by clouds, whereas the kingdom of Mashiach will shine forth immediately in its full strength, "a morning without clouds," while the wicked will be like discarded thorns destined to be burned. In its second part, the chapter enumerates David's mighty men according to their ranks, revealing that their physical might stemmed from their spiritual might: Eleazar, whose hand cleaved to the sword; Shammah, who took his stand in the midst of the plot; the three mighty men who broke through for water - or for a matter of Halachah - and David, who poured out the water as a libation to Hashem because such exertion and self-sacrifice are fitting only for the sake of Heaven; and Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, who struck down a lion on a snowy day and wrested the spear from the hand of the Egyptian. From this our path is clear: to take the weapons of the Yetzer and use them to fulfill the will of Hashem.