TINW Torah Study

This week we conclude our deep dive into the Solomon narrative. The writers who preserved our ancient text knew that the time of Solomon was a golden age, and they knew it came to an end. In the form of a promise of retribution by God, and in the form of prophecy, the Bible offers two possible reasons for its ending.  We should note that it is a whole lot easier to be correct about a threat, or about a prophecy, when it is written after the fact. 

The text of this podcast is available on our blog.
If you like this podcast, you might enjoy the book Biblical Origins: The Political Intent of the Bible's Writers, by renowned Bible scholar Dr. S. David Sperling.

King David is considered by many to be the greatest king in Jewish history; prominent Jewish leaders and intellectuals throughout history have claimed descent from his line. But, although he had time to build a palace for himself, David did not build the Temple to God—Solomon did.

Thank you to Messages of Christ, a site created by members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, for this beautiful video rendering:
https://www.google.com/search?q=video+of+king+solomon%27s+temple&oq=video+of+king+solomon%27s+temple&gs_lcrp=EgZjaHJvbWUyBggAEEUYOTIHCAEQIRigATIKCAIQIRgWGB0YHtIBCTE1ODc3ajFqN6gCALACAA&sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8#fpstate=ive&vld=cid:92a4dbe9,vid:y2tha7ogpec

The text of this podcast is available on our blog.
If you like this podcast, you might enjoy the book Biblical Origins: The Political Intent of the Bible's Writers, by renowned Bible scholar Dr. S. David Sperling.

This week, our Scholar-in-Residence, Professor David Sperling, led our group in a discussion of the Afterlife of King Solomon. The books of Proverbs, Qohelet, and the Song of Songs, are known as Wisdom Literature and are attributed to King Solomon, although they were probably written centuries later. But such was the reputation of Solomon that attributing it to Solomon might have given the texts more weight. 

The text of this podcast is available on our blog.
If you like this podcast, you might enjoy the book Biblical Origins: The Political Intent of the Bible's Writers, by renowned Bible scholar Dr. S. David Sperling.

When the loosely banded tribes of people who became the Israelites demanded that the prophet Samuel find them a king, Samuel warned that a king would force the people to work for him, and a king would impose taxes. As we continued our look at King Solomon, we find that Samuel's prophecy came true. Solomon imposed forced labor on the Israelites. But what is remembered of Solomon's reign is that it was an idyllic time to be an Israelite. This week, we took a closer look.

The text of this podcast is available on our blog.
If you like this podcast, you might enjoy the book Biblical Origins: The Political Intent of the Bible's Writers, by renowned Bible scholar Dr. S. David Sperling.

The focus of our session today is the attribute for which Solomon will most often be recalled: his wisdom. The narrative tells us that, in a dream, God asked  Solomon what he wanted. Solomon could have requested riches, or a long life, or to have his enemies vanquished, or any number of other goodies. But Solomon instead requested the wisdom to rule the people of his kingdom. And we learn about the first time his wisdom is put to the test!

The text of this podcast is available on our blog.
If you like this podcast, you might enjoy the book Biblical Origins: The Political Intent of the Bible's Writers, by renowned Bible scholar Dr. S. David Sperling.

This week we hosted a special Ask the Rabbis session, where our panel of rabbis answered a wide range of interesting questions. This episode is significantly longer than usual, but we hope you will find something of interest.

The text of this podcast is available on our blog.
If you like this podcast, you might enjoy the book Biblical Origins: The Political Intent of the Bible's Writers, by renowned Bible scholar Dr. S. David Sperling.

The passages we have been reading in the Bible over the past few weeks are unlike any impression we might have of a typical Bible reading. They are more like the 1969 Mario Puzo book The Godfather, which was made into a 1972 movie co-written and directed by Francis Ford Coppola. The palace intrigue of the houses of both David and Solomon may leave our minds reeling. Our guest leader this week, Rabbi Janet Roberts, pointed out that human beings can be messy. We can, at the same time, encompass both beauty and ugliness.

Last call for submissions to our Ask the Rabbis session. Please submit your questions at  https://www.tinw.org/event/ask-the-rabbis.html. Responses will be recorded in the May 27th podcast.

The text of this podcast is available on our blog.
If you like this podcast, you might enjoy the book Biblical Origins: The Political Intent of the Bible's Writers, by renowned Bible scholar Dr. S. David Sperling.

This week we dig deeper into the steps Solomon needed to make to secure his throne. The Bible’s writers, who are supporters of Solomon, clean up any political discomfort we might feel by claiming this was the hand of God controlling history, and it was God who wanted Solomon to be the next king! 

Please email your Ask the Rabbis questions to Tara Keiter, at [email protected], and we will present them to Rabbis Jaech, Pein and Sperling. Their responses will be posted in the May 27th podcast. 

The text of this podcast is available on our blog.
If you like this podcast, you might enjoy the book Biblical Origins: The Political Intent of the Bible's Writers, by renowned Bible scholar Dr. S. David Sperling.

The palace intrigue of the heroes of our religion can be disturbing to readers. David is shown to be a flawed hero. Like his father, the stories we will read about Solomon can sometimes be disturbing.  But the writers tell us that God selected these flawed men. We should remember that when we read the passages that say, “God said…” they are written by human hands. Rabbi Jaech would not say that she knows God’s mind today. Likewise, the ancient writers did not actually know what God thought. What is written is the point of view that the writer wanted to get across.

May 27 Ask the Rabbis session: Do you have questions about Judaism, or about religion in general, that you have always wanted to ask? This is your opportunity! Although you are welcome to attend our session via Zoom, you do not need to attend to send in your question. Please email your questions to me, Tara Keiter, at [email protected] and we will present them to Rabbis Jaech, Pein and Sperling. Their responses will be recorded in that week’s podcast.

The text of this podcast is available on our blog.
If you like this podcast, you might enjoy the book Biblical Origins: The Political Intent of the Bible's Writers, by renowned Bible scholar Dr. S. David Sperling.

With the upcoming coronation of King Charles III, we see a man who patiently waited in the wings for 70 years, until his mother’s death this past September. There was no question that, assuming he outlived his mother, Charles would become king. There was no palace intrigue or concern about fratricide or patricide so that someone else could assume the throne. But that was not always the case. History is riddled with examples of murder in the name of seizing power. And David himself usurped the throne from Saul. In this episode we look at the politics behind jockeying for power.

Click here to listen to a Prague Philharmonic presentation of Zadok the Priest: https://archive.org/details/HandelZadokThePriestpraguePhil

 Send your Ask the Rabbis questions to Tara Keiter at [email protected].

The text of this podcast is available on our blog.
If you like this podcast, you might enjoy the book Biblical Origins: The Political Intent of the Bible's Writers, by renowned Bible scholar Dr. S. David Sperling.