Kommentar zu Sanhedrin 2:11

כהן גדול. אינו יוצא אחר המטה – Perhaps he would come to touch [the corpse] in the midst of his troubles. And the All-Merciful One said (Leviticus 21:11): “He shall not go where there is any dead body.”

Introduction Mishnah one contains with special rules regarding the High Priest.

הן נכסין והוא נגלה – since those who carry the bier are covered from the entrance to a group of buildings/alleyway that is to say, when they left him; he was revealed and went inside within, but all the while that they were revealed and appeared in the alleyway, he was covered from them and did not enter into their midst.

This mishnah can be divided into three basic sections: 1) the High Priest’s relationship to the court; 2) the High Priest’s ability to perform halitzah (the release of the widow from the obligation to marry the levir, her dead husband’s brother) and levirate marriage; 3) the High Priest’s participation in the mourning ritual.

ויוצא עמהן עד פתח העיר – that in the city were found alleyways and he can cover himself from them, but outside of the city, there is no recognition.

The High Priest can judge and be judged; he can testify and others can testify against him. The High Priest is treated like a normal person with regards to the laws of the court. As we shall see in mishnah two, this is not true with regards to the king.

שנאמר: "ומן המקדש לא יצא" – Rabbi Yehuda expounds [on the verse – Leviticus 21:12]: “He shall not go outside the sanctuary,” at all. And Rabbi Meir expounds that he shall not leave from his holiness, that is, he should be careful that he not come in contact [with the bier] and within the city there are alleys where there is recognition and he is careful. And the Halakha is according to Rabbi Yehuda.

He can perform halitzah for another’s wife and others can perform halitzah for his wife or contract levirate marriage with his widow, but he cannot contract levirate marriage since he is forbidden to marry a widow. The High Priest is basically the same as any other person with regards to the laws of levirate marriage. If he should die without children, his wife must either marry his brother or his brother must perform halitzah for her. If his brother should die without children he must perform halitzah for his wife. He cannot, however, contract levirate marriage with her since he is in general prohibited from marrying a widow (Lev. 21:14).

וכשהוא מנם את אחרים – that is of a dead person that is not his (family), everyone admits that he is able to go and not go to the trouble that he won’t come in contact [with the bier]. And when they return from the graves and stand in a line to comfort the mourners and all the people pass one after another and comfort the mourner who stands at his standing post [to receive the consolation of the others in attendance] , and everyone says to him: “May you be comforted from Heaven.”

If any of his near kin die he may not follow after the bier, rather when the bearers are not visible, he is visible, when they are visible he is not visible, and he may go out with them as far as the city gate, according to Rabbi Meir. Rabbi Judah says, “He may not leave the Temple, as it says, “Nor shall he go out of the Sanctuary”. And when he comforts other mourners the custom is for all of the people to pass by, the one after the other, while the appointed [priest] stands between him and the people. And when he receives comfort from others, all the people say to him, “Let us be your atonement”, and he says to them, “May you be blessed by Heaven.” When they feed him the funeral meal all the people sit around on the ground and he sits on a stool. The High Priest is severely restricted with regards to his participation in the rituals of burial. Since contact with the dead causes impurity the High Priest cannot even participate in the burying of his own immediate family (unlike a regular priest who may) (see Lev. 21:10-12). According to Rabbi Meir, the High Priest is allowed to semi-secretly participate in the burial procession, up until they leave the city gates of Jerusalem (people were not buried within the city confines). Rabbi Judah states that he may not even participate this much, since the Torah states that he may not leave the Sanctuary at all. If the High Priest needs to participate in the comforting of mourners he may do so, but the “appointed” priest would come in between him and the other people. According to the Rambam this is to show the honor due to the High Priest, that he shouldn’t be just a part of the crowd. When others comfort him they say, “Let us be your atonement”. It seems to me that this is to assuage the sense of guilt that the High Priest must feel since he was not able to participate in the burying of his own dead. When he comforts others he should give them a blessing. When he is fed the traditional funeral meal which would normally be eaten by the mourner while sitting close to the ground, the rest of the people must sit on the ground. This fulfills two functions: 1) he retains a higher status than them; 2) they are able to participate in his sorrow and grief.

הממונה – he is the deputy [High Priest] , who is appointed to serve in place of the High Priest, lest something occur to him that would make the High Priest unfit for service on Yom Kippur.

והממונה מנצעו – who walks to the right of the High Priest and all the people are to his left, so that the High Priest is in the middle.

אנו כפרתך – though us you will be forgiven – you and we under you for all that is appropriate to come upon you.

וכשמברין אותו – for a mourner is forbidden to eat the first meal of his own [possessions], but his relatives and loved ones/friends feed him.

מסובין על הארץ – they distress themselves and mourn in his grief/pain.

והוא מיסב – with honor on his bench.

המלך לא דן ולא דנין אותו – and specifically the kings of Israel who do not listen to the words of the Sages. But a king from the kings of the House of David, [serve as] judges and we judge him, as it says (Jeremiah 21:12): “O House of David, thus said the LORD: Render just verdicts morning by morning…”

Introduction Mishnah two contains special rules regarding the king.

אין שומעין לו – since a king who has forgone the honor due to oneself, his honor is not remitted and it is a disgrace to him that he should loosen his shoe and she should spit in his face. And whomever is not someone who should undergo the ceremony of removing the shoe, she also is not someone who should undergo levirate marriage, and such is the Halakha.

The king can neither judge nor be judged, he cannot testify and others cannot testify against him. The king cannot participate in the regular system of the court. This is probably due to the fear that the king will threaten the existence of the court if a decision is not found in his favor. Since he cannot be tried, it is not fitting to allow him to testify. There is also an issue of honor at stake in this prohibition. The king’s honor is not just an issue of personal concern but of national concern as well. Forcing a king to participate in the legal system would, in the mind of the Mishnah, diminish his authority.

מלך נושא אלמנתו של מלך – And the halakha is according to Rabbi Yehuda in this.

He may not perform halitzah, nor may others perform halitzah for his wife. He may not contract levirate marriage nor may his brothers contract levirate marriage with his wife. Rabbi Judah says: “If he wished to perform halitzah or to contract levirate marriage his memory is a blessing.” They said to him: “They should not listen to him.” The king also may not participate in the halitzah ceremony, since part of this ceremony is the woman spitting in front of the dead husband’s brother. This is obviously not respectful to a king. It is also not a sign of respect for him to have to marry his dead brother’s widow (levirate marriage) in order to bring forth children under his brother’s name. Since his widow may not remarry, his brothers do not perform halitzah for her or contract levirate marriage with her. Rabbi Judah says that a king can perform halitzah and levirate marriage, and it is actually praiseworthy for him to do so (but not mandatory). In other words, according to Rabbi Judah, a king is allowed to forgo his own honor. According to those who respond to him, he is prohibited to do so.

None may marry his widow. Rabbi Judah says: “The king may marry the widow of a king, for so have we found it with David, who married the widow of Saul, as it says, “And I gave you my master’s house and my master’s wives into your embrace” (II Samuel 12:8). According to the first opinion, the widow of a king may not remarry, since this is disrespectful to the dead king. However, Rabbi Judah finds precedent in David who married Saul’s widow, and therefore he allows all kings to marry other kings widows (this should remind us of MacBeth!).

אינו יוצא מפתח פלטרין שלו – for it is a disgrace for the king to show his grief before the people.

If any of his near kin die he may not go out of the door of his palace. Rabbi Judah says: “If he wishes to follow the bier he may, since we have found that David followed the bier of Avner, as it says, “And King David followed the bier” (II Samuel 3:31) They answered, “That was only to appease the people.”
When they feed him the funeral meal all the people sit on the floor and he sits on a couch.
Mishnah three discusses the procedures of mourning if a king’s family member dies.
This mishnah deals with funeral procedure when one of the king’s near relatives dies. Although there is no prohibition in the Torah against the king participating in funerals, the Sages did not think it respectful for a king to be seen in a state of mourning. Rabbi Judah again finds biblical precedent for the king to participate in the funeral (as he found precedent for the king to marry another king’s widow in mishnah two). When during the battles between the House of Saul and the House of David, Avner, Saul’s army commander, was murdered by Joab, the commander of David’s army for having killed Joab’s brother, David goes out after Avner’s bier. According to Rabbi Judah this is precedent for any king. The Sages reply to Rabbi Judah that David only did so to appease the people so that they wouldn’t say that Joab killed Avner with David’s permission. In other, normal, cases it is forbidden for the king to participate in the funeral procession.
When the people feed the king his funeral meal, they sit on the floor, to show their participation in his grief and he sits on a couch, since he is not allowed to truly mourn. Note that the high priest was allowed to sit on a low stool. The Sages were less concerned about the respect shown for the high priest than they were for the respect shown towards the king.

לפייס את העם – in order that they should know that it was not at the David’s advice that Joab should kill Avner [son of Ner, the military commander of Saul] (See 2 Samuel 3:37). And the Halakha is not according to Rabbi Yehuda.

דרגש – bed

למלחמת הרשות – The wars of the rest of the nations, except for the war vs. Amalek and the War of the seven [Canaanite] nations.

Introduction Mishnah four deals the rights and responsibilities of a king.

ופורץ – the fence of others

He may send forth the people to a battle waged of free choice by the decision of the court of seventy one. The king has a right to take his people out to war, but he first must receive permission from the Sanhedrin. This is probably seen to be a check to make sure a king does not take his people out to dangerous and frivolous wars.

לעשות לו דרך – to go to his vineyard and to his field

He may break through [the private domain of any man] to make himself a road and none may protest him. The king’s road has no limit. The king has a right to expropriate anyone’s property if he should need the property to make a path. Furthermore, this path has no limits to its size. There are some commentators who say that this section of the mishnah is applicable only if the king is going out to war.

אין ממחין בידו – we don’t prevent him

Whatsoever the people take in plunder they must place before him, and he may take first. When the people plunder conquered cities after a victorious war, the king may have his first pick at the plunder.

חלק בראש – he chooses the best portion first and takes one half of all the spoil.

“And he shall not have many wives” (Deut. 17:17) eighteen only. Rabbi Judah says: “He may take many wives provided they don’t turn his heart away [from worshipping God]. Rabbi Shimon says: “Even one that might turn his heart away, he should not marry. Why then does it say, “He shall not have many wives”, even if they are like Avigayil. The remainder of the mishnah is a midrash (exegesis) on Deuteronomy 16-19. The first midrash discusses the limitation on the number of wives a king may take. According to the first opinion he may only (!) have 18 wives. Rabbi Judah emphasizes the continuation of verse 17 which says, “lest his heart go astray.” According to Rabbi Judah the verse does not prohibit a certain number of wives, rather it prohibits the king from taking any wife who will lead his heart astray. The Bible itself relates that this is exactly what happened with Solomon in his old age (See I Kings 11). Rabbi Eliezer responds to Rabbi Judah and says that if the verse had only meant to say that he may not marry women who will lead his heart astray then why did it state a specific number. Therefore, Rabbi Eliezer says that he may not marry many wives even if they were like Avigayil, David’s wife, who is the prototypical example of a smart and good wife (see I Samuel 25:3).

אלא שמונה עשרה – for David had had six wives as the prophet [Nathan] said to him (2 Samuel 12:8): “[I gave you your master’s house and possession of your master’s wives; and I gave you the House of Israel and Judah] and if that were not enough, I would give you twice as much more.” The first mention of כהנה – is six and the latter [mention of] כהנה – is [another] six, that makes eighteen [wives].

“He shall not keep many horses” (Deut. 17:16) enough for his chariot only. When the Torah states that the king may not have many horses, it means to limit him to those which he needs for his chariot only.

מרבה הוא לו – More than eighteen. And there three disputations in this matter. The first Tanna/teacher holds that he marries eighteen, and even if they are loose in moral conduct, but more than eighteen he should not marry even if they are valid, for that is the decree of the Biblical verse. Rabbi Yehuda holds that he marries eighteen and even if they are loose in moral conduct, but more than eighteen who are loose in moral conduct, he should not marry, but if they are valid and worthy, he may marry as many as he wishes. And he disagrees with the first Tanna in one matter. Rabbi Shimon states that even one [wife] who is loose in moral conduct, he should not marry, but valid and worthy [wives], he cannot marry more than eighteen. And he disagrees with the first Tanna in one matter and with Rabbi Yehuda in two matters. And the Halakha is according to the first Tanna.

“Nor shall he amass silver and gold to excess” (Deut. 17:17) enough to pay his soldier’s wages. The king may only have enough gold to pay his soldiers.

אלא כדי מרכבתו – and specifically idle horses to give him comfort and to increase the mass of horses, is prohibited. But, in order that his chariots and horsemen can fight his enemies, it is permitted.

He must write a Torah scroll for himself; when he goes forth to battle he shall take it with him, and when he returns he shall bring it back with him; when he sits in judgement it shall be with him, and when he sits to eat it shall be with him, as it says, “Let it remain with him and let him read it all his life” (Deut. 17:19) The Torah states that the king should have a Torah scroll and learn it all the days of his life. The mishnah emphasizes that this Torah scroll must always be with him, even when he goes out to war! The king is to always be reminded that he serves a higher King, God. Keeping the Torah with him at all times reminds him that his authority is secondary to the ultimate authority of God, as revealed in the Torah.

אספניא – the salary of the soldiers who come in and go out with him throughout the year.

Questions for Further Thought:
• Section four: What is the difference in opinion between the first opinion (the king may take 18 wives) and Rabbi Eliezer’s opinion?

וכותב לו ס"ת לשמו – besides the Torah scroll that every Jewish person is required to have with him, and it is placed in his storehouse. And the Torah scroll that he writes for himself when he is King always enters and goes out with him.

מיסב – on the table

כשהוא מסתפר – when he shaves the hair of his head

None may ride his horse and none may sit on his throne and none may make use of his scepter.
No one may see him when his hair is being cut or when he is naked or when he is in the bath house, for it says, “You shall set a king upon yourself” (Deut. 17:15) that his awe should be over you.
Mishnah five teaches that the people must respect and have awe for a king.
This mishnah continues the midrash on Deut. 17 that began in the previous mishnah. The Torah states that the people of Israel shall set a king upon themselves. The Torah uses a typical syntax repeating the verb “to set” twice. In usual fashion, the Rabbis see this as an unnecessary repetition of a word and therefore a legitimate basis for a midrash. The midrash is that the Torah mandates awe of the king, and therefore one is not allowed to not sit in his place, use his scepter or see him in a position of compromise.