LESSONS IN LEADERSHIP
Shoftim
In two of his teachings on this week’s Parsha, the Tiferes Shlomo explores the important qualities that a true Jewish leader needs to have;
שֹׁפְטִ֣ים וְשֹֽׁטְרִ֗ים תִּֽתֶּן־לְךָ֙ בְּכׇל־שְׁעָרֶ֔יךָ אֲשֶׁ֨ר ה‘ אֱלֹ-הֶ֛יךָ נֹתֵ֥ן לְךָ֖ לִשְׁבָטֶ֑יךָ וְשָׁפְט֥וּ אֶת־הָעָ֖ם מִשְׁפַּט־צֶֽדֶק׃
You shall place for yourself judges and policemen in all of your gates... and they shall judge the people righteous judgements.
In Pirkei Avos, our sages teachוֶהֱוֵי דָן אֶת כָּל הָאָדָם לְכַף זְכוּת. Even when we see someone who has acted wrongly or appears sinful and lowly, the Torah requires us to judge them favourably; giving them the benefit of the doubt and judging them in a positive light.
It was this quality that Shlomo Hamelech asked Hashem to endow him with at the beginning of his reign. Shlomo asked “Grant, Your servant an understanding heart to judge Your people...” He asked for the love, empathy and compassion to judge the Jewish people with understanding; to be able to see their goodness and judge them favourably.
Whilst required of all people, this trait is absolutely vital for a leader to posses and is the path of the Tzaddikim and true leaders of the Jewish people.
In relation to themselves, Tzaddikim are self-critical. With humility, they see themselves as lowly and undeserving. They constantly evaluate their deeds and chastise their shortcomings, living as though under the scrutiny of judges and policemen.
But this critical eye is reserved only for evaluating themselves. When judging others, they are filled with love and see only the good.
This is alluded to in the teaching of Hillel; “That which is hateful to you, do not do to others”. Even though the Tzaddikim despise themselves, that which they despise themselves with self-criticism, they do not place on others, by judging them in the same way.
This is the inner message of the opening verse of the Parsha.
The judges and policemen of criticism and judgement, you shall place ‘for yourself’. But when you judge the people, it should be a judgement of righteousness, to find the righteousness within them.
שׂ֣וֹם תָּשִׂ֤ים עָלֶ֙יךָ֙ מֶ֔לֶךְ אֲשֶׁ֥ר יִבְחַ֛ר ה‘ אֱלֹ-הֶ֛יךָ בּ֑וֹ מִקֶּ֣רֶב אַחֶ֗יךָ תָּשִׂ֤ים עָלֶ֙יךָ֙ מֶ֔לֶךְ לֹ֣א תוּכַ֗ל לָתֵ֤ת עָלֶ֙יךָ֙ אִ֣ישׁ נָכְרִ֔י אֲשֶׁ֥ר לֹֽא־אָחִ֖יךָ הֽוּא׃
You shall place a king over yourself... You shall set a king over yourself from amongst your brothers; you must not set a foreigner over you, one who is not your brother.
When stressing that the king must be from amongst our brothers and not a foreigner, the Torah is not merely coming to exclude a non-Jew as this would be obvious. The verse is sharing a deeper message about a quality a king needs to have.
A true Jewish leader is one who deeply loves his people and would be willing to sacrifice himself for them and for their benefit.
Moshe, the greatest Jewish leader to have lived, merited his greatness because he was deeply concerned for the honour of the Jewish people. In his first act of leadership, the Torah says וַיִּגְדַּ֤ל מֹשֶׁה֙ וַיֵּצֵ֣א אֶל־אֶחָ֔יו , “and Moshe grew up and went out to his brothers”. Tiferes Shlomo explains that this verse hints that Moshe became great because he saw and loved each Jew as a brother.
This is the inner meaning of appointing a king from among your brothers מִקֶּ֣רֶב אַחֶ֗יךָ. The word מקרב, is related to the word to sacrifice. A king should be someone who loves each Jewish person as his very own brother. And he should be someone who is willing to sacrifice himself on their behalf.
But you should not appoint “one who is a foreigner and is not your brother”. Someone who lacks this quality and to whom you are like a foreigner in their eyes and not a brother, is not the ideally suited candidate to serve as king.
This is the meaning later in the Parsha when Moshe says נָבִ֨יא מִקִּרְבְּךָ֤ מֵאַחֶ֙יךָ֙ כָּמֹ֔נִי יָקִ֥ים לְךָ֖ ה‘ אֱלֹ-הֶ֛יךָ , “Hashem will raise for you a prophet like myself” This cannot refer to their level of prophesy, because the Torah attests that no prophet will be as great as Moshe in prophesy.
Rather it means that the future prophets will embody the trait of Moshe to love each Jew deeply like a brother and be willing to sacrifice himself for them.
A king who leads in this manner is assured “that he and his descendants will have a long reign amongst Yisroel.”
שֹׁפְטִ֣ים וְשֹֽׁטְרִ֗ים תִּֽתֶּן־לְךָ֙ בְּכׇל־שְׁעָרֶ֔יךָ אֲשֶׁ֨ר ה‘ אֱלֹ-הֶ֛יךָ נֹתֵ֥ן לְךָ֖ לִשְׁבָטֶ֑יךָ וְשָׁפְט֥וּ אֶת־הָעָ֖ם מִשְׁפַּט־צֶֽדֶק׃
You shall place for yourself judges and policemen in all of your gates... and they shall judge the people righteous judgements.
In Pirkei Avos, our sages teachוֶהֱוֵי דָן אֶת כָּל הָאָדָם לְכַף זְכוּת. Even when we see someone who has acted wrongly or appears sinful and lowly, the Torah requires us to judge them favourably; giving them the benefit of the doubt and judging them in a positive light.
It was this quality that Shlomo Hamelech asked Hashem to endow him with at the beginning of his reign. Shlomo asked “Grant, Your servant an understanding heart to judge Your people...” He asked for the love, empathy and compassion to judge the Jewish people with understanding; to be able to see their goodness and judge them favourably.
Whilst required of all people, this trait is absolutely vital for a leader to posses and is the path of the Tzaddikim and true leaders of the Jewish people.
In relation to themselves, Tzaddikim are self-critical. With humility, they see themselves as lowly and undeserving. They constantly evaluate their deeds and chastise their shortcomings, living as though under the scrutiny of judges and policemen.
But this critical eye is reserved only for evaluating themselves. When judging others, they are filled with love and see only the good.
This is alluded to in the teaching of Hillel; “That which is hateful to you, do not do to others”. Even though the Tzaddikim despise themselves, that which they despise themselves with self-criticism, they do not place on others, by judging them in the same way.
This is the inner message of the opening verse of the Parsha.
The judges and policemen of criticism and judgement, you shall place ‘for yourself’. But when you judge the people, it should be a judgement of righteousness, to find the righteousness within them.
שׂ֣וֹם תָּשִׂ֤ים עָלֶ֙יךָ֙ מֶ֔לֶךְ אֲשֶׁ֥ר יִבְחַ֛ר ה‘ אֱלֹ-הֶ֛יךָ בּ֑וֹ מִקֶּ֣רֶב אַחֶ֗יךָ תָּשִׂ֤ים עָלֶ֙יךָ֙ מֶ֔לֶךְ לֹ֣א תוּכַ֗ל לָתֵ֤ת עָלֶ֙יךָ֙ אִ֣ישׁ נָכְרִ֔י אֲשֶׁ֥ר לֹֽא־אָחִ֖יךָ הֽוּא׃
You shall place a king over yourself... You shall set a king over yourself from amongst your brothers; you must not set a foreigner over you, one who is not your brother.
When stressing that the king must be from amongst our brothers and not a foreigner, the Torah is not merely coming to exclude a non-Jew as this would be obvious. The verse is sharing a deeper message about a quality a king needs to have.
A true Jewish leader is one who deeply loves his people and would be willing to sacrifice himself for them and for their benefit.
Moshe, the greatest Jewish leader to have lived, merited his greatness because he was deeply concerned for the honour of the Jewish people. In his first act of leadership, the Torah says וַיִּגְדַּ֤ל מֹשֶׁה֙ וַיֵּצֵ֣א אֶל־אֶחָ֔יו , “and Moshe grew up and went out to his brothers”. Tiferes Shlomo explains that this verse hints that Moshe became great because he saw and loved each Jew as a brother.
This is the inner meaning of appointing a king from among your brothers מִקֶּ֣רֶב אַחֶ֗יךָ. The word מקרב, is related to the word to sacrifice. A king should be someone who loves each Jewish person as his very own brother. And he should be someone who is willing to sacrifice himself on their behalf.
But you should not appoint “one who is a foreigner and is not your brother”. Someone who lacks this quality and to whom you are like a foreigner in their eyes and not a brother, is not the ideally suited candidate to serve as king.
This is the meaning later in the Parsha when Moshe says נָבִ֨יא מִקִּרְבְּךָ֤ מֵאַחֶ֙יךָ֙ כָּמֹ֔נִי יָקִ֥ים לְךָ֖ ה‘ אֱלֹ-הֶ֛יךָ , “Hashem will raise for you a prophet like myself” This cannot refer to their level of prophesy, because the Torah attests that no prophet will be as great as Moshe in prophesy.
Rather it means that the future prophets will embody the trait of Moshe to love each Jew deeply like a brother and be willing to sacrifice himself for them.
A king who leads in this manner is assured “that he and his descendants will have a long reign amongst Yisroel.”