י״ז
י״דכִּֽי־תָבֹ֣א אֶל־הָאָ֗רֶץ אֲשֶׁ֨ר יְהֹוָ֤ה אֱלֹהֶ֙יךָ֙ נֹתֵ֣ן לָ֔ךְ וִֽירִשְׁתָּ֖הּ וְיָשַׁ֣בְתָּה בָּ֑הּ וְאָמַרְתָּ֗ אָשִׂ֤ימָה עָלַי֙ מֶ֔לֶךְ כְּכׇל־הַגּוֹיִ֖ם אֲשֶׁ֥ר סְבִיבֹתָֽי׃
14If, after you have entered the land that the ETERNAL your God has assigned to you, and taken possession of it and settled in it, you decide, “I will set a king over me, as do all the nations about me,”
ט״ושׂ֣וֹם תָּשִׂ֤ים עָלֶ֙יךָ֙ מֶ֔לֶךְ אֲשֶׁ֥ר יִבְחַ֛ר יְהֹוָ֥ה אֱלֹהֶ֖יךָ בּ֑וֹ מִקֶּ֣רֶב אַחֶ֗יךָ תָּשִׂ֤ים עָלֶ֙יךָ֙ מֶ֔לֶךְ לֹ֣א תוּכַ֗ל לָתֵ֤ת עָלֶ֙יךָ֙ אִ֣ישׁ נׇכְרִ֔י אֲשֶׁ֥ר לֹֽא־אָחִ֖יךָ הֽוּא׃
15you shall be free to set a king over yourself, one chosen by the ETERNAL your God. Be sure to set as king over yourself one of your own people; you must not set a foreigner over you, one who is not your fellow Israelite.cfellow Israelite Lit. “brother.”
ט״זרַק֮ לֹא־יַרְבֶּה־לּ֣וֹ סוּסִים֒ וְלֹֽא־יָשִׁ֤יב אֶת־הָעָם֙ מִצְרַ֔יְמָה לְמַ֖עַן הַרְבּ֣וֹת ס֑וּס וַֽיהֹוָה֙ אָמַ֣ר לָכֶ֔ם לֹ֣א תֹסִפ֗וּן לָשׁ֛וּב בַּדֶּ֥רֶךְ הַזֶּ֖ה עֽוֹד׃
16Moreover, he shall not keep many horses or send people back to Egypt to add to his horses, since GOD has warned you, “You must not go back that way again.”
לא ירבה לו סוסים. אֶלָּא כְּדֵי מֶרְכַּבְתּוֹ, שֶׁלֹּא ישיב את העם מצרימה, שֶׁהַסּוּסִים בָּאִים מִשָּׁם, כְּמָה שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר בִּשְׁלֹמֹה (מלכים א י') וַתַּעֲלֶה וַתֵּצֵא מֶרְכָּבָה מִמִּצְרַיִם בְּשֵׁשׁ מֵאוֹת כֶּסֶף וְסוּס בַּחֲמִשִּׁים וּמֵאָה (סנהדרין כ"א):
לא ירבה לו סוסים HE SHALL NOT MULTIPLY HORSES TO HIMSELF — but he shall have only what is sufficient for his carriages, in order that he shall not cause the people to return to Egypt, because horses come from there, as it is said in the history of Solomon (1 Kings 10:29) “And a chariot came up and went out of Egypt for six hundred shekels of silver and a horse for a hundred and fifty” (Sanhedrin 21b).
י״זוְלֹ֤א יַרְבֶּה־לּוֹ֙ נָשִׁ֔ים וְלֹ֥א יָס֖וּר לְבָב֑וֹ וְכֶ֣סֶף וְזָהָ֔ב לֹ֥א יַרְבֶּה־לּ֖וֹ מְאֹֽד׃
17And he shall not have many wives, lest his heart go astray; nor shall he amass silver and gold to excess.
ולא ירבה לו נשים. אֶלָּא י"ח, שֶׁמָּצִינוּ שֶׁהָיוּ לוֹ לְדָוִד שֵׁשׁ נָשִׁים, וְנֶאֱמַר לוֹ (שמואל ב י״ב:ח׳) "וְאִם מְעָט וְאֹסִפָה לְּךָ כָּהֵנָּה וְכָהֵנָּה":
ולא ירבה לו נשים NEITHER SHALL HE MULTIPLY WIVES TO HIMSELF only eighteen, for we find that David had six wives, and it was announced to him (by Nathan the prophet): “[Thus saith the Lord … I gave thy master’s wives into thy bosom] … and if that had been too little, I would add unto thee such and such as these (i.e. twice as many)” (Sanhedrin 21a).
וכסף וזהב לא ירבה לו מאד. אֶלָּא כְּדֵי לִתֵּן לְאַכְסַנְיָא (ספרי; סנהדרין כ"א):
וכסף וזהב לא ירבה לו מאד NEITHER SHALL HE GREATLY MULTIPLY TO HIMSELF SILVER AND GOLD — but only as much as he needs for his soldiers’ pay (Sanhedrin 21a).
י״חוְהָיָ֣ה כְשִׁבְתּ֔וֹ עַ֖ל כִּסֵּ֣א מַמְלַכְתּ֑וֹ וְכָ֨תַב ל֜וֹ אֶת־מִשְׁנֵ֨ה הַתּוֹרָ֤ה הַזֹּאת֙ עַל־סֵ֔פֶר מִלִּפְנֵ֖י הַכֹּהֲנִ֥ים הַלְוִיִּֽם׃
18When he is seated on his royal throne, he shall have a copy of this Teaching written for him on a scroll bydby Nuance of Heb. milliphne uncertain. the levitical priests.
והיה כשבתו. אִם עָשָׂה כֵן כְּדַאי הוּא שֶׁתִּתְקַיֵּם מַלְכוּתוֹ (ספרי):
והיה כשבתו AND IT SHALL BE WHEN HE SITTETH [UPON THE THRONE OF HIS KINGDOM] — if he acts thus (as prescribed in the previous verses) he is worthy that his kingdom should endure (Sifrei Devarim 160:1).
את משנה התורה. שְׁתֵּי סִפְרֵי תוֹרָה, אַחַת שֶׁהִיא מֻנַּחַת בְּבֵית גְּנָזָיו, וְאַחַת שֶׁנִּכְנֶסֶת וְיוֹצֵאת עִמּוֹ (סנהדרין כ"א); וְאֻנְקְלוֹס תִּרְגֵּם "פַּתְשֶׁגֶן", פָּתַר משנה לְשׁוֹן שִׁנּוּן וְדִבּוּר:
את משנה התורה [HE SHALL WRITE HIM] A משנה תורה — i.e. two scrolls of the Law, one that is placed in his treasury and the other that goes out and comes in with him (i.e. a small scroll which he carries everywhere with him) (Sanhedrin 21b). Onkelos, however, renders משנה by פתשגן, a copy; he thus interpreted the word משנה in the sense of שנן, repeating and uttering.
י״טוְהָיְתָ֣ה עִמּ֔וֹ וְקָ֥רָא ב֖וֹ כׇּל־יְמֵ֣י חַיָּ֑יו לְמַ֣עַן יִלְמַ֗ד לְיִרְאָה֙ אֶת־יְהֹוָ֣ה אֱלֹהָ֔יו לִ֠שְׁמֹ֠ר אֶֽת־כׇּל־דִּבְרֵ֞י הַתּוֹרָ֥ה הַזֹּ֛את וְאֶת־הַחֻקִּ֥ים הָאֵ֖לֶּה לַעֲשֹׂתָֽם׃
19Let it remain with him and let him read in it all his life, so that he may learn to revere the ETERNAL his God, to observe faithfully every word of this Teaching as well as these laws.
דברי התורה. כְּמַשְׁמָעוֹ:
דברי התורה [ALL] THE WORDS OF [THIS] LAW — Take it as what it literally implies.
כ׳לְבִלְתִּ֤י רוּם־לְבָבוֹ֙ מֵֽאֶחָ֔יו וּלְבִלְתִּ֛י ס֥וּר מִן־הַמִּצְוָ֖ה יָמִ֣ין וּשְׂמֹ֑אול לְמַ֩עַן֩ יַאֲרִ֨יךְ יָמִ֧ים עַל־מַמְלַכְתּ֛וֹ ה֥וּא וּבָנָ֖יו בְּקֶ֥רֶב יִשְׂרָאֵֽל׃ {ס}
20Thus he will not act haughtily toward his fellows or deviate from the Instruction to the right or to the left, to the end that he and his descendants may reign long in the midst of Israel.
ולבלתי סור מן המצוה. אֲפִלּוּ מִצְוָה קַלָּה שֶׁל נָבִיא:
ולבלתי סור מן המצוה AND THAT HE DEPART NOT FROM THE COMMANDMENT — not even from a less important command given to him by means of a prophet.
למען יאריך ימים. מִכְּלַל הֵן אַתָּה שׁוֹמֵעַ לָאו; וְכֵן מָצִינוּ בְשָׁאוּל שֶׁאָמַר לוֹ שְׁמוּאֵל (שמואל א י') "שִׁבְעַת יָמִים תּוֹחֵל עַד בּוֹאִי אֵלֶיךָ", לְהַעֲלוֹת עוֹלוֹת, וּכְתִיב (שם י"ג) "וַיּוֹחֶל שִׁבְעַת יָמִים", וְלֹא שָׁמַר הַבְטָחָתוֹ לִשְׁמֹר כָּל הַיּוֹם, וְלֹא הִסְפִּיק לְהַעֲלוֹת הָעוֹלָה עַד שֶׁבָּא שְׁמוּאֵל וְאָמַר לוֹ "נִסְכָּלְתָּ לֹא שָׁמַרְתָּ וְגוֹ' וְעַתָּה מַמְלַכְתְּךָ לֹא תָקוּם", הָא לָמַדְתָּ שֶׁבִּשְׁבִיל מִצְוָה קַלָּה שֶׁל נָבִיא נֶעֱנַשׁ:
למען יאריך ימים TO THE END THAT HE MAY PROLONG HIS DAYS [IN HIS KINGDOM] — From the positive statement you may derive the negative (that if he does not fulfil the commandments his kingdom will not endure). And so, indeed, do we find in the case of Saul that Samuel said to him, (I Samuel 10:8) “Seven days shalt thou tarry, till I come unto thee” to offer burnt sacrifices, and it is written, (I Samuel 13:8) “and he tarried seven days”, but he did not keep his promise to wait the whole of the seventh day and had scarcely finished offering the burnt offering when Samuel came (I Samuel 10:10) and said to him (I Samuel 10:13-14) “Thou hast done foolishly; thou hast not kept [the commandment of the Lord thy God, which He commanded thee; for now would the Lord have established thy kingdom upon Israel forever;] but now thy kingdom shall not continue”. Thus you learn that for the neglect of an unimportant command given by means of a prophet he was severely punished.
הוא ובניו. מַגִּיד שֶׁאִם בְּנוֹ הָגוּן לְמַלְכוּת הוּא קוֹדֵם לְכָל אָדָם (הוריות י"א):
הוא ובניו [THAT HE MAY PROLONG HIS DAYS IN HIS KINGDOM] HE, AND HIS CHILDREN — This tells you that if his son is worthy of becoming king he has to be given preference to any other person (Horayot 11b).