In the early days of Israelite sovereign rule over the Holy Land, there was a man called Yiftach who was born into the home of one Gilead. Sadly, he grew up as an outcast in his father’s house. While the other children were deemed to be of good stock, everyone knew that Yiftach was the illegitimate son. Eventually, when his siblings were old enough to assert themselves, they expelled their poor brother from the house, saying, “You shall have no share in our father’s property, for you are the son of an
outsider!”
So, Yiftach fled from his brothers and settled in Tob. Men of low character gathered around him and joined his gang. Nevertheless, time passed and one day the Ammonites launched a vicious attack upon the Israelites. Finding themselves leaderless, the elders of the Gilead clan set out to invite Yiftach to return from Tob. “Come be our chief,” they implored him, “so that we can fight off the Ammonites.”
Yiftach replied, “You are the very people who rejected me and drove me out of my father’s house! How can you turn to me now when you are in trouble?” The elders responded, “This is true. We have now turned back to you. If you come with us and fight the Ammonites, you shall be our commander over all the inhabitants of Gilead.”
Yiftach acceded, “Very well, if you bring me back to fight the Ammonites and God delivers them to me, I shall be your commander.” And the elders of Gilead answered Yiftach, “God shall be witness between us. We will do exactly as you have spoken.” Yiftach went with the elders of Gilead, and the people made him their commander and chief.
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Today’s daf presents various teachings of Rav Chanan bar Rava on the subject of leadership.
וְאָמַר רַב חָנָן בַּר רָבָא אָמַר רַב: אִמֵּיהּ דְּאַבְרָהָם – אֲמַּתְלַאי בַּת כַּרְנְבוֹ. אִמֵּיהּ דְּהָמָן – אֲמַּתְלַאי בַּת עוֹרֶבְתִּי. אִמֵּיהּ דְּדָוִד – נִצֶּבֶת בַּת עַדְאֵל שְׁמָהּ. אִמֵּיהּ דְּשִׁמְשׁוֹן – צְלֶלְפּוֹנִית, וַאֲחָתֵיהּ נַשְׁיָין. לְמַאי נָפְקָא מִינַּהּ? לִתְשׁוּבַת הַמִּינִים. וְאָמַר רַב חָנָן בַּר רָבָא אָמַר רַב: אוֹתוֹ הַיּוֹם שֶׁנִּפְטַר אַבְרָהָם אָבִינוּ מִן הָעוֹלָם, עָמְדוּ כׇּל גְּדוֹלֵי אוּמּוֹת הָעוֹלָם בְּשׁוּרָה; וְאָמְרוּ: אוֹי לוֹ לָעוֹלָם שֶׁאָבַד
מַנְהִיגוֹ, וְאוֹי לָהּ לַסְּפִינָה שֶׁאָבַד קַבַּרְנִיטָהּ. ״וְהַמִּתְנַשֵּׂא לְכֹל לְרֹאשׁ״ – אָמַר רַב חָנָן בַּר רָבָא אָמַר רַב: אֲפִילּוּ רֵישׁ גַּרְגּוּתָא, מִשְּׁמַיָּא מוֹקְמִי לֵיהּ.
Rav Chanan bar Rava quoted Rav: The mother of Avraham was Amalthea the daughter of Carnabo. The mother of Haman was Amalthea the daughter of Orevti. The mother of David was named Nitzeves the daughter of Odel. The mother of Samson was Tzlilponys and his sister was Nasian. What is the significance? As a response to the heretics. And Rav Chanan bar Rava quoted Rav: On the day of our patriarch Avraham’s passing, the great people of the world stood in a row and said, “Woe to the world that has lost its leader, and woe to the ship that has lost its captain.” (What is the meaning of the following verse?) “And the One who is exalted as head above all.” Rav Chanan bar Rava quoted Rav: Even (the smallest promotion, such as becoming the) irrigation foreman is a Heavenly appointment.
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The blessing of leadership is fraught with incredible responsibility. Heaven will promote certain human beings to exalted positions. But it is incumbent upon the individual to make wise and moral choices. Avraham and Haman came from similar stock. And yet Avraham became a righteous leader and Haman became a wicked leader.
Whilst on the topic of mothers of great leaders, Rav Chanan proceeds to name the mothers of David and Samson. (Parenthetically perhaps, Samson’s sister is also named, to emphasize that she would have been included in the verse[1] discussing his “brothers” who buried him. The word in Hebrew for “brothers” also means “siblings.”) The significance of mentioning the names of these mothers, says the Gemara, is to respond to the “heretics.” Throughout the Talmud, that term tends to be a codeword for Christians whose founder’s lineage is associated solely with his mother.
This enigma has forever been a point of tension and awkwardness in Jewish-Christian disputes. One can imagine the Christian response to the Jews’ taunts –—something along the lines of, “Well, at least we can say for sure that our savior was Jewish because our scriptures delineate a place of honor in the narrative concerning his special mother. By contrast, you know nothing about the identities of your saviors’ mothers, clearly pointing to the fact that they were from tainted lineage. Who knows if they were even Jewish? After all, David came from Ruth the Moabite. And Samson consorted with Philistine women!” Consequently, our Sages emphasized that these mothers did indeed have names of renown. They were righteous Jewish women, even if they are not named explicitly in Tanach.
Rav Chanan then returns to extol Avraham’s leadership. Upon his passing, the greats of the generation lined up and bemoaned the loss of the world’s most prominent leader, the captain of their ship. When you think about it, however, which is more praiseworthy: leader of the world or captain of the ship? Maharam Schick[2] explains that it’s relatively easy to rise to prominence when everything is going well. It’s when the storm strikes, during those rough waters, that we get to see who truly shines as a leader. As the Torah tells us, during Avraham’s time, there were many kings. Nevertheless, only Avraham was able to distinguish himself as captain of the ship through stormy waters.
Rabbi Yitzchak Isaac of Komarno[3] notes that the Gemara states that the greats of the generation stood when Avraham passed. But what about the regular folks? Where were they? Unfortunately, simple people often fail to appreciate greatness. Being honored by other great individuals is a mark of true excellence. That’s probably why Esav was able to go out hunting on the day of his grandfather’s funeral (leading to Yaakov’s exchange of the consolation meal of lentil soup for the birthright). The magnitude of the loss to the world simply did not dawn on him — just as it likewise didn’t occur to most regular people. The greats of society, however, believed that the world would never be the same again. Yet, little did they know, Avraham’s legacy would continue to impact the majority of planet Earth four thousand years later!
It’s tempting to read this passage and despair of ever being in the realm of world leadership. And so, Rav Chanan concludes with one final teaching: Even the irrigation foreman is divinely ordained. You don’t need to be a king, a president or an Avraham to achieve greatness. Just be your very best in your own sphere. That will earn you Heavenly favor. And God will promote you to a leadership position.
Nowadays, we judge people based on their number of social media followers. But those are not meaningful numbers. True greatness means recognition by those who truly appreciate greatness. Keep striving to be your very best, and as others recognize your efforts, so shall Heaven, catapulting you to ever greater heights. Just as Hashem chose Yiftach when he least expected it, you must never believe that your day of distinction has passed you by. May you witness the revelation of your Heavenly anointment speedily!
Rabbi Dr. Daniel Friedman is the author of The Transformative Daf book series. He battles Christian antisemitism and teaches International Relations at Landers.
[1] Shoftim 16:31
[2] Noach
[3] Ohr Pnei Yitzchak, Likutim
