Comentario citado sobre Deuteronómio 17:20

The first introduction in the matters of the kings memorialized in this book and it appropriate that we discuss ten topics: The first topic is the ??? according to their dates. For of the kings mentioned in these books, only a few ruled the whole nations: Shual, David, and Solomon who reigned over all the tribes united. You will see that all three were Men of Valor, G-d fearing and Men of Truth. As I explained in the Book of Samuel that the reigns summed to 100 years, keep this memory aid to hand (Kings 1, 20:31) "Magnanimous kings are they" for 'Melchi' adds to 100. These kings were unique in reigning over all the tribes without divisions because once the kingdom was divided in the days of Rechavem and Yeravam. King Rechavam and all the progeny of House of David ruled over the tribes of Yehuda and Binyamin, majority of the tribe of Levi and the fraction of the tribe of Shimon whose patrimony was amid the patrimony of the sons of Yehuda. You will see in their stories, which of them walked in peace and wealth along the path of their father, David and which among them ?betrayed? G-d and went wayward to serve other gods. The length of the reign of the Kings of Judah, good and bad, was 393 years. A hint to this (Proverbs 15:3) "The eyes of G-d observe both bad and good, since the words 'raim and tovim' sum to 393 [translator's note: the gemateria is 392 +1 for the phrase]

And you see the letter lamed in the middle of the word king (מלך, mem-lamed-kaf sofit), because the king rises from his siblings of Israel, and it hints at the king who shouldn't be separated from his siblings of Israel, as it says (Deuteronomy 13 [this is not an accurate quote, the closest I could find is Deuteronomy 17:20]) so that his heart shall not be raised from his siblings, and he shall not be separated from them, and therefore the letters mem מ and kaf sofit ך, which are siblings of lamed [they appear before and after the lamed in the order of the alphabet], are stuck to the king, that he shouldn't be separated from them, rather connected to them, with the lamed in the middle. And also, that the king, for this is the way of kingly honor, that he is in the middle, with the nation surrounding him, and that is proper. And also, as it is explicated elsewhere, that everything that raises up is in the middle, and a symbol of this, the land of Israel is higher than all the lands, and it is in the middle of the world, and accordingly, the letter lamed is also in the middle of the alphabet [twelfth out of 22 letters]. And from this you can also understand that the king is suited to thirty levels, in particular because the king is separated in level from all, and there are two enlarged levels: one is the high priest, and the second is the prophet, and the king is greater than both of them, and that's why it says that a king comes before the high priest and the high priest comes before the prophet, as it says in Horayot (13a), and the priest on the right and the prophet on the left and the king in the middle, rising above both of them. And you should really understand this matter, because according to the wisdom, the king rises to the third level, and according to that the three commandments for the king, as was explicated, and corresponding to this the kingship is acquired in thirty levels, because the third level includes thirty: understand this.

The Jerusalem Talmud Horiot 3,2 specifically rules that priests must not be anointed as kings. Rabbi Yehudah there explains the linkage between Deut 17,20 “so that he and his descendants may reign long in the midst of Israel,” with the following verse (18,1) “the levitical priests, the whole tribe of Levi, shall have no territorial portion with Israel,” as clear evidence that the spiritual leadership of the Jewish people and its temporal leadership, i.e. the kingship, are to be separate.

And if you will go in My ways, etc., I will lengthen your days. The wealth and the honor for which I did not impose any conditions in my Torah to give to the king, I will give you whether deserving or not. However, [to attain] longevity and [continuation of] the monarchy for [future] generations, I have already imposed conditions in my Torah, “that he shall not turn aside from the commandment [etc.,] so that he may prolong days over his kingdom, etc.”²¹Devarim 17:20. and that condition I will not alter. So, “if you will go in My ways...I will lengthen, etc.” and likewise concerning [the continuation of] the monarchy to his descendants, He said to him, “As for you, if you walk before Me, etc., no man [descendant] of yours will be cut off, etc.”²²Below, 9:4, 5. Thus is it learned in Sifrei, Rabbi Chanina the son of Gamliel says, “Behold he has said, ‘both wealth and honor, etc.’”²³Above v. 13.

But now, your kingship shall not endure. Because Moshe said so in the Torah, "[and] he does not stray from the commandment right or left, so that days of his reign are lengthy…."¹⁰ Devarim 17:20. Hence, if he does stray, the days [of his reign] will not be lengthy. And if you will argue that this was not said in reference to a Prophet's commandment, but only in reference to a commandment of the Torah, [I will answer that] it was already stated, "[and] to guard every word of this Torah" and afterwards, "that his pride not increase… and he turn not stray from the commandment"¹¹Devarim 18:19. And now that you failed to obey the commandment of ‘ה to obey His word as delivered by His prophets, you will be held accountable for your actions. [to include] even a prophet's commandment.