Tafsiran Ulangan 17:15: Tze'enah Ure'enah, Chizkuni, Ramban & Ibn Ezra

“Chosen by the Lord your God” [17:15]. The verse teaches us that all authority that a person has is from the Holy One, since all the authority is from God, as the verse says, “Yours, Lord are greatness, might” [I Chronicles, 29:11]. This means, the authority belongs to God, blessed be His name. The Talmud says in tractate Berakhot concerning the verse “Yours, Lord are greatness.” Even the smallest authority that the person has comes from God, blessed be His name. Whoever, considers himself haughty with authority must die young, as we find concerning Joseph the Righteous. He held himself haughty with authority, and the portion alluded to this, “set a king over yourself” [17:15].¹⁰B. Berakhot, 55a. This shows us that authority is an elixir of life to the person who behaves properly with his authority, for the sake of heaven. However, when that person holds himself high, then the authority is a poison to the person. Therefore, the verse says, “you shall set” [17:15]. This means, authority is an herb that makes a person dead or alive.

שום תשים, “be sure to appoint for yourself!” Once the Torah mentions the authority of judges, it also describes the limitations imposed on the ruler [the first one being that he must be appointed with the approval of G-d. Ed.].

THOU SHALT BY ALL MEANS SET HIM KING OVER THEE, WHOM THE ETERNAL THY G-D SHALL CHOOSE. In the opinion of the commentators¹⁰²Ibn Ezra in the verse before us. this means that he is to be chosen according to the word of a prophet or the judgment of the Urim.¹⁰³Numbers 27:21. See also Vol. II pp. 480-483. Scripture is thus commanding: “You shall set up a king over you, whom the Eternal thy G-d shall choose, for it is He Who will choose and not you.” And in the Sifre it is stated:¹⁰⁴Sifre, Shoftim 157. “Thou shalt by all means set him king over thee. If he dies, appoint another one in his place. A king — but not a queen. Whom the Eternal thy G-d shall choose — according to the word of the prophet.” But, if so, what sense is there to warn [in the verse before us], thou mayest not put a foreigner over thee, who is not thy brother, when G-d would not choose a foreigner? However, in the opinion of our Rabbis there is in this verse a hidden condition, stating: “you shall by all means set a king over you, whom G-d shall choose provided you can do so — if G-d will answer you through prophets; but a foreigner you may never appoint as king over you.”
And in line with the plain meaning of Scripture they¹⁰⁵The commentators. I have not identified them. have said, “thou shalt by all means set him king over thee, whom the Eternal thy G-d will choose and not him whom the Eternal thy G-d hateth,¹⁰⁶Above, 16:22. for He will choose an Israelite to be king over His chosen ones and not from among the other peoples.” In my opinion the simple meaning of the expression whom He will choose is that every ruler over people receives his position from G-d, as it is written until thou wilt know that the Most High ruleth in the kingdom of men, and giveth it to whomsoever He will.¹⁰⁷Daniel 4:29. This was said by Daniel to Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon. Similarly the Rabbis have said:¹⁰⁸Berachoth 58a. “Even a superintendent of the well is appointed in heaven.” Thus the verse is stating: “thou shalt by all means set him king over thee — whoever it be decreed by Heaven that he is to reign, even if he be of the smallest of the tribes of Israel and of the least of all the families of the tribe¹⁰⁹I Samuel 9:21. — but you are never to invest a foreigner with regal power.” Similarly, by way of the plain meaning of Scripture, the expression the place which the Eternal thy G-d shall choose¹¹⁰Above, 14:25. means “wherever G-d’s Sanctuary shall be built, was all the Will of G-d.”