Commento su II Samuele 15:1

And [an enfourage of] fifty men etc. All of them had their thighs removed and the heals of their feet cut out.¹Sanhedrin 21a. Rashi there explains that not having thighs enabled them to run faster and not having heels enabled them to step on sharp objects without any sensation of pain.

Section 21 describes the sin of Avshalom against his father, in that he rose against him, slept with his wives in front of all the Jews, and how things spun out of control between him and his father, and the advice of Achitophel and Chushi the Arkite, and the subject of Shimi son of Geira and his curse, until Avshalom fought with Dovid's men and died in war. The beginning of the section, "And it was after this that Avshalom prepared for himself a chariot and horses etc.," until "And all of the men were judged" etc., and I have asked about this section six questions:

The first question: What did Avshalom see which made him want to rebel against his father? We know that he was the oldest of his brothers and he had the status of being the firstborn, and he would inherit his father. And his father Dovid was old, close to 70 years old, and he would not live much longer, so why did Avshalom lead this great rebellion with no purpose? All the more so because he didn't do it earlier, when he was in the Land of Geshur or while he was in Yerushalayim for two years and didn't see the King's face, and if he didn't do it then, why did he think to do this now, when he was living in peace and harmony like a son honoring his father or loike a servant honoring his master? The second question