The Daf, Agreements, and Sovereignty

President Trump and Prime Minister Netanyahu – and their techies, soldiers, and sailors – have obviously inflicted a tremendous amount of damage on Iran from a purely military point of view, but President Trump recently hit a nerve of most Jewish people when he said that Israel would have been destroyed without him, notwithstanding the extent to which this may indeed seem to be true, on the surface, and notwithstanding the high degree of Jewish appreciation of his significant actions on behalf of Israel. Ambassador Mike Huckabee really outdid himself with a powerful response that America would not exist without Israel and its heritage, laying the groundwork for our founders in 1776, as we celebrate 250 years since the Jewish heritage set the Judeo-Christian tone for our country.

But the Daf Yomi of Chullin 56 that was recently studied by Jews around the world provides a further timely “response,” in line with Prime Minister Netanyahu’s recent comments that Israel must become independent and less reliant on the United States (while still maintaining strong ties with additional countries around the world) since, as Vice President Vance has been reminding Israelis and the world, the interests of the United States do not always conform 100%, with the interests of Israel.

It may also be noteworthy in this context that when the United States called on its NATO allies to participate proactively in the War against Iran and in the cleansing of the Strait of Hormuz, none of its allies rose to answer either call; only Israel stepped up to partner with the United States in the war to prevent Iran from acquiring nuclear weapons.

The Talmud (Chullin 56) cites Devarim 32:6 which reads, in part: “Has he not created you and established you?” (Hu ascha v’yichoneneka).

Rav Shmuel bar Yitzchak interpreted this to mean that all organs must be in their designated place, which doesn’t exactly shake up the human anatomy, let alone the world economy.

But Rabbi Meir came up with a commentary that really can shake up the world. He said that this verse in Devarim teaches that the Jewish people is “a city with everything in it” (though maybe not necessarily an abundance of oil below it),citing Zechariah 10:4, and here is where it becomes particularly interesting and timely. Chapter 10 verse 4 states, “Out of them shall come forth the cornerstone, out of them the stake [or tent peg], out of them the battle bow, out of them every master together.”

Ibn Ezra, on Zechariah 10:4, interpreted the metaphors as representations of sovereign power that indicate that the nation of Israel will be self-sufficient and free from foreign domination. Specifically, he viewed the cornerstone, the stake, and the battle bow as metaphors for strength and martial defense. Ibn Ezra indicated that the overall lesson of the verse is that "no stranger will rule over them.” Israel will produce its own leadership, defense, and stability. To what extent this is only a portrayal of Messianic times or can also be striven for in our time is beyond the purview of this article.

This verse serves as a declaration of the promise of G-d that Israel will no longer be dependent on or subjugated by foreign empires, but will instead be defended and governed by its own native strength and leadership. It is really meant to describe a future ideal, though to the extent it can be aspired for today it does not preclude developing constructive ties with multiple allies.

See also Devarim 32:12: “G-d alone led him; no foreign god was with him.” Rashi interpreted this to mean that when the Jews were in the wilderness, G-d did not rely on any messenger, angel, or foreign deity (or a person accused of acting like a king) to guide or protect the Jewish people. Once again, what happened in the past and what can happen in the future cannot necessarily be experienced in our times, but they set precedents, past and future, that can give us encouragement.

It seems to be pretty clear that although the war with Iran went basically as anticipated, from the point of view of the Americans and the Israelis, the peace “agreement” is not quite what was anticipated. In truth, although President Trump has fulfilled many promises to Jews and others throughout the world for which the beneficiaries are eternally grateful, including promises made and dishonored by all previous presidents in recent years, he was not at the peace table during the negotiations, and clearly the Memorandum of Understanding is not what most Americans or Israelis were led to understand and to expect, based on the stated goals. 

The Sage named Ze’iri openly conceded, in another context, but in this same page of the Talmud (Chullin 56), “I made a mistake.” One doesn’t often see such a confession by anyone in the Talmud, but Ze’iri was respected even more than before for saying so, and some members of the American negotiating team might consider doing so as well, and doing much better in renegotiating the Memorandum of Understanding and/or in negotiating a final resolution to the war that will incorporate – or at least come closer to – the stated goals of the war before it will be too late.

As if page 56 of Chullin doesn’t have enough relevance, it also talks of innards shriveled and/or singed by a fire turning green and therefore becoming unfit, in certain situations. And as if the war, the ceasefire, and the reduction in the price of energy (and everything else, consequently) internationally wouldn’t be enough to focus on (not to mention the World Cup), one of the biggest stories at this time, in most of the American media, continues to be, to some extent, the reflecting pool near the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, D.C., turning green (with algae), just as the innards in the Talmud on this colorful page!

Let us pray that the war will end in a way that will be deemed satisfactory to all good people; that the price of all commodities will continue to go back to pre-war levels, and below; and that the reflecting pool in Washington, D.C. will be restored to the blue of the Star of David in the Israeli flag or techelet, as best as we know it, and that the values of King David and his successors will be followed throughout the world.

The stated goal of the writer is to encourage our influential readers to prevail upon the framers of the Memorandum of Understanding to simply arrive at a final understanding that will advance more of the admirable stated goals of the initiators of the war to make the world safer for those who fear the use and misuse of nuclear material that is now in ceasefire mode.