Barak and Devorah - Levites?! Pt. 1

 This'll be a two-part series on a theory I had about two and a half years ago. While gathering info on the minor judges (the ones we know little about from p'shat Tanach), it occurred to me that we also know little about Barak's background as well, even though he's one of the better-known judges. After that, it occurred to me that we know little about Devorah as well.

As you may have realized from the title, I eventually came up with the hypothesis that both of them may have been Levites. In this post I'll I'll talk about Barak, and Devorah will be the subject of the second part. I will also do my best to explain why this is totally different from when Ben Tzion Luria claimed Shmuel was from the tribe of Binyamin.

Barak: Master Warrior of the Galilean Levites

Point A: The midrash (Yalkut Shimoni on Nach 42:7; Tanna Devei Eliyahu Rabbah 9:1) says that Barak was also known as Lapidot, and that his real name was Michael. He was the husband of Devorah and an Am Ha'aretz (part of the masses). His wife pushed him to be involved in the duties of the Tabernacle, and so she made wicks for the candles and he would go and deliver these, and for this reason he was called "Lapidot" (torches).

Now stop and think: Why would a random person from a non-service tribe (as in, don't have to serve in the Tabernacle) be pushed by his wife to make long journeys from northern Israel all the way to Shiloh just so that he'll have some part in the Tabernacle service?

Answer: Because he was a Levite! He had to do something - but he wasn't learned enough, apparently, to serve there full-time, so his wife found a solution for him to somehow help out anyway!

Point B: Barak is said to have come from Kedesh Nafatli. Some (such as Rabbi Prof. Shmuel Klein) opine that Kedesh Naftali may be identified with Kadesh in Naftali that was given to the Levites (Yehoshua 20:7; Yehoshua 21:32). Not everyone agrees with this view, but it's still a possibility. If that's the case, then it's more likely that Barak was a Levite that dwelled in Naftali, rather than a Naftalite who settled in a Levite city in the territory of Naftali (also possible, but less likely in my opinion).

Point C: Two midrashim (Yalkut Shimoni on Nach 42:5; Braita D'Rabbi Pinchas ben Yair 1:12) talk about how the various judges came from different tribes. However, while for some judges it is stated:

"Otniel from the Tribe of Yehudah...Gidon from the Tribe of Menashe..."

For Barak (and Devorah; see next post) it says:

"Barak from Kedesh Naftali"

- Why not merely state outright that he's from Naftali? Why keep mentioning his hometown?

Same goes for almost all other midrashim that talk about Barak and mention Kedesh Naftali. For example, there's a midrash that appears in a few places (Midrash Lekach Tov Devarim 34:2; Yalkut Shimoni on the Torah 234:3; Mechilta D'Rashbi 14:20; Mechilta D'Rabbi Yishmael 14:22) that states that miracles happened to Yisrael through the actions of Naftali and Zevulun. Then the midrash quotes the verse about Barak being called from Kedesh Naftali - but continues with Devorah's demand that he summon fighters from Naftali and Zevulun - evidently, the aforementioned miracles were done through those men - not necessarily Barak, who may have not actually been a Naftalite.

Caveat: As I said, most of the midrashim seem to dance around Barak's tribal identity - in my opinion, this bears witness of an ancient tradition that Barak was not of Naftali. However, there are a few out of the ordinary cases: The midrash in Tanchuma Buber Mas'ei 3:1 simply says:

"...Shimshon from Dan, Barak from Naftali..."

And in Tanchuma Mas'ei 4:1 it says:

"...Shimshon from Dan, Barak ben Avinoam from Naftali..."

The latter midrash might be explained away per my theory that there's a difference between "שמשון מדן" and "ברק בן אבינועם מן נפתלי", but the same cannot be said of the wording of the Buber midrash, where it says "שמשון מדן, ברק מנפתלי".

Point D: The Targum: Targum Pseudo-Yonatan on Devarim 34:2 equally skirts around Barak's tribal identity and merely says that the men of Naftali joined forces with Barak.

Point E: Barak's name is "Barak" (ברק), obviously, which means "lightning" or "flash" in Hebrew. What's interesting is that on one hand, lightning is something fast, which ties into the quickness of Naftali, but on the other hand, the tribe that has the "bareket" gemstone (typically thought to have been the emerald), which has the root ברק (BR"K) in it, was assigned to...Levi! That's pretty fascinating, in my opinion.

Having laid out the evidence, we must now ask: So why in the world does the Tanach depict him as a man of Naftali?

Answer: I believe this was so because in a way, Barak was really a Naftalite at heart: He perfectly emulated the ways of Naftali. This can be seen both on a p'shat level and in midrashim. On the p'shat level, it says in the blessing of Naftali (Beresheet 49:21):

"נפתלי אילה שלחה" - "Naphtali is a hind let loose"

And about Barak it says (Shoftim 5:15):

"כן ברק בעמק שלח ברגליו"-"As Barak, rushing after him into the valley"

- we have here an emphasis on the quick-footedness of Naftali, and the same root word is used for Barak, describing his rushing-attack at Sisra's men and his chasing Sisra later. Barak emulated this trait of Naftali.

This same idea is mentioned in the midrash in Bamidbar Rabbah 14:11. Interestingly, that same midrash mentions that the Nasi (prince) of Naftali emulated his forefather, but while it mentions Barak, does not use the same emulation terminology when referring to him!

Now, why was Barak, out of all of the people in Naftali (including the Levites of Naftali), chosen for this task? Evidently it was not just a classic "Oh, I can't get this jar open, I'll call my husband" event (excuse the chauvinistic joke). War is no joke. What made Barak suitable for the job?

I originally had the idea that Barak had taken it upon himself to train all of the accidental murderers in the Galilee area, those stuck living in the Levite cities. When he was not off delivering wicks, he was travelling the Galilee, preparing the men for war. Those specific men were men with a certain bloodthirst. It takes a special kind of person to accidently kill someone - it means you weren't careful enough, and to some extant, that you didn't value enough the other person's life. Some have suggested that the Levites were joined with the murderers in order to re-educate them. I suggest that Barak decided to teach them how to use their bloodthirst for good.

Caveat: However, this is less-plausible halacha-wise, because the gemara in Makkot 11b says that a murderer may not leave a city of refuge even to save a life (!!!).

I can suggest that perhaps Barak had envisioned an event of national importance, in which even blood-avengers wouldn't pursue the murderers who were off fighting the nation's battle.

Alternatively, even if he wasn't spending his days training the accidental murderers, he at the very least knew the lay of the land, seeing as he made many journeys from Naftali to Shiloh.

If all or even some of this is true, then Barak was a well-known warrior and warrior-trainer in the Galilee, or at least very knowledgeable in its geography, which is why Devorah's choice would make sense.