Tanach Thoughts

Well, it has definitely been too long. I started the draft of this post a month ago but haven't gotten around to finishing it and posting it. My bad. My head hasn't been in the game. If you were checking back every now and then, waiting - I apologize. So, the moment you have all been waiting for: Why is Devorah a Levite? This is part two of the two-part series presenting my theory on the true tribal identity of the judges Barak and Devorah. Part one may be viewed here . I'll note that I've added another point on Barak about the etymology of his name. That was one of the points I'd thought of over a year ago, but forgot to put it in the post. It's there now. Though many of the proofs used for Barak cover also Devorah, she also has some unique points in her own right: 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 an...

Recently I stumbled upon a site  that appears to have been some sort of high school Tanach project in Israel. In the site, the writers, apparently students, discussed the story of Achiyah Hashiloni anointing Yerov'am as though it was a criminal trial. They pointed fingers at Achiyah for plotting with Yerov'am to take over the United Israeli Kingdom and creating an Efraim-based government. I actually thought they made a fascinating point: From a secular perspective, it certainly seems as though Achiyah, from the old Israeli religious capital Shiloh, situated in Efraim's tribal territory, wanted to return the old glory of Efraim by seizing control of the kingdom through the anointing of Yerov'am to kingship. The Tanach provides us the religious/spiritual background, but now I wonder whether there were people in that generation who may have not been aware of all of the spiritual processes that took place and, as bystanders, may have thought that this is exactly what happen...