ELUAH IN YIDDISH LITERATURE - Jewish Bible Quarterly

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inhabitants of the land who spoke unto David, saying: 'Except thou take away
the blind and the lame, thou shalt not come in hither; thinking: 'David cannot
come in hither' " (II Sam. 5 :6).
It is difficult to fathom the precise intention of this verse. Was the Jebusite
king mocking David, saying that even if he placed the lame and the blind on the
wall David would not be able to prevail against them? Or, perhaps basing
conjecture on Hittite sources, we might say, "the blind and the lame" was the
name given ironically to divisions of his army to describe their special characteristics.
They were select troops who took an oath of loyalty to their king
swearing by the light of their eyes and their ability to march, as a sign of their
faithfulness to him. Should this conjecture be true, David was faced by select
troops, who cast dread on his soldiers. One thing was clear, David was faced
by very strong opposition, being warned "thou shalt not come in hither," and
"David cannot come in hither."
David bade his soldiers to smite the enemy with deeds of heroism: "And
David said on that day: Whosoever smiteth the Jebusites, and getteth up to the
gutter, and (taketh away) the lame and the blind, that are hated of David's
soul" (II Sam. 5 :8). In I Chronicles 11 :6, we read a more detailed description:
"And David said: Whosoever smiteth the Jebusites first, shall be chief and
captain." And Joab, the son of Zeruiab, went up first and was made chief.
If we combine these two sources, it becomes clear that David was faced with
an unusual kind of war which demanded the heroic exploits of individuals. It
seems logical but not certain that David's army, led by Joab, the son of Zeruiah,
broke into Jerusalem by way of the tunnel, capturing the water-source, and,
reaching the upper town, surprised the Jebusites, and conquered the fortress.
This may well be the explanation of "and be reached the gutter," that is, the
water gutter.
"And David took the stronghold of Zion; the same is the city of David"
(II Sam. 5 :7).
To be continued
TWENTY FIRST NATIONAL BIBLE STUDY CONFERENCE
The twenty first national Bible study conference of the Israel Society for Biblical
Research will be held in Jerusalem from April 8-JJ. The books to be studied this year
are Psalms and Ruth. About forty Biblical scholars will participate. Since its inception 9
the Society has completed the intensive study of the Tenakh and is presently in its
second cycle.
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