The Depth of the Fall of Yerovam ben Nevat and the Secret of the Hidden Books

Class No. 59 | *Monday, Parashas Behar-Bechukosai, 18 Iyar, Lag BaOmer 5756

This article by Rabbi Berland shlit"a reveals the root of the historical fall of Yerovam ben Nevat, which began with a public rebuke and arrogance. Through the words of Likutey Moharan, the secret of the hidden books is explained, along with the immense danger hidden within the wisdom of apikorsus (heresy), which could deceive even the greatest of the tzaddikim.

King Solomon built the Millo. He took a plot of land that belonged to the Olei Regalim (pilgrims ascending to Jerusalem for the festivals), a place where they used to pitch tents and camp, and he closed the breach that his father David had opened in the City of David. At one of the gates, he built a palace for the daughter of Pharaoh. Furthermore, he took the pilgrims who passed through there and subjected them to angaria (forced labor)—conscripting them as plumbers, carpenters, and glaziers, in order to repair everything that was broken in the palace. He even collected special taxes from them to maintain the palace of Pharaoh's daughter.

King David had made many breaches in the wall so that the Jewish people could ascend for the pilgrimage from all directions without being crowded, until they reached the Jaffa Gate, the Zion Gate, or the Damascus Gate. Solomon, however, fenced them in to collect taxes and enslave the pilgrims. Because of this, Yerovam ben Nevat came and rebuked King Solomon in public.

But Yerovam made a grave mistake—he rebuked Solomon in public. When a person rebukes his friend in public, it is ineffective. He should have rebuked him in private; then, he either would have influenced him or, at the very least, fulfilled his obligation of rebuke. Because he rebuked the King of Israel publicly, Hashem said to him: "Now I will test you with something in which you will fail infinitely more. You will build walls around Jerusalem and decree that no one may ever ascend to Jerusalem again."

The Root of the Fall: Arrogance

The Talmud says regarding the verse:

"And this is the matter for which he lifted up his hand against the king" (Kings I 11:27).

Rav Nachman said: He removed his tefillin in front of him. Removing one's tefillin in the presence of one's Rav is considered a tremendous disgrace, and he did this intentionally to humiliate Solomon.

The holy Rebbe, Rebbe Nachman of Breslov, explains that everything stemmed from arrogance. Everything that happens to a person, the downfalls and the mistakes, all stem from arrogance and infinite pride. Yerovam thought he knew everything, that there was no one wiser than him, that he was the greatest Halachic decisor. A person can be the greatest of his generation, and even the greatest of several generations, like Yerovam who taught novel Torah insights that no ear had ever heard, and nevertheless make a grave mistake that any small child can clearly see.

If a person does not uproot pride from within himself, he can make the most terrible mistakes in the world that will completely abandon the entire Jewish people to ruin. The arrogance that was within Yerovam is what drove him out of the world.

The Heretical Wisdom of Yerovam

Yerovam made a political and personal calculation. He said in his heart:

"Now the kingdom will return to the House of David. If this people goes up to offer sacrifices in the House of Hashem in Jerusalem, then the heart of this people will turn back to their lord, to Rechavam king of Judah, and they will kill me" (Kings I 12:26-27).

He knew the Halacha that sitting in the Temple Courtyard is permitted only for the kings of the House of David. He understood that when the people would see Rechavam sitting and him standing, they would say, "This one is the king and this one is the servant," and they would kill him as a rebel against the monarchy. Immediately, he took counsel and made two golden calves in Beis El and Dan.

The question arises: How does one make golden calves in a single day? How do you convince an entire nation that just yesterday went to the Holy Temple, to suddenly go and worship calves in Beis El and Dan with self-sacrifice? Is it conceivable that he misled a great nation with such foolishness?

The holy Rebbe explains in Likutey Moharan that Yerovam certainly possessed very great wisdoms of apikorsus (heresy). If, Heaven forbid, even one page of these books of Yerovam ben Nevat had remained today, people would be driven very far away from Hashem, blessed be He, and it would be impossible to draw close to Him at all. He had such persuasive arguments that even we would bow down to idolatry and would be unable to serve Hashem.

The Secret of the Hidden Books

From here we learn a tremendous foundational principle regarding books and Torah teachings that have disappeared from the world. There are hidden tzaddikim who know deep facets of the Torah, yet they must conceal their teachings. The main thing is the spiritual effect that the Torah accomplishes through its very concealment. There are teachings that are completely forbidden to exist in the atmosphere of the world, because they arouse harsh judgment.

It is a great favor to the world that there are books that have disappeared and been burned, because through this, the books of heretics and non-believers are also burned. Avraham Avinu wrote 400 tractates on idolatry to explain all the foreign worships in the world, and we have no trace of them. The Tanna'im and Amora'im wrote many books that were lost. If they had not been lost, the books of the wicked or of the great leaders of the generation who made a mistake would also have remained, and the entire world would have followed that mistake.

How Were the Tzaddikim Deceived?

How did Yerovam actually succeed in deceiving everyone? The Talmud relates that he seated one hundred men: fifty tzaddikim and fifty wicked men. He arranged them so that for every tzaddik, two wicked men sat beside him, one on his right and one on his left. He said to the tzaddikim, "Sign whatever I request." They agreed, for after all, he was a righteous king.

When he told them that he wanted them to worship idolatry, the tzaddikim cried out in protest. But the wicked men sitting beside them calmed them down and said, "Does it enter your mind that a great man like Yerovam ben Nevat would worship stars? Rather, he only wants to test you."

In this way, he managed to get even Achiya HaShiloni, the prophet of Hashem, to sign. With this signature of Achiya HaShiloni, they went from city to city and from village to village. When the people saw an endorsement from the prophet, everyone followed the calves. Even Yehu, who had cut off all the prophets of the Baal and the Asherah with self-sacrifice, stumbled with the calves. Why? Because they showed him the signature of Achiya HaShiloni. He saw the seal of Achiya HaShiloni, saw it, and erred.

Part 3 of 4 — Class No. 59

→ Previous Part | Next Part ←

All Parts: Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 (Current) | Part 4