Government of ancient Israel
- Government of ancient Israel
The king of ancient Israel was not an absolute monarch. By tradition, the King was required to obey the laws of the Torah, which includes both religious laws and 'secular' laws. Rabbinic political theory describes authority as being split between three powers: the "Crown of Kingship" ("keter malkhut"), the "Crown of Priesthood" ("keter kehuna"), and the "Crown of Torah" ("keter torah"). According to this theory, institutional power was shared between this triumvirate of monarch, priest, and prophet.
The ministers of the king were not allowed to listen to the king if he commanded to break any laws.
However, the king had certain rights that the average citizen did not have, such as being allowed to create a thoroughfare through private property.
The king could be tried by the Sanhedrin, the supreme court of Israel. This right originally applied to all kings of Israel, but was limited to kings of the house of King David when King Yanai of the house of Hasmoneans intimidated the Sanhedrin.
The king had certain laws that he had to follow over and above the rest of the nation, such as having to always have a Torah scroll with him, and having limits on the amount of money and horses he was allowed to have.
The Jewish hope for a Messiah is that a king arise from the house of David who, while ruling over the people of Israel, will follow the laws of the Torah and build its institutions.
Further reading
* Elazar, Daniel Judah and Stuart Cohen. "The Jewish Polity: Jewish Political Organization from Biblical Times to the Present". 1995: Indiana University Press
ee also
*United Monarchy
Wikimedia Foundation.
2010.
Look at other dictionaries:
SOCIAL STRUCTURE OF ANCIENT ISRAEL — the source methods hebrew society prior to the rise of israel in canaan the pre monarchic period tribal and sub tribal units institutions social changes urbanization changes in the tribal system the monarchy and the tribal system national class… … Encyclopedia of Judaism
Pre-Roman history of ancient Israel and Judah — The Pre Roman history of ancient Israel and Judah covers the First Temple Era (c. 1000 BCE) to the capture of Jerusalem by the Roman Empire (63 BCE), under whom it was also known as the province of Iudaea.As well as a significant historical… … Wikipedia
Israel — Israelites † Catholic Encyclopedia ► Israelites The word designates the descendants of the Patriarch Jacob, or Israel. It corresponds to the Hebrew appellation children of Israel , a name by which together with the simple form Israel… … Catholic encyclopedia
Ancient history — Ancient redirects here. For other uses, see Ancient (disambiguation). The times before writing belong either to protohistory or to prehistory. Ancient history is the study of the written past [Crawford, O. G. S. (1927). Antiquity. [Gloucester,… … Wikipedia
Israel — This article is about the modern country. For other uses, see Israel (disambiguation). State of Israel … Wikipedia
Kingdom of Israel (Samaria) — Kingdom of Israel ← … Wikipedia
Israel–Japan relations — Israel Japan relations Israel … Wikipedia
ancient Rome — ▪ ancient state, Europe, Africa, and Asia Introduction the state centred on the city of Rome. This article discusses the period from the founding of the city and the regal period, which began in 753 BC, through the events leading to the… … Universalium
Israel Shamir — (born 11 June 1947) [ [http://www.magasinet monitor.net/jermas.jpgPassport] as on Monitor magazine website.] is a writer and journalist who is known as a controversial anti Zionist. He is a citizen of Sweden, where his legal name is Adam Ermash… … Wikipedia
Kingdom of Israel — The Kingdom of Israel () and the rebellion became complete. The Tribe of Ephraim and all Israel raised the old cry, Every man to his tents, O Israel .() Rehoboam fled to Jerusalem (1 Kings 12:1 18; 2 Chronicles 10), and in 930 BCE to 920 BCE,… … Wikipedia
