Parshas Vayeitzei
By Rabbi Dovid Zauderer
In two places in Tanach (The Holy Bible), when describing King Saul’s earliest prophesy, we find mention of a “band of prophets”.
See I Samuel 10:5: “After that you will arrive at the Hill of G-d, where the Philistine commissioners are stationed. It shall be that when you arrive at the city you will encounter a ‘band of prophets descending from the High Place, and before them [players of] lyre, drum, flute and harp, and they will be prophesying”. And again five verses later in verse 10: “They arrived there at the Hill and behold! a ‘band of prophets’ was opposite him. The spirit of G-d passed over him, and he prophesied among them.”
Who was this mysterious “band of prophets” and how did it come to be?
Listen to this amazing answer given by both the Vilna Gaon and the Chid”a:
But first we have to ask another question …
In Psalm #99 (verse 6) of King David’s Book of Psalms - which is publicly recited in the synagogue every Friday night as part of the Kabbalas Shabbos (“Greeting the Sabbath”) Service - we find an interesting verse:
“Moses and Aaron [were] among His priests, and Samuel among those ‘who invoke His name’, they called upon G-d and He answered them.”
The Sforno and other Bible commentators explain the words שׁמו קראי ‘who invoke His name’ in the verse as to be referring to G-d’s name, with the intended meaning that just as Moses and Aaron were holy priests who served G-d, so, too, did Samuel invoke His name, in prayer and in the service of G-d.
However, the Vilna Gaon and the Chid”a offer an alternative translation of קראי שׁמו, in which the words do not mean “invoking G-d’s name” but are referring instead to “those who were called [i.e., named] by his name [i.e., Samuel’s own name!]”
What does this mean, you ask?
Vilna Gaon and Chida”h explain with the help of a Midrash Aggadas Shmuel Rabbosi (chapter 3) which relates the most amazing thing:
“Over the period of one year, a heavenly voice went forth, proclaiming, “An extremely righteous soul is about to enter the world, and the child who bears this soul will be called, שׁמואל, Samuel [from the two words שׁמו קל, his name is G-d].
“All mothers who bore males at the time gave their sons the name Samuel – in the hope that their son would bear a lofty soul and become the next great prophet. However, the behaviour of these boys soon proved that they were unworthy of this extraordinary name. Finally, the prophet Samuel was born to a woman named Hannah. All who observed Samuel’s conduct agreed that he was truly worthy of his lofty name.”
The Vilna Gaon and the Chid”a explain further – and here we are coming to the main point - that the other boys at that time, who may not have become the famous prophet and leader of the Jewish people that Samuel was, but who nevertheless were קראי שׁמו, called by his [Samuel’s] name, raised by parents who thought their little boy might yet have a chance at one day reaching heights of greatness, and raised their children with that possibility in mind – ultimately these boys became Samuel’s disciples and great prophets themselves. The Holy Spirit descended upon them, and they become known as the “band of prophets” – the ones that are mentioned twice in Tanach.
The lesson in raising great children is as follows:
Imagine if we were sent a message from Heaven that our next child could potentially become a great tzaddik (righteous person) who could literally bring Messiah and save the world? How would we act around this child? We would be so careful not to expose him to anything inappropriate or nasty. After all, he might become a great leader of the Jewish people! Much the same way all the women in Hannah’s generation thought there might be a possibility that their son could become the next great prophet of the Jewish people. So they treated their sons with extra care and spiritual sensitivity. Right? Well, guess what? We, too, might have been entrusted with children that – if raised well – might one day grow up to become great tzaddikim or Jewish leaders. Who knows?!
What the story of Samuel teaches us is that if you raise a child to be a Samuel, although he might not become Samuel the Prophet, he will likely become a member of good standing in the Band of Prophets… and that’s pretty good!
http://www.torchweb.org/torah_detail.php?id=737