For the source text click/tap here: Moed Katan 26
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Our Daf brings a passage in II Shmuel (1:11-12) that describes King David’s reaction to the news that King Saul and his son Yehonatan had been killed and that the army of the Jewish people had been defeated.
From the fact that David and his men tore their clothes, mourned and fasted, the Sages deduce that one is obligated in keriya (tearing one’s clothes) over the Nasi (King Saul), the Av Bet Din (Yehonatan), and news of tragedy (the Jewish people who lost the war).
We explore the scene where the Amaleki brings the news of Saul’s death and compare the discrepancies with the same narrative in the last chapter of I Samuel….how does the reader use them to uncover tensions in the set about what occurred and David’s ambivalence.
What does the lament tell us about the character of King David and how might that compare to the kings of England portrayed in Shakespeare's’ historical plays?