Arrogance Killed the Cat

In this week's Navi class, we explored Shlomo's reign and the implications of his actions. We realized that as Shlomo reigned longer, he became more corrupted, whereas when he was just beginning his Malchut, he deeply loved Hashem and dedicated much of this time to building Hashem's home, the Beit Hamikdash. As his reign progressed, he became more pretentious, haughty, and concerned with his own reputation and welfare. As punishment for his actions, the kingdom was set to be split after his death. After Shlomo's death, Yerovam ruled over Israel. Yerovam sinned by erecting Bamot in Dan and Beit-El and appointing Kohanim that were not Leviim, therefore preventing Bnei Yisrael from going to Yerushalyim to offer Korbanot in the Beit Hamikdash during the Shalosh Regalim. He even created an imaginary holiday exactly a month after the holiday of Sukkot.

We then explored how the kings are introduced in Melachim Bet and learned about Uziyah and his sins. Uziyah was a relatively good king until he sinned and was plagued with Tzarrat. We compared and contrasted the altered stories in Melachim Bet and Divrei Hayamim. Divrei Hayamim explains how Uziyah was plagued with Tzarrat. Uziyah was a man of valor and conquered many lands. As a result, he wanted to bring Korbanot to the Mizbeach, even though he was not a Kohen. The Kohanim banished him from the Beit Hamikdash, but he continued to sacrifice. As a punishment, he became a Metzorah all the days of his life. Uziyah was arrogant and his arrogance led him to his punishment.

This seems to be a recurring theme in the kings' rule, arrogance. Arrogance is something that prevails in the world today. People feel they are more superior to others and turn into vain and conceited human beings. I believe that Yirmiyahu and the other Neviim were trying to convey the impact of arrogance to us. We must take this message and channel it positively. One must not be completely hide his talents but realize the right time to use them. We need to recognize our strengths and special abilities to a certain extent and work together to utilize these talents in order to make the world a better place.