Choice of Yerushalayim/2

Choice of Yerushalayim

Exegetical Approaches

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Religious Significance

Yerushalayim was picked as David's capital for its religious significance. The city was considered holy and Divinely chosen already from Creation.

Center of the world and site of creation – According to the TanchumaKedoshim 10About the Tanchuma,¹ Yerushalayim lies at the heart of the world² and from it were the heavens and earth created.³ This is alluded to in Tehillim 50:2: "מִצִּיּוֹן מִכְלַל יֹפִי אֱלֹהִים הוֹפִיעַ".

Continuous site of worship – RambamHilkhot Beit HaBechirah 2:2About R. Moshe b. Maimon, following Chazal,⁴ maintains that Yerushalayim (and the site of the Mikdash specifically) had a history of holiness, being a site of Divine worship throughout the ages.  It was the place where Avraham set up an altar to bind Yitzchak, and where Adam, Kayin, Hevel, and Noach all sacrificed to Hashem. Bavli PesachimPesachim 88aAbout the Bavli presents Yitzchak and Yaakov praying at Mt. Moriyah as well.⁵  This was no coincidence, but a result of the location's inherent sanctity.  It should be noted, however, that there is no textual evidence in Sefer Bereshit that any of these individuals, except for Avraham, sacrificed or prayed in Yerushalayim.⁶

"וַיִּקְרָא אַבְרָהָם שֵׁם הַמָּקוֹם הַהוּא י"י יִרְאֶה" – Rambam3 45About Rambam Moreh Nevukhim learns from Avraham's naming of the site of the Akeidah, י"י יִרְאֶה, that he already declared it to be the future site of the Mikdash in Jerusalem.⁷  Rambam adds that this fact was known to many, so that in the time of Moshe it was said of the mountain, "בְּהַר י"י יֵרָאֶה".

Beit El: "אֵין זֶה כִּי אִם בֵּית אֱלֹהִים" – Yaakov's declaration at Beit El would seem to suggest that he did not view Jerusalem as the sole chosen site, and that  Beit El, too, had potential to be the House of God.  However, to avoid coming to such a conclusion, some sources go to great lengths to reinterpret Yaakov's words:

• According to Bereshit Rabbah69:7About Bereshit Rabbah, Yaakov declares, "this is a house of God and gateway to heaven", not because of any Divine presence in Beit El, but rather because Yerushalayim appeared in his dream as the midpoint of the ladder and as a marker of the future site of the Beit HaMikdash.⁸  RashiBereshit 28:11Bereshit 28:17About R. Shelomo Yitzchaki, drawing on Bavli SanhedrinSanhedrin 95bAbout the Bavli,⁹ goes a step further to suggest that  Mt. Moriyah was actually uprooted and brought to Beit El.
• It is also possible that Yaakov was simply inaugurating Beit El as his own personal site of worship and not suggesting that it should be a national or spiritual center for future generations.

"הַמָּקוֹם אֲשֶׁר יִבְחַר י"י" in Sefer Devarim – According to this approach, all of these verses refer specifically to Yerushalayim. Various reasons are given as to why, then, it is not mentioned by name:

• For the nations – Rambam3 45About Rambam Moreh Nevukhim maintains that had the nations known the elevated stature of Yerushalayim they would have either fought violently to control it, or destroyed the city so as to prevent others from having it.
• For Israel – Keli YekarDevarim 12:4About R. Shelomo Ephraim Luntschitz, in contrast, suggests that Hashem deliberately kept the choice a secret, lest people belittle the earlier sites of Gilgal, Shiloh, Nov and Givon which all housed the Mishkan during earlier eras.  Rambam adds that Hashem wanted to avoid tribal rivalry over the site, as each tribe would have desired that it be located in their territory.¹⁰

Natural resources – Since Jerusalem is far from the major roads of its time, and borders the desert with poor agriculture and few natural resources, this position suggests that Israel was selected not for its natural conditions but despite them.¹¹  David's motives were wholly religious and not strategic.

Moving the Ark – David's first actions after conquering Yerushalayim are to bring the ark there and petition Hashem to build the Mikdash.  This lends support to the understanding that the reasons underlying the choice of city were religious in nature.

Why wasn't Yerushalayim Israel's first center? If Yerushalayim was chosen for its spiritual status, it is not clear why none of the leaders before David opted to make it either their political or spiritual capital.¹²

Security Considerations

David chose Jerusalem as his capital due to a combination of strategic factors, including its defensibility, central location, and availability of water resources.

Security – The City of David is relatively secure on all sides but the north, as it is surrounded by the Kidron Valley to the east, the Tyropoeon Valley to the west and the Hinnom Valley to the south. The very fact that it was still in the hands of the Jebusites in the time of David attests to its strength and difficulty of conquest.  That said, the site is not the highest of the cities on Israel's mountainous ridge, nor is it even the tallest in its vicinity.¹³  However, given the restrictions of the ammunition the time, the steep slopes of the city meant that the relatively lower height would not have significantly hampered the city's defenses.¹⁴

Water sources – The City of David was close to two springs, the Gichon and Ein Rogel.¹⁵  It is likely that it was this proximity to water sources which led to choosing specifically the City of David, on the lower eastern hill, rather than the higher western hill,¹⁶ despite this necessitating a slight compromise on security.

Central location – If David wanted his capital city to be accessible to all the tribes, a central location within the country was necessary.  Jerusalem is situated fairly in the middle of the country, fitting this criteria.

Eye on enemies – It is likely that David wanted to keep an eye on the Philistines, the biggest foreign threat during his reign.  Jerusalem was well situated to do so.

Trade routes – Jerusalem does not lie on either of the two international trade routes, the "Way of the Sea" (דרך הים) or the "King's Highway" (דרך המלך), though it was not far from the "Patriarch's Highway" (דרך האבות) that connected Shekhem and Chevron.¹⁷ This distance might not have been economically advantageous, but from a security perspective, it meant that Jerusalem was not on the route of potential invading armies.

Important ancient site – Jerusalem was already a significant city in ancient times, mentioned in the  Egyptian Execration texts (19th c. BCE)¹⁸ and the Amarna Letters (14th c. BCE),¹⁹ suggesting that it had strategic and military import unconnected to any special spiritual status.

Natural resources and agriculture – As Jerusalem cannot boast of many natural resources or rich agricultural land, these were probably not among David's reasons for choosing the site.

Political Needs

David's choice was political in nature, a part of his effort to unite the various tribes, and especially Yehuda and Binyamin, into one centralized nation.

Rejection of Chevron – David's first political center had been Chevron, where he had the support of his tribe. However, upon becoming king over all of Israel, David recognized that this might be viewed as nepotism and a favoring of his brethren.  Thus, to prevent jealousy among the other tribes, David decided to choose a new capital city.

Yerushalayim's neutrality – Since Yerushalayim had not yet been conquered in the time of David, it did not belong to any particular tribe,²⁰ making it an ideal choice for a neutral capital city which no individual tribe could claim as their own. David hoped that this would prevent tribal fighting and promote unity.

Border location – The City of David lies at the border between the inheritances of Binyamin and Yehuda. As there was much friction between these two tribes specifically (with Shaul coming from Binyamin and David from Yehuda), having them "share" in the capital city was an effective way for both to feel privileged and to reduce tension.

Modern parallels – David's choice might be seen as comparable to the selection of Washington D.C. as the capital of the United States.  It, too, is not considered part of any individual state, giving it neutrality.  It was built on land donated by two states, Maryland and Virginia, and was chosen as part of a compromise to satisfy the opposing interests of Northern Federalists and southern Anti-Federalists.²¹

Jerusalem's status in the Patriarchal period – This approach maintains that Yerushalayim was not an important religious center in the Patriarchal period, and as such this would not have been a reason for David to favor the site.  The forefathers call out to Hashem and set up altars in many locations, including Shechem,²² Beit El,²³ Chevron²⁴ and Be'er Sheva²⁵ and it was these which were probably the spiritual centers of the era. Though the Akeidah took place in Yerushalayim, the text does not highlight the fact, only mentioning the specific site of Mt. Moriyah.²⁶  In fact, Yerushalayim is not named even once in all of Torah,²⁷ supporting the idea that it was not yet considered to be of religious import.

"וַיִּקְרָא אַבְרָהָם שֵׁם הַמָּקוֹם הַהוּא י"י יִרְאֶה"

• Though this verse would seem to suggest that Avraham already marked and selected Yerushalayim as a future site of worship,  this position might suggest that this was only one of many sanctified sites. As seen above, there were other cultic centers during the Patriarchal period. Throughout the pre-Monarchic period as well, other locations such as Gilgal, Shiloh, Nov and Givon served as spiritual centers.
• Alternatively, the statement was simply said via prophecy, as Avraham foresaw that Yerushalayim and Mt. Moriyah were ultimately to be chosen by David and sanctified by Hashem.²⁸

"הַמָּקוֹם אֲשֶׁר יִבְחַר י"י" in Sefer Devarim – The fact that Yerushalayim is not mentioned by name²⁹ supports the idea that there were multiple options for the "chosen" site.³⁰

"לְשִׁכְנוֹ תִדְרְשׁוּ" versus "יִבְחַר י"י" – Who chose Yerushalayim?

• The Sifre 12:5About Sifre Devarimlearns from these two phrases that it was incumbent on man to search for an appropriate site for Hashem's worship (לְשִׁכְנוֹ תִדְרְשׁוּ) and that only afterwards would this be confirmed by Hashem via the prophet (יִבְחַר י"י). Thus David, on his own,³¹ chose Yerushalayim and Mt. Moriyah as God's abode.³²
• RambanDevarim 17:15About R. Moshe b. Nachman further explains that the phrase "הַמָּקוֹם אֲשֶׁר יִבְחַר י"י" need not insinuate that Hashem was to partake in the choosing at all; the language is rather a figure of speech which expresses that all is from God's will.

Jerusalem's resources and security – Though Jerusalem is relatively secure, other cities could have provided similar defenses, suggesting that this was not David's primary motive.

¹ See also Rashi Bavli YomaYoma 54bAbout R. Shelomo Yitzchaki: "ציון נבראת תחילה וסביביה נדבקו רגבים עד סוף העולם מכל צד."

² See also Masekhet Derekh Eretz 7:32, where Shemuel HaKatan likens the world to an eye and Jerusalem to the middle of the pupil.  This centrality of Jerusalem is pictorially represented in several medieval maps which position Jerusalem at the center of the world.  For example, see  H. Bunting's famous clover leaf map of 1581, the Ebstorf map of the mid 13th century, the Psalter map of 1265, and the Hereford Mappa Mundi (c.1300).

³ See also Tosefta YomaYoma 2:12About the Tosefta, Yerushalmi YomaYoma 5:3About the Yerushalmi, and Bavli YomaYoma 54bAbout the Bavli who all speak of Jerusalem as the site of creation, though they do not mention it being in the center of the world. 

⁴ See Bereshit Rabbah34:9About Bereshit Rabbah, Pirkei DeRabbi Eliezer 2323About Pirkei DeRabbi Eliezer, and Pirkei DeRabbi Eliezer 31331About Pirkei DeRabbi Eliezer.

⁵ The Bavli derives that Yitzchak did so from the verse, "וַיֵּצֵא יִצְחָק לָשׂוּחַ בַּשָּׂדֶה" (Bereshit 24:63) where "שיחה" is understood as prayer and "שָׂדֶה" to refer to Jerusalem and the site of the Mikdash, as in the verse, "צִיּוֹן שָׂדֶה תֵחָרֵשׁ" (Mikhah 3:12).  [Cf. the NetzivBereshit 24:63About R. Naftali Tzvi Yehuda Berlin who suggests that Yitzchak was not actually in Jerusalem, but that he prayed towards the site.]  Yaakov, too, is said to have prayed at Mt. Moriyah, while en route to Charan.  See Bavli SanhedrinSanhedrin 95bAbout the Bavli which reads the phrase "וַיִּפְגַּע בַּמָּקוֹם" to refer to Yaakov's praying at "the place", i.e. the known site of the Mikdash.  See similarly Pirkei DeRabbi Eliezer35About Pirkei DeRabbi Eliezer and the discussion regarding the identification of Beit El with Jerusalem below.

⁶ Pirkei DeRabbi Eliezer31About Pirkei DeRabbi Eliezer asserts that when speaking of the altar on which Avraham placed Yitzchak, the verse writes, "וַיִּבֶן שָׁם אַבְרָהָם אֶת הַמִּזְבֵּחַ", with a definite article, suggesting that this was a known altar that had been used by prior generations. However, no sacrifice of Adam is even mentioned in the text, and there is no reason to believe that Kayin and Hevel's offerings were given in Yerushalayim specifically. Similarly, since the ark landed on the mountains of Ararat, it would be likely that Noach offered his sacrifice in that vicinity, rather than on Mt. Moriyah.

⁷ Avraham's announcement of י"י יראה ("Hashem will see") thus proclaims that this place would later be one of revelation. See also Targum Onkelos who does not explicitly mention the Mikdash, but explains similarly that there will be Divine service in this location: "וּפְלַח וְצַלִּי אַבְרָהָם, תַּמָּן בְּאַתְרָא הַהוּא, אֲמַר קֳדָם יְיָ הָכָא יְהוֹן פָּלְחִין דָּרַיָּא".

⁸ See also Bavli PesachimPesachim 88aAbout the Bavli which identifies Beit El with the site of the Mikdash.

⁹ The Bavli explains the phrase "וַיִּפְגַּע בַּמָּקוֹם" to refer to Mt. Moriyah, but does not explicitly suggest that it moved to Beit El.  It more simply suggests that when Yaakov reached Charan, he realized that he had passed Mt. Moriyah without praying there and returned to do so.

¹⁰ For further discussion of why Yerushalayim is never named in Torah, see R"Y Levy's article, Why Does the Torah Not Mention Jerusalem by Name?

¹¹ See R. Rubin, "ירושלים וסביבותיה: השפעת התנאים הפיסיים על יישובה של ירושלים" in ספר ירושלים: תקופת המקרא  ed. S. Achituv and A. Mazar (Jerusalem, 2000): 1-12.  He writes: " נראה לפיכך, שעלייתה של ירושלים.... התרחש לא בשל תנאי הטבע, אלא למרות מגבלותיהם של תנאים אלה."

¹² In the time of Yehoshua, Shiloh and Shekhem played those roles, while in the time of Shaul, the two centers were Givat Shaul and Nov.  In each case the cities chosen were located within the leader's tribe, suggesting that political rather than religious considerations lay behind the choice.

¹³ The City of David lies 690 meters above sea level as opposed to the 900 meters of Chevron and Beit El.  Even just looking at the two hills that later made up Jerusalem, it is not the City of David but rather the western part of the city (Mt. Zion and the Jewish and Armenian Quarters of today) which is on the higher mountain (measuring 770 meters). This fact might have been what led Josephus to erroneously refer to this western section as "the stronghold of David".  It is probably also what led Christian pilgrims of the Byzantine and Crusader periods to originally identify this area, rather than the City of David, as Mt. Zion, replete with David's tomb and citadel.  For discussion of this misidentification, see Hershel Shanks, “The Tombs of David and Other Kings of Judah,” Jerusalem: An Archaeological Biography (New York: 1995), 35-43.

¹⁴ See R. Rubin in the article cited above.

¹⁵ At first glance the name of the city "ציון", from the root "ציי" meaning dry or desolate, would argue against the possibility that the city was remarkable specifically due to its water sources.  See, though, R"Y Elitzur, מקום בפרשה (Tel Aviv 2014): 261-272, who suggests that Zion originally referred to the larger area surrounding the City of David, which was indeed barren desert.  Mezudat Zion, then, referred to the fortress in the area of Zion.  See Elitzur's article for other explanations of the name, including the possibility that it stems from the root "צין" which is related to the Arabic root "צון", meaning to watch or guard. According to such a derivation the name reflected the strength of the site, and perhaps related to the fortress built on top.

¹⁶ See above that the larger city of Jerusalem is made up of two hills, separated by the Tyropean valley, and the Western Hill was about 90 meters higher than the City of David.

¹⁷ See the story of the Concubine in Givah in Shofetim 19:11, where the servant tells his master, "לְכָה נָּא וְנָסוּרָה אֶל עִיר הַיְבוּסִי הַזֹּאת וְנָלִין בָּהּ".  The fact that they have to veer off the path, means that Yevus (Yerushalayim) was somewhat off the highway.

¹⁸ There was a ritual, common in the Ancient Near East, of cursing, or execrating, one’s enemies by writing their names on a figurine or clay bowl and then smashing it as a sign of the enemy's defeat.  Ancient Jerusalem was apparently viewed by the Egyptians as enough of a threat to include it in their texts. One of the execration figurines is pictured here.

¹⁹ These are a series of about 350 clay tablets found in el Amarna, the ancient capital of king Akhenaten.  They contain diplomatic correspondence between the Egyptian administration in Canaan and those ruling in Egypt.

²⁰ See Bavli YomaYoma 12aAbout the Bavli / Bavli MegillahMegillah 26aAbout the Bavli and Avot DeRabbi Natan35About Avot DeRabbi Natan for various opinions regarding whether or not Jerusalem was ultimately divided among all the tribes, among just Binyamin and Yehuda, or belonged to no one. For a full discussion, see Prof. Y. Ta-Shma's article, מעמד ירושלים בחלוקת הארץ.

²¹ Other parallels of interest include: 

• Thirteen States – In both cases there are 13 states/ tribes (Yosef is divided into two).
• Debate over centralized authority – In the period of the Judges there is a question of whether or not to appoint a king, parallel to the debates between Federalists and Anti-Federalists regarding the power that should be given to the central government.
• Tensions between North and South – There is friction between the Northern tribes of Yosef and Binyamin and the Southern tribe of Yehuda, similar to the tensions between the Northern and Southern States.  In both cases this eventually leads to Civil War.
• Capital's name - In both Tanakh and U.S. history, the capital is named after the general who united the nation, King David (City of David) and General Washington (Washington D.C.).

²² See Bereshit 12:6-8 and Bereshit 33:18-20.

²³ See Bereshit 12:8, Bereshit 13:3-4, Bereshit 28, and Bereshit 35:1-7.

²⁴ See Bereshit 13:18.

²⁵ See Bereshit 21:33.  Though Avraham does not build an altar here, he does cry out to God and plant an Eshel.  It is likely that the planting was a religious act, as R. D"Z Hoffmann suggests, "נראה שעץ זה שימש לעבוד תחתיו, כמקום מקדש". [In the Ancient Near East many worshiped their gods under trees (See, for example, Devarim 12:2) so it is not surprising that Avraham might do so as well.]  See also Bereshit 46 which describes Yaakov sacrificing to Hashem and receiving prophecy in Be'er Sheva as he descends to Egypt.

²⁶ Had it not been for the verse in Divrei HaYamim II 3:1 which locates the site as being where David sacrificed on the threshing floor of Aravnah the Jebusite, the reader would never have known that it was in Yerushalayim at all.

²⁷ However, the city Shalem (from which Malkizedek comes to greet Avraham in Bereshit 14) has been identified with Yerushalayim. [See, for example, Josephus and Bereshit Rabbah56:10About Bereshit Rabbah who make the identification.]  This is based both on the similarity between the names and the parallel between it and the name Zion in Tehillim 76:3. .

²⁸ See also the controversial statement of Ibn EzraDevarim 1:2About R. Avraham ibn Ezra, which has been understood by some to mean that the verse is a later addition, inserted into Torah only after Jerusalem was in fact chosen by David. See

²⁹ See ShadalBereshit 12:6Bereshit 35:15Devarim 12:5About R. Shemuel David Luzzatto who asserts that the lack of identification provides proof against Biblical critics who claim that Sefer Devarim was written after the rise of the Davidic dynasty.  He points out that had that been the case, there is no doubt that an author would have mentioned Jerusalem explicitly as by then it was clearly both the political capital and spiritual center.  The silence is only logical if Yerushalayim had not yet been chosen.

³⁰ See ChizkuniDevarim 12:5About R. Chizkiyah b. Manoach who asserts that the verse does not specify Yerushalayim, since all the sites which housed the Mishkan were sanctified and chosen by Hashem. SefornoDevarim 12:5About R. Ovadyah Seforno similarly asserts that the phrase might refer to either Shiloh or Yerushalayim. R. HoffmannDevarim 12:4About R. David Zvi Hoffmann suggests, instead, that the phrase does not mean to highlight any specific location, but rather that Hashem's place of worship will be chosen by Him, unlike the hilltops which were chosen by human idolaters. He further asserts that if the verse did refer to any one site, it would be Shiloh, the first cultic center after the Conquest. As evidence he points to Yehoshua 9:27, where Yehoshua assigns the Givonites to be water drawers and wood choppers in , "הַמָּקוֹם אֲשֶׁר יִבְחָר", which could only refer to Shiloh at that point.

³¹ The many verses which later speak of Hashem having chosen Yerushalayim (see, for example, Melakhim I 8:44, Melakhim I 11:13 and  Divrei HaYamim II 6:5-6) are understood to mean that Hashem sanctioned David's choice.  In fact, after building the Mikdash (Melakhim I 8 / Divrei HaYamim II 6), Shelomo tells the nation how Hashem had said to David, that prior to his era, He had not yet chosen a city: "מִן הַיּוֹם אֲשֶׁר הוֹצֵאתִי אֶת עַמִּי מֵאֶרֶץ מִצְרַיִם לֹא בָחַרְתִּי בְעִיר מִכֹּל שִׁבְטֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל לִבְנוֹת בַּיִת לִהְיוֹת שְׁמִי שָׁם".  Only now, "וָאֶבְחַר בִּירוּשָׁלַ‍ִם לִהְיוֹת שְׁמִי שָׁם וָאֶבְחַר בְּדָוִיד לִהְיוֹת עַל עַמִּי יִשְׂרָאֵל".

³² As evidence that David searched for such a place on his own, the Midrash points to Tehillim 132, and David's oath there: "אִם אָבֹא בְּאֹהֶל בֵּיתִי אִם אֶעֱלֶה עַל עֶרֶשׂ יְצוּעָי.  אִם אֶתֵּן שְׁנַת לְעֵינָי לְעַפְעַפַּי תְּנוּמָה. עַד אֶמְצָא מָקוֹם לַי"י "