[Avodah] Rambam Prophesy

[Alexander Seinfeld]

Yes, and in Ch. 41 Rambam deals with Laban and Avimelech¹s nevuah
semantically - 

"And Elohim (an angel) came to a certain person in the dream of night,"
does not indicate a prophecy, and the person mentioned in that phrase is
not a prophet; the phrase only informs us that the attention of the person
was called by God to a certain thing, and at the same time that this
happened at night. For just as God may cause a person to move in order to
save or kill another person, so He may cause, according to His will,
certain things to rise in man's mind in a dream by night. We have no doubt
that the Syrian Laban was a perfectly wicked man, and an idolater;
likewise Abimelech, though a good man among his people, is told by Abraham
concerning his land [Gerar] and his kingdom," Surely there is no fear of
God in this place" (Gen. xx. 11) And yet concerning both of them, viz.,
Laban and Abimelech, it is said [that an angel appeared to them in a
dream]. Comp." And Elohirn (an angel) came to Abimelech in a dream by
night" (ibid. ver. 3): and also," And Elohim came to the Syrian Laban in
the dream of the night" (ibid. XXXi. 24)."

The problem with this Rambam is that not only does God talk to Avimelech
in the dream, they conduct an entire conversation. The Rambam ignores this
detail and files it under ³causes certain things to rise in man¹s mind in
a dream² - well if those certain things are messages from God, and all the
more so if the person is able to reply and get further messages from God,
it seems like a bit of semantic gymnastics to say, that¹s not prophecy,
but visiting righteous people in a dream is prophecy. Why not just say
that Avimelech¹s dream is a horaah shaah prophecy?


On 5/27/21, 5:12 PM, "Micha Berger" <micha at aishdas.org> wrote:

>There is no "horaas shaah" exceptions, because according to the Rambam,
>the topic of who is a navi isn't one of hora'ah, but of metaphysical
>causality. Anyone who sufficiently aligns their intellect (including
>their Dei'os) with Truth will experience the outflow from the Active
>Intellect.