[Avodah] Rambam Prophesy

[Alexander Seinfeld]

On 5/31/21, 8:30 PM, Zev Sero <zev at sero.name>  wrote:
>>The problem with this Rambam is that not only does God talk to Avimelech
>>in the dream, they conduct an entire conversation...

>Because he defines nevuah as a connection with Hashem, not as simply
>receiving a message from Hashem.  Anyone can receive a message; Hashem
>doesn't need Western Union to send them.  But that's not nevuah.

>"When the Spirit rests on him, his soul is mixed up with the level of
>the angels known as 'Ishim', and he turns into another person, and he
>understands with his mind that he is not as he was, but has been raised
>above the level of other wise men, as it is said in Shaul's case, 'you
>will prophesy and will become another person'."

>That doesn't happen when you receive a message.  A message is just
>information.  Lavan and Avimelech remained the same as they were before,
>they just knew something they hadn't known before.

Sounds like we are agreeing that Rambam deals with Laban and Avimelech's
nevuah semantically. For conceptually, the exclusion of them is not at all
obvious, for 2 reasons:

1. Most people would call a direct communication with God "nevuah".

2. And in the case of Avimelech, it's more than information, it's a
conversation. And indeed, it changes him (and Lavan) - it causes him to
change his behavior.