[Avodah] Medrash ?

[Michael Poppers]

In Avodah V41n62, RJR asked, "Someone mentioned to me a medrash that Shir
Hashirim has 117 psukim because David Hamelech had 3 sins which deserved
malkot (3x39=117)
Anyone know where this is found?"
Google'ing, I see Sefaria.org (URL
https://www.sefaria.org/sheets/395598?lang=bi) quoting REMansour, "
</sheets/395598>
שיר השירים רבה א׳:א׳:ח׳ </Shir_HaShirim_Rabbah.1.1.8>

דָּבָר אַחֵר, שִׁיר הַשִּׁירִים, זֶהוּ שֶׁאָמַר הַכָּתוּב (קהלת יב, ט):
וְיֹתֵר שֶׁהָיָה קֹהֶלֶת חָכָם, אִלּוּ אָדָם אַחֵר אֲמָרָן הָיִיתָ צָרִיךְ
לָכוֹף אָזְנֶיךָ וְלִשְׁמֹעַ הַדְּבָרִים הָאֵלֶּה, וְיוֹתֵר שֶׁאֲמָרָן
שְׁלֹמֹה. וְאִלּוּ מִדַּעְתּוֹ אֲמָרָן, הָיִיתָ צָרִיךְ לָכוֹף אָזְנֶיךָ
וּלְשָׁמְעָם, וְיוֹתֵר שֶׁאֲמָרָן בְּרוּחַ הַקֹּדֶשׁ, וְיֹתֵר שֶׁהָיָה
קֹהֶלֶת חָכָם עוֹד לִמַּד דַּעַת אֶת הָעָם וְאִזֵּן וְחִקֵּר תִּקֵּן
מְשָׁלִים הַרְבֵּה, וְאִזֵּן דִּבְרֵי תוֹרָה, וְחִקֵּר דִּבְרֵי תוֹרָה,
עָשָׂה אָזְנַיִם לַתּוֹרָה. וְאַתְּ מוֹצֵא שֶׁעַד שֶׁלֹא עָמַד שְׁלֹמֹה לֹא
הָיְתָה דּוּגְמָא. רַב נַחְמָן [אמר תרתין], רַב נַחְמָן אָמַר לְפָלָטִין
גְּדוֹלָה שֶׁהָיוּ בָהּ פְּתָחִים הַרְבֵּה, וְכָל שֶׁהָיָה נִכְנַס
בְּתוֹכָהּ הָיָה טוֹעֶה מִדֶּרֶךְ הַפֶּתַח, בָּא פִּקֵחַ אֶחָד וְנָטַל
הַפְּקַעַת וּתְלָאָהּ דֶּרֶךְ הַפֶּתַח, הָיוּ הַכֹּל נִכְנָסִים וְיוֹצְאִין
דֶּרֶךְ הַפְּקַעַת. כָּךְ עַד שֶׁלֹא עָמַד שְׁלֹמֹה לֹא הָיָה אָדָם יָכוֹל
לְהַשְׂכִּיל דִּבְרֵי תוֹרָה, וְכֵיוָן שֶׁעָמַד שְׁלֹמֹה הִתְחִילוּ הַכֹּל
סוֹבְרִין תּוֹרָה... אָמַר רַבִּי יוּדָן לְלַמֶּדְךָ שֶׁכָּל מִי שֶׁהוּא
אוֹמֵר דִּבְרֵי תוֹרָה בָּרַבִּים זוֹכֶה שֶׁתִּשְׁרֶה רוּחַ הַקֹּדֶשׁ
עָלָיו, וּמִמִּי אַתָּה לָמֵד, מִשְּׁלֹמֹה, שֶׁעַל יְדֵי שֶׁאָמַר דִּבְרֵי
תוֹרָה בָּרַבִּים, זָכָה שֶׁשָּׁרְתָה עָלָיו רוּחַ הַקֹּדֶשׁ, וְאָמַר
שְׁלשָׁה סְפָרִים: מִשְׁלֵי, קֹהֶלֶת, וְשִׁיר הַשִּׁירִים.
Shir HaShirim Rabbah 1:1:8 </Shir_HaShirim_Rabbah.1.1.8>

This is like that which is said in Ecclesiastes "A further word: Because
Koheleth was a sage, he continued to instruct the people. He listened to
and tested the soundness of many maxims. If another person had done what
Shlomo did, you would've had to really strain to understand things. More
than he said them with the holy spirit and more his wisdom taught the
people through his parables, he gave openings to the Torah. Until Shlomo
came, that wasn't the case. It's like the case of a great castle that has
many openings. Anybody who went into the castle would always get lost.
Then, a wise person came and made ornaments that he hung over each door. So
too it was that until Shlomo came, a person never really understood the
words of Torah and then afterwards, they did. Rabbi Yudan said this is all
to teach anyone who teaches Torah in public merits the resting of the
divine presence on her and we learn this from Shlomo. Since he taught this
all in person, the holy spirit rested upon him and he wrote Proverbs,
Kohelet, and Shir Hashirim.

*Rabbi Eli Mansour*

The Midrash Talpiyot, based on the Zohar in Parashat Noah, writes that the
souls of the wicked condemned to suffering in Gehinam are given a reprieve
from their suffering during the times when we are praying here in this
world. Each of the three daily prayer services, the Midrash Talpiyot
writes, lasts for an hour-and-a-half. (It seems that in the olden days the
Sadikim spent a full 90 minutes on each prayer, even Minha and Arbit!) This
means that the wicked enjoy 4.5 hours of relief a day (three 90-minute
periods), or 27 hours a week (4.5 X 6), excluding Shabbat, throughout which
the wicked are in any event given a reprieve. It thus emerges that out of
the 144 hours in the workweek (24 X 6), the souls of the wicked spend 117
hours (144 – 27) suffering in Gehinam.
The Book of Shir Hashirim was composed by King Shelomo and contains 117
verses, corresponding to the 117 hours of suffering endured by the souls of
the wicked each week. And thus as we end the week, we read this book in
case, G-d forbid, we had done something during the week for which we
deserve being condemned to Gehinam. Our reading of this book at the end of
the week serves as a Tikkun (rectification) for anything we might have done
to earn this kind of harsh sentence. King Shelomo wrote this book to atone
for the three sins that he committed, violating the Torah’s restrictions on
the amount of wives, wealth and horses a king is allowed to have. Each
violation is punishable by 39 lashes, and so he composed the 117 Pesukim of
Shir Hashirim (39 X 3) to atone for these transgressions".

All the best from
--Michael via phone
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