You Can’t Draft in the Name of a Torah You Don’t Follow
Israel’s army and government do not live by Torah law — yet some invoke Torah verses to justify drafting those who do. It’s a contradiction that exposes the hollow misuse of Torah for political ends.
They say, “But Dovid HaMelech fought wars!”
“The Torah commands us to defend the Land!”
“The Rambam says we must help in battle!”
It sounds passionate — but it’s profoundly misguided.
Because to use Torah verses while ignoring the Torah’s own system of authority — the mesorah passed from Sinai through the Gedolei Yisrael — is like a judge who breaks the law while pretending to enforce it.
1. The Judge Who Breaks the Law
Imagine a judge who spends his nights falsifying documents, then lectures others in court the next morning about “respecting the law.”
Would anyone take him seriously?
That’s what happens when people — even religious ones — quote Torah to justify positions that contradict the rulings of the greatest Torah authorities of our generation.
The Torah is not “open-source.” It is transmitted through an unbroken chain of mesorah.
“מֹשֶׁה קִבֵּל תּוֹרָה מִסִּינַי וּמְסָרָהּ לִיהוֹשֻׁעַ…”
“Moshe received the Torah from Sinai and transmitted it to Yehoshua…”
— Avos 1:1【1】
If someone quotes Torah while ignoring this chain of transmission, he is not representing Torah — he is misusing it.
2. When Torah Is Used Without Mesorah
The Charedi world doesn’t invent ideology; it follows Daas Torah — the collective guidance of those whose lives are completely immersed in Torah and yiras Shamayim.
From the Chazon Ish, who taught that the very existence of the world stands on Torah【2】,
to Rav Shach zt”l, who emphasized that Torah scholars are the true protection of Israel【3】,
to Rav Elyashiv zt”l and Rav Chaim Kanievsky zt”l, who ruled that the exemption for Torah learners is not a privilege but a spiritual necessity for Klal Yisrael’s survival — the message of our Gedolim has been consistent: Torah learning is national defense.
When someone reinterprets Torah to fit modern nationalism or political ideology, he steps outside that mesorah.
That’s not Daas Torah — that’s daas atzmo.
3. Dovid HaMelech and Today’s Army
Those who invoke Dovid HaMelech forget what kind of army he led.
Dovid’s wars were not nationalist or political; they were wars commanded by Hashem Himself.
Before every campaign, Dovid inquired of Hashem:
“וַיִּשְׁאַל דָּוִד בַּה׳ לֵאמֹר הַאֵלֵךְ וְהִכֵּיתִי בַּפְּלִשְׁתִּים?”
“And Dovid inquired of Hashem, saying: Shall I go and strike the Philistines?”
— Shmuel I 23:2; cf. Shmuel II 5:19【4】
Even the Torah itself commands that kings seek Divine approval before war:
“וְלִפְנֵי אֶלְעָזָר הַכֹּהֵן יַעֲמֹד וְשָׁאַל לוֹ בְּמִשְׁפַּט הָאוּרִים לִפְנֵי ה׳, עַל פִּיו יֵצְאוּ וְעַל פִּיו יָבֹאוּ.”
“He shall stand before Elazar the Kohen and inquire of him by the judgment of the Urim before Hashem; by his word they shall go out and by his word they shall come in.”
— Bamidbar 27:21; Rashi ad loc.【5】
The Sanhedrin itself had to authorize any discretionary war:
“בְּמִלְחֶמֶת הָרְשׁוּת… אֵינוֹ יוֹצֵא בָּהּ אֶלָּא עַל פִּי בֵּית דִּין שֶׁל שִׁבְעִים וְאֶחָד.”
“A discretionary war may be waged only with the approval of the Sanhedrin of seventy-one.”
— Rambam, Hilchos Melachim 5:2; Sanhedrin 2a【6】
His warriors, Chazal teach, were men of great righteousness:
“צבא דוד כולם צדיקים היו, שהיו בקיאים בתורה כבבקיאים במלחמה.”
“The army of Dovid was entirely righteous — as expert in Torah as they were in battle.”
— Sanhedrin 49a (see also Midrash Shocher Tov on Tehillim 60)【7】
Their wars were fought with kedushah and prophetic direction.
To compare that to a modern army governed by secular law and Western values is to strip Torah of its context — and its truth.
4. How Can an Army That Ignores Torah Quote Torah?
This is the heart of the hypocrisy.
The generals, the government, and the legal system that control Israel’s army do not live according to Torah law. The IDF operates under a state that legislates chilul Shabbos, putting our holy soldiers at undo risk for political reasons, lack of tznius, and other practices the Torah forbids.
This is not the army of Dovid HaMelech; it is the army of a state that rejects halacha as its foundation.
So when that same establishment and it's supporters quotes Torah to demand that lomdei Torah enlist, it becomes incoherent.
You cannot deny Torah as the source of law yet invoke it as a tool of enforcement.
The Rambam rules:
“אָסוּר לֵילֵךְ לִפְנֵי עַרְכָּאוֹת שֶׁל עוֹבְדֵי כוֹכָבִים … וַאֲפִלּוּ הָיוּ דִּינֵיהֶם כְּדִינֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל … הֲרֵי זֶה רָשָׁע.”
“It is forbidden to appear before gentile courts… even if their laws mirror Jewish law… such a person is a rasha.”
— Rambam, Hil. Sanhedrin 26:7; Gittin 88b; Shulchan Aruch CM 26:1【8】
A government that rejects Torah as binding cannot use Torah to justify its decrees.
5. Selective Torah Is No Torah
The Torah is not a buffet where one chooses what feels meaningful and leaves the rest.
The same Torah that commands us to protect life also commands us to dedicate life to Torah study:
“וְהָגִיתָ בּוֹ יוֹמָם וָלַיְלָה.”
“You shall meditate upon it day and night.”
— Yehoshua 1:8【9】
And Chazal teach:
“תַּלְמוּד תּוֹרָה כְּנֶגֶד כֻּלָּם.”
“The study of Torah is equal to them all.”
— Pe’ah 1:1【10】
“כָּל הָעוֹסֵק בַּתּוֹרָה בַּלַּיְלָה חוּט שֶׁל חֶסֶד נִמְשָׁךְ עָלָיו בַּיּוֹם.”
“Whoever engages in Torah at night — a thread of kindness is drawn over him by day.”
— Avodah Zarah 3b【11】
The Torah itself commands that there always be Jews wholly devoted to learning — not as an exception, but as the foundation of our existence.
To quote one verse (“Fight for the Land”) while rejecting another (“Learn day and night”) is not Torah; it is selective ideology dressed in Torah language.
6. Who Decides What Hashem Wants?
The real question is not who loves Torah more, but who decides what the Torah demands.
Throughout our history, national decisions of war and peace were made only by those steeped entirely in Torah and had prophecy, the Urim v’Tumim, or through the Sanhedrin.
Today that same authority rests with the Gedolei Torah — the living bearers of that mesorah.
To quote Torah without accepting their interpretation is to remove Torah from Torah itself.
That’s not Torah she-beʿal peh — it’s Torah she-beʿal ego.
7. The Tragedy of Using Torah Against Torah
When a secular politician mocks Torah, it’s painful but expected.
When a religious Jew uses Torah to attack those who uphold it — that’s a tragedy.
“תַּלְמִידֵי חֲכָמִים מַרְבִּים שָׁלוֹם בָּעוֹלָם.”
“Torah scholars increase peace in the world.”
— Berachos 64a【12】
“בְּשַׁעְתָּא דְיִשְׂרָאֵל מִשְׁתַּדְּלִין בְּאוֹרַיְיתָא, קֳדָשָׁא בְּרִיךְ הוּא חֲדֵי בְהוֹן וּמִתְקַיֵּים עָלְמָא.”
“When Israel engages in Torah, the Holy One, blessed be He, rejoices in them and the world endures.”
— Zohar Chadash, Noach 27a【13】
To attack those who learn Torah — and then to quote Torah to justify it — is to wound the very soul of the nation.
8. Conclusion: The Robe Does Not Make the Judge
Wearing a kippah or quoting a pasuk doesn’t make one a judge of Torah.
Only those who live Torah and submit to Torah completely, above the state and politics, have the authority to interpret its demands upon the nation.
A judge who breaks the law cannot lecture others about justice.
And a Jew who breaks from mesorah cannot lecture lomdei Torah about the “real meaning” of Torah.
If we wish to quote Torah, we must first be willing to live by it — completely.
Otherwise, every verse we weaponize becomes a mirror reflecting our own confusion.
The Torah is not ours to use; it is ours to obey.
Footnotes:
- Avos 1:1 — “מֹשֶׁה קִבֵּל תּוֹרָה מִסִּינַי וּמְסָרָהּ לִיהוֹשֻׁעַ…” / Moshe received the Torah from Sinai and transmitted it to Yehoshua…
- Avos 1:2; Sotah 21a — “עַל הַתּוֹרָה וְעַל הָעֲבוֹדָה וְעַל גְּמִילוּת חֲסָדִים”; “זְכוּת תּוֹרָה מָגֵנָה וּמַצְּלָה.” / The world stands on Torah… The merit of Torah protects and saves.
- See Rav Shach zt”l, Michtavim u-Ma’amarim I p. 38 (for emphasis on Torah as protection).
- Shmuel I 23:2; Shmuel II 5:19 — Dovid inquires of Hashem before each battle.
- Bamidbar 27:21; Rashi ad loc. — Urim v’Tumim consulted for war decisions.
- Sanhedrin 2a; Rambam, Hil. Melachim 5:2 — Sanhedrin of 71 must authorize a milchemes reshus.
- Sanhedrin 49a; Midrash Shocher Tov on Tehillim 60 — David’s warriors were righteous and Torah-learned.
- Gittin 88b; Rambam, Hil. Sanhedrin 26:7; Shulchan Aruch CM 26:1 — Forbidden to litigate in non-Torah courts; “even if their laws mirror ours… he is a rasha.”
- Yehoshua 1:8 — “וְהָגִיתָ בּוֹ יוֹמָם וָלַיְלָה.” / You shall meditate upon it day and night.
- Pe’ah 1:1 — “וְתַלְמוּד תּוֹרָה כְּנֶגֶד כֻּלָּם.” / The study of Torah is equal to them all.
- Avodah Zarah 3b — “כָּל הָעוֹסֵק בַּתּוֹרָה בַּלַּיְלָה חוּט שֶׁל חֶסֶד נִמְשָׁךְ עָלָיו בַּיּוֹם.”
- Berachos 64a — “תַּלְמִידֵי חֲכָמִים מַרְבִּים שָׁלוֹם בָּעוֹלָם.”
- Zohar Chadash, Noach 27a — “בְּשַׁעְתָּא דְיִשְׂרָאֵל מִשְׁתַּדְּלִין בְּאוֹרַיְיתָא… וּמִתְקַיֵּים עָלְמָא.” / When Israel engages in Torah, Hashem rejoices in them and the world is sustained.