The Nesi'im lost a Yud in their name, since they felt somewhat superior to Klal Yisroel, and decided to contribute to the Mishkan only when everyone else had completed their contributions. (RSRH). Notice how the bottom of the Mishkan was composed of: אַדָנִים “Adanim”. Those are the real leaders (similar to: אָ דוֹ ן “Adon”) who don’t mind being on the ground, just to hold up the: קְרָשִ ים tall beams. (Meforshim).
Dovid was the #1 Kavod person (the Melech); if anyone is chutzpadik to a Melech, he is Chayav Missa. Yet, he seemed to love Bizyonos, and the Me'am Lo'ez says that nobody was M'vazeh himself for Mitzvos like Dovid. Notice how in his very first appearance in public, Dovid got tremendous Kavod from the women, who kept saying: הִכָה שָאוּל בַאֲלָפָיו וְדָוִד בְרִ בְבֹתָיו ש"א יח ז “Shaul kills thousands (of enemies) and Dovid tens of thousands.” ***
Kavod Can Be Detrimental to a Person, And Bizyonos Can Be a Big Ma'ala
What they said caused Shaul to become his arch enemy, and Dovid suffered without end from Shaul. So right from the start, Hashem showed Dovid how getting Kavod can bury a person (and actually be life threatening). He finally had to flee Eretz Yisroel, and go to: אָכִיש מֶלֶךְ גַת Achish, the Melech of Gass, which is the enemy country of Pelishtim. ****
Surprisingly, Achish liked Dovid, and wanted him to join him in war, but his generals told him: “Isn’t this Dovid, of whom they sing and dance: הִכָה שָאוּל בַאֲלָפָיו וְדָוִד בְרִ בְבֹתָיו ש"א כט ה Shaul kills thousands, and Dovid tens of thousands? *****
Notice how Dovid could have been saved by Achish, but the memory of the Kavod that he received a long time ago hurt him all over again, and once again, his life was in danger. Look at the Hashgacha Pratis, how Hashem shows Dovid how much a person suffers from Kavod! (Of course, if a person runs after Kavod and has: שֶ לֹ א לִ שְ מָ הּ (ulterior motivations) in order to Shteig, then it’s a totally different picture, and it is considered a Mitzva). ******
This same story repeated itself twice. Dovid had once before also fled to Achish Melech Gass, and Achish’s servants wanted to kill him, since they remembered: הִכָה שָאוּל בַאֲלָפָיו וְדָוִד בְרִ בְבֹתָיו ש"א כא יב Shaul kills thousands, and Dovid tens of thousands. It doesn’t say that they remembered his killing their giant hero, Golyas HaPelishti. Only the Kavod that Dovid received for doing so. We can suggest that Hashem was showing Dovid what Kavod can do! *******
And what saved Dovid? He acted like a Meshugener. He scribbled on the doors of the gateway, and let his saliva drip in his beard. Achish had a wife and two daughters who were insane, and they used to circulate through his palace shouting and wailing. So Achish said: חֲ סַר מְשֻגָעִים אָנִי ש"א כא טז I have enough Meshuga’im in my life! It is striking that acting Meshuga saved Dovid’s life. (Just like Kavod destroyed him!) ********
The Medrash tells how Dovid once asked Hashem: “What Tachlis there is to have Meshuga’im?”, and Hashem told him that one day he will have a big advantage from acting.
