Gog Umagog Part 3 (World War III) - Moshiach Podcast 15

What is the idea behind the three wars of Gog Umagog? Why is there a gap of 70 years from the first two until the third one? Why hasn't this third war happened yet if the 70 years have already elapsed? What does the initial restored kingdom of the Jewish people look like? Why does the process begin in a natural way (Moshiach ben Yosef) and then switch to the supernatural (Moshiach ben Dovid)? Why does it seem like the Ashkenazic world has taken a stronger leadership role in the Land of Israel in contrast to the Sefardic world? Could this have been foretold by the prophet Yechezkel (Ezekiel)? What is the meaning of the prophecy that Persia-Iran will face of with Edom-The West? Who will be the ultimate victor in that final war? Who is "Aram" in today's world?

Find out in this eye-opening edition of the Moshiach Podcast.

Shmini - Mishkan and Creation

What is the construct of the form through which Hashem creates the world and we create the Mishkan (Tabernacle)? How does this also parallel the way we receive the Torah, and the final war of Armageddon that precedes the construction of the third Temple? What is the aspect of Binah, which is the 8th aspect, and how does it relate to the first seven?

Find out in this week's parsha podcast.

Running time: 25:38

Obama, Gog, Trump and Geulah Berachamim in 5776

It's been a long time since I've written anything on this blog, besides for posting my Parsha Podcast. And for good reason. There have been numerous times where I've wanted to write, but made the decision not to. There have been many times that I've seen something written in the Moshiach blogosphere and I was on the edge of saying something.

But I chose not to.

With the close of the Obama presidency, however, the remarkable nature of what has transpired is just to great to ignore. I hope that what I write will give pause to the many writers and many more readers of the Moshiach blog world.

One of the things that brought me out of my skepticism (for a very short time) of this world that I used to be a part of was the fantastic near death experience that was spread far and wide about a year ago. It put Obama as Gog and said 'this is the year!' Although we'd all heard that one before (think autistics and other false messiahs), it confirmed something that I really believed, and so did many of you - that Obama was the man - Gog. And that this was the time.

Because I believed that 5776 would really be the year of Moshiach. I had felt that already five years ago when I stopped writing for this blog. I had a lot of different thoughts and ideas and a really strong gut feeling that pointed in the direction of 5776. Even amazing gematriahs (as if they didn't exist for any other years)!

But, once again 5776 came and went. Another Moshiach year has bitten the dust.

Or has it?

I want to present to you with a theory that is both exciting and boring. It is a precise prediction, but it leaves open when Moshiach comes. It is absolutely true and completely questionable.

I still believe that Obama was Gog. And I believe that there was some truth in what the autistics and the near deathers etc. etc. etc. have predicted. A little bit of truth. And a lot of falsehood. Because it is so important to understand that the world is not two dimensional. It is not just a world of judgment where anyone who wears a wig is going to burn eternally. And where a soul is dipped into 7 levels of fire, which can be named because someone was just there.

That description - the description that the Moshiach Blogosphere is used to talking about and describing - is the side of judgment - din.

And it is interesting that that young man experienced and saw all these things during his near death experience time in the space of judgment - which is where a soul goes immediately after death. It is called the world of Z"A - which we don't even pronounce as its component words (Z'er Anpin) because it denotes extreme judgment, which we don't want to call into play.

The world of Z"A is where they speak from. But there are other worlds - the world of Beriyah - above Z"A - crowning Z'A and Nukva. It is transcendent and there is no evil there. It is the world of the throne, the world of the souls where no evil can penetrate from our realm.

But even our realm is not the world of Z"A - we do not live in a world of pure judgment. We live in a world where there is a balancing act between Din and Rachamim, between judgment and mercy.

And in the real world, there is no such thing as unmitigated judgment.

Many of you might be familiar with the fact that the Gemara in Succah speaks about Moshiach ben Yosef, describing the great mourning that occurs after his death in the war of Gog Umagog.

But the Gra's opinion is that Moshiach ben Yosef will not die. The Gemara itself hints to such an opinion when it refers to the same mourning as NOT being for Moshiach ben Yosef (but for the Yetzer Hara). The Gra's opines that MBY won't die, because the reason he was meant to die has already been atoned for by the length of the exile we've endured.

Moshiach does not have to arrive with death, destruction and mayhem.

And I still believe that Obama was Gog, and that something amazing is unfolding right in front of our eyes. Because if Gog could not do anything more than create an ineffective UN resolution, then we are looking at Geulah Berachamim - redemption with mercy.

I believe that we experienced the judgment 70 years ago with World War II.

And that now is the time for redemption with mercy.

If you listened to my most recent podcast, you heard what the war of Gog Umagog is about - it is about a claim to Jerusalem. It is about a claim to being the spiritual conduit of Hashem. Which is an exclusive right of the Jewish people. Gog comes to Jerusalem to try to remove the Jewish people's claim to Jerusalem; to deny the Jewish people's chosen status. To claim that other religions and peoples have replaced us as the conduit of spirituality into the world.

But on the day that the greatest of the 70 nations of the world moves its embassy to Jerusalem, it is the greatest statement that Jerusalem belongs to the Jewish people.

I don't want to say too much more, but a parallel is spoken of between the Purim story and the future redemption. It is why Iran/Persia is part of the story. And it is hard to ignore the people who have been in the life of the incoming president before this story started.

I haven't written and haven't wanted to predict, because I have not wanted to say things that look silly within a small amount of time.

But I'm writing now, because I think it's time to start seeing that things are turning. We may look back in a couple of years and see in hindsight that 5776 was a significant year in the coming of Moshiach Berachamim.

Vayechi - War of Gog Umagog

What is the parallel between the blessings of Jacob and that which occurs on Rosh Hashana and Yom Kippur? Why do the 10 tribes gather to the portions of Yehuda and Benjamin? Why do they need to 'show honor to Judah and Benjamin?' What is the idea of there not being 'any arguments' as a prerequisite for the advent of the Messianic age? Why did Jacob reveal the idea of the War of Armageddon to his sons? Why does this war center around Jerusalem? Why was all this revealed in the context of the revelation of the unique attributes of each tribe?

Find out in this week's parsha podcast.

Running time: 26:31

Chayei Sarah - Laying Claim to Israel

Why do the children of Ishmael and Canaan lay claim to Israel specifically in front of Alexander the Great? Why do the responses come from Gevia the hunchback? Why does Alexander feel drawn toward Jerusalem? Why does he want to enter the Holy of Holies on the Temple Mount? What does it mean that Abraham blessed Isaac 'with everything?' Why did he send the others away from Isaac?

Find out in this week's parsha podcast.

Running time: 26:47

Lech Lecha - Abraham's War and the Final War

What is the importance of the story of the war of the five kings vs. the four kings? What do our sages mean when they say that the war was about killing Abraham? Why does Abraham not accept the people of Sodom into his own care? What is the connection between this and the story the midrash tells about R' Eliezer ben Hurkenus? How does that war parallel the final war of Gog Umagog?

Find out in this week's parsha podcast.

Running time: 25:23

Succos and Yosef

What is the connection between Yosef and Succos? Why do we read the prophecies of Gog and Magog during Succos? Why do we leave our homes and enter these temporary dwelling places? How do we remind ourselves of the fact that Hashem is constantly in our lives?

Find out in this week's parsha podcast.

Running time: 15:40

Beha'aloscha - Trumpets and troubles

Why does Hashem wait for Moshe to command Him to travel? What is the concept of the trumpets? Why are they blown during the travels? Why are they blown at difficult times in Jewish history (Gog Umagog, wars of destruction)? What is the difference between the trumpet and the shofar?

Find out in this week's Parsha Podcast.

Running time: 20:29

Jerusalem: Not For Sale

What is it about Yerushalayim that makes it so central on the world stage? Why does the United States government care if we build in our capital? Why does the Arab world get up in arms if we build a synagogue in our capital city? What is it about the current situation that is so exciting, and at the same time stirs up such indignation inside of ourselves?

I have discussed the concept of Jerusalem at length in two previous posts (here and here), but there is always more depth to find about Yerushalayim and its centrality to the Divine plan.

It is important to realize that we have reached a crucial historic point in history. It would seem as if the United States has suddenly decided that the Jewish people do not have a right to Jerusalem, and that we can not build in our very own capital. This, however, is not a new phenomenon. Anyone who is a US citizen and has had a child born in Jerusalem (as I have) knows that although the American birth certificate states the place of birth as Jerusalem, the country of birth is left off. There was recently a court case which declared that one does not have the legal right to have Israel stated as the country of birth written on a passport if the child was born in Jerusalem. If you look carefully at that case, you will see that the issue there was that the United States can not take sides in deciding to whom the jurisdiction of Jerusalem will ultimately be given. The current dispute, however, seems to be the first time that the United States has gotten explicitly vocal about its displeasure with Israel claiming Jerusalem as its capital at all, as opposed to just passively staying out. This change in attitude has been getting more and more apparent with the entrance of the newest American administration. The question is, What is its significance, and is there a Torah source that can shed light on these events?

In thinking about this, I realized that it could be summed up that the West has a hatred for the Jewish people that is usually covert, but every now and then, it boils up above the surface and becomes overt. The West represents the current manifestation of Esav, and thus, we need search no further than Esav himself to find examples of hidden and revealed anger. These examples will give us an important clue as to where we are headed. As the Ramban writes, in reference to the meeting between Yakov and Esav when Yakov returned from Lavan's house, that meeting was a template for the interactions between the Jewish people and the West throughout history. Thus, there is much to be learned from carefully examining the Torah in that light.

The place where we see this pattern is in Esav's angry desire to kill Yakov after the blessings were stolen. Yakov was completely unaware that this was his evil intent, until Rivka makes it known to him. She herself only knew of his plans because of a Divine revelation that she received. As we have discussed, the blessings that Yakov stole were the very essence of the purpose of the Jewish people as the leaders of the world, in the capacity of Moshiach ben Yosef. Esav's hatred and jealousy were not simply because Yakov stole the blessings, but more importantly, because Esav had now been rejected from his role as a part of the Divine plan. Like Kayin before him, and Shaul after him, this rejection created a profound anger and desire to destroy his counterpart (Moshiach ben Dovid), and this fueled his angry plan to kill Yakov.

Sending Yakov away from the land of Israel was an important act on the part of Rivka, because as long as Yakov was in Israel, his function as Moshiach ben Yosef was resonating with the land, so to speak, creating a greater reason for Esav to want to kill him. As we saw, whoever has the function of Moshiach ben Yosef receives the land of Israel, which functions as the physical manifestation of Moshiach ben Yosef for the whole physical world. Thus, it was a calculated move to not only send Yakov away, but to send him out of Eretz Yisroel entirely. This helps us understand why Esav suddenly comes at Yakov with four hundred men - twenty two years later - when Yakov is on his way back to Israel. As he gets closer, the 'noise' of Yakov's resonance with Eretz Yisrael gets louder and again pushes Esav to try to kill him. Despite this, however, Yakov must only truly do battle with the spiritual power of Esav, which is the angel he fights with at the Yabok river. Once Yakov vanquishes that spiritual force, Esav is left powerless, and all he can do is have a harmless interaction with Yakov, without causing him any damage.

If we think about this in light of what is currently transpiring, we can see through to a deeper level than what is occurring on the surface alone. It is clear that both Yishmael (the Arab world) and Esav (the West) would wish to claim the job of Moshiach ben Yosef, that is, the ones who will lead and guide the world. This ability, however, is completely tied up in the control of Jerusalem. Whoever has control of Jerusalem has control of the world. The spiritual forces of each of these nations thus wishes to assert its domination over the city of Jerusalem, and can not admit that the true dominion belongs to the Jewish people. On the surface, it just seems that the Arabs want to claim Jerusalem because of the mosque, and that the West just wants there to be 'peace.' But underlying it all is a spiritual need to be in control of Jerusalem. Even the West that seems to want to give Jerusalem to the Arabs on a silver platter really only desires to be the one in control over Jerusalem. Whoever controls the city rules the world.

It is important to understand that when Yakov returns to Israel, after he has had eleven of his twelve sons, he is ready to begin the building of the Jewish people, and that can only occur in Israel. Thus, whereas Esav had only covertly wished to kill Yakov twenty two years before, at this point, as Yakov is resonating his mission of Moshiach ben Yosef to an even greater extent, Esav comes out with four hundred men to kill Yakov - his anger has boiled over to the surface.

Paralleling this, the closer we get to the revelation of Moshiach ben Yosef, the more the Jewish people resonate with our corresponding mission. As more and more of our people return to Israel, and the scales tip to the point where there are more Jews in Israel than outside of Israel, we are reaching the point in time that corresponds to Yakov Avinu returning with his family to Israel. We are thus reliving that time, when Esav left behind his hidden hatred and began to clearly show his true intentions. This is reflected in the current behavior of the United States government.

Although current events might seem disconcerting, the truth is that there is a tremendous נחמה contained in this parallel. It may seem that the world is crashing down on us here in Eretz Yisrael, and it is not beyond imagination that we will soon see a scenario similar to the war of Gog Umagog described in Yechezkel. Nevertheless, just as Esav's aggressiveness was nothing more than an indicator that a spiritual battle was about to take place, which Yakov succeeded in, so too, the current events that we are witnessing are but an indicator that we are entering into a similar spiritual battle, which ultimately will be won by the offspring of Yisrael.

Gog Umagog and Moshiach ben Dovid

I am happy to share another episode in my Moshiach podcast series, episode number six.

Here is the itunes description:

We explore the concepts of the war of Gog Umagog (armageddon), as well as the job and purpose of Moshiach ben Dovid. We also look deeply into a gemara in Sotah that hints to what will happen in the war of Gog Umagog, which is a spiritual battle fought between the people of Israel and all the nations of the world. We also discuss the concept of Dovid and Malchus - complete reflection of the spiritual, and absolute joy.

Why Jerusalem?

I was shocked by Tomer Devorah's post about the EU's planned announcement that Jerusalem should officially be the capital of a 'Palestinian' state. It is on one hand extremely upsetting, and on the other hand extremely exciting, as we watch the drama unfold right in front of our eyes.

We all know that the Neviim spoke of a war that would be led by Gog and Magog and would center around Jerusalem. This would be the final war where Moshiach would vanquish the forces of evil. We need to stop and ask ourselves, Why Jerusalem? What is it about Yerushalayim that makes it the center of this epic battle? Why do the Arabs want Jerusalem so much, and how is it conceivable that they have their mosque sitting on our Holiest place, the Har Habayis?

We know, as per the Gemara in Kiddushin in עשרה יוחסין that Israel is the highest land in the world, and Jerusalem is the highest point in the world. This is meant in a spiritual sense, and the concept is also said in a slightly different way, that Jerusalem is the meeting point between this physical world and the spiritual world. Har Habayis was the place of the Akeida, the field that Yitzchak would daven in, the place of Yakov's dream. This all represents the singular primacy and focal point that Yerushalayim is.

But it is much deeper than this.

We start to see the beginnings of a hint from a statement of Chazal. They say that during the time that the Jewish people are not inhabiting the land of Israel, there is another nation that has the merit to be the 'tenants' while we are gone. That nation is the people of Yishmael. What did Yishmael do to deserve this honor? He had the merit of the bris, which he performed at the age of thirteen. The obvious question arises - why is this the merit that gives Yishmael the right live here? Yishmael, the son of Avraham, was also trained in chessed and hospitality toward guests (as Rashi notes in the story of Avraham and the angels). Why is it specifically the mitzvah of Milah that earns Yishmael this honor?

The answer here has to do with the deeper meaning behind the bris. The circumcision represents the removal of the barrier between the physical and spiritual worlds that was brought about by the sin of Adam Harishon. Before Adam sinned, he did not have a foreskin. After the sin, the foreskin grew, representing the barrier he had created between the male and female forces of creation. The male forces are the spiritual forces, the forces that give, and the female forces are the physical forces, the forces that receive. Avraham, whose job would be the tikkun of the sin of Adam, was commanded in the mitzvah of Bris, removing that barrier. Yishmael, his son, also performed that mitzvah at the age of thirteen.

For this reason, those who are שומרי הברית - who keep this covenant of the circumcision, recognizing the holiness of the connection between male and female - they are the ones who have the land of Israel. As the long as the Jews were doing their job, we were able to retain the land of Israel. As soon as we were thrown out, specifically the people of Yishmael, who keep the bris, merited to be the 'tenants' of the land. This is because Israel represents the highest point in the world - the connection between the male/spiritual elements of creation and the female/physical elements of the world. (This is not to say, heaven forbid, that women are less spiritual than men. In fact, the opposite is true. This just means that the male concept, which is infinite potential, best represents the spiritual, while the female concept, which is about limiting and building, best represents the physical.)

Thus, each of the points in the land of Israel that represent a higher level of connection are still currently occupied by the Yishmaelim. Take, for example, Chevron. The cave of Machpela (as we discussed in the Parsha Podcast from R' Chaim Friedlander) is a point of connection between the physical realm and the spiritual realm when the soul departs the body. Shechem, which is home to Yosef Hatzadik's body, also represents this connection, as we will see soon. Most outstandingly, Yerushalayim, which is the highest spiritual point in Eretz Yisrael, and specifically the Har Habayis, are occupied by the Yishmaelim. They would claim that they are the spiritual heir to this place, and that they are commited to the concept of the bris - the commitment to keep the spiritual and physical worlds bound together.

It is as if we are watching the spiritual show that is going on in Shamayim, right here in front of our eyes, only in a physical version of it. Imagine that the angel of Yishmael is standing before Hashem, claiming that Yishmael does a much better job of keeping the covenant. Yishmael deserves to have all of these places that represent this connection that the people of Yisrael are not deserving of. Esav's angel (the ס"מ himself!) steps into the fray and supports the claim of the angel of Yishmael. "Certainly Yishmael deserves to have Har Habayis. They have kept the covenant! I will make sure that Yisrael loses any claim to it. Only Yishmael can have Har Habayis."

Now, we know that when the ס"מ gets up to speak, Hashem always lets him have a chance to show that he is right. But the amazing thing is that Hashem always uses the ס"מ himself to accomplish the redemption He is bringing about.

We could wonder, Who is the angel of the Jewish people, and why is He quiet? The answer is that Hashem is the 'angel' of the Jewish people. He is quiet, because He knows the truth. The truth is that only the Jewish people have kept the covenant all of this time. The people of Edom (the Christians) claim, to this day, that they have replaced us. The people of Yishmael (the Muslims) claim that they have replaced us. Yet, we were promised so long ago that Hashem would never forsake us, and that He would return us to our Holy Land of Eretz Yisrael one day, and bring a tremendous war and a great salvation to His chosen nation. We have witnessed the fulfillment of the promise that we would return. We soon will witness the fulfillment of the promise of miracles and salvation.

It will come through Moshiach ben Yosef. Do you know why? Because all of these claims about Israel and Jerusalem, in a deeper and more spiritual realm, center around the קדושת הברית, the keeping of the Holiness of the covenant. This means that the Jewish people are enjoined to use their sexual energy only in a holy, spiritual, and uplifted way. This is the mitzvah of being careful not to be מוציא זרע לבטלה for a man, and the mitzvah of tznius - modesty - for a woman. These keep our claim on Israel strong, because this land, and specifically the city of Jerusalem, is the connecting point between the spiritual and physical realms. Moshiach ben Yosef is about the keeping of the covenant. He is about struggling with temptation, and ultimately triumphing over his desires for the physical, raising them up to the spiritual (as we see from Yosef himself). Every Jew who fights in this battle, and does not give up despite his many falls, is giving power to Moshiach ben Yosef, and to the Jewish people, to reclaim our spiritual homeland. This is the deeper meaning of the passuk "שבע יפול צדיק וקם" - seven times does the righteous one fall and arise. Moshiach ben Yosef is the צדיק יסוד עולם - the righteous one who holds up the world. He falls seven times, and constantly rises. We, the Jewish people, are the Moshiach ben Yosef of Mankind. Israel is the Moshiach ben Yosef of the world. We may rise and fall many times, but ultimately, together, we connect Heaven and Earth, the spiritual and the physical.

The place of Shechem is the place of Moshiach ben Yosef. It is also the first place that Avraham visited when he came to the land of Israel for the first time. It is the first point of connection. It is the place where Yakov stopped on his way back to Eretz Yisrael. It is the place where Dina was unfortunately violated, again a point of connection, seemingly for bad. Nevertheless, this connection (as we mentioned in a previous post) would result in a child who would marry Yosef himself. It is not a coincidence that this very place was a piece of the process (pun intended) that was brought to us by the Erev Rav to try and destroy Israel and the Jewish people's claim to it. The Erev Rav, like Edom, only wishes to remove the Jewish people from the covenant. They could be described as the foreskin of the Jewish people. They wish to instead support the Ishmaelite claim of spiritual superiority.

I think it is clear that Yerushalayim is the point of connection that the people of Yishmael try to usurp from us, with the aid of the people of Edom and the Erev Rav. The more we see this happening, the more we can be assured that soon Moshiach ben Yosef, who represents the Jewish fidelity to the covenant, will stand up to defeat the forces of Evil with his spiritual power. He will defeat the people of Edom and the Erev Rav, and bring about the removal of the people of Yishmael, and the reinstatement of the Jewish people as the true bridge between Hashem and the world, in our land of Israel, which is the physical manifestation of that very bridge. He will thus pave the way for the advent of the final tikkun of Moshiach ben Dovid, בב"א.

Gog and Magog kuntres

Here is a download of a very nice piece by R' Daniel Krentzman on the topic of the war of Gog and Magog:


http://www.arigoldwag.com/krentzman/Gog%20and%20MaGog.pdf

Death of Moshiach ben Yosef

The death of Moshiach ben Yosef is a very interesting topic, and needs explanation and discussion.

The only time that Moshiach ben Yosef is mentioned in the Gemara is in Succah daf 52A. There the Gemara brings the passuk in Zechariah (12) which speaks of a great eulogy which will take place in the times of Moshiach. There is an argument as to who is the subject of the eulogy. One opinion is that they are mourning the death of Moshiach ben Yosef, and the other opines that they are mourning the death of the yetzer hara (evil inclination). The Gemara then says that after Moshiach ben Dovid sees that Moshiach ben Yosef has been killed, he beseeches Hashem to spare him from death. To this request, Hashem responds with an assurance that he will indeed be spared.

A number of issues beg for an explanation. The most obvious question is, Why must Moshiach ben Yosef die? At which point is he to die? Has he completed any of his mission yet?

So let us start off with some information, and I will again mention that most of what I am about to write comes from shiurim from Rav Shimon Kessin.

Moshiach ben Yosef's jobs are many, and they include bringing the entire Jewish people back to Israel, infusing them with a newfound spirituality, and revealing the secrets of the Torah, among other things. Another important task that he is to accomplish is the complete destruction of Edom, as the passuk says in Ovadiah, והיה בית יעקב אש ובית יוסף להבה ובית עשו לקש ודלקו בהם ואכלום - the house of Yakov will be fire, and the house of Yosef a flame, and the house of Esav will be like straw, and he shall light them and consume them.

This final purpose follows all the other ones, and is the reason why he leads the Jewish people in the war of Gog and Magog. Although many people mistakenly think otherwise, this great war is actually after Moshiach ben Yosef has done most of his job, and actually segways us into the period of Moshiach ben Dovid.

If we can imagine the scene for a moment, we have Moshiach ben Yosef who has led the entire Jewish people to a genuine spiritual rennaisance, returning the entire nation back to their rightful homeland, to Israel. He represents the promise of a new age for humanity, one of peace, love and harmony. And yet, he is challenged by a force known as Gog and Magog. This force is actually composed of a few different components, but is mainly led by Amalek, the arch-enemy of the Jewish people (which reared its ugly head in World War II in the form of the Nazis of Germany), as well as the Erev Rav - that section of the Jewish people who attempts to remove the Jewish people's relationship with Hashem. They combine forces with many other nations of the world (see Yechezkel 38-39) to try to prevent the triumph of Moshiach ben Yosef and his mission to remove evil from the hearts of mankind. This true axis of evil, however, would rather die than allow mankind to be beholden to the Higher Power that created them.

Just as Moshiach ben Yosef is about to destroy the last vestiges of evil, the leader of the Erev Rav, named Armilus, is somehow able to kill him. Can we imagine the sheer horror of the Jewish people, so close to redemption, watching its progress wrenchingly arrested? Yet this is the scenario that the Gemara describes. The question again is, Why?

To begin to understand this, let us ask another interesting question. The gemara we quoted earlier stated that when Moshiach ben Dovid (who is also involved to some extent in the war) sees that Moshiach ben Yosef has been killed, he pleads with Hashem to spare his own life. Why does he fear for his life, just because ben Yosef has been killed? This question is asked by one of the commentaries on the gemara, the Einei Shmuel.

He answers that the root cause of Moshiach ben Yosef's death goes back to a mistake that Dovid Hamelech himself made. Dovid accepted loshon hara (slander) that was told to him about Mefiboshes, instead of giving him the benefit of the doubt. The result of this was that the Dovid's kingdom - the Jewish nation - would be split in two after Shlomo's reign. This meant that the kingdom of Yehuda would come under Rechovom ben Shlomo, and the new kingdom of Yisrael would come under the kingship of Yerovom ben Nevat. As always, Hashem gave the opportunity for a negative situation to still have the potential for salvation, and thus, Rechovom had the potential to be Moshiach ben Dovid, and Yerovom, in fact, was a hairsbreadth away from being Moshiach ben Yosef. Yerovom was an incredible Torah scholar who was well-versed in the deepest secrets of the Torah (as is MBY's role), however, he committed a grievous sin at a point after the yechida (the highest level of the soul that it is MBY's job to bring down) had already entered him! It actually flew out of him just before his horrible sin, which involved causing his entire kingdom to bow down to Golden calves. But the blemish he caused would have to be rectified by the final Moshiach ben Yosef.

It is for this reason that Moshiach ben Dovid prays for his life - because it was the sin of Dovid that had opened the possibility for Yerovom's great sin that is to be rectified by the death of Moshiach ben Yosef!

Rav Kessin points out that although Moshiach ben Yosef is killed, at a certain point, Moshiach ben Dovid actually brings him back to life in order to complete the rectification they must do together, and this actually begins the period of the revival of the dead.

Now, what is interesting is something I intentionally mentioned at the very beginning of this whole piece, and that is that the gemara actually has two opinions as to who is being eulogized in the verse. The explanation we have given until now is based on the opinion that Moshiach ben Yosef is the one who dies. There is another opinion, however, that it is the yetzer hara (evil inclination) that is being 'eulogized.' According to this opinion, Moshiach ben Yosef does not die, but rather, actually completes his task of destroying the forces of evil, and thus removes the evil inclination from the world (to a certain extent).

According to the Gra and others, indeed, the decree of death for Moshiach ben Yosef has been rescinded (עוד יוסף חי), and thus the second opinion of the gemara is the one that will actually play out in reality. This is due to the length of the exile the Jewish people has endured, which has actually completely atoned for the sin of Yerovom ben Nevat, and therefore removed the need for Moshiach ben Yosef's death.

Seventy years

In the previous posts we saw that there is a significant period of seventy years that constitutes the 'pregnancy' of the redemption. It is characterized by a 'conception' which is especially difficult, and a 'birth' which is difficult as well.

In light of this, the story that I mentioned a while ago becomes ever-so-interesting. Here I will repeat it.

I recently heard from a very reliable source that Rav Elya Svei z'l said that in 1939, Rav Elchanan Wasserman said that Moshiach would come in seventy years. After I heard that story, I "happened" upon another story that Rav Elya Lopian said over (in his sefer Lev Eliyahu) from Rav Elchanan Wasserman that he was with the Chofetz Chaim in the beginning of World War I (circa 1914) and the Chofetz Chaim said that WWI was the first of three Gog Umagog wars. The next would be in twenty five years. That story ends there, but clearly Rav Elchanan Wasserman was someone in the know.

Someone showed me a similar story in a sefer that quoted Rav Nosson Wachtfogel z'l, who said that at the beginning of World War I, people were coming to the Chofetz Chaim asking him if that was to be the war of Gog Umagog, and his response was that it was the first of three, as he told Reb Elchanan.

When Rav Wachtfogel was asked how we would survive a possible nuclear war, his response was that in Egypt, the Jew and Egyptian drank from the same cup of water, but the Egyptian drank blood, and the Jew drank water.

What's also interesting is that World War II actually began on the first of September in 1939, which was still 5699, seventy years ago, and Kristallnacht, which many consider the beginning of Hitler's final solution occurred the previous year ('38) in November, which was also 5699.

I have a friend who is related to Rav Svei z'l, and he told me that Rav Svei has been consistently saying for the last twenty years that Moshiach is coming in 5769. אמן כן יהי רצון

Gog and Magog - part 3

Continuing from the previous post on Gog Umagog, we were quoting Rav Kaplan's explanation on pp. 38-39 on the children of Yefes, whose nations will come with Gog and Magog to wage war in Jerusalem in the end of days.

Tuval. A northern country, see Ezekiel 38:2, 27:13. This is usually identified with Bithynia (Targum Yonathan; Targum on 1 Chronicles 1:5; Yerushalmi, Megillah 1:9). The Talmud also refers to it as Beth-unyaki, which is the Talmudic term for Bithynia (Yoma 10a). This is in the area to the east of the Bospherus (Yov'loth 9:11). Josephus, however, says that the Tuvalites were the Ibers. Some say that these were the people of the Iberian Peninsula, and hence they were the original Spaniards. Indeed, one source says that this is why the Spanish refer to themselves as cen-tuvales (gentualla), literally "people of Tuval" (Abarbanel). However, there was also an Iberian people who lived to the east of the Black Sea.

Meshekh. A northern kingdom; cf. Ezekiel 38:2, 27:13; Psalms 120:5. Most Talmudic sources identify Meshekh with Mysia (see Targum Yonathan; Targum on 1 Chronicles 1:5; Yerushalmi, Megillah 1:9; Yoma 10a; Buber on Peskita Zutratha 26a). This was the land to the west of Bithynia, along the Dardanelles with Mycenae, an ancient city in Greece. Josephus, however, associates Meshekh with Cappadocia, whose capital is Mazak, in what is now central Turkey (see Herodotus 1:72). It is very close to Galatia (see Gomer). Another possibility would be to identify Meshekh with the Massagatae, an ancient people who lived in Russia to the east of the Aral sea (cf. Herodotus 1:201). It was these people who drove the Scythians into Cimeria (Ibid. 4:11). It is also possible to idenitfy Meshekh with the Moschians mentioned in ancient sources (Herodotus 7:78). The name may be related to the Muskeva River, and hence to Moscow. Indeed, there are sources that say the Meshekh was the forerunner of the Slavs (Kesseth HaSofer).

End quote of Rav Aryeh Kaplan.

It is significant to note that these nations that accompany Gog, or that he rules over, seem to be descended from Yefes. It is in his genealogy that we find the names Magog, Meshech and Tuval. The meforshim also say that Gog ends up meriting to be buried in Israel in the merit of Yefes' good act of covering Noach in his shame. Just as Yefes did an act of covering, so Hashem 'covers' Gog in the land of Israel, burying him there.

I also found it interesting that Rav Kaplan notes (on p. 795 of The Living Torah) that in the Septuagint (which was the version of the Torah translated by seventy great Jewish sages into Greek), Agag, king of Amalek, is identified with Gog. A thought I had was that the difference between Gog (גוג) and Agag (אגג) is the change of an Alef to a Vav. This is significant because the letter Vav is related to Alef in the Sefarim Hakedoshim. The connection between Gog and Agag is significant also because Gog is the quintessential person who believes that everything is his own power (as we mentioned in the first post in this series) and totally denies Hashem's involvement in the world. He would be what we could refer to in modern terms as the ultimate left-wing liberal. This is the essence of Amalek (for whom Agag is king). Their entire goal in existence is to prove that all his happenstance, that there is no God and that we come from monkeys (עמלק = עמל קו"ף - the work of monkeys! As per R' Akiva Tatz).

In the next post on this topic, be'H I will quote the Malbim on Yechezkel 38, so we can start to understand how these ancient nations fit in today.

Gog and Magog - part 2

I began this post a few months ago, meaning to complete it pretty soon afterwards, but just had not gotten to it. There is a lot to say about Gog and Magog, and I wanted to give a little idea of what this place is and where it might be, based on some solid sources. Rabbi Aryeh Kaplan gives a wonderful sum up in his translation of Chumash, "The Living Torah," and it is from there I would like to quote.

To start with, the places I am interested in speaking about are the places Yechezkel refers to in chapter 38 in connection with Gog. He speaks about Gog being of the land of Magog, and being the head prince of Meshech and Tuval. It is important to note that we are discussing the ancient locations of these peoples (as per the map above, taken from The Living Torah p. 42), but it is clear that they are no longer located in these places per se. Just as Edom, the descendants of Esav ended up in the area of Rome, these nations moved and migrated to different places. Their precise location now is up for grabs, and as the Malbim says in Yechezkel 38, we will only know who Gog and Magog actually are when they appear on the scene and fulfill what the Navi talks about.

In the Living Torah pp 38-39, Rav Kaplan is giving his explanations on the following passuk (Bereshis 10:2):
"The sons of Yefeth were Gomer, Magog, Madai, Yavan, Tuval, Meshekh, and Tiras."

Magog. Most probably a Teutonic people, living to the north of the Holy Land (cf. Ezekiel 38:2). ome sources identify Magog with Germania (Targum Yonathan; Targum on 1 Chronicles 1:5; Pesikta Zutratha). Others identify them with the Goths (Yerushalmi, Megillah 1:9). These were a Teutonic people who migrated to Scythia, in what is now southern Russia.

It is therefore not contradictory when some sources identify Magog with Scythia (Josephus; Yoma 10A, according to Rabbenu Chananel; Arukh s.v. Germamia). Ancient histories state that the Scythians came from Asia, driven by the Massagetae (cf. Meshekh, and settling enar the Cimerians (Herodotus 4:11; see above note). Linguistically, the Scythians were related to the Iranians, and hence, to the Persians and the Medes. It is therefore significant that there was a Persian tribe known as the Germanians (Herodotus 1:125).

Other sources note that Magog may denote the Mongols, whose very name may be a corruption of Magog. Indeed, Arab writers referred to the Great Wall of China as the "wall of al Magog" (Rabbi Aaron Marcus, Kesseth HaSofer, p. 112a).

Other ancient sources agree with the indentification of Magog as living to the north of the Black Sea (Yovloth 9:8).

To be continued...

Shalosh Seudos and Gog Umagog

Guest post by Daniel

Shulchan Aruch 291:1
Din Shalosh Seudos

A person should be very cautious to fulfill [the mitzvah of eating] the Third Meal [on Shabbos].

Mishnah Berurah
As is brought in the gemara: A person is obligated to eat three meals on Shabbos, and this is in parallel to the verse that says אכלהו היום כי היום שבת לה' היום לא תמצאהו בשדה "And Moshe said 'Eat that [manna] today; for today is the Shabbat unto Hashem; today you shall not find it [the manna] in the field.'" And three times "today" is written in this verse. Our Sages said: 'Any Jew who upholds the Three Meals on Shabbos will be saved from Three Calamities - from birthpangs of Mashiach, from judgments of Gehinom, and from the War of Gog and Magog.'

Additionally, the Mishnah Berurah says that we are even obligated to help support poor people to the extent that they have the Third Meal on Shabbos (and not just enough for one meal and night and one meal at day).

The Mechaber writes that
"A wise person will not fill his stomach in the Morning Meal, so that there will be room for the Third Meal."

How to Fullfill Third Meal:
The Third Meal can be fulfilled with a drop more than a kabeitza of bread. (Less than a kabeitza is considered a snack and not a meal). Other opinions hold that baked goods in the amount needed to say mezonos is acceptable. If there is no mezonos, then fish and or meat is acceptable. If there is no fish or meat, then fruits are acceptable. But really one should eat bread, with lechem mishnah if possible.

If there is only one lechem mishnah, one person can say hamotzi with the lechem mishnah and have in mind everyone else, if everyone else also has in mind that he is saying hamotzi with the lechem mishnah for them.