Esav and His Mission

By Rabbi Dr. Hillel ben David (Greg Killian)

 

Timing. 2

Voice. 4

Voice and Hands. 10

Baseless Hatred. 12

Harbinger 14

Mashiach ben Yosef and the Bne Israel 15

An Impossible Situation. 16

The Current Exile – Edom / Rome. 18

Suffering. 20

Mashiach ben Yosef is always hidden. 20

Adomi: Esav and David. 21

Conclusion. 21

 

Esav’s birth consumes a conspicuous amount of ink in the Torah. This teaches us that it was important for that generation and for future generations. Because of this importance, let’s look at what the Torah says and then we will analyze it to understand how it may be applicable to the future.

 

Remember: ‘Whatever happened to the fathers is a siman (sign, portent, or signal) for the sons’ (Maaseh Avot Siman LeBanim^[1]).

 

Bereshit (Genesis) 25:21-27 And Isaac entreated HaShem for his wife, because she was barren; and HaShem let Himself be entreated of him, and Rebekah his wife conceived. 22 And the children struggled together within her; and she said: 'If it be so, wherefore do I live?' And she went to inquire of HaShem. 23 And HaShem said unto her: Two nations are in thy womb, and two peoples shall be separated from thy bowels; and the one people shall be stronger than the other people; and the elder shall serve the younger. 24 And when her days to be delivered were fulfilled, behold, there were twins in her womb. 25 And the first came forth ruddy, all over like a hairy mantle; and they called his name Esav 26 And after that came forth his brother, and his hand had hold on Esau's heel; and his name was called Jacob. And Isaac was threescore years old when she bore them. 27 And the boys grew; and Esau was a cunning hunter, a man of the field; and Jacob was a quiet man, dwelling in tents.

 

 

Esav	Future
Yaaqob’s Twin	Erev Rav[2]
Ruddy
Hairy
Hunter
A man of the field.

 

Table Notes:

 

Ruddy: Red is connected to earthly matters.[3] Scarlet or red is symbolical of bloodshed, of sin in general,[4] and, in the opinion of some commentators, of vigorous life.[5]

 

Hairy: Rabbi Nachman taught that because HaShem’s life-sustaining light is so powerful, it must be constricted, filtered, and diluted. Human hair accomplishes this through its spiritual mechanism of constriction, thus HaShem’s light is absorbed into the body through the hair. Hair moves energy both in and out of the body.

 

The letters of the Hebrew word for “hair” (se’ar - שֵׂעָר) are the same as that for the Hebrew word for “gate” (sha’ar): שער (shin-ayin-reish). This suggests that hair acts like a gate. Just as a gate act as a connection between those inside and those outside, so too does hair act as a connection between two domains.

 

Timing

 

We live in troubled times in which our world is full of wickedness and many troubles. This time period, despite its problems, also holds the promise of the Mashiach ben Yosef. I would like to examine the age of Mashiach and explore a profound statement by Rabbi Shimon Kessen regarding the 2,000 years that make up the age of Mashiach. These years began in the year 4,001 and end in the year 6,000. Since we are now in the year 5780, we are very close to the end of this 2,000-year period.

 

Chazal teach that we are currently in the period of “2,000 years of Mashiach”.

 

Sanhedrin 97a The Tanna debe Eliyahu teaches: The world is to exist six thousand years. In the first two thousand there was desolation;[6] two thousand years the Torah flourished;[7] and the next two thousand years is the Messianic era,[8] but through our many iniquities all these years have been lost.[9]

 

Avodah Zarah 9a The Tanna debe Eliyyahu taught: The world is to exist six thousand years; the first two thousand years are to be void;[10] the next two thousand years are the period of the Torah, and the following two thousand years are the period of the Messiah. Through our many sins a number of these have already passed [and the Messiah is not yet].

 

The following table illustrates these periods and shows the significant events relative to these periods.

 

 

If we are currently in the 2000 years of Mashiach (this is the year 5783), where is he? We should have seen Him 2000 years ago and we should still see His work in the world. Where is He? Rabbi Shimon Kessen made a very interesting statement when he declared that Yeshua was the promised Mashiach ben Yosef who came 2000 years ago.[12]

 

Yeshua was a gilgul of Esav. ישוע = Yeshua. When we turn the letters around we get עֵשָׂו = Esav. 

 

As an aside, it is axiomatic that the Jesus of Christianity[13] is not the Yeshua that Rabbi Kessen is speaking about. The Yeshua of the Nazarean Codicil was NOT HaShem in the flesh, G-d forbid! Yeshua was NOT born of a virgin else He could not be Mashiach ben Yosef. This Yeshua did not call for the abandonment of the Torah, rather He observed the Torah and commanded His disciples to observe the Torah as well. This Yeshua was NOT part of a trinity.

 

The Yeshua of the Nazarean Codicil[14] was Mashiach ben Yosef, no more no less. Since Mashiach ben Yosef is always concealed from the Bne Israel, it is understood that most will NOT recognize him, as we read in Kol HaTor:[15]

 

Kol haTor 2:39 [Bereshit (Genesis) 42:8] Yosef recognized his brothers, but they did not recognize him -- This is one of the traits of Yosef not only in his own generation, but in every generation, i.e., that Mashiach ben Yosef recognizes his brothers, but they do not recognize him. This is the work of Satan, who hides the characteristics of Mashiach ben Yosef[16] so that the footsteps of the Mashiach are not recognized and are even belittled because of our many sins. (See below 103). Otherwise, our troubles would already have ended. Were Israel to recognize Yosef, that is, the footsteps of ben Yosef the Mashiach which is the ingathering of the exiles etc., then we would already have been redeemed with a complete redemption.

 

Kol haTor 2:103. [Tehillim (Psalms) 89:52] the footsteps of your Mashiach -- In the verse “who taunted the footsteps of your Mashiach.” Wherever footsteps of mashiach are mentioned, they refer to the mission of the first Mashiach, Mashiach ben Yosef. As is known, the enemies of God and the enemies of Israel cause trouble to the entire process of the beginning of the Redemption that occurs in the footsteps of the Mashiach. In the Psalm, it states regarding this matter: “who taunted the footsteps of your Mashiach”.[17] Our Sages have already enumerated all the tribulations that come during the footsteps of the Mashiach. We have no one to lean on except our Father in Heaven and His will that we occupy ourselves with the awakening from below, and stand firmly against all disturbances and taunts. We must act in the spirit of Eitan HaEzrachi, who is our forefather Abraham, and according to a parable of the Gaon (as explained in Chapter 1), the first Mashiach ben Yosef. The Gaon added the hint in the verse: “How will I know that I will inherit it .” The word ‘’ in gematria equals [566].

 

As it is written: “Yosef recognized his brothers, but they did not recognize him”.[18] From this pasuk we understand that Rabbi Kessen’s revelation will be quite shocking and unexpected to most of the Bne Israel, just as Yosef’s revelation was quite shocking and unexpected to Yosef’s brothers.

 

To understand what Rabbi Kessen said, we will need to go back to the Torah to get some background.

 

Bereshit (Genesis) 27:15-16 And Rebekah took the choicest garments of Esau her elder son, which were with her in the house, and put them upon Yaaqob her younger son. 16 And she put the skins of the kids of the goats upon his hands, and upon the smooth of his neck.

 

Bereshit (Genesis) 27:22 And Yaaqob went near unto Yitzchak his father; and he felt him, and said: 'The voice is the voice of Yaaqob, but the hands are the hands of Esav.

 

The above pesukim teaches us that after Yaaqob has been dressed in Esav’s special garment (and has become the High Priest) and covered his bare skin with goat skins to make his appear to be Esav, he brings the savory meal to his father Yitzchak. Yitzchak can hear Yaaqob, but he feels Esav. Yaaqob had become Esav.

 

Earlier, in the Torah, we learned that Esav had sold Yaaqob the birthright. Now that Yitzchak had given him the blessing that is the right of the first born (to be the high priest), Yaaqob has been set up to take Esav’s mission.

 

Immediately after receiving Yitzchak’s blessing, Yaaqob flees from Esav because Esav has determined to kill Yaaqob. One brother hates another. This hatred will set the stage for many generations of the Bne Israel to exhibit baseless hatred.

 

 

Voice[19]

 

Yitzchak says that the ‘voice’ is the ‘voice’ of Yaaqob. To understand this, we need to understand what a ‘voice’ is.

 

In the physical structure of the body, there is a manifestation of the idea of connection which is inherent in the power of speech. It is no accident that the voice is produced in the neck. Voice, Kol, is the root of speech, the power of connecting worlds; the neck is that part of the human form which connects head and body, the higher and lower domains. The body always reflects its spiritual roots.^[20]

 

The neck is the organ of connection between the higher and the lower world. In the front, and within this structure is the “voice box”, the organ that produces the voice. The front is the side of elevation and spirituality. The front is called “panim – face” in Hebrew. Panim means the outer face and also the inner internality. That which goes on inside a person is most obviously visible in the face. Thus, we can see why we have the same Hebrew word for the thing and it’s opposite.

 

Voice is produced in the front, the side of spirituality. Voice, in the kabbalistic writings, is referred to  as “Moshe Rabbenu”, the one who brought Torah to the world through his voice. The voice is the origin of speech. Prophecy originates with the voice, as we can see from the Prophet’s words:

 

Yeshayahu (Isaiah) 58:1 Cry aloud, spare not, lift up thy voice like a trumpet, and shew my people their transgression, and the house of Yaaqob their sins.

 

Again, prophecy originates with the voice, as we can see when Sarai spoke to Abram:

 

Bereshit (Genesis) 16:1 Now Sarai Abram’s wife bare him no children: and she had an handmaid, an Egyptian, whose name was Hagar. 2  And Sarai said unto Abram, Behold now, HaShem hath restrained me from bearing: I pray thee, go in unto my maid; it may be that I may obtain children by her. And Abram hearkened to the voice of Sarai.

 

Note that Abram was not to hearken to her words, but rather to her “voice”. When we talk about prophecy, we are talking about voice. That is why Abram was commanded to listen to her voice – listen to her prophecy!

 

Just as a voice travels up the throat and out the lips, so also does a ladder reach up to the heights and bring what is low, high. With this description, it is worth noting that the numerical value of the word “sulam - סולם” (ladder) is the same as that of the word “kol - קול”, meaning voice or sound. Hence, in the Kabbalah, the pasuk:

 

Bereshit (Genesis) 27:22 And Yaaqob went near unto Yitzchak his father; and he felt him, and said: ‘The voice (HaKol - הקול) is the voice (Kol - קול) of Yaaqob, but the hands are the hands of Esau’.

 

This means that the voice or sound of Yaaqob is the ladder of Yaaqob.^[21] The means of ascent, the ladder, is a progression of sounds, which lead up to, and are absorbed into, the total unity of Chachmah - חכמה.^[22] The ladder connects the lower to the higher, just as the voice connects^[23] the lower and higher worlds.

 

When Yitzchak bestowed his blessings on Yaaqob and not on Esau, he uttered the words “the Kol is the Kol of Yaakov but the hands are those of Esau”.^[24] Yaaqob’s Kol was soothing and sensitive, caring and compassionate; not so the harsh Kol of Esau his brother.

 

From this we understand that Yaaqob was prophesying to Yitzchak that he really was Esav in that he had acquired the becorah[25] and therefore deserved the becorah’s blessing.

 

It is important to understand that Yitzchak is blind.

 

Bereshit (Genesis) 27:1 And it came to pass, that when Isaac was old, and his eyes were dim, so that he could not see, he called Esau his elder son, and said unto him: 'My son'; and he said unto him: 'Here am I.'

 

At this point, Yaaqob the man of truth has become Esav on the outside and has acquired one of Esav’s  mission tools which made him the high priest. However, on the inside, his soul, is still Yaaqob, to those with ears to hear.

 

Now, think about Jesus. To the Jews at large, He appears as a mamzer, he was impure, an idolater, and a rebellious elder who teaches people to abandon Torah. He appears this way because this is what the Christian church teaches. Christians who believe that Jesus is the Mashiach also believe that He abolished the Torah and taught that love was all that was needed. Thus, the Christian Jesus does not resemble even the most basic actions which would qualify Him to be the Mashiach. Jesus appears to be a gilgul of Esav. It would be impossible for Yeshua to be Mashiach ben Yosef if the Christians are right in their theology. However, a cursory reading of the Nazarean Codicil will show that the Christians are completely wrong! Their beliefs do not match what the text teaches.

 

According to the teachings of the Arizal, [26] revealed to him by none other than Eliyahu HaNavi (Elijah), Yeshua was none other than the reincarnation of Esav, the brother of Yaaqob Abinu.^[27]

 

Remember that Yaaqob wore the garments of Esav. These were the garments of the high priest. Think about that for a moment. Now, imagine that Yeshua is the promised Mashiach ben Yosef but He is clothed with the garments of Esav. (No wonder He is a High Priest![28]) He even has hairy skins on his arms to make him ‘feel’ like Esav. When Yitzchak examined him, Yaaqob was Esav!

 

Think about this for a minute. Yeshua’s words are words of Torah, just like Yaaqob’s words. Yeshua has the voice of Yaaqob. Never the less, Yeshua’s outward appearance is that of Esav, He is the Jesus of Christianity.

 

The Ramak^{[29] [30]} teaches that the letters that spell ‘Yeshua’ are also the same letters that spell Esav: ישוע = עשיו - for he was the gilgul^[31] of Yaaqob our righteous forefather's “archetypical enemy...”

 

And this follows what R' Shimon Bar Yohai taught that the principle is well-known - “Esav hated Yaaqob”.^[32]

 

Don Isaac Abarbanel, Minister of Finance of Portugal, wrote as follows in circa 1485 CE:

 

The true sages accepted as tradition that the soul of Esau was reborn as the soul of the founder of Christianity... and that is why he is called Yeshua, which is an anagram [in Hebrew] of Esau, and that is why any who follow his religion and his faith and worship him, should properly be called children of Esau-Edom, since Jesus is Esau and Esau is Edom. This religion began in Rome and its roots are there. The Roman Caesars and the kings of Christianity were the first great rulers who accepted it, and therefore all the Christians who believe in the religion of Jesus are without a doubt, in terms of their walk, people of Edom and the spiritual offspring of Esau.

 

“gates of Rome” (home of the Catholic Church).

 

Sanhedrin 98a Rabbi Yehoshua ben Levi met Elijah [the Prophet] by the entrance of Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai’s tomb… and asked him:

“When will the Messiah come?”

[Elijah responded:] “Go and ask him yourself.”

“Where is he?”

“At the gates [of Rome].”

“And how will I recognize him?”

“He is sitting among the poor lepers, who are untying [their bandages] all at once, and retying them all at once, whereas he unties and reties each bandage separately, thinking, Should I be wanted, I must not be delayed.”

 

A leper[33] (one who has leprosy, Tzaraat - צָרָעַת) is one who has a spiritual disease manifested on the skin principally because he spoke Lashon HaRa.[34]

 

This suggests that baseless hatred is reflected in Lashon HaRa, evil speech. This Lashon HaRa has afflicted the body of the Bne Israel with Tzaraat, leprosy. Mashiach is closely associated with Rome and is slandered[35] because of what Christians tell the world about Mashiach ben Yosef. Christian tell the world, and the Bne Israel, that Yeshua taught his followers that Torah had been abolished. This was the slander that had affected the Mashiach ben Yosef.

 

Chazal also teach that leprosy comes because of seven sins:

1. Lashon HaRa, Evil speech.
2. Murder.
3. Taking HaShem’s name in vain.
4. Incest.
5. Robbery.
6. Envy

 

Arachin 16a R. Samuel b. Nahmani said in the name of R. Johanan: Because of seven things the plague of leprosy is incurred: [These are:] slander, the shedding of blood, vain oath,^[36] incest, arrogance, robbery and envy.

 

The relationship of these seven sins to ‘baseless hatred’ seems fairly obvious. If we look at the world today, we can understand that Mashiach ben Yosef has taken on much suffering.

 

Mashiach is sitting at the gate. Sitting is the posture for judging. The gate is the place where judging takes place, to ensure the integrity of the city.[37] Mashiach is the head of the Bne Israel[38] even as Moshe was the head of the Bne Israel. Just as Moshe was affected by the sin of the Bne Israel,[39] so also is the Mashiach affected by the sin of the Bne Israel.

 

Adam = Israel[40] = Mashiach

 

Sanhedrin 98a What is his [the Messiah's] name? … The Rabbis said: His name is ‘the leper scholar,’ as it is written, Surely, he hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows: yet we did esteem him a leper, smitten of God, and afflicted.[41]

 

Yeshayahu (Isaiah) 53:4 Surely our diseases he did bear, and our pains he carried; whereas we did esteem him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted. 5 But he was wounded because of our transgressions, he was crushed because of our iniquities: the chastisement of our welfare was upon him, and with his stripes we were healed.

 

The Maharal places the emphasis on the word “gates”: Mashiach is not in Rome, he’s at its entrance, the door through which people go in and out and where the city ends. In other words, Mashiach is only on the periphery of Rome.

 

Mashiach is not in Rome, but He is clearly associated with Rome. Mashiach is a Jew of the Tribe of Yehuda, never the less He is associated with Rome. This fits well with what we read in the Nazarean Codicil which lists Yeshua’s genealogy on both His mother’s side and His Father’s side.

 

Rashi interprets “the gates of Rome” in the figurative sense. “Not the actual entrance to the city, but to Gan Eden, which is opposite the entire world. That is to say, Mashiach is situated on the side of Gan Eden which is opposite its entrance.” But literal or not, what’s the connection between Mashiach and Rome?

 

To understand this, we must remember one point from Jewish theology. That is that the souls have an independent existence that precedes that of the person;[42] this includes the soul of the Messiah that exists even before his body does.[43]

 

We see this concept very clearly laid out in a famous teaching in the work of Rabbi Chaim ben Attar, the Holy Or HaChayim. In Deuteronomy 15:7, the verse says, “If there will be with you a poor man from among your brothers…” The Or HaChayim there explains it as a Remez for some concepts dealing with the Messiah. Here is what he says:

 

“And in the method of Remez, it is to be a Remez to us, in order to inspire us greatly with regards to one person, that special person among the people for whom we are anxiously waiting for the time when he will come. This is The King of Israel, our Mashiach who is a poor man. He has already been compared to a poor person as it says ‘A poor man riding on a donkey’.[44]And the Remez is that because of us he is made poor.

 

And it says, ‘with you’. This means because of you. Our sins have caused the lengthening of the time until the ‘end’.

 

Also, the word ‘with you’ is a Remez that the poor man is with us. He strongly desires for the time to come when he can redeem us from exile. You should go and learn this from what our Rabbis have taught with regards to the story of Rabbi Yehoshua ben Levi. When the King Mashiach saw him, he asked him how the Jewish people were doing in the world. Rabbi Yehoshua ben Levi answered him that they were sitting and waiting for him to come. When he heard this the pious one started to cry greatly because of his great desire to come and redeem them from exile.”

 

From these two sources, one based on the Talmud and the other Kabbalah, we see that the soul of Messiah suffers because he wants to come into this world and he is waiting to enter the world. This relates to the end of the exile, which comes when all will repent bringing an end to the Messiah's suffering.

 

Don Yitzchak Abarbanel said that Esav's soul was incarnated in Yeshua. Yeshua in the letters of Esav (ישוע אותיות עשיו) Esav = Yeshua (who was a Jew), both of which come from Esav, the father of Edom and Christianity. Rashi explains[45] that R 'Shimon bar Yohai that' It is a fact that Esav hated Yaaqob- הלכה היא בידוע שעשיו שונא ליעקב ' Radak in his comment to Bereshit 25:23 explains that the end of Esav will be that after the arrival of the true Mashiach (Messiah), the situation will be restored with Edom / Esav who will be at the service of his younger brother Israel.

 

However, to those who have a Torah background and read the Nazarean Codicil carefully, we see that Yeshua, of the Nazarean Codicil, upheld the Torah, was scrupulously observant, and provided an example of a tzaddik. He was exceedingly well versed in Torah and was able to judge the fine details of observance. In short, He was everything that one would expect of the Mashiach ben Yosef, as a baseline.

 

Now we can understand how one can be Esav on the outside and Yaaqob on the inside:

 

Bereshit (Genesis) 27:22 And Yaaqob went near unto Yitzchak his father; and he felt him, and said: 'The voice is the voice of Yaaqob, but the hands are the hands of Esav.

 

Nevertheless, the intent of the Creator of the world is not within the power of man to comprehend, for His ways are not our ways, nor are His thoughts, our thoughts. Ultimately, all the deeds of Yeshua of Nazareth and that Ishmaelite who arose after him will only serve to prepare the way for Mashiach's coming and the improvement of the entire world, motivating the nations to serve God together as: [46]

 

Zephaniah 3:9 I will transform the peoples to a purer language that they all will call upon the name of God and serve Him with one purpose.

 

Because Esav’s mission was taken on by Yaaqob, Yeshua the Mashiach had to be disguised as the hands of Esav, while having the voice of Yaaqob.

 

Because of baseless hatred, Yaaqob lost his dominant position and gave it over to Esav, as Yitzchak had prophesied.

 

Bereshit (Genesis) 27:39-40 And Isaac his father answered and said unto him: Behold, of the fat places of the earth shall be thy dwelling, and of the dew of heaven from above; 40 And by thy sword shalt thou live, and thou shalt serve thy brother; and it shall come to pass when thou shalt break loose, that thou shalt shake his yoke from off thy neck.

 

Esav will bring Torah to the world through his hands. These are Esav’s tools which he executes with his hands. We need to recall that when Yaaqob got the blessing, Yitzchak said that his hands were the hands of Esav. Now the Catholic and Christian churches are going to translate the Torah and using their vast resources, they are going to bring Torah and monotheism to the world, to all the goyim.

 

Because Esav hated Yaaqob, Esav is the medicine for the Yaaqob to cause Yaaqob to repent. Recall that this long and bitter exile is the result of baseless hatred. Because the Bne Israel’s (Yaaqob’s other name) baseless hatred, we were exiled to be confronted by Esav’s constant hatred of the Bne Israel. – Eeeeek!

 

Rabbi Shimon Kessen made a very interesting statement when he declared that Yeshua was the promised Mashiach who came 2000 years ago. The Bne Israel are waiting for something that has already arrived!

 

The Bne Israel have two tasks:  To be holy by doing the mitzvot and to be a kingdom of priests to the goyim. When we failed to do this during the 2000 years of Torah, HaShem got tired of waiting so He brought the messianic light. The purpose of this messianic light is to bring Torah to the goyim, to the world.[47]

 

HaShem loves all of His children. He loves the Bne Israel and the whole world. His plan requires that everyone has the ability to hear His word and respond.

 

Yochanan (John) 3:16-17 For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. 17  For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved.

 

In the year 4000, the Bne Israel were supposed to bring the Mashiach, but they failed due to baseless hatred. If the Bne Israel could not conquer their own hatred, how were they supposed to bring HaShem’s love to the world? They could not agree among themselves, how were they supposed to bring the knowledge of HaShem to the world?

 

If Yeshua is HaShem in the flesh, then that is avodah Zarah, idolatry. This is a real blemish, not an apparent blemish. This would completely disqualify Him from being Mashiach. Thus, we know that Yeshua was not HaShem in the flesh.

 

Christianity has the resources to bring Torah to the world. They have the people, the money, and the desire to translate Torah and take it to the whole world, that is all the Gentiles.

 

So, what is happening to the Bne Israel for the last 2000 years? Well, Esav has been teaching his younger brother about baseless hatred through warfare, pogroms, blood libel, inquisitions, crusades, and the holocaust. To put this in perspective: If the Christian persecutions of the Bne Israel is put on one side of a scale, and the baseless hatred of the Bne Israel towards each other is put on the other side… The scale will be exactly balanced.

 

Now that we have seen how the Patriarch Yaaqob acquired Esav’s mission, let’s look more closely at Yitzchak’s words: 'The voice is the voice of Yaaqob, but the hands are the hands of Esav.[48]

 

 

Voice and Hands

 

To understand the issue of “hands and voice” we need to learn more about the hands of Yaaqob. When we first meet Yaaqob, long before he finds his voice, we see him using his hands: “And afterwards his brother came out, his hand taking hold of Esav’s heel”. Perhaps this in utero scene foreshadows a later episode where again Yaaqob uses his hands to wrestle a “man”^[49] identified as the heavenly protector of Esav.^[50] Ironically, this Sar shel Esav[51] begs Yaaqob to release him, for the time has come for him to use his voice to praise HaShem.^[52] Here, then, is the paradigm, reversed: the hands of Yaaqob and the voice of Esav! We may say that the voice of Yaaqob and the hands of Esav have been established as theological concepts: the former represents prayer and Torah while the latter represent physical ‘doing’ and physical accomplishments.^[53]

 

Bereshit (Genesis) 27:22 And Yaaqob went near unto Yitzchak his father; and he felt him, and said: ‘The voice is the voice of Yaaqob, but the hands are the hands of Esav.’

 

“The voice is the voice of Yaaqob^[54] but the hands are the hands of Esav”. The voice expresses thought and the spiritual world, while the hands represent the realm of action.^[55]

 

Midrash Rabbah - Genesis LXV:20 AND YAAQOB WENT NEAR UNTO YITZCHAK HIS FATHER; AND HE FELT HIM, AND SAID: THE VOICE IS THE VOICE OF YAAQOB:^[56] hark, tis the voice of a wise man, while the hands are of those that strip the dead!^[57] Another interpretation of THE VOlCE IS THE VOICE OF YAAQOB: Yaaqob wields power only by his voice; BUT THE HANDS ARE THE HANDS OF ESAV: Esav wields dominion only by his hands.^[58] R. Phinehas gave another interpretation of THE VOICE IS THE VOICE OF YAAQOB: when the voice of Yaaqob withdraws within itself,^[59] then THE HANDS ARE THE HANDS OF ESAV: One beckons to him, and he comes [to attack Israel]. R. Berekiah gave another interpretation of THE VOICE IS THE VOICE OF YAAQOB: when Yaaqob speaks wrathfully with his voice,^[60] the hands of Esav have dominion; when his voice rings out clearly,^[61] the hands of Esav have no dominion.^[62]

 

The Midrash tells us that the power of Yaakov lies in his voice. The voice is that of Yaaqob. Esav’s power, however, lies in his hands. This is reflected in the Christian church which uses its ‘hands’ to crush the Bne Israel and other nations. Its voice, reflected in the Nazarean Codicil expresses the Torah accurately. What the Catholics and Christians do, this is not what their voice says. They do the work of Esav while the Nazarean Codicil[63] expresses the words of Yeshua as the voice of Yaaqob, the prophecy of Yaaqob.

 

Similarly, in Bereshit 27:28, “See my son’s fragrance is like the perfume of a field, blessed by HaShem.” The “field” is the world of action but “blessed by HaShem” means that it draws from the spiritual sphere.

 

Our hands represent human ingenuity, the work we do.

 

Hands represent our actions in our day to day living.

 

Hands represent the practical observance of mitzvot.

 

Our hands represent creative labor and our mastery over the physical world. They also symbolize human control.

 

The hands represent the external actions of a person, while the voice represents a person’s inner essence. The Midrash also offers an additional meaning. The power of Yaaqob lies in his voice. The voice is that of Yaaqob. Esav’s power, however, lies in his hands. Somehow, Yaaqob is himself and Yaaqob is also Esav. He has the hands of Esav!

 

Obviously, Yitzchak can touch the hands of Yaaqob’s and discern that they are hairy. However, Yitzchak is much more concerned with the food that ‘Esav’ had provided. Why? What is so important about the food? Yitzchak wanted to insure that ‘Esav’ was able to take the provision that HaShem provides for His world (animals on the hoof) and convert it into a form that will provide sustenance for Yaaqob and the rest of the world. He does this by having ‘Esav’ get game and prepare it in a pleasing manner. This is what Esav’s hand are meant to do. Hands are for doing.

 

It is Rivka that takes the actions to make the circumstances ‘right’, to make sure it is the Yaaqob character within the Esav character. The ‘hands’ have to be the hands that are capable of providing his own physical needs and also be able to provide the material needs to those around him.

 

Yaaqob was therefore given a blessing for material success using honest and upright tactics. “May HaShem give you of the dew of the heaven and the fatness of the earth…Nations will serve you…be a lord to your kinsmen…may they that bless you be blessed”.^[64] The physical world was now in the righteous hands of Yaaqob who had become Esav, who would manage it in holiness, according to HaShem’s will.

 

This is a great secret. On the exterior, it appears as if Yeshua is Esav, yet he is only concealed there, just as Yaaqob was concealed by Esav’s clothes and skins. This is akin to King David having red hair, the external attributes of Esav. This is akin to Moshe Rabbenu being dressed as an Egyptian. This is likened to Yosef HaTzaddik having the name “Tzafnat Paneach”.

 

Just as Moshe Rabbeinu as the first redeemer was given an Egyptian name by an Egyptian and cloaked in Egypt, so was Yosef HaTzaddik. As Yosef was sold for silver to the Gentiles, and given a new Gentile name, so too will Mashiach ben Yosef be sold for silver, handed over the Gentiles and be given a Gentile name.

 

The Mashiach is always the hidden flower. His brothers will not recognize him. It is a concealment within a concealment. Yet, in truth, the “voice”, the interior, the inside, is truly Yaaqob,  that is the Mashiach ben Yosef.

 

 

 

Baseless Hatred

 

The encampment at Sinai was very unusual and expresses it an unusual way. So unusual that all the mefarshim[65] comment on it.

 

Shemot (Exodus) 19:1-2 In the third month after the children of Israel were gone forth out of the land of Egypt, the same day came they into the wilderness of Sinai. They journeyed from Rephidim, and they arrived in the desert of Sinai, and they encamped in the desert, and Israel encamped there opposite the mountain.

 

Rashi brings significant insight to this pasuk:

 

and Israel encamped there: Heb. וַיִחַן, [the singular form, denoting that they encamped there] as one man with one heart, but all the other encampments were [divided] with complaints and with strife.[66]

 

What makes this statement so unusual, is that it was never used before, or after this incident. This was a unique event! Can you imagine all of the Bne Israel[67] having the same heart and being completely unified with each other? Never the less, this is the goal we should be aiming to achieve.

 

Today, we are no longer together. We are dispersed from our land and we find ourselves in the land of those who hate us, because we hate each other with baseless hatred. Chazal tell us that “The temple was only destroyed because of sinat chinam - שנאת חנם” – translated as ‘baseless hatred’.[68]

 

Yoma 9b However, considering that the people during the Second Temple period were engaged in Torah study, observance of mitzvot, and acts of kindness, and that they did not perform the sinful acts that were performed in the First Temple, why was the Second Temple destroyed? It was destroyed due to the fact that there was wanton hatred during that period. This comes to teach you that the sin of wanton hatred is equivalent to the three severe transgressions: Idol worship, forbidden sexual relations and bloodshed.

 

We are exiled in Edom, in a land where they hate the Bne Israel for no reason other than the fact that we are Jews. This is the very definition of anti-Semitism.[69]

 

Justin Martyr’s[70] dual influence as a Christian hero and inciter against Jews affected the mainstream of Christian thought by planting the sinister seed of Christian anti-Semitism. It would grow into a monstrous, inseparable axiom of the Roman Catholic church.

 

Are anti-Semites the only ones who can bring Jews together? If that is the case, we should hang our heads in shame.

 

We Jews love a broigus,[71] whether it be a falling out in shul, an argument over Israeli policy or a Haredi versus religious Zionism dispute. Our divisions would be so funny if they were not so tragic. But they are.

 

It seems only anti-Semites can break down barriers between fellow Jews and create a more unified Jewry. They see Jews as Jews. They do not ask a Jew what denomination he or she belongs to, what they think of the rabbi who did this and that, or what their view on Mr. Netanyahu is. Anti-Semites hate Jews regardless of individual theological and ideological beliefs. This was overwhelmingly demonstrated in Germany during the holocaust where being Jewish, of any persuasion, meant a death sentence. And therefore, if the solution to one of our community’s greatest challenges, namely ending this toxic sectarian and label-based Judaism, comes from antisemitic hate, rather than Jewish love, then we should hang our heads in shame.

 

In our world, there is so much baseless hatred between the Bne Israel that it boggles the mind. What makes this so difficult to understand is that this was the very reason why we were exiled and why the Beit HaMikdash was destroyed. One would have thought that we would have learned our lesson by now. So, what exactly are we to learn from this 2000 year long and bitter exile?

 

The history of the last 2000 years has shown many significant events involving antisemitism. These events were designed by HaShem to mirror the baseless hatred between the Bne Israel. This mirror has been held in front of our faces for 2000 years!

 

What do you expect will happen to the baseless hatred between Jews?

 

There is a famous play on words, the Hebrew word sinai, as in Mount Sinai, is linked to sina (hatred), suggesting that the moment we received the Torah on that venerable mountain we elicited the intractable enmity of the nations.

 

If sinat chinam was the poison that destroyed the second Beit HaMikdash, it stands to reason that love of all Jews is the necessary antidote. This may very well be the reason that Rabbi Akiva famously declared that the words “And you should love your fellow Jew as yourself” are the most overarching principle of the Torah.[72] A Hundred plus years earlier, Yeshua declared similar words:

 

Mattiyahu (Matthew) 22:37  Yeshua said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. 38  This is the first and great commandment. 39  And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself.

 

Rabbi Akiba’s dictum is reminiscent of a passage in:

 

Shabbat 31a A certain non-Jew came before Shammai and said to him, ‘Make me a proselyte, on the condition that you teach me the entire Torah while I stand on one foot.’ [Shammai] threatened him with the builder’s tool in his hand. [In contrast,] Hillel said to him, ‘What is hateful to you, do not do to your neighbor, that is the whole Torah; the rest is the commentary. Go and learn!’”

 

In his Torah commentary Kli Yakar,[73] Rabbi Shlomo Ephraim ben Aaron Luntschitz explains that the responses of Shammai and Hillel stemmed from two very different perceptions of the non-Jew who came before them. Whereas Shammai thought he was acting in a disrespectful manner, Hillel perceived him as a would-be ger tzedek[74] who had approached him in an authentic fashion:

 

“For in truth, the potential ger, honestly sought from him the pillar of Torah upon which all the mitzvot stand, in order that he not fall into the grip of forgetfulness that might be found in a convert who had not learned anything about Torah during his youth. Therefore, he asked Hillel to transmit one overriding principle that encapsulates the entire Torah … in order that he would be able to remember all of the mitzvot”.[75]

 

We are fortunate that the Rambam[76] (Rabbi Moshe Ben Maimon) provides us with a clear response that incorporates both positive action, and Hillel’s meta-axiom of Torah behavior: “We are commanded to love others in the same manner that we love ourselves. My mercy and love for my brother should be exactly like the mercy and love I have for myself … and everything that I wish for myself, I should desire for him. Conversely, anything that I would hate for myself or for anyone who associates with me, I should find hateful to him in the exact same fashion”.[77]

 

Rabbi Kook[78] explained that “baseless or causeless love” means loving every single Jew, regardless of how they may differ from you politically or religiously.[79] This is the antidote for sinat chinam, baseless hatred. Yeshua HaMashiach, the Messiah ben Yosef, was sent to us at the very beginning of our exile in Edom, to provide us with this antidote.

 

Yochanan (John) 13:34 A new command I give you:  Love one another, as I have loved you.

 

1 Corinthians 6:19 Do you not know that your bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God?  You are not your own.

 

We need to love all of the Bne Israel as though they were parts of us. “Even if your brother is a completely wicked person, one needs to search and to find in them a single thing that is not completely evil and in doing so will find goodness and the ability to judge your brother favorably”.[80]

 

In Hebrew, the word “ahava - אהבה”, love, stems from the root “hav”, to give. In order to love, we have to give. Love is not something that flows in and of itself. Rather, it is something in which we have to invest. It is only when we give that we love. Understanding the concepts that are invested in words can aid us in our own lives. As an interesting example, the word “love” which is thrown about so freely in English, has a special meaning in Hebrew. Love in Hebrew is “Ahava”, אהבה which is made up of three basic Hebrew letters, אהב. These three letters actually are broken down into two parts: a two-letter base or root, הב, and the first letter, א, which is a modifier. The meaning of the two-letter base, הב, is “to give”. The letter “aleph” א, which precedes these two letters comes to modify the meaning of the base word, “give”. The meaning of אהבה , is “I give” and also “love”.

 

The Ari Hakadosh[81] said: “Before Shacharit,[82] a person should take upon himself to fulfill the mitzvah of 'Love your fellow as yourself,' and should strive to love every Jew as much as he loves himself”.

 

Anti-Semitism comes from Esau / Edom who hates Yaaqob. The Bne Israel are exiled in Edom in order to correct their baseless hatred towards one-another. Anti-Semitism is, at its core, baseless hatred. This is intended to be a mirror that causes us to correct our actions. This helps us to understand why anti-Semitism is virtually unknown in the east. Since we are not there, there is no reason for the people of the east to mirror our bad behavior.

 

Antisemitism is a form of baseless hatred. However, hatred is a grave issue which is likened to inadvertent manslaughter. In this next section we will examine this idea in greater detail.

 

Harbinger

 

The Messianic redemption is closely associated with the name of the prophet Elijah. He is regarded as the forerunner of Mashiach, “the harbinger who will proclaim peace, the harbinger of good who will proclaim salvation, saying to Zion ‘Your G‑d reigns!’ ”[83]

 

When Mashiach comes, He is the harbinger of troubles for the world.

 

The hatred against President Donald Trump is a preview of the troubles that will come with the Mashiach, as King David said:

 

Tehillim (Psalms) 2:1-2 Why are the nations in an uproar? And why do the peoples mutter in vain? 2 The kings of the earth stand up, and the rulers take counsel together, against HaShem, and against His anointed (מְשִׁיחוֹ):

 

When Mashiach comes, we will see an all-out war against one individual.

 

The era immediately preceding the days of the messiah is dark and chaotic: in striking contrast to biblical depictions of the messianic age as positive, peaceful, and plentiful[84] the rabbis predict that “troubles will inundate that generation like a river”.[85] In fact, these predictions were so foreboding that several important Rabbinic sages hoped that they would not live to see the day of the messiah’s arrival; strikingly, in their discussion, more optimistic visions of the messianic age are not even mentioned:

 

Sanhedrin 98b Ulla says: Let Mashiach come, but after my death, so that I will not see him, as I fear the suffering that will precede his coming. Likewise, Rabba says: Let Mashiach come, but after my death, so that I will not see him.

 

Ulla and Rabbah invert the usual rabbinic expectation for the messiah: though they understand that their social reality is deeply imperfect, and though they hope for its redemption, they do not want to witness the process themselves. The coming of the messiah may eventually bring peace, redemption, and a relief from suffering, but first, chaos will have its way. This world may be unpredictable and violent, but its troubles run in trickles rather than rivers.

 

Trouble that runs like a river certainly threatens us physically, but it can also threaten us emotionally and spiritually.

 

Now, lets examine the events surrounding the first redeemer and see the condition of the world when HaShem sent His first redeemer to the world.

 

Chazal teach that “Moshe was the first Redeemer and he is the final Redeemer.”[86] This suggests that there are a great number of connections between the events when Mashiach ben David will come, and the events in the days of Moshe.

 

(This does not mean that Moshe himself will be the final Redeemer, since Moshe is a Levite, whereas Mashiach will come from the family of King David, from the Tribe of Judah.[87] Traditional sources view the redemption from Egypt as the prototype of the Final Redemption, based on the verse in:

 

Micah 7:15 As in the days of your exodus from the land of Egypt, I will show you wonders."

 

When Moshe made his first appearance to Paro, we see that the Bne Israel’s work dramatically increased as they were now responsible for gathering straw. This first ‘trouble’ affected the Bne Israel but was not felt by the Egyptians.

 

By the time Moshe and Aharon change the Nile water into blood, the Egyptians were suffering ‘trouble’ and the Bne Israel were not affected. And so it goes for all ten plagues: The Egyptians had troubles and the Bne Israel were not affected, save for the plague of darkness where four-fifths of the Bne Israel died because they did not wish to leave Egypt. Thus we understand that when Mashiach comes, He is the harbinger of troubles for the world.

 

When Moshe was born, Paro was killing all of the baby boys, who were potential redeemers, by throwing them into the Nile. In the same way, when Yeshua was born, Herod killed all the baby boys in an attempt to kill Yeshua, who would be the King of the Jews.

 

Thus we understand that when Mashiach comes, He is the harbinger of troubles for the world.

 

 

Mashiach ben Yosef and the Bne Israel

 

The sins of the Bne Israel resulted in the death of Yeshua HaMashiach, albeit inadvertently. That same generation that saw Yeshua crucified also saw the destruction of the Bet HaMikdash, the symbol of Mashiach’s body, and the subsequent galut; the longest galut in our history.

 

Yochanan (John) 2:19-21  Yeshua answered and said unto them, Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up. 20  Then said the Jews, Forty and six years was this temple in building, and wilt thou rear it up in three days? 21  But he spoke of the temple of his body.

 

The tikkun for our sins that inadvertently caused the death of Mashiach, is to go into galut to a take refuge in Mashiach, the ultimate place (makom) of Torah.

 

Chazal tell us that the first Temple was destroyed because Israel had violated the “cardinal sins” of idolatry, murder, and immorality, while the second Temple was destroyed because of baseless hatred:

 

Yoma 9b Why was the First Temple destroyed? Because of three things that occurred in it: Idolatry, unseemly provocative sexual behavior, and bloodshed... But the Second Temple, where they occupied themselves with Torah, Commandments and acts of benevolence, why was it destroyed? Because there was baseless hatred. This teaches that baseless hatred is equated with three sins: idolatry, provocative sexual behavior and bloodshed.

 

Now Mashiach has told us that hatred is related to killing in:

 

Matityahu (Matthew) 5:21 Ye have heard that it was said by them of old time, Thou shalt not kill; and whosoever shall kill shall be in danger of the judgment: 22  But I say unto you, That whosoever is angry with his brother without a cause shall be in danger of the judgment: and whosoever shall say to his brother, Raca, shall be in danger of the council: but whosoever shall say, Thou fool, shall be in danger of hell fire. 23  Therefore if thou bring thy gift to the altar, and there rememberest that thy brother hath ought against thee; 24  Leave there thy gift before the altar, and go thy way; first be reconciled to thy brother, and then come and offer thy gift.

 

We can infer that our actions of unintentional man slaying were the cause of the destruction of the second Temple. We can also understand that it is the atonement of Mashiach, The Living Torah, that will end this bitter exile. It is the death of Mashiach ben Yosef, our Kohen Gadol, which provides the atonement which will allow us to enter the Promised Land, our makom, under the leadership of Mashiach ben David!

 

Thus, we see that the solution to the manslayer’s exile is Torah and that the ultimate end to our national exile is found in The Living Torah, Mashiach. We must seek to study Torah and perform the mitzvot in order to gain the atonement of galut.

 

Yeshua remains hidden from most of the Bne Israel. This is in keeping with HaShem’s plan to mire the messianic line in impurity. In this next section we will look at this idea in greater depth.

 

 

An Impossible Situation

 

According to an idea enunciated by Rabbi E.E. Dessler,[88] one of the foremost exponents of Mussar in the 20th century, the highest levels of holiness can be reached only as a reaction to a situation which is steeped in the very opposite of holiness.  Avraham Abinu became the spiritual pioneer that he was only because he grew up in the house of Terah the idol maker.  This spurred him to rebel against Nimrod and the ten generations of idolaters who preceded him.  Moshe Rabbenu only became the greatest of all prophets because he was brought up in the palace of Pharaoh.  His revolution against the evil he saw in the palace propelled him to heights that no other human being ever achieved.  Similarly, the Messiah grows to full stature only because he “dwells at the gates of Rome”.  He must be challenged by the value system of the West, rebel against it and overcome it.  It is thus fair to say that the “Messianic Kingdom” must begin its career as part of Western civilization, but can reach its full potential only by rejecting those aspects of that civilization which are destructive to Torah life.  This husk must fall off for the Messianic ideal to be revealed in all its purity.

 

This explains a saying of our Sages[89] identifying “chazir” (literally “pig”) with Edom. Why is Edom termed a “chazir”? “Because it will return (mechazeres) its crown to its rightful owner (i.e., the Jewish people).” This is indicated by what is written:

 

Ovadia (Obadiah) 1:21 And saviors shall come up on Mount Zion to judge the mount of Esau; and the kingdom shall be the Lord's.

 

Before the Final Redemption, the crown of world leadership will pass from Edom to Mashiach. However, the transfer of power will be indirect: as the civilization of Edom disintegrates, a vacuum will be created which is then filled by malchut shamayim, the reign of heaven.

 

As the Maharal writes, “Thus Mashiach dwells together with them in their land, waiting for the void to develop that will induce them to accept a different authority.” In other words, Edom will grow weak from within. “The power void will not be absolute, as there must always be some form of authority in the world, but it will be sufficient to bring about the transition to the kingdom of heaven. Moshe Rabbeinu thus had to grow up in Pharaoh’s palace and Mashiach waits at the gates of Rome, for if not for the void that appears, the new entity cannot begin to take shape.”

 

The Mashiach is an incredibly pure person whose Torah and deeds are so incredibly pure that they become the pattern that we must imitate.

 

What makes the messianic line so interesting is that such an incredibly pure person could emerge from descendants whose apparent misdeeds connote such unimaginable corruption. This is the trickery and scheming that The Holy One, Blessed is He, uses against the klipot in order to free a soul exploited amongst them.^[90] This is a very difficult issue that needs to be answered, yet the answer is not easily grasped.

 

The answer, in part, is that the Mashiach will come at a time when it is impossible, or highly improbable, that He will come, and He will come from a place that seems equally impossible. The circumstances of His birth, his parentage, and His deeds will seem so unlikely as to preclude investigation. This is the impossible, and totally unexpected, pathway that we will study and this is the pathway that we must learn to discern if we are to recognize Mashiach. The Jewish people are expected to expect the unexpected. We are a people of the impossible!

 

As HaShem plays by the rules of the creation He made, using trickery to outsmart the klipot, He often ends up outsmarting many of us as well. When we judge situations only by how they appear on the surface, we are in danger of misjudging people, events, and things, condemning them rather than appreciating their role within Jewish history.^[91]

 

When we drown in the world of Pshat, that is, we only view things on a superficial level, we can end up destroying that which is intrinsically valuable, and saving that which ought to be destroyed. Very little is often what it seems to be on the surface in Jewish history, a major lesson of the Torah, and the underlying teaching of the Torah SheBaal Peh. ^[92]

 

One of the aspects of the Mashiach’s advent is that His impossible coming from an impossible place will be transformed into the best possible scenario when it is finally understood. Thus, the impossible will not only become the possible, but it will become the most obvious pathway.

 

Let’s briefly examine a few cases of apparent impurity in the messianic line.

 

 Lot’s daughters committed incest with their father. The messianic line flowed through the elder daughter when Ruth married Boaz. It flowed the younger daughter when Naamah gave birth to Rehoboam. Was Rehoboam a mamzer because Naamah was an Ammonite?

 

Yitzchak died at the Akeida, before he had children. Since Yitzchak died, this presents a potential problem for the messianic line in that he had not married and had no children. When Yitzchak died, all of his descendants died with him. Therefore, Yaaqob and his twelve sons, the tribes of Israel, all died with him. Of course, they were also resurrected with him!

 

Did Yaaqob “steal” his father’s blessing by deception? The appearance of theft through deception is so great that the majority of people who read this event come to the conclusion that the blessing was stolen. The forces of evil will not pay attention to folks involved in apparent impurity because they too are deceived. Thus, the messianic seed will be preserved and hidden.

 

Why does Yehuda, the father of kings and the Mashiach, visit a prostitute?

 

Tamar – Why does she play a prostitute? This is clearly a way to muddy the messianic line. Tamar was the daughter of Shem and a Prophetess in her own right. Tamar was an exceedingly great individual. She engaged in the mitzva of Yibum (Levirate Marriage) with Yehuda, knowingly. Tamar clearly understood that this was no sin, but rather a mitzva (good deed) that built the messianic line.

 

Yishai – Why did he divorce his wife, Nitzevet? Was David a mamzer (an illegitimate son)? As we read: Tehillim (Psalms) 51:7  Behold, I was brought forth in iniquity, and in sin did my mother conceive me.

 

Was Solomon born to an adulterer and murderer? David himself was thought to be a mamzer a very impure person who was ostracized and sent to watch sheep to avoid contact with folks.

 

Bathsheba was David’s paramour, and she was already “married” to Uriyya the Hittite. How can we be sure that Solomon was not Uriyya’s child?

 

Jeconiah was cursed that none of his descendants would prosper sitting on the throne of David. Does this curse preclude a messianic descendant?

 

Yeshua – Does a virgin birth preclude the throne of David? Is Yeshua HaShem? Is Yeshua part of a trinity? Did Yeshua spurn the Torah? Why don’t Jews believe in Him? Obviously, it is a serious impediment to the Mashiach if He is not acceptable to the Jewish people. Further, why are His parents very poor whilst previous ancestors, in the messianic line, have been kings and leaders of their generations? These are some of the questions that have been asked by unlearned skeptics throughout the centuries. They are questions which call into question the messianic aspirations of Yeshua. These are all clear impediments to the messianic line.

 

Why does HaShem conceal the messianic line in apparent impurity? Because the impure spiritual forces suckle from the pure. The impure forces pay no attention to those mired in impurity because there is nothing to suckle from impurity. Even though there is no actual impurity in the messianic line, the impure forces are easily fooled and deceived, as are ignorant men.

 

So, HaShem disguises great purity and spiritual greatness with the appearance of impurity, in order that He might rectify the world and bring forth Mashiach into the light. Thus, we see that Mashiach is the hidden flower which springs forth from a seed which seems to decay just before it sprouts forth anew!

 

Romans 11:25-27 For I would not, brethren, that ye should be ignorant of this mystery, lest ye should be wise in your own conceits; that blindness in part is happened to Israel, until the fulness of the Gentiles be come in. 26  And so all Israel shall be saved: as it is written, There shall come out of Sion the Deliverer, and shall turn away ungodliness from Yaaqob: 27  For this is my covenant unto them, when I shall take away their sins.

 

The Mashiach ben Yosef is concealed within the klipah of the enemies of Israel, that is Edom / Rome.

 

 

The Current Exile – Edom / Rome

 

Because of our sins we have been exiled to Edom. Why Edom? HaShem always exiles the Jewish people to the greatest nation at the time of their exile. Clearly Edom, AKA the western world, is the greatest power in the world. But there is a deep reason why Edom is great at this time. Edom is great at this time because Yitzchak, in his blessing to Esav, said that if Yaaqob fails to do his job, then Yaaqob’s people will become Esav’s slaves.^[93] If Yaaqob would do his job, then Edom would become Yaaqob’s servants.

 

Bereshit (Genesis) 25:23 And HaShem said unto her: Two nations are in thy womb, and two peoples shall be separated from thy bowels; and the one people shall be stronger than the other people; and the elder shall serve the younger.

 

Bereshit (Genesis) 27:39 And Isaac his father answered and said unto him: Behold, of the fat places of the earth shall be thy dwelling, and of the dew of heaven from above; 40 And by thy sword shalt thou live, and thou shalt serve thy brother; and it shall come to pass when thou shalt break loose, that thou shalt shake his yoke from off thy neck.

 

During the second Temple period, for the first time in history, Klal Israel was not in exile to any other nation. At the same time, they had fallen to a very low spiritual level, the level of Esav. When they fell to Esav’s level, then Esav deserved to be in control, and so it was. This helps us to understand why there are virtually no Jews in the east. We were exiled to Esav’s realm, the realm of the west.^[94]

 

In addition, we went into this exile voluntarily. This means that we got to choose where we went. We chose to go into the western world because we had become so much like Esav that we felt comfortable with them. However, let’s not forget that HaShem is also giving us the desires of our heart in order for us to go to the place where we can do the most good; the place where we can get fixed and at the same time, we can fix those in Edom. Edom will become a mirror for us to see ourselves. Being ‘in our face’ will provide the feedback that will allow us to do some introspection and to fix ourselves. It will also provide that good mirror for Esav to see himself. The very purpose of exile was for the Jewish people to gain converts,^[95] our sages teach.

 

Consider what Yosef’s brothers did when they were confronted, in Egypt, by a harsh ruler (Yosef), and accused of spying. Notice that they immediately recognize that they are having this trouble because of their sin regarding the selling of Yosef:

 

Bereshit (Genesis) 42:9-12, 21-22 And Joseph remembered the dreams which he dreamed of them, and said unto them: 'Ye are spies; to see the nakedness of the land ye are come.' 10 And they said unto him: 'Nay, my lord, but to buy food are thy servants come. 11 We are all one man's sons; we are upright men, thy servants are no spies.' 12 And he said unto them: 'Nay, but to see the nakedness of the land ye are come.' … 21 And they said one to another: 'We are verily guilty concerning our brother, in that we saw the distress of his soul, when he besought us, and we would not hear; therefore is this distress come upon us.' 22 And Reuben answered them, saying: 'Spoke I not unto you, saying: Do not sin against the child; and ye would not hear? therefore also, behold, his blood is required.'

 

When we are sent to exile, we must examine ourselves and repent of our sins. We are in exile to fix our sins. Remember that Yaaqob’s first exile was because Esav hated him! As our Sages teach, we are in exile because of baseless hatred. We hate each other. As I mentioned previously, HaShem showed us through Yaaqob’s exile with Laban, and the exile of the Bne Israel in Egypt, that both exiles were due to hatred. This suggests that hatred is also the root of the problem with Edom as well, which we know because Esav’s actions in his day are a sign and a portent for his children. As Esav hated his brother, so also do the people of Edom hate the Bne Israel. We are just like them.

 

As Esav lied to his father, so the people of Edom are liars. He was two-faced. He pretended to be pious while raping and murdering people.

 

When we see the global response to the Wuhan flu, we should immediately realize that this is not normal! When things are abnormal it is a sign that we should be correcting ourselves, not trying to fix a medical or political problem. Isolation from our family, community, synagogue, friends, and co-workers is one way to minimize the hatred we have for each other. This is the classic Torah punishment for those who speak Lashon HaRa, evil speech. When we think we are better than others, then we denigrate others with our words in order to make ourselves look good. We need to wake up!

 

If Esau / Edom’s success is inversely proportional to that of Yaaqov / Israel, then it follows naturally that the punishment of Edom who now enslaves us in exile will come at the same time as the redemption.

 

 

Suffering

 

There is another possible type of suffering associated with Mashiach ben David[96] which we do not find explicitly stated. However, it seems that it is implied by some of the minor Midrashic works.

 

In Rabbinic literature there are two scenarios of how the Messiah comes, as I discussed in my article on Mashiach ben Yosef. If it should be that Mashiach ben Yosef comes and is killed, that time will be one of wars and serious privations for the Jewish people. These events are openly referred to in the Tanach especially in Ezekiel chapters 38-39 and Zachariah 12-14. We see in a number of the minor Midrashim that they describe in detail these events. In these works, there is the following scenario for the coming of Mashiach ben David:

 

There will be a period of tribulation and wars for Israel. Mashiach ben Yosef will arise and he will fight and defeat the enemy. Following this he will be defeated and this will cause a great depression among the Jewish people. During this time in fulfillment of the verse “…I will bring you in the desert of the nations”[97] many of them shall flee to the desert. After that Elijah and Mashiach ben David will appear to those in the desert and then go and fight the final war to bring the final redemption. After which Ben David resurrects Mashiach ben Yosef.

 

Obviously during the final battles, we can say that Mashiach ben David will go through ‘suffering’. However, there is another possibility that appears in the wording of a teshuva of Hai Gaon[98] that Mashiach ben David will be in the desert for a time. He indicates that Mashiach ben David joins them in the desert and then they go to fight the war. It may be at this time he shares in the suffering they have for a short period. Certainly, there are many allusions to this idea in different Rabbinic works, even if it is not specific. Of course, this requires a pretty specific set of conditions and is associated with some specific events.

 

We see here that while there is suffering that the Mashiach, or at least his soul, goes through PRIOR to his appearance. This would mean that at this moment his soul is suffering because of a desire to come and fulfill his purpose. There is nothing that can be drawn from this to aid the Christian concept of the messiah who dies for our sins. Where it is associated with the idea of the suffering of the righteous, it applies to the pre-existent soul of the Messiah. And most importantly, he DOES NOT DIE but perseveres and leads the Jewish people out of exile.

 

 

Mashiach ben Yosef is always hidden.

 

Like the Redemption that is as yet hidden, so is the Afikomen hidden at the beginning of the feast. It ‘alludes to the meal that the holy one, blessed be He is to make in the future for the righteous’.[99] Yuval[100] is not the first to point out the Messianic overtones of the Afikomen, but gives the historical basis for the development of the Haggadah in the light of both Christian and Jewish Messianic understanding.

 

The Afikomen is wrapped in a shroud before it is revealed. ‘One should not ignore the phenomenological similarity between the various stages of the afikomen ceremony and the Crucifixion of Yeshua, his being enwrapped in a shroud, his being placed in a closed cave, until at the climax, on Easter Sunday, he is risen from the dead.’[101]

 

In the 17^th century there was a custom of piercing a piece of the afikomen and hanging it on the wall: Upon their houses, opposite the door, the Jews place a black spot on a white wall so that it will be visible to all, young and old, and so they will not forget their

God and the Temple, and over this they pray a special prayer. Similarly, on Passover they bake round cakes on unleavened dough, bless it, and nail it over the black spot, in memory of God’.[102]

 

The matza, the symbol of redemption, is attached to the empty spot on the wall intended to commemorate the Destruction of the Temple. Yuval notes the parallels with Communion.

 

They eat the hidden piece of matzah at the end of the meal after completing the reading of the Haggadah, and they consider it most holy. Therefore, they are careful not to let any crumb of it fall on their beards, on the floor, or in any other place. They say that this matzah is instead of the Paschal Lamb, and therefore they hide it, like their Messiah, the time of who’s coming is hidden away.[103] It seems to me (Yuval) that what we have here is a ‘Jewish internalization of Christian ritual language. The Christians eat matzah all year long, during communion, while the Jews eat it only once a year, at Passover (Yuval 2006: 241).

 

The afikomen still retains its Messianic symbolism in Judaism. Rabbi Shulweiss reflects on ‘Wanting Wholeness But Not Having It’: In the outline of the seder ritual, the division of the middle matza, yahatz, takes place early, before the great declaration, “This is the bread of affliction.” The eating of the retrieved matzah comes after ransoming it from the children at the end of the seder. The ritual of eating the afikomen is called Tzafun, which means “hidden.” It, too, is eaten in silence, without benediction, before midnight. After the afikomen, no food or drink is to be taken except for the final two cups of wine. In some haggadot there is a devotional prayer in Aramaic that announces, “I am ready and pre-pared to perform the commandment of eating the afikomen to unite the Holy One blessed be He and His Divine Presence through the hidden and secret Guardian on behalf of all Israel.”

 

 

Adomi: Esav and David

 

Only Two people in the Tanach are described as ‘reddish’: Esav and David.

 

A comment in the Midrash Ha-gadol sheds some light on the significance of Esav’s reddish color: “Rav Yehuda said: If you see a person whose face is red, he is either a completely wicked person like Esav, or a completely righteous man like David.”  The Midrash notes that David, like Esav, is described as reddish.[104]  Accordingly, the Midrash establishes that a reddish complexion reflects either a sinful nature, like Esav’s, or a righteous nature, like David’s.

 

 

Conclusion

 

Is Yeshua a kosher Jew?

 

The answer is an emphatic YES!

 

Are Christian beliefs kosher?

 

The answer is: Absolutely NOT!

 

Is Yeshua the promised Mashiach ben Yosef who was to fulfill the 2000 years of Torah?

 

Rabbi Kessen says yes, and I wholeheartedly agree with him. No, Yeshua did not fulfill the tasks of Mashiach ben David, but then again, neither did Bar Kochba, or the Rebbe.[105]

 

Is Yeshua of the Nazarean Codicil the same as the Yeshu of the Talmud? No way, they are separated by time and their deeds are not the same.

 

Yeshua did usher in a new era where His disciples took the Torah to the world. They translated the scriptures and distributed them to the entirety of the world. They made converts, often with the sword, but they brought the Torah to the world, to all the Gentiles. The Christian church exhibited the characteristics of Esav’s hand and sword and the voice of Yaaqob, voice of Torah.

 

The scriptures that are used by Christians, the Nazarean Codicil, follows orthodoxy, except for some minor scribal emendations. Yet, to hear Christian doctrines you would never believe it. Countless Christian missionaries have attempted to interpret the Tanach in their own twisted theology. Their doctrines of the deity of Yeshua, His virgin birth, His abolishment of the Torah, and many other such doctrines are idolatrous, anti-Torah, and were never taught by Yeshua or in the Nazarean Codicil. These horrible doctrines are the traditions of men who twisted the text out of its context and have alienated many generations of the Bne Israel. The question is: Why has HaShem blinded the eyes of the Bne Israel that they should not read the text and see how the Christian theology is completely false?

 

The Nazarean Codicil, itself, provides a ready answer:

 

Romans 11:25-27 For I would not, brethren, that ye should be ignorant of this mystery, lest ye should be wise in your own conceits; that blindness in part is happened to Israel, until the fulness of the Gentiles be come in. 26  And so all Israel shall be saved: as it is written, There shall come out of Sion the Deliverer, and shall turn away ungodliness from Yaaqob: 27  For this is my covenant unto them, when I shall take away their sins.

 

Can there be a greater stumbling block than Christianity? All the prophets spoke of Mashiach as the redeemer of Israel and their savior who would gather their dispersed and strengthen their observance of the mitzvot. In contrast, Christianity caused the Jews to be slain by the sword, their remnants to be scattered and humbled, the Torah to be altered, and the majority of the world to err and serve a God other than HaShem.

 

Nevertheless, the intent of the Creator of the world is not within the power of man to comprehend, for His ways are not our ways, nor are His thoughts, our thoughts. Ultimately, all the deeds of Yeshua of Nazareth and that Ishmaelite who arose after him will only serve to prepare the way for Mashiach's coming and the improvement of the entire world, motivating the nations to serve HaShem together as the Prophet stated:

 

Zephaniah 3:9 I will transform the peoples to a purer language that they all will call upon the name of God and serve Him with one purpose.

 

As for the Mashiach, Rambam gives us an important hint:

 

If a king will arise from the House of David, who, like David his ancestor, delves deeply into the study of the Torah and engages in the mitzvot as prescribed by the Written Law and the Oral Law; if he will compel all of Israel to walk in [the way of the Torah] and repair the breaches [in its observance]; and if he will fight the wars of G-d; – we may, with assurance, consider him Mashiach.

 

Yeshua did these things as Mashiach ben Yosef. He did not complete the job, but He did these things. We are looking forward to the days of Mashiach ben David when all of these tasks will be complete.

 

* * *

 

R' David Valle to Bereshit 25:23 Behold, come and see how great are the words of Chazal that said in Maseket; the two nations were actualized in Antonius Marcus Aurelius and R' Yehuda HaNassi. Chazal knew in their wisdom that holiness begins with good things. The relationship between Antonius and R' Yehuda HaNassi did not have any evil. Because Antonius served R' Yehuda HaNassi he performed a tikkun for Esav. The actions of Antonius were a sign for the Rosh of Esav in the future who will help serve the Jews and by serving the Jews Esav will experience a complete tikkun that will lead to the complete tikkun of the worlds. Once this ~ happens than Mashiach will come.

 

 

R' David Valle to Bereshit 25:23 Behold, come and see how great are the words of Chazal who said that the two nations [Esav/Christianity and Yaaqob/Judaism] were actualized in Antonius Marcus Aurelius and R' Yehuda HaNassi. Chazal knew in their wisdom that holiness begins with good things. The relationship between Antonius and R' Yehuda HaNassi did not have any evil [Antonius was well respected by R' Yehuda HaNassi due to his knowledge of Torah. Different passages in the Gemara note that due his knowledge of Torah Antonius was always willing to serve R' Yehuda HaNassi and the Jewish people just as the pasuk says in Bereshit 25:23.]. Because Antonius sewed R' Yehuda HaNassi he performed a tikkun for Esav. The actions of Antonius were a sign for the Rosh of Esav in the future who will help serve the Jews and by sewing the Jews Esav will experience a complete tikkun that will lead to the complete tikkun of the worlds. Once this happens than Mashiach will come.                             _

 

* * *

 

This study was written by

Rabbi Dr. Hillel ben David (Greg Killian).

Comments may be submitted to:

 

Rabbi Dr. Greg Killian

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San Antonio, TX 78252

 

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