Personalities of Messiah
The Secret of Mashiach
The First Fractal
Yochanan 1:1
In the beginning was the Torah (logos)
B’resheet – Gen. 1:1 In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. 2 The earth was without form, and void; and darkness was on the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters.
Spirit of G-d = the hiddenness of G-d.
The “beginning” is wrapped in secret, obscurity, hiddenness, irreconcilability
1. Mashiach is hidden in the Torah (Tanakh)
2. Mashiach is the Secret (So’od) of the Torah
3. Mashiach is a personification of the Torah
4. Mashiach is the Instruction of the Torah
5. Mashiach is the Teaching of the Torah
6. Mashiach is the Goal of the Torah
Yochanan – John 1:1 In beginning of the invisible God’s[a] archetypal[b] dominion[c] (ἀρχῇ Heb. Resheet) is His word[d] and His word is present with (within) Elohim, (the human Judge and King of Yisrael).[e] 1:2 Thus, God’s archetypal dominion[f] through His logos—word is with/in Him (God) at all times. 1:3 All things (words – d’barim[g] – דְּבָרִים) came into being[h] (spoken) through[i] him,[j] (Logos, calling them by name) and apart from him nothing came into being[k] that has come into being. 1:4 In him was the Ruach[l] HaQodesh,[m] and the Ruach was the Ohr HaGanuz[n] of the Tsadiqim.[o]
Literal Equivalent translation by H. Em. Rabbi Dr. Eliyahu ben Abraham
[a] When the most Mysterious (concealed of the concealed – The Ein Sof of Keter, the most hidden recesses of divinity) wished to reveal Himself, He first produced a single point (Hokhmah) which was transmuted into a thought, and in (from) this He executed innumerable designs (Sefiroth). The single thought was “Messiah” as embodied in the Logos, Memra, Dabar and Elohim (human Judge and King).
He first produced a single point (Hokhmah) that single point was the thought of Messiah, by which He created the whole cosmos.
Creation began with Messiah. This means that “B’resheet Bara” means that Messiah was the first thought (Hokhmah – the persona of Mashiach) that HaShem had when he intended to create the cosmos. “B’rosh” (ראשׁ-ב) in or with the head. (ית – בּראשׁ) (ot – את – he)
[b] Philo Opi 1:16 for God, as apprehending beforehand, as a God must do, that there could not exist a good imitation without a good model, and that of the things perceptible to the external senses nothing could be faultless which was not fashioned with reference to some archetypal idea (Logos) conceived only by the (Divine spiritual) intellect, when he had determined to create this visible (mundane) world, previously formed that one which is perceptible only by the (Divine Spiritual) intellect, in order that so using an incorporeal model formed as far as possible on the image of God, he might then make this corporeal world, a younger likeness of the elder creation, which should embrace as many different general perceptible to the external senses, as the other world contains of those which are visible only to the (Spiritual) intellect.
Thus, G-d’s primordial thought begins without verbal expression and exists only as a primordial wordless thought. Before G-d can create a mundane material world He must break His thought down into a mundane string of pictures or images. (Cf. Shemot – Exo. 25:9 Tavnit – a copy of a Divine string of pictures transposed into the material world for reproduction of a material object) The images can only be explained by a long string of primordial words (i.e. Logos, Torah – D’bar Elohim)
[c] Here “ἀρχῇ” has the implied meaning first in the sense of eminence rather than being temporal. However, we use “ἀρχῇ” to mean G-d’s “archetypal dominion” but also implying the chief or principal acts of G-d.
[d] Logos, Memra and D’bar, – The “Revelation” of G-d’s will in the unveiling of the Divine will for man.
Each of these respective words is in some way and expression of the G-d breathed Torah. Here we are not referring to the Torah that was breathed, per se at Har Sinai. Our intention by use of these synonyms is that Logos, Dabar and Memra all refer to the Oral or Primordial Torah. These word were not first spoken. They existed only as thought in G-d’s mind. They were rehearsed in G-d’s mind until the plan was finitely tuned to perfection. However, the idea of rehearsal in the human mind requires repetition but in the mind of G-d there is no repetition. Thus, as G-d planned the workings of the cosmos there was essentially one thought. This thought was not a string of words and ideas but one single point called Hokhmah. That first initial thought of Hokhmah was the agent Mashiach who was immediately used as the creative tool of creation.
Eden is also an emanation of the Point called the wisdom (Hokhmah – Mashiach). Eden (delight) as a primordial point flowed out of the Garden, of delight in four directions.
Mark 1:10-11
10 And immediately coming out of the water he saw the heavens torn apart and the spirit (ruach – breath) descending on him like a dove. 11 And a [daughter of a] voice (bat kol) came from the heavens [saying], “You are my son, the beloved; with you I have delight.”
A verbal tally with Gan Eden (i.e. Garden of Delight), implying that Yeshua would be the key to enter PaRDeS (Paradise).
Proverbs 8:22 The LORD possessed me Hokhmah – wisdom in the beginning of his way, before his works of old.
A river proceeds from the Upper Mountain of Primordial Eden and flows down into the Garden of Delight where its essence is fragmented into four parts PaRDeS (Paradise). (The Mountain of Eden is the Mountain of G-d which is Har Sinai.)
[e] …Then he (Eliyahu) said to me, Master, the Holy One, blessed be He, had a deep secret which He at length revealed at the celestial Academy. (Soncino Zohar 1:1b – 2a, p.6) – i.e. King Messiah
[f] G-d chose His Word (Logos) as the tool/agent of His creation because it would be the instrument He used to maintain dominion over the cosmos. Each and every thing (Dabar) accomplishes the will of G-d in a legalistic sense.
[g] The plurality of πάντα (πᾶς) makes the phrase “all things” read as if it originated in Hebrew. The plurality indicating “things” which would be “d’barim” in Hebrew. This then is a play on words as it would have appeared in its Mishnaic Hebrew origin. D’barim – words
[h] יָצַב – stand, set or station oneself, present oneself.
The verse can also well be translated saying, “All things (d’barim – דְּבָרִים) that were previously hidden in him came into being.” cf. Midrash Rabbah Shemot XXXV:1 1. AND YOU WILL MAKE THE1 BOARDS FOR THE TABERNACLE (XXVI, 15). “Thus it is written, The trees of the Lord have their fill, the cedars of Lebanon, which He hath planted (Ps. CIV, 16). The Holy One, blessed be He, created many things in His world, but the world being unworthy to have the use of them, He hid them away from the world. The example is the light created on the first day, for R. Judah b. R. Simon said: Man could see with the help of the light created on the first day from one end of the world to the other. When God, however, foresaw the generation of Enosh and the generations of the Flood and of the Division of races who corrupted their actions, He hid it from them, as it says, But, from the wicked their light is withholden (Job XXXVIII, 15). For whom did He store it away? -For the righteous in the time to come, as it says, And God saw the light, that it was good (Gen. I, 4). What is the meaning of “That it was (past tense) good”? He saw that its light was very good for the world and never caused harm, as does the sun.2 Where did He store it away? In the garden of Eden [i.e. Paradise], for it says, Light is sown for the righteous (Ps. XCVII, 11).3 Many are the things which the Holy One, blessed be He, created and of which the world was undeserving to avail itself, but though they should have been hidden away, yet they were not, on account of the glory of God.”
[i] διά here is used in a modal sense, “through,” “in,” or “with.” The non-classical use of means διά “within.” cf. TDNT 2:65. The instrumental use of διά with gen. becomes a formula to describe the mediation of Scripture, i.e. Logos, Memra or D’bar. Furthermore, Messiah mediates the action of another, i.e., the action of God, namely, creation.
[j] by use of Logos, i.e. the spoken word the cosmos came into being.
“Every man in regard of his intellect is connected with divine reason (λόγῳ θείῳ), being an impression of, or a fragment or a ray of that blessed nature;”
Philo. The Works of Philo: Complete and Unabridged. New updated ed. Peabody, Mass: Hendrickson Pub, 1993. On Creation, 1:146
[k] Initially G-d had a deep secret which He revealed at the Celestial Academy of primordial Hakhamim to which He expounded at great length. This deep secret was the dominion of G-d through His word (Logos, Memra, D’bar) handed down to and received (kibal) by His Divine agents the Hakhamim. Thus we summarize that the whole Torah was with in G-d where G-d revealed its deep secrets (So’od) to the Hakhamim of the highest Celestial academy.
Likewise, the whole of that preeminent Academy “saw” the whole of creation and Divine plan for the cosmos as it unfolded from a single primeval point. In the speechless regions of the Divine realm where So’odic thought becomes reality the Hakhamim saw each word (Logos) as it became a physical reality. The first appearance of each point was given in Hokhmah which in turn inseminated Binah. Each supernal point was a Hakham. Each Hakham was vested with an aspect of the Divine will (the will of Messiah) which would be their part in creation. The first and eminent Hakham was Messiah who proceeded from the regions of Eyn Sof.
[l] Ruach denotes the principle of life that possesses reason, will, and conscience. G-d’s Ruach is the source of life. The Ruach of G-d gives life to all creation. The translators of the “Septuagint” normally use pneuma to translate the Hebrew ruach. Of 378 occurrences of much in the Tanakh, 277 appear in the LXX as pneuma. These include all the various uses of the word to be found in Hebrew: breath, wind, life principle: human disposition, mood, thought or determination; and the spirit of God.
Yesha’yahu 11:2 “The Spirit of the LORD will rest on him—the Spirit of wisdom and of understanding, the Spirit of counsel and of might, the Spirit of the knowledge and fear of the LORD.”
Job 33:4 “The Spirit of God has made me, And the breath of the Almighty gives me life.”
cf. B’resheet 2:15 “So they went into the ark to Noah, by twos of all flesh in which was the breath of life.” And, B’resheet – Gen 1:2 “The earth was formless and void, and darkness was over the surface of the deep, and the Ruach Elohim (the Spirit of King Messiah). was agitating the surface of the waters.”
Chayim – Ruach also refers to the pursuit of Hokhmah. Mose ben Maimon. The Guide for the Perplexed. New York: Dover, 1956. p. 57. see also B. Berakhot 78
[m] Chayim is the life force of G-d breathed into Adam HaRishon. However, the Primordial life of the cosmos exists in Messiah. In him was the Ruach Elohim as noted above. Mose ben Maimon. The Guide for the Perplexed. New York: Dover, 1956. pp. 56-7
[n] אוֹר הַגָּנוּז – Ohr HaGanuz – Primordial Light, Light is association with G-d and the conversion. Reception of the Nefesh Yehudi (Jewish soul) transforms the new man into light. Ps. 97:11 Light is sown like seed for the righteous/generous, and gladness for the upright in heart. This light is the Ohr HaGanuz (Primordial Light) which resides within each individual connected with G-d and recipient of the Nefesh Yehudi (Jewish Soul). Light is also an indication of the Shekinah’s presence. The Torah is the repository for the Ohr HaGanuz, the Primordial Light. Therefore, those who receive the Torah oral and written receive the Primordial Light. The goal of receiving the Torah is to become the light i.e. the Torah. When the B’ne Yisrael traveled through the wilderness, the “Light” manifest as either a pillar of fire or a cloud. Darkness also represents the relationship to the intermediary powers that govern the universe as G-d’s agents. Those angels, which represent the true structure of the universe represent light. They are often called mazelot (constellations) or stars. Those “fallen stars” are those stars, which did not keep their specifically designated place and position. Yehudah 1:6 Now the heavenly messengers that did not keep their Divinely appointed position of pre-eminence but forsook their proper sphere (station) are kept under guard in everlasting chains in deepest darkness for the great day of judgment. 1 Enoch 10: 4-6 And he said to Raphael: “Bind Azael foot and hand, and cast him into the darkness, and open the desert that is in the Dadouel, and cast him in. “And lay down upon him rough and jagged rocks and cover him with darkness. And let him dwell there for eternity, and cover his face so he cannot see light. “And on the great day of judgment he will be lead into the fire. Cf. 1Thes 5:4-11; Rom 13:11-14
Ohr HaGanuz can also be called “Concealed Light”
[o] As noted above the light of Messiah, Ohr HaGanuz is not for the wicked. Furthermore, Hakham Yochanan is not speaking of natural light here. He is speaking of the Primordial light not natural light in the same way that Sefer B’resheet initially speaks of the Ohr HaGanuz and then makes a shift to the light of the sun and moon ect.
Talmud – Mas. Sukkah 52a
And the land will mourn, every family apart; the family of the house of David apart, and their wives apart.1 Is it not, they said, an a fortiori argument? If in the future2 when they will be engaged in mourning and the Evil Inclination will have no power over them,3 the Torah4 nevertheless says, men separately and women separately, how much more so now5 when they are engaged in rejoicing and the Evil Inclination has sway over them.6
Zech 12:12 And the land shall mourn, every family apart; the family of the house of David apart, and their wives apart; the family of the house of Natan apart, and their wives apart; Koren Publishing Co.
What is the cause of the mourning [mentioned in the last cited verse]?1 — R. Dosa and the Rabbis differ on the point. One explained, The cause is the slaying of Messiah the son of Joseph,7 and the other explained, The cause is the slaying of the Evil Inclination.
It is well according to him who explains that the cause is the slaying of Messiah the son of Joseph, since that well agrees with the Scriptural verse, And they will look upon me because they have thrust him through, and they will mourn for him as one mourns for his only son;8 but according to him who explains the cause to be the slaying of the Evil Inclination, is this [it may be objected] an occasion for mourning? Is it not rather an occasion for rejoicing? Why then should they weep? —
[The explanation is] as R. Judah expounded: In the time to come9 the Holy One, blessed be He, will bring the Evil Inclination and slay it in the presence of the righteous and the wicked. To the righteous it will have the appearance of a towering hill, and to the wicked it will have the appearance of a hair thread. Both the former and the latter will weep; the righteous will weep saying, ‘How were we able to overcome such a towering hill!’ The wicked also will weep saying, ‘How is it that we were unable to conquer this hair thread!’ And the Holy One, blessed be He, will also marvel together with them, as it is said, Thus says the Lord of Hosts, If it be marvelous in the eyes of the remnant of this people in those days, it will 10 also be marvelous in My eyes.11
R. Assi stated, The Evil Inclination is at first like the thread of a spider, but ultimately12 becomes like cart ropes, as it is said, Woe unto them that draw iniquity with cords of vanity, and sin as it were with a cart-rope.13
Our Rabbis taught, The Holy One, blessed be He, will say to the Messiah, the son of David (May he reveal himself speedily in our days!), ‘Ask of me anything, and I will give it to you’, as it is said, I will tell you of the decree etc. this day have I begotten you, ask of me and I will give the nations for you inheritance.14 But when he will see that the Messiah the son of Joseph is slain, he will say to Him,‘Lord of the Universe, I ask of you only the gift of life’. “As to life’, He would answer him, ‘Your father David has already prophesied this concerning you’, as it is said, He asked life of you, you gave it him, [even length of days for ever and ever].15
R. ‘Awira or, as some say, R. Joshua b. Levi, made the following exposition: The Evil Inclination has seven names. The Holy One, blessed be He, called it
- Evil, as it is said, For the imagination of man’s heart is evil from his youth.16
- Moses called it the Uncircumcised, as it is said, Circumcise therefore the foreskin of your heart.17
- David called it Unclean, as it is said, Create me a clean heart, O Lord,18 which implies that there is an unclean one.
- Solomon called it the Enemy, as it is said, If thine enemy19 be hungry, give him bread20 to eat and if he be thirsty give him water to drink.21 For you wilt heap coals of fire upon his head, and the Lord will reward you;22 read not, ‘will reward you’23 but ‘will cause it to be at peace with you.’24
- Isaiah called it the Stumbling-Block, as it is said, Cast you up, Cast you up, clear the way, take up the stumbling-block out of the way of my people.25
- Ezekiel called it Stone, as it is said, And I will take away the heart of stone out of your flesh and I will give you a heart of flesh.26
- Joel called it the Hidden One, as it is said, But I will remove far off from you the hidden one.27
Our Rabbis taught: ‘But I will remove far off from you the hidden one’,27 refers to the Evil
Inclination which is constantly hidden in the heart of man; and will drive him into a land barren and desolate28 means, to a place where there are no men for him to attack; with his face toward the eastern sea,28 [implies] that he set his eyes against the First Temple29 and destroyed it and slew the scholars who were therein; and his hinder part toward the western sea28 [implies] that he set his eyes against the Second Temple and destroyed it and slew the scholars who were therein. That his foulness may come up and his ill-smell may come up28 [means] that he leaves the other nations in eace and attacks only Israel.30 Because he hath done great things.28 Abaye explained, Against scholars31 more than against anyone;32 as was the case when Abaye heard a certain man saying to a
woman, ‘Let us arise betimes and go on our way’. ‘I will’, said Abaye, ‘follow them in order to keep them away from transgression’ and he followed them for three parasangs across the meadows. When they parted company33 he heard them say, ‘Our company is pleasant, the way is long’.34 ‘If it were I’,35 said Abaye, ‘I could not have restrained myself’, and so went and leaned in deep anguish against a doorpost, when a certain old man36 came up to him and taught him: The greater the man, the greater his Evil Inclination.
R. Isaac stated, The [Evil] Inclination of a man grows stronger within him from day to day, as it is said, Only
Talmud – Mas. Sukkah 52b
evil all the day.1 R. Simeon b. Lakish stated, The Evil Inclination of a man grows in strength from day to day and seeks to kill him, as it is said, The wicked watches the righteous and seeks to slay him;2 and were it not that the Holy One, blessed be He, is his help, he would not be able to withstand it, as it is said, The Lord will not leave him in his hand, nor suffer him to be condemned when he is judged.3
The school of R. Ishmael taught, If this repulsive wretch4 meets you, drag him to the Beit
Hamidrash.5 If he is of stone, he will dissolve, if of iron he will shiver into fragments. ‘If he is of stone he will dissolve’, for it is written, Ho, every one that thirsts come you to the water6 and it is written, The waters wear the stones.7 ‘If he is of iron, he will shiver into fragments’, for it is written, Is not my word like as fire? Says the Lord, and like a hammer that breaks the rock in pieces?8 R. Samuel b. Nahmani citing R. Johanan stated, The Evil Inclination entices man in this world and testifies against him in the world to come, as it is said, He that delicately brings up his servant from a child will have him become a manon 9 at the last,10 for according to the Atbah 11 of R. Hiyya a witness12 is called13 manon.14 R. Huna pointed out an incongruity: It is written, For the spirit of harlotry has caused them to err, 15 but is it not also written, [For the spirit of harlotry] is within them? 16 First it only causes them to err, but ultimately it enters into them. Raba observed, First he 17
is called one who passes by, then he is called a guest, and finally he is called a man, 18 for it is said, And there came one who passes 17 to the rich man, and he spared to take of his own flock and of his own herd, to dress for the guest 17 and then it is written, but took the poor man’s lamb and dressed it for the an 17 that was come to him.19
R. Johanan remarked, There is a small organ in man which satisfies him when in hunger and makes him hunger when satisfied, 20 as it is said, When they were starved 21 they became full etc.22 R. Hana b. Abba stated: It was said at the schoolhouse, There are four things of which the Holy One, blessed be He, repents that He had created them, and they are the following: Exile, the Chaldeans, the Ishmaelites and Evil Inclination. ‘The Exile’, since it is written, Now, therefore, what do I here, says the Lord, seeing that My people is taken away for naught etc.;23 ‘the Chaldeans’, since it is written, Behold the land of the Chaldeans — this is the people that was not;24 ‘the Ishmaelites’, since it is written, The tents of the robbers 25 prosper, and they that provoke God are secure since God brought them with His hand;26 ‘the Evil Inclination’, since it is written, [And I will gather her that is driven away] and her that I have afflicted.27
R. Johanan remarked, Were it not for [the declarations in] the following three Scriptural verses,28 the feet of the enemies of Israel 29 would have sunk. One is the verse, And her that I have afflicted; 30 the other is the verse, Behold, as the clay in the potter’s hand, so are you in My hand, O House of Israel; 31 and the third, And I will take away the heart of stone out of your flesh, and I will give you a heart of flesh. 32 R. Papa observed, [This may be derived] from the following verse also, And I will put My spirit into you. 33
And the Lord showed me four craftsmen. 34 Who are these ‘four craftsmen’? — R. Hana b. Bizna citing R. Simeon Hasida replied:
1. The Messiah the son of David, the
2. Messiah the son of Joseph,
3. Elijah and the
4. Righteous Priest.35
R. Shesheth objected, 36 If so, was it correct to write, These37 are the horns which scattered Judah, 38 seeing that they came to turn [them] back? 39 — The other answered him, Go to the end of the verse: These then are come to frighten them, to cast down the horns of the nations, which lifted up their horns against the Land of Judah, to scatter it 40 etc. Why, said R. Shesheth to him, should I argue with Hana in Aggada?41
And this will be peace: when the Assyrian will come into our land, and when he will tread in our palaces, then will we raise up against him seven shepherds and eight princes among men.42
Who are the ‘seven shepherds’? —
1. David in the middle,
2. Adam,
3. Seth and
4. Methuselah 43 on his right, and
5. Abraham,
6. Jacob and
7. Moses 44 on his left.
And who are the ‘eight princes among men’? —
1. Jesse,
2. Saul,
3. Samuel,
4. Amos,
5. Zephaniah,
6. Zedekiah, the
7. Messiah, and
8. Elijah.45
b. Sanhedrin 98b
The son of David will not come until the [Roman] power enfolds Israel2 for nine
months, as it is written, Therefore will he give them up, until the time that she which travails hath brought forth: then the remnant of his brethren will return unto the children of Israel.3
‘Ulla said; Let him [The Messiah] come, but let me not see him.4 Rabbah said likewise: Let him come, but let me not see him.
R. Joseph said: Let him come, and may I be worthy of sitting in the
shadow of his ass’s saddle.5
Abaye enquired of Rabbah: ‘What is your reason [for not wishing to see
him]? Shall we say, because of the birth pangs [preceding the advent] of the Messiah?6 But it has been taught,
R. Eleazar’s disciples asked him: ‘What must a man do to be spared the pangs of the
Messiah?’ [He answered,]
‘Let him engage in study and benevolence; and you Master do both.’ He replied: ‘[I fear] lest sin cause it,7 in accordance with [the teaching of] R. Jacob b. Idi, who opposed
[two verses] [viz.,] it is written, And, Behold, I am with you, and ‘will guard you in all places whither you goest:8 but it is written, Then Jacob was greatly afraid and distressed’9 — He was afraid that sin might cause [the nullification of God’s promise]. Even as it was taught, Till your people pass over, O Lord.’10 this refers to the first entry [into Eretz Yisrael]; till your people pass over, which you have purchased:11 this refers to their second entry. Hence you may reason: The Israelites were as woryour of a miracle being wrought for them at the second entry as at the first, but that sin caused it
[not to happen].
R. Johanan said likewise: Let him come, and let me not see him. Resh Lakish said to him: Why so? Shall we say, because it is written, As if a man did flee from a lion, and a bear met him,’ or went into the house, and leaned his hand on the wall, and a serpent bit him?12 But come, and I will shew you its like even in this world. When one goes out into the field and meets a bailiff,13 it is as you had met a lion. When he enters the town, and is accosted by a tax-collector, it is as you had met a bear. On entering his house and finding his sons and daughters in the throes of hunger, it is as you were bitten by a serpent!14 —
But [his unwillingness to see the Messiah] is because it is written, Ask ye now, and see whether a man doth travail with child? Wherefore do I see every man [geber]15 with his hands on his loins, as a woman in travail, and all faces are turned into paleness?16
What is meant by ‘wherefore do I see every geber?’ — Raba b. Isaac said in Rab’s name: it refers to Him to whom all geburah17 [strength] belongs.18 And what is the meaning of ‘and all faces are turned into paleness?’ —
R. Johanan said: [This refers to God’s] heavenly family [i.e., the angels] and his earthly family [I.e., Israel,] when God says, These [the Gentiles] are my handiwork, and so are these [the Jews]; how will I destroy the former on account of the latter?19
R. Papa said: Thus men say, ‘When the ox runs and falls, the horse is put into his stall.’20
R. Giddal said in Rab’s name: The Jews are destined to eat [their fill] in the days of the Messiah.21
R. Joseph demurred: is this not obvious; who else then should eat — Hilek and Bilek?22 — This was said in opposition to R. Hillel, who maintained that there will be no Messiah for Israel, since they have already enjoyed him during the reign of Hezekiah.23
Rab said: The world was created only on David’s account .24
Samuel said: On Moses account;25 R. Johanan said: For the sake of the Messiah. What is his [the Messiah’s] name? —
The School of R. Shila said: His name is Shiloh, for it is written, until Shiloh come.26 (fn. 26) Gen. 49:10.
B’resheet 49:10
The scepter will not depart from Judah,
Nor the ruler’s staff from between his feet;
So that tribute will come to him
**So that tribute will come to him Construing shiloh as shai loh “tribute to him,” following the Midrash; cf. Isa. 18.7. Meaning of Heb. uncertain; lit. “Until he comes to Shiloh.”
And the homage of peoples be his.
Ramban 49:10
THE SCEPTRE SHALL NOT DEPART FROM JUDAH. Its purport is not that the scepter of royalty will never depart from Judah, for it is written, The Eternal will bring you, and your king whom you will set over you, unto a nation that you have not known, you nor your fathers,122Deuteronomy 28:36. with the result that the people and their king will be in exile, devoid of royalty and nobility, and for a long time there has not been a king in Israel!
The prophet Jacob did not assure Israel that they would not enter captivity under any circumstances because Judah would rule over them. Instead, the purport of the verse before us is that the scepter will not depart from Judah to any of his brothers, for the king of Israel, who will rule over them, will be from the tribe of Judah, and none of his brothers will rule over him. The same meaning applies to the expression, there will not depart a lawgiver from between his feet, which means that every lawgiver in Israel who carries the king’s signet will be from Judah. It is he who will rule and command in all Israel, and he will have the seal of royalty until the coming of his son, who [will have] the obedience of all people, to do with all as he pleases, this being a reference to the Messiah. “The scepter” is thus an allusion to David, who was the first king to have the scepter of royalty, and “Shiloh”123Ad ki yavo Shiloh, “until Shiloh come, and his be the obedience of peoples.” is his son, (Mashiach) who will have the obedience of the peoples.
Rabbi Abraham ibn Ezra’s assertion that “Shiloh” is a reference to David is impossible for Judah never possessed a royal scepter prior to David. And even though the tribe of Judah was honored and marched first in the desert,124 See Numbers 2:9. the word sheivet (scepter) applies only to a king or prince, as it is written: A scepter (‘sheivet’) of equity is the scepter of your kingdom;125 Psalms 45:7. the scepter of the rulers;126 Isaiah 14:5. a scepter to rule.127 Ezekiel 19:14.
Now this verse before us alludes to the fact that Jacob made the tribe of Judah king over his brothers and bequeathed to Judah sovereignty over Israel. This is what David said: And the Eternal, the G-d of Israel, chose me out of all the house of my father to be king over Israel forever; for He has chosen Judah to be prince, and in the house of Judah, the house of my father, and among the sons of my father He took pleasure in me to make me king over all Israel.128 I Chronicles 28:4.
MN: Because Yehuda is set to reign over his brothers David ruled over all the families of Yisrael and thus, Mashiach will rule over all the Jewish people
The School of R. Yannai said:
His name is Yinnon, for it is written, His name will endure forever:27 e’er the sun was, his name is
Yinnon.28
Psa 70:17 His name will endure forever;
His name will continue as long as the sun.
And men will be blessed in Him;
All nations will call Him blessed.
Rashi on Psalms
before the sun, his name will be magnified All the days of the sun, his name will be magnified.
Psalms 72:17 will be magnified Heb. ינון, an expression of kingdom and dominion, as (Prov. 29:21): “he will ultimately be a ruler (מנון) ; (Gen. 21:23), “and to my son (ולניני),” who rules over my property after me; (below 74:8), “They said in their heart, their rulers (נינם) together”; their kings together.
The School of R. Hananiah
R. Hananiah maintained: His name is Hananiah, as it is written, Where I will not give you Haninah. (no Mercy)29
Others say: His name is Menahem the son of Hezekiah, for it is written, Because Menahem [‘the comforter’ ], that would relieve my soul, is far.30
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.31
R. Nahman said: if he [the Messiah] is of those living [today], it might be one like myself, as it is written, And their nobles will be of themselves, and their governors will proceed from the midst of them.32
Rab said: if he is of the living, it would be our holy Master;33 if of the dead, it would have
been Daniel the most desirable man.34
Rab Judah said in Rab’s name: The Holy One, blessed be He,
will raise up another David for us,35 as it is written, But they will serve the Lord their God, and David their king, whom I will raise up unto them:36 not ‘I raised up’, but ‘I will raise up’ is said. R. Papa said to Abaye: But it is written, And my servant David will be their prince [nasi] forever?37 — E.g., an emperor and a viceroy.38
R. Simlai expounded: What is meant by, Woe unto you, that desire the day of the Lord! to what end is it for you? the day of the Lord is darkness, and not light.?39 This may be compared to a cock (Rooster) and a bat who were hopefully waiting for the light [i.e., dawn]. The rooster said to the bat, ‘I look forward to the light, because I have sight; but of what use is the light to you?’40
(1) This was a forecast of the future. Babylon and Palestine would be overrun with Persians, Medes and Parthians and their horses would dig up the dead, whose coffins would serve as cribs.
(2) I.e., the whole world in which Israel is scattered.
(3) Micah V, 2: ‘therefore will he give them up’ is interpreted as meaning to a foreign — viz., the Roman — power, and the duration of their servitude is fixed by ‘until the time etc.’ i.e., nine months, the period of pregnancy.
(4) V. n. 7.
(5) [Following the reading in Yalkut (v. Levy,) בשולא . Our texts read: דכופיתא , ‘dung’.]
(6) These troubles are generally referred to as birth pangs, being the travail which precedes the birth of a new era.
(7) That sin may neutralize the other two, and so I will suffer after all.
(8) Gen. XXVIII, 15; spoken by God to Jacob.
(9) Ibid. XXXII, 8: in view of God’s promise, why did he fear?
(10) Ex. XV, 16.
(11) Ibid.
(12) Amos V, 19.
(13) Who contests his title to the field-(Jast.). Rashi translates: an official surveyor, who fixes the boundary lines of the different owners, and thus may increase or: limit one’s property.
(14) I.e., we experience the same successive troubles even now, with out the Messiah coming: why then should you be afraid of it?
(15) גבר .
(16) Jer. XXX, 6.
(17) גבורה .
(18) I.e., the Almighty himself bewails Israel in the power of the Gentile.
(19) To avenge the wrongs suffered by the Jews. Because the suffering would be so great that even the Almighty would lament it, R. Johanan desired to be spared the Messiah’s coming.
(20) The horse is made to replace it, but when the ox recovers, it is difficult to remove the horse. So the Israelites, having fallen, were replaced in power by the Gentiles: but on their recovery, it will be difficult to remove the Gentiles from their position without inflicting much suffering.
(21) I.e., the years of plenty which the Messiah will usher in will be enjoyed by the Israelites.’
(22) Two fictitious names — ‘any Tom, Dick and Harry’ — will these years be enjoyed indiscriminately by anyone?
(23) Therefore R. Giddal puts it in the future.
(24) That he might sing hymns and psalms to God.
(25) That he might receive the Torah.
(26) Gen. XLIX, 10.
(27) E.V. ‘will be continued’.
(28) Ps. LXXII, 17.
(29) Jer. XVI, 13. Thus each School evinced intense admiration of its teacher in naming the Messiah after him by a play on words.
(30) Lam. I, 16.
(31) Isa. LIII, 4.
(32) Jer. XXX, 21: this description fitted R. Nahman, who, as the son-in-law of the Resh Galutha, enjoyed great power
and prestige.
(33) I.e., R. Judah the Nasi, generally called Rabbi par excellence.
(34) [Preferably, if of the living, our holy Master (would be the type) of the Messiah; if of the dead, Daniel.]
(35) Lit., ‘for them’.
(36) Ibid. XXX, 9.
(37) Ezek. XXXVII, 25: prince (nasi) is a lower title than king.
(38) The second David will be the king, and the former David will be his viceroy.
(39) Amos V, 18.
(40) Thus Israel should hope for the redemption, because it will be a day of light to them: but why should the Gentiles,
seeing that for them it