Jewish Rabbis and
Historians Reveal the Messiah
(Jewish Sources
Used) http://www.matsati.com/
in Ms Doc format
Tanakh: Hebrew Bible (Torah/Teaching, Nevi'im/Prophets
and Ketivim/Writings).
Targums: Aramaic translations of the original Hebrew
Tanakh (Hebrew Scriptures) written between 200 BCE
and 200 CE.
Talmud: Mishnah (Oral Law) and Gemara (Commentary) written about 200-400 CE.
Midrash: Commentaries on the Tanakh
(Hebrew Scriptures) from 100-1600 CE.
Other Writings:
Various comments of Jewish rabbis and historians.
"All the
prophets prophesied only of the days of the Messiah." [Babylonian Talmud, Sanhedrin 99a]
"A king
shall come forth from the sons of Jesse, and the Messiah shall grow up from his
sons’ sons." [Targum to Yesha'yahu
11:1 in the Tanakh]
"Thus says
the L~rd of Hosts, saying, ‘Behold the Man whose name
is the Messiah who shall be revealed.’" [Targum
to Z'kharyah 6:12 in the Tanakh]
"Behold
the days come says the L~rd that I will raise up unto
David a righteous Messiah and he shall reign as King and understand." [Targum to Yirmeyahu 23:5 in the Tanakh]
"The world
was created but only for the Messiah." [Babylonian Talmud, Sanhedrin 98b]
"And as
for the wonders that are not the work of Adonai, when
he, that is the Messiah, comes then he will heal the sick, resurrect the dead,
and to the poor announce glad tidings." [4Q521, Dead Sea Scrolls at
Qumran]
"I believe
with faith in coming of the Messiah, and even though he should tarry, neverthless I shall await for his coming every day."
[Maimonides, Thirteen Articles of Faith, 12th principle]
"It was
taught in the School of Elijah, the world will endure 6,000 years - 2,000 years
in chaos, 2,000 with Torah, and 2,000 years will be the days of the
Messiah." [Babylonian
Talmud, Sanhedrin
97a]
"Kings and
rulers shall not cease from the house of Judah…until King Messiah comes."
[Targum Pseudo-Jonathan]
"Rabbi Johanan said, ‘The world was created for the sake of the
Messiah, what is this Messiah’s name?’ The school of Rabbi Shila
said, ‘his name is Shiloh, for it is written, until Shiloh comes. (Genesis
49:10)’" [Babylonian
Talmud, Sanhedrin
98b]
"Satan
said before the Holy One, blessed be He, ‘Master of the World! The light which
is hidden under your throne of Glory, for whom is it?’ He said to him, ‘For him
who will turn you back and disgrace you, and shame your face.’ He (Satan) said
to him, ‘Master of the World! Show him to me.’ He said to him, ‘Come and see
him.’ When Satan saw the Messiah, he trembled and fell upon his face and said,
‘Surely this is the Messiah who in the future will cast me and all the princes
of the nations of the world into Gehenna.’" [Pesiqta Rabbati page 161a]
The Messiah to Appear in Israel
"And you
Bethlehem-Ephrathah who are too little to be counted
among the thousands of the house of Judah, from you in My
name shall come forth the Messiah who is to be ruler in Israel and whose name
has been called from eternity, from the days of old." [Targum
Jonathan on Mikah 5:1 in the Tanakh]
"The King
Messiah... from where does he come forth? From the royal city
of Bethlehem in Judah." [Jerusalem Talmud, Berakoth
5a]
"The
Messiah will appear in the land of Galilee." [Zohar
I, Bereshith, 119a]
"The
Messiah... will arise in the land of Galilee… the Messiah shall reveal himself
in the land of Galilee because in this part of the Holy Land the desolation (Babylonian exile) first
began, therefore he will manifest himself there first." [Zohar III, Shemoth 7b, 8b, 220a; Otzar Midrashim, 466]
"He will
be with the last deliverer, (Messiah), as with the first (Moses); as the first
deliverer revealed himself first to the Israelites and then withdrew, so also
will the last deliverer reveal himself to the Israelites and then withdraw for
a while." [Midrash Ruth Rabbath
5:6]
"Rabbi
Hillel said, ‘there shall be no Messiah for Israel, because they have already
enjoyed him in the days of Hezekiah.’ Rabbi Joseph said, ‘may G~d forgive him (Hillel) for saying so. Now, when did
Hezekiah flourish? During the First Temple. Yet
Zechariah, prophesying in the days of the second, proclaimed, ‘rejoice greatly
O daughter of Zion. Shout, O daughter of Jerusalem. Behold, thy King cometh unto
thee! He is just, and having salvation; lowly, and riding upon an ass, and upon
a colt the foal of an ass. (Zechariah 9:9)’" [Babylonian Talmud, Sanhedrin
99a]
The Messiah to Provide Atonement
"The Holy
One, blessed be He, will tell him (the Messiah) in detail what will befall
him... their sins will cause you to bend down as under a yoke of iron and make
you like a calf whose eyes grow dim with suffering and will choke your spirit
as with a yoke, and because of their sins your tongue will cleave to the roof
of your mouth. Are you willing to endure such things?...
The Messiah will say: ‘Master of the universe with joy in my soul and gladness
in my heart I take this suffering upon myself provided that not one person in
Israel shall perish, so that not only those who are alive be saved in my days,
but also those who are dead, who died from the days of Adam up to the time of
redemption.’" [Pesikta Rabbati,
Piska 36.1; Zohar II.
212a]
"Dip your
morsel of bread in the vinegar (Ruth 2:14). This refers to the Messiah’s
sufferings, for it is said in Isaiah 53:5: ‘He was pierced through for our
transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities.’" [Midrash
Ruth Rabbah, 2.14]
"Rabbi Yochanan said, ‘The Messiah - what is his name?’… And our
Rabbis said, ‘the pale one… is his name,’ as it is written ‘Surely he took up
our infirmities and carried our sorrows - yet we considered him stricken by G~d, smitten by him and afflicted.’" [Babylonian Talmud, Sanhedrin 98, p.
2]
"The
Messiah our righteousness has turned from us. We are alarmed,
we have no one to justify us. Our sins and the yoke of our transgressions he
bore. He was bruised for our iniquities. He carried on his shoulders our sins.
With his stripes we are healed (Isaiah 53). Almighty G~d,
hasten the day that he might come to us anew; that we may hear from Mt. Lebanon
(figurative reference to the Temple), a second time through the Messiah."
[Ancient hymn-prayer by Eliezer Hakkalir
sung during the Musaf Service on Yom Kippur; included
in some Siddurs]
"What is
the cause of the mourning (Zechariah 12:10)? It is well according to him who
explains that the cause is the slaying of Messiah, the son of Joseph, as it is
written, ‘And they shall look upon me whom they have pierced; and they shall
mourn for him as one mourneth for his only
son.’" [Babylonian
Talmud, Sukkah
52a]
"What is
the name of the King Messiah? Rabbi Abba Bar Kahana
said, ‘His name is the L~rd our Righteousness.’"
[Midrash Lamentations Rabbah
1.16.51; Pesikta de Rab Kahana 22.5a; Midrash on Psalms
21.2; Baba Bathra 75b, Babylonian Talmud; Yalkut Shimoni, fol. 384: all referring to Yirmeyahu
23:6 in the Tanakh]
"In the
times of the Messiah, the L~rd shall manifest a
second time His hand’ (Isaiah 11:11). He shall be the Redeemer in person so
that ‘Israel shall be saved in the L~rd with an
everlasting salvation’ (Isaiah 45:17). And ‘his rest shall be glorious’ (Isaiah
11:10). All the world shall say, ‘It is fitting that his rest shall be
glorious, for while ordinary kings acquire glory for themselves through
victorious wars, and do not believe themselves to be esteemed when they are at
rest, he, on the contrary, without waging war makes everyone subject to him,
and all render him homage." [Commentary Minha-Ghedola
— in the Grand Rabbinic Bible of Amsterdam, 1700-1705— Rabbinic Bible of Bombergi]
"The
Patriarchs will arise and say to the Messiah... ‘our righteous Messiah, even
though we are your ancestors, you are greater than we because you did suffer
for the iniquities of our children, and terrible ordeals befell you, such
ordeals as did not befall earlier generations or later ones for the sake of
Israel.’" [Pesikta Rabbati,
Piska 37:1]
"The Holy
One brought forth the soul of Messiah, and said to him, ‘Art thou willing to be
created and to redeem my sons after 6,000 years?’ He replied, ‘I am.’ G~d replied, ‘If so, thou must take upon thyself
chastisements in order to wipe away their iniquity, as it is written, ‘Surely our sicknesses he has carried.’ The Messiah answered,
‘I will take them upon me gladly.’" [P’Siqtha
according to Hulsius in "Theologia
Judaica"]
"Our sages
said, ‘King Messiah is subjected to sufferings in every generation according to
the sins of that generation.’ The Holy One, blessed be
He, said, ‘In that hour (of the Redemption) I shall create him a new and he
will no longer suffer.’" [Pesiqto Rabbati page 146b]
A Messiah of Israel and the Nations
"The
Messiah will be higher than Abraham, because Abraham possessed nothing except
seventy souls, but King Messiah will turn to the service of G~d,
many peoples, (i.e. other nations). More exalted than Moses, for Moses drew but
a single nation to the service of G~d, but the King
Messiah will bring to his service many peoples, and will restore peace between many
kings; and even loftier than the ministering angels, for His sway will extend
even over the heavens, whose movements He will miraculously change."
[Rabbi Shlomoh Astruc]
"And the
King Messiah will be revealed and all the nations of the world will gather
around King Messiah, and the verse will be fulfilled, ‘The root of Jesse which standeth as the peoples’ ensign, unto it shall the nations
seek, and his resting place shall be glory. (Isaiah 11:10)’" [Zohar 2:172b]
"The
rabbis have taught, the Holy One, blessed by He, will say to Messiah ben David, may he be revealed soon in our days. ‘Ask of Me anything and I shall give it to you.’ For it is written, Adonai said to me, ‘Thou art my son, this day have I
begotten thee. Ask of Me and I will give thee the nations
for thine inheritance (Psalm 2:7-8).’ And when he
will see that Messiah ben Joseph will be slain, he
will say before Him, ‘Master of the World! I ask nothing of you except life.’ G~d will say to him, ‘Even before you said,
"life," your father David prophesied about you, as it is written, ‘He
asked life of thee, Thou gavest it to him. (Psalm
21:5)’ " [Babylonian Talmud,
Sukkah
52a]
"As long
as Israel dwelt in the Holy Land, the rituals and sacrifices they performed (in
the Temple) removed all those diseases from the world; now the Messiah removes
them from the children of the world." [Zohar
2:212a]
"Prepare
the way! The King Messiah comes... may the mountains
abase themselves, may the valleys be filled, may the cedars incline to render
him homage. Prostrate yourselves all of you before the Messiah King, and bend
your knees before him who is seated at the right hand of the Holy One." [Zohar I. 4b]
"I will
raise up for them a prophet like you (Moses), from among their own people. I
will put My words in his mouth and he will speak to
them all that I command him. And if anybody fails to heed the words he speaks
in My name, I Myself will call him to account." [Tanakh, D'varim 18:18-19]
"Seventy
weeks are decreed for your people and your holy city, to put an end to
transgression, to make an end of sin, to atone for iniquity, to bring in
everlasting righteousness, to confirm the visions and prophets, and to anoint
the Most Holy Place… After sixty-two weeks, the Messiah (Mashiach)
will be cut off and have nothing. The people of a coming prince will destroy
the city (Jerusalem) and the Sanctuary (Temple)." [Tanakh,
Dani'el 9:24-26]
"Who has believed what we have heard? To whom is the arm of Adonai revealed? For before Him he grew up like a young
plant, like a root out of dry ground. He had no form or beauty. We saw him, but
his appearance did not attract us. He was despised and shunned by men, a man of
pains and familiar with illness; like one from whom we would hide our faces. He
was despised and we had no regard for him. In truth, it was our infirmities he
bore, and our pains that he suffered; yet we regarded him as punished and
afflicted by G~d. He was wounded because of our sins
and crushed because of our iniquities. The chastisement he bore made us whole,
and through his wounds we are healed. We all like sheep went astray; we turned,
each one, to his own way. Yet Adonai
laid on him the guilt of all of us… After this ordeal, he will see
satisfaction. By his knowledge my righteous servant makes many righteous; it is
for their sins that he suffers. Therefore I will give him a share with the
mighty; for he exposed himself to death and was numbered among the sinners. For
he bore the sin of many, and made intercession for the transgressors." [Tanakh, Yesha'yahu
53] "I may remark then, that our Rabbis with one voice
accept and affirm the opinion that the prophet is speaking of the King Messiah,
and we ourselves shall adhere to the same view." [Rabbi Mosheh El-Sheikh
regarding Yesha'yahu 53 in the Tanakh]
"Now there
was about this time, Yeshua (Eaysoos in Greek), a
wise man, if it be lawful to call him a man, for he was a doer of wonderful
works, a teacher of such men as receive the truth with pleasure. He drew over
to him both many of the Jews and many of the Gentiles. He was Mashiach (Christos in Greek); and when Pilate, at the
suggestion of the principal men among us, had condemned him to the cross, those
that loved him at the first did not forsake him, for he appeared to them alive
again the third day, as the divine prophets had foretold these and ten thousand
other wonderful things concerning him; and the tribe of "Christians"
(followers of Messiah), so named from him, are not extinct at this day."
[Antiquities of the Jews, book 18, chapter 3, paragraph 3; Yosef
ben Mattityahu a.k.a Josephus]
"Our
Rabbis taught: during the last forty years before the destruction of the
Temple, the lot for the L~rd (on Yom Kippur) did not
come up in the right hand; nor did the crimson-colored strap become white (on
the neck of the scapegoat); nor did the western-most light shine; and the doors
of the Hekal (Temple) would open by
themselves." [Babylonian
Talmud, Yoma, 39b]