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The Inner CourtSo the spirit took me up, and brought me into the inner court; and, behold, the glory of the LORD filled the house. And I heard him speaking unto me out of the house; and the man stood by me. And he said unto me, Son of man, the place of my throne, and the place of the soles of my feet, where I will dwell in the midst of the children of Israel for ever, and my holy name, shall the house of Israel no more defile, neither they, nor their kings, by their whoredom, nor by the carcases of their kings in their high places. Ezekiel 43:5-7The Inner Court was the place of preparation, reserved for the men of Israel to prepare them to enter into the presence of haShem. It was also the place of teaching and discourse where the sages of old would gather to discuss Tenach and to instruct young men in Torah.Our Inner Court is also a place of teaching, where we investigate what the Holy Scriptures and the sages taught of Messiah, our King.What will Messiah Do?What does the Torah say about Messiah?What do the Prophets say about Messiah?What do the Writings say about Messiah?What will Messiah Do?The promise of Messiah is the promise of a King, not just for the nation or the people of Israel, but for the whole of the earth, Jew and Gentile alike. It is the promise of righteousness brought about by a divinely anointed Monarch, and of a restoration of G-d's original plan for humanity as it was in the Garden of Eden.Does this sound like an impossible feat? With man it is impossible. Because left to ourselves we would either choose to live without a King and the righteous law he would provide, or choose a King like Saul who would turn from G-d's Holy Law unto lawlessness. But G-d in His infinite wisdom and love has promised us throughout the Tenach that He would send a righteous King to teach us His Holy Law and restore righteousness in the earth.Only G-d can provide such a King.What does the Torah say about Messiah?You are probably already familiar with the prophetic promise of Moses that a prophet greater then he would come one day:
The Sages have long held that this prophet would be the anointed one (Messiah):
This is not the only mention of Messiah in the Torah. When blessing his children Israel pronounced a blessing of eternal kingship upon Judah:
This sceptre is the mark of Kingship first expressed in haShem's choice of a King in David. Yet we can see that today and ever since the days of the captivity, no king of lineage of David has reigned over the children of Israel. Was Jacob a false prophet? G-d forbid. Therefore there must still remain a King who is coming to reign over us. The sages understood that the key to this prophecy was in the identity of Shiloh.In the Babylonian Talmud, Sanhedrin 98b, Rabbi Johanan said:
One of the first prophecies ever given in scriptures is also of Messiah:
You will note that haShem referred not the seed of Adam but to the seed of Eve, which is why this passage has always been referred to as the "seed of the woman." How could this be a reference to Messiah? The sages have interpreted it so:
Even the sages understood "her seed" to be a reference to King Messiah, but how could this seed be a reference to Israel. For it is singular in number, and masculine in gender, indicating that it is not Israel that crushes the head of the serpent, haShatain, but Messiah who accomplishes this.There are many other references found throughout the Torah to this righteous King, but out of the mouth of two or three witnesses is a thing established, so we will move onward.What do the Prophets say about Messiah?Without controversy all who seek the Messiah know that he will be of the seed of David:
To which the sages agree:
Not only is Messiah a representative of the RIGHTEOUSNESS of G-d, he is a branch of David. Therefore it is properly said that he must be of the seed of David. Yet his righteousness must be far greater than that of David who not only coveted his neighbor's wife but slew her husband that he might possess her.Yet the Prophets are filled with references to Messiah, far more than can even be detailed here.
Of which the Midrash Kohelet says:
So concise are the teachings of the prophets concerning this righteous branch of David, that we can even see his humility and the details of his life.But what will the Messiah do for Israel and for humanity?
There is an entire page on this wonderful prophecy delivered unto us not by a human prophet but by the angel Gabriel. This page can be found in the Holy Place section. But for now, let us examine what this passage says the Messiah will do for us.
Another passage which has been ascribed to Messiah is Isaiah 53. Although many of our modern teachers claim that Isaiah 53 relates to the Shoah and to national Israel, this is not the view of the sages. for more on Isaiah 53 please visit the Butchering Place.What do the Writings say about Messiah?David sang much of his son. Messiah:
This passage is interpreted by some to refer to the resurrection of Messiah, while others say it speaks of his eternal life:
This passage while being Messianic in nature speaks of an eternal King, but also of one to whom life itself is a special gift. When understood in the context of the suffering servant of Isaiah 53, we can understand why many of the sages thought that this referred to the resurrection of Messiah benYossef to eternal life.Another passage is found in Psalm 110:
Which is interpreted as:
This passage speaks volumes about Messiah. It tells us that he is David's adonai, and yet, David was the ruler of all Israel, and in his day was not subject to any other ruler. It tells us that Messiah will be a rod of strength who rules in the midst of David's enemies. And lastly, that Messiah will be not only a King, but a priest as well.Who is this mysterious Melchizadek? The name means King of Righteousness. In the days of our father Abraham he was a priest unto the Most High G-d (El Elyon) who reigned as King of Salem, interpreted by most as being the original town of Jerusalem. Before Aaron and before Levi, Melchizadek not only knew the G-d of Abraham but served in a fashion as a priest between Abraham and haShem. Melchizadek must therefore be interpreted as a righteous gentile priest of the one true G-d. From that we should see that even the righteous gentiles will submit to the kingship of Messiah, fulfilling the promise made to Abraham that through his seed all the families of the earth would be blessed.Even more importantly, like David Melchizadek was not a Levitical priest, yet he was able to act as a mediator between G-d and Abraham just as the sages teach us Messiah will act.Map |
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