The Rabbis’ Divine Messiah

The late Orthodox Jewish philosopher and scholar Rabbi J. Immanuel Schochet wrote about the Messiah where he encapsulated some of the Old Testament verses, which rabbinic tradition interpreted in respect to the Messianic Era:      

A. Restoration of the Bet Hamikdash

Mashiach shall restore the Bet Hamikdash in Jerusalem.¹ This refers to the third Bet Hamikdash that will stand forever, in fulfillment of the Divine prophecy of Ezekiel 37:26-28: “I shall give My Sanctuary in their midst forever. My dwelling-place shall be over them… The nations shall know that I am G‑d who sanctifies Israel, when My Sanctuary shall be in the midst of them forever.”²...

C. End to Evil and Sin

The Messianic era will mark the end of evil and sin:

Ezekiel 37:23: “They shall not defile themselves anymore with their idols and with their abominations and with all their transgressions…”

Zephaniah 3:13: “The remnant of Israel will not do any wrong, and they will not speak lies nor shall a deceitful tongue be found in their mouth.”

Zechariah 13:2: “It shall be in that day… that I shall cut off the names of the idols from the earth and they shall no longer be remembered; and I shall also remove from the earth the [false] prophets and the spirit of impurity.”

Malachi 3:19: “For behold the day comes burning like a furnace, and all the wanton sinners and everyone that does wickedness shall be stubble… that to them shall not be left root and branch.”

Isaiah 60:21: “Your people shall all be righteous, they shall inherit the land forever…”

Jeremiah 50:20: “In those days and in that time, says G‑d, the iniquity of Israel shall be searched for but it will not be, and the sins of Judah but they shall not be found…”⁶

D. Awareness and Knowledge of G‑d

The Messianic era will be a time of universal awareness, perception and knowledge of G‑d:

Isaiah 11:9: (cf. Habakuk 2:14): “…the earth shall be full of knowledge of G‑d as the waters cover the sea.”

Isaiah 40:5: “The glory of G‑d shall be revealed, and all flesh shall see together that the mouth of G‑d has spoken.”⁷

Isaiah 52:8: “…for eye to eye they shall see as G‑d returns to Zion.”

Jeremiah 31:32-33: “…I shall put My teaching in their inward parts and write it in their heart, and I shall be to them for G‑d and they shall be to Me for a people. They shall no longer teach one another, and a man his brother, saying ‘Know G‑d,’ for they shall all know Me from the least of them to the greatest of them…”

The Divine spirit will be upon the people, endowing them with the power of prophecy and vision:

Joel 3:1-2: “…I shall pour out My spirit upon all flesh, and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your elders shall dream dreams, your young shall see visions. In those days I shall pour out My spirit also upon the servants and handmaids.”⁸

E. Universal Worship of G‑d

Mashiach shall mend the whole world so that all shall serve G‑d in unity:⁹

Zephaniah 3:9: “For then I shall turn to the peoples a pure tongue that all shall call upon the Name of G‑d to serve Him with one consent.”

Isaiah 2:2-3 and Michah 4:1-2: “…The mountain of G‑d’s House shall be established at the top of the mountains and it shall be raised above the hills, and all the nations shall stream to it. Many peoples shall go and say, ‘Come, let us go up to the mountain of G‑d, to the House of the G‑d of Jacob, and let him [Mashiach] teach us of His ways and we shall go in His paths;’ for from Zion shall go forth Torah, and the word of G‑d from Jerusalem.”¹⁰

Zechariah 9:16: “…every one that is left of all the nations that came against Jerusalem shall go up from year to year to bow before the King, G‑d…”

Zechariah 14:9: “G‑d shall be King over the entire earth. In that day G‑d shall be One and His Name One.”...

H. Blissful Utopia: End to Disease and Death

The Messianic era will witness ultimate physical and spiritual bliss. All will be healed.¹⁴ The blind, the deaf and the dumb, the lame, whosoever has any blemish or disability, shall be healed from all their disabilities: “The eyes of the blind shall be clearsighted, and the ears of the deaf shall be opened… the lame shall leap as a hart and the tongue of the dumb shall sing…” (Isaiah 35:5-6).¹⁵ Death itself shall cease, as it is said, “Death shall be swallowed up forever and G‑d shall wipe the tears from every face…” (Isaiah 25:8)¹⁶

There will be a life of ease.¹⁷ Our physical needs will be taken care of by others, as it is said, “Strangers shall stand and feed your flocks and aliens shall be your plowmen and your vinedressers.” (Isaiah 61:5)¹⁸ (Rabbi J. Immanuel Schochet, The Messianic Era; bold emphasis mine)

What makes this list of references rather intriguing is that in some of them it is YHWH God himself is coming to live on earth and who performs all these miracles and functions!

“The wilderness and the desert will be delighted, And the Arabah will rejoice and flourish; Like the crocus It will flourish profusely And rejoice with rejoicing and shout of joy. The glory of Lebanon will be given to it, The majesty of Carmel and Sharon. They will see the glory of Yahweh, The majesty of our God. Strengthen limp hands, and give courage to the knees of the stumbling. Say to those with an anxious heart, ‘Be strong, fear not. Behold, your God will come with vengeance; The recompense of God will come, But He will save you.’ Then the eyes of the blind will be opened, And the ears of the deaf will be unstopped. Then the lame will leap like a deer, And the tongue of the mute will shout for joy. For waters will break forth in the wilderness And streams in the Arabah.” Isaiah 35:1-6

“A voice is calling, ‘Prepare the way for Yahweh in the wilderness; Make smooth in the desert a highway for our God. Let every valley be lifted up, And every mountain and hill be made low; And let the rough ground become a plain, And the rugged terrain a broad valley; Then the glory of Yahweh will be revealed, And all flesh will see it together; For the mouth of Yahweh has spoken.’... Get yourself up on a high mountain, O Zion, bearer of good news, Raise up your voice powerfully, O Jerusalem, bearer of good news; Raise it up, do not fear. Say to the cities of Judah, ‘Behold your God!’ Behold, Lord Yahweh will come with strength, With His arm ruling for Him. Behold, His reward is with Him And His recompense before Him. Like a shepherd He will shepherd His flock; In His arm He will gather the lambs And carry them in His bosom; He will gently lead the nursing ewes.” Isaiah 40:3-5, 9-11

“‘Therefore My people shall know My name; therefore in that day I am the one who is speaking, “Here I am.” How lovely on the mountains Are the feet of him who proclaims good news, Who announces peace And proclaims good news of good things, Who announces salvation, And says to Zion, ‘Your God reigns!’ The voice of Your watchmen! They lift up their voices; They shout joyfully together; For they will see with their own eyes When Yahweh returns to Zion. Break forth, shout joyfully together, You waste places of Jerusalem; For Yahweh has comforted His people; He has redeemed Jerusalem. Yahweh has bared His holy arm In the sight of all the nations, That all the ends of the earth may see The salvation of our God.” Isaiah 52:6-10

“Thus you will know that I am in the midst of Israel, And that I am Yahweh your God, And there is no other; And My people will never be put to shame. And it will be afterwards That I will pour out My Spirit on all mankind; And your sons and your daughters shall prophesy; Your old men will dream dreams; Your young men will see visions. Even on the male slaves and female slaves I will in those days pour out My Spirit.” Joel 2:27-29

“For behold, in those days and at that time, When I restore the fortunes of Judah and Jerusalem, I will gather all the nations And bring them down to the valley of Jehoshaphat. Then I will enter into judgment with them there On behalf of My people and My inheritance, Israel, Whom they have scattered among the nations; And they have divided up My land.” Joel 3:1-2

“Hasten and come, all you surrounding nations, And gather yourselves. There, bring down, O Yahweh, Your mighty ones. Let the nations be roused up And come up to the valley of Jehoshaphat, For there I will sit to judge All the surrounding nations.” Joel 3:11-12

“Sing for joy, O daughter of Zion! Make a loud shout, O Israel! Be glad and exult with all your heart, O daughter of Jerusalem! Yahweh has taken away His judgments against you; He has cleared away your enemies. The King of Israel, Yahweh, is in your midst; You will fear evil no more. In that day it will be said to Jerusalem: ‘Do not fear, O Zion; Do not let your hands fall limp. Yahweh your God is in your midst, A mighty one who will save. He will be joyful over you with gladness; He will be quiet in His love; He will rejoice over you with joyful singing.’” Zephaniah 3:14-17  

“Behold, a day is coming for Yahweh when the spoil taken from you will be divided among you. Indeed, I will gather all the nations against Jerusalem to battle, and the city will be captured, the houses plundered, the women ravished, and half of the city will go forth in exile, but those left of the people will not be cut off from the city. Then Yahweh will go forth and fight against those nations, as the day when He fights on a day of battle. And in that day His feet will stand on the Mount of Olives, which is in front of Jerusalem on the east; and the Mount of Olives will be split in its middle from east to west by a very large valley so that half of the mountain will move toward the north and the other half toward the south. And you will flee by the valley of My mountains, for the valley of the mountains will reach to Azel; indeed, you will flee just as you fled before the earthquake in the days of Uzziah king of Judah. Then Yahweh, my God, will come, and all the holy ones with Him!... And Yahweh will be king over all the earth; in that day Yahweh will be the only one, and His name one... Then it will be that any who are left of all the nations that went against Jerusalem will go up from year to year to worship the King, Yahweh of hosts, and to celebrate the Feast of Booths. And it will be that whichever of the families of the earth does not go up to Jerusalem to worship the King, Yahweh of hosts, there will be no rain on them.” Zechariah 14:1-5, 9, 16-17

By interpreting these passages in reference to the Messiah, the rabbis failed to see how this ends up confirming the Christian understanding that the coming Davidic Ruler is no mere human being. Rather, the Anointed King is YHWH God Almighty who becomes a Man in order to reign as the Son of David. At the same time, this Divine Ruler is personally distinct from another who is also identified as YHWH Almighty.   

Scriptural references are taken from the Legacy Standard Bible (LSB).

Further Reading

Rabbis, Isa. 59:20 & the Divine Messiah