R. Zusya of Hanipoli used to say: "When
Mashiach comes, the Jewish people will go out to greet him with
Tanya in hand."
Kitzurim VeHe'aros LeTanya, p. 125
During the seven days of festivities following the wedding of the Rebbe Rashab in Elul 5635 [1875], the chassidim celebrated with indescribable joy. On one of those days, his father the Rebbe Maharash sat at his window and watched them dancing in the garden in dozens of circles.
Turning to the two chassidim who stood next to him, he said: "See, my children, how chassidim are glad in the joy of a mitzvah. This is how Jews will dance in the streets when Mashiach comes!"
Likkutei Dibburim (in English translation; Kehot, N.Y., 1987), Vol. I, p. 79
When
Mashiach comes, inanimate matter will begin to speak and recount. The very earth will voice its complaint: "Why did people tread on me at times when they were not thinking or speaking about words of Torah?"
Igros Kodesh (Letters) of the Rebbe Rayatz, Vol. IV, p. 151
In the future Redemption, not a single Jew will remain in exile. Thus it is written,
[57] "The L-rd your G-d will return your captivity," and
Rashi comments: "With His hands He will actually take every single individual from his place, in the spirit of the verse,
[58] 'And you shall be gathered up one by one, O Children of Israel.' " And since the Redemption will be brought about by repentance, it is self-evident that just as the Redemption itself will involve "every single individual"... "one by one," so too will repentance be undertaken by "every single individual" ... "one by one."
In similar vein the Alter Rebbe writes[59] of every single Jew that "it is certain that he will ultimately repent..., because[60] 'no one banished from Him [by his sins] will remain banished.' "
This is likewise explicit in another verse:[61] "And it shall come to pass on that day, that a great Shofar shall be sounded, and those who are lost in the land of Assyria and who are banished in the land of Egypt shall come, and shall bow down before G-d at the holy mountain in Jerusalem." Here we see that even those who are so deeply immersed in their exile that they have become "lost" and "banished", will become aroused in repentance.
This is also apparent in the answer given on Pesach to the Wicked Son in the Haggadah:[62] "If he were there he would not have been redeemed." There, in Egypt, he would not have been redeemed (but would have shared the fate of his colleagues during the three days of darkness[63]). In the future Redemption, however, he too will be redeemed.
Why the distinction?
The Exodus from Egypt took place before G-d told every individual Jew at Sinai,[64] "I am the L-rd your G-d" (with "your" in the singular). With that statement, the Four-Letter Divine Name Havayah became the power and life-force of every Jew. And by virtue of this power every single Jew, even a wicked one, may be assured of being ultimately redeemed.
Likkutei Sichos, Vol. XI, p. 2
In the future Redemption, as our Sages teach,
[65] Moshe Rabbeinu will enter the Land of Israel at the head of the entire generation of the wilderness who left Egypt.
It is generally understood that unlike all the intervening redemptions, which were partial, the ultimate Redemption will exactly resemble the Exodus from Egypt: not one Jew will remain in exile. The above teaching, however, points out a vital distinction between them. In fact only the ultimate Redemption can be described as truly complete, without a single Jew remaining in exile. For the purpose of the Exodus from Egypt was entry into the Land of Israel, and 600,000 of those who left Egypt died in the wilderness and were not privileged to reach the Land. Only at the time of the future Redemption will they be brought there.
From a talk of the Rebbe on 12 Sivan, 5744 [1984]
A redemption in which not all of the Jewish people are redeemed, but even one solitary Jew remains in exile, cannot be called a genuinely true redemption.
This may be understood by analogy with G-d's absolute omnipresence, which is described by Rambam[66] with the phrase, amitas hamatzu - "His true presence." This state may be said to be truly and completely manifest in all created beings only when it is evident that it permeates every detail of every entity, in the spirit of the verse,[67] ain od milvado - "There is nothing else apart from Him." If there should remain one single entity in which this truth was not apparent, in which it was not apparent that the very existence of this entity flows from "His true presence," this would indicate an aberration from the truth of G-d's all-pervasiveness - as if His presence were not consistently true in all places and in all situations, as witness the existence of a particular entity "outside" of it.
The same line of thinking applies to the Redemption.
In essence, the Redemption is the revelation of the elemental bond between the Jewish people and G-d. Hence, a redemption in which even one solitary Jew remains in exile, cannot be called a true redemption. Indeed, the future Redemption is known as hageulah ha'amitis ve'hashleimah - "the true and complete Redemption," for with its advent every Jew will be redeemed.
Sefer HaSichos 5748 [1988], Vol. II, p. 514
The Alter Rebbe once said: "When
Mashiach comes, it will be in all the newspapers."
Sefer HaSichos, Toras Shalom, p. 12
In one of the Psalms that speaks of the ultimate return of the exiles to Zion it is written:
[68] "Then will they say among the nations, 'G-d has done great things for these.' G-d has done great things for us; we were joyful."
One of the tzaddikim of Poland spelled out these words as follows:
Then will they say among the nations: When Mashiach comes the nations of the world will say,
'G-d has done great things for these:' 'G-d has done wondrous things for the Jewish people.' And we will respond,
G-d has indeed done great things for us. And the reason for this?
We were joyful!
From a talk of the Rebbe
R. Yitzchak Aizik of Homil, himself a chassid of scholarly renown, once said: "When
Mashiach comes and the dead will be resurrected, among them will rise the Patriarchs, the founding fathers of the Twelve Tribes, Moshe and Aharon, all the prophets, all the
tannaim and
amoraim, and the
geonim and
tzaddikim of all the generations. And whom will they seek out to rejoice with? - The simple Jews.
"Moshe Rabbeinu will join in the very first dance with them, for upon them the Torah stands, not on the impressive scholars with their ingenious innovations. In a dance of true joy, King David the Psalmist will take the hand of these artless Tehillim-sayers."
Igros Kodesh (Letters) of the Rebbe Rayatz, Vol. VI, p. 371
At a
farbrengen with his venerable friends, the above-mentioned R. Yitzchak Aizik of Homil once referred to himself in the third person as follows: "When
Mashiach comes they'll put Aizel on their hand (as if he were some tiny creature) and they'll say: 'See this? This used to study Torah; this used to meditate on
Chassidus during his prayers!' "
Likkutei Dibburim, Vol. I, p. 135 (and in English translation: Vol. I, p. 149)
Notes:
- (Back to text) Devarim 30:3.
- (Back to text) Yeshayahu 27:12.
- (Back to text) Tanya, end of ch. 39.
- (Back to text) Cf. II Shmuel 14:14.
- (Back to text) Yeshayahu 27:13.
- (Back to text) In the section entitled Maggid.
- (Back to text) Cf. Rashi on Shmos 10:22.
- (Back to text) Shmos 20:2.
- (Back to text) Bamidbar Rabbah 19:13.
- (Back to text) Hilchos Yesodei HaTorah 1:1.
- (Back to text) Devarim 4:35.
- (Back to text) Tehillim 126:2-3.
The King Mashiach