G-d's Building (i)

The Zohar[181] describes the First and Second Beis HaMikdash as "the building of mortal man which has no lasting existence," whereas the Third Beis HaMikdash, since it is[182] "the building of the Holy One, blessed be He," will endure forever.

The First Beis HaMikdash corresponds to Avraham Avinu; the Second Beis HaMikdash corresponds to Yitzchak Avinu; the Third Beis HaMikdash corresponds to Yaakov Avinu.[183] And since the dominant characteristic of Yaakov Avinu is truth,[184] which can be neither intercepted nor changed, the Third Beis HaMikdash will stand forever.

Likkutei Sichos, Vol. IX, p. 26

G-d's Building (ii)

The First and Second Beis HaMikdash embodied the labors of the Jewish people, as they fulfilled the command to[185] "build Me a Sanctuary and I will dwell in their midst." How, then, is it possible that these two Sanctuaries should not be everlasting, while specifically the Third Beis HaMikdash, which (insofar as it is182 "the building of the Holy One, blessed be He") would appear to be lacking the luster of Israel's labors, will be everlasting?

By way of response: The Third Beis HaMikdash will be "the building of the Holy One, blessed be He" and hence eternal by virtue of Jewry's spiritual labors throughout this long exile. Indeed, it could be contended that these endeavors are the most sublime of all forms of avodah, outshining even the divine service carried out in the First and Second Beis HaMikdash. Hence it is these very endeavors that ensure that the Third Beis HaMikdash will be G-d's handiwork and will stand eternally.

This observation parallels the classic comment of our Sages on the Divine promise of the Redemption,[186] "I will hasten it in its time." Now, is this verse promising that the Redemption will be hastened, or that it will come in its time?

To resolve this paradox, the Sages taught:[187] zachu - achishena; lo zachu - be'itah. I.e., if the Jewish people are found worthy, the Redemption will be hastened, ahead of its preordained time; if they are not found worthy, it will come in its time.

As noted above, the preceding observation recalls this teaching of the Sages. For since the Third Beis HaMikdash will come in the wake of the spiritual labors which, in the course of this long exile, have refined the Jewish people time and time again, it is these very labors that will induce G-d Himself to build it.

Likkutei Sichos, Vol. XXX, p.122

G-d's Building (iii)

A man's divine service may be described as perfect when he does not regard himself as an independent and self-sufficient entity, but rather, all his deeds are "G-d's deeds." At such a time, the Divine Presence fully dwells in all the works of his hands. This is why[188] "the works of tzaddikim are called the works of G-d" - because a tzaddik is self-effacing.

It may safely be assumed that this is especially true when one serves G-d in the spirit of a bondman, who has no independent identity. (Indeed,[189] "Whatever a bondman acquires is his master's.") He serves his master simply because he has accepted the yoke of his authority, not because of intellectual imperatives or emotional attachment.

This mode of divine service points out the distinctive quality of the Third Beis HaMikdash.

The divine service in the First and Second Beis HaMikdash, for all its worth, was spurred by a profound apprehension of the greatness of G-d, an intellectual apprehension which generates a love and awe of Him.[190] Now intellect by definition garbs the essence of the soul and covers it over. On the surface, therefore, the divine service of that era was intellectual, and hence tainted by the self-awareness that one's own comprehension and feelings evoke. Neither the First nor the Second Beis HaMikdash was therefore manifestly182 "the building of the Holy One, blessed be He."

The Third Beis HaMikdash, by contrast, will arise by virtue of the Jewish people's divine service in the course of the exile, a service that has been carried out primarily through the acceptance of the yoke of heaven, like the service of a bondman. It is specifically this kind of service that may wholly and truly be called188 "the works of tzaddikim [which] are called the works of G-d." And for this reason this kind of service ensures that the Third Beis HaMikdash will manifestly be "the building of the Holy One, blessed be He": He Himself will build it.

Likkutei Sichos, Vol. XXX, p.123

Cosmic Harmony

The Beis HaMikdash encapsulates G-d's bond with the world; as it is written,185 "And they shall build Me a Sanctuary and I will dwell in their midst."

This bond can be established in any of three ways.

In the First Beis HaMikdash the bond was established by virtue of the first party, viz., G-d, by means of a downward flow[191] of Divine beneficence initiated from above. In the time of the First Beis HaMikdash the people were required (for the most part) to be tzaddikim - and the task of a tzaddik is to draw Divinity down to this world. Yet since this downward flow of Divine beneficence was initiated from above, and barely dependent on mortal initiative, it was prone to be interrupted.

In the Second Beis HaMikdash the bond was established by virtue of the second party, viz., by the refinement and uplifting[192] of the world. In the time of the Second Beis HaMikdash, since it followed after the destruction of the First Beis HaMikdash and after the rectification of this destruction, the people were at the level of penitents[193] - and the function of teshuvah is refinement and uplifting. This enabled the Second Beis HaMikdash to last longer in this world than the First. Yet since the world is by definition finite, this Beis HaMikdash too was subject to the bounds of finitude.

In the Third Beis HaMikdash the bond will be established from a third direction - by virtue of the combination of the infinite "above" and the finite "below", and the consequent formation of a third state of existence which embraces them both. And since this fusion of "above" and "below" is the function of the Third Beis HaMikdash, it will endure forever, for the finitude of the world will thereby become infinite.

Likkutei Sichos, Vol. IX, p. 26

Its Gates Sank into the Ground[194]

On the verse, "Its gates sank into the ground," the Sages teach that[195] the gates of the Beis HaMikdash sank and were hidden away in their location.

It would thus appear that when the Third Beis HaMikdash descends from heaven, these gates will be revealed, and the King Mashiach will erect them in their proper place.[196]

But why, one might ask, should there be a need to use the gates that sank into the ground? Just as the Beis HaMikdash itself will descend from heaven, surely its gates too can descend.

However, since G-d is the ultimate in goodness and hence benevolent, and since[197] "a man prefers one kav of his own [handiwork] to nine kabin of another's," even the Third Beis HaMikdash (which will descend complete from heaven) will include this cherished quality of man's own handiwork - by the erection of the gates which sank into the ground. Indeed, through this final stroke the entire Beis HaMikdash will be enhanced by this quality, since he who sets up the doors of a house is regarded as having built it all.[198]

From a talk of the Rebbe on Shabbos Parshas Terumah, 5744 [1984]

The Sanctuary On High

Our Sages taught that[199] "the Beis HaMikdash below is positioned opposite the Beis HaMikdash on high."

This correspondence extends to the particular dimensions and components of the Beis HaMikdash, each of which reflected the level of sanctity enjoyed by its precise counterpart in the heavenly Beis HaMikdash.

There is reason to assume that this correspondence will be especially true of the Third Beis HaMikdash. In the First and Second Beis HaMikdash the correspondence was not apparent in detail: one could only tell that this was a House of G-d with a general division into parts. In the Third Beis HaMikdash, by contrast, the parallelism will be visible in all its precision even to fleshly eyes.

The reason is that since the First and Second Beis HaMikdash were[200] "buildings of mortal man," they did not disclose manifest evidence of their exact correspondence to the182 "building of the Holy One, blessed be He." In the Beis HaMikdash of the future, however, which will be a "building of the Holy One, blessed be He," the way in which each of its details echoes a particular level in the Sanctuary on high will be plainly visible.

Likkutei Sichos, Vol. XXIX, p. 22

Candles from Sabbath Eve

In the very last of the Laws Governing the House of [G-d's] Choice, Rambam describes the procedure by which the courtyard of the Beis HaMikdash was inspected on Shabbos. There he writes:[201] "This procedure is followed every night, except on Shabbos eve, when there are no torches in hand, but the inspection is carried out by the light of candles that were lit there from before the approach of Shabbos."

What message do these words bear?

The full flowering of the Beis HaMikdash will come to pass in the Sanctuary of the future, in the days of Mashiach, in[202] "the day that will be entirely Shabbos." For only the Third Beis HaMikdash will be G-d's own handiwork,[203] "the Sanctuary which Your hands... have established," and it will stand forever.

Now since this consummation will be attained only in the future, one could conceivably underestimate the ultimate value of Jewry's divine service in the course of this present exile.

Quite the contrary, Rambam reassures us:

On Shabbos eve: In the time of the future Redemption, "the day that will be entirely Shabbos," -

there are no torches in hand: At that time we will no longer have the benefit of[204] "a mitzvah [which] is a lamp, and the Torah [which] is light," for those will be[205] "years of which you shall say, I have no pleasure in them," -

but the inspection is carried out by the light of candles that were lit there from before the approach of Shabbos: Whatever light is then available will be that which was kindled during the preceding exile. Indeed, the ultimate attainment of the Third Beis HaMikdash will be the fact that at that time the divine service of the Jewish people throughout the exile will become apparent in all its beauty.

Likkutei Sichos, Vol. XXI, p. 243

A Glimpse of the Future Sanctuary

The saintly R. Levi Yitzchak of Berditchev used to point out that the name Shabbos Chazon[206] stems from the word machazeh, meaning "vision", for "on that day everyone is shown the future Beis HaMikdash."

This is intended to arouse a Jew and encourage him: having caught a glimpse of the Third Beis HaMikdash in all its heavenly perfection, all that is left for him to do is to bring it down to this world.

And though not everyone quite sees the Third Beis HaMikdash, this situation may well be compared to the following episode in which[207] "I Daniel alone saw the vision; the men who were with me did not see the vision, but a great trembling fell upon them...."

On this the Sages ask:[208] "If they did not see the apparition, why the dread?"

And they answer: "Though they did not see it, their heavenly soul-root[209] saw it."

In the same way, on Shabbos Chazon the transcendent root of the soul does see the future Sanctuary; moreover, this perception leaves an imprint on the individual, even on his body and on his animal soul.

The question has likewise been asked: What is the point of the proclamations uttered by the heavenly voice[210] of which the Sages sometimes speak? Who hears it?

The answer given in Chassidus[211] recalls the above explanation: The transcendent mazal hears the voice, and relays it soundlessly into the nether reaches of the soul that are garbed in the body.

Likkutei Sichos, Vol. XXIX, pp. 18, 22

   

Notes:

181. (Back to text) III, 221a.

182. (Back to text) In the Aram. original, binyana deKudsha Brich Hu.

183. (Back to text) See Yahel Or on Tehillim 127:1 (sec. 12), commenting on Likkutei Torah, Matos, p. 83c.

184. (Back to text) Michah 7:20.

185. (Back to text) Shmos 25:8.

186. (Back to text) Yeshayahu 60:22.

187. (Back to text) Sanhedrin 98a.

188. (Back to text) Shitah Mekubetzes on Kesubbos 5a.

189. (Back to text) Pesachim 88b.

190. (Back to text) Cf. Rambam, Hilchos Yesodei HaTorah 2:2.

191. (Back to text) In the original, hamshachah milmaalah lematah.

192. (Back to text) In the original, haalaah milmatah lemaalah.

193. (Back to text) In the original, baalei teshuvah.

194. (Back to text) Eichah 2:9.

195. (Back to text) Eichah Rabbah, ad loc.

196. (Back to text) See below, Part VI, ch. 4.

197. (Back to text) Bava Metzia 38a.

198. (Back to text) Cf. Bava Basra 53b.

199. (Back to text) Midrash Tanchuma, Parshas Mishpatim, sec. 18.

200. (Back to text) Zohar III, 221a.

201. (Back to text) Hilchos Beis HaBechirah 8:12.

202. (Back to text) Tamid 7:4.

203. (Back to text) Shmos 15:17.

204. (Back to text) Mishlei 6:23.

205. (Back to text) Koheles 12:1.

206. (Back to text) I.e., the Shabbos preceding Tishah BeAv, when the Haftorah opens with the word chazon ("The vision of Isaiah..."; Yeshayahu 1:1).

207. (Back to text) Daniel 10:7.

208. (Back to text) Megillah 3a.

209. (Back to text) In the original, mazal.

210. (Back to text) In the original, bas kol; see, e.g., Avos 6:2 and Chagigah 15a.

211. (Back to text) Likkutei Torah, Parshas Teitzei, p. 36d.