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B"H

Before Shabbat, I posted a question about this verse: "But Edom answered him, “You shall not pass through us, else we will go out against you with the sword.”

- Numbers 20:18

I asked if there was any prophetic significance to this in terms of Christianity's historical relationship with Judaism. The reason I ask is that the Rabbis identify "Edom" with "Christianity" and the Torah reveals the future to us according to the principle 'maaseh avot siman l'banim' - the actions of the fathers serve as a prophetic blueprint for the children, i.e. future generations. In other words, what does this passage say about the last 2000 years?

This quick note is what I found:

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THE YOKE

Parshat Chukkat is jam packed with mysteries and prophetic patterns that reveal the future.

In the first section, we read of the mysterious Parah Adumah, the Red Heifer. The commandment states that the red heifer must have never born a yoke. The word for yoke in Hebrew is "ol". Normally, "ol" is spelled – עול - ayin-vav-lamed.

In this verse, it is spelled על, missing the letter vav. Since not one jot or tittle can pass from the Torah (Matthew 5:17-19), where did the vav go? And why is it written like this?

In Jewish thought, the word ‘yoke’ refers to the Shema, and by extension Torah and the commandments (Pirkei Avot 3:2-5). The Yalqut Shimoni and the Zohar link this missing vav of the word "ol" (yoke) to Edom, which did not fully accept the yoke of G-d. The nation of Edom descends from Esav. Edom itself means red (adom), and is related to the color of the red heifer. In Jewish mystical thought, the color red is associated with gevurah or judgment. As Isaiah says, sins (which bring judgment) are like scarlet.

VAYISHLACH MOSHE

In Numbers 20:14, Moshe sends representatives to the King of Edom to ask for passage through their country to the Promised Land, identifying Israel as Edom’s “brother”. The Torah uses the phrase ‘Vayishlach Moshe malachim…”

וַיִּשְׁלַ֨ח מֹשֶׁ֧ה מַלְאָכִ֛ים מִקָּדֵ֖שׁ אֶל־מֶ֣לֶךְ אֱד֑וֹם כֹּ֤ה אָמַר֙ אָחִ֣יךָ יִשְׂרָאֵ֔ל אַתָּ֣ה יָדַ֔עְתָּ אֵ֥ת כׇּל־הַתְּלָאָ֖ה אֲשֶׁ֥ר מְצָאָֽתְנוּ׃

“Moses sent messengers (malachim) from Kadesh to the king of Edom: “Thus says your brother Israel: You know all the hardships that have befallen us…”

- Numbers 20:14

This should immediately remind a Torah student of when Yaakov sent messengers (malakhim) to his brother Esav, his brother.

וַיִּשְׁלַ֨ח יַעֲקֹ֤ב מַלְאָכִים֙ לְפָנָ֔יו אֶל־עֵשָׂ֖ו אָחִ֑יו אַ֥רְצָה שֵׂעִ֖יר שְׂדֵ֥ה אֱדֽוֹם׃

“Jacob sent messengers ahead to his brother Esau in the land of Seir, the country of Edom.’

- Genesis 32:4

Moses says, “We will follow the Derekh HaMelech, the King’s Highway and not turn to the right or the left.” The word “or the left” in Hebrew is וּשְׂמֹ֔אול, us’mol. This word has an extra vav in it, which is the missing vav from the word "yoke" above, which was connected to Esav/Edom.

Just like the color red, “left” indicates gevurah, severity or judgment. Yeshua follows this pattern when he says that at the Final Judgment, he will separate the sheep on his right, and the goats on his left (Matthew 25:33). The right side to receive mercy, and the left to receive judgment. To understand this, we must understand what the right and the left, and the Way of the King represent.

ROME

Psalm 137:7 identifies the Edomites as the ‘Daughter of Babylon” who destroyed the Temple. As Babylon destroyed the First Temple, so Edom would destroy the Second Temple. It is well known that Rome destroyed the Second Temple, hence Edom is Rome. The Romans wore red capes, waved red banners, etc.

Rome viciously persecuted the Jewish people and the early believers in Yeshua of Nazareth. After centuries of failing to stamp out the “superstition” of the Resurrection, they co-opted the faith by fabricating a counterfeit religion culminating under Constantine. This didn’t happen overnight, but gradually, reaching its fruition about the middle of the fourth century through sixth centuries, leading into the Dark Ages.

The Biblical festivals were replaced with counterfeit festivals, the “sabbath” became Sunday, Torah was “done away with”, statues were worshipped, etc. Edom is a system that has persecuted the Jewish people, burned people at the stake for heresy and translating the Bible, eventually banning the Scriptures, tortured people during the Inquisition (which lasted until the 1800s), although there were breakaway "daughters", i.e. splits from the Roman Catholic Church, they were still in the "Edom" mindset, as seen in Martin Luther’s Against the Jews and Their Lies, which may likely helped inspire/justify Kristallnacht and by many estimations, may have provided material for anti-Semites to support the Holocaust. "Edom" not only refers to the Catholic Church (whose cardinals strangely wear red kippot!), but to all the splinters which hold to an Antisemitic supercessionism / Replacement Theology that rejects the significance of the Torah and the role of the Jewish people while concealing the Jewishness of Yeshua. Thus "Rome" and “Christianity” became synonymous for centuries, and in Jewish literature this is referred to as "Esav", "Edom". This does not refer to all Catholics or Christians, but rather a system, which we will explain below.

Returning to us’mol (or the left) - this indicates that the Left refers to Edom, that is Xianity, and then conversely, the right refers to Islam. The reason that the ‘right’ refers to Islam is that Islam is the inverse image of Edom, with Islam representing the East and Edom representing the Western World, now headed by the USA. Some have pointed out that USA backwards is similar to "eisav" - עשו, and that the parallels between ancient Rome and America are manifold, such as the symbol of the Eagle, the world power, military, Senate, the architecture, etc.) It appears that Edom exists on three planes, political, spiritual and internal, that is the Western Society, Xianity and then the internal Esav (yetzer hara) that we all must defeat.

Neither turning to the right or the left means that Jews will NOT convert to either Islam or Xianity, but remain on the Derekh HaMelech, the Torah, the Way. For Christians who think that Jews must convert to another religion to be saved, it makes no sense Biblically. Yeshua is the Jewish Messiah. His religion is Judaism. No Jew needs to leave behind their Jewishness, Torah, kashrut to follow the Rabbi who upheld Judaism, Torah and Kashrut. Judaism proclaims that everyone must be born anew (Yevamot 22a), but that means making teshuvah and becoming a new creation, not switching a religion. The Torah, Shabbat, Kashrut, is true, valid and for all Israel today. That is according to Yeshua himself in Matthew 5:17-19.

Ultimately, the concept of Edom and the Left means that for 2000 years, Edom/Esav/Rome/Xianity would function as the instrument of Judgment upon Israel. Hence Edom answered Moshe Rabbeinu,

““You shall not pass through us, else we will go out against you with the sword.”

- Numbers 20:18

Yitzhak’s blessing to Esav was that he would “live by the sword” (Genesis 27:40). Yeshua specifically states those who “live by the sword will die by the sword.” (Matthew 26:52). Unfortunately, many claiming to be his followers did not heed his teaching. Yeshua said those who love him will keep his commandments, the ultimate of which is love others as he loved us.

MASHIACH BEN YOSEF

This history remains the biggest obstacle for Jews to reconcile with Yeshua today. But it is important to emphasize that Yeshua has nothing to do with Edom. Some have tried to argue that Yeshua is responsible for the bloodshed in the name of "Jesus" for 1700 years. Nothing could be further from the truth. To explain by a analogous situation, HaShem is not responsible for American slavery because people misinterpreted the Torah to justify their evil actions. Therefore, when I refer to Edom as Xianity, I write it this way because there is no “Christ” in it. Yeshua loved his people, the Jews, with every fiber of his being, and true followers of Yeshua will always support and defend the Jewish people forever. Yeshua said, "Salvation comes from the Jews." The Jewish people are the reflection of the Messiah to the world, and should be treated as such. Ultimately, each person is in the image of G-d, and we should treat one another as if we were serving the Messiah himself(!).

As we noted above, it is critical to note that Esav/Edom does not refer to true believers in Yeshua of Nazareth. Real believers belong to “Jacob”. There are many sparks that belong to Jacob that are trapped in Edom. There are WONDERFUL Christians and Catholics doing real tikkun olam (repair of the world) work, even though they may be trapped in a theological system containing errors. Their real faith is reflected in their actions not in their understanding of a systematic theology textbook. Many Messianics think that Yeshua's mission failed because of the failure of Xianity. Nothing could be further from the truth. His work was the greatest kiruv (bringing people close to God) movement in history.

In the ancient times, real believers continued to exist for centuries after Constantine as evidenced by “Saint” John Chrystostom’s "Eight Homilies Against the Jews", in which he viciously attacks the believers for celebrating Pesach with the Jewish people. Real believers have always existed, whether they were public or in the underground. This is the same for Jewish believers in Yeshua throughout the centuries, even though they had no home in the Catholic church and were either nistar (concealed) in the Synagogue or left without a place to lay their head. And Torah faithful Jews have also lived throughout these two millennia, holding on to the faith despite impossible odds.

YAAKOV AND ESAV

Returning to Yaakov and Esav, Yeshua’s name is encoded into Genesis 25:26 describing their births in the roshei teivot (heads of the letters) last four words:

וְאַֽחֲרֵי־כֵ֞ן יָצָ֣א אָחִ֗יו וְיָד֤וֹ אֹחֶ֙זֶת֙ בַּעֲקֵ֣ב עֵשָׂ֔ו וַיִּקְרָ֥א שְׁמ֖וֹ יַעֲקֹ֑ב

"Then his brother emerged, holding on to the heel of Esau; so they named him Jacob."

- Genesis 25:26

Yaakov was holding onto the “heel” of Esav. The Ramchal, R’ Moshe Hayyim Luzzato, writes,

“Messiah ben Joseph comes forth, his hand grasping Esau’s heel; the Sitra Ahra has a hold on the heels of holiness at the lower levels, and accordingly the Messiah ben Joseph must go into all parts of the husk, even the heels, to extract every good part of it, for which reason ‘his hand grasps the heel of Esau’, and that is the underlying meaning of the ‘on the heels of the Messiah’, that is necessary to subdue these heels.”

- R’ Moshe Hayyim Luzzato, Megilat Setarim 7, cited in Messianic Mysticism, Isaiah Tishby, Littman Library of Jewish Civilization, pg 243

It is remarkable that Ramchal specfically connects this verse to Mashiach ben Yosef when Yeshua's name is encoded in the passage.

As we have explored in detail on Ladder of Jacob, several texts, from the Talmud, Sefer Zerubbabel and Ramchal, among many others, indicate that Mashiach is concealed in Edom. This means that the Messiah is hidden in Xianity somewhere. The Talmud says he is at the Gate of Rome, which indicates that he is not within the city, but on its outskirts, sitting with the lepers, waiting for the time that Israel is ready. All of these are according to the secret of,

“The voice is the voice of Jacob, but the hands are the hands of Esav…”

Genesis 27:22

Just like Jacob was cloaked in Esav, so too Mashiach would be concealed in Esav. This is also indicated in the description of David HaMelech as being ‘admoni’ (ruddy) which is the external characteristic of Esav. HaShem tells Shmuel HaNavi, do not regard the outer appearance, but HaShem looks at the heart. Thus, the Ramchal, R’ Moshe Chaim Luzzato, comments on this passage,

…ועתה הנני מפרש לך סוד אחד חתום מאד והוא מה שכתוב מי זה בא מאדום וגוי [ישעיה סג, א] וכל זה הוא הצדיק, והוא משיח בן יוסף

“I will explain to you a certain sod which is completely sealed, and it concerns what is written, “Who is this who comes from Edom…’ (Yeshayahu 63:1). This is the Tzaddik, and he is Mashiach ben Yosef.”

- Ramchal, Ma’amar HaGeulah, Secrets of the Redemption, Translated by R’ Mordecai Nissim, Feldheim Press, pg. 118

A TIME FOR HEALING

The great Orthodox Rabbi, R’ Aaron Raskin שליט"א, writes in his monumental book By Divine Design,

“One of the prerequisites for the coming of Moshiach is to refine the sparks of Esau, the grandfather of Edom. As the Torah states, “the saviors will go up from Mount Zion to judge the Mount of Esau, for the sovereignty is G-d’s…”

He then explains the underlying secret of the passage we began with.

"...after G-d tells Moses that he cannot enter into the Holy Land, Moses realizes that there is only one way for him to attain passage into the Land, and that is to immediately bring Moshiach. With Moshiach’s arrival, death will vanish from mankind - and all Jews from all generations will be able to enter into the Holy Land. Thus, through his diplomats, Moses approaches Edom to see if the descendants of Esau are ready for Moshiach. Moses’ message to Edom is, “We suffered in Egypt and now we are ready for Moshiach. Are you?”

The King of Edom responds,

We will come out with the sword.”

Moses replies, “Unfortunately, you are not ready for Moshiach, at least let us go alone on your highway,” in other words, “Okay, then we’ll bypass your people and on our own attempt to bring Moshiach and enter the Holy Land.” Still, Edom refuses.

Edom refers to Rome and Christianity, which unfortunately brought much bloodshed to our people. . . throughout history, Edom has continued to revolt against Moses’ mission. During the crusades of the 11th, 12th, and 13th Centuries, Edom brought death with the sword to hundreds of thousands of Jews. All this came about because the people of Edom threw off their yoke and disassociated themselves from the Oneness of G-d. Therefore, the vav of their ol, their spiritual yoke, became the vav of smo'ol, the left side - gevurah, manifesting as harsh punishment...When they saw that the Jews refused to convert to Christianity, the Crusaders were overwhelmed with rage and "left-sided" emotions. . .

The time for healing has come. The world is now ready to serve the one G-d…the leaders of our generation are telling us that the time for Moshiach is now.”

- R' Aaron Raskin, By Divine Design, Sichos in English, pgs. 280-282

Today, Christians all around the world are awakening to the role of the Jewish people, the prophetic rebirth of the State of Israel, the importance of the Torah and the Jewishness of Yeshua.

Christians have funded the organizations seeking to rebuild the Temple and return the Jewish people back to their ancestral homeland. This is a tikkun (repair) for Edom refusing passage of Israel into their Land.

Millions of Christians all over the world, from every nation, tribe and tongue visit and pray for Israel and the wellbeing of the Jewish people. Christians volunteer to pick grapes for the Jewish people (with HaYovel) in fulfillment of the prophecy of Jeremiah.

All of this because of Yeshua of Nazareth. The sparks trapped in the heel of Esav are being extracted by the Messiah himself.

That is not to say that Edom is on board today. Today, there is a split in the world of Christianity. Some are standing against the Jewish people, against the rebuilding of the Temple, against the Torah and against the reconciling of Yeshua with his people.

If you belong to Yeshua the Messiah now is the time to speak up in defense of the Jewish People, their right to the land of Israel, including Judea, Samaria and Gaza (Yehuda, SHomron, V'Aza - i.e. Yeshua). G-d has returned His people to their land, and all of the true sparks must grab hold of the 'hem of the garment' the tzizit of the Jew, and proclaim,

"Come, let us go with you! For we have heard G-d is with you!"

Zechariah 8:23