Jewish Prophecy: In Coming Messianic Era, Israel’s
Borders Will Encompass the World By Adam Eliyahu Berkowitz
“And in the days of those kings shall the God of heaven set up a
kingdom, which shall never be destroyed; nor shall the kingdom be left to another
people; it shall break in pieces and consume all these kingdoms, but it shall
stand for ever.” Daniel 2:44 (The Israel Bible™)
The
borders of Israel are the subject of heated international debate, but a look at prophetic
literature shows a clear and surprising picture: the Messianic age will feature
an Israel that encompasses the entire world.
Haters of
Israel can interpret this in a negative light, but the truth is a utopian
vision of universal brotherhood.
The
borders of Israel cannot be described in absolute terms because they have
changed frequently. Rabbi Yitzchak Ginsburgh, head of the Gal Eini religious
Zionist movement, taught that there were actually three different sets of
borders described in the Bible and one that came later in history. The final set
of borders is described in prophetic teachings.
. 1. The
borders promised to Abraham in the
book of Genesis, which extended from the river of Egypt to the Euphrates (Genesis 15:18-
2. The
borders described in the Bible before the Israelites entered the land (Numbers 34:6).
3. The
borders established by conquest after six years of battle by those who entered
the Holy Land with Joshua (Joshua 13).
4. The
borders of those Jews who returned from the Babylonian exile, which were substantially
smaller than before the exile.
Rabbi
Avraham Arieh Trugman, director of Ohr Chadash Torah
Institute, explained to Breaking Israel News that
these changes are because Israel’s borders are not firmly established or part
of a political or military process. Israel’s borders are part of a spiritual
process, even in modern times.
“Israel’s borders are flexible because our merit to
be here is dependent on our actions and our relationship with God,” he said.
“In the last 68 years of modern Israel’s history, the border has changed many
times, describing a developing relationship.”
The final
borders of Israel are described in the Pesikta Rabbati, a
collection of homilies and midrash (oral
teachings) compiled by Torah sages in the ninth century CE. Unlike
the previous four descriptions of the borders of Israel, the final prophetic
description does not describe geographic boundaries specific to Israel, but a
unifying global spiritual process.
“In
the future the land of Israel will spread [and encompass] all the lands [of the
earth]. The entire Temple Mount will become like the Holy of Holies, all of
Jerusalem will become like the Temple Mount, all of Israel will become like
Jerusalem, and all of the world will become like Israel.”
Rabbi Yitzhak Batzri, a noted Kabbalist from
Jerusalem, explained this prophecy to Breaking
Israel News.
“This prophecy can easily be misunderstood to be
racist, as if the Jews are supposed to conquer the world. But it is actually
the opposite. The world will become one, united. Jews and non-Jews will join
together in serving God, and contrary to what has happened throughout history,
the non-Jews will help Israel to serve God.
“Just as the Temple expands to
include all of Israel, the Jews will all become as priests, helping
them to serve God. This will elevate the Jewish people, making
Rabbi
Trugman agreed with this explanation. “In
the times of the moshiach (Messiah), the borders will change again and the
whole world will turn into Israel, meaning the entire world will become holy and
serve one God like Israel is holy and serves one God,” he told Breaking
Israel News.
Rabbi
Trugman expanded on the idea, explaining how this process will be a reversal of
the history of the Jewish exile.
“We were brought together in Israel, but because of
our sins, we went into exile and spread around the world. That spread Torah and
holiness out into the world. We are told, paradoxically, that we have to come
back into Israel in the geula (redemption) because moshiach has to emanate out from Israel,” he
explained. “Theoretically, in exile, we
were in a better position to spread the Torah and the holiness when we were
spread out among the nations.”
The
seeming contradiction, he said, is a tikkun (fixing)
in Kabbalistic mystical terms.
“The holiness has to become concentrated in Israel
when the Jews bring it back to Israel, and then spread out into the world in a
fixed redemptive manner,” the rabbi explained.
Since we
see that Israel’s borders are not only outlined in the Bible but also in
prophecy, any decisions pertaining to them have spiritual implications.
Making
Israel smaller is not only a political recipe for failure and more conflict, it
is a pushing the world further away from Messiah.
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Adam Eliyahu Berkowitz
is a features writer for Breaking Israel News. He made Aliyah to Israel in 1991
and served in the IDF as a combat medic. Berkowitz studied Jewish law and
received rabbinical ordination in Israel. He has worked as a freelance writer
and his novel, The Hope Merchant, is available on Amazon. He lives in the Golan
Heights with his wife and their four children.
http://www.breakingisraelnews.com/69368/global-kingdom-israel-times-messiah/#MxUX7quwcSmZfrUV.97
http://www.breakingisraelnews.com/69368/global-kingdom-israel-times-messiah/#MxUX7quwcSmZfrUV.97
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