HAVE WE ARRIVED? I SAY "YES"!

3 Marcheshvan 5784

Before we get into today's post, I want to share an important message that appeared in the Facebook group Israel: The Jewish Nation by Myles Kantor.  The following quotes seem to have been taken from The Hirsch Chumash published by Feldheim.  This is what everything is about...

Rav Hirsch similarly notes on Devarim 1:5 and Bamidbar 31:3:

--"...obedience to God, which is our sole task in times of peace, is sufficient also in times of war to overcome all the powers that oppose us. With obedience to God we can accomplish everything; without it, nothing."

--"Israel's true enemy is not the one who seeks its physical destruction but the one who plots its moral and spiritual demise."

Regarding obedience, Rav Hirsch on Tehillim 106:3 and 98:6:

--"...Yisrael was delivered from Egypt and established as an independent nation in its own land for only one purpose, namely, that it should fulfill God's Law and cherish His Torah."

--"If God is to hear our cry, then we must first heed His own call. If we are to presume to pray to Him for help in our earthly concerns, then we must first resolve to shape all our own lives in accordance with His will...If we expect Him to be our helper, then we must first accept Him as our King."

On Devarim 20:2:

"In wartime, confidence in victory should derive not from military efficiency and knowledge of the arts of war, but from the Torah, to which the work of peace is dedicated and for which the inner moral struggles of private and public life achieve the victories of peace. The whole purpose of war is to ensure the basis for the realization of the Torah's rule."

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By all accounts, according to Rabbi "Yaak" of the Yeranen Yaakov geulah blog, 2006 was seen as an auspicious time for Mashiach to come early.  Obviously, that didn't happen, but what was written in June 2006 on his blog post entitled End of Days - Where are we? (part 1 of 3) [you have to scroll down there] is highly constructive for us today because I think it confirms that in answer to the question "Where are we?," I think we can say that we have finally arrived at the end of a very long process.

[NOTE: I have edited the text to make the parts I feel are most significant red in color and in some places bold.  Also, these are only excerpts from a much longer, but very informative, work.  Sharing with permission of the blog owner.]

Translated from Hashem1.net

The beginning of the War of Gog Umagog

It's brought down in a number of commentaries, and expanded upon in the Malbim that the War of Gog Umagog (see the synopsis of the sources for the details of the war here) will be between Christianity and Islam (see here an attempt to locate the countries described in the Book of Yehezkel), and only in its final stage will it reach Eretz Yisrael, via joining forces against the people of Israel. The Zohar writes similar statements that before the arrival of Mashiah, the Ishmaelites (Muslims) will start 3 wars against the Edomites (Christians), and their final stage will be close to Jerusalem.

The subject of the War of Gog Umagog is not only physical, as it so appears from a shallow outlook, but rather, it has deep spiritual roots. One who wants to understand its spiritual meaning, like the subject of Mashiah Ben Yosef and the difference between him and Mashiah Ben David - and their connection to this war - is invited to read the words of the Maharal of Prague on this subject. Incidentally, there are 3 wars of Gog Umagog. We are currently dealing with the third and final one (the other 2, according to popular logic, were WW1 and WW2).

The date of the beginning of the war is also mentioned in our sources. As is known, on Shabbat Hol Hamo'ed Sukkot, the Haftarah in Yehezkel that deals with Gog Umagog is read. The reason for this is that we have a tradition that the War of Gog Umagog will break out on Hoshana Rabba (brought down in the Mishna Berura - and earlier, by the Ziditchover Rebbe, זיע"א, and its source is from the words of Rav Hai Gaon from about 1000 years ago, and according to his words, the Resurrection of the Dead will occur on the holiday of Pesah, after the conclusion of Gog Umagog, and therefore, the Haftarah of the Resurrection of the Dead is read then). The fact that the "War on Terror" started with the war of [George W.] Bush (Many respected people claim that Bush is Gog, which explains his thoughts that he speaks with Hakadosh Baruch Hu) against Afghanistan exactly on the night of Hoshana Rabba proves, according to many, that this is really the War of Gog Umagog, even though there are those that say that Hoshana Rabba is supposed to be the date of breaking out of the final stage of the war (the stage against Israel), and it's possible that this will also be fulfilled (and if this will occur, it comes out that according to Rav Hai Gaon, we're talking about a stage that will last about a half year - until Pesah).

The Next Stage of the War - Against Paras/Iran and/or Against Assyria/Syria

The wicked Bil'am, who according to our sages, despite his great wickedness, knew the endtime (this is why Haza"l said about them what they said - see here, Siman 11), informed us in a prophecy that is written in our holy Torah, the Torah of truth, what will occur immediately before the arrival of Mashiah, and he said this: 

אוֹי מִי יִחְיֶה מִשֻׂמוֹ אֵל! וְצִים מִיַּד כִּתִּים וְעִנּוּ אַשּׁוּר וְעִנּוּ-עֵבֶר וְגַם-הוּא עֲדֵי אבֵד

Alas, who shall live after God hath appointed him?

But ships shall come from the coast of Kittim, and they shall afflict Asshur, and shall afflict Eber, and he also shall come to destruction.

According to the explanation given to these words from sources that are more than 2000 years old, the meaning of the words is like this: "Woe is to the nation that will be found in the world at the time that Hakadosh Baruch Hu redeems Israel, at the time that giant ships of the Romans (Christians) will come and fight in the vicinity of Assyria and in the vicinity of Ever, and they will be victorious there, and they will cause affliction to the inhabitants of the place. However, even their lot will come to destruction, and then, the kingdom will be given to Mashiah and to Israel."

The War with Paras Close to the Arrival of Mashiah

... in recent years, the Kabbalist Rabbi Daniel Zer expressed a few times on this topic that there is a sign that was transmitted to him, that the War of Gog Umagog (apparently, the final stage) is approaching, and that will be [the outcome of] the tensions heating up with Iran. The rabbi said many times that it's mentioned in the words of our sages that the destruction of the world will begin with Paras:

You should know one thing: I have a sign [transmitted] to me that Gog Umagog is close. I spoke in the past about Gog Umagog. When the Gulf War broke out, they said that this was Gog Umagog. I told them all: Understand, the Gemara says and the Midrash says and the Zohar says that there is one sign when Gog Umagog is close. Do you know what the sign is?

The Gemara says that the destruction of the Beit Hamikdash started with Paras, the destruction of the world will begin with Paras. The Zohar and Midrash say that Gog Umagog will begin with Paras.

When it was the Gulf War, I told you: as long as Paras is not in the middle of it, this is not Gog Umagog. Now, pay attention, Paras is starting... The whole world is afraid of Paras. Now it is starting to speak of "wiping Israel off the map"...  (from gog1.com, the End of Days site)

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Current headlines: 

Iran warns of ‘preemptive’ action against Israel amid Gaza war

Iran says ‘time running out’ for solution to Gaza war, threatens ‘expanding’ conflict

"Ships From Kittim (Edom)" - A US Armada Is Growing Off Israel's Shore (a must read)

They are not coming to our aid, they are here to invade Eretz Yisrael!!!!!!!!  Just like Rome!!!!

I THINK WE ARE THERE!!   

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I have begun to think that maybe there is a secret held in the term GoguMagog.  Sure, the Prophet Yechezkel says specifically that Gog is the leader of the country Magog, but the fact that we always call it the War of GoguMagog might, I think, hint at something further.  I think it might hint to two such leaders and two countries - the US/West as Gog and Russia/East as Magog.  One starts the Final War (US invasion of the Middle East on Hoshana Rabbah 5762 in the wake of the 9/11 attack) and the other finishes it.  When it reaches to Eretz Yisrael, Gog will fall.  Mashiach will rise, and then Magog will come to finish what Gog started.  Magog is destroyed and the Kingdom becomes Hashem's.  

I need to investigate the idea further.  Anyone know of a supporting source?  All comments and ideas are welcome.