Dear Friends:
This is the month in which the first, invisible hint of spring appears. We are still in the midst of winter. As I write these lines, it is frigid in New York, with snow covering the ground. The nights are long and the cold sun is low in the south.
And yet, shortly, we will come to the 15th Day of the month, T’U B’Shevat, and something will happen beneath the surface. No one will see it, yet it will happen.
The sap will begin to flow in the trees of Eretz Yisroel.
My friends, missiles have been falling upon our brethren in Sderot, Netivot, Beersheva, Ashdod, Ashkelon and other communities in the south of Israel. Missiles also have been falling in the north. Residents of these communities have not slept for months or maybe years. They have little food, no businesses, no life. Many have fled to the center. Babies wail; children cling to their mothers because they live in constant fear. And what can their mothers say?
As I write, there is talk of a withdrawal from Gaza, but the war against the Jew is not over.
The world is gathering against us. Demonstrations in major cities around the globe denounce the Jew. In a doctor’s office last week, my eye happened to rest upon Time Magazine. The cover story was headlined: “Why Israel Can’t Win.”
We are in the midst of a long, dark winter.
Yes, my friends, the circle is drawing closer. The Children of Ishmael and the Children of Esau have joined hands. The entire world dances around us, screaming and taunting. And they are smiling. They believe that within their grasp is the Final Solution to the Jewish Problem that eluded even their great mentor, may his name be erased. It does not matter whether they are individuals or so-called official bodies. There is a building on the East River in Manhattan within which the enemies of Israel sit in pompous judgment. Hatred can wear a military uniform or a suit and tie; it is all one.
“Behold,” said Balaam, “it is a nation that will dwell in solitude and not be reckoned among the nations.”i
The nations dance around us and plot our destruction.
This time they are sure they will not fail.
“For behold, Your foes are in uproar and those who hate You have raised their head. Against Your people they plot deviously, they take counsel against those sheltered by You. They said, ‘Come, let us cut them off from nationhood, so Israel’s name will not be remembered any longer!’ For they take counsel together unanimously, they strike a covenant against You….”ii
And the sap rises in the trees, invisible, unseen by the eye of man.
Our sages have chosen a very interesting way to describe the coming of Moshiach ben Dovid. This is the language of the Shemoneh Esreh: “Es Tsemach Dovid avdecha m’haira satzmiach…”
“The offspring of Your servant David may You speedily cause to flourish…”
“Tsemach” is the language of “flowering,” bursting forth.
The second blessing in the Shemoneh Esreh uses the same word, “tsemach,” to describe the revival of the dead, how G-d “restores life and makes salvation sprout.”
Moshiach ben Dovid is going to burst forth like a flower, suddenly, the way the spring suddenly explodes in a world of brilliant color after a winter of dead white. We thought the world was dead, and it is alive!
Moshiach ben Dovid is going to EXPLODE upon the world in a burst of kedusha, holiness so powerful that the nations will be blown off their feet. When G-d spoke at Mount Sinai, the Children of Israel died from the explosion of holiness and had to be revived. Moshiach will burst upon the earth with a beauty that will stun the world. All evil will disappear in an explosion of holiness.
Nations of the world, haters of Israel, I have read in the Holy Torah what will happen to you, so you had better listen now, because if you do not take heed then you will be among those destroyed forever. Our Father in Heaven is watching and listening! He will not forget your missiles and He will not forget your words, and he will not forget your hatred!
Do not fool yourselves, nations of the world. The foes of Israel are the foes of G-d. You will never escape from your destruction.
The sap is rising in the trees. We may not see it, but it is rising. The invisible seed is cracking open. The bud is forming. Moshiach ben Dovid is about to explode upon the world with a roar that will overwhelm all those who deny the existence of G-d and the sanctity of His People Israel.
Do you think G-d is asleep? Do you think G-d has forgotten His promises?
Oh no, my friends!
“The voice of G-d is upon the waters, the G-d of Glory thunders! G-d is upon vast waters. The voice of G-d is in power! The voice of G-d is in majesty. … The voice of G-d breaks the cedars. The voice of G-d cleaves with shafts of fire…. G-d will give might to His people. G-d will bless His people with peace.”iii
Sooner than you think!
The night is dark, but daybreak is near, when the brilliant sunburst will dispel the darkness forever!
