Sicha, Shabbos Parshas Bereishis 5728
A. The Shofar of Mashiach
The prophets Zechariah and Isaiah prophesy that before the coming of the Mashiach, the sound of a shofar will be heard throughout the world (sources 1-2). However, each prophet expresses this in a different way. Zechariah speaks in the language of war, while Isaiah focuses on the ingathering of exiles.
The Rebbe cites the explanation of the Rebbe Rayatz as to why a shofar is needed:
Since the Jews are scattered and lost in all corners of the earth, both physically and spiritually, how will it be possible to gather them back to the Jewish people and the Land of Israel? For this, the shofar blast is necessary.
Zechariah prophesies about a shofar blast that expresses the birth pangs of the Mashiach in the form of war and destruction that will come upon the enemies of the Jews, and will also remind the Jewish people of their roots.
Isaiah, on the other hand, prophesies about a shofar of great love, a call of fatherly closeness from our Father in Heaven, which will awaken the Jewish soul within every Jew and bring them back to their people.
In this talk, the Rebbe explains further:
The Redemption will bring a profound and fundamental change to the world, and humanity needs to be prepared for this new reality. The shofar blast represents events that will shake up the world in general, and the Jewish people in particular.
The prophecies foresee two distinct stages in the preparation for the Redemption: Zechariah prophesies about a stage of tumultuous wars that will overturn the world order, while Isaiah prophesies about a later stage when there will be a fatherly call of closeness from G-d to the Jewish people, which will cause even the “lost and dispersed” Jews to return home.
(Who are these lost and dispersed Jews? “The lost in the land of Assyria” refers to Jews who have sunk into the pleasures of a comfortable life to the point where exile seems good to them. “The dispersed in the land of Egypt” refers to Jews suffering so greatly in exile that they no longer feel the capacity for spirituality. Both of these groups will be awakened by the sound of the shofar.)
B. The Shofars Have Already Blown
The Rebbe goes on to explain that these two prophecies have already been fulfilled:
Zechariah’s prophecy was realized during World War I and World War II, when the world was shaken by fierce wars, and the Jewish people endured tremendous suffering in the birth pangs of Mashiach.
Isaiah’s prophecy was fulfilled during the Six-Day War, when the war and the miraculous victory caused a profound spiritual awakening among Jews worldwide. This was G-d’s fatherly call to the divine soul within each Jew, urging them to return to Him.
G-d is now waiting for us to take advantage of this opportunity and awaken in repentance, and then Mashiach will come and bring us out of exile.
(Perhaps we can say that we have experienced both types of shofars in the past year: the shofar of war during the events of Simchat Torah, and the shofar of love in the release of some of the captives and the great positive shift we have seen in recent weeks.)
