?4

^ /

Zhc flftessiab IFbea in
Jewish Ibistor^

Zhe ^essiab IFbea in
Jevpfsb Ibistorie

BY

JULIUS H. GREENSTONE, Ph. D.

PHILADELPHIA

THE JEWISH PUBLICATION SOCIETY OF AMERICA

1906

COPTRIGHT, 1906,
BY

Thb Jewish Publication Soqety of America

TO THE MEMORY

OF

MY MOTHER

. PREFACE

That Judaism has dogmas, has been estab-
hshed convincingly by Dr. S. Schechter in
his admirable essay on this subject. The
prevailing tendency of modern Jews to re-
peat, from pulpit and from platform, the
assertion made by Mendelssohn, that Juda-
ism has no dogmas, is rightly condemned in
this essay, in which the author proves from
the vast stores of Jewish lore, that dogma
played as important a part in the develop-
ment of Jewish institutions as did the Law,
that Judaism " regulates not only our ac-
tions, but also our thoughts."

And yet the position of dogma in the
Jewish religion is not the same as that which
it occupies in other creeds. The Jewish
dogmas are not only devoid of any saving
power, not only has their exact number and
relative importance never been definitely set-
tled, but even the constructions placed upon

8 PREFACE

them have varied from time to time, and
they have frequently contradicted each other.
Fortunately for the development of Judaism,
though not for the historian of Jewish the-
ology, the Jewish principles of belief have
never been definitely settled, nor have their
limits been definitely described. No Jewish
synods, except those of very recent date, ever
attempted to set limits to the dogmas of our
faith, and even the thirteen articles of the
creed of Maimonides, which have been ac-
cepted by the majority of Jews and incor-
porated in the Prayer-Book, were left in
their bare outlines, allowing much latitude
for various schools of interpreters.

The jDelief in the coming of the Messiah,
the treasured hope of the Jew throughout all
the centuries of misery and persecution, is
regarded by most Jewish thinkers as a dog-
ma of Judaism. Some of them, indeed,
would not make this belief essential to Juda-
ism. They consider it merely as a " branch,"
or corollary to others more important, but

PREFACE 9

almost all agree that the belief in the coming
of a Messiah is an important feature of
Judaism. The nature and limitations of this
dogma, however, remained unsettled, the
Jewish authorities differing widely in their
conception of it, according to the intellectual
and material position of the people at their
respective times.

It is the object of the present volume to
trace the development of this ideal from its
early origins to the present day, to elucidate
the influences it exerted upon the lives and
habits of the Jews, and to explain the causes
by which it, in turn, was influenced, giving
in outline the historical conditions of every
period. It does not pretend to be an ex-
haustive study of the subject, but a mere out-
line of the marvellous development of this
hope in the Jewish heart. Less space has
been devoted to the pre-Christian period than
its importance demands, since that period
has been sufficiently explored by many Chris-
tian scholars, to whom I hereby acknowledge

lo PREFACE

my indebtedness for many valuable sugges-
tions. I have paid special attention to the
Talmudic and Midrashic sources, to the
works of the Jewish philosophers of the
middle ages, and to the Kabbalistic writings,
and have endeavored, whenever possible, to
consult the original sources and translate
them faithfully.

The material was prepared by me during
the winter of 1903-4, and then incorporated
in a course of lectures which were delivered
before the Young Men's Hebrew Associa-
tion of Philadelphia, Since then I have
made numerous changes in the work, the re-
sult of further study and investigation on the
subject. I aim to give due credit to the
authorities I have consulted, in notes at the
end of the book, which may prove useful to
the student for further investigation.

In conclusion, I wish to express my grati-
tude to Mrs. D. W. Aniram, who greatly as-
sisted me in the revision of the style and the
arrangement of the material. I also wish to

PREFACE 11

give thanks to Professor Morris Jastrow, of
the University of Pennsylvania, for much
valuable assistance, both in suggestions with
regard to the subject-matter and in permit-
ting me the use of books I could not other-
wise have obtained.

Julius H. Greenstone

Philadelphia, January, 1906

CONTENTS

PREFACE

(page 7)

CHAPTER I

IN BIBLICAL TIMES

Israel's Golden Era in the Future— Early History
Gloomy— Hence Desire for a Redeemer— The
"Judge," later the King, regarded as the Re-
deemer—David the Model of the Messiah— The
Ideal extended— The Division of the Kingdom in-
tensifies the Messianic Hope— Amos and Hosea
—The Universalism of Isaiah—" The Remnant "
—The Child Immanuel— Idea developed in Three
Prophecies— Personal Messiah not mentioned in
an Old Prophecy quoted by Isaiah and Micah—
Religious Regeneration under Joash — Downfall
of Assyria — Nahum and Zephaniah make no
Reference to a Personal Messiah— The Mes-
sianic Era and the Spiritual Regeneration of
the Whole World— Jeremiah's Theocracy— The
Miraculous introduced in the Messiah Idea-
Emphasized by Ezekiel and Joel— The Mes-
sianic Era as described by Isaiah of the Exile—
"The Servant of the Lord "—Universalism—
Haggai and Zechariah regard Zerubbabel as the
Messiah— Their Conception of the Messianic
Era restricted— Some Psalms and Malachi echo
Isaiah's Universalism page 21

14 CONTENTS

CHAPTER II

THE SECOND COMMONWEALTH

Return from Babylon — Great Change in the Char-
acter of the Nation — The Scribe rises to Power
— Ezra and Nehemiah strengthen the Observ-
ance of the Law — Malachi introduces the Figure
of EHjah in the Messianic Conception — Ob-
servance of the Law a Condition of the Mes-
sianic Hope — Belief in the Resurrection thus
made more Prominent — Individual Responsi-
bility and Importance stimulated — Rise of
Apocryphal and Apocalyptic Literature — Ben
Sira — The Book of Tobit — Judah Maccabee not
recognized as the Messiah — The Book of Daniel
— The Ethiopic Book of Enoch — Notion of Two
Worlds, the Present and the Future — Apocalypse
of the Twelve Patriarchs — The Third Sybilline
Book — An Exalted Picture of the Reign of the
Messiah — The Psalms of Solomon — The Person
of the Messiah placed in Sharpest Relief — The
Similitudes — Philo and the Messianic Era — The
Unscrupulous Rule of the Roman Procurators
intensifies the Hope for Redemption — John the
Baptist— The Messiahship of Jesus — "The
Suffering Messiah" of the Early Christ-
ians page 51

CHAPTER III

THE TALMUDIC PERIOD

The Talmud — Halachah and Haggadah — The Hala-
chah the Main Element — The Position of the
Haggadah undefined — The Messiah Idea in the
Talmud not settled — The Hope Intensest after
the Destruction of Jerusalem — Johanan ben
Zakkai's Insistence that Judaism is Law — The
Apocalypses of Baruch and Ezra — The Super-

CONTENTS 15

natural Element emphasized — Baruch's Idea of
the Resurrection — The Hadrianic Revolt — The
Messiahship of Bar-Cochba repudiated by the
Rabbis — The Early Tannaim silent on the Mes-
sianic Ideal — The " Messianic Woes " — Israel's
Sufferings increase — The Wars of Gog and
Magog — The Messiah Son of Joseph — Elijah —
The Person of the Messiah — Political Inde-
pendence— Conversion of the Gentiles — The
Future Jerusalem — A New Covenant of the
Law — The Belief in Resurrection — The Feast of
the Righteous — The Date of the Messiah's Ar-
rival— Calculation of the Date discouraged —
Julian the Apostate — His Offer to rebuild the
Temple not received with Enthusiasm — Moses
of Crete — Salutary Influence of the Extravagant
Picture of Messianic Times drawn by the
Rabbis page 80

CHAPTER IV

THE RISE OF RATIONALISM

Spread of Mohammedanism — The Geonim and their
Influence — Rabbinic Authority questioned by the
Arabic Jews — The Messiah to lighten the Yoke
of Rabbinism — Serene of Syria advocates Laxity
in the Law — Abu-Isa of Ispahan opposes the
Abbassides — " The Mysteries of Rabbi Simeon
ben Johai " — Rise of Karaism — Incentive to a
Rational Study of the Bible — Judah Judghan —
Jewish Religious 'Philosophy — Saadia Gaon and
his Rational Views on the Messianic Beliefs —
On the Resurrection — He accounts for Israel's
Trials — Two Possible Periods of Redemption —
Saadia on the Date of the Messiah — Hai Gaon
— Abraham Albargeloni's Universalism — " The
Book of Zerubbabel "—The Mother of the Mes-
siah— Jehudah Halevi — Patriotic Spirit in his

l6 CONTENTS

Poems — "The Kuzari " — Israel the Heart of the
World — The Mission of Israel — David Alrui —
Moses Maimonides — The Messianic Belief an
Article of Faith — Maimonides takes Rabbinic
Exaggerations figuratively — The Greatest Bless-
ing of the Future — His Belief in the Resur-
rection not Definite — Hasdai Crescas and Joseph
Albo — Their Theory of the Resurrection —
Rationalistic Conceptions not universally ac-
cepted— Still wield a Potent Influence, .page 114

CHAPTER V

THE DEVELOPMENT IN THE KABBALAH

Action and Reaction in Human History — Excessive
Rationalism produces Mysticism — Mysticism
Valuable in Time of Persecution — The Masses
fail to understand the Kabbalah — Fanciful
Speculations — Credulity of the Masses and the
Pseudo-Messiahs — Nahmanides — His Disputa-
tion with Pablo Christiani — His Idea of the
Messianic Period — Tartar Invasion of Palestine
— Abraham Abulafia's Messiahship — Other Im-
postors— Moses de Leon publishes the Zohar —
Messianic Speculations in the Zohar — The Date
of the Messiah's Arrival — The Period preceding
the Messianic Age — "The Suffering Messiah" —
The Greatest Achievement of the Messianic Age
— The Diffusion of Kabbalistic Lore — Persecu-
tions of the Jews in the Fourteenth Century —
Moses Botarel claims Messiahship — Isaac Abar-
banel on the Advent of the Messiah — Writes
Three Messianic Books — His Views Rational —
Yet indulges in Calculations of the Promised
End — Asher Lammlein declares himself a Fore-
runner of the Messiah— Hope of the Marranos
aroused— David Reubeni's Political Plans— He
meets with Success in Rome and in Portugal—

CONTENTS 17

Solomon Molcho attracted by Reubeni's Ad-
ventures— Returns to Judaism — Arouses Jews of
Turkey — Encouraged by Events — His Dream —
End of Reubeni and Molcho — The Belief in the
Kabbalah not impaired — Isaac Lurya and Hay-
yim Vital — Beneficent Influences of the Kab-
balah page 156

CHAPTER VI

THE EFFECTS OF KABBALISTIC SPECULA-
TIONS

The Protestant Reformation — Luther's Favorable
Attitude to the Jews — Hebrew Literature studied
by Christians — The Wars of the Reformation^
Signs of the Messianic Era — Manasseh ben
Israel— The Fifth Monarchy Men— The Puritans
— Manasseh effects the Resettlement of the
Jews in England — Aaron Levi identifies the
American Indians with the Ten Tribes —
Manasseh believes the Messianic Era Near at
Hand — Manasseh and Cromwell — Sabbatai Zebi
announces himself as the Messiah — Pronounces
the Ineffable Name of God — Excommunicated
and banished from Smyrna — In Jerusalem —
Nathan Ghazati his Prophet — Recognized as the
Messiah— The Messianic Theory of the Sab-
batians — Opposition to Rabbinism — Sabbatai
turns Mohammedan — Excitement not abated by
his Death— Michael Cardoso — Mordecai _ of
Eisenstadt — Jacob Querido — Judah Hasid —
Hayyim Malach — Nehemiah Hiyya Hayyun —
Rabbis oppose the Pseudo-Messiahs — Moses
Hayyim Luzzatto misled by Mystic Speculations
— Yankiev Leibowitz Frank — His Theory about
the Various Messiahs — Frankists declare their
Principles — Their Opposition to the Talmud —
Modern Hasidism — Resume of the Influence of
the Kabbalah page 203

l8 CONTENTS

CHAPTER VII

RELIGIOUS REFORM AND ZIONISM

The Emancipation of the Jews— The Desire for
Emancipation causes Apostasy — Reform of the
Worship — The Rabbis opposed to Innovations —
The Messianic Hope and the Desire for Equal
Rights — Messianic Prayers in the Early Reform
Prayer-Books — Holdheim and Geiger establish
the Reform Movement on a Scientific Basis —
Disbelieve in Jewish Nationality — Hirsch the
Advocate of Orthodoxy — Spiritualizes the Mes-
sianic Hope — Bernays' Position — Zunz's View —
Second Edition of the Hamburg Prayer-Book —
Frankel justifies the Desire of the Jews for Po-
litical Independence — Salomon fears Suspicion
of Disloyalty to the State — Geiger's Radical
View — Frankel's Second Article justly criticised
— Gabriel Riesser — Rabbinical Conferences —
Einhorn's Theory of the Dispersion of Israel —
Geiger and Frankel on the Retention of He-
brew in the Prayer-Book — Jewish Emancipation
strengthens the Messianic Hope among Eastern
Jews — Modern Zionism — Kalischer's View of the
Messianic Ideal — Other Rabbis protest against
hastening the Period of Redemption — The Move-
ment gains Support — First Colony established in
Palestine — National Sentiment intensified in
Europe — Gives Rise to National Exclusiveness —
Modern Anti-Semitism the Result — Persecution
of the Jews in Russia — Zionism gains many Ad-
herents— Rabbis reconcile the National Re-
awakening with the Messianic Hope — Ahad Ha-
'Am's Philosophic Theory of Jewish Nationalism
— Belief in a Personal Messiah still entertained
by the Majority of Jews — Zionism a Step
toward the Greater Ideal of the Messianic
Era page 242

CONTENTS 19

APPENDIX

THE MESSIANIC HOPE IN THE JEWISH
LITURGY

(page 283)

NOTES
(page 305)

INDEXES

INDEX TO SCRIPTURAL REFERENCES
(page 339)

INDEX TO TALMUDIC REFERENCES
(page 341)

INDEX TO NAMES AND SUBJECTS
(page 343)

CHAPTER I
In Biblical Times

Israel's Golden Era in the Future— Early History
Gloomy — Hence Desire for a Redeemer — The
" Judge," later the King, regarded as the Re-
deemer— David the Model of the Messiah — The
Ideal extended — The Division of the Kingdom in-
tensifies the Messianic Hope — Amos and Hosea
— The Universalism of Isaiah — " The Remnant "
— The Child Immanuel — Idea developed in Three
Prophecies — Personal Messiah not mentioned in
an Old Prophecy quoted by Isaiah and Micah —
Religious Regeneration under Joash — Downfall
of Assyria — Nahum and Zephaniah make no
Reference to a Personal Messiah — The Mes-
sianic Era and the Spiritual Regeneration of
the Whole World — Jeremiah's Theocracy — The
Miraculous introduced in the Messiah Idea —
Emphasized by Ezekiel and_ Joel — The Mes-
sianic Era as described by Isaiah of the Exile —
"The Servant of the Lord" — Universalism —
Haggai and Zechariah regard Zerubbabel as the
Messiah — Their Conception of the Messianic
Era restricted — Some Psalms and Malachi echo
Isaiah's Universalism.

The Messianic idea is characteristically
Jewish. The nations of antiquity, despair-
ing of the present and heedless of the future,
gloried in their past, in which they saw the
perfection of all happiness, social and na-
tional. This attitude is illustrated by Hesi-

22 THE MESSIAH IDEA

od's and Ovid's description of the five suc-
cessive ages and races of men, beginning
with the golden age, when men lived hap-
pily and painlessly on the fruits of the un-
tilled soil, passing away in dreamless sleep
to become the guardian angels of the world,
until the iron age, the most degenerate age
of all, in which the authors themselves lived.
It also finds expression in the phrase, current
even in our own day, " the good old times."
As a religious people, believing in the cre-
ation of the world by a good and perfect
Being, the Jews also placed perfection at the
beginning; the first man, the direct creation
of God, must necessarily have been happy
and perfect. Yet this idea, which has given
birth to a number of dogmas in other creeds,
played a small part in Jewish theology.
Even the Rabbis of the Talmud, in their
fanciful explanations, attach little import-
ance to the " fall of man," attributing to
Adam many atrocious sins while in Para-
dise.^ The Jew looks for happiness and vir-

IN BIBLICAL TIMES ^3

tue, not to a past golden age, but to the
future, to "th£_end_of_day_s/_' a^laYpn^^
phrase with ^2E2B-h&t, and _sag;e. "Though
thy beginning, was Amall, yet thy latter eod
sl^iQ. greatly Increase" (Job 8:7),'' was a
current saying among the Jews, and a study
of the early history of Israel explains the in-
tensity of this belief among the Jewish peo-
ple. No glorious conquests, no triumphant
victories marked the first stages of Jewish
communal life. The events recorded in the
first pages of Jewish history, clustering
around the lives of the early patriarchs, as
retained in the memory of the people, by no
means present a roseate picture. Each of
the patriarchs had to leave his native land
and wander in foreign countries. Each was
looked upon with suspicion, and was unceas-
ingly harassed by the early Pharaohs, the
Philistines, the nobles, and even the common
herdsmen. Then came Egyptian slavery,
with all its horrors, when the spirit of the
people was entirely crushed. It was per-

24 THE MESSIAH IDEA

fectly natural that a people with such a past
should long for a happier future, when there
would be an end to their sufferings. Thus,
when Moses appeared as a redeemer, he
found a ready welcome/ As this ideal, con-
ceived in trying hours, grew and developed
in the consciousness of the people, it assumed
various phases, depending on internal con-
ditions and on environment, but it never en-
tirely departed from the Jewish people.

The promise made to the patriarchs was at
last fulfilled, and Israel, after vanquishing
the original inhabitants of Palestine, entered
upon its coveted inheritance. But here also
its national peace was constantly disturbed
by the onslaughts of the neighboring tribes.
In its distress, Israel, it is related, prayed to
its God, and He sent a " judge," a redeemer,
who, for a time, drove away the enemy, and
established peace in the land. But the at-
tacks of the foreign tribes became so constant
and persistent that the temporary " judges,"
or generals, proved insufficient and unsatis-

LV BIBLICAL TIMES . 25

factory, and there arose among the people
the hope that a nation united under one head
might be able to withstand the surrounding
foes.

At the request of the leaders of the people,
Samuel, as a temporary provision, as a con-
cession to the popular will, reluctantly ap-
pointed Saul as king over Israel. Although
he was designated in the Bible as the " Mes-
siah of God" (i Sam. 24:7), Saul lacked
the essential characteristics of the true Mes-
siah. At the very beginning of his reign he
was scorned by some, who said, " How shall
this man save us?" (i Sam. 10:27).
^ It was not until the appointment of David
that the popular longing for a redeemer was
completely satisfied. David became the type
and the ideal of a Jewish king, the model,
for all time, of the jperson_^of ,th^^^
indeed, by some prophets and sages identified
with the Messiah.* He was not only the
ideal hero who braved the enemy undaunted,
who conquered nations, and extended the do-

26 THE MESSIAH IDEA

minion of Israel, but he was also the sweet
singer, the man of God, the moulder of the
solidarity of the nation of God. The popu-
lar belief, that the state of prosperity inaug-
urated by him would last forever, was
strengthened by Nathan's prophecy, that the
throne of David would be established for-
ever (ii Sam. 7: 12-16), an assurance which
David himself is represented as offering to
his son Solomon (i Kings 2:4). Thus, a
Psalmist reflects the hopes of the people and
their memories of the reign of Solomon,
when he sings :

In his days let the righteous flourish, and let
abundant peace continue till the moon be no more.
May he have dominion from sea to sea, from the
river unto the ends of the earth. Let them that
dwell in the wilderness kneel down before him, and
his enemies lick the dust. Let kings of Tarshish
pay tribute, kings of Sheba and Saba ofifer gifts.
Yes, let all kings bow down before him, and all
nations do service unto him. . . . May his name
endure forever, may his name shine as long as the
sun, may men be blessed in him, and all nations call
him happy (Ps. 72:7-11, 17)."

The age of David and Solomon may be
regarded as the time when the Messianic

IN BIBLICAL TIMES 27

ideal took a more definite shape in the minds
g, of the Jewish people. From the material
desire for relief from an oppressing enemy,
the hope extended to the ideal of a stable,
national government, based on the principles
of a pure morality and lofty ideals, a hope
which was intensified by the division of the
kingdom and through the efforts of the
prophets, who now begin to make their ap-
L gearance. The prophets not only kept the
flame ablaze in the hearts of the people, but
they broadened the conception of the Mes-
siah and of the Messianic period so as to in-
clude in its blessings not only Israel, but all
the nations of the earth. Only a few gener-
ations after Solomon's death, the treasured
ideal of poet and seer, and of those of the
people who were still loyal to the old tradi-
tions, was a future in which an united Israel
would be supreme in a world established on
righteousness, recognizing the glory of thg
God of Israel and the beauty pj,_ His Law^
The personar Messiah, through whom God

28 THE MESSIAH IDEA

would bless the world, was present in the
minds of most of the prophets, although not
always placed by them in the foreground,
when they described the glories of the future
era. It was during this period that the Mes-
siah idea was developed, and became an es-
tablished principle of the Jewish religion,
and a component part of Jewish conscious-
ness/

The hope for a reunion of Israel under
one king must have been very keen after the
division of the kingdom, when the memory
of the happy reigns of David and Solomon
were still fresh in the minds of the people,
and must have been the theme of the preach-
ers and the moralists. Unfortunately, we
have no prophecies written at that early
period. It was not until about one hundred
and fifty years after the division that the
prophets began to make their appearance.
The Messianic conceptions of the early pro-
phets were local and material in their nature,
referring only to Israel and to the physical

IN BIBLICAL TIMES 29

blessings of which it stood in need. The
first prophet who wrote down his prophecy,
Amos/ and his younger contemporary Ro-
sea, draw dark and threatening pictures of
the " day of the Lord," a " day of darkness
and not of Hght," a day of vengeance against
Samaria and against the kingdom of Israel
for all its iniquities. Both, however, empha-
size the prophecy of a reunited kingdom,
when " the children of Judah and the chil-
dren of Israel will be gathered together, and
appoint themselves one head" (Hos. 2:2)
— a head specified by Hosea as " David their
king " ( Hos. 3:5). The prophecy of Amos
concludes with the cheering words :

In that day will I raise up the tabernacle of David
that is fallen, and close up the breaches thereof;
and I will raise up his ruins, and I will build it as
in the days of old. . . . And I will bring again the
captivity of My people of Israel, and they shall build
the waste cities, and inhabit them ; and they shall
plant vineyards and drink the wine thereof; and they
shall also make gardens, and eat the fruit of them.
And I will plant them upon their land, and they shall
no more be pulled up out of their land which I have
given them, saith the Lord thy God (Amos 9:11;
14-15).^

30 THE MESSIAH IDEA

Hosea's prophecy, " On that day God will
break the bow and the sword and the battle
out of the earth, and will make them to lie
down safely" (Hcs. 2:20),' refers to the
peaceful reunion and re-establishment of Is-
rael and Judah on their land, and not to the
universalistic ideas that the late prophets as-
sociated with the Messianic age. These
loftier ideas were not crystallized until the
time of Isaiah, who, with his broad view of
life and his statesman's insight into the
events of history, gave to this latent ideal of
the Jewish people a tendency not clearly de-
fined nor accurately described, but distinctly
higher and broader. None of the later pro-
phets added anything substantially new to
the portrait, drawn by this greatest prophet
of Judah, of the future kingdom of Israel
and its ideal king.

Isaiah's ministrations extended over a pro-
tracted and troublous period in the history
of Judah.'^" During the long reign of Ahaz,
godlessness and corruption swayed the court

IN BIBLICAL TIMES 31

and the nobles, while, without, a formidable
enemy was waiting for a favorable oppor-
tunity to destroy the kingdom of Judah and
put a foreign ruler on its throne (Is. 7:6).
Nor did peace and repose attend the more
righteous reign of Hezekiah. Internal dis-
sensions and revolutions gave probability to
the threat of Sennacherib's Assyrian hosts
to ruin the nation. The lives of the nobles
and the wealthy classes were steeped in im-
morality and vice, excessive luxury under-
mined the strength of the people, the worship
of the God of Israel was forsaken.

Such a state of affairs furnished a fitting
opportunity for the display and utilization of
the wonderful natural gifts of Isaiah. He
brought to a vocation to which he had been
called early in life, not only a nature richly
endowed with gifts of the highest order of
genius, but also a knowledge of facts and a
boldness of spirit which made him unhesi-
tating in his judgments and inexorable in
his demands. Out of his feeling that the

32 THE MESSIAH IDEA

present was irredeemable, since the upper
classes of society were deaf to his rebukes,
he developed the lofty theory of the " rem-
nant," which is the basis of almost all his
consolatory prophecies. Exile is inevitable,
God's punishment must be poured out upon
the sinful nation, but a remnant will return,
and in the land of Zion will establish a king-
dom of justice and of righteousness. The
king is all that a Jewish king should not be,
hence a new king will arise, who, endowed
with the Divine spirit, will reform the ad-
ministration of David's realm, and establish
peace and equity in the land,

" For centuries the monarchy had been the centre
and the pivot of the Jewish constitution, and ac-
cordingly one prominent feature in the dehneation
of the future sketched by the prophets is the figure
of the ideal king, who Avill realize the highest pos-
siblities of earthly monarchy, governing Israel with
perfect justice and perfect wisdom, and securing for
his subjects perfect peace." ^

Isaiah, however, gave a more definite
character to this comparatively vague hope
in Jhfi^jiescxiption of t_he_d^ Imiiianuel

IN BIBLICAL TIMES 33

(Is. 7 M[£}^wlTachjhe first sk^
to^Ahaz. Later (Is, 9:5) he further de-
veloped his ideal, endowing the child with
exalted qualities, and regarding him as the'v
future savior of. Israel, who will increase his
dominions, and establish peace upon the
throne of David, and picturing him in Chap-
ter XI as the embodinieht ofJ'tHe highest
ideals ~6f the nation :

And there shall come forth a rod out of the stem
of Jesse, and a branch shall grow out of its roots.
And the spirit of the Lord shall rest upon him, the
spirit of wisdom and understanding, the spirit of
counsel and might, the spirit of knowledge and of
the fear of the Lord. And he shall inspire him
with the fear of the Lord; and he shall not judge
after the sight of his eyes, neither reprove after the
hearing of his ears; but with righteousness shall
he judge the poor, and reprove with equity the meek
of the earth ; and he shall smite the earth with the
rod of his mouth, and with the breath of his lips
shall he slay the wicked. And righteousness shall
be the girdle of his loins, and faithfulness the girdle
of his hips. The wolf also shall dwell with the lamb,
and the leopard shall lie down with the kid; and
the calf and the young lion and the fatling together ;
and a little child shall lead them. And the cow and
the bear shall feed ; their young ones shall lie down
together; and the lion shall eat straw like the ox.

34 THE MESSIAH IDEA

And the suckling child shall play on the hole of
the asp, and the weaned child shall put his hand on
the cockatrice' den. They shall not hurt nor destroy
in all My holy mountain; for the earth shall be full
of the knowledge of the Lord, as the waters cover
the sea (Is. ii : 1-9).

These three prophecies of Isaiah have been
the subject of much controversy among Bib-
heal scholars, who find it impossible to ascer-
tain, with any degree of probability, to what
particular periods of Isaiah's life they should
be ascribed. But even if we agree with
many commentators, that the first two pro-
phecies refer to Hezekiah and to the redemp-
tion from an immediate foe, it is certain that
the last and most glorious of the three, prob-
ably written a generation after the first
prophecies, when he was disappointed in his
hopes of a literal fulfilment of his early
dreams, was meant to be independent of
time, " projected upon a shifting future."

Isaiah's conception of the future king and
of the period in which he will rule has many
features deserving of careful investigation.
The Messiah pictured in Chapter xi, who is

IN BIBLICAL TIMES 35

to bring peace and comfort to the Jewish
people, shall establish an ideal government
q1 righteousness, and the crowning glory of
the age shall be that " the land shall be full

: of the knowledge of the Lord as the waters
cover the sea," The central figure of the
future age is the personal Messiah, " the root
of Jesse,'^who, when the religion of Israel

I shall have spread all over the world, " wall

I stand for an ensign to the nations, to it shall
the people seek" (Is, ii:io)." An older

; prophecy, quoted by Isaiah and by Micah,
perhaps the most beautiful prophecy in the
whole Bible, leaves out the personality c>f the
Mes.siah,J)ut_?^phasizes the local conception
ofjhe Messianic age, in that it makes Zion
and Jerusalem the only fount of future re-
ligious inspiration :

And it shall come to pass in the end of days, that

the mountain of the Lord's house shall be estab-

1 lished on the top of the mountains, and shall be

I exalted above the hills, and all nations shall flow

r unto it. And many people will go and say, Come

ye and let us go up to the mountain of the Lord,

to the house of the God of Jacob ; and He will teach

36 THE MESSIAH IDEA

us of His ways, and we will walk in His paths; for
out of Zion shall go forth the law, and the word of
the Lord from Jerusalem. And He shall judge
among the nations, and shall rebuke many people;
and they shall beat their swords into ploughshares
and their spears into pruning hooks ; nation shall not
lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn
war any more (Is. 2:2-4; and Mic. 4: 1-4)/^

Lofty and comprehensive as these prophe-
cies are, they still lack the universalistic ele-
ment which some interpreters wish to read
into them. Such passages, read as they were
read by the contemporaries of the prophets,
show that, although their writers were far
ahead of their times, they still clung to the
prevalent beliefs and hopes, that the perfec-
tion of the future state meant the perfection
of the government and of the people of
Judah, in the land of Palestine, whence the
light of human perfection would shine forth
and illumine all the peoples of the world,
who would, however, profit only incidentally
by the improvement in Israel, the direct bene-
ficiary of .X?odi#,.M€.^smgs."

With the literal fulfilment of Isaiah's pro-

7.V BIBLICAL TIMES 37

phecy to King- Hezekiah, that Judah would
not fall a prey to the Assyrian hosts, the
danger threatening Jerusalem and the throne
of David was miraculously removed. The
cessation from war and the improvements in
the religious and moral condition of the peo-
ple during the latter part of Hezekiah's
reign, gave the peace of mind and liberty of
thought necessary for literary work, and re-
sulted in the production of a large portion of
the Biblical literature. But this state of pros-
perity was of very short duration. Under
the reign of Manasseh, the powerful resur-
gence of all the evils that had formerly pol-
luted the land of Judah, brought in an era
of degeneration and national decay, evi-
denced in the avarice, immorality, and degra-
dation among the nobles, and the spread
among the people of the degrading worship
of Baal and Astarte, the gods of hated
Assyria.

Naturally, the high-minded disciples of
Isaiah were persecuted by the unscrupulous

38 THE MESSIAH IDEA

rulers under Manasseh. According to tra-
dition, the great Isaiah himself was killed by
the hands of the wicked king. These shock-
ing conditions continued during the short
reign of Amon, All the glorious prophecies
of Isaiah and of Micah appeared to have
been but empty words. But with the acces-
sion to the throne of Josiah, the eight-year-
old son of the assassinated Amon, a new or-
der of things set in.

At the beginning of his reign, the rule of
the land probably remained in the hands of
the nobles, to whose interest it was to estab-
lish more firmly the policy of Manasseh.
But as the king grew older, he began to
manifest his ambition of regenerating the
nation and re-establishing the worship of
God. He removed the hated gods of Assy-
ria, purified the Temple worship, and pro-
mulgated the law of Israel throughout the
land of Judah. The religious revolution re-
ceived a strong impetus from political condi-
tions in the Eastern world. Assyria, which

<i

m BIBLICAL TIMES 39

had long ruled the nations of antiquity with
an iron hand, was in its decline, its powers
gradually weakened, and its dominion was
reduced by the rise of new powers, the Chal-
deans, the Medes, and the Scythians. Its
final destruction by one or the other of these
nations was only a question of time. The
Jewish antipathy to Assyria was strength-
ened by her weakness. It facilitated the re-
nunciation of the Assyrian cults by the
Judeans, after they had swayed Judea for
many centuries, and the voice of prophet and
preacher was again heard in the assemblies
of the nation."

Nahuni prophesied early in the reign of
this righteous king, and his prognostications
about the fall of Nineveh and the inaugura-
tion of the Messianic period compare in
beauty and force with many of the utterances
of Isaiah. " Behold upon the mountains the
feet of him that bringeth good tidings, that
pubHsheth peace" (Nah. 2:1).'' In his
prophetic vision, he sees the doom of Assy-

40 THE MESSIAH IDEA

ria sealed, the wrongs committed upon the
people o£ God avenged, and the Messianic
kingdom following close upon the fall of
Nineveh. Neither li^e nor his_contem£orary
^Zeghaniah refers to apersanalJIessiah. The
prophecies of the latter are in some regards
even more universal than those of Isaiah.
He conceives a Messianic period which will
be a time of spiritual regeneration for the
whole world. " Then I will turn to the peo-
ples a pure language that they may all call
upon the name of the Lord, to serve Him
l^with one consent " (Zeph. 3:9). He gives
a striking picture of the day of the Lord, " a
day of wrath, a day of trouble and distress,
a day of wasteness and desolation, a day of
darkness and gloominess, a day of clouds and
thick darkness " (Zeph. i : 15) — a day that
is near at hand, when not only Assyria, but
all the nations, including Judah, shall be
punished, because they have not heeded that
God punishes His foes, and have not taken
to heart the punishment that befell the other

IN BIBLICAL TIMES 4^

nations because of their evil-doings (Zeph.
3:7; 2:10). But there shall remain a
mghteous remnant,, " an afflicted and poor
people, and they shall trust in the name of
the Lord. The remnant of Israel shall not
do iniquity nor speak lies, neither shall a
deceitful tongue be found in their mouth, for
they shall feed and lie down and none shall
make them afraid " (Zeph. 3 : 12, 13)." Ze-
phaniah concludes his prophecy : " XtiQ^ng:.
of Israel win, be Jh^Lord^jlUiiy.. iJiidstv thoil™^
shalt see no evil any moreJ^..„CZe.ph*-3..LiiJ,-„
This sentiment is echoed by Jeremiah
(Jer. 31:27; 33:9), the man who "has
seen affliction by the rod of His wrath "
(Lam. 3:1), whose sufferings at the hands
of king and nobles made him almost despair
of a human king ruling in righteousness, al-
though he does not doubt God's promise of
the permanence of Israel. There will also
be„a-_hurnan^_king, a scion of the house of
David, since God has^sworajan.tO„Dayid that
his dynasty shah last forever XJfr. 33:25,

4

42 THE MESSIAH IDEA

2.6). But this king will be directly ap-
pointed by God, who shall Himself rxA&
Israel in Jerusalem, the throne of God,
whereto all nations will be gathered (Jer.
3:15; 30:3, 22, 25). Jeremiah also be-
lieved, that the advent of better days would
be preceded by 'miracles, since a natural
course could not bring about the desired
state. This idea was especially fostered by
the prophets of the Exile. Ezekiel compares
the future regeneration of the nation with a
miraculous act like the resurrection of the
dead (Ezek. 37:11-14),'^ and Joel, speak-
ing of the Messianic period, says, " The sun
and the moon will be darkened and the stars
shall withdraw their shining . . . the heav-
ens and the earth shall shake, but the Lord
will be the protection of His people and the
strength of the children of Israel " (Joel 3 :

4-5)-"

Thus from tlie_simple idea of a warrior, a

protector of the people against foteign_fges,

the Messiah idea developed into the expec-

IN BIBLICAL TIMES 43

tation of the rise of a great^and^.glqrlojis '
king~ortHrj5iiSjg...oi.D.a.YJ.(j[^^,\^ the ,/

sanction of God, gind . possessed of the spirit
of God, would rule in righteousness in Zion,
the rnodel for the whole world, whereto all
the nations would come to learn of God's
ways. There is a difference of opinion be-
tween the earlier and the later prophets as to
the position of Israel among the nations in
the future Messianic era. Isaiah does not
consider political conquest, but prophesies
Israel's spiritual conquest of the world. The
later prophets, however, especially those who
prophesied during and immediately after the
Exile, embittered by the persecutions of the
gentiles, are satisfied with nothing less than
the complete annihilation of all who were at
one time or another the enemies of Israel.

A perfect picture of the Messianic period
with the Messiah left out is given in the im-
passioned and visionary chapters of the
Isaiah of the Exile. Although his prophecies
also refer to an immediate future, associated

44 THE MESSIAH IDEA

with the restoration of Zion, and he even
alludes to the everlasting covenant made
with David, yet the scope of his vision is so
much broader, his pictures so much more
original, and his thoughts so much more
comprehensive, than those of his predeces-
sors, that his prophecies may well be regard-
ed as a starting-point for a new development
of the Messiah idea among the Jews. The
conditions of his time were most conducive
to the formation of exalted pictures in the
fertile imagination of a poetic genius. The
Babylonian empire was still well established,
and no hope for its downfall could be enter-
tained. Jerusalem lay in ruins, the Temple
was reduced to ashes (Is. 64:9-10), the
unfortunate exiles were in despair. The ig-
nominious end of the northern kingdom was
still fresh in the minds of the people. Would
Judah come to the same end? Would the
people of God be entirely swallowed up by
the idolatrous nations, and the worship of
the one God become extinct? No, says the

IN BIBLICAL TIMES 45

prophet, this is impossible. God will in the
end triumph over the idols, and again estab-
lish His kingdom through the mediation of
His servant Israel. " Comfort ye, comfort
ye, My people, saith your God " (Is. 40: i),
is the theme of the prophecy, which extends
to twenty-seven chapters.

With the sagacity and foresight of the
true diplomat, the prophet sees the ruin of
Babylon at the hands of the rising power of
Persia. He sees in Cyrus " the anointed of
God" (Is. 45:1), through whom the re-
demption of Israel will come. In all the
great events attending the ascendency of the
Persian monarchy (which, had it not been
for Athenian patriotism, would have absorb-
ed even the nations of Europe), he sees the
work of God in behalf of His servant Jacob,
and Israel His chosen one (Is. 45:4).
There is much divergence of opinion among
modern commentators as to whom the pro-
phet meant by the designation " the servant
of the Lord," whom he makes the prominent

46 THE MESSIAH IDEA

figure in the future redemption. Following
Driver/" we shall take it as referring to Is-
rael, not as an aggregate of individuals, but
as an historical entity, " maintaining its con-
tinuity and essential character through suc-
cessive generations." This " servant of the
Lord," although now suffering and perse-
cuted, the despised of men and beset with
many maladies, will soon be " the embodi-
ment of the new covenant between God and
His people to restore the actual nation . . .
and to re-establish them in their own land "
(Is. 49: 5-8). He will be a light to all the
nations, the prophet of the world, the teacher
of the gentiles, guiding them in the princi-
ples of true religion and righteousness (42 :
1-7). The image of the restored Jerusalem
becomes more and more perfect in the pro-
phetic mind. In Chapter lx the picture is
presented in fullest splendor — of Jerusalem,
the religious centre of the world, the
joy of all generations (60: 15), beautiful
(54:11,12), and perfected, founded on

IN BIBLICAL TIMES 47

righteousness, its inhabitants praising the
God of Israel (60:21). All nations will
pay homage to the restored community, and
will adopt the great truths advocated by
Israel, " that they may know from the rising
of the sun and from the West, that there is
none besides Me; I am the Lord, and there
is none else " (45 : 6). The Temple will be-
come the house of prayer for all nations
(56: 7), and all flesh will come to worship
before God in Jerusalem (66: 23).

Thisj\nd£andjublijg£UJ^^
Tsaiah^f^^-|;^^^i;,|;^.fi.JE-x^i|ft..,wa^ probably not shared

by his contemporaries, most of whom, amid
the miseries of the Exile, could not even
comprehend the picture when it was pre^-
sented to them. The promises of the pre-
vious prophets were only partially fulfilled.
Babylon, indeed, had fallen, and the Israel-
ites were permitted to return to their land,
but there were many troubles besetting the
newly-organized community, and the prom-
ised glories and wonders v/ere not forth-
coming.

48 THE MESSIAH IDEA

While many of the exiles spurned the
very idea of a return to Palestine, the great
bulk of those who followed Zerubbabel re-
garded him as God's messenger, and hoped
that with him a new era would dawn for
Israel. Both Haggai and Zechariah be-
lieved Zerubbabel to be the long-awaited
Messiah (Hag. 2:23).^' These prophets
present a much more restricted conception of
the Messianic era, which they pictured as fol-
lowing a catastrophe that would bring ruin
to the whole world, destroying the heathen
nations and causing all their costly posses-'
sions to be brought to the house of God, the
rebuilding of which would be made a condi-
tion of the advent of the Messianic kingdom
(Zech, I : 14-17)." The priest is of equal im-
portance with the Messiah, aye, even more
important, for to him God makes known His
plans for the future. Zechariah also speaks
of a moral reformation in the future king-
dom (Zech. 8:3),'' and even hints at the
conversion of the nations of the world to the

IN BIBLICAL TIMES 49

worship of the God of Israel (Zech. 2: 15;
8: 20-23).'^

Yet the sublime prophecies of the Isaiah
of the Exile find an echo even during this
period of the restoration. Many of the
psalms of that time give expression to a
wide universalism.^' Malachi, somewhat
latefXHelore 458), enthusiastically declares
that " from the rising of the sun even unto
the going down of the same, My name shall
be great among the gentiles; and in every
place, incense shall be offered unto My name,
and a pure offering; for My name shall be
great among the heathens, saith the Lord of
hosts" (Mai. i:ji). In the earher times,
however, the people who held that " the time
has not yet come to rebuild the Temple "
(Hag. 1:2), had to be aroused by more ma-
terial pictures, which the good sense and
patriotism of Haggai and Zechariah sup-
plied. Zerubbabel, himself a scion of the
Davidic dynasty, was to the people the living
reminder of a glorious past and the pledge of

50 THE MESSIAH IDEA

an equally glorious future. But this very
fact proved to be a great obstacle to the
young community. The enemies of Judea
found therein an opportunity for accusing
the Jews of a desire to re-establish the royal
house of David. This the Persians evidently
did not wish. Zerubbabel was obliged to
return to Babylon, and the Messianic hopes
and aspirations were again unrealized.

For almost two centuries after the restora-
tion, nothing is heard of the Messianic hope
in the Jewish annals, except in the outpour-
ings of some psalmists, whose exact dates
have not been determined with accuracy.

«j

CHAPTER II
The Second Commonwealth

Return from Babylon — Great Change in the Char-
acter of the Nation — The Scribe rises to Power
— Ezra and Nehemiah strengthen the Observ-
ance of the Law — Malachi introduces the Figure
of EHjah in the Messianic Conception — Ob-
servance of the Law a Condition of the Mes-
sianic Hope — BeHef in the Resurrection thus
made more Prominent — Individual Responsi-
bility and Importance stimulated — Rise of
Apocryphal and Apocalyptic Literature — Ben
Sira — The Book of Tobit — Judah Maccabee not
recognized as the Messiah — The Book of Daniel
— The Ethiopic Book of Enoch — Notion of Two
Worlds, the Present and the Future — Apocalypse
of the Twelve Patriarchs — The Third Sybilline
Book — An Exalted Picture of the Reign of the
Messiah — The Psalms of Solomon — The Person
of the Messiah placed in Sharpest Relief — The
Similitudes — Philo and the Messianic Era — The
Unscrupulous Rule of the Roman Procurators
intensifies the Hope for Redemption — John the
Baptist — The Messiahship of Jesus — " The
Suffering Messiah " of the Early Christ-
ians.

One of the most important, and, at the
same time, the most obscure periods in Jew-
ish history, is that immediately following
upon the return from Babylon. Though we
can judge of the tremendous importance of

52 THE MESSIAH IDEA

the period from the marks it has left on his-
tory, we meet with disappointment when we
resort to contemporary documents for the
study of the conditions prevaihng during
those two centuries. We must content our-
selves with conjecture and inference. Re-
ligious revolutions were transforming con-
ditions. In the course of two centuries,
idolatry, against which the prophets had
waged so bitter and unsuccessful a fight, en-
tirely and forever disappears. New concep-
tions of God and His relation to man, of
Israel and its place among the nations of the
world, arise and take root. The people, who
had been regarded by their leaders as the
most stubborn of nations, unaffected by the
exhortations of prophet or priest, become
attentive to the words of their leaders, even
forsake deep-rooted affections in obedience
to a stringent code of laws. Everywhere
new life is seen, new government, new doc-
trines, new customs and ceremonies.

The prince of the house of David is rele-

\

THE SECOND COMMONWEALTH 53

gated to a secondary position, the priest be-
comes the nominal ruler of the people, while
the Sofer, the Scribe, the man learned In the
law, is the real power that guides the desti-
nies of the reorganized commonwealth/
The Torah, until then known only to the
priest, now becomes the property of the
masses through the efforts of Ezra, who
transcribes it in a script intelligible to the
people, and has his scribes make many
copies. With the co-operation of Nehemxiah,
Ezra succeeds in influencing the people to
live up to the precepts of the Torah, and in
introducing new institutions and customs,^
which help to strengthen and deepen the
reverence for law and tradition.

The policy, adopted by Ezra and his asso-
ciates and followers, of reducing all belief
and practice to law, and expanding the law
so as to embrace every detail of life, had a
negative as well as a positive influence on
the developm.ent of the doctrinal beliefs of
the Jews.

54 THE MESSIAH IDEA

The law, which aimed to regulate all the
actions of men, allowed their thoughts and
beliefs comparative freedom. In fact, the
realm of faith was left almost unexplored by
the Scribes, who, in their practical wisdom,
saw that action is more important than
thought, that " conduct is three-fourths of
life." Leaving matters of dogma and belief
to the individual, they, therefore, directed
all their energies toward providing for the
actual needs of the nation as they understood
them. The hope for the advent of a Mes-
siah, like other doctrines of Judaism, lay
dormant in the consciousness of the people,
undisturbed by investigation and research,
awaiting the time of the nation's need. In-
deed, the echo of the Messianic ideal still
reverberates in the last words of the last
prophet, Malachi. In a prophecy character-
istic enough and yet with distinct variations
from those of his predecessors, he pro-
claimed a great and awful day of judgment
for the wicked, and promised that the sacri-

THE SECOND COMMONWEALTH 55

fices of Judah and Jerusalem would again
become acceptable unto the Lord as they
were in days long gone by. He adds the
new idea, extensively developed by Jewish
and Christian theologians, of the coming of
Elijah the prophet, identifying him with the
angel of the covenant, who shall announce
the approach of the great day of the Lord,
and reconcile the fathers and their children/
Malachi omits all mention of the son of
David or of any other earthly king. The
most important element in his prophecy, a
natural feature in this period of the revival
of the Torah, is that the observance of the
Mosaic law is made the condition of the
realization of the promise. " Remember the
law of Moses, My servant, which I com-
manded him in Horeb " (Mai. 3 : 22),* is the
final appeal of prophecy before its voice is
hushed forever. Henceforth, the scribe
takes the place of the seer, the law that of
prophecy, its interpretation and study that
of impassioned oratory and revelation.

56 THE MESSIAH IDEA

To judge from their records, the Jews of
that period, settled in their own land, and
occupied with the development of their insti-
tutions, civil, political, and religious, found
little leisure for abstract speculation. Al-
though their association with the Persians
fostered certain beliefs among the people, yet
they were not fully developed until a later
time, and were never given that prominent
place in the Jewish polity accorded to the
law.

Here a word may properly be said with
regard to the modern almost chronic tend-
ency to find the origin of Jewish ideas and
beliefs in the thoughts and practices of other
nations of antiquity. Although the Jew is
no exception to the law of environment,
and, consciously or unconsciously, absorbed
many of the notions and practices of the
civilizations with which he came in contact,
yet he has always given them the stamp of
his peculiar monotheistic morality. Whether
or not the Babylonians taught our ancestors

THE SECOND COMMONWEALTH 57

the story of the flood, the story as it is
related in Genesis, with its idea of one,
righteous God, kind and merciful in His
justice, has very little in common with the
story of Per-napishtim, as related on the
cuneiform tablets, with its coarse notion of
a multiplicity of deities, selfish and quarrel-
some, sensual and jealous. The same dis-
tinction can be noticed in all the stories, laws,
and doctrines which the Jews are now said
to have borrowed from other nations.

One of these beliefs, the belief in the resur- j
rection of the dead, is almost inseparable
from the Messianic hope. It is true that
the Iranian creed promised the awakening of
the dead at some future day, when Ahura-
mazda, the god of light, shall have con-
quered and destroyed his rival Angro-main-
jus, the god of darkness. But the lofty and
spiritual aspect it assumed in the mind of the
Jewish teachers and sages is a genuine pro-
duct of Jewish inspiration, and quite unlike
the sordid belief of the Persian Magi. AI-

58 THE MESSIAH IDEA

though the behef in the immortality of the
soul existed in Israel from earliest times, as
is indicated in various places in the Bible, it I
did not assume definite shape until this
period, when, by its union with the Messianic
belief in the immortality of the nation, it
produced the doctrine of the resurrection of
the dead. The emphasis laid upon the law
and its observance during the period of the
Scribes, could not but deepen the conscious-
ness of every individual Jew, that he was
the special care of God's providence. Up to
this period, God's care had been extended to
the nation as a community, living, praying,
even sinning as a community, in which the
individual was lost. The nation brought
sacrifices to atone for the sins of the indi-
viduals, and even the thank-offerings or
peace-ofiferings of the individual had to be
brought to the Temple, the national centre.
With the emphasis laid by Ezra and his
associates on the observance of the minutiae
of the law by the individual constituents of

THE SECOND COMMONWEALTH 59

this society, with the institution of individual
prayers and of separate houses of prayer dis-
tinct from the Temple in Jerusalem, there
naturally arises a deepening of the sense of
personal responsibility and importance, and
of the dependence on God's care. Believing
implicitly in God's assurance of the perma-
nence of the nation, the appearance of the
Messiah and the continuation of the national
centre in the Temple in Jerusalem, the indi-
vidual who suffers and dies faithful to God's
precepts and loyal to his national ideas, be-
lieves that he shall arise from death to share
in its splendors. " He will not permit His
pious ones to see destruction " (Ps. i6 : lo).
Thus, through the work ofjthe Soferim, the"
Soctrme of resurrection, dimly existing in
the consciousness of the few, became a dis-
tinct and inseparable feature of tTieMessian-^
ic ideal/

Although in some of the Biblical refer-
ences to the belief in the resurrection of the
dead, the authors seem to doubt the fulfilment

6o THE MESSIAH IDEA

of the miracle," the doctrine as a whole was
firmly established in the hearts of the people.
It was first expressed in the form of a doc-
trine in Isaiah : " Thy dead men shall live,
My dead todies shall arise ; awake and sing,
ye that dwell in the dust, for thy dew is as
the dew of herbs, and the earth shall cast out
her dead" (Is. 26: 19).' No matter when
this prophecy was written, it clearly presents
the highest development of Biblical revela-
tion on the subject. Here, for the first time,*
a literal resurrection is foretold, not for all
nations, but for Israel alone, and of Israel
only the righteous, those that died in faith in
God (Is. 26: 14),° will rise again.

When, after a considerable lapse of Jime,
we find the doctrine again in Da.niel, it is in
a somewhat different form, including^-both
the righteous and the wicked .iji.tiie miracle,
the former rising to receive their reward, the
latter their punishment :

And many of them that sleep in the dust will
awake, some to everlasting life and others to shame
and everlasting contempt. And they that be wise

THE SECOND COMMONWEALTH 6l

shall shine as the brightness of the firmament, and
they that turn many to righteousness as the stars for
ever and ever (Dan. 12:2, 3).^°

In these two passages we have the root of
all subsequent speculations on the subject of
resurrection, both in Judaism and in Chris-
tianity.

With the death of the beloved Simon the
Just, the era of peace and of Divine grace is
considered to have come to an end. In the
sad and terrible times that follow, the small
nation was harassed within and without.
Irresponsible demagogues appear on the
scene, who, by currying favor with the
Ptolemies and the Seleucidse, obtain domin-
ion and oppress the people, not only by im-
posing heavy taxes upon them, but also by
outraging their most sacred sentiments of
religion and morality.

It was inevitable that antagonistic sects
should arise, differing not only in political
views, but also in their attitude to the prac-
tices and beliefs of Judaism. Following the
law of simultaneous action and reaction, ex-

62 THE MESSIAH IDEA

treme laxity on the part of one sect produced
excessive zeal on the part of the other.
Within the short space of about two hundred
years, an immense literature was produced
in Palestine and without, dealing with the
various problems that beset the people.
Most of these books, being unsanctioned by
the synagogue authorities, \vere entirely lost,
some were preserved in a foreign garb, and
some are only now being recovered from the
ruins of antiquity. In this apocryphal and
apocalyptic literature," we find mirrored the
hopes and aspirations of those times, when
the withdrawal of the younger generation
from the old tried paths aided the at-
tempts of the enemy to complete the ruin
of Israel's political mdependence and its
religious freedom.
r^'^'Trhe Messianic hope finds expression in al-
I most all the books compiled during that]
' period. Even the books written by Hellen-
ists, such as the Second Book of Maccabec^^,
the Book of Baruch, and the Wisdom of Svl-

THE SECOND COMMONWEALTH 63

omon, make use of every opportunity to
emphasize and strengthen this hope, the con-
ception of which, however, varies greatly
with the different authors. The national
consciousness is brought out most promi-
nently in the books composed by Palestinian
authors. Ben Sira in his Ecclesiasticus, the
original Hebrew text of which was but re-
cently discovered, prays for the gathering of
the dispersed of Israel, and their deliverance
from all their troubles,"^ for the punishment
of the heathen nations and their rulers," and
the rebuilding of the Temple and the re-es-
tablishment of its worship." He proclaims
his belief in the everlasting duration of
Israel as a nation^" and of the house of
David as the rulers of Israel," but there is no
definite idea of a Messiah, nor even of a
Messianic kingdom."

The Book of Tobit, composed at about the
same time, also contains the hope that at
some future time " many nations will come
from afar in the name of the Lord God with

64 THE MESSIAH IDEA

gifts in their hands," the righteous will be
gathered, and Israel will be exalted. " For
Jerusalem shall be built up with sapphires
and emeralds and precious stones ; thy walls
and towers and battlements with pure gold.
And the streets of Jerusalem shall be paved
with beryl and carbuncle and stones of
Ophir." "

,.We need not concern ourselves with such
matters of history as the horrible persecu-
tions the Jews suffered at the hands of the
Syrian king Antiochus Epiphanes, the des-
perate battles fought by the Maccabean
brothers, and the final victory of the Jewish
hosts, which was followed by the re-dedica-
tion of the Temple and the triumph of the
Hasidim, or, as they were later called, the
Pharisees, over their political and religious
antagonists. There is, however, one point
in the history of this epoch which calls for
some explanation. Some writers ^* would
conclude that the hope for a personal Mes-
siah had died out in the minds of the people.

THE SECOND COMMONWEALTH 65

because there is no reference in contempor-
ary literature to the belief that Judah Macca- N<^
bee, the redeemer of his people, the beloved
general of his army, and the adored hero of
his nation, was the long-expected Messiah, —
a belief most natural in the circumstances.
It was re-born, they maintain, only at the
rise of Christianity. But this conclusion is
sufficiently refuted by the constant references
to a personal redeemer in the early apocalyp-
ti£jvritings. To my mind, the opposite is
proved. The Messianic ideal was so firmly
rooted and so clearly defined, and its asso-
ciation with the personal Messiah, the king
of the house of David, so obvious, that the
people would . regard . no ^O.ne_as^ the ^.Messiah
excegt a scion of tlie Da vidic dynasty. Since
Judah^was.a^priest, he could- not be- tlie JMjgg-
siah, God had assisted him and given him
great strength, because he would not permit
the destruction of His people, but this tem-
porary relief was not the prayed-for redemp-
tion at the end of days.

66 THE MESSIAH IDEA

The affliction of the nation under the mad
rule of Antiochus gave rise to a series of
prophecies and visions about the deliverance
of God's people and about the final day of
judgment, in the apocalyptic literature of the
last two centuries of the second Jewish com-
monwealth. At this time, when the afflicted
nation needed much encouragement and a
strengthening of its confidence in the justice
of God, the promises held out by the early
prophets, of a glorious destiny for Israel,
were made the basis of larger and more ex-
travagant hopes by the apocalyptic authors.
Under the names of pious and revered men
of antiquity, they unrolled the future in
visions and parables, and dwelt upon the jus-
tice of God in images and symbols adapted to
the comprehension and feeling of the people.
The pictures are sometimes too artificial,
often bordering on the bizarre, the descrip-
tions betray lack of critical insight and his-
torical knowledge, the theology is not always
sound, and is frequently in disagreement

THE SECOND COMMONWEALTH 67

with Biblical notions of God and His rela-
tion to man. Still, the simplicity of these
writings, the naivete of the authors, and the
force and beauty of their diction, could not
but inspire a languishing people with hope,
and arouse strong patriotic feelings. These
books may justly be regarded as occasional
pamphlets intended to have only ephemeral
significance ; yet they are of the greatest im-
portance to the historian who wishes to trace
the growth and development of the Messi-
anic ideal. It is true, they influenced Chris-
tianity more than Judaism, but the fact that
they were written by Jews and composed in
Jewish surroundings presents a phenom.enon
with which the historian has to reckon.

The Book of Daniel, although included in.
the Bible, is of an apocalyptic nature, and is
thought by most modern scholars to have
been composed during this period. Even
those of the traditional school, who believe
that it contains a prophecy delivered during
the Babylonian exile, admit that its visions

68 THE MESSIAH IDEA

refer to the period of the Syrian persecu-
tions. Disregarding the mysterious refer-
ences to a period when the Messianic era will
set in, a subject which from the earliest times
has much perplexed commentators, bot'i
Y Jewish and Christian, we find in this book
a tjriieJ\If.asia,.nic^.Qphgcy, containing all the
important features conceived by earlier
and later Jewish authorities — the eternity of
the naiipa»-JXs^ future glor^,^in wjy^^j.l]^the
saints .will sk6t^er^tlle spread of the nation's
ideals Qyer the wJhole w.orld>,.^adtbe CQijyer-
sion of the heathen to a recognition of the
worth of the Jews^and of their <jod.

In the early portions of .the Ethiopic^Book
of Enoch, we meet with all the features char-
acteristic of the apocalyptic literature. There
full expression is first given to the dualistic
notion of two worlds, alluded to in the Bible
and worked out in greatest detail by later
Jewish and Christian writers — one corrupt
and irredeemable, ruled by Satan and
his host of demons, and another, a future

THE SECOND COMMONWEALTH 69

world, ruled with perfect justice and right-
eousness. In this world, the seventy shep-
herds,"" to whose care Israel has been in-
trusted, with the permission to treat it
harshly but not to destroy it, disregard the
command, ravage and persecute Israel, and n ^ .
destroy the sheep of the Lord. Whereupon^ ^ "1 / /
the Lord, the Master of the sheep, enthroned \ ^ "^
in the " pleasant land," "" will sit in judgment
upon the faithless shepherds, and condemn
them to be bound and thrown into the abyss
of fire. Then the sheep that have strayed
(probably referring to the Hellenists) will
be cast into Gehenna,'' Jerusalem will be en- ,1 ^
tirely destroyed, and God Himself will set up
I a new Jerusalem, where the pious of His
I people shall be established, to whom the
I heathen nations shall pay homage, and ad-
i dress their prayers.'' The dead of all gen-
I erations will rise again to share in the glo-
1 rious kingdom,^ and the Messiah, in the
I guise of a white bullock, will appear, all the
\ pious will be transformed in his likeness, and
' God will rejoice over them.'"

•I

I

70 THE MESSIAH IDEA

\

It is interesting to note that.here the Mes;^
siah is expected to come_at the conclusion of
the reorganization of the world, when every-
thing is already perfected. In the apoca-
lypse of the Twelve Patriarchs, which was
probably written originally in Hebrew, by
Jews,^ although it bears decided marks of
later Christian interpolations, the Messiah
himself is assumed to judge the world at his
coming, open the gates of Paradise, remove
the " flaming sword," and give his saints to \\
eat of the tree of life.

A more exalted picture of the Messianic
era is drawn by a Jewish Alexandrian writer
-^*^ in the third Sybilline. Book.^ From the
East God will send a king,^ who will put an
end to all wars and establish the kingdom of
righteousness. The children of God will
live in peace under the direct protection of
God Himself, and the heathen nations, see-
ing the great reward that has come to Israel
for its adherence to the belief in one God,
will embrace Judaism and accept God's law,

THE SECOND COMMONWEALTH 7\

" the most just in all the world." '* God will
dwell in Zion, and universal peace will pre-
vail on earth.'"

Rejoice, O maiden,^^ and be merry, for to thee hath
the Creator of heaven and of earth given eternal
joy. He will dwell in the midst of thee; thou wilt
have undying joy.

Then follows the picture drawn by Isaiah,
with unimportant modifications, of the peace
that will prevail in Messianic times, not only
among men, but also in the brute creation.

With the death of John Hyrcanus, the de-
cadence of the Hasmonean dynasty set in.
The favor shown by the later Hasmoneans
to the unpopular Sadducees aroused much
dissatisfaction. The quarrels between the
heirs to the throne, which frequently resulted
in fratricide and murder, outraged the feel-
ings of the better class of Jews, and, lastly,
the appeal made to Pompey ^ to settle a quar-
rel between two aspirants to the throne, thus
putting the Jewish kingdom at the mercy of
rapacious Rome, brought about a powerful
opposition to the dynasty. These changes

72 THE MESSIAH IDEA

wrought a revolution in the Jewish concep-
tion of the future, inducing increased hope in
some hearts, and in others utter despair of
an ultimate regeneration in this world, so
steeped in crime and corruption.

In the Psalms oJSoljsmoiv— tii^^g^^^-of
the Messiah is placed in sharpest relief, and
/ the description of the period to be inaugu-
Y rated by him is most vigorous and fascinat-
ing. The Messiah is represented as _piirging
Jerusalem of its sins, judging the tribes of
the nation, apportioning the land to Israel
according to the tribes, and permitting no
stranger to dwell in the midst of them.
Though conceived as pure from sin and
constantly sustained by God's holy spirit,^
he is still taken to be only a temporary ruler.

The author of the Similitudes of theJEtbi-
opic Book of Enoch'" makes the MessiaJ^-al-
most a supernatural being,'" gives him titles,
which were later applied to Jesus in the New
Testament, such as " the anointed," " " the
elect one,'"' "the righteous one,'"' "the

THE SECOND COMMONWEALTH 73

son of man." ^ It regards him as penetrat-
ing the deepest mysteries and possessing the
power of reviving the dead, and accords him
a place in the immediate presence of God.

Another writer, despairing of a regenera-
tion of this world, speaks of a new earth and
a new heaven to '"be created, in which the
righteous, who will be raised as spirits, will
be permitted tor'enter and enjoy everlasting
bliss." The bitterness of the Jews toward
the foreign intruders is illustrated by the
small mercy shown the gentiles in all the
Messianic vmtings of this time. They are
either completely annihilated " or subjected
to Israel, the world-power."

The intensity and prevalence of the Mes-
sianic hope at the time of Jesus is attested
by the tenacity with which it was held
even by the philosophic Hellenists, who
dwelt in comparative freedom in Egypt.
These thinkers, entirely immersed in Greek
morality and philosophy, did not hesitate to
interpret allegorically even the laws and

74 THE MESSIAH IDEA

events recorded in the Bible, yet they clung
to the national hope, and depicted the future
happiness of the righteous with all the color-
ing of the Palestinian Jewish writers. Jghilo,—
the chief expoaenl,QLAJ?$,3,ncldaa-Jiwiaism^
gives two descriptions of the Messianic
kingdom, and, although he makes no men-
tion of the belief in resurrection, neverthe-
less the fact that he alludes at all to the
notion of a personal Messiah, is convincing
proof of its firm hold on all classes, both in-
side and outside of Judea. Speaking of the
re-gathering of the dispersed of Israel, he
says :

But when they have received this unexpected lib-
erty, those who but a short time before were scat-
tered about in Hellas and in the countries of the
barbarians, in the islands, and over the continents,
rising with one impulse, and coming from all different
quarters imaginable, all hasten to one place pointed
out to them, being guided on their way by some
vision, more Divine than is compatible with its
being of the nature of man, invisible, indeed, to every
one else, and apparent only to those who were saved,
having their separate inducements and intercessions,
by whose intervention they might obtain a reconcilia-
tion with the Father."

THE SECOND COMMONWEALTH 75

In another place *° he describes the Mes-
siah as a man of war who will bring an era
of prosperity and peace, when men will turn
unto God, and the Messianic kingdom as a
period when there shall be universal peace.
Tiie feverish expectation of miraculous in-
tervention by God reached its highest tension
during the cruel dominion of the unscrupu-
lous Roman Procurators, and, accordingly,
the masses gave a ready response to the call
of John the Baptist : " Repent ye ; for the
kingdom of heaven is at hand ! " *^ The stir-
ring words of the pious Essene moved the
hearts of his hearers, and inspired the dis-
tressed and impoverished multitudes with
I burning enthusiasm in their expectation of
God's anointed. Even after John was im-
prisoned, and probably beheaded by the
Herodian ruler, who naturally considered
the preaching of so influential a man danger-
ous to the dynasty of the Edomite usurper,
his work was carried on by his disciples, by
this time grown to large numbers. The

76 THE MESSIAH IDEA

flame kindled in the hearts of the wretched
community could not easily be quenched.

One of his disciples, who was particularly
moved by John's preaching, was Jesus of
Nazareth. Of humble birth and not very
learned in the law, he attracted to himself,
by his sympathetic nature and his lofty spir-
itual attainments, the great multitudes of the
lower classes of the community, and exerted
the greatest influence upon them. Only to
a few select and devoted disciples he reveal-
ed himself as the Messiah. This he did in
such a manner as to make it appear that
they forced a reluctant acknowledgment
from him. On one occasion, it is related, he
asked his disciples, " Who do men say that I,
the son of man, am? " and they said, " Some
say John the Baptist, some Elijah, and oth-
ers Jeremiah, or one of the prophets." He
said unto them, " But who say you that I
am ? " And Simon Peter answered and said,
** Thou art the Christ, the son of the living
God," and Jesus blessed him, acknowledging

THE SECOND COMMONWEALTH 77

that the information must have come from
God, and promised to deHver unto him " the
keys of the kingdom of heaven." *' And he
charged his disciples to " tell no man that he
was the Christ," *' a command which the dis-
ciples little heeded, as is shown in the subse-
quent chapters.

A few days after this important revela-
tion, when he was on his way to Jerusalem,
the disciples suggested that, according to the
traditions of the Scribes, Elijah is expected
to come first. To this Jesus replied, that
Elijah had already appeared, "and they
knew him not, but did unto him whatsoever
they listed. . . . Then understood the dis-
ciples that he spake unto them of John the
Baptist." ^

" Such was the mysteriously-veiled birth
of Christianity," sufficiently accounted for
by the many persecutions of the national
enemy and the internal strife among the
many factions, which fanned the spark long
latent in the hearts of the people of Judea

78 THE MESSIAH IDEA

into a blazing flame, and by the writings and
preachings of the loyal Pharisees constantly
stimulated the belief in the advent of better
days under the guidance of a man appointed
by God. The suffering was so acute, the
hope so keen, and the promises so encour-
aging that after Jesus had died on the
cross his disciples clung to his Messiahship
with increased tenacity, and, to account for
I their belief, evolved the theory of the ", suf-
*■ fering Messiah,""' in accord with the pro-
phetic promise that the Messiah should first
suffer, be wounded, and executed (and here
!• they were assisted by the Pharisaic method
of interpreting Biblical passages). The be-
lief in the resurrection of Jesus and his re-
turn to inaugurate the kingdom of God upon
earth, naturally follows from the literal ful-
filment of the prophecy about his sufferings.
Hence the doctrine, that the Messianic hope
was only partially realized in the time of
Jesus, and would be completely realized in
the fulness of days.

THE SECOND. COMMONWEALTH 79

In the course of one century, Judaism dis-
claimed all relationship with the new reli-
gion, made new by the teachings of Paul of
Tarsus. It continued along traditional lines,
still praying and hoping for the great future
to come and for the Messiah to appear. The
ideal was not exhausted. It continued to
grow in the Jewish consciousness, offering
solace and consolation in many peri'ods of
suffering and trial. The fact, however, re-
mains that the immediate success of Chris-
tianity can be accoimted for only when we
consider the intense Messianic hope that ex-
isted among the Jewish people during the
period of Roman supremacy. Thus we
have the phenomenon of a Jewish ideal, de-
veloped on Jewish soil, which has influenced
Jewish life and habit, and has been influ-
enced by them, gi^ang birth to a creed which,
becoming later antagonistic to its parent, as-
sumes an entirely separate existence.

CHAPTER III

The Talmudic Period

The Talmud — Halachah and Haggadah — The Hala-
chah the Main Element — The Position of the
Haggadah undefined — The Messiah Idea in the
Talmud not settled — The Hope Intensest after
the Destruction of Jerusalem — ^Johanan ben
Zakkai's Insistence that Judaism is Law — The
Apocalypses of Baruch and Ezra — The Super-
natural Element emphasized — Baruch's Idea of
the Resurrection — The Hadrianic Revolt — The
Messiahship of Bar-Cochba repudiated by the
Rabbis — The Early Tannaim silent on the Mes-
sianic Ideal — The " Messianic Woes " — Israel's
Sufferings increase — The Wars of Gog and
Magog — The Messiah Son of Joseph — Elijah —
The Person of the Messiah — Political Inde-
pendence— Conversion of the Gentiles — The
Future Jerusalem — A New Covenant of the
Law — The Belief in Resurrection — The Feast of
the Righteous — The Date of the Messiah's Ar-
rival— Calculation of the Date discouraged —
Julian the Apostate — His Offer to rebuild the
Temple not received with Enthusiasm — Moses
of Crete — Salutary Influence of the Extravagant
Picture of Messianic Times drawn by the
Rabbis.

The Talmud, as is well known, contains
two elements — Halachah and Haggadah,
law and legend, legal discussion and homi-
letic interpretation.

" It is only after a time," says Emanuel Deutsch,*
"that the student learns to distinguish between two 1.

THE TALMUDIC PERIOD 8l

mighty currents in the book — currents that at times
flow parallel, at times seem to work upon each other,
and to impede each other's action : the one emanating
from the brain, the other from the heart— the one
prose, the other poetry — the one carrying with it
all those mental faculties that manifest themselves
in arguing, investigating, comparing, developing,
bringing a thousand points to bear upon one and one
upon a thousand; the other springing from the
realms of fancy, of imagination, feeling, humor, and
above all from that precious combination of still,
almost sad, pensiveness, with quick catholic sym-
pathies, which in German is called Gemuth. . . . The
first-named is called ' Halachah ' (Rule, Norm),
a term applied both to the process of evolving legal
enactments and the enactments themselves. The other,
'Haggadah' (Legend, Saga), not so much in our
modern sense of the word, though a great part of
its contents come under that head, but because it
was only a * saying,' a thing without authority, a
play of fancy, an allegory, a parable, a tale, that
pointed a moral and illustrated a question, that
smoothed the billows of fierce debate, roused the
slumbering attention, and was generally — to use its
own phrase — a ' comfort and blessing.' "

Whatever the Talmud is, it is not a book
of theology. The many theological doc-
trines contained in its Haggadic portions are
casual and incidental, subordinate to its prin-
cipal content, the Halachah. Law was the
main concern of the Talmudists, the discus-

82 THE MESSIAH IDEA

sion of philosophy and theology, a pastime
and diversion. The Halachah is the funda-
mental element of the Talmud; it was of
binding authority, while the Haggadah is
merely an interpretation and digression from
the elaborate legal discussions, and carried
little authority with the people. Even the
Rabbis themselves regarded its study as un-
important, rebuking the sage who gave too
much time to homiletic or philosophic dis-
cussion."

This loose and indefinite position of the
Haggadah has caused much perplexity to
modern thinkers who have attempted to re-
construct, from the Talmud, the religious
philosophy of its sages. The Rabbis re-
quired conformity in practice, not so much
in belief, and, accordingly, allowed to the
imagination the same freedom in speculation
about transcendental matters as was allowed
under the system of the Scribes. Only such
as publicly denied the cardinal principles of
the Jewish religion were placed outside of

THE TALMUDIC PERIOD 83

the fold, and even they were not persecuted
for their behefs/ This phase of the Tal-
mudic hterature is a most interesting phe-
nomenon, especially when we consider it in
conjunction with the rapid development of
dogmatics taking place contemporaneously
in Christianity.

The same indefiniteness is to be noticed in
the interpretation which the Rabbis gave to
the popular hope for a Messiah. It is true,
in the Talmud and the Midrashim, the hope
finds a more prominent and detailed expres-
sion than any other Jewish belief and dog-
ma, but the conception itself of a Messiah
varies so much with individual Rabbis,* and
the divergence of opinion with regard to its
details is so great, that its form remains
loose and unlimited. Even the philosophers
of the middle ages differed greatly in their
conception of the hope, so that, though their
legal codes were accepted as binding by all
Israel, their philosophic theories about the
dogmas of Judaism were never taken to be

84 THE MESSIAH IDEA

absolutely authoritative, since the very
sources from which they drew their informa-
tion did not definitely determine these dog-

mas."

The feverish hope for a Messiah must
have reached its highest tension during the
troublous times immediately preceding the
destruction of Jerusalem by Titus. Disloyal
to the national ideals and impatient of the
cruelties of the Roman Procurators, some
followed in the footsteps of Paul of Tarsus,
and joined the humble band of Ebionites,
or Nazarenes. Others, deluded by the pro-
phetic and Messianic claims of the many
demagogues arising at that time,' fell a prey
to the Roman legions. Others, again, prac-
tical patriots, endeavored to resist Titus's
onslaughts on Jerusalem, and, in their stren-
uous warfare, had little time for speculation
about the miraculous advent of a Messiah.
The wise and prudent, however, realizing
the futility of a contest with Rome, laid
down their arms, and followed Rabbi Joha-

THE TALMUDIC PERIOD 85

nan ben Zakkai to Jabne, where the Sanhe-
driii was reorganized.

Here we see most plainly the hand of God
in the history of the Jewish people. Cen-
turies before the great calamity that befell
Israel in 70 C. E., when the Roman eagle
spread its wings over Palestine, and clouded
all the hopes and aspirations of the Jews,
the remedy was being prepared slowly and
surely, through the teachings of the Scribes
and the much-maligned Pharisees. Juda-
ism, they taught, is not a national institution
nor organized ecclesiasticism, requiring a
king, a priesthood, and a Temple. Judaism
is law, a guide for the life of every individ-
ual. The corruption of the priesthood and
the destruction of the Temple, the national
centre, far from shaking the foundations of
the Jewish religion, rather cemented the
bond between the people and the Torah.'
The study of the law took the place of sacri-
fices, and the Yeshibah, the academy of
learning, immediately replaced the Temple,
the centre of national worship.

86 THE MESSIAH IDEA

The transition was almost imperceptible,
because of the feeling fostered by Scribe and
Pharisee, that the law is the mainstay of
Judaism, that king and priest, Temple and
sacrifice are not essential for the maintenance
of the Jewish people. Thus, Rabbi Joha-
nan ben Zakkai, worthy, indeed, of all the
admiring epithets given him by the Jewish
historian, and of all the reverence and grati-
tude entertained for him by the Jewish peo-
ple, showed his great wisdom in utilizing, to
the best advantage and at the proper time, a
sentiment long before engendered.

Before proceeding to reconstruct the Mes-
sianic hope, as conceived by the Rabbis,
from the sayings scattered through the Tal-
mudim and the Midrashim, we shall mention
two books, which, although characteristic
Messianic prophecies and masterpieces of
poetry, exercised but little influence upon the
Jewish conception of the Messiah. They are
the apocalypses of Baruch and Ezra, prob-
ably written by Jews during the period im-

THE TALMUDIC PERIOD 87

mediately following upon the fall of Jerusa-
lem. The apocalypse of Ezra has long been
held in high esteem by the Christian Church,
and that of Baruch has but recently been
made known to the world/ The writers of
both, in vivid and striking language, describe
the times preceding the advent of the Mes-
siah, his coming and the blessings of his
kingdom, which both consider to be merely
temporary. Both reflect the views, common
among the Jews of Palestine of that time,
that his coming will be preceded and accom-
panied by supernatural events. Ezra thus
describes the day of judgment:

It shall have neither sun nor moon nor stars,
neither cloud nor thunder nor lightning, neither wind
nor water nor air, neither darkness nor evening nor
morning, neither summer nor spring nor heat nor
winter, neither frost nor cold nor hail nor rain nor
dew, neither moon nor night nor dawn, neither
shining nor brightness nor light, save only the splen-
dor of the glory of the Most High, whereby all shall
see the things that are set before them: for it shall
endure as it were a week of years.*

Interesting is Baruch's conception of the
final resurrection." To Baruch's query

88 THE MESSIAH IDEA

whether the dead will rise again in the same
form which they had when they were buried,
God replied that

the earth will then assuredly restore the dead,
which it now receives, in order to preserve them,
making no change in their form, but, as it has re-
ceived, so will it restore them, and as I delivered
them unto it, so also will it raise them. For then
it will be necessary to show to the living that the
dead have come to life again, and that those who
have departed have returned. And it will come to
pass when they have severally recognized those whom
they now know, then judgment will grow strong,
and those things which before were spoken of will
come.

After this recognition, the bodies of the
righteous will be transformed into a spiritual
existence " of unending duration and glory,"
but those of the ungodly will dwindle and
become uglier than before, and then be given
to torment.^" This idea, that the dead will
rise in the form they had when buried, was
later developed at great length both in Juda-
ism and in Christianity. An opinion in the
Talmud " has it, that at the resurrection the
righteous dead will rise in the very clothes

THE TALMUDIC PERIOD 89

in which they were buried — a beHef that
led Rabban Gamahel II to introduce the use
of cotton shrouds, because of the practice of
expending large sums of money on costly
burial garments.

While the small band of scholars in Jabne,
under the leadership of Gamahel II, were
occupied with the work of organizing and
establishing institutions of learning, and
were concerning themselves with the minu-
tiae of ceremonial observances or the su-
premacy of one or the other authority in the
Sanhedrin, warfare was waged by the Jews
of the provinces of Cyprus, Cyrene, and
Egypt against the cruelties of the emperors
Trajan and Hadrian. When the dissension
spread to Palestine, the smouldering hope
for redemption was fanned into a blaze by
the appearance of Simeon Bar-Cochba, who
by his prowess and physical strength won
many battles. Notwithstanding the entrea-
ties and admonitions of the older and more
sober of the nation, he was hailed as Mes-

90 THE MESSIAH IDEA

siah by many/^ The belief in his Messiah-
ship was shared even by the great and influ-
ential teacher Rabbi Akiba," despite the
taunts of his contemporaries, one of whom
said to him, " Grass will grow out of th}^
chin, Akiba, before the King Messiah will

)J 14

appear.

The Talmudic accounts mention no mirac-
ulous performances attending Bar-Cochba's
appearance. They dwell mainly on his
enormous physical strength and the strength
of his soldiers, some of whom performed the
feat of tearing out a cedar of Lebanon by
its roots while riding at full speed. He
himself is said to have hurled back, with his
knees, stones discharged by the Roman bal-
listse.

Although no doubt sincere and unselfish
in his undertaking, Bar-Cochba was branded
as an impostor by most of the sages," the
leaders of thought and action of that period.
After many struggles and some glorious
triumphs, he finally fell a victim to Roman

THE TALMUDIC PERIOD 91

cruelty. S mc^^J^. belief, in Bar-Cochba's
Messiahshig was, Qot.siiared by the learnii^
classes, his defeat j;ave.iiQ. set-back to. the
development of the ^Messianic , hope, and
Messianic speculation continued,,. Every
scholar endeavored to find in Biblical pas-
sages some hint as to the nature of the Mes-
siah, or the date of his arrival, seeking in its
discussion a pleasant digression from the
laborious and taxing studies of the law.

We find very little about the Messianic
hope among the sayings of the first genera-
tion of Tannaim. Living still under a quasi-
Jewish Government, with some semblance of
political independence, the teachers of the
period preceding the destruction of the Tem-
ple devoted their energies to the inculcation
and propagation of the law, or to setting
aright the political difficulties and party
strifes of the time. Unlike their lay breth-
ren, the writers of the apocalypses, the Rab-
bis speculated but little on the miraculous ad-
vent of a God-sent king. Hillel and Sham-

92 THE MESSIAH IDEA

mai, who contributed so much to the develop-
ment of Jewish institutions, have almost
nothing to say about this great hope of the
Jews." After the fall of Jerusalem, how-
ever, when Jabne became the centre of Jew-
ish activities, and subsequently throughout
the exile, the Messianic hope finds expres-
sion in the teachings of almost every Rabbi.
Rabbi Johanan ben Zakkai, the organizer
and chief of the first Sanhedrin at Jabne,
told his pupils, before his death, to have a
throne ready for Hezekiah, son of David,
who was about to come." This shows how
intense the hope was even at that early
period, and how positive the leaders of the
people were of its speedy realization.

In my endeavor to reconstruct the Messi-
anic conception of the Rabbis of the Talmud
and of the earlier Midrashim, I prefer to fol-
low the natural divisions of the subject as a
whole, rather than adhere to the historic
method hitherto pursued. Aside from the
difficulties attendant upon the attempt to de-

THE TALMUDIC PERIOD 9?

termine the authors of the various sayings,
there is this to be considered, that to the pop-
ular mind the Talmud means one book, one
tendency. Since this is to be a popular pre-
sentation of the subject, I think it advisable
to classify the sayings of the Rabbis with
regard to the Messiah, not in accordance
with any chronological order, but rather in
accordance with the divisions of the subject
under consideration, always endeavoring to
correlate the opinions of the various Rabbis
v/ith the historic events.

The conceptions of the Talmudic authors 'j
of the genealogy, personality, and activity of ?
the Messiah and his forerunner Elijah are
so varied and of such interest as to warrant
literal quotation, if their number did not
preclude it. I must content myself with
merely gleaning the important ideas from
this bewildering mass of fanciful specula-
tion, leaving the reader to consult the sources
himself, guided by the notes to this chapter
at the end of the book.

94 THE MESSIAH IDEA

Like the early prophets and the later apo-
calyptic writers," the Rabbis also taught that
the Messianic period wiH, be preceded by
many tribulations, called "Messianic woe^,""
norBnly for Israel, but for all the nations of
the earth as well. These trials preliminary
to the advent of the Messianic era will be of
all kinds, social and political both. Ac-
cording to these teachings, there will be an
increase in drunkenness and immorality.
Youths will no longer respect their parents,
the pious, and the aged. All family ties will
be loosed, and poverty will be the portion of
many."" " Wait for him," says Rabbi Jo-
hanan, " when you see the generations
growing smaller, and many troubles coming
upon Israel." '' Judges and officers' of the
law will have no authority, denunciators will
multiply, anarchy will reign supreme.'^ Even
among the sages themselves there will be
constant strife.^' The law will no longer be
studied. Those that fear sin will be des-
pised, and the house of public convention will
become a house of harlots."

I

THE TALMUDIC PERIOD 95

The gloomy picture of the days preceding
the advent of the Messiah darkened with
Israel's persecutions. Rabbi Judah, who
lived soon after the Bar-Cochba revolution,
and witnessed the outrages practiced on his
people by the legions of Hadrian, endeav-
ored, by his terrifying description of the
times preceding the Messianic age,'" to sus-
tain the smouldering hope of the people for
a speedy redemption. So horrible was the
common conception that some of the Rab-
bis prayed that the Messiah might not ap-
pear in their days.'' Good deeds and repent-
ance, however, were supposed to relieve the
pangs of the Messianic age."

The fanciful element is very strong in the
stories of the wars waged against Israel by
the legendary nations of the North, Gog
and Magog.'' After attacking Jerusalem . ■.
for twelve months,'" it is said they will suf- / /
fer a crushing defeat.'" In this struggle, the
Messiah son of Joseph," that obscure figure /
in the Talmudic Haggadah, will be killed,''

96 THE MESSIAH IDEA

but he will be restored to life again by Eli-
jah, the forerunner of the Messiah, who will
play an important part in the Messianic age.
His activities will include the adjustment of
all matters of law and Biblical interpreta-
tion/' the correction of all genealogical rec-
ords which become confused in the course
of time/* the slaying of Samael, the Satan,
the prime mover of all evil,^ and the per-
formance of seven miracles.'" He will es-
pecially be instrumental in bringing Israel to
genuine repentance and in establishing peace
among all classes, and turning the hearts of
fathers and children to each other.'^ Then
a world sick of sin and misery, at last de-
voted to God in truth, will hear the trumpet
of the archangel Michael announce the ad-
vent of the Messiah.

The Talmudic conception of the person of
the Messiah Is, on the whole, of a man, a
scion of the Davidic dynasty,"* Divine only
in the greatness of his natural gif ts,^' through
whom the heathen nati be destroyed

THE TALMUDIC PERIOD 97

and Israel become thej^rld-power. Rabbi
Akiba was rebuked by Rabbi Jose the Gali-
lean for " profaning the Divine presence "
by teaching that the Messiah occupies a
throne alongside of God."" It is interesting
to note a significant passage evidently di-
rected against some current Christian doc-
trine : " Rabbi Abbahu says, If a man tells
thee, ' I am God,' he lies ; ' I am the son of
God,' he will at last repent it; *I will as-
cend to heaven,' though he have said it, he
will not prove it." *^ Another legend, prob-
ably of political significance, is related by
Rabbi Joshua ben Levi, how, at the direction
of Elijah, he found the Messiah at the gate
of Rome, sitting among the poor, the sick,
and the crippled, ready to make his appear-
ance when the Divine summons came to
him.'^ Midrashic fancy goes so far as to
imagine the north and south winds quarrel-
ling as to the right to bring the scattered
tribes to Palestine." The future restoration
will be complete, including also the lost Ten

98 THE MESSIAH IDEA

Tribes, and Rabbi Akiba, who ventured the
opinion that these will never return, was
severely rebuked by his companions." Not
all, however, will reach Jerusalem. Accord-
ing to one opinion, only two out of every six
hundred thousand will enter Palestine."

'^An important feature in the Haggadic
conception of the Messianic time is the idea
.f political independence."* This was an ar-
dent hope among the Jews of the Diaspora.
Samuel, one of the earlier Amoraim, de-
clared, that political freedom will be the only
difference between the Messianic and the
present time.*' Other Rabbis, possessed of
a more fanciful imagination, saw Egypt,
Ethiopia, and Ishmael as tributary nations,
carrying gifts to the King Messiah.'^

There is a difference of opinion among the
Rabbis as to the conversion of the gentiles in
the Messianic age. Some were of the opin-
ion that no converts would be accepted, as
they were not accepted in the days of David
and Solomon,*^ because the desire for the

THE TALMUDIC PERIOD 99

ideal happiness of that period, rather than a
sincere acceptance of the principles of Juda-
ism, might induce the conversions. Others
thought that the wish of all gentiles to be
received into the Jewish fold would be real-
ized, although with difficulty. The second
Psalm is interpreted by the Rabbis as refer-
ring to the scene when all the nations shall
come before God, each trying to obtain a
share in the glories of the ensuing period, by
extenuating their idolatrous worship and
belief, dwelling on Israel's own sins, and en-
deavoring to show that Israel had not acted
much better toward the Divine law than the
other peoples of the earth. God will then
put them to the test, and they will be unable
to stand it. They will even be found want-
ing in the observance of one of the simplest
of the Biblical coihmandments.™

Although the final judgment will also in-
clude Israel," God will deal more leniently
with it than with the gentiles. One of the
names given the Messiah is Hadrak, which

lOO THE MESSIAH IDEA

means " sharp-mild," that is, he will be
harsh with the gentiles and g-entle with the
Israelites."

Following the pictures drawn by Isaiah
and" other earlier writers, the Rabbis con-
ceived the Jerusalem of the future to be mar-
vellously constructed, lifted from its present
position to. the height of ten parasangs, open
on all sides, and extending to the gates of
Damascus ; ^^ the Temple rebuilt in splendor
and magnificence,^* the sacred vessels of the
Tabernacle restored, and Aaron and his de-
scendants ministering under the direction of
Moses/' Some of the Amoraim were of the
opinion that in the Messianic time there will
be no sacrifices, except the thank-offering,
and no regular prayers, except the prayer of
thanksgiving.'" In the Talmudim and the
Midrashim, although there are occasional
references to a new law to be revealed by
the Messiah," it is usually taken for granted
that all the precepts and injunctions of the
old law will be strictly observed. Almost all

THE TALMUDIC PERIOD lOI

the references to a new law can easily be in-
terpreted to refer to a new covenant to be
made for a stricter observance of the old
law.

The acceptance of the doctrine of the res-
urrection of the dead at the end of days, is
insisted upon by the Rabbis, although there
seems to be no clear and definite idea as to
the details of the phenomenon. The privi-
lege of resurrection was accorded by some
Rabbis to all the dead," by others to Israel-
ites only,'" and, again, to only those Israel-
ites that were righteous, or learned in the
law, or supported the scholars of the law," or
to those, according to one opinion, who ob-
served at least one of the commandments of
the Torah,^^ The Mishnah refuses a portion
in the world to come to those who deny that
the promise of resurrection is contained in
the Bible."

Since the resurrection is to take place in
Jerusalem, those buried elsewhere will be
compelled to make their way to the Holy

102 THE MESSIAH IDEA

Land through underground passages pre-
pared for them. This was the reason why
Jacob and Joseph wished to be buried in
Palestine, so that they might be spared the
long journey at the time of resurrection."
Because of this belief, many Jews of the pres-
ent time, on reaching an advanced age, make
their home in Palestine. According to one
opinion, there will be no dying after the ad-
vent of the Messiah.*"

There are, in Rabbinic literature, a few
references to a feast to be prepared for the
righteous at the end of days. The banquet
is to consist of Leviathan killed during the
first days of creation and preserved for the
purpose,'" of a tremendous ox " lying on a
thousand mountains and fed on the produce
of a thousand mountains," " and of wine
kept in the grapes since the creation of the
world."* This materialistic view went so far
as to consider, that the ox would be regarded
ritually fit for food after having been pierced
by the scales of Leviathan in a deadly strug-

THE TALMUDIC PERIOD 103

gle, and that the feast would be served only
to those who had observed the dietary laws/'

Although this materialistic view became
popular, and later gave rise to many legends,
we also find more exalted and more spiritual
opinions, which were later adopted by the
more rational school of Jewish thinkers, fol-
lowing Maimonides. A fanciful imagina-
tion, however, was not to be checked by ra-
tional philosophy. The Rabbinic pictures of
the Messianic age were taken literally by
many generations of Jews, who even believed
in the poetic conception of Rabban Gamaliel,
that the Palestinian soil would produce cakes
and silk dresses, the trees of Palestine would
bear fruit continuously, and Jewish women
would give birth to children every day.™

There was equally great uncertainty and
variety in the Rabbinic theories as to the
date of the arrival of the Messiah. An un-
limited number of extravagant opinions, ex-
pressed with calm certainty, are based upon
time-honored traditions and mystic calcula-

I04 THE MESSIAH IDEA

tion. There was an old belief that the world
would exist for six thousand years, and be-
come waste during the seventh thousand, the
thousands corresponding in number to the
days of creation. The first two thousand
years were considered as waste (Tohu), i. e.
without a revelation; the second two thou-
sand as law (Torah), i. e. with a revelation,
and the third two thousand as the days dur-
ing which the Messiah may be expected
(Yemoth ha-Mashiah)." The prophet Eli-
jah, who is made responsible for much specu-
lation, as a result of the belief in his fre-
quent revelations to the Rabbis, divulged to
one of the Amoraim, that the son of David
would come after the eighty-fifth jubilee
(4250 years) . In a manuscript, supposed to
have come from Rome, one of the Rabbis
found it written, that after 4291 (4231 ?)
years since the Creation, the world would
become orphaned, some of the following
years would be occupied with the wars of the
crocodiles, others with the wars of Gog and

THE TALMUDIC PERIOD 105

Magog, and the rest would be the Messianic
days, but God would not renew His world
until the beginning of the seventh millen-

72

mum.

Rabbi Hanina said, " If, after four hun-
dred years since the destruction of Jerusa-
lem, one should offer a field worth a thou-
sand denarii for one denar, do not buy it,
for the Messiah will soon come, when you
will get it for nothing." " Most of these
speculations having reference to the mystic
numbers seven and forty were based on the
mysterious passages in Daniel xii.

When many of these appointed periods
had passed, and the Messiah did not appear,
the Rabbis discouraged such calculations.
They made the cgrjiiiig pf -the Messiah de-
pendent on the good deeds of the people.'*
One Rabbi even pronounced a curse upon
those who speculate upon the date,.QLjthe
Messiah ; " for," said he, " if their calcula-
tions should prove false, the people will des-
pair of his coming^altogether." '° Two of

lo6 THE MESSIAH IDEA

the conditions God was believed to have
made with Israel were that Israel should not
be too importunate about the time of the end,
and should not reveal it." It is related that
the Divine presence departed from Jacob be-
cause he wished to reveal it to his children
before his death." One opinion has it, that
one of the conditions of the coming of the
Messiah is that the people will be In utter
despair about redemption." The prevalent
view ^f_the_ Rabbis_jv^sjrti^^
could be ha^tenedJialM
sin's, if only for one day. He will come as
soon as all Israelites observe two Sabbaths/"
or even one Sabbath,'^ with all the details of
the law. It was generally supposed that the
Messiah would make his appearance either in
the month of Nisan or Tishri.''

Though these extravagant pictures of the
Messianic age and of the person of the Mes-
siah were not always meant to be taken lit-
erally, nor considered by the people as bind-
ing dogmas of faith, still they exercised a

THE TALMUDIC PERIOD 107

tremendous influence on the Jewish concep-
tion of the ardently-awaited period. Un-
consciously, and perhaps against the wish of
the teachers, the person of the Messiah was
surrounded with a halo of Divine and super-
natural qualities, and the age of his coming
was associated with marvellous deeds and
supermundane beings." It must have seemed
to the unhappy nation that mere men could
accomplish nothing, and the belijef JiL-lh€'-
supernatural qualities of the Messia,h grew
as the distance lengthened between the ex-
iled nation and the days of its former
splendor.

"When the Roman Emperor Julian, known
in the Christian chronicles as the Apostate,
ordered the rebuilding of the Temple in Je-
rusalem (362), his kindly efforts, though
greatly appreciated, were unsuccessful,
mainly because of the scant enthusiasm
shown by the Jews.'* They could not ima-
1 gine that the Temple could be rebuilt without
the miracles and wonders described by the

Io8 THE MESSIAH IDEA

Rabbis, and they were, therefore, unwilling
to rely on the temporary kindness of a Ro-
man Emperor. There may be truth in the
stories current in the ancient chronicles, that
the Emperor had amply provided for the
whole cost of the building, that the distant
Jewish communities had forwarded large
sums of money for the rebuilding of the
Temple, and that women had sold their
jewelry and brought stones in their gar-
ments, but the fact that there is no mention
of this in contemporaneous Jewish litera-
ture*" proves the little heed paid to Julian's
magnanimous offer by the majority of the
Jews. They expected a Messiah who would
substantiate his claim to his title by a series
of miracles, and whose advent would be pre-
ceded and accompanied by a large number of
wonderful phenomena.

"Mlny misfortunes would have been pre-
vented, many blood-stained pages of our his-
tory would have been left unwritten, if the
Rabbinic injunction against calculating the

THE TALMUDIC PERIOD 109

date of the Messiah's appearance had been
heeded. As it was, the arrival of every date
suggested by one or the other of the Rabbis
caused general excitement among the people.
At such times there was never wanting an
impostor or a self-deluded dreamer to come
forward and take advantage of the oppor-
tunity, and thereby bring misery and horror
upon thousands. In accordance with an
ancient tradition of which mention has been
made above, the Messiah was to come in the
eighty-fifth jubilee, or between 4200 and
4250 A. M. (440-490 C. E.). When this
period arrived, the expectation of a change
in the condition of the Jews was strength-
ened by the favor shown them by Jezdijird,
a monarch of the Sassanian dynasty of Per-
sia (400-420) , and by the continuous misfor-
tunes that befell Rome, the mortal enemy of
Judea, from that time until its downfall in
476.

The hope became still stronger, when an
enthusiast by the name of IMoses arose in

I lO THE MESSIAH IDEA

the Island of Crete, or Candia, declared him-
self the Messiah, and attracted all the Jew-
ish congregations of the island, which was
then an important Jewish settlement. Busi-
ness was neglected, all the common pursuits
of life were forsaken, in the anxious expec-
tation of the time when the new Moses
should lead them dry-shod through the sea
into the Promised Land. So convinced were
the people of his mission and of his powers,
that they delivered all their belongings to
him, and men, women, and children followed
him to the sea. Standing on a promontory
projecting into the sea, he ordered them to
throw themselves into the ocean, as the
waters would surely part for them. The re-
sult can easily 'be imagined — many were
drowned, some were rescued by sailors. The
Christian chronicler^ who is the authority
for this account adds that many of the Jews
of Crete subsequently embraced Christianity.
As a result of this unfortunate incident,
Rabbi Ashi, one of the last of the Amoraim,

i

THE TALMUDIC PERIOD III

and famous as one of the compilers of the
Babylonian Talmud, thus interpreted the old
tradition : " Do not hope for the Messiah be-
fore the completion of eighty-five jubilees
from the creation of the world. After the
lapse of that period you may begin to enter-
tain hopes of his coming."" Thus the
Jews, whom the magnanimous offer of a Ro-
man emperor left incredulous, were deluded
by the fancies of an enthusiast or by the
snares of an impostor, merely because he
promised them miracles.

However, it must be conceded that it was
due to these extravagant and fanciful details
that the hope survived in the hearts of the
Jews during the dark ages, darkest for the
unfortunate Jews. Since the belief was that
the Messianic period would be preceded by
many misfortunes and perplexities for Israel,
the inference was that the greater the perse-
cutions of the enemy, the more cruel the atti-
tude of the ruler, the sooner will the Messiah
come. The extraordinary events accompa-

112 THE MESSIAH IDEA

nying his coming, such as the wars of the
nations and the aa'rival of Ehjah to prepare
the people for his appearance, prevented
many impostors from declaring themselves
Messiahs. The confidence of the people as
a whole could not be gained unless all the
details prescribed by the Rabbis were com-
plied with. Compared with the many troub-
lous years the Jews passed during the middle
ages, the number of false Messiahs that arose
from time to time is surprisingly small.

The magnificent pictures of the future
kingdom, the glorious position of Israel, the
vengeance the Messiah would wreak upon all
of Israel's enemies, and the vision of the re-
stored Jerusalem and the rebuilt Temple,
were a constant consolation to the oppressed
and downtrodden Israelites. They fondled
the hope with intense affection, the mother
sang it to her babe, the father on all occa-
sions related it to his household, the teacher
impressed it upon the minds and hearts of his
pupils — all were invigorated by the assur-

THE TALMUDIC PERIOD II3

ance to suffer and hope, to withstand the on-
slaughts of the enemy, and remain faithful
to their rehgion. The feehng of the ancient
Jew toward his persecutor was not so much
one of hatred and revenge as of sneering
pity. Even while on the rack, undergoing
the most excruciating pains at the hands of
the executioner, we can imagine the pious
Jew of old thinking to himself : " I suffer
now, but what is this suffering when com-
pared with the bliss and glory that await me
in the future ? I may die from the wounds
inflicted upon me, but I shall live again when
the Messiah comes and restores the kingdom
of Judah to its ancient glory. All these in-
quisitors, judges, and executioners will then
stand at my door begging for admittance.
All the nations of the earth will then be my
servants, anxious to be the subjects of the
King Messiah. They do not see it now, but
I see and believe and hope, and hence can
die in peace."

CHAPTER IV
The Rise of Rationalism

Spread of Mohammedanism — The Geonim and their
Influence — Rabbinic Authority questioned by the
Arabic Jews — The Messiah to lighten the Yoke
of Rabbinism — Serene of Syria advocates Laxity
in the Law — Abu-Isa of Ispahan opposes the
Abbassides — " The Mysteries of Rabbi_ Simeon
ben Johai " — Rise of Karaism — Incentive to a
Rational Study of the Bible — Judah Judghan —
Jewish Religious Philosophy — Saadia Gaon and
his Rational Views on the Messianic Beliefs —
On the Resurrection — He accounts for Israel's
Trials — Two Possible Periods of Redemption —
Saadia on the Date of the Messiah — Hai Gaon
— Abraham Albargeloni's Universalism — " The
Book of Zerubbabel "—The Mother of the Mes-
siah— Jehudah Halevi — Patriotic Spirit in his
Poems — " The Kuzari " — Israel the Heart of the
World — The Mission of Israel — David Alrui —
Moses Maimonides — The Messianic Belief an
Article of Faith — Maimonides takes Rabbinic
Exaggerations figuratively — The Greatest Bless-
ing of the Future — His Belief in the Resur-
rection not Definite — Hasdai Crescas and Joseph
Albo — Their Theory of the Resurrection —
Rationalistic Conceptions not universally ac-
cepted— Still wield a Potent Influence.

While the Byzantine Court was busily-
engaged in paganizing Christianity and
strengthening an ecclesiasticism intolerant of
learning and every other competing force, a

THE RISE OF RATIONALISM 1 15

mighty power was growing up in the East,
which was destined to wield its relentless
sword over the followers of the religion of
Paul and Constantine, and destroy the great
and cruel Christian power of the Orient.
Weakened by degeneracy within and the re-
peated onslaughts of Vandal and Goth, the
Christian empire fell an easy prey to the war-
like, zealous, and fanatic followers of Mo-
hammed. For a time it seemed as if the
Koran would entirely displace the Christian
Bible, as if Mecca would succeed Jerusalem,
Rome, and Constantinople. Not content
with the conquest of Asia and Africa, the
sons of the desert directed their gaze toward
Europe, and with the Arabs of those days
desiring a thing was almost synonymous
with obtaining it. Aided by the Jewish in-
habitants of Spain, who had been made the
target of monkish superstition and royal
greed, they succeeded in establishing them-
selves on the Peninsula, whence they began
new operations, with a view to exterminat-

Ii6 THE MESSIAH IDEA

ins: the whole Christian world. For almost
eight centuries, Islam kept a foothold in
Spain, and its adherents exerted a potent in-
fluence upon European civilization.

At first the crescent offered the Jews no
better protection than the cross. Omar's de-
crees were directed against Jews and Chris-
tians alike. The later Caliphs, however,
treated the Jews with great consideration,
and regarded them as the equals of the Mos-
lems. They appeared to the Jews to be their
liberators from the Christian yoke. Under
the fourth Caliph, Ali (656-661), the Jews
of Babylon enjoyed a considerable amount of
freedom. The Exilarchate, which was then
held by Bostanai, and the Gaonate, under
Mar Isaac, were officially recognized by him.

The Geonim exerted great influence upon
the development of Judaism in the Diaspora,
the Gaonates of Sora and of Pumbedita
holding the same position as the Sanhedrin
of Jabne had held soon after the destruction
of Jerusalem. The Talmud was already a

THE RISE OF RATIONALISM 1 1?

recognized authority, of almost equal im-
portance with the Bible, and the Geonim ex-
pounded its laws and precepts with a view
to their practical application, as the Amo-
raim had expounded the Mishnah and the
Tannaim the Bible. They were accorded
the greatest reverence by almost all the
Jews of the Orient. Questions in law were
addressed to them for decision by Jews in all
parts of the world, who submitted to their
authority unreservedly. This power of in-
terpreting Talmudic legal precepts was sup-
plemented by the power of introducing new
institutions, punishing offenders, and regu-
lating worship and the liturgy.

The Arabian Jews were the first to ques-
tion the supreme authority of the Rabbinic
law, as Interpreted by the Geonim. It was
probably their intercourse with the cultured
Arabs that produced an intellectual inde-
pendence rmknown to their co-religionists
living in less favored circumstances. Re-
/spect for Talmudic authority weakened in

Ii8 THE MESSIAH IDEA

proportion to their greater familiarity with
the Bible and their recognition of the inher-
ent weakness of the foundations upon which
many of the Rabbinic institutions were
based. A large number of them rejected
Talmudic Judaism, acknowledging the au-
thority of the Bible alone/ Later, the spirit
of rebellion against the Rabbinic authority
became stronger and more pronounced, until,
after the lapse of two centuries, a party was
formed which separated itself from Rabbin-
ism and eventually from Judaism, and is
now lost to the Jewish people.

The burden of Rabbinism was considered
so oppressive by these early dissenters that
they reckoned it among the ills from which
they hoped to be delivered by the Messiah,
who was expected to remove all evils from
the house of Israel. The prevalence of the
Messianic hope was taken advantage of by a
bold adventurer, Serene of Syria, or Irak
(about 720). He proclaimed himself the
Messiah who would expel the Mohamme-

THE RISE OF RATIONALISM HQ

dans from the Holy Land, and restore the
Jews to their ancient inheritance. As the
first work of redemption, he set about abol-
ishing Talmudic ordinances, changing the
ritual, disregarding the dietary laws and the
observance of the second days of the holi-
days, permitting the use of wine that had
been touched by a non-Jew, neglecting the
details of the preparation of marriage con-
tracts (Kethuboth) and of bills of divorce
(Gittin), and -even allowing intermarriage
within the prohibited degrees of consanguin-
ity and affinity. Serene's hostile attitude to-
ward Rabbinism secured for him a large
following, and his fame so spread through-
out Jewry that even the Jews of distant
Spain were ready to abandon their property
and their possessions and follow the lead of
the Messiah. His glory was short-lived.
He was captured by the officers of the Ca-
liph Yezid, and, admitting that he was mak-
ing sport of the credulous Jews, he was
handed over to the Jewish authorities for

I20 THE MESSIAH IDEA

punishment. In accordance with a decree of
Rabbi Natronai Gaon, his adherents were re-
admitted to the Jewish community after pub-
Hcly declaring their allegiance to the precepts
of the Talmud and suffering flagellation, a
mild punishment considering the spirit of
the age and the unlimited powers of the
Gaonate/

An exactly opposite policy was pursued
by another false Messiah, Obayah Abu-Isa
ben Ishak, who arose three decades later in
the Persian town of Ispahan. The changes
in liturgy and observance which he tried to
introduce tended rather toward increasing
than lessening the burden of the Talmudic
laws. He abolished divorce, even in the
case of adultery, prohibited the use of meat
and wine, declared himself opposed to sacri-
ficial worship, and, on the strength of a pas-
sage in the Psalms,' established seven times
of daily prayer instead of the accepted three.
He found many adherents among the Jews
of Persia, ten thousand of whom, it is said,*

THE RISE OF RATIONALISM I2I

were ready to take up arms at his command.
According to one authority, Abu-Isa con-
sidered himself, not the Messiah, but merely
the last of the five percursors of the Mes-
siah, and thought it was his mission to liber-
ate the Jews by means of the sword." The
time of his coming was most propitious for
revolt. It was then that the Omeyyad dy-
nasty came to an end amidst fierce fighting.
The Mohammedan world was in the throes
of a terrible revolution. Abu-Isa took ad-
vantage of this opportunity. He was in the
very thick of the fight. With his army he
went to the camp of Abu Sinbad, the antag-
onist of the Abbassides. The defeat of Abu
Sinbad marked his own fall.

In spite of the many miracles he is said
to have performed,* Abu-Isa did not succeed
in making himself immortal, and his follow-
ers dispersed after his death in battle (755).
But his memory was treasured for many
years by his adherents, who formed them-
selves into a sect, the first Jewish sect since

122 THE MESSIAH IDEA

the fall of Jerusalem. Under the name of
Isavites or Ispahanites, it existed for nearly
three centuries. The Isavites followed im-
plicitly the precepts of their master, and con-
sidered themselves the successors of the
Rechabites, who are mentioned in the Bible
as an ascetic sect. It is not recorded whether
they expected Abu-Isa to appear again. In
general we know none of the details of their
Messianic beliefs. It is, however, an inter-
esting fact that a religious sect, the basis of
whose behef was the Messianic hope, existed
among the Jews before the rise of Karaism.
Anan was not the first heretic in the Syna-
gogue.

The troublous times of the schism and re-
bellion in the Mohammedan camp revived
the hope for a Messiah among all the Jews
under the rule of the Caliphs. Almost con-
temporaneous with the activity of Abu-Isa
in Persia and Babylon, a Messianic apoca-
lypse appeared in Palestine, " The Mysteries
of Rabbi Simeon son of Johai." ^ The

THE RISE OF RATIONALISM 123

angel Metatron is made to reveal to the
I Tanna Rabbi Simeon ben Johai, whose
i name is connected with a number of mystical
I writings of various ages and lands, the inci-
dents which will occur at the end of days.
I This is the oldest mystical writing of the
Geonic period in which contemporary events
are made the basis for a construction of the
ideal future. To the Tanna's vehement
question, " Is it not sufficient that we had to
suffer so much at the hands of Edom (Rome,
Christians) ? Must we now undergo perse-
cution also under the rule of Ishmael (Arabs,
Mohammedans) ? " The angel replies,
" Fear not, O son of man, for the Holy One,
blessed be He, established the kingdom of
Ishmael for the sole purpose of redeeming
thee from this wicked kingdom (Edom).
He gave them a prophet in accordance with
His will, and this prophet conquered the
land (Palestine), and they will return it (to
Israel) with glory, and there will be great
hatred (fear?) between them and the sons

124 THE MESSIAH IDEA

of Esau," and the angel quotes Biblical pas-
sages in support of this view.

Then follows a survey of the history of
the Caliphs to the end of the reign of the
last of the Omeyyads, when the Messiah son
of Joseph will appear, restore the Jews to
Palestine, and rebuild the Temple in Jerusa-
lem, but he will be slain by the wicked King
Armilus, " son of Satan and a stone," ' who
will also drive the Jews out of Palestine.
Thereupon the real Messiah, the son of
David, will be revealed to them by God, but
they will refuse to believe in him, and will
despise him. Later, when they return to God
in humility and repentance, on account of
the terrible distress of those days, the Mes-
siah will kill Armilus, and bring the Jews
back to Palestine.

Like all the preceding Messianic apoca-
lypses, this also contains many fanciful de-
tails about the cleansing and rebuilding of
Jerusalem, the restoration of the Temple
service, and the temporary Messianic period.

THE RISE OF RATIONALISM I25

to be followed by the Day of Judgment.
This apocalypse regards the " Gehenna " as
a purgatory, employed at the time of judg-
ment to cleanse the wicked of their sins. To
those who manifest faith in God, the fire of
Gehenna will appear as cold as water, and,
passing through it, they will enter Paradise
to enjoy eternal bliss. The wicked, how-
ever, will remain there for twelve months,
and then be taken into Paradise.

The Geonim of Sora and of Pumbedita,
engrossed in the study of the Talmud and in
the application of its laws, took but little
notice of the spirit of rebellion gradually
developing. When the danger became im-
minent, and anti-Rabbinic views were enter-
tained by even the learned and the influen-
tial, the Rabbis came forth with all the
weapons at their command to combat the
enemy. The artificial measures they could
apply availed little to check the rising tide.
They succeeded, indeed, in dispossessing
Anan of the Exilarchate {762), and in com-

126 THE MESSIAH IDEA

pelling him to flee from Babylon to Palestine
because of his heretical views, but their ana-
themas did not prevent him from building
his own synagogue and promulgating a doc-
trine which was destined to undermine, and
finally overthrow, their authority among
a large number of Jews.

Karaism gained ground in all the import-
ant Jewish communities. The hatred to-
ward the Talmud and its adherents became
so fierce that Anan once declared, he wished
all the Rabbinites were in his own body, so
that, killing himself, he might destroy them
all. But there is no absolute evil in this
world. Indirectly Karaism brought much
good to Israel. It induced the Talmudists
to apply themselves with greater zeal to the
study of the Bible, the stronghold of the
Karaite, so that they might be in a position
to defend their own principles.

The rational study of the Bible and of
Jewish doctrine among the Jews of Babylon
was helped on by still another influence. The

THE RISE OF RATIONALISM 127

rise of the Mohammedan MutaziHsts (ra-
tionahsts), who substituted a rational for
the literal interpretation of the Koran, could
not but affect the Jewish student of the
Bible. At first the Rabbis were strenuously
opposed to such tendencies, and did their
utmost to prevent them from creeping into
the schools, only to be in the end defeated.
Among the Karaites these rationalistic ten-
dencies gave rise to the establishment of va-
rious sects, A Persian Jew, Judah Jud-
ghan of Hamadan, who pretended to be the
herald of the Messiah (about 800)," was an
ardent believer in the Mutazilist methods of
interpretation. He succeeded in obtaining
many followers, who preserved their iden-
tity for many years after Judah's death, and
believed in his re-appearance, as the Mo-
hammedan Shiites believed in the re-appear-
ance of Ali."

From Arabia the impulse for a rational in-
vestigation of Jewish doctrine passed to
Egypt, to Cordova, to Toledo,, until it affect-

128 THE MESSIAH IDEA

ed the minds of all Jews, left an indelible
mark on Jewish opinions and beliefs, and
gave birth to that fruitful and noble litera-
ture, the philosophic Jewish literature of the
middles ages, in whose production Karaism
was by no means the least factor.

Saadia Gaon (892-942) was one of the
pioneers who, without fear of impairing
faith, constructed a Jewish religious philoso-
phy on the basis of the Bible and of tradi-
tion, in agreement with the philosophic no-
tions of his tim.e. Two chapters of his im-
portant book, " Opinions and Beliefs," de-
mand our special consideration, since they
deal with the subject of the Messiah. These
are the chapters on the resurrection of the
dead (7) and the last redemption (8).

His discussion of the questions relating to
the Messianic period introduces few new
facts, but it attempts to rationalize the nu-
merous prevalent beliefs and teachings. He
argues the possibility of the restoration of
Israel and of the resurrection of the dead as

THE RISE OF RATIONALISM I2g

a corollary to the belief in God's ability to
create the world, and considers these mir-
acles inevitable, as the realization of God's
promises to Israel recorded in the Bible."
Against those who hold, that the Messi-
if-" anic hope at the present time has no Biblical
foundation, since all the prophetic promises
were fulfilled in the return from Babylon
and the establishment of the second com-
monwealth, Saadia brings fifteen arguments.
Five are based on experience, five on Scrip-
ture, and five on tradition. They show that
the promises have not been fulfilled, and
hence must refer to the remote future. The
same arguments he directs against the belief
of the Christians, that the promises have ref-
erence to the appearance of Jesus, whom
they regard as the Messiah heralded by the
prophets." Likewise, he attempts to account
for the miracle of resurrection, as not only
possible to an omnipotent God, but even as a
physical possibility. The elements of the
body cannot be lost or destroyed; they re-

130 THE MESSIAH IDEA

main somewhere in the world even after
death, and are ready to be joined again at
the will of God. In support of this doctrine,
he quotes the Biblical references to resur-
rection, and shows that the passages which
appear to deny the doctrine refer to some-
thing else, and the passages alluding to it
must be taken literally. He considers pos-
sible even the Talmudic belief, that the dead
will arise in the same garments in which
they were buried.

Saadia's theory to account for Israel's se-
vere and long-continued trials is, that they
were intended either as a punishment for
Israel's sins or as a test of faith. Their
very severity seems to presage the approach
of the Messianic kingdom. Israel's troubles
must ultimately cease, since God is perfect in
justice.

He who laughs at us for our beUef, and regards
us as fools for suffering, when we could be happy
by renouncing our nationality, is himself a fool,
for he knows not what we have endured, and what
tests we have undergone for our faith, as one, who
never saw the sowing of wheat, laughs at the sower

THE RISE OF RATIONALISM 131

scattering grains over the field, for he knows not
that at the harvest he will gain twenty or thirtyfold
what he has cast away.

Another point on which he lays stress is
the effect of Israel's real repentance. He em-
phasizes a point already mentioned in " The
Mysteries of Rabbi Simeon ben Johai,"
that, because of Israel's unworthiness, there
shall appear firsX.,npt_..tlie..J^^
David, but the Messiah son of loseph, re-
garding; wjios^^^^^ and death at the

hands_.^of ArmHuSj^ jn W attempt to regain
Palestine, he adds, -little that is new. He
seems to have been largely influenced by the
description of the Messianic days as given
in this Geonic apocalypse. From the four
corners of the earth, the nations shall present
their Jewish subjects to King Messiah, who
shall lead them back to Palestine. The
Temple shall be rebuilt in splendor, and the
righteous and the repentant dead of all gen-
erations shall rise to life everlasting. They
shall know each other. For a time only,
they shall have material wants and pleasures,

132 THE MESSIAH IDEA

to be finally removed to Paradise. The
crippled, the blind, and the lame shall rise
in their infirmities, and, after they are rec-
ognized by their families and friends, they
shall be made whole. Calculating the ap-
proximate number of people at that time,
Saadia concludes that the earth will not be
too small for them. Each person will have
at his disposal nearly two hundred and
eighty-eight cubits of ground." Faith shall
then be universal and be richly rewarded.
The people of those days and the people
born after the resurrection shall live very
long, though not forever." "And all the
children of Israel shall be possessed of the
power of prophecy, desirous of doing good
and avoiding all evil."

This Messianic period induced by true re-
pentance is one possible period of redemp-
tion, the other is the period of the " promised
end," according to the prophecy in the Book
of Daniel. This would come at the end of
days even if Israel's repentance be incom-

THE RISE OF RATIONALISM 1 33

plete. Then, disregarding the strict Tal-
mudic injunction, he devotes a long para-
graph to the calculation of Messianic dates,
according to the word of the angel to Daniel.
His conclusions are not very clear, but he
seems to have expected the Messiah in his
own days (964)/°

Saadia was often criticised for transpfress-
ing the Rabbinical prohibition by his calcu-
lation of the date of the redemption. Mai-
monides, though condemning the practice,
endeavored to justify Saadia. He says"
Saadia was compelled to do it, in order to
strengthen the Messianic hope in the minds
of the Jews of his time, who, impatient about
the end, were all conjecturing as to the date,
and, seeking Biblical passages upon which to
base their conclusions. The Rabbinical pro-
hibition was not much heeded even by later
writers. During the Crusades, the German
and French Jews were excitedly awaiting
the advent of the Messiah, because a mystic,
Eliezer ben Nathan Kontras, calculated that

134 THE MESSIAH IDEA

the Messiah would come in the two hundred
and fifty-sixth cycle of the moon (between
1096 and 1 104)."

Elijah and even the Messiah play rather
unimportant parts in Saadia's eschatology,
for God is the Redeemer who will perform
all the acts of mercy for His people Israel.
Saadia's view, that the resurrection will take
place during the Messianic period, and will
not be postponed to " the world to come," "*
is shared by Rabbi Hai Gaon (969-1038),
the last of the Geonim. He adds, however,
that those who die after the resurrection
shall be revived at the end of the Messianic
age, when a new world will be established
("the world to come "), into which all the
righteous and all the repentant sinners,
whether Jews or gentiles, who recognize the
God of Israel, will be admitted, while all
others will go to Gehenna."

Rabbi . Vb raham .fe^n Hivva Aljjargeloni .
called the Prince (1065-1136), a famous
Jewish astronomer of Castile, formulates a

¥

THE RISE OF RATIONALISM 135

very exalted vie\v_of_^the MeasianJjC..p,e-dAd.^
God will forgive all sins, even the sin of the
first man, will remove the evil desire from
the hearts of men, and strengthen the faith
of all who believe in Him. War will cease
with the extinction of all evil passions and
the perfect development of all good latent in
the human heart. Albargeloni's theory, ex-
pressed at the end of his treatise, of the per-
fection of men's minds and souls in the time
of the Messiah, is almost modern. With the
exception of the use of Biblical passages as
the basis for argument, it sounds more like
the reasoning of a modern evolutionary phi-
losopher than of a Jewish philosopher of the )
eleventh century.

Some new fancies added to the many Mes-
sianic prophecies appear in an apocalypse,
"The Book of Zerubbabel,'"^- compiled,
probably by anJU:ajygjn^a\Y^.,atjabout this
time. We find the same background as be-
fore, and the same dramatis personce — Mes-
siah son of Joseph, here called Nehemiah

136 THE MESSIAH IDEA

ben Hushiel; Messiah son of David, here
named Menahem ben Amiel (Comforter, son
of God's people) ; Ehjah, and the same Ar-
milus, the anti-Messiah, born of Satan and a
marble statue. One new character is intro-
duced, the mother of the Messiah, Hephzi-
bah ("my desire is in her"). Guided on
her path by a great star, she will appear five
years before the coming of the Messiah son
of Joseph, and will slay two mighty kings
with the staff of Aaron, which was preserved
in Tiberias.

The background of this fanciful descrip-
tion of the Messianic age is as follows :
Zerubbabel, the scion of the house of David,
desires to know something about the destiny
of his afflicted people. He is thereupon car-
ried to Rome, " the bloody city," where he
meets the Messiah of hideous appearance,
soon to be transformed into a beautiful
youth, and is introduced to him by the angel
Metatron. The angel tells Zerubbabel, how
the Messiah has been living in Rome since

THE RISE OF RATIONALISM 1 37

the days of Nebuchadnezzar, under the dis-
guise of a deformed and hideous creature,
and reveals to him the date of his appear-
ance (990 years after the destruction of the
Temple, 1058 or 1060 C, E.),'^ and the inci-
dents of the Messianic era. In this apoca-
lypse, Elijah is supposed to revive only the
slain Nehemiah Messiah son of Joseph, to-
gether with the faithful who met death at
the time of persecution, as well as the gener-
ation of the wilderness.

The most sympathetic and most lovable
character among the sages and philosophers
whose names adorn the pages of Spanish
Jewish history is that of Rabbi Jehudah Ha-
levi ( 1080-1 142 ?) , a poet and a philosopher,
but above all a true Jewish patriot, whose
heart was consumed with a great love for
his people and its land. As a medieval phi-
losopher, he naturally believes in the preva-
lent Messianic fancies, but in speaking of the
future of Israel or of Palestine, his soul be-
comes aglow with sacred enthusiasm, and in

138 THE MESSIAH IDEA

the fervor and passion of his patriotism he
forgets them all. We need read only his
Zionistic poems " to obtain an insight into
the workings of the soul of this great and
loyal Jew.

Do not calculate the date of redemption, wait
patiently, do not hasten, thou shalt yet behold the
glory of My work. Say unto those who boast of
possessing kings and princes, " My king is the Holy
One of Jacob, He is the Rock of my redemption." "

The poet believed implicitly in the eternity
of the Jewish nation, and, with magnificent
optimism, even when the period in which the
Messiah was expected had passed,^' he sang
of Israel's redemption through Elijah ^ and
through Messiah, the scion of the house of
Jesse,^^ and of the vengeance wreaked upon
" Edom and Arab," because they helped in
the destruction of Israel's land.'' Like the
sun and the moon which stand forever, so
will the sons of Jacob remain a nation for-
ever. If God repulses them with His left
hand, He immediately brings them nigh with
His right hand. The children of Israel must

I

THE RISE OF RATIONALISM 139

believe in their own eternity as a nation, and
not despair when troubles and misfortunes
come upon them.^'

His Kuzari, as much a book of poetry as
of philosophy, contains many references to
the Messiah and the Messianic period, but
not a complete theory. Jehudah Halevi com-
pares Israel's relation to the other nations of
the world to that of the heart to the other
organs of the body. Israel supplies vitality
to all the spiritual forces that move human-
ity, and is subject to all the ills and maladies
that afflict the human heart.'" It is of Israel

that the prophet said, " Surely, he hath borne
our griefs, and carried our sorrows.'' '' The
dispersion of Israel is also in accordance
with the Divine plan. As the grain of seed
planted in the soil must decay before it may
bud forth in beauty and splendor, so Israel,
despised and forsaken, shall again blossom
forth in perfect beauty. Christianity and
Islam are preparing the way for a better
recognition of the ideals of Judaism. When

140 THE MESSIAH IDEA

all mankind shall learn to appreciate the true
value of the stem, the fruit of which they
have so long enjoyed, they will give honor
to Israel, and, with the chosen people, will
enter the Messianic kingdom.''' Both in the
Kuzari " and in his poems,^^ Halevi refers,
though without much stress, to the belief in
the resurrection, and some modern scholars ^^
interpret his words as identifying resurrec-
tion with the immortality of the soul.

In the philosophy of Jehudah Halevi we
find an element not to be discerned in earlier
writings. Halevi finds it necessary to prove,
that Israel has a reason for existence, and
that, before it receives the Messianic bless-
ings, it must perform the mission of spread-
ing God's revelation among the nations. The
accomplishment of this mission depends,
however, not so much upon Israel as upon
the nations, who must learn to appreciate
Judaism and then accept it. This point is
interesting, especially when viewed in the
light of the wider application given it with

THE RISE OF RATIONALISM 141

the spread of the modern Jewish reform
movement. As we shall see in a future chap-
ter, the notion of a Jewish mission is a prom-
inent element in the reform movement.

Although Jewish learning had departed
from the East, to find a more congenial soil
in Moorish Spain, important Jewish com-
munities still flourished in Bagdad and in
Mosul. Because of the freedom granted
them by the ruling Caliphs, they exercised
considerable influence on their surroundings.
Since the Jews of Babylon were not so
learned and so refined as their brethren in
European lands, it was much easier for a
false Messiah to command their confidence
and obtain a large following. The confu-
sion of legend and fact is so profound that
it is difficult to ascertain the motives that
prompted David Alrui (about 1160) to de-
clare himself the Messiah. David Alrui
was handsome, ambitious, and versatile,
well-versed in Bible and in Talmud as well as
in Arabic literature, and held in high esteem

142 THE MESSIAH IDEA

by Jews and Arabs alike. The confusion
throughout Asia Minor resulting from the
repeated onslaughts of the Crusaders and the
weakness of a Caliphate under which so sub-
ordinate an officer as Saladin could rise to
the position he attained, encouraged the
Kurdistan youth in his speculations, and de-
termined him to gain his end by diplomatic
means. He was still more encouraged by
the ready response of the Jews of Bagdad
and other places, who came armed at his call.
We need not enter here upon a discussion
as to the truth of the many miracles he is
said to have performed in the presence of
the Persian Sultan, nor of the shrewdness of
the two knaves who took advantage of the
excitement of the people to defraud the Jews
of Bagdad of their property. Suffice it to
say, that the leaders of the Jewish commu-
nity, realizing the danger that threatened
them at the hands of the ruler if they per-
mitted Alrui to continue in his delusion,
asked him to desist from his operations.

THE RISE OF RATIONALISM 143

The Mohammedan ruler of Amadia, how-
ever, took the more effective course of order-
ing Alrui's father-in-law to put an end to
him while he was asleep. A persecution of
the Jews followed, and the wrath of the
Sultan was appeased only after he was pre-
sented with a hundred talents of gold by the
Jewish community. Many Jews continued
to revere Alrui as the Messiah, and even used
his name in their oaths.^'

The development of Jewish religious phi-
losophy during the middle ages reached its
height in the works of Moses Maimonides
( 1 135-1204). A recognized authority in
Jewish law, admired for his deep knowledge
and upright character, and held in highest
esteem by all the Jews of the Diaspora, the
j sage of Cairo was perhaps the person best
fitted to formulate a Jewish creed.

" Maimonides must indeed have filled up a great

gap in Jewish theology," says Dr. Schechter,'^^ " a

i gap, moreover, the existence of which was very gen-

' erally perceived. A century had hardly passed before

the Thirteen Articles had become a theme for the

144 THE MESSIAH IDEA

poets of the synagogue. And almost every country
where Jews lived can show a poem or a prayer
founded on these articles."

No article of belief had become so buried
in extravagant fancies as the Messianic hope,
which is incorporated in the last two articles
of his creed. Maimonides' view with re-
gard to these articles can best be ascertained
from his Introduction to the whole subject,
in his commentary to the last chapter of the
Talmudic treatise Sanhedrin. In discussing
the various popular conceptions of the re-
ward awaiting those that follow the com-
mandments of God, he mentions a class of
people who believe that the expected good
will come in the Messianic age, when men
shall be like angels, immortal, of great stat-
ure, and very prolific; when the earth shall
produce ready-made garments, and baked
bread, and other such impossibilities. An-
other class of people hope for the resurrec-
tion, when, in the company of their families
and dear ones, they shall enjoy the blessings
of the earth, and shall never die again. An-

THE RISE OF RATIONALISM 145

Other class, very numerous, combine all
these hopes. They believe that after the
Messiah has come and has revived the dead,
all will be translated to Paradise, where,
throughout eternity, they will eat, and drink,
and enjoy perfect physical health.

The common people, Maimonides con-
tinues, do not attempt to investigate the real
meaning of the hope of a future life. They
are rather concerned about the material and
the concrete: "How will the dead rise?
naked or clothed ? attired in the embroidered
shrouds in which they were interred, or
dressed in a simple garment to cover their
flesh ? " With regard to the coming of the
Messiah, they are concerned with such specu-
lations as to whether there will then be rich
and poor, weak and strong. It is well
enough for the teacher to attract his youth-
ful pupil to study first with figs and honey,
and then with the prospect of wealth and
fame. Men of intelligence ought to know
better. Likewise, material descriptions of

146 THE MESSIAH IDEA

future bliss are merely a means to an end,
designed for the average man, who is un-
able to comprehend exalted spiritual truths,
as the school-boy is unable to appreciate the
value of knowledge for its own sake. The
concessions made by the prophets and the
Rabbis had an educational value, inasmuch
as they were meant to foster virtue. For
men the love of knowledge and the apprecia-
tion of the spiritual value of the command-
ments of God should be the only and the
most potent stimulus.

Then he presents the first rational picture
of the Messianic age that had appeared for
many centuries. The Messianic age will be
one in which Israel will regain its sovereign-
ty and return to Palestine under the Mes-
siah. He will be a great king, whose name
will be known among all the nations, and
whose fame will exceed that of Solomon.
All the nations that are delivered into his
hand will live in peace with him and will
pay homage to him. But there will be no

THE RISE OF RATIONALISM 147

change in the course of nature. Although
it will be easier for man to earn a livelihood,
there will be then, as there are now, rich
and poor, strong and weak. All the prom-
ises of the Rabbis about ready-made gar-
ments and baked bread produced by the earth
are merely figurative expressions, intended
to denote the ease with which man, under
the rule of the Messiah, will acquire the
necessaries of life.

The greatest blessing of those days will
be that man, free from the trammels of war,
will be able to devote all his time to the study
of wisdom and to the fulfilment of God's
laws. The Messiah will die, and his son will
become king in his stead, and there will be
no immortality, but the people will live much
longer, because they will not be harassed by
the troubles and worries that beset us now.
We hope for the Messiah, not because we
shall then enjoy great prosperity, ride on
horses, drink wine, and enjoy fine music, but
because, under the rule of a righteous king

148 THE MESSIAH IDEA

and in the company of all the righteous, we
shall be able, unhampered, to devote our-
selves to spiritual work, an idea which he
frequently dwelt on. The belief in the res-
urrection of the dead is a fundamental prin-
ciple of the Mosaic religion, and he who de-
nies this cannot claim to be an adherent of
Judaism. Only the righteous will rise, the
wicked, who are regarded as dead even while
they are yet alive, will have no share in it.
Maimonides then follows up this forceful
and significant argument with the enumera-
tion of the thirteen articles of the creed which
he regards as essential principles of Judaism.
Throughout his later writings, Maimo-
nides seems to have clung to the conception
of the Messianic period to which, in his
youth, he gave utterance in the Siraj. In
his legal code, the Mishneh Torali^^ he says,
" And do not imagine for a moment that the
king Messiah will have to perform wonders
and miracles, create new phenomena in na-
ture, and cause the resurrection of the dead

THE RISE OF RATIONALISM 149

. . . , but the world will go on in its usual
course." From the writings of the prophets
it appears, that at the beginning of the Mes-
sianic period, before the wars of Gog and
Magog, a prophet will arise to prepare Israel
for the advent of the Messiah and make
peace among the nations. Some are of the
opinion that Elijah will then appear. But
no one can foretell the exact nature of this
future state, and it is unnecessary to indulge
in useless speculation about unessential de-
tails. In another place, in the same book,^
he again emphasizes the idea, that knowl-
edge, wisdom, and truth will characterize
that glorious period, the Messiah himself will
be wiser than Solomon, and almost as great
a prophet as Moses. He will teach the word
of God to all, and all nations will come to
listen to his wisdom. There will be no dif-
ference between those days and the present
time, except that Israel will regain the sov-
ereignty over Palestine. In his letter to
Yemen, where the sorely-tried Jews had

ISO THE MESSIAH IDEA

been led astray by an enthusiast who pro-
claimed himself the forerunner of the Mes-
siah, Maimonides points out the danger and
impiety of attempting to calculate the date
of the advent of the IMessiah, which has
been purposely concealed. It is very curious,
however, that while he condemns the specu-
lation about the exact date of the Messiah's
coming, he mentions in the same letter, that,
according to a tradition handed down in his
family, prophecy, the forerunner of the Mes-
siah, will re-appear in the year 1216.*°

While Maimonides' conception of the
Messiah and of the Messianic age is thus
clearly and fully stated, he is less clear about
the resurrection, although he believed in it,
and included this belief in his articles of
faith, and even went so far as to deny a por-
tion in Judaism to him who disbelieved in it.
Still, when one of his contemporaries (Has-
dai Halevi)" asked him to explain the belief,
he answered evasively, that this miracle can
be explained only by faith, and not by rea-

THE RISE OF RATIONALISM 151

son. When the opposition to his " Guide
for the Perplexed " reached its acutest point
in Bagdad, Maimonides found it necessary
to explain his position with regard to resur-
rection in a separate treatise,*^ in which he
repeated the assertion that his theory of im-
mortality did not contradict the belief in
resurrection, and, although the latter cannot
be verified by scientific methods of reasoning,
it is a cardinal principle of Judaism.

The later Jewish philosophers, almost all
of whom base their views on Maimonides,
either confirming or opposing his theories,
are more pronoimced about this belief, and
try, if not to prove it scientifically, at least to
show that it is not opposed to science. Most
of them, however, refuse to include either
the belief in the resurrection of the dead or
the belief in the coming of the Messiah
among the essential principles of the Jewish
religion.

Hasdai Crescas (1340-1410)" admits that
resurrection, although a miracle, impossible

152 THE MESSIAH IDEA

of proof on rational grounds, is " not very
far from natural." He strongly objects to
the assumption of Maimonides and some of
his followers, that after the resurrection na-
ture will continue in its course, men will
sicken and die, and eternal bliss will await
the righteous only in " the world to come,"
where the soul freed from the mortal clay
will be admitted to a close contemplation of
the Divine presence. He takes the view that
we dare not disregard the belief expressed by
the Rabbis, that " the revived dead will never
return to dust any more," '* and expresses
a desire that the adherents of this great
hope shall cling to every detail of the belief
as formulated by our sages.

Joseph Albo (1380-1444), a disciple of
Hasdai, considers ^ the belief in the resur-
rection proper, though not essential, and
tries to establish it from the instance of
Elisha's revival of the son of the Shunam-
mite woman. He argues that just as we can-
not explain magnetic attraction, in which we

THE RISE OF RATIONALISM 153

nevertheless believe, because we know it
from experience, so we must also believe in
the resurrection, since its possibility has been
established by experience. He also uses
Saadia's argument, that resurrection is a
much simpler phenomenon than creation out
of nothing. The body that once possessed
a soul is likely to regain it, just as the match
that was once lighted will more easily catch
fire again. Albo also states, though without
expressing himself in favor of any particular
one, the various views about the state of the
risen dead, the classes of people to have a
share in the resurrection, and the ideas of
different theologians about the exact time of
the resurrection, at the beginning of the Mes-
sianic period, or later, on the Day of Judg-
ment. According to Albo every believer in
future reward and punishment, no matter
what his conception of that reward and pun-
ishment, is to be regarded as a professor of
Judaism.

The Messianic idea thus received a new

154 THE MESSIAH IDEA

form in the writings of the Jewish reHgious
philosophers of the middle ages. Retaining
the main outlines of the Messianic figure and
times as delineated in the Talmud, they
dropped all fanciful and materialistic no-
tions, and tried to rationalize the supernat-
ural elements connected with the idea. It
would be untrue to assert that their views
were shared to any considerable extent by
the great mass of the people. Even the
learned of that time were unwilling to disre-
gard the details of the Talmudic conception
of the Messiah, many of which are retained
by some Jews to the present day. As we
shall see later, it was at this period that
grosser and more materialistic views of the
Messianic period were introduced, through
an entirely different source. Still the ration-
alistic tendency introduced by these philo-
sophic writings no doubt did a great deal
toward modifying the coarse and crude no-
tions which find expression in some of the
later Midrashim and in the Kabbalistic

THE RISE OF RATIONALISM 155

works. This again proves the phabihty of
the Jewish law, and its adaptabihty to inter-
pretation in agreement with the spirit of the
times. None of these philosophers imagined
for a moment that he was departing from
the Talmud or from tradition when he at-
tempted to explain the supernatural elements
interwoven with the Messianic idea, and
disregarded the more objectionable of them.
In the next chapter, we shall see how these
notions were again changed and moulded by
a different school of Jewish thinkers, more
spiritual and fanciful in their speculations,
who left a more lasting impression upon
popular belief.

CHAPTER V
The Development in the Kabbalah

Action and Reaction in Human Historj' — Excessive
Rationalism produces Mysticism — Mysticism
Valuable in Time of Persecution — The Masses
fail to understand the Kabbalah — Fanciful
Speculations — Credulity of the Masses and the
Pseudo-Messiahs — Nahmanides — His Disputation
with Pablo Christiani — His Idea of the Mes-
sianic Period — Tartar Invasion of Palestine
— Abraham Abulafia's Messiahship — Other Im-
postors— Moses de Leon publishes the Zohar —
Messianic Speculations in the Zohar — The Date
of the Messiah's Arrival — The Period preceding
the Messianic Age — " The Suffering Messiah " —
The Greatest Achievement of the Messianic Age
-—The Diffusion of Kabbalistic Lore — Persecu-
tions of the Jews in the Fourteenth Century —
Moses Botarel claims Messiahship — Isaac Abar-
banel on the Advent of the Messiah — Writes
Three Messianic Books — His Views Rational — •
Yet indulges in Calculations of the Promised
End — Asher Lammlein declares himself a Fore-
runner of the Messiah— Hope of the Marranos
aroused— David Reubeni's Political Plans — He
meets with Success in Rome and in Portugal —
Solomon Molcho attracted by Reubeni's Ad-
ventures— Returns to Judaism — Arouses Jews of
Turkey — Encouraged by Events — His Dream —
End of Reubeni and Molcho — The Belief in the
Kabbalah not impaired — Isaac Lurya and Hay-
yim Vital— Beneficent Influences of the Kab-
balah.

The history of human events is a history
of actions and reactions. The extreme de-

DEVELOPMENT IN KABBALAH 157

velopment of any principle, for good or for
evil, generally produces a reactionary move-
ment, which results finally in a safe and
happy mean. Thus, when the desire for
liberty becomes abnormal, and prompts na-
tions to plunge into bloody warfare, likely to
enslave its very votaries, opposing influences
soon set in, tending toward the other ex-
treme, until, after mutual concessions, a
form of government is established best suited
for the people. This phenomenon has oc-
curred so frequently in the history of na-
tions that we may regard it almost as a law
of nature, a primary principle in the evolu-
tion of humanity.

In Jewish history, the workings of this
phenomenon are most evident in the growth
and decay, during the thirteenth century, of
the rationalistic movement, made popular by
Maimonides. Thoroughly versed in all de-
partments of Jewish lore and in the prevail-
ing theories of philosophy, possessed of
strong faith and inexhaustible love for Juda-

158 THE MESSIAH IDEA

ism, Maimonides, more than any of his pre-
decessors and perhaps also more than those
who came after him, succeeded in construct-
ing a Jewish creed in agreement with pre-
vaihng scientific notions. But rationaHsm
left to the sweet will of the people becomes a
dangerous thing. In its extreme manifes-
tations, it may produce such phenomena as a
religion of reason, that most abominable of
all the vagaries of the French Revolution.
In thirteenth century Judaism, when the
writings of Maimonides were regarded by
many as a new revelation, the adoption of
his rational methods of interpretation, if left
to unskilled hands, might have proved disas-
trous to the development of Judaism. Luck-
ily, when the tendency was becoming dan-
gerous, it was checked by contradicting in-
fluences, which went to the other extreme,
and forbade every kind of rational investi-
gation. Besides the bitter opposition to
Maimonides on the part of many Rabbis and
obscurantists, and the warfare between them

DEVELOPMENT IN KABBALAH 159

and the Maimunists, which raged for a long
time, and was accompanied by many indigni-
ties and outrages, another influence arose at
that period, the very opposite of that ani-
mating the " Guide for the Perplexed " and
the " Book of Knowledge " (the first part of
Maimonides' code, Mishneh To rah). The
influence of mysticism, despite its pernicious
effects, was most valuable in the preservation
of Judaism and the Jews.

The mysticism, of which we see the be-
ginnings in the Book of Daniel and in the
early and the later Geonic, pseudepigraphic
literature, had gone on increasing in
strength, parallel with Rabbinism, during the
many unhappy years of Israel's trials, and
the Maimunist controversy contributed to its
extreme development. Its teachings became
marvellously diffused, and left their impress
on Jewish observance, upon the ritual, and
upon the codes of law. The hopes it aroused,
shrouded as they were in mystical allusions
and obscure legends, became the property of

l6o THE MESSIAH IDEA

the masses, and helped them to remain firm
in their faith in the face of all misfortunes —
a result which pure rationalism could never
have accomplished.

Fearful days were soon to come upon Is-
rael. The devotees of the " religion of
love " were about to take a greater interest,
not only in the wealth and earthly posses-
sions of the Jews, but also in the salvation
of their souls. Amidst the horrors of this
time, the hunted Jews needed more than
mere reason to keep them steadfast in their
faith. The Kabbalah engendered the hope
for speedy redemption from the yoke of the
cruel oppressor, a redemption that would be
Accompanied by many supernatural events,
\for the Jews of that time could no longer
believe in a natural redemption. It fed the
wretched and despondent hearts of the people
with fanciful dreams and impossible though
encouraging visions of a bright and glorious
future. Thus it kept hope alive in their
hearts, and for this service alone it deserves
a prominent place in Jewish history.

DEVELOPMENT IN KABBALAH l6l

Naturally, the exalted teachings of the
Kabbalah, which laid greatest stress on the
importance of man and his ability to reach
to the highest pinnacle of spirituality, could
not be fully understood by the people at
large. Unsatisfied by a Judaized Aristote-
lian rationalism as well as by the strict, re-
lentless logic of the Talmudic schools, they
hungered for something imaginative, some-
thing spiritual, to nourish their deep reli-
gious feeling. This they found in the Kab-
balah as it was presented to them. Most of
all they were attracted by the Kabbalistic
principle, that mystic speculations based on
letters and words, numbers and phrases, are
the proper and most effective means to at-
tain the highest pitch of ecstasy, and thus
come in closer communion with God. Ma-
terializing the ideal, they saw concrete reali-
ties in the smallest symbol or sign. They
regarded the simplest phenomena as allu-
sions to something in the Divine mind.
The great expounders of mystic doctrines

1 62 THE MESSIAH IDEA

used such forms as visible expressions of the
Eternal, uplifting human aspirations toward
perfection. Their followers, unable to ap-
preciate the transcendental character of these
speculations, looking upon them not merely
as a means to something nobler, more ex-
alted, and more world-embracing, but as in
themselves effective, naturally laid the great-
est stress on numerical calculations with the
letters of the alphabet, mysterious allusions
in Biblical phrases, and symbolic interpreta-
tions of acrostics. Accordingly, they re-
garded those who could best establish their
claims on such speculations and calculations
as fit for the Messiah's crown.

It was thus not the Kabbalah, but the
popular conception of it, that made it pos-
sible for the pseudo-Messiahs, often them-
selves misled, to mislead the people. The
true Kabbalists were faithful to the Tal-
mudic law and closely adhered to Rabbinic
Judaism, while the pseudo-Messiahs, leaning
upon popular credulity and lack of under-

DEVELOPMENT IN KABBALAH 163

Standing of the Kabbalah, ahnost invariably
advocated laxity in the observance of Rab-
binic law, and neglect of the study of its
literature. They appealed to the weaker
side of the popular nature, which was averse
to the burden of law, and at the same time
they pandered to the ever-present popular
desire for novelty, a characteristic of the
popular leader since the days of Jeroboam.
Besides, their Messianic teachings in them-
selves necessitated certain changes in the ac-
cepted laws and customs. The usual result
of the failure of the pseudo-Messiahs was
conversion to the dominant religion, Chris-
tianity or Mohammedanism, by some of their
adherents. This may be accounted for by
the persecutions that generally followed such
movements, and by the inherent weakness of
those of the people who were misled by the
fancies of the pseudo-Kabbalah. With the
foundation of law shaken, faith in Rabbinic
authority undermined, hopes disillusioned,
what power was left to uphold the people in

i64 THE MESSIAH IDEA

the face of concrete and material troubles?
The Kabbalah was indeed responsible for
a number of the misfortunes that befell
Israel during many centuries, not through
its essential teachings, however, but because
of its manifestation to the great mass of the
Jews.

In the early stages of the development of
the Kabbalah, Rabbi Moses ben Nahman
Gerundi, or Nahmanides (ii95?-i270?), a
clear-headed thinker and at the same time a
man of deep spiritual tendencies, was one of
its most representative adherents. Above
all a man of peace, he did not assume that
aggressive tone characteristic of the other
Kabbalists of his age, nor did the obscure
doctrines of the Kabbalah affect all his ideas.
Although he believed implicitly in the advent
of the Messiah, and undoubtedly gave cred-
ence to the many details grouped by the
Kabbalists about him, yet his views are more
rational than even those of Maimonides.

In his interesting disputation with Pablo

DEVELOPMENT IN KABBALAH 165

Christian!, a converted Jew, which took place
in Barcelona, before the king of Aragon
(1263), and lasted four days, Nahmanides
expressed his views about the Jewish belief
in the coming of a Messiah. The questions
under discussion were : i . whether the Mes-
siah had appeared or not; 2. whether the
Messiah, according to the prophecies of the
Bible, was to be considered as God or as
man; 3. whether Judaism or Christianity
was the true faith. After declaring that the
Talmudic Haggadah, the source of Pablo's
arguments against Judaism, was to be re-
garded only as a collection of sermons, carry-
ing with it no binding authority, Nahma-
nides proclaimed his belief in a human Mes-
siah, a king of flesh and blood.

In a book of his, " The Date of the Re-
demption," quoted by Azariah de Rossi,
Nahmanides' view of the Messiah is given
in more precise terms :

" The question of the Messiah is not of that dog-
matic importance to the Jews that Christians imagine.
For even if Jews supposed their sins to be so great

l66 THE MESSIAH IDEA

that they forfeited all the promises made to them in
the Scriptures, or that, on some hidden ground, it
would please the Almighty never to restore their
national independence, this would in no way alter
the obligations of Jews toward the Torah. Nor
is the coming of the Messiah desired by the Jews
as an end in itself. For it is not the goal of their
hopes that they shall be able again to eat of the fruit
of Palestine, or enjoy other pleasures there; not
even the chance of the restoration of sacrifices and
the worship of the Temple is the greatest of Jewish
expectations (connected with the appearance of the
Messiah). What makes them long for his coming,
is the hope that they will then witness, in the com-
pany of the prophets and priests, a greater spread
of purity and holiness than is now possible. In other
words the possibility for them to live a holy life
after the will of God will be greater than now.
But, on the other hand, considering that such a godly
life under a Christian government requires greater
sacrifices than it would under a Jewish king; and,
considering again that the merits and rewards of
a good act increase with the obstacles that are in
the way of executing it — considering this, a Jew
might even prefer to live under the king of Aragon
than under the Messiah, where he would perforce
act in accordance with the precepts of the Torah." ^

During the disputation, Nahmanides took
advantage of the opportunity to disprove the
assumption of the Christian theologians that
the prophecies about the future referred to

DEVELOPMENT IN KABBALAH 167

the adven^ofj£sus,,..j^Jlis,j;2^ had not
inaugurated the universaLpeac&wMch is the
characteristig-. feature of the Messianic period
as_pictured by-tlie prophets. Turning to the
king, Nahmanides boldly exclaimed, " It
behooves thee and thy knights, O King, to
put an end to all warfare, as the beginning
of the Messianic era demands." "^

In a sermon on the value of the Torah,"
delivered in Barcelona, he shows how the
stories and events narrated in the Bible are
the prototypes of the events that have hap-
pened throughout human history. The
Torah is " a history of humanity written in
advance." He compares the six days of
creation with the six millenniums of the
world's existence. On the sixth day, ani-
mals were created first, and then came man,
the animals representing the nations of the
earth to whom the Jews are subjected,* and
man the Messiah, man in the image of
God, who will appear during the sixth mil-
lennium. The Sabbath represents the sev-

M

1 68 THE MESSIAH IDEA

enth millennium, when the life of the future
will be inaugurated, and he considers the in-
stitutions of the Sabbatical year, the jubilee
year, and the counting of the *Omer ^ as other
indications that the world will change its
present form at the end of six thousand years
of its existence. The battle of Moses and
Joshua against the Amalekites foreshadows
the warfare that Elijah and the Messiah son
of Joseph will wage against Edom.* The
miracle of the bodily resurrection of the
dead, although unexplainable by the ordi-
nary standards of reason, is still, according
to Nahmanides' theory, intelligible, since,
if the body acts in conformity with the
godly nature of the soul, it may be trans-
formed into a pure essence, and preserved
for eternity/ Thus, Nahmanides, though
not willing to recognize the Messianic belief
as an essential principle of Judaism, and
avoiding the extravagances in which his
contemporaries and immediate followers in-
dulged, clung to the belief in all its important
details.

DEVELOPMENT IN KABBALAH 169

During his time, many important changes
occurred in Palestine, where Nahmanides
spent his last years, and where he produced
his greatest works. The Tartars, under
Sultan Hulagu (1260), ravaged the land,
overthrew the Eastern Caliphate, and forced
their way into Palestine, bringing ruin and
desolation wherever they came, and sparing
neither Christian nor Mohammedan. The
former regarded them as the Antichrist, who
is expected to appear before the second ad-
vent of Jesus. The Jews, likewise expecting
some great change in their unfortunate lot,
identified the " ugly men from the East "
with the army of King Armilus, which is to
conquer both Edoni and Ishmael, and be in
its turn conquered by the Messiah. At this
opportune time, and under the favorite name
of Simeon ben Johai," a new revelation ap-
peared. However, it contained no new ele-
ments ; but the events of the day were made
to prognosticate the speedy coming of the
Messiah in it.

I70 THE MESSIAH IDEA

Meanwhile, in Southern Europe, the
Kabbalistic movement spread and strength-
ened, and some of the Kabbalists no longer
satisfied themselves with speculating about
the Ten Sefiroth and the permutations and
combinations of the letters of God's name.
They insisted that they possessed the key to
certain formulas by which they could come
into direct communion with God, and obtain
the power of prophecy.

Abraham Abulafia of Tudela (1240-
1291), endowed with a lively imagination
and considerable knowledge, proclaimed
himself a prophet and a worker of miracles,
and lectured on his theory of Kabbalah (the
active Kabbalah)^ in various towns of
Northern Spain, where he secured a number
|Of admirers and devotees. After failing in
his attempt to convert Pope ]\Iartin IV to
Judaism (1281), and escaping the stake by
mere chance, Abulafia proceeded to the
island of Sicily. In Messina, after a cordial
reception, he announced himself as the Mes-

DErELOPMENT IN KABBALAH I/I

siah (1284), and put forth his claim to that
distinction in writing/" making the year' 1290
the date of his appearance. There were
sceptics in Sicily, and they turned for infor-
mation to the recognized authority in Span-
ish Jewry, Rabbi Solomon ben Adereth, who
replied that he had heard of Abulafia, but he
considered him a mere adventurer, and
warned the Jews of Sicily against following
his extravagant teachings.'^ This letter en-
tirely crushed Abulafia's aspirations to be
recognized as the Messiah. After a few at-
tempts to restore his reputation, he disap-
peared from the scene of activity.

Two other adventurers then appeared in
Spain, one in the village of Ayllon, in the
province of Segovia, and the other in the
more important town of Avila. They pro-
claimed themselves prophets, and announced
the advent of the Messiah in mystic lan-
guage. The prophet of Avila, Nissim ben
Abraham, gained many adherents. In spite
of the warnings of the venerable Rabbi of

172 THE MESSIAH IDEA

Barcelona, they awaited the advent of the
Messiah with intense excitement on the day
pointed out by the prophet. The day came,
but the impostor-prophet did not appear.
Many Jews subsequently embraced Christi-
anity, and others are said to have fallen into
a state of melancholy."

It is not fair, as some of our historians
have done, to stamp as impostors all who
from time to time have arisen in Israel, and
deluded their brethren with vain hopes.
Some of them undoubtedly were self-con-
fessed impostors, but most of them were de-
luded enthusiasts, who actually believed in
their superior powers and in the Divine mis-
sion which they imagined to have been in-
trusted to them. Abulafia probably be-
longed to the latter class, and, permeated as
he was with the revelations he made in the
science of Kabbalah, the only true study ac-
cording to the conception of many of the
most learned Jews of that time, he believed
himself to be a special favorite of God, to

DEVELOPMENT IN KABBALAH 173

whom mysteries were revealed and the fate
of his people intrusted.

The motives actuating Moses de Leon
(1250-1305), his younger contemporary, do"
not seem so free from guile. Whether the
author of the Zohar " was Rabbi Simeon ben
Johai or Abulafia or de Leon himself " is
immaterial for our purpose. Suffice it to
say that de Leon was the first to publish this
book and edit it with numerous additions of
his own. It is, indeed, wonderful to see how
quickly it became the authority, not only for
the Kabbalists, but for almost all Israel, and
how great its influence has been on Jewish
life and habits. In many communities, the
study of the Talmud was soon superseded by
that of the Zohar, for it was regarded as a
direct revelation from God to the Tanna
Rabbi Simeon ben Johai, and as possessed
of the same sanctity as the Bible. To the
present day, many Jews believe, that the
reading of the Zohar in itself, even though
its contents be not understood, is sufficient

174 THE MESSIAH IDEA

to purify their souls and bring them into
communion with God. Customs and cere-
monies enjoined in the Zohar were subse-
quently incorporated in the Shulhan 'Aruch,
and are now observed by most Jews, even
by such as have discarded the belief in the
Divine character of the Zohar.

As may be expected, the Messianic idea
occupies a very prominent position in the
Zohar. In fact, in some places it is ex-
pressly stated, that the revelation of the
Zohar was to be made only in the end of
days, in the last generation before the com-
ing of the Messiah." The time of the Mes-
siah's coming is fixed in the Zohar by a '
mystic calculation of the numerical values of
the letters of the Ineffable Name of God. j
The He stands for five thousand, the five |
thousand years which Israel spent in slavery
and subjection under foreign powers. After
the five thousand years shall have passed,
and also sixty years {Yod times Wazv, lo
X 6 = 60) in the sixth millennium, Israel

DEVELOPMENT IN KABBALAH 175

will rise from the g-round, and during every
sixty years following this the kindness of
God toward Israel will increase, until 600 in
the sixth millennium, when the gates of
heavenly wisdom will be opened, the foun-
tains of wisdom from below will gush forth,
and the world will be prepared to enter upon
the seventh millennium, as one prepares him-
self on Friday for the approach of the Sab-
bath." From this calculation it appears that
the Zohar expected the Messiah to appear in
the year 1300, which would mark the begin-
ning of the Messianic era. Other dates
(1328,^' 1648 for the resurrection ") are also
mentioned, but these were probably interpo-
lated later by those who wished to bring the
time up to their own age. This calculation
is a fair specimen of the Kabbalistic foun-
dations for Messianic hopes. In all such
calculations, the holy numbers seven and
three play an important part. The Zohar-
istic conceptions are so characteristic that I
shall give some of the details of the Messi-

176 THE MESSIAH IDEA

anic hope as it finds expression in the pages
of this book.

According to the prevalent notion, the
Zohar predicts that the period preceding the
Messianic age will be one of terrible misfor-
tunes to Israel. All the nations will vie with
each other in oppressing Israel, and " the
last misfortunes shall make them forget the
earlier." Before the coming of the Messiah
a column of fire will appear in the world,
and will remain standing for forty days in
the sight of all the nations of the earth.
Then the King Messiah will be aroused to
proceed from Paradise, from that place
which is called " the bird's nest." " He will
first make his appearance in Galilee, because
Galilee was the first province to be destroyed
by the Romans. A brilliant star will then
appear in the skies, surrounded by seven
other stars, which will wage war with the
brilliant star three times daily, for a period
of seventy days, and be swallowed up by it
every night and ejected every morning.

I

DEVELOPMENT IN KABBALAH 177

After the seventy days, the stars will dis-
appear. The Messiah will be concealed in
the column of fire, invisible for twelve
months, after the lapse of which he will
be taken up to heaven, crowned king, and
endowed with all the strength and dignity of
a king. He will then descend upon earth,
and the column of fire will again be made
visible. The Messiah will become known
throughout the world, and the nations as
well as many unbelieving Jews will come to
wage war with him. Then the world will
become dark for fifteen days, and many will
die during that time.'"

In the year 73 of the sixth thousand since
the creation of the world ( 1313), all the na-
tions will be gathered in Rome, and God will
rain upon them with fire, hail, and stones,
and they will be destroyed from the world,
except those kings who did not come to
Rome. These will still desire to wage war
with the Messiah, and Ishmael will join them
in their siege of Jerusalem. But " He who
sits in heaven laughs." Many will join th^

178 THE MESSIAH IDEA

Jews in the worship of God, and will thus
become new creatures, for God will produce
new souls for all those who will be left, and
who will thus be prepared to enter the sev-
enth millennium.^

In another place '^ the details are described
in the following manner :

When God wishes to rebuild Jerusalem, a fixed
star will wage war with seven shooting stars. . . . On
the first day when the star appears in Rome, three
high towers will crumble, and the great palace (the
Vatican?) will fall, and the ruler of the city (the
Pope?) will die. Then the star will become apparent
to the whole world. At that time great wars will
be waged in the world, in all the four corners, and
the people will have no belief. When the star ap-
pears, a mighty king will arise, and conquer all the
nations and rule over them. When the star dis-
appears, Palestine will be shaken forty-five miles from
the place where the Temple stood. . . . Then the
Messiah will be revealed to the whole world, and
the rule will be delivered into his hands. At the
time of his coming the world will be in great distress,
and Israel's enemies will become strong, but the
Messiah will avenge himself on " guilty Edom," and
the whole land of Seir will be consumed by fire.
Then God will revive the dead.

The state of affairs in the world at the
time of the Messiah's coming is dwelt upon

DEVELOPMENT IN KABBALAH 1/9

frequently in the Zohar, and the elaboration
of the details, the many miracles and won-
ders to be shown at that time might stagger
the imagination of the most fanciful, invent-
ive dreamer.

There are various references in the Zo-
har^ to the idea of a suffering Messiah.
Legends tell how the Messiah in Paradise is
moved by what the souls, who have come
back from their periodic journeys in the
world, relate of the suffering and tribulation
they beheld among men, and especially
among Israel in exile. The Messiah enters
" the palace of diseases,"^ and takes upon
himself all the maladies destined for Israel,
and thus alleviates Israel's sufferings and
makes them bearable. In this manner, the
Messiah constitutes himself the sin-offering,
which can no longer be brought by Israel,
since the Temple is destroyed. The punish-
ment is not entirely avoided, but merely post-
poned until " the world to come." '° The
miracle of the resurrection of the dead is

l8o THE MESSIAH IDEA

X

treated in the Zohar as a matter of course.
In accordance with the Kabbalistic doctrine,
that the Bible cloaks deeply significant mean-
ings in simple language, many Scriptural
passages are distorted from their original
meaning, in order to prove the resurrection
of the dead. The resurrection will take
place forty years after the advent of the
Messiah, and the revived bodies will be as
fresh as a three-years' old child, and as holy
as angels.

Except in the elaboration of details, the
Zohar adds very little to the prevalent Mes-
sianic conception. The pre-existence of the
^fessiah is assumed, and his almost Divine
character repeatedly emphasized. -He is^ suf-
fering for the sins of liis people, and helps
them carry the burden of punishrnent.'^
Messiah son of Joseph is also mentioned in
the Zohar as occupy ingji seat in the " lower
heights " ^ of the heavenly abodes, but very
little activity ,.,is-, .assigned- Jp Jhirri. The
Kabbalistic conception of the highest attain-

DEVELOPMENT IN KABBALAH l8l

ment of the Messianic age is the opening of
the gates of wisdom and the revelation of the
secrets of the law, by which the Zohar means
nothing else than the universal diffusion of
Kabbalistic wisdom, the only real wisdom,
the secrets directly imparted by God to the
pious of all generations. When this is ac-
complished, humanity will be ready to enter
upon the seventh millennium, the millennium
of rest and Divine contemplation. This idea
is in perfect keeping with the main principle
of the Zohar, that the soul of man is not a
creation, but an emanation from God. The
highest point of human perfection will be
attained when, through constant study and
devotion, inducing a state of ecstasy, the soul
of man will be reunited with its source, the
Divine soul.

The Zohar was accorded a heartier recep-
tion than any book in the world's literature.
It immediately placed the Kabbalah upon a
firm basis, and was regarded for many cen-
turies as the Bible of the Kabbalists. Yet

1 82 THE MESSIAH IDEA

we must not imagine that the Jewish world
as a whole became absorbed in the Kabbalah,
and produced nothing else. At the same
time many poets and philosophers, statesmen
and diplomats, flourished in Spain and in
Portugal, some of whom diverged very con-
siderably from the teachings of the Zohar.
Thus, a renowned Rabbi, Hayyim ben Ga-
Hpapa (13 10-1380), declared in an open let-
ter," that all the prophecies of Isaiah and of
Daniel with regard to the Messiah had been
fulfilled in the time of the Maccabees, and
the Messianic belief at present had no Scrip-
tural basis.

Joseph Albo (1380-1444) also took a
more rational view of the Messiah. He re-
peatedly made it clear that though it is
proper for every Jew to believe in his com-
ing, yet the belief is not essential to Juda-
ism."* Albo, however, could not agree with
those that considered the Messianic belief as
merely sanctioned by tradition and without
Biblical basis. He held that the unfulfilled

DEVELOPMENT IN KABBALAH 183

prophecies in Ezekiel, Jeremiah, and Malachi
must refer to the remote future.'' These ar-
guments were used by Albo in the celebrated
disputation carried on between him and other
Jewish notables, at Tortosa (1413-14), with
the apostate Geronimo de Santa Fe, who
wished to prove that the Jews should accept
the Messiahship of Jesus, since it was estab-
lished by Bible and Talmud/'

The fourteenth century left in its trail the
blood of thousands of Jewish victims to the
dissolute, cruel, and vicious rule of the Chris-
tian monarchs and potentates of Western
Europe. The year 1391 will ever stand out
as the most fateful year in Jewish history
during the exile. The disgraceful acts of
the Christian magnates against the Jews can
be atoned for only by many centuries of tol-
erance and good-will. The immorality of
the Church cost Israel many souls. Thou-
sands were slaughtered, thousands were ban-
ished from their homes, and thousands were
forced to baptism. A writer of that time

! I

184 THE MESSIAH IDEA

gives a striking picture of the horrors that
beset the Jewish communities of Castile, in
the following words :

In truth, plunders followed upon plunders," money
vanished from the purse,** souls from the bodies ;°'
all the sufferings that were believed to precede the
Messianic period are here — but the redeemer has not
come. I will not attempt to recount all the miseries ;
they are more numerous than sand.'*

The Rabbis were compelled to enter into
discussions with apostate Jews, in the pres-
ence of royalty and the clergy, and the re-
sults of these discussions were invariably
massacres and forced conversions. Kabbal-
istic dreamers and impostors soon sprang up
armed with Biblical and Talmudic passages
as evidence of the approach of the Messianic
age. Moses Botarel, of Cisneros, in Castile,
went still further, and declared that he had
been anointed by Elijah the prophet, and
should be recognized by all Rabbis as the
head of the Sanhedrin. Botarel's end Is un-
known, but some of his Kabbalistic writings
are still extant" The dejection of the Jew-

DEVELOPMENT IN KABBALAH 185

ish spirit in this time can be judged from the
fact that no less a man than the philosopher
Hasdai Crescas proclaimed his belief in Bo-
tarel's Messiahship, though only a few years
earlier, Rabbi Nissim ben Reuben, of Barce-
lona, a devout Talmudist, had found it neces-
sary to protest against a general belief,
among the Jews of Castile, that Samuel Abu-
lafia, the favorite of the king Don Pedro,
and the chief contributor to the erection of
the magnificent synagogue in Toledo, was
the Messiah, and his great eminence a sug-
gestion of *' the sceptre of Judah." '^ The
unfortunate condition of the Jews in Spain
continued, with very few interruptions,
throughout the fifteenth century, until the
time when Ferdinand and Isabella selected
the Jewish subjects of their dominions as a
thank-offering to their God for the assistance
afforded them in their triumph over the
Moors. The expulsion of the Jews from
Spain in 1492 closed one of the gloomiest
chapters in Jewish history.

1 86 THE MESSIAH IDEA

The last link in the chain of Spanish-Jew-
ish philosophers and thinkers, Don Isaac ben
Judah Abarbanel (1437- 1509), a clear and
practical thinker, was also swayed by the
Kabbalistic influences of his age, and in-
dulged in Messianic speculations in accord-
ance with the prevalent methods of his time.
The appalling misery that beset the poor
Spanish fugitives prompted Abarbanel to
compose three books ^ in which the speedy
advent of the Messiah is emphasized, and the
date accurately determined. This juggling
with Biblical words and phrases to find out
the date of the coming of the Messiah, and
thus hold forth some tangible hope to his
despondent and forlorn brethren, becomes
pathetic when we remember it to be the work
of a venerable sage, laden with years, fallen
from his lofty estate, himself, like Jeremiah
of old, a witness to the affliction of his peo- %
pie, whom he loved so much, and whom he
was unable to help in their dire misfortune, "
renouncing for their sake all ambition and

DEVELOPMENT IN KABBALAH 187

glory, and willing to spend his later years in
entire obscurity. The picture becomes still
more pathetic when we remember the practi-
cal statesmanship, the lucid and rational in-
terpretations of Biblical texts by this pioneer
in the long list of modern interpreters of
the Bible.^

Abarbanel criticises those Jewish philoso-
phers very severely who, unlike Maimo-
nides, did not regard the Messianic belief a
cardinal principle of Judaism. The shafts
of his criticism are especially directed against
Joseph Albo. He allows no opportunity to
pass for showing the fallacy in the argu-
ments of the author of the 'Ikkarim!" His
own Messianic conception he bases on the
Biblical prophecies, from which he deduces
ten elements, including the chief rational
features of the Messianic belief, stripped of
all the fanciful and supernatural accretions
of the Rabbis and the Kabbalists. God will
send a redeemer of the House of David, who
will lead the despised nation back to Jerusa-

1 88 THE MESSIAH IDEA

lem, where the Temple will be rebuilt, and
the nation again sanctified. Prophecy will
return to Israel, miracles will again be done
in its behalf, there will be material pros-
perity and blessings innumerable, and Israel
will be exiled no more. All the nations of
the earth will accept the monotheistic reli-
gion, when God's wrath has been poured out
upon them. After the return to Palestine,
the dead will be revived.*^

In spite of this rational view, Abarbanel
could not resist the temptation to calculate
the date of the coming of the Messiah.
After showing that the prohibitions of the
Talmud and of later writers refer, not to
calculations made by way of interpretations
of Biblical passages, but to those based on
astrological speculations," Abarbanel de-
duces, from various Scriptural passages, es-
pecially from the mysterious allusions of the
Book of Daniel, that the Messiah will come
in 5263 A. M. (1503 C. R), and that the
Messianic age will set in with the fall of

I

DEVELOPMENT IN KABBALAH 189

Rome in 1531, four Sabbatical years later.
He supports his deductions by many Biblical
and Talmudic passages."" His own dictum
about Rabbi Akiba's belief in the Messiah-
ship of Bar-Cochba, that " it happens to
every wise man that he thinks and believes
what his heart desires," " can be justly ap-
plied to himself. The misery of his breth-
ren was so great, and his faith in the justice
of God and in the future glory of Israel so
strong, that he could not but conceive the
redemption to be very near. If Israel suc-
cumbs to its already almost unbearable suf-
ferings, all the promises of God will remain
unfulfilled. But this is impossible to Israel's
God of truth. Abarbanel, like many of his
predecessors, lived to see his calculations
proved false.

Abarbanel's calculations produced the
very results so feared by the Rabbis. In
1502, a German Jew, Asher Lammlein, en-
couraged by the predictions of Abarbanel,
declared himself a forerunner of the Mes-

190 THE MESSIAH IDEA

siah, proclaiming that if the Jews would
spend six months in repentance and chastise-
ment and in dispensing charity, the Messiah
would appear, preceded by a column of fire
and a column of smoke, like those which
went before the Israelites in the wilderness,
and would bring the Jews back to Palestine.
The sign of his coming would be the sudden
downfall of many Christian churches.
Lammlein immediately secured a large num-
ber of adherents," including even Christians,
especially in the neighborhood of Venice,
where many Jews followed his behests, neg-
lecting all their affairs, and spending their
time in fasting, prayer, and self-castigation.
This year is known in Jewish history as the
"year of penitence." But all these hopes
came to a premature end with the death of
the prophet, and Isaac Abarbanel lived to see
Christianity embraced by many Jews, de-
luded by the hopes stirred up by his books
and by the prophecies of Lammlein.

Despite frequent disappointments, the peo-

DEVELOPMENT IN KABBALAH I91

pie did not lose faith in the fulfilment of the
Messianic prophecies. Indeed, this hope,
misguided and fraught with incalculable
evils as it frequently was, is one of the sub-
lime features of the Jewish religion. To
the unfortunate Marranos, tortured in body
and mind, it was the only comfort and con-
solation. Many of them believed the pro-
phecy of a girl of fifteen years of age, that
the Messiah had revealed himself to her, and
taken her up to heaven, where she saw,
seated on golden chairs, all the martyrs that
had been burnt at the stake, and that he
had promised soon to reveal himself to the
whole world. They immediately threw off
the false mantle of Christianity, and pro-
fessed Judaism in public. The result was,
that thirty-eight Marranos were burnt at the
stake in Toledo. But the greater the perse-
cution, the stronger became their hope, the
readier were they to lend a willing ear to
Messianic pretenders and enthusiasts.
At that time, there arose a pretender, most

192 THE MESSIAH IDEA

important not only because of the novelty of
his scheme, but also because of the great in-
fluence he exerted wherever he appeared.
David Reubeni, who came from the East
with a special message, not to the Jews, but
to the Christian rulers of Europe, at first put
forth no Messianic claims. In 1522 he left
his native land, and began to tour Asia. To
all whom he met, he related his mission in
behalf of his brother, the ruler of a Jewish
kingdom in Chaibar, composed of fugitives
from the tribes of Reuben and Gad, who, he
said, had under his command three hundred
thousand chosen warriors, ready to over-
power the Turks and wrest Palestine from
their hands, provided the Christian nations
would supply them with fire-arms. A man
of great prudence and discretion, he always
surrounded his tales with mystic and secret
allusions, so as to arouse the curiosity and
interest of the Jews. Despite their advances,
he took a distant and haughty attitude
toward them, maintaining that his business
was with the Pope,

DEVELOPMENT IN KABBALAH 193

He was most favorably received by Pope
Clement VII, who, harassed on all sides by
the constant growth of the Reformation, re-
garded with especial favor the plan by which
the Jews should drive the most dangerous
enemy of Christendom out of the Holy Land.
This procured many adherents among the
Jews for Reubeni, and many costly gifts
were sent him by wealthy Jews, but he main-
tained his aloofness, and abode by his purely
political scheme. As his name and mission
became more widely known, he even received
a call from the king of Portugal, to visit
him in his court.

We can hardly imagine the feelings of the
poor Marranos of Portugal, on the eve of the
introduction of the Inquisition, when they
heard that a Jew had been entertained at the
royal palace, and shown all marks of esteem
and confidence by the king. They did not
ask whether he was the forerunner of the
Messiah, they would have believed it even
if he had denied it. All eyes were fastened

194 THE MESSIAH IDEA

on the man from the East, and everywhere
reigned the tensest expectancy of speedy
redemption. Reubeni, however, knowing
full well the danger of his position, gave very
little encouragement to these Messianic
dreams and speculations.

The enthusiastic hope soon spread far and
wide. Among those whom it affected was
a noble and talented youth, who sacrificed
his ambitions and his life in its behalf.
Diogo Pires (i 501-1532), born a New
Christian, by his talents and gentle bearing
rose to the high position of royal secretary
to a high court of justice. He was appar-
ently acquainted with Hebrew and Rabbinic
lore from his earliest youth, and he had also
acquired a fair knowledge of the Kabbalah.
His poetic mind was captivated by Reubeni's
mission, and it became filled with Messianic
dreams and visions.

He made the acquaintance of Reubeni,
and, in spite of a cool reception, he decided to
undergo circumcision and announce himself

DEVELOPMENT IN KABBALAH 195

publicly as a Jew. Subsequently, under the
name of Solomon Molcho, he departed for
Turkey, where he created a great sensation.
Even Joseph Caro, the famous compiler of
the Shulhan 'Aruch, himself a devotee of the
Kabbalah, placed implicit faith in the young
proselyte, and declared that his greatest am-
bition was to die, with Molcho, a martyr's
death. In Salonica, Molcho was received
with great enthusiasm by large audiences,
who listened with rapt attention to sermons
in which Molcho preached his Messianic
ideas, according to which the reign of the
Messiah would commence with the end of
the year 1540 (5300 A. M.). The invasion
of Rome by the followers of Luther in
1527 meant to Molcho that destruction of
Edom which all Jewish sages and writers
had prophesied as preceding the advent of
the Messiah. The event encouraged Molcho
still more in his Messianic dreams. He
left Turkey to visit Rome and announce
his mission to the great potentates of

196 THE MESSIAH IDEA

Europe. In accordance with an ancient
tradition, that the Messiah would be found
at the gates of Rome among the poor
and the sick, Molcho abandoned his retinue
on arriving in the Eternal City, dressed
himself in rags, blackened his face, and
for thirty days lived among the beg-
gars on the bridge of the Tiber. His sub-
sequent course was determined by a wonder-
ful dream, in which an old man, who had
appeared to him frequently before, an-
nounced to him that Portugal would be vis-
ited by an earthquake, and that Rome and a
Northern country would be swept by a de-
structive flood, after which there would ap-
pear in Rome, for a few days, two comets
with golden tails, one indicating God's anger
against the sinful nation, the other His
mercy toward Israel. In his dream, he was
promised, that on reaching his thirtieth year
he would be raised to a higher degree, after
which the Messianic period would com-
mence.

DEVELOPMENT IN KABBALAH 197

Raised to the highest exultation by this
dream, Molcho threw off his disguise, and
began to preach his doctrine in public, to
crowded synagogues, escaping the clutches
of the Inquisition only through the interven-
tion of the Pope himself. Meanwhile, the
inundation of Rome actually took place ( Oc-
tober 8, 1530) ; Flanders, the country of the
North, also suffered from a flood ; a brilliant
comet appeared in the sky; Lisbon was
shaken by a severe earthquake (January 26,
1536), and all signs pointed to the fulfil-
ment of Molcho's prophecies.

When he again appeared in Rome, he was
greeted with marks of highest confidence and
reverence, and was regarded by all as the
messenger of God. The Inquisition, how-
ever, would not be persuaded by dreams, and
allowed no poetic fancies as evidence against
or for an accused Marrano. Urged by a
Jewish physician, Jacob Mantin, it proceed-
ed with Molcho's prosecution. In spite of
the intercession of the Pope, he was found

198 THE MESSIAH IDEA

guilty, and condemned to be burnt at the
stake. It seems, however, that the Pope
succeeded in substituting some one else in the
place of Molcho, who was kept hidden in
the Vatican chambers, and thus, many be-
lieved, Molcho was saved from the flames by
a miracle. Of course, he was obliged to
leave Rome, and his end came soon after.
He conceived the daring plan of visiting
Emperor Charles V, in company with David
Reubeni, and pleading the Jewish cause with
him. Without ceremony, Charles had them
both put in chains and carried to Mantua
(1532), where Molcho was burnt in accord-
ance with a decree issued by the Inquisition,
while David, against whom the Inquisition
was powerless, since he was a Jew, remained
in the dungeon for three years. As it ap-
pears, he was at length put to death by
poison."

Thus ended the wonderful career of these
two extraordinary men, who played so prom-
inent a part in Jewish history. Reubeni 's

DEVELOPMENT IN KABBALAH 199

plan was almost entirely of a practical na-
ture, and his means of carrying it out were
diplomatic and statesmanlike. Molcho, how-
ever, was a real enthusiast, whose sincere be-
lief in his mission inspired others with his
own confidence. Even after his death, many
learned and intelligent Jews of Europe and
Asia believed he had escaped death a second
time, and he would soon re-appear. Some
even declared they had seen him eight days
after his execution. It is very difficult to
deduce, from the writings of the time, what
was the view of the best minds of the day,
for even Joseph Cohen, the author of 'Eniek
ha-Bachah, a careful historian and clear
thinker, was dazed by the miraculous events
of the period, and was uncertain as to what
judgment he should pass on the whole affair.
The belief that the Messianic age was near,
was current among the Jews of Italy, who
saw in the recent sack of Rome, in the
Lutheran agitation, and in the hostility be-
tween Pope and Emperor, certain signs of
the approach of the Mes-sianic era.*'

200 THE MESSIAH IDEA

Despite the failure of these two pseudo-
Messiahs, the study of the Kabbalah gained
large numbers of new votaries even among
the most cultured, and even among cultured
Christians. Foremost among them were
Isaac Lurya (1534-1572) and his disciple,
Hayyim Vital Calabrese (i 543-1620), each
of whom believed himself to be the Messiah
son of Joseph, and proclaimed his mission
to assembled multitudes. Though their in-
fluence upon the development of the Kabba-
lah was very great, their Messianic specula-
tions were of little effect, except to induce
their followers to apply themselves more
zealously to the study of the Kabbalah,
through which, they asserted, the coming of
the Messiah son of David would be hastened.

Destructive though the influence of the
Kabbalah was, and conducive as its teach-
ings were to an unwholesome and abnormal
development of the Jewish spirit, it still had
this good effect, that it held out to its adher-
ents, living in the darkest of the dark ages,

DEVELOPMENT IN KABBALAH 201

subject to excruciating pains and to spiritual
and mental agonies, the hope of a speedy
redemption from their troubles. Rational-
istic theories about the future of Israel may-
be sufficient for Jews living in comfort and
prosperity. But the poor, unfortunate Jews
of Southern Europe during the middle ages,
living in constant trepidation and suspense,
subject to the tender mercies of a blood-
thirsty clergy and of a fanatic and covetous
royalty, exposed to the greatest dangers at
every step — such unfortunates needed some-
thing more spiritual, something more myste-
rious, to strengthen them in their faith. To
them the Kabbalah, with its highly spiritual
teachings, with its mystical promises, and
its extravagant hopes, was the firmest sup-
port. If their hopes were once disappointed,
it was necessary only to interpret the Bibli-
cal text by a somewhat different combination
of letters and syllables, in order to make it
apply to a new hope, deferred to a later time,
and the Jewish spark was kept ablaze in

202 THE MESSIAH IDEA

their hearts. The excitement itself, though
it brought no permanent rehef, served as a
temporary remedy for their wounded spirits.
Even the impostors, if impostors they were,
contributed their share toward the survival
of the Jewish hope in the hearts of the suf-
fering Jews. The sacrifices the Jewish
nation made on the altar of the Kabbalah,
in submitting to the delusive dreams pub-
lished abroad by deluded and deluding men,
were worth the recompense the nation re-
ceived in the preservation of the great and
glorious hope of a triumphant future.

CHAPTER VI

The Effects of Kabbalistic
Speculations

The Protestant Reformation — Luther's Favorable
Attitude to the Jews — Hebrew Literature studied
by Christians — The Wars of the Reformation —
Signs of the Messianic Era — Manasseh ben
Israel — The Fifth Monarchy Men — The Puritans
— Manasseh effects the Resettlement of the
Jews in England — Aaron Levi identifies the
American Indians with the Ten Tribes —
Manasseh believes the Messianic Era Near at
Hand — Manasseh and Cromwell — Sabbatai Zebi
announces himself as the Messiah — Pronounces
the Ineffable Name of God — Excommunicated
and banished from Smyrna — In Jerusalem —
Nathan Ghazati his Prophet — Recognized as the
Messiah — The Messianic Theory of the Sab-
batians — Opposition to Rabbinism — Sabbatai
turns Mohammedan — Excitement not abated by
his Death — Michael Cardoso — Mordecai of
Eisenstadt — Jacob Querido — Judah Hasid —
Hayyim Malach — Nehemiah Hiyya_ Hayyun —
Rabbis oppose the pseudo-Messiahs — Moses
Hayyim Luzzatto misled by Mystic Speculations
— Yankiev Leibowitz Frank — His Theory about
the Various Messiahs — Frankists declare their
Principles — ^Their Opposition to the Talmud —
Modern Hasidism — Resume of the Influence of
the Kabbalah.

Like almost every other matter of human
interest in Europe, the Messianic hope was_
greatly influencedj)j the Protestant Refor-

204 THE MESSIAH IDEA

onalioa^ From the time Martin Luther
boldly launched his invectives against the
Roman Church (1521), and succeeded in
throwing off the yoke of the Pope, the ex-
pectation of the advent of the Messiah was
strengthened among the Jews. Luther him-
self, though not a great friend of the Jews,
declared himself most emphatically against
Jewish persecution.

"They are blood-relations of our Lord," he says in
one place (1523),'' "therefore, if it were proper to
boast of flesh and blood, the Jews belong to Christ
more than we. I beg, therefore, my dear Papists,
if you become tired of abusing me as a heretic, that
you begin to revile me as a Jew."

In another place he says :

It is my advice that we treat them kindly. ... If
we would help them, so must we exercise, not the
law of the Pope, but that of Christian love — show
them a friendly spirit, permit them to live and to
work, so that they may have cause to live with us.

Such expressions of good feeling had not
come from Christian lips for many centuries,
and they aroused new hopes in the breast
of the oppressed Jews. Tojhejewish mind,

KABBALISTIC SPECULATIONS 205

'^}_J^^^^S'^P^^lL9i'^^^'^'^-^^^ always con-
necte(| wiih,lhe rebuilding of Jerusalem, the
constant wars and rebellions against papal
authority clearly indicated the speedy down-
fall of the Eternal City. Moreover, Jewish
literature had become a fashionable study
with learned Christians. Cardinals, bishops,
and noble princes engaged Jewish teachers
to initiate them in the mysteries of the Kab-
balah and other departments of Jewish lore.
Chairs of Hebrew were, at Reuchlin's sug-
gestion, established in many German uni-
versities. French university students pored
over Kimhi's Hebrew Grammar, and at-
tempted to converse in Hebrew. The print-
ing-presses of the most orthodox Catholic
universities produced not only Hebrew books
but Latin translations of the works of Jew-
ish scholars. Were not these signs of a
more blessed period for the Jews ? Can we
wonder that the Jews, immersed in the study
of the fanciful Kabbalah, allowed themselves
i to be carried away by such indications of a
glorious future?

206 THE MESSIAH IDEA

The beginning of the seventeenth century
brought with it many more proofs of the
near approach of the Messianic era. The
many calamitous and shameful wars between
the Catholics and the Protestants of Europe,
which seemed to be the realization of the
troublous times predicted as presages of the
Messianic era, culminated in the Thirty
Years' War (i6 18-1648). At first a strug-
gle between the Catholic and the Protestant
princes of Germany, it gradually involved all
the powers of Europe, and created chaos and
confusion in all lands. Although the Jews
were not visited with any special persecution
during this bloody period, and, as it seems,
even received more protection than some of
the Christians, still many Jewish communi-
ties were destroyed, and all were materially
affected by the general confusion reigning in
Europe,

At this auspicious period of confusion and
bewilderment, when the whole world was
awaiting an inevitable change, two men

I

KABBALISTIC SPECULATIONS 207

arose in Israel, one in Christian Holland,
the other in Mohammedan Turkey, who
were to exert a marked influence on their
contemporaries. Both were followers of the
fanciful teachings of the Kabbalah, and both
proclaimed new Messianic doctrines. But
while the name of Manasseh ben Israel will
ever be revered, not only by the Jews of
England, but of all lands, that of Sabbatai
Zebi casts a dark shadow over the pages of
Jewish history, and will ever be regarded
with abhorrence as the name of one of the
.world's greatest impostors.

Manasseh ben Israel (1604-1657),' al-
though a man of European culture, did not
escape the fascination of the mystic lore of
the Kabbalah. In the midst of a busy life
devoted to the service of his people, he found
time for speculation on transcendental mat-
ters and the Messianic kingdom. The hope
for the near advent of the Messiah was then
entertained, not only by Jews, who never
lost it, but also by many Christians. A new

2o8 THE MESSIAH IDEA

Christian sect known as Fifth Monarchy
Men supported Cromwell's government, in
the belief that it was a preparation for the
Fifth Monarchy, i. e. the monarchy which is
to succeed the Assyrian, the Persian, the
Greek, and the Roman, when Jesus with his
saints shall reign on earth for a thousand
years. These Puritan visionaries eagerly
welcomed Manasseh ben Israel, for it was a
feature of their creed that the Jews would
first regain the Holy Land, the Ten Tribes
would be found, and the Jewish Messiah, a
sprout of the stem of Jesse, would appear in
accordance with the predictions of the Bible.
With Jesus he would decide which Messiah
should reign over the world.

Manasseh, himself a mystic and a Kabba-
list, was charmed with these predictions, es-
pecially as the year 1648 is mentioned in one
part of the Zohar ' as the date of the Mes-
siah's appearance. Letters and pamphlets,
most of which were written by learned and
influential Christians, dealing with the near

J

KABBALISTIC SPECULATIONS 209

restoration of the Jews to the land of their
fathers, came pouring in upon Manasseh
from all lands. One of the Huguenots wrote
a book, Rap pel des Juifs ("The Return of
the Jews"), in which he called upon the
king of France, the eldest son of the Church,
to restore Israel, the eldest son of God, to
his ancient inheritance. In England, the
Puritans became the greatest friends of the
Jews, and one of their preachers, Nathaniel
Holmes, in a letter to Manasseh ben Israel,
expressed his desire to serve Israel on bended
knees. The revolt of the Puritans against
the teachings of the Church Fathers threw
them back on the Jewish Bible, and thus ce-
mented the friendship between them and the
Jews. It aroused their sympathy for the
downtrodden race, which had given the
world the Book they had just begun to learn
and appreciate.

Manasseh followed all these changes of
sentiment vvith tense excitement, and threw
himself with much fervor into the enthusi-

210 THE MESSIAH IDEA

astic activities of the new sects. As the be-
lief was that the Messiah would not come
before the measure of Israel's punishment
was full, and as this punishment consisted in
the Jews being scattered all over the world,
he directed his attention toward obtaining
the necessary permission for the settlement
of the Jews in England, where they had not
been permitted to live. Furthermore, he en-
deavored to ascertain the whereabouts of the
Ten Tribes. Thus the Messianic hope was
directly responsible fdr^^so important an
event as the settlement of the Jews in Eng-
land.

A Marrano adventurer, Antonio de Mon-
tezinos, or, as he later called himself, Aaron
Levi, who had travelled in America, brought
the glad tidings to Amsterdam, that he had
discovered some Jev/ish tribes among the
American Indians. The fact was corrobo-
rated by the records of many other travellers
and by the writings of many historians and
geographers. Manasseh was so convinced

KABBALISTIC SPECULATIONS 211

of the truthfulness of his testimony that he
wrote a book entitled Mikweh Israel (" The
Hope of Israel "), in which he pointed out
all indications of the approach of the Mes-
sianic age. In thisjbogk^ Manasseh retained
the figure of the Messiah son of Joseph or
Ephraini, who would gather the remnants of
the Ten Tribes from America, Asia, and
Africa^ and,lead them to Egypt and Assyria,
over the Nile and the Euphrates, which
would h^^g^Jbecome dry land. Thence they
would proceed to Palestine, at the blast of
the trumpet. This Messiah, killed in battle
with Gog and Magog, after the resurrection
is made viceroy to Messiah son of David.

Profiting by the example of the many mis-
taken calculations of the date of the Mes-
siah's coming, Manasseh ben Israel prefer-
red to consider the determination of the date
impossible. It was concealed by God, and
really superfluous, since the Messianic era
will be heralded by unmistakable signs.*
This view of the meaning of the unrest in

212 THE MESSIAH IDEA

the world was held by many Christians,
notably by a Bohemian physician, Paul Fel-
genhauer, who composed a book (1654) en-
titled " Good Tidings for Israel," and dedi-
cated it to " Manasseh ben Israel, the Jewish
philosopher and theologian." He tries to
prove the near approach of the Messianic
age from Biblical texts, and from such phe-
nomena as the comet of 1652, the fierce wars
in Poland, and the great rebellion in Eng-
land.

Manasseh himself wrote another book, set-
tinp- forth the Jewish Messianic belief, in
order to make his position clear to the
Christian world, especially to those who
clamored for the Fifth Monarchy, when
Jesus should become king of the world. He
argued that the Fifth Kingdom which, as
predicted in the Boo¥ of Daniel, would soon
succeed the other four — the Babylonian,
Persian, Greek, and Roman, — was none
other than the kingdom of Israel under the
rule of the Messiah, who would, however.

KABBALISTIC SPECULATIONS 213

accord to all the nations of the earth great
consiHeratlon and kindness. This^ book
(" TheJPrecious_Stone^._px^jJ^^
Nebuchadnezzar ")° was received with much
eclat by both Jews and Christians, and the
famous Dutch painter Rembrandt supplied it
with four etchings. Even in his letter to
the English Parliament, Manasseh did not
hesitate to argue, that the re-admission of
the Jews into England would hasten the
Messianic era.^ Cromwell probably expect-
ed a reconciliation between the adherents of
the New Testament and those of the Old,
through a commingling of Puritans and
Jews, and the adoption of the doctrine of
the Messiahship of Jesus by the latter. At
any rate, the Jews were permitted to settle
in England. Needless to say, the hopes of
the Kabbalistic Rabbi and the Puritan Pro-
tector remained unfulfilled.'

While these changes of sentiment were
going on in Europe, the attention of the
Jews of Smyrna was attracted to a youth.

214 THE MESSIAH IDEA

Sabbatai Zebi, of noble appearance and
pleasing voice, living in seclusion and ascetic
in his habits, in accordance with the teach-
ings of his mistress, the Kabbalah. While
still in his father's house, he taught the
Zohar with the interpretations of Lurya and
Vital to a circle of disciples. His ascetic
life, and his mysterious practices, such as
bathing in the sea at night, fasting and pray-
ing in solitude, surrounded him with a halo
in the eyes of his admirers. His father
worshipped him, attributing his own success
in business to his son's piety.

The admiration accorded him completely
turned his head, already filled with the fan-
ciful teachings of the Kabbalah and the
Messianic speculations of the mystic writers.
In his twenty-second year (1648), the year
prognosticated in the Zohar as the time of
the appearance of the Messiah, the year of
the Treaty of Westphalia, when the bloody
Thirty Years' War came to an end, Sabbatai
Zebi revealed himself to his young admirers

KABBALISTIC SPECULATIONS 215

as the redeemer of Israel, by pronouncing
the Ineffable Name of God.° Peculiar sig-
nificance was attached by the Kabbalists to
this act, which is strictly forbidden by the
Talmud ^^ and later Jewish authorities."
Tradition relates, that in the Temple the
Name of God was pronounced only on cer-
tain occasions," and after the destruction of
the Temple it was never to be pronounced as
Avritten, but read either so as to mean " my
Lord," " or " The Name." " According to
a current interpretation, God Himself went
into exile at the dispersion of Israel, and His
perfection was thus to a certain extent im-
paired. The letters of His Name were sepa-
rated, and could be reunited only by the
restoration of Israel to Palestine and the ac-
complishment of the Divine plan through the
Messiah. Accordingly, when Sabbatai Zebi
permitted himself to pronounce the Ineffable
Name, he thereby proclaimed that the time
of Israel's redemption had arrived."

Such boldness on the part of the mystic

2l6 THE MESSIAH IDEA

youth did not pass unnoticed by the Rabbinic
College of Smyrna. Sabbatai and his fol-
lowers were excommunicated, and subse-
quently (about 165 1 ) banished from Smyr-
na, by the Beth-Din, at the head of which
was his own teacher, Joseph Escapa. As is
usually the case, persecution merely helped
to strengthen his own belief in his mission,
and, by surrounding him with the halo of
martyrdom, spread his reputation, and in-
creased his influence. Had not the Messi-
anic apocalypses repeatedly declared that the
]\Iessiah must undergo hardship and priva-
tion, must submit to the cruelties of men and
the persecution of unbelievers ?

After some years of aimless wandering,
Sabbatai arrived in Salonica, the hot-bed of
the Kabbalah. There he continued his Mes-
sianic operations. He invited all his follow-
ers and admirers to a feast, took a scroll of
the law, and celebrated his wedding with
the Torah, intimating that he, the Messiah,
the son of God, thus married the Torah, the

KAB BALI STIC SPECULATIONS 2iy

daughter of God. This farcical scene out-
raged the sensibihties of the more sober
Rabbis of Salonica. As a result, he was
banished from that town also.

As the year 1666 was drawing near, the
second milestone in the Messianic era, when
great things were hoped for by Jews and by
Christians, Sabbatai, supported by the cred-
ulity of many rich and influential Jews all
over the world, took up his abode in Jerusa-
lem, where he awaited the miracle that would
confirm his Messiahship. The people of
Jerusalem were greatly excited over a story,
made current by one Baruch Gad, about the
Sons of Moses, living on the other side of
the marvellous river Sambation, who were
awaiting the beginning of the Messianic
period at any moment. In Jerusalem Sab-
batai met his Elijah in the person of Nathan
Ghazati, who undertook to proclaim the ad-
vent of the Messiah.

When Sabbatai returned to his native
town, Smyrna (1665), his fame preceded

2l8 THE MESSIAH IDEA

him through the proclamations made by the
numerous emissaries " sent out over all of
Europe and Asia to proclaim his Messiah-
ship. The ban of excommunication, pro-
nounced upon him seventeen years before,
was entirely forgotten. On New Year's
day, in the synagogue, amidst the blowing of
horns, he publicly declared himself the Mes-
siah, while the multitude cried, " Long live
our king, our Messiah ! " The craze spread
to all Jewish communities. Women and
children in the streets prophesied about the
Messianic advent in the language of the
Zohar. Men from all lands came to see the
long-expected Messiah of the Jews. The
Jewish world was in a state of delirious ex-
citement. Business was neglected, all world-
ly interests abandoned, and Sabbatai's erst-
while opponents underwent severe penance
as atonement for their sins. Christians also
were affected by the general confusion, and
clear-headed merchants, practical business
men from all the centres of Europe fever-

J

KABBALISTIC SPECULATIONS 2iq

ishly expected news from Smyrna. The
printing houses of Amsterdam could not
supply sufficient copies of the new prayer-
books, which were adorned with the like-
nesses of Sabbatai and King- David. The
Hamburg Jewish community went wild over
the news. In London, in true English fash-
ion, Je\vs_offered wagers at the odds of ten
to one that Sabbatai would be crowned and
anointed king of the Jews at Jerusalem in
the course of ..txzQ years. Never before had
the whole of Tewry been thrown into such a
state of exciternent.

According to the Messianic theory of the
Sabbatians," the elements (Nizozoth) of the
original soul are scattered all over the atmos-
phere, and they cannot be reunited, because
the Kelippoth, the evil spirits, constantly pre-
vent their reunion. When the Kelippoth
are destroyed by a truly righteous man
versed in Kabbalistic lore, who knows the
relations between the upper and the lower
worlds, then the 'Olam ha-Tikkun, " the

220 THE MESSIAH IDEA

world of order," will prevail, miraculously
influenced by the Sefiroth. The Messiah,
possessing sparks of the original soul, or,
according to some, being Adam. Kadmon
(the first, original man) himself, the handi-
work of God, a part of the Deity, is best able
to wrest the scattered soul elements from the
clutches of the evil spirits.

With the advent of the Messiah and the in-
auguration of " the world of order," the laws
of Judaism will lose all significance. Still
less will the Talmud, an object of scorn with
most of the pseudo-Messiahs," continue to
have authority. The Messiah himself is a
Divine personage, sprung from the bosom of
the " Ancient of days " ('Attik Yomin). He
is the holy king (Malka Kaddisha), the ori-
ginal man (Adam Kadmon), the true God,
the God of Israel, and to him alone should
prayers be addressed. Until then, the angel
Metatron had held dominion over mundane
affairs. Now God in the flesh, in the form
of Sabbatai, would assume the rule of the

KABBALISTIC SPECULATIONS 221

world. Under the dominion of the angel,
the world was badly managed. God could
not realize all His ideals with regard to this
world. But now God appeared in the form
of man, became incarnate in Sabbatai," and
a new order of things would set in.

These and many similar blasphemies were
preached by Sabbatai's followers. Isaac
Primo, the private secretary of the Messiah,
often signed official messages with '^_I^tlie
Lord your God, Sabbatai Zebi." A char--
acteristic cnxular issued by this secretary to
all Jewish communities, commanding them
to change the fast of the tenth day of Te-
beth into a day of rejoicing, begins as fol-
lows :

The first-begotten son of God, Sabbatai Zebi, Mes-
siah and redeemer of the people of Israel, to all
the children of Israel, peace ! Since ye have been
deemed worthy to behold the great day and the ful-
filment of God's word by the pi-ophets, your lament
and sorrow must be changed into joy, and your
fasting into merriment, for ye shall weep no more
.... because I have appeared.^"

Another principle of the Kabbalists, which
is found also in the Talmud, was then re-

222 THE MESSIAH IDEA

vived and put into practice. There was a
belief that the Messiah would not appear be-
fore the entire supply (Guf ) of unborn souls
is exhausted."' Hence, to accelerate God's
work, the Jews of Salonica married off their
children at the age of ten or twelve, seven
hundred couples at one time, so as to re-
move all obstacles from the way of the Mes-
siah.

The chief feature of the Sabbatian move-

II — — —

ment. however^ was \\s, opposition to TRah-

binical Judaism.'" It is a tendency common
to almost all the pseudo-Messiahs, but Sab-
batai and his followers carried it further
than any of their predecessors. With the
abolition of Rabbinic law, they also attempt-
ed to abrogate the written law, holding that
a new covenant. had_,.bfien.. revealed to the
Messiah, When some of the Rabbis of Am-
sterdam tried to oppose the new enactments
of Sabbatai that had the avowed purpose of
abolishing ancient laws and institutions, they
were almost stoned by the enraged populace.

I

K ABB A LI STIC SPECULATIONS 223

It is related, that when Sabbatai Zebi offered
the paschal lamb in Constantinople, he had
his disciples eat of the forbidden fat and pro-
nounce the blessing, " Blessed art Thou . . .
who looseneth the bound," meaning thereby
the loosening of the bonds of traditional
Judaism. It is a marvellous phenomenon,
this tremendous influence exerted over • a
whole nation by one man — an influence so
great that the few sober-minded Jews, most-
ly Talmudic scholars, who were known as
Koferim (unbelievers), had to conceal their
resentment for fear of incurring the fury of
the mob.

Although, under pres§iij:£,„Sabbatai Zebi
turned Mohammedan in 1666, changed his
name to ]\Iehmed Effendi, married a Turk-
ish woman, and induced many of his follow-
ers to embrace Mohammedanism, he was still
regarded as the Messiah by many Jews. To
account for his conversion, some of his ad-
herents asserted that only a phantom had
turned Mohammedan; Sabbatai himself had

224 THE MESSIAH HmA

returned to heaven, or had gone in search
of the Ten Tribes, and would soon re-appear.
Nathan Ghazati, the deluded prophet,
preached, that, like Moses in the court of
Pharaoh, it was necessary for the Messiah
to live in the court of the Sultan, so that he
might redeem the lost souls of the Moham-
medans as well. Sabbatai himself still kept
up his Messianic character, associated with
Jews, under the pretext that he would con-
vert them to the religion of Islam, expound-
ed the Zohar, and succeeded in establishing
a sect of Judeo-Turks, who, without hesi-
tation, assumed the turban, followed Mo-
hammedan practices, and revelled in the hope
of Sabbatai's speedy return as the true re-
deemer of Israel.

Sabbatai died, wretched, lonely, and for-
saken, in a small town in Albania (1676).
Yet the belief in his Messiahship was un-
shaken. New impostors arose in different
parts of Europe and Asia who tried to keep
up the delusion, and tlie people, to escape the

KABBALISTIC SPECULATIONS 225

great pain of a sudden disillusion after so
much enthusiasm and excitement, were will-
ing to be deluded. The Rabbis, naturally,
were the first to regain their senses and
begin an active crusade against the Sabba-
tians, although it took a long time before
the baneful impression was entirely removed.
It is one of the miracles of Jewish history
that Judaism survived the terrible shock
given it by the collapse of the Sabbatian
movement.

Sabbatai Zebi's immediate successor was
Michael Cardoso (1630- 1706), a converted
Marrano, a man of European culture and
refinement, who announced himself as the
Ephraimite Messiah. He preached, and
wrote numerous treatises, on the doctrine
that there are two gods — one the First
Cause, incomprehensible, without will and
without influence over this world ; the other,
the God of Israel, the Creator of the world,
the lawgiver, who alone should be wor-
shipped. He gained many adherents in

226 THE MESSIAH IDEA

Turkey, Egypt, and Caiidia, and secured the
good offices of some of the ruhng powers of
the East. His enterprises came to a sud-
den end ; he was stabbed by his own nephew,
Shalom.

Another impostor, Mordecai of Eisen-
stadt, at the same time spread the Sabbatian
doctrines throughout Germany and Poland.
He represented himself as Sabbatai Zebi
risen from the dead, the true Messiah son of
David. Sabbatai could not accomplish the
work of redemption, because he was rich,
and the Messiah is described as " poor and
riding on an ass." Hence, he, Mordecai,
the poor man, was the true Messiah.

In Turkey the Sabbatian movement was
afforded new strength by the appearance of
Jacob Querido ("the favorite"), repre-
sented as the son of Sabbatai, but in reality
his brother-in-law, who was supposed to pos-
sess the souls of both Messiahs, that of the
son of Joseph and that of the son of David.
He assumed the name of Zebi, and preached

KABBALISTIC SPECULATIONS 22y

and practiced the grossest immorality, be-
lieving that the sinfulness of the world could
be overcome only by a superabundance of
sin. When Querido and his followers were
denounced to the Turkish authorities, four
hundred of them turned Mohammedans, and
formed a sect known by the name of Don-
mah ("apostates"). It is said that this
sect numbers now more than four thousand
members. After Querido's death, the leader-
ship was undertaken by his son Berachyahu
(about 1695-1740).

In Poland, where the Jews had but re-
cently suffered terrible persecutions during
the Cossack invasions, the Sabbatian craze
assumed most alarming proportions. Under
the leadership of Judah Hasid, of Dubno,
and of Hayyim Malach, a new league was
formed, the adherents of which called them-
selves Hasidim, and spent their days in fast-
ing and self-mortification. At the beginning
of the year 1700, about fifteen hundred of
these Hasidim set out on a journey to Pales-

228 THE MESSIAH IDEA

tine, to await there tlie approaching redemp-
tion. Hayyim Malach presided over the
Sabbatian sect in Jerusalem, taught the trini-
tarian doctrine as developed by the later fol-
lowers of the false Messiah, and carried
about with him a carved image of Sabbatai
Zebi, which his followers worshipped.

The arch-impostor in these years of con-
fusion was Nehemiah Hiyya Hayyun
(1650-1726), who stirred up trouble wher-
ever he appeared, and brought discord and
schism into many Jewish communities, from
Amsterdam to Jerusalem, from London to
Italy, in Germany and in Poland. He
preached and wrote books about the triune
god, the god in three persons (Parzufim) —
the holy primeval god, the holy king, the in-
carnation of the Deity, and the female per-
son, the Shechinah. He found adherents in
the Portuguese Hacham of London, later of
Amsterdam, Solomon Ayllon (1667-1728),
in the Polish wonder-working Rabbi, Lobele
Prossnitz, and, according to some, also in

KABBALISTIC SPECULATIONS 229

the famous Prague Talmudist, Jonathan
Eibeschiitz. The controversies about Hay-
yun between the German and Portuguese
congregations of Amsterdam, the blasphe-
mies and immoraHties of his adherents, the
' bans and excommunications hurled on both
sides, and the great conflict between Jacob
Emden and Jonathan Eibeschutz, in which
almost all the Rabbis and the representatives
of the Jewish communities of Poland and
Germany were involved as a result of these
Sabbatian movements, are all matters of
history, and need not be dwelt upon here.

The dangers connected with Kabbalistic
study and investigation then became clear
to the Rabbis. With strong determination
and with all the powers at their command,
they set about weakening the influence of the
Kabbalah and restricting its study, though
not because they disbelieved in its doctrines.
Many of the most representative Rabbis of
the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries
were firm believers in the sanctity of the

230 THE MESSIAH IDEA

Zohar and in the infallibility of its teach-
ings. But in spite of their devotion to the
mystical teachings of the Kabbalah, they
could not but realize the grave peril to Juda-
ism from the impostors and deluded fanatics
who took refuge within the stronghold of the
Zohar.

It was at this time that a gifted youth of
noble birth, a genius in Hebrew poetry, and
a master in Jewish lore, became entangled
in the meshes of the Kabbalah, prostituted
his admirable qualities by speculating on
mystical dreams, and subsequently, to the
detriment of Judaism and Jewish literature,
became a prey to these frenzies. Moses
Hayyim Luzzatto (1707- 1747), born of
wealthy parents in Padua, accomplished in
Hebrew and Latin, a poet of rare ability,
applied himself early in life to the study of
the Kabbalah. He was so enchanted with
the teachings of the Zohar that he composed
a book in the same style and in the same dia-
lect, by which he hoped to redeem the souls

KABBALISTIC SPECULATIONS 231

of Israel and of the whole world. The
Messianic frenzy suddenly took possession of
him. He imagined that Elijah the prophet
had told him he was the Messiah, " the sup-
port of the Deity in exile, the precious throne
of God, and when the Deity went forth from
exile, he would be the one to lead it forth."
He composed a psalter in the same form and
style as the psalter of David, and he was be-
lieved to have said that, in the Messianic
age, his psalter would take the place of the
Psalms of David. He was suspected of
having had connections with the Sabbatians,
and anathemas were hurled at him from the
court-houses of various Rabbis, until,
broken-hearted and forsaken, he fell a vic-
tim in his fortieth year to the plague that
raged in Palestine, where he was then re-
siding. He was one of the most precious
victims which Judaism was called upon to
sacrifice on the altar of the Kabbalah.

The last of the pseudo-Messiahs in Jewish
history was Yankiev Leibowitz Frank, of

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232 THE MESSIAH IDEA

Galicia^n_ unscrupulous adventurer, a scoun-
drel of the first order, who brought much
misery to the Jews of Poland. Frank was
a Mohammedan in Turkey, a Catholic in
Poland, and an observant Jew among his
adherents. He taught the peculiar. doctrine,
very much like that expounded by Moham-
med about the prophets, that all the Messiahs
that had arisen from time to time in Israel
had been true Messiahs. All had- been pos-
sessed of the Messianic soul, which had as-
sumed different personalities. David, Eli-
jah, Jesus, Mohammed, Sabbatai Zebi, and
his successors — all._Qi,them had possessed
the soul of the Messiah, which now took his,
Frank's, form. Foremost in his teachings
was the Sabbatian theory about the trinity,
with an embellishment of his own, that the
deity incarnate in the Messiah possessed all
powers in heaven and earth, and ordered his
followers to address him as " the Holy
Lord." The Talmud was an object of such
intense hatred among the Frankists that

KABBALISTIC SPECULATIONS 233

they boasted of the additional name they
assumed — anti-Talmudists, or Zoharists.

In the declaration of principles which the
Frankists presented to Bishop Dembowski
(1757), when they asked him to call for a
disputation with the Rabbinites, they laid
down their belief in the following para-
graphs : ^ ( I ) It is the duty of every Israel-
ite, not only to love and worship God, but
also to investigate His true essence. (2),
It is the object of the Torah and of the pro-
phets to present a clear view of the true es-
sence of God, but the language employed in
these books is so obscure and mysterious
that only those possessed of deep insight and
endowed with Divine gifts can discern it.
(3) The Talmud pretends to be an interpre-
tation of the Bible, but it is full of lies, base-
ness, and opposition to the Torah itself. It
enjoins its adherents, not only to deceive
Christians, but also to destroy them. They
(the Frankists), however, follow another
interpretation of the Bible, that given by the

234 THE MESSIAH IDEA

Zohar, where the mysteries of the Divine
word are correctly set forth. (4) The
Frankists beheve in one God, Creator of the
world, who takes cognizance of the small as
well as the great things in this world, but
(5) they also believe that this God consists
of three persons (Parzufim), and this be-
lief can easily be proved from Holy Writ,
and is distinctly stated in the Zohar ^ (6)
They also believe that God has appeared in
human flesh, eaten, drunk, slept, and satis-
fied all human wants, but without commit-
ting any sin. (7) They believe that Jerusa-
lem will never be rebuilt. (8) The Messiah
will appear, not to bring about the redemp-
tion of Israel, but in the flesh, to redeem lost
souls. (9) God Himself will revoke the
curse pronounced upon the progenitors of the
human race and on the whole nation, and
then the true Messiah shall be God who is in
heaven.

Four years later, when the Frankists pre-
sented a petition to Canon Mikulski, promis-

KABBALISTIC SPECULATIONS 235

ing to enter the Catholic Church on condition
that before their conversion they should be
permitted to hold a disputation with the
Talmudists, they again emphasized their be-
lief in the trinity, and made the dogmas of
their faith approach still more closely to the
dogmas of the Catholic Church. They de-
clared that the words of all the prophets re-
garding the advent of the Messiah had been
long since fulfilled, that the Messiah was the
true God, who became incarnate and suf-
fered for the redemption of the world, that
with the advent of the Messiah, all sacrifices,
the whole ritual, in fact the whole of Juda-
ism lost its significance, that the cross is the
sign of the trinity and the emblem of the
Messiah whom all must obey, and whose
kingdom could be entered only through bap-
tism. The Talmud teaches the Jews to use
Christian blood, for which naturally all the
adherents of the Talmud crave."* The dis-
putation took place in Lemberg (July 16,
1759), ^^^ the Rabbinites were declared de-

236 THE MESSIAH IDEA

feated by the ignorant clergy, who did not
understand a word of what the Rabbis had
to say in their defence and in defence of
their rehgion. Besides renouncing all the
laws of Judaism, the Frankists also abolished
all the laws of chastity. They carried on
their pernicious practices in many towns of
Podolia. As a result, thousands of them
were converted to Christianity, and in their
hatred of the Jews they brought many mis-
fortunes to the Polish Jewish communities.
This climax of superstition and wickedness
was reached at the same time that Moses
Mendelssohn was bringing more light into
the tents of Jacob, and Jewish emancipation
was dawning in some of the countries of
Europe.

Before we enter upon a discussion of the
new epoch of reason and enlightenment,
ushered in by Mendelssohn and his follow-
ers, we must bestow a parting glance on the
last phases of mysticism, in a new form, free
from the baneful and pernicious effects of

KABBALISTIC SPECULATIONS 237

the machinations of the extremists in the
domain of the Kabbalah, inculcating higher
ideals and nobler strivings, and yet, in its
degenerate form, fraught with many dangers
to Judaism. Israel Baal-Shem (1698?-
1759) and Beer of Miesricz (1700?- 1772),
prompted by aversion to the methods adopt-
ed by the Jewish students of the Talmud,
founded a new sect. For a time it threat-
ened to become a fierce opponent of accepted
Judaism, and to the present day it is strong
in numbers and influence among the East
European Jews. The modern Hasidim, firm
believers in the sanctity of the Zohar, in the
powers of the Kabbalah, and in the influence
exerted by their Zaddikim (wonder-working
Rabbis) over the destinies of men, busy
themselves very little with Messianic specu-
lations. The aim of the founders of this
sect was to free the Jews from the shackles
of excessive intellectualism, introduce more
poetry, more sentiment into the Jewish wor-
ship, take away the Jewish youth from use-

238 THE MESSIAH IDEA

less, pilpulistic casuistry, and inspire him
with a desire to pray, to cidtivate his reli-
gious emotions. It is said that when Baal-
Shem " overheard the sounds of eager, loud
discussions issuing from a Rabbinical Col-
lege, closing his ears with his hands, [he]
declared that it was such disputants who
delayed the redemption of Israel from cap-
tivity." " The Hasidim, however, entertain
the commonly accepted views about the Mes-
siah and the Messianic kingdom. While they
attribute supernatural powers to their Zad-
dikim, they never permit them to claim a
Messianic mission, and together with other
Jews they pray for the coming of the Messiah
and the redemption of Israel. It seems as if
the disastrous results of the appearance of
the many false Messiahs during the eigh-
teenth century had this beneficial effect, that
even the mystery-loving Hasidim gave up
all speculations about the nature and mission
of the Messiah and the date of his arrival.
A dark and gloomy aspect seventeenth and

KABBALISTIC SPECULATIONS 239

eighteenth century Judaism presents to us.
As the darkness of night becomes most in-
tense before day-break, when it is making its
last stand against the advance of the king of
day, so it was with Judaism before the ap-
pearance of the sun of enhghtenment and
civihzation which illumined the tents of
Jacob. Superstition played havoc with the
fancies of the people, blind credulity in the
assertions of any impostor wrought misery
for the scattered sons of Judah, the reins
of fancy were let loose, and the people sank
to the lowest depths of fanaticism and super-
stition. There were thinkers, poets, and
philosophers who contributed much to the
development of the Jewish law and ideals,
who enriched Jewish literature with their
writings and the Jewish spirit with high and
exalted aspirations. But many even of these
could not resist the spell of the Kabbalah,
and the great mass of the people were led to
strange acts and abnormal strivings by the
fanciful manifestations of this mystic lore.

240 THE MESSIAH IDEA

It admittedly gave an Impetus to many spir-
itualizing forces in Jewry, some of which are
discernible to the present day, but it also
made possible the rise of the many impostors
and deluded enthusiasts who led the people
astray by arousing false hopes and inculcat-
ing strange, un-Jewish doctrines.

The rise of the Hasidim and the bitter
warfare waged against them by Elijah of
Wilna and his associates — a warfare origin-
ally not because of the prominence given
to mystic lore in the system introduced by
Israel Baal-Shem, for the greatest enemies
of the Hasidim themselves were devoted vo-
taries of the Kabbalah — helped to make the
Kabbalah and its Bible, the Zohar, less de-
sired objects of study and investigation to
the bulk of the Jews. The end of the eigh-
teenth century, the close of the Jewish medie-
val ages, witnessed a sudden revolt in the
Jewish camp, stimulated by the great changes
then occurring in Europe, as well as by the
pernicious results of the Sabbatian move-

KABBALISTIC SPECULATIONS 241

ments. Other influences arose, other forces
began their operations upon the Jewish
mind, which, in the course of time, changed
the aspect of Judaism, changed the Jew's
aspect of the world, and helped to change
the world's attitude toward the Jew. The
Messiah idea now throws off the crust of
myth and superstition, and assumes either a
national aspect, as witli Xhe^ZiQms>ts_^,Qr a
cosmopolitan universal aspect, as with the
modern Reformers, although the belief in a
personal Messiah is still a doctrine of faith
with the majoritjf^of Jews.

CHAPTER VII
Religious Reform and Zionism

The Emancipation of the Jews— The Desire for
Emancipation causes Apostasy — Reform of the
Worship— The Rabbis opposed to Innovations—
The Messianic Hope and the Desire for Equal
Rights— Messianic Prayers in the Early Reform
Prayer-Books— Holdheim and Geiger establish
the "Reform Movement on a Scientific Basis —
Disbelieve in Jewish Nationality— Hirsch the
Advocate of Orthodoxy — Spiritu?lizes the Mes-
sianic Hope— Bernays' Position— Zunz's View —
Second Edition of the Hamburg Prayer-Book —
Frankel justifies the Desire of the Jews for
Political Independence — Salomon fears Sus-
picion of Disloyalty to the State— Geiger's
Radical View — Frankel's Second Article justly
criticised — Gabriel Riesser — Rabbinical _ Con-
ferences— Einhorn's Theory of the Dispersion of
Israel — Geiger and Frankel on the Retention of
Hebrew in the Prayer-Book — Jewish Emanci-
pation strengthens the Messianic Hope among
Eastern Jews — Modern Zionism — Kalischers
View of the Messianic Ideal— Other Rabbis
protest against hastening the Period of Redemp-
tion— The Movement gains Support — First^ Col-
ony established in Palestine — National Sentiment
intensified in Europe — Gives Rise to National
Exclusiveness — Modern Anti-Semitism the Re-
sult— Persecution of the Jews in_ Russia— Zion-
ism gains many Adherents — Rabbis reconcile the
National Re-awakening with the Messianic Hope
— Ahad Ha-'Am's Philosophic Theory of Jewish
Nationalism— Belief in a Personal Messiah still
entertained by the IVIajority of Jews — Zionism a
Step tov/ard the Greater Ideal of the Messianic
Era.

REFORM AND ZIONISM 243

Mendelssohn's translation of the Bible, the
spread of the cosmopolitan ideals of the
French Encyclopedists, and the grant of civil
and religious liberty to the Jews by the
French people, were the impelling causes of
the action of the German Jews at the begin-
ning of the nineteenth century. The self-
consciousness aroused by the civilizing ef-
forts of the Mendelssohnian school created
a craving for emancipation, which was
strengthened and encouraged by the gener-
ous attitude of France and of Holland to-
ward the Jews. We can hardly appreciate
the tremendous influence exerted upon the
Jews of Germany by the Jewish Synod as-
sembled by Napoleon, although it is true
that in comparison with what was expected
of it, the Synod accomplished very little.
The mere fact, however, that the great Na-
poleon, the ruler of the civilized world, con-
cerned himself with the Jewish question,
was sufficient to intoxicate the crushed and
degraded Jews with joy, and fill their hearts

244 THE MESSIAH IDEA

with extravagant hopes for the future.
Christian poets, philosophers, and even
churchmen began to advocate the cause of
the Jew. Dramas, philosophical treatises,
and occasional pamphlets, written by repre-
sentative men, pleaded for the emancipation
of the long-suffering people. Monarchs and
princes began to realize their duty to the
ancient people. The Jews became the topic
of conversation in the salon, the diet, the
royal assembly, and little by little they were
granted rights and privileges they had not
enjoyed for many centuries.

All these facts, pointing to a speedy liber-
ation, stirred the downtrodden people with
feelings of gratitude to their Christian neigh-
bors. Forgetting the old dictum of the
Rabbis,^ that one should not destroy an old
synagogue before the new one is completed,
the Jews of Berlin enthusiastically set about
preparing themselves for the new position
by repudiating everything that might ham-
per intimate relations with their neighbors

REFORM AND ZIONISM 245

and benefactors. Conversions to Christian-
ity became every-day occurrences. The re-
ligious sensibilities of loyal Jews were con-
stantly outraged by the action of the enlight-
ened and cultured frequenters of the Berlin
salons. Many Jewish youths and maidens,
fascinated by the novel experience of a close
union with the great, unknown, Christian
world, were swept away by the tide, and
subsequently entirely lost to Judaism. The
more thoughtful and circumspect applied
themselves to the improvement of conditions
within the Jewish camp. They endeavored
to make the Jewish religious service accepta-
ble to their own children and tolerable to the
Christian visitor. The Rabbis and their fol-
lowers, unwilling to give up an iota of the
accepted rites and ceremonies of their faith,
saw the danger to Judaism, but did not ap-
preciate the strength of the proposed reme-
dies. Hence a conflict ensued within the
Jewish fold, and it has continued to rage to
the present day, bringing both blessing and
misery to Judaism.

246 THE MESSIAH IDEA

It is natural, at such a period, when the
struggle for emancipation was at its height,
when the Jews were willing to sacrifice much
for the privilege of citizenship, that the
Messianic hope with its ideals, so distinct
from present-day actualities, should find but
few exponents. The contradiction between
the desire for equal rights and the expecta-
tion of independence in the land of their
fathers, seemed so obvious, that it is related,
when the Government of Posen asked the
Rabbis of the Province, whether they wished
the privilege of citizenship, they replied,
they had no desire for equal rights, since they
would remain in exile only until the Messiah
came to redeem them. Rabbi Akiba Eger is
said to have replied : " We are blessed in
this, that we can never be utterly destroyed,
but we are also cursed, in that none of our
human well-wishers can render us permanent
help." ^ On the other hand. David Fried-
lander, in a pamphlet published in 18 12,
urged the abolition of all prayers with a
Messianic tendency.

REFORM AND ZIONISM 247

" I stand here before God," he cries out in
one place ; " I invoke blessings and prosperity
upon my king, my compatriots, myself, and
my family ; I pray not for a return to Jerusa-
lem, for the restoration of the Temple and
its sacrificial cult, I entertain no such desire
in my heart, their fulfilment will not make
me happy, my mouth shall not utter them." '

In the same pamphlet, Friedlander urges
the removal of the Hebrew language from
the prayer-book, arguing that so long as the
Jews were regarded as aliens, they naturally
looked to Palestine as their land and to the
Hebrew language as their national tongue,
but now the Jews should love the land that
grants them citizenship, and should worship
in its language.*

Thus it appears that the Messianic hope
was regarded by both factions as a serious
impediment to the acquisition of equal rights.
Those unwilling to part with this hope were
ready to forfeit their citizenship, and those
who desired emancipation at any cost un-

248 THE MESSIAH IDEA

hesitatingly gave up the cherished ideal of
the Jewish people. Even the Government
authorities took this view of the Jewish Mes-
sianic hope. Hardenberg, the Prussian
Chancellor, in presenting Friedlander's pam-
phlet to King Frederick William III, wrote
a long memorandum in its favor.

" It is not surprising," says the Chancellor, " that
the Jews long for a restoration to Palestine, since thej'
are so much oppressed by the peoples among whom
they live. But when equal rights have been granted
to them, they will no longer pray for their re-
nationalization in Palestine, but rather for the peace
and prosperity of the Prussian government ; they will
give up the hope of the coming of a Messiah, and
will pray for the welfare of the king whom they love
and respect with all their souls." ^

In spite of these assertions, based appar-
ently on sound logical reasoning, the pio-
neers of reform in Judaism dared not remove
the prayers for the coming of the Messiah
from the prayer-book. The first reform
worship, established by Jacobsohn, in his
own house, with organ and German sermon
(1815), contained all the Messianic elements
of the old prayer-book. Even in the new

REFORM AND ZIONISM 249

prayer-book published by the reform com-
munity of Berlin there was no change in the
prayers that had a Messianic significance.'
In the first prayer-book used in the Reform
Temple of Hamburg (1818), which was
prepared by M, J. Bresslau and Sackel
Frankel, and was intended as a compromise
between orthodox and reform views, only
such prayers were omitted as pointed directly
to the fact that the Jews regarded themselves
as foreigners in the land. All references to
Israel's ancient national glory were retained,
and also all Messianic passages that can be
interpreted symbolically. But the new edi-
tion of this prayer-book, published in 1841,
although in many respects more conservative
than its predecessor, omitted all references to
Zion and Jerusalem, to the coming of the
Messiah, or to the resurrection of the dead.
This is not surprising, for at that time
the reform movement, which had been mere-
ly a means of self-defence, assumed a more
permanent form in the hands of Holdheim

250 THE MESSIAH IDEA

and Geiger. They established it on the basis
of Jewish science. These bold and outspoken
men, unlike the first reformers, whose timid-
ity prevented them from making any radical
change in ritual or ceremony, went so far as
to assert that Judaism was wholly religious,
and had nothing national in it. In his
younger years, Geiger was so confident of
the truth of his theory, mistakenly attri-
buted to Mendelssohn, that in a letter to his
friend Ullman (September 20, 1839),^ he
suggested the formation of distinct commu-
nities of Jews who had given up their adher-
ence to the Talmud and their belief in its
authority.

The exponents of reform shifted the cen-
tre of gravity from the esthetic and the con-
venient to the scientific basis, and thus at-
tracted many adherents to their doctrines
and teachings. Orthodoxy, however, also
found its advocates among the modern and
cultured Jews of Germany, armed with the
same weapons of rational investigation.

REFORM AND ZIONISM 2$l

Samson Raphael Hirsch (1808-1888), the
strongest champion of orthodox Judaism of
the nineteenth century, in his " Nineteen
Letters of Ben Uzziel " * (1836), discussed
the two burning questions of the day —
emancipation and rehgious reform — from a
standpoint entirely new in those days. In
the sixteenth letter, Hirsch explains his po-
sition with regard to emancipation and its
relation to the national status of the Jews.
He suggests a compromise between these
two apparently conflicting ideas, arguing
that the Tews never had been a nation in the
: political sense of the word. Since it is not
\ the land that united Israel, but the Torah,
I " therefore, it still forms a united body,
i though separated from a national soil; nor
I does this unity lose its reality, though Israel
I accept everywhere the citizenship of the na-
tions amongst which it is dispersed." When
God shall unite His scattered people, such an
union will have only the spiritual significance
of showing the whole world the greatness of

252 THE MESSIAH IDEA

God and the glory of the Torah, as a guiding-
principle of State.

" The entire purpose of the Messianic age is that
we may, in prosperity, exhibit to mankind a better
example of * Israel ' than did our ancestors of the
first time, while, hand in hand with us, the entire race
will be joined in universal brotherhood through the
recognition of God, the All-One.

" On account of this purely spiritual nature of the
national character of Israel, it is capable of the most
intimate union with States, with, perhaps, this dif-
ference, that while others seek in the State only the
material benefits which it secures, considering posses-
sion and enjoyment as the highest good, Israel can
regard it only as a means of fulfilling the mission of
humanity." °

This exposition of the idea at the root of
the great controversy raging in German
Jewry, found few adherents at that period,
although to-day it is accepted by both ortho-
dox and reform Jews, each party interpre-
ting it in its own way. I

The argument of Isaac Bernays, the Chief
Rabbi of Hamburg, was more practical. In
his letter of condemnation of the new prayer-
book,'" he held that the reformers, by remov-
ing the hope of a future national existence.

REFORM AND ZIONISM 253

which is one of the fundamental principles
of Judaism, endanger the very existence of
Jews and Judaism. More forcible still, al-
though less satisfactory, is Zunz's argument
expressed in his opinion on the question of
circumcision," in which he takes it for grant-
ed that Israel forms merely a church. " The
Jewish Church " is one of his favorite ex-
pressions, but the belief in the coming of the
Messiah he considers essential to member-
ship in it.

The controversy on the question of the
Messiah reached its climax with the publica-
tion of the second edition of the Hamburg
prayer-book (1841). Zacharias Frankel
(1801-1875), always an advocate of con-
servatism, published a long article in the
Orient^ sharply criticising the prayer-book.
He expressed little sympathy with Bernays,
who had interdicted the prayer-book, and
had condemned all those who used it in
worship. Yet Frankel disapproved the ac-
tion of the compilers, who had summarily

254 THE MESSIAH IDEA

removed all mention of a Messiah and of the
hope for a return to Jerusalem. Frankel be-
lieved that the desire of the Jews for freedom
and political independence in their own land
was a holy sentiment, with which all enlight-
ened nations would sympathize. The ex-
perience of many centuries had proved that a
people without a land and without political
independence is held in derision by the rest
of the world. Recent events (referring to
the Greek revolution of 1828) also proved
that it was possible for a people, after many
years of subjection, to throw off the yoke
of a tyrant and become free. It was neces-
sary that Israel should have full confidence
in its own powers and in the promises held
out to it, for if it lost this hope, it would
entirely disappear.

Frankel maintained that the doctrines of
the modern Rabbis about a Jewish mission
and Israel's election as a nation of priests
bearing the jflag of a universal religion, al-
though exalted and inspiring, were too ab-

REFORM AND ZIONISM 255

stract to afford real strength and encourage-
ment to the people in times of trouble and
persecution. He could not understand how
the people would fulfil even that mission, if
the reform Rabbis continued to abolish the
laws and ceremonies of Judaism, wiping out
the marks of history, and turning the hearts
of the Jews away from their national hopes
and aspirations. Despair of a national re-
vival would inevitably bring about national
death for the Jews, and with their death
their mission also would die. Therefore, he
emphatically insisted upon faith in that ex-
alted and glorious ideal, the belief in the
future of the Jewish nation living in politi-
cal independence and freedom in the land of
its ancestors.^^

In this article, Frankel showed himself to
be a firm nationalist, and a believer in the
Messianic hope. Nevertheless, he by no
means held settled and well-established views
on the subject. His policy in all matters per-
taining to Judaism, the policy of the " golden

256 THE MESSIAH IDEA

mean," frequently induced him to modify
his views, and thus gave his antagonists an
opportunity to charge him with inconsist-
ency. Numerous articles and pamphlets"
were written in the controversy on the Ham-
burg prayer-book. Among these was a re-
ply to Frankel's criticism by the preacher of
the Temple, Dr. Gotthold Salomon (1784-
1862) , who emphasized the fact that only the
references to the re-introduction of the sacri-
ficial cult, and not the hope for a future
national existence for Israel, were removed
from the prayer-book. At the same time he
argued against the retention of this hope,
too, for the Jews themselves do not wish to
return to Palestine. They would be suspect-
ed of disloyalty if they prayed for the com-
ing of a Messiah and the restoration of their
political independence. Therefore, this hope
should be removed from the hearts of the
people, and the prayers should retain only as
much of it as referred to a spiritual regen-
eration.

REFORM AND ZIONISM 2S7

Abraham Geiger (i8 10-1874), on the
other hand," thought that the compilers of
the prayer-book had not gone far enough.
They ought to have abolished all prayers
with any national significance. They had
retained too many of the Hebrew prayers,
he thought, and had evinced cowardice and
unpardonable timidity in dealing with ques-
tions of Jewish dogma.

Frankel, in his reply to Salomon's criti-
cism," repeated the arguments about the re-
tention of the Jewish national hope, but at
the same time he introduced a new thought
which undermined his whole theory. He
now gave utterance to the idea that nation-
ality was forced upon the Jews from with-
out. They were compelled to shrink into a
separate nationality, because the nations had
denied them the rights of citizenship. Many
of their brethren were still living in lands
where all rights were denied to them, there-
fore, they could not be blamed if they prayed
for a return to Jerusalem, no more than the

258 THE MESSIAH IDEA

Greeks who lived in Austria were regarded
as traitors to the royal house of Habsburg
because they offered their services to their
struggling brethren under the dominion of
the Turk. When the Jews prayed for the
coming of the Messiah and for the return to
Palestine, they prayed for those of their race
who had no fatherland, who were rejected
by the nations among whom they dwelt.

This contradictory statement was rightly
taken advantage of by S. Holdheim (1806-
1860)," who maintained that if there was
a Jewish nationality we could not disclaim
it, but, on the other hand, it could not be
forced upon us by nations who violate the
laws of humanity. If Judaism did not in-
culcate a Jewish nationality, the Jews who
live under tyrannical rulers could not create
it. They had a right to demand equal rights
of citizenship only if they submitted to the
laws of the land, and regarded themselves
as citizens of the land in which they lived.

It is quite obvious, therefore, that even in

REFORM AND ZIONISM 259

Frankel the national consciousness was not
very strong. His desire to retain all Mes-
sianic references in the prayer-book was due
rather to a sentimental feeling for the an-
tiquity of these prayers, justifiable in itself,
but impotent against the attacks of practical
reason. Gabriel Riesser, one of the foremost
members of the Hamburg Temple, said,^'
that though he himself no longer prayed for
a return to Palestine, he could see no harm
to the cause of Jewish emancipation in re-
taining the prayers in question. At present
we are citizens of various countries, and it
is our duty to serve them with all our pow-
ers. When the great trumpet blows, and we
are gathered to our ancient inheritance, and
established in our land, under a Jewish Gov-
ernment, we shall abandon our rights of
citizenship elsewhere. The real reason for
abolishing the prayers for the coming of the
Messiah, he said, was not that their retention
would interfere with our obtaining full
rights, but it would be hypocrisy for German

26o THE MESSIAH IDEA

Jews, who had long- since given up the Mes-
sianic hope, to repeat meaningless prayers.

The controversy continued for a long time
in the periodicals. Thence it was transfer-
red to the Rabbinical Conferences, both in
Germany and in America. It will be pos-
sible for me to give only a short account of
these assemblies and of their deliberations
on this important question.

In 1843, ^ reform society was established
in Frankfort-on-the-Main with the avowed
purpose of throwing off the yoke of Rabbin-
ism. In its platform, it boldly declared that
the members neither expected nor desired
the coming of a Messiah, who would bring
the Israelites back to Palestine, and they
recognized no fatherland except the one to
which they belonged by birth or civil rela-
tions."

At the first Rabbinical Conference, held in
1844 ^t Brunswick, there was no discussion
on the Messiah question.'^ In 1845, the sec-
ond Rabbinical Conference was held at

REFORM AND ZIONISM 261

Frankfort-on-the-Main, when the questions
of the behef in the coming of a Messiah and
the retention of the prayers expressive of the
Messianic hope were debated. In discussing
the report of a committee recommending the
view, that the Messiah idea should be strip-
ped of all notions of a political or national
character, Einhorn proclaimed his famous
theory, that the dispersion among the nations
was not a punishment for Israel, but the
greatest good that could have been conferred
upon it, for the real development of Judaism
dates from the removal of the Jews from
Palestine. He maintained that the hope of
a future redemption is closely allied with
Talmudic Judaism. The enlightened Jew
should not pray for the restoration of the
national glory and the re-introduction of the
sacrificial cult, although, in his prayers, he
may call the Jews " the chosen people," for
this is an incontrovertible fact.'' Holdheim
in the main agreed with Einhorn.^'' Other
Rabbis were of a different opinion, and many
compromises were suggested.

262 THE MESSIAH IDEA

The question of Jewish nationality was
again brought up in the discussion on the
retention of the Hebrew language in the
prayer-book. Geiger declared, that language
being only a national and not a religious
bond, Hebrew had no place in a modern
Jewish ritual. Frankel vehemently attacked
Geiger, maintaining that the love the Jew
bore the Hebrew had nothing to do with his
devotion to the fatherland, and even the hope
for a future redemption did not interfere
with his patriotism.^' This Conference
marks the real break between reform and
orthodoxy. Despite the constant warfare
against reform and reformers conducted by
Frankel, Sachs, and David Cassel, the new
ideas took firm root in Germany. Thence
they were transported to America, where
they were received with great favor.

Other conferences held at various places
and times dealt more or less with the ques-
tion of the Messiah, but little that was new
was advanced on either side. The Philadel-

REFORM AND ZIONISM 263

phia Conference,'^ held in 1869, adopted the
fohowing statement of principles, which was
practically seconded by the Pittsburg Con-
ference of 1885 :

1. The Messianic aim of Israel is not the restora-
tion of the old Jewish State under a descendant of
David, involving a second separation from the nations
of the earth, but the union of all children of God in
the confession of the unity of God, so as to realize
the unity of all rational creatures and their call to
moral sanctification.

2. We look upon the destruction of the Second
Jewish commonwealth not as a punishment for the
sinfulness of Israel, but as a result of the Divine
purpose revealed to Abraham, which, as has become
ever clearer in the course of the world's history,
consists in the dispersion of the Jews to all parts
of the earth, for the realization of their high-priestly
mission, to lead the nations to the true knowledge
and worship of God

6. The belief in the bodily resurrection has no re-
ligious foundation, and the doctrine of Immortality
refers to the after-existence of the soul only.^'

Thus, although emancipation was the
prime motive for the abolition of the belief
in a personal Messiah by the pioneers of
reform, when some of the workers in the
field of " Jev/ish Science " joined the reform
movement, a scientific basis was constructed

264 THE MESSIAH IDEA

for Judaism, by which the national hope of
the Jews was proved to be untenable. The
emancipation of the Jews of Germany, fol-
lowing the revolution of 1848, helped to
strengthen the reform movement, and there-
by weaken the idea of Jewish nationalism.
Strange as it may appear, this very eman-
cipation, the kind treatment accorded the
Jews in many lands, and the elevation of
Jews to high positions in the councils of
States and in the world of finance, were in-
terpreted by another class of Jews as signs
of the approach of the Messianic era. The
oppressed Jews of Eastern Europe naturally
longed and prayed for a speedy redemption.
Legends of the Messiah and the wonders and
glories of his coming were told by young
and old. With them it was not so much a
desire for national identity and political sov-
ereignty, as for a complete return to the old
State, with the idealized Messiah, the anoint-
ed of God, in the foreground. The burdens
of exile narrowed their horizon. They could

REFORM AND ZIONISM 265

see no other way of redemption from their
abject position than by supernatural events.
When news of the prominence attained by
Jewish magnates and statesmen reached
these communities, when they were in-
formed, frequently in an exaggerated form,
of the favor shown to some of their bretli-
ren by the ruHng powers of Europe, their
vague notions of a Messiah and a Messianic
age assumed a more definite shape. The idea
of emancipation from present misery by a
more natural course imperceptibly merged
with the confused hope of a Messianic period.
The Jewish emancipation in Western Euro-
pean lands aroused within the hearts of the
Jews of the East a certain amount of self-
consciousness, of national pride, upon the
basis of which later builders constructed the
great national movement of the Jews —
Zionism.

When a history of modern Zionism comes
to be written, the names of Hirsch Kalischer
and Elijah Guttmacher will stand out most

266 THE MESSIAH IDEA

prominently. They were the first to stir up
the feelings of the Jews for the Holy Land,
and arouse the wealthy to support practical
colonization. Although their efforts were
not very successful among the Jews of Rus-
sia, who under the reign of Alexander II
were too well situated to heed such a call,
they succeeded in interesting some prominent
Jews and Christians in their plans. When
the policy of the Romanoffs toward the Jews
changed, the soil was ready, and the actual
work commenced. Besides the difficulty of
overcoming the general belief, that the re-
demption would come only through direct
intervention of God, there was the obvious
violation of the law against hastening the
period of redemption, by the settlement of
Jewish colonies in Palestine.

So early as 1836, Hirsch Kalischer, then
Rabbi in Thorn, Germany, explained his po-
sition with regard to the Messiah, in a letter
addressed to Anselm Mayer Rothschild.'*
If one subtracts the homiletic and the pil-

REFORM AND ZIONISM 267

pulistic elements of his letter, the arguments
presented do not differ materially from
those held by many Zionists of to-day.

Let no one imagine that the Messiah v/ill appear
suddenly, and, amid miracles and wonders, lead the
Israelites to their ancient inheritance. The begin-
ning of the redemption will be in a natural way, by
the desire of the Jews to settle in Palestine and the
willingness of the nations to help them in this work.
After many Jews have settled in Palestine, and
Jerusalem has been rebuilt, the Temple re-established,
and the " sacrifices are for a sweet savor to the
Lord," then will God show them all the miracles in
accordance with the description given by the prophets
and sages. First a man will appear endowed with
great natural abilities, who will bring about, in a
natural way, the settlement of Palestine by the Jews,
then God will send His prophet and His anointed
king.

In another letter, to Albert Cohn," the
almoner of the Paris branch of the Roth-
schild family, the Rabbi repeats this argu-
ment, adding that the Jewish settlement of
Palestine will be the first step toward the
Messianic era. " Now is the time," he cries
out, " as so many Jews have been elevated
to high positions, and are able to exert their
influence over the rulers of Europe." This

268 THE MESSIAH IDEA

point, however, was not allowed to pass
without opposition. Many Rabbis vigor-
ously protested against such an undertaking,
holding it to be in direct opposition to Jew-
ish tradition and Jewish law. Still, the
more modern and more cultured Rabbis en-
dorsed the plan as outlined by Kalischer."*
The theory that the Messianic era must be
preceded by a settlement of the Jews in
Palestine on the basis of colonization, gained
ground even among the most orthodox Rab-
bis. Ha-Maggid, then the only Hebrew
weekly, heartily supported the movement,
and the interest taken in the plan by Sir
Moses Montefiore and Lawrence Oliphant,
and the semi-official support afforded by the
British Government, helped to make many
converts to the new idea. As a result of
this movement, the agricultural school
" Mikweh Israel " was established in 1870
by the Alliance Israelite Universellc, and in
1878 the first Jewish colony, Petah Tikwah,
was established.

REFORM AND ZIONISM 269

Europe was gradually discarding- the
theories that had been instrumental in bring-
ing about the French Revolution. Cosmo-
politan ideals were rejected as opposed to the
nature of man, and national solidarity be-
came the watchword of many European na-
tions. In 1832, Greece, after a hard strug-
gle, wrested her independence from Turkey.
Italy threw off the yoke of Austria and the
Pope, and the Italian nation was unified un-
der Victor Emanuel in 1870. Bismarck
succeeded in uniting the various German
principalities into a powerful nation. After
the Russo-Turkish war in 1878, by the
treaty of Berlin, Roumania, Servia, Monte-
negro, and Bulgaria were made independent
of Turkish rule. Everywhere national feel-
ing was strengthened, and even in Poland
and Hungary it was only partially subdued
by the hand of tyrants.

This feeling, however, gave rise to the
more sordid sentiment of national exclusive-
ness, and the monster anti-Semitism was the

270 THE MESSIAH IDEA

result. The Jews might be tolerated if the
distinction between them and the nations
among whom they lived were only a reli-
gious one. But the Jews as Semites, racially
different from the Aryans, could never amal-
gamate with them, and were, therefore, a
menace to national solidarity. Of course,
the Governments themselves could not offi-
cially recognize such a distinction, but the
middle classes, who, since the revolution of
1848, have become potent factors in directing
the policies of Governrnents in all constitu-
tional States, espoused the anti-Semitic
cause, especially after the Jews showed
themselves powerful competitors in the fields
of culture and progress. Thus, though the
letter of the law accorded the Jews equal
rights with their fellow-citizens of other
creeds, anti-Semitic agitation prevented the
practical application of the laws. The Jews,
who at first were willing to assimilate with
their neighbors at the cost of denying their
nationality, began to realize that their sacri-

REFORM AND ZIONISM 271

fices were in vain, for assimilation implied
the consent, not only of those desirous of
assimilating, but also of those with whom
they wished to assimilate.^

In Russia, too, with the reaction after the
death of Alexander II, the Government and
the people set about a systematic persecution
of the Jews. Alexander Ill's accession to
the throne was followed by bloody riots
against the Jews of the Southern provinces,
w^here the desire for emancipation had al-
ready made inroads into the religious beliefs
of the people. The May Laws of 1882
helped to crush all lingering hopes that
might have been entertained for Jewish
emancipation in Russia. Disillusioned in
their fond dreams, driven back by those
whose friendship and protection they were
seeking, despised by those whom they en-
deavored to imitate, the Jewish youths of
Russia came back to the fold, and joined
hands with their fathers for a regeneration
of a national Judaism on Jewish soil. It

272 THE MESSIAH IDEA

was not the economic conditions that created
the sentiment, for the same young men who
went to Palestine to work as day-laborers in
Jewish colonies, refused the help offered
them by the philanthropic organizations of
Europe. It was wounded feelings, broken
hearts, shattered ideals, that gave birth to
the wonderful, phenomenon, the Zionist
movement, which is the latest phase of the
Messianic idea in Jewish history.

Almost all the Jewish colonies now flour-
ishing in Palestine were established in the
course of the decade between 1880 and 1890.
The qualified success of these colonies is due
to the fact that the ideal was not given suffi-
cient time for development. Action pre-
ceded deliberation, and sentiment is usually
a poor guide in practical matters. The young
men who tore themselves away with disgust
from the European culture of the Russian
gymnasiums and universities, and establish-
ed the colony Gederah, could not have been
expected to formulate very definite ideas

m

REFORM AND ZIONISM 2'Jl

about the relation of their action to the Mes-
sianic hope of the Jews. The pressure from
without made them realize the hopelessness
of their position among the nations, and
they fell back on seclusion, even complete
isolation, as the only remedy for Israel.
Were they cowards ? Only those who do not
know the sufferings and privations under-
gone by these young colonists, most of whom
were not trained for the life of the pioneer
farmer, will accuse them of cowardice.

The Rabbis were confronted with the
problem of reconciling this sudden re-awak-
ing of Jewish national feeling with the Mes-
sianic hope. The more conservative among
them vehemently opposed the new move-
ment, believing it to be in opposition to Jew-
ish tradition, especially as they saw that the
most enthusiastic of the new Zionists were
Jews who had for a long time been estranged
from Judaism and Jewish observances.
They feared that the new movement would
lead to a breaking away from the old ac-
cepted rehgion of Israel.

274 THE MESSIAH IDEA

Many of the more prominent Rabbis,
however, readily assisted the movement.
Some of them, such as Samuel Mohilewer,
Mordecai Eliashberg, and his son Jonathan,
Mordecai Joffe, and others, became leaders
in the new^ Zionism, and devoted time and
energy to the furthering of its interests.
Some of them adopted the theory of Ka-
lischer, that the Messianic era must be pre-
ceded by a settlement of Jews in the Holy
Land. Others argued that the promise of
a miraculous redemption would be fulfilled
only when the Jews were found worthy.
After they shall have established themselves
upon the soil of Palestine, where alone they
will be enabled to practice their religion in
all Its details, and thus become worthy of a
higher manifestation of God's kindness, the
miracles and the wonders will come, Elijah
and the son of David and the Messianic
era.'" Others, again, entirely dissociated the
new movement from the Messianic hope,
and, on every occasion, were careful to em-

REFORM AND ZIONISM 275

phasize that it was not their intention to
create a Jewish State. Living in Palestine
and building up its ruins are in themselves
meritorious acts.'' As there are many com-
mandments which can be fulfilled only in
Palestine, there are good reasons for sup-
porting the movement for the colonization
of the Holy Land.'^ Some of the more en-
lightened among them ventured to declare
that the redemption will not, as is commonly
believed, be accompanied by miracles or su-
pernatural events. It will come about by
the voluntary activity of the Jews, assisted
by the great powers of the world, as in the
time of Zerubbabel and Ezra the re-estab-
lishment of the Jewish commonwealth was
effected in a perfectly natural way, by the
return of the loyal and faithful and the per-
mission and assistance of a non- Jewish king.
Nor is it necessary for all Israelites to go
back to Palestine. Palestine should be the
national centre for the Jews of the whole
world.'" Upon this last theory is built the

276 THE MESSIAH IDEA

spiritual Zionism of to-day, the most noted
exponent of which is the famous Hebrew
essayist, Asher Ginzberg (Ahad Ha-* Am),
who skilfully worked out this doctrine in its
details upon a philosophic basis. Articles
and books have been written by the Rabbis
with a view to reconciling the Zionist move-
ment with the Jewish Messianic ideal.
Casuistry and homiletics are employed to
justify the movement from the Jewish tradi-
tional standpoint. But the chief workers,
those who sacrificed much of their conveni-
ence and comfort and went to Palestine to
help in the upbuilding of the young colonies,
have been too much engrossed in the prob-
lems confronting them to care very much
about the dilemmas presented to the Rabbis.
However, the belief in a personal Messiah,
whose advent is to be accompanied by

, many miracles and wonders, is still potent,
and keeps many of the orthodox Jews out of
the Zionist camp. After the first Basle

; Congress (1897), when Zionism assumed its

I

REFORM AND ZIONISM 2y7

present, political aspect, Dr. Max Nordau,
the Vice-President of the Congress, found
it necessary to address an article to the He-
brew-reading public,*^ in which he disclaimed
all pretensions of Messiahship for himself
or for his colleague, Dr. Theodor Herzl.
Yet Zionism has been making wonderful
progress, in spite of the opposition of the
ultra-orthodox, who are waiting for a Mes-
siah, and will do nothing before God's
anointed has made his appearance, and in
spite of the reformers, who regard Zionism
as a menace to the complete emancipation of
the Jews and a grave error in its very incep-
tion, opposed to the mission laid upon
the Jew by Providence and by history. Both
orthodoxy and reform contribute members
to the ranks of Zionism, and even those who
have abandoned the Jewish religion have
been attracted by the national ideals upheld
by Zionism, and have become enthusiastic
workers in its cause. It is a phase in the
evolution of the Jewish Messianic hope
which, whether successful or not, is destined

278 THE MESSIAH IDEA

to make an impression and, there can be no
doubt, exert a wholesome influence on Jew-
ish history.

Sacred as Zionism is to many of its ad-
herents, it cannot and will not take the place
i of the Messianic hope. Zionism aims at the
establishment of a Jewish State in Palestine
under the protection of the powers of Eu-
rope. The Messianic hope promises the es-
tablishment, by the Jews, of a world-power
in Palestine to which all the nations of the
earth will pay homage. Zionism, even in its
political aspect, will fulfil only one phase of
the Jewish Messianic hope. As such, if suc-
cessful, it may contribute toward the full
realization of the hope. If not successful,
it will not deprive the Jews of the hope.
The Messianic hope is wider than the eman-
cipation of the Jews, it is more compre-
hensive than the establishment of a Jewish,
politically independent State. It participates
in the larger ideals of humanity, the ideals
of perfection for the human race, but it re-
mains on Jewish soil, and retains its peculi-

\-

REFORM AND ZIONISM 2'J<^

arly Jewish significance. It promises uni-
versal peace, an age of justice and of right-
eousness, an age in which all men will rec-
ognize that God is One and His Name is
One. But this glorious age will come about
through the regeneration of the Jewish
people, which in turn will be effected by a
man, a scion of the house of David, sent by
God to guide them on the road to righteous-
ness. The people chosen by God to be His
messengers to the world will then be able to
accomplish their mission of regenerating the
world. This was the Messianic hope pro-
claimed by the prophets and sages, and this
is the Messianic hope of most Jews of to-
day, the difference between the various sec-
tions being only a difference in the details
of the hope.''' Thanks to the freedom
always accorded to the interpretation of
Jewish dogmas, these differences cannot cre-
ate schisms in the Jewish camp, and every
faction, each in its own way, is contributing
its portion toward the realization of this
great and glorious ideal of the Jews.

1/

i
I

APPENDIX

APPENDIX

The Messianic Hope in the Jewish
Liturgy

The Messianic hope finds its fullest and
noBlest expression in the Jewish prayer-
book. The sublime aspirations of the pro-
pliet, the speculations of the sage and
philosopher, the fancies of the mystic, and
the imaginary flights of the homilist are the
themes elaborated by the religious poet. At
times he sings of prophetic universalism,
again of exclusive nationalism. One tells
of the coming of a personal Messiah, a scion
of the house of David, who shall work won-
ders in Israel's behalf, and confound its
enemies. Another speaks of God as the Re-
deemer, of a theocracy characterized by per-
fect righteousness and peace. One paints
the sublime picture of Isaiah, the highest
ideals of the most advanced humanity; an-
other gives a minute description of the feast
prepared for the righteous after the resur-
rection. Everywhere, in one form or an-
other, the hope finds fervent expression — in
the daily prayers, the prayers for Sabbath

284 THE MESSIAH IDEA

and festival, in the additional hymns and
songs (Piyyufim) from time to time added
to the prayer-book, in the prayers for special
occasions, even in the prayers for king and
government. The hope of redemption from
exile and of the re-establishment of the Jew-
ish nation in all its glory on its ancient in-
heritance, may be regarded as the key-note
of the Jewish prayer-book.

The fact is not at all surprising if we con-
sider the circumstances under which the
Jewish prayer-book was composed and com-
piled. In its main elements, the Jewish lit-
urgy is pre-Exilic, some portions dating as
far back as the first commonwealth. But its
definite shape it did not assume untjj^^tbjeiirst
century of the common era, and it was not
fixed in its present form until six or seven
centuries later. The chief prayer of the
Jewish liturgy, the Shemoneh 'Esreh, was
compiled under the supervision of the Nasi
Gamaliel,' soon after the destruction of the
Temple, when the wound was still fresh, and
the hope of speedy redemption most intense. '

The other portions of the prayer-book
were composed amid the miseries and hor-
rors of the Diaspora, during the periods of
the dark middle ages, darkest to the wander-

APPENDIX 285

ing", despised, and hated Jew. Whether un-
der pagan, Christian, or Moslem rule, thq
Jew was constantly reminded of his abject
position in the world. The desire for a re-
turn to his independence and his national
home grew in proportion to his misery, and
inspired singer and sage in their prayers to
Israel's God.

It is but natural that the Jewish prayer-
book, developed under such influences,
should be one, long, continuous cry for re-
demption from the terrors of exile. All the
prayers for individual well-being, for ma-
terial prosperity, for life, health, and wealth,
are drowned in the pathetic, heartrending
national prayer for the restoration of exiled
Israel to the land of its fathers. Prayers for
the forgiveness of sin, for a better under-
standing of God's law, for rain and dew, for
good harvest and plenty, find their place in
the Jewish liturgy. But even these are per-
meated with the great, all-embracing hope,
to which they are really subordinate. It
seemed to the composers and compilers of
the Jewish prayer-book that all transient and
material hopes would be realized in the per-
fection of the whole, when Israel would be
restored to its ancient inheritance, and the

286 THE MESSIAH IDEA

glory of the one, true God would fill the
earth.

It is interesting to note that the Jewish
liturgy, even such portions as were composed
after the spread of the Kabbalah, contains
few of the extravagant conceptions of the
Messianic era found in the apocalyptic writ-
ings, in the Talmudic Haggadah, and the
later Midrashim. This phenomenon appears
the more interesting when we consider that
many of the Piyyutim are based directly on
legends and tales, the interpretation and
commentary of the Haggadah. Only the
more important elements of the Messianic
era, such as the universal recognition of
Israel's God, the rebuilding of Jerusalem,
and the restoration of the sacrificial cult, the
resurrection of the dead, and the gathering
of all Israel to the Promised Land, are em-
phasized. The fanciful and materialistic
elements, so elaborately treated by the Rab-
bis and mystics, find but scant expression in
the liturgy. Indeed, they seem to have been
studiously avoided. The Rabbis, who were
the composers and compilers of the prayers,
appear to have kept the imaginative fancies
to which they gave utterance in the acade-
mies, and which were later incorporated in

APPENDIX 287

the Talmudim and Midrashim, carefully dis-
tinct, not only from the interpretation of the
legal injunctions of Judaism, but also from
public worship. When discoursing on their
favorite theme of the redemption, they gave
their imagination full play, and indulged in
extravagant presentations of the anxiously
awaited era. But they usually became more
serious and exact when they approached the
subject of prayer, which was intended to in-
fluence the lives of the people and the future
of the nation. Most of the religious Payye-
tanim lay stress on the universalistic concep-
tion, the prophetic hope of a moral and re-
ligious regeneration, the hope that Israel
may become an independent nation, living
under a pure theocracy. The narrower
views, the more materialistic accretions to
the great ideal are relegated to the back-
ground.

The most prominent and one of the oldest
portions of the Jewish liturgy is the 'Ami-
dah, or TefiUah (Prayer) proper. It is usu-
ally known as the Shemoneh 'Esreh (Eigh-
teen), its name indicating the number of
Benedictions contained in it at the time of its
first compilation, to which an additional
Benediction was later added. This prayer,

288 THE MESSIAH IDEA

which forms an important feature of each of
the three daily services, contains a number
of allusions and references to the Messianic
hope. In the very first of the introductory
Benedictions^God_^is described aj .l',He_who
bringeth a redeemer to the children " of
Israel. In the second, the hope for the resur-
rection of the dead is so strongly empha-
sized as to make it appear to have been in-
troduced by the Pharisees at the time of the
pre-eminence of the Sadducees, who rejected
the belief in resurrection/ The., seventh is a
prayer to God to redeem Israel for the sake
of His name, even though Israel be found
guilty. The tenth, which is designated in
the Talmud as the prayer for " the gather-
ing of the exiles," ' begins with an exhorta-
tion to blow the trumpet,* and raise a ban-
ner " announcing liberty to the exiles gath-
ered from the four corners of the earth.*
The eleventh is a prayer for the establish-
ment of an independent Government for
Israel, with its own judges and counsellors,'
under the supremacy of God. The four-
teenth is a prayer for the rebuilding of
Jerusalem and the re-establishment there of
\ the " throne of David," and the fifteenth '
I repeats the prayer for the restoration of the

APPENDIX 289

Davidic dynasty." The seventeenth is a
prayer for the restoration of the Temple
worship and the sacrificial cult, concluding
with the hope, " our eyes shall see when thou
returnest to Zion in mercy." Thus, put^of.
th^nineteen Benedictions of the 'Amidah,
seven are distinctly and directly Messianic,
anUlBe others contain Messianic references
and allusions.

One of the sublimest and most universal-
istic prayers for the approach of the Messi-
anic period is included in the various 'Ami-
dahs for the New Year and the Day of
Atonement, in the third Benediction soon
after the Kedushah. I shall give it in full,
because it is a fair example of the exalted
conception of the future era held by the
learned Jew.

Now, therefore, O Lord our God, impose Thine
awe upon all Thy works, and Thy dread upon all that
Thou hast created, that all works may fear Thee,
and all creatures prostrate themselves before Thee;
that they may all form a single bond to do Thy
will with a perfect heart, even as we know, O Lord
our God, that dominion is Thine, strength is in Thy
hand, and might in Thy right hand, and that Thy
name is to be feared above all that Thou hast
created.

Give Thy glory, O Lord, unto Thy people, praise

2QO THE MESSIAH IDEA

to them that fear Thee, hope to th.m that seek
Thee, and free speech to them that wait for Thee,
joy to the land, gladness to the city, a flourishing
liorn to David Thy servant, and a clear, shining light
unto the son of Jesse, Thine anointed (Messiah),
speedily in our days.

Then shall the just also see and be glad, and the
upright shall exult, and the pious triumphantly re-
joice, while iniquity shall close her mouth, and all
wickedness be wholly consumed by smoke, when
Thou makest the dominion of arrogance to pass away
from the earth.

And Thou, O Lord, shalt reign. Thou alone ever
all Thy works on Mount Zion, the dwelling-place of
Thy glory, and in Jerusalem, Thy holy city, as it is
written in Thy holy words, " The Lord shall reign
forever. Thy God, O Zion, unto all generations.
Praise ye the Lord." "

Similar sentiments are expressed in the
noble words in the Kedushah for the morn-
ing service of Sabbaths and festivals,"

From Thy place shine forth. 0 our King, and reign
over us, for we wait for Thee. When wilt Thou
reign in Zion? Speedily, even in our days, do Thou
dwell there, and forever. Mayest Thou be magnified
and sanctified in the midst of Jerusalem Thy city
throughout all generations and to all eternity. O
let our eyes behold Thy kingdom, according to the
words that were spoken in the songs of Thy might,
by David Thy righteous anointed (Messiah): "The
Lord shall reign forever, Thy God, O Zion, unto all
generations. Praise ye the Lord."

APPENDIX 291

It will be noticed that in both of these
selections the personal Messiah, although re-
ferred to, is given little prominence. God
alone is to be King in Zion.

'Alenu, a prayer recited at the end of every
service, is still more universal in its concep-
tion, for it does not even refer to a personal
Messiah, or to the redemption of Israel, or
the rebuilding of Jerusalem. It looks for-
ward to the perfection of the world under the
kingship of the Almighty, when all the chil-
dren of men, even the wicked of the earth,
will worship God, give glory to His Name,
and accept the yoke of His kingdom. The
Biblical passage quoted here is not the one
from Psalm 146:10, where Zion is ad-
dressed, with which the two selections above
quoted conclude, but from Exodus 15:18,
" The Lord will reign for ever and ever,"
and from Zechariah 14:9, "And the Lord
shall be king over all the earth ; in that day
shall the Lord be one and His Name one."

Prayers for Israel's restoration to Zion
are scattered throughout the morning and
evening services, especially in the blessings
preceding the Shema' and the 'Amidah. In
the Additional (Mitsaf) 'Amidahs for Sab-
baths, New Moons, and festivals, the re-

292 THE MESSIAH IDEA

demption itself is made only a means toward
the full observance of the law of God in all
its details, since only if the Temple were re-
built, and the sacrificial cult re-established
in Jerusalem, the Israelites could perform all
the duties obligatory upon them.

The Kaddish is also a universalistic prayer
for the establishment of the kingdom of God
upon earth, making no reference to a per-
sonal Messiah. The Kaddish, however, that
is recited by mourners at the cemetery after
the burial of the dead and at the conclusion
of the study of a Talmudic treatise, refers
to the resurrection, and to the rebuilding
of Jerusalem and the Temple.**

The belief in a personal Messiah is more
marked in the Benediction recited after
meals. In the third blessing God's mercy is
invoked in behalf of " Israel Thy people,
Jerusalem Thy city, Zion the abiding-place
of Thy glory, the kingdom of the house of
David Thy Messiah, and the great and holy
house that was called by Thy name." In the
Sefardic ritual, the prayer for the restoration
of the kingdom of the house of David is
omitted, but inserted at the end of the sec-
tion. On Sabbaths an additional prayer is
here recited, which concludes with the hope

APPENDIX 293

of seeing the consolation of Zion and the re-
building of Jerusalem. On New Moons and
festivals another section is inserted, praying
God to remember the Messiah son of David,
Jerusalem, and the people of Israel. The
short prayers (Ha-Rahaman) that conclude
the fourth Benediction are prayers for re-
demption from exile, for the restoration of
Palestine, and for the appearance of Elijah
the prophet, " who will bring us good tid-
ings, salvation, and consolation." " Finally
God is invoked to make us worthy of the
days of the Messiah (of the rebuilding of the
Temple) and of the life of the world to
come. In the grace after meals recited at a
circumcision celebration, a few more prayers
beginning with Ha-Rahaman are added.
The last two of these read as follows :

May the All-merciful, regardful of the merit of
them that are akin by the blood of circumcision,
send us His anointed, walking in His integrity, to
give good tidings and consolation to the people that
is scattered and dispersed among the peoples. May
the All-merciful send us the righteous priest," who
remains withdrawn in concealment until a throne,
bright as the sun and radiant as the diamond, shall
be prepared for him, the prophet who covered his
face with his mantle, and wrapped himself therein,
with whom is God's covenant of life and of peace.

294 THE MESSIAH IDEA

In the Benedictions recited after the read-
ing of the Haftarah, God, the One " who
sayeth and doeth, who speaketh and fulfill-
eth, whose words are all truth and righteous-
ness " is invoked to have pity on Zion " the
home of our life," and gladden us with the
arrival of Elijah the prophet and of the
kingdom of the house of David.

May he soon come and rejoice our hearts. Let
no stranger sit upon his throne, nor let others any
longer inherit his glory; fcr by the holy name Thou
didst swear unto him, that his light should not be
quenched forever.

The reference to Elijah as the forerunner
of the Messianic era is elaborated in the
special hymns (Zemiroth) sung on Satur-
day night before the reading of the Habda-
lah prayer. The Talmudic idea that Elijah
would not appear on the eve of Sabbaths or
festivals," gave rise to the hope that he
might come on Saturday night." The lit-
urgical poet availed himself of the oppor-
tunity to elaborate this theme in the hymns
recited soon after the evening service which
concludes the Sabbath. These poems con-
tain prayers for a blessed week, for a com-
fortable livelihood, for health for oneself
and family. The main prayer, however, is

APPENDIX 295

that the coming week may bring in its
wake a national regeneration through the
appearance of the Messiah and EHjah the
prophet. In the Sefardic ritual, the angels
Michael and Gabriel are mentioned as ac-
companying Elijah and the Messiah.

Similarly, the belief that the final redemp-
tion, like the redemption from Egyptian
bondage, would take place during the month
of Nisan," gave rise to a number of Messi-
anic Piyyutim for the Passover festival, as
well as for the special Yozer recited on Sab-
bath Ho desk and Sabbath Ha-Gadol. The
eve of Passover, the Lei Shimmurim, is made
the symbol of future redemption. Refer-
ences are made to this in the evening service
of the synagogue, but more especially and
more emphatically during the Seder service
recited at home during the first two evenings
of the Passover. The cup of Elijah, a cup
of wine placed on the table and not touched
until the end of the service, shows the in-
tensity of the Jewish hope that Elijah would
come, on the evening of the celebration of
the first redemption of Israel to announce
the final redemption." The very first sec-
tion, recited while the master of the house
raises the plate containing the Mazsoth, land

296 THE MESSIAH IDEA

invites all strangers to partake of the meal,
concludes with the words expressing the
assured hope, that while " this year we are
here, the coming year we shall be in the land
of Israel ; this year we are slaves, the coming
year we shall be free." The benediction con-
cluding the first part of the service is a
fervent prayer for freedom of body and soul,
for a restoration to Palestine and the re-in-
troduction of the Temple service." At the
conclusion of the service, a short sentence,
the climax and epitome of all Jewish long-
ings and wishes, is recited, some lovingly
repeating it three or four times, as though
loath to part from it. The sentence con-
sists of but three Hebrew words, " Next
year in Jerusalem," but it speaks volumes to
the aching heart of the loyal Jew. The
sentiment of the popular hymn Addir Hu,
which expresses the hope that God will build
His house speedily, even in our own days,
is a fitting addition to that expressed in the
short sentence, " Next year in Jerusalem." "*

In the evening service for the seventh day
of Passover, reference is made to the ruler
of the house of Jesse, whose dominion will
extend from sea to sea. In the Silluk of the
same day, God is asked to send the mes-

k

APPENDIX 297

senger of good tidings, to avenge Israel's
wrongs, to cause " the plant of righteousness
to blossom," and God will name this mes-
senger " the Lord, our righteousness." "
Samuel's opinion, that political independence
will be the chief characteristic of the Messi-
anic era,^ is emphasized in the Zulath "^ for
the same day, although the Payyetan is care-
ful to add that this will be accompanied by
many miracles.

A sublime picture of the Messianic era is
painted in the Piyyut for the Malkuyyofh
service for the Musaf of New Year's Day.
In his vision, the poet sees idolatry give way
before the worship of the only one God,
even before the appearance of Elijah, the
pagan nations destroyed, and God's throne
established in glory and magnificence. He
beholds all the nobles of the land hastening
to do service to " the smallest of nations,"
carrying it on their arms to the place long
promised to the Patriarchs; kings throwing
off their royal mantles and paying homage
to the God of Israel, loudly proclaiming His
sole sovereignty of the universe ; all creation,
even the " desolate depths of the world,"
shouting forth joyously that the Lord reign-
eth. The secret of the period of Israel's

298 THE MESSIAH IDEA

redemption, long hidden from the knowledge
of men, is revealed on this day," and the
throne of the Messiah is firmly established,
even as the sun is established in the firma-
ment. The same theme is also elaborated
in another Piyyut recited during the Musaf
service of New Year's Day and the Day of
Atonement.'" In the Messianic age, all will
come to worship God and bless His name.
His righteousness will be proclaimed to the
furthermost islands ; people that never knew
Him will seek Him; all the corners of the
earth will praise Him; the idolaters will
throw away their idols and come together to
worship God with reverence ; mountains and
islands will rejoice in His kingdom; distant
nations will come and give the royal crown
to Him.

In the Aramaic Piyyut Akdamnth, which
is recited on the first day of the Feast of
Weeks, just before the reading of the portion
of the Law, all the heavenly and earthly
blessings are described that will come to
Israel with the final redemption. Jerusalem
will then be protected by God's glory by day
and by night, the righteous will be seated on
thrones of fine gold, having seven steps, and
the beauty of their countenance will be like

APPENDIX 299

the clear sky and the shining stars — a beauty
that beggars all description, that was neither
heard of nor seen by any of the prophets.
They will walk in Paradise, accompanied by
the Divine Fresence (Shcchinah) , and point-
ing to it they will say : " This is the One
upon whom we so confidently relied while
we were in captivity. Now He is conferring
upon us the long-promised eternal bliss."
In a battle between Leviathan and the wild
ox (Shor ha-Bar), the latter will gore Le-
viathan to death, and be himself dispatched
by one of the fins of the sea-monster. They
will then both be cut into pieces by God
Himself, and served to the righteous at
tables made of precious stones, with rivers
flowing with finest oil and wine, kept for
the feast since the time of Creation.""

The Yozeroth for the distinguished Sab-
baths of the year, recited in a few syna-
gogues and included only in the more com-
plete prayer-books, present the fullest ex--
pression of the national grief of the Jewish
people. Almost all of them are pervaded
by this one thought :

Our sufferings are great, unendurable. Thou, O
God, hast promised to redeem us. Hasten therefore
the period of redemption, arise and come to our

300 THE MESSIAH IDEA

help. Thy own name is not complete while we are
in exile," the enemy wounds our hearts, throws
stones at us, afflicts us, treads us under foot, scoffs
at us and our hope for redemption, at our trust in
Thee,^ but the poor captive in a strange land, even
as a slave, as a bondwoman in Egj'pt, waits for
Thee since the day that Thou hast forsaken her.
Yea, we are confident of our redemption. The
daughter of Zion may indeed rejoice, for our
Messiah is coming; the virgin of Israel may indeed
shout with joy, for the angel Michael will soon
announce from the mountain-top : " A redeemer
hath come to Zion." '"

A world of pathos is contained in all these
Piyyutim, which mirror the abject condition
of unfortunate Israel during the dark ages.
The most pathetic of these hymns are in the
form of dialogues between God and Israel,
Israel complaining of its bitter lot, and God
assuring it of a speedy redemption.'"

In the Zemiroth chanted at the evening
and noon meals of Sabbath, prayers for the
coming of the Messiah are very frequent.
The theme of some of the Hosha'anoth re-
cited on Hosha'ana Rahha, and of some of
the Selihoth recited on various occasions, are
Messianic. Even those Selihoth which are
mainly prayers for forgiveness of sin have
this hope as their refrain, frequently consid-

AFFhNUIX

301

ering present suffering either as punishment
or as atonement for sins committed. Natur-
ally, redemption is the main theme of the
midnight dirges sung by pious Jews {Tik-
kitn Hazoth) and of most of the Kinnoth
for the Ninth Day of Ab, the anniversary of
the destruction of the Temple,

This sketch,** inadequate though it is, sufH-
ciently indicates the important position the
Messianic idea occupies in the Jewish liturgy.
The hope for the final redemption is both the
background and the keynote of the prayer-
book. The expression giA-en to the hope
varies in different portions of the liturgy,
from the highest conception of universal
brotherhood and peace, of perfect righteous-
ness and purest religion, to the material, ex-
clusive, and perhaps coarse notions of indi-
vidual well-being and national supremacy.
The main ideal, however, is permanent, the
background is the same, the changes are
merely the reflection of the conditions pres-
ent in the outside world. Here falls the
black shadow cast by pagan cruelty and bar-
barity, there the trail of blood of Jewish
martyrs, victims to the bigotry of Christian
crusaders, inquisitors, and popes; here we
feel the tears of the miserable sufferers

302 THE MESSIAH IDEA

under Moslem rule, there the contempt
for and hatred of the covetous, lustful
monarchs and princes of Europe. Revenge
and humility, despair and hope, con-
tempt for the world and a desire for its
goods, all find their place in the Jewish
liturgy, and all are merged into one all-per-
vading, all-embracing longing for restora-
tion to the land of Israel's inheritance, for
the establishment of God's rule upon earth.
The liturgy, more than the literature, indi-
cates the intensity in the Jewish conscious-
ness of the Messianic hope. Through its
constant use, the prayer-book nurtured and
strengthened this hope in the hearts of the
multitudes, and made it a part of their ex-
istence. The Bible, the Talmud, the philo-
sophic and the mystic writings, accessible
only to the more learned of the community,
formulated and developed the lofty Messi-
anic ideal, which was presented by the re-
ligious poet to the great mass of the people
in a language both appealing and attractive,
and made it an inseparable part of the
Jewish consciousness.

NOTES

I

NOTES

CHAPTER I

^Sanhedrin 38," Aboth R. Nathan I, 8 (ed. Schech-
ter, p. 3" et seq.). There it is related that Adam's
sin and conviction occurred on the very day of his
birth.

^ Cf. Kiddushin 40", where this passage is inter-
preted to refer to the fate of the righteous man, in
this and in the future world.

^ Comp. Klausner in the Hebrew monthly Hashi-
loah, vol. XII, p. 8.

* Hos. 3 : 5, Jer. 30 : 9, Ezek. 2,7 : 24, 25 ; cf. Sanhe-
drin 98".

° Cf. Stade, Die Messianische Hoffnung im Psalter,
in his Akademische Reden und Abhandlungen, p. 53
et seq. (Giessen, 1899).

' Cf. Hiihn, Die Messianische Weissagungen, vol.
I. § .3 (Freiburg, 1899), who regards this period as
the one in which the Jewish Messianic hope origi-
nated.

' See " The Jewish Encyclopedia," vol. 1, s. v.
Amos.

* Cf. Charles, " Eschatalogy, Hebrew, Jewish, and
Christian," p. 87, n. i (London, 1899). These pas-
sages are supposed by many critics to be Exilic
additions ; cf. Nowack, Die Zukunftshoffnung Israels
in der assyrischen Zeit, in Theologische Abhand-
lungen, Holtzmann's Festgabe, pp. 38-41 (Leipzig,
1902).

3o6 NOTES [pp. 30-46

'C/. Charles, loc. cit., p. 88, n. 2. Most of these
passages also are assigned by many scholars to later
periods; cf. Nowack, loc. cit., pp. 41-47-

"740-701 B.C. E.

"Driver, "Isaiah, His Life and Times," p. 112.

"CA, however, W. R. Smith, "The Prophets of
Israel," pp. 300-12 (London, 1902) ; also Cheyne,
"Introduction to Isaiah," pp. 62-66 (London, 1895),
where these passages are held to be post-Exilic.

" Cf. Charles, loc. cit., p. 91, n. 3 ; Cheyne, loc. cit.,
pp. 9-16; see, however, W. R. Smith, loc. cit., p. 309,
and n. 12.

" Cf. Nowack, loc. cit., p. 47 et seq.

^'Cf. Goodspeed, "Israel's Messianic Hope," ch.
VI (New York, 1900).

^Cf. Is. 52:7; see Charles, loc. cit., p. 96; cf.,
however, Hastings, "Dictionary of the Bible," s. v.
Nahum, where only the first chapter is rejected.

"C/. Charles, loc. cit., p. 97.

^'C/. Ezek. 36:22 et seq., where the idea is ex-
pressed that the redemption of Israel and its restora-
tion to Palestine will be, not because of Israel's good
deeds, but in order that God's name should be
sanctified among the nations.

"Cf. Joel 4: 15, 16 (A. V. 3: 15, 16) ; cf. Driver,
"Introduction to the Literature of the Old Testa-
ment," ch. vi, § 2 (New York, 1893) ; Hastings,
" Dictionary of the Bible,' s. v. Joel. Isaiah also
hints at supernatural events that will attend upon the
Messianic period. See Is. 29:18; 30:26; 35:5-

""" Isaiah, His Life and Times," pp. 175-80; Hiihn,
loc. cit., § 19; cf., however, a study on this subject
by Rothstein in his Genealogie des Konigs Jojachin

pp. 46-59] NOTES 307

und seiner Nachkommen, entitled Ein ilbersehenes
Zeugniss fiir die messianische Atiffassung des
" Knechtes Jahwehs," pp. 121-62 (Berlin, 1902);
cf. also, Budde, Die sogenannten Ebed-Jahwe-
Lieder (Giessen, 1900).

"" Cf. Zech. 3:8; 6 : 12 ; also Jer. 23 : 5 ; 33 : 15 ; see
an excellent monograph on this subject by Dr. Ernest
Sellin, entitled Serubbabel (Leipzig, 1898).

"^C/. Hag. 2:6, 7, 21, 22.

^"Jerusalem will be called the city of truth, and
the mount of the Lord of hosts, the holy mount. '

^ Cf. Huhn, loc. cit., § 23, and notes.

'=Ps. 22:28-32; 65:3, 6; 86:9; ch. 87; cf. Huhn,
loc. cit., § 31 ; Stade, loc. cit.

CHAPTER H

^ See Kuenen, " Religion of Israel," vol. iii, ch. 9.

^ Ten institutions, including provisions for the
periodic reading of the Torah and other civil and
ritual matters, are ascribed by the Rabbis (Baba
Kama 82^) to Ezra; cf. M. Bloch, Sha'are Torafh
ha-Takkanoth, div. i, pt. i, pp. 107-38 (Vienna, 1879).

^Mal. 3:23, 24, and Rashi, Ibn Ezra, and
Kimchi ad loc; cf. M. Friedmann's Hebrew Intro-
duction to his edition of Seder Eliyahu, pp. 19-20.
These verses in Malachi are regarded by some critics
as apocalyptic; cf. Ben Sira, 48: 10; see Hiihn, loc.
cit., p. 81; C. R. Brown, in "Biblical World," vol.
XIV, pp. 417-20 ; cf. Schiirer, " History of the Jews,"
etc., English ed., div. 11, vol. 11, p. 156.

* Cf. Gray, in " Biblical World," vol. xiv, pp. 410-
II.

° Cf. Charles, loc. cit., pp. 78-80, 126-37, where the

3o8 NOTES [pp. 59-63

idea suggested here is hinted at. So far as I know,
however, the connection between the development of
the behef in the resurrection and the emphasis laid
upon law, has not been noticed by modern scholars.
Cf. Castelli, " Jewish Quarterly Review," vol. i, pp.
314-52, especially p. 327, where after the present
book was in type I found a similar idea expressed.

'E.g. Ps. 88: 11-13, Job 14: 12, Eccl. 7: 14.

^ Cf. Hiihn, loc. cit., p. 74, § 29.

° Cf. Ezek., ch. 37, Hos. 6 : 2.

' Cf. Hiihn, loc. cit., p. 26, § 30 ; Drummond,
" The Jewish Messiah," bk. 11, ch. xxni, pp. 360-61.

" See Driver's commentary on these passages in
the Cambridge Series (1901), and Introduction to
same, pp. xc-xciii. The belief in resurrection is men-
tioned also in 11 Mace. 14 : 46; 7:9 et seq. ; 12 : 43, 44 ;
cf. ib. 7 : 4, where resurrection is denied to gentiles ;
cf. Bertholet, Die israclitischen V orstellungen vom
Zustand nach dein Tode, pp. 27-31 (Freiburg, 1899).

^' A resume of this literature is given in Schiirer's
" History of the Jews," etc., div. u, vol. in; in
Driver's Introduction to the Book of Daniel, in the
Cambridge Series, p. lxxvi et seq. A pamphlet
written in popular style was recently published, en-
titled Die jUdische Apokalyptik, etc., by D. W. Bous-
set (Berlin, 1903), in which the characteristic fea-
tures of the apocalyptic literature are admirably •
summarized.

" Ben Sira 50 : 24.

" Ib. 36: 3-10.

"/&. w. 13-14.

" lb. 37 ■■ 25.

"In the Psalm of Ben Sira (Heb., ed. Levi, Ley-

pp. 63-69] NOTES 309

den, 1904, ch. 51), found neither in the Greek nor in
the Syriac versions, this idea is expressed very
plainly : " Praise ye to him who causeth the horn of
the house of David to sprout." Levi's (p. 7z> note g.)
doubt about the authenticity of this psalm, on the
ground that the author seems to oppose the Davidic
dynasty in ch. 41 et seq. is not well-founded. In
those chapters, the author narrates the evil-doings of
the early kings of Judah, but he may still believe that
the future ruler of Judah, also a scion of the house
of David, will be good and righteous.

"lb. 47:11, 22; cf. I Mace. 2:57. Ben Sira, in
singing the praises of Elijah, says (48: 11) :
" Blessed are they who saw thee and slept in love ;
for we shall surely live." This passage is interpreted
by some as indicatmg the hope of Ben Sira to witness
the coming of Elijah, who would foretell the advent
of the Messianic kingdom. In the recovered Hebrew
text, this stich is illegible, except the last two letters ;
see Peters, Ecclesiasticus, p. 274 (Freiburg, 1902) ;
cf. Drummond, loc. cit., bk. 11, ch. iii ; Levi, " Hebrew
Text of the Book of Ecclesiasticus," p. 67, note d
(Leyden, 1904).

"^Tobit 13:11-18; cf. Baruch 2:34, 35; 4:25-37;
ch. 5.

" Conder, " Judas Maccabeus," pp. 68-70 (London,
1894) ; cf. Drummond, loc. cit., p. 198.

^ Enoch 79 : 59-64 ; cf. Baer's note ad. loc, in
Kautzsch's edition of Die Apokryphen und die Pseud-
epigraphen des Alien Testaments, vol. 11^ p. 294
(Tubingen, 1900).

^ Cf. Jer. 3:19; Ezek. 20 ; 6, 15 ; Dan. 8:9; 11:16,

45-
^ Enoch 90 : 17-27.

3IO NOTES [pp. 69-72

^Ib. w. 28-30.

"/&. V. 33; cf. ib. 51: I.

"/&. 90:37-41.

^'Levi, ch. 18; according to Charles, in Hastings.
" Dictionary of the Bible," s. v. Apocalyptic Litera-
ture ; cf. J. Schnapp, in Introduction to this book in
Kautzsch's edition, vol, 11, p. 459, where it is main-
tained that the author was a Christian.

"Lines 652-794.

** Holtzmann in Judenthum und Christenthum, vol.
II, p. 199 et seq. (Leipzig, 1867), believes that the
reference here is to Simon, the Maccabean high-
priest. Drummond {loc. cit., pp. 274-5), however,
disproves this assertion on the ground that Simon
was not a (iaaiAev^, the title having purposely been
denied to him.

"' Line 720.

'"Lines 785-795.

^ Because the word Kdpjj is used in connection with
this, some scholars take it as a Christian prophecy,
supposing that the ndprf in whom God will dwell
refers to the mother of the Messiah. This assump-
tion is not warranted ; cf. Schiirer, " History," etc.,
div. II, vol. II, p. 140. The Hebrew wordnSin:D, the
exact equivalent of the Greek xSptj^ {$ frequently
used in the Bible to denote a city or a province;
cf. II Kings 19:21, Is. 37:22, Lam. 2: 13, Is. 23: 12;
47:1, Jer. 46:11. The context also plainly shows
that Jerusalem is meant here.

'' In 63 B. C. E.

" Written probably between 70 and 40 B. C. E. ;
see R. Kittel in Kautzsch, loc. cit., p. 127 et seq.;
Schiirer, loc. cit., div. in, vol. in, p. 17 et seq.;
Huhn, loc. cit., § 36, p. 91.

pp. 72-78] NOTES 311

^*Cf. 17:32 (Swete's edition of Septuagint, v 36,
XpioTog Kvpcog ) ; comp. superscription of chapter 17
and verses 5 and 7 (Swete 6, 8) ; cf. Kittel's note on
17:32; Schiirer, loc. cit., div. 11, vol. 11, p. 143, and
n. 9; cf. also 17:21 (Swete 23).

'^ Chapters 37-70 ; cf. Schurer, loc. cit., div. 11, vol.
Ill, pp. 66-9.

'° See Drummond, loc. cit., bk. 11, ch. xi, on " The
Nature of the Messiah"; cf. Schurer, loc. cit., div.
II, vol. II, pp. 158-64.
^ Xpiardgy 48 : 10 ; 52 : 4.
^'40:5; 45:3, 4-
"38:2; 53:6.
'" 62:7.

*^Cf. Charles, "Eschatalogy," etc., pp. 213-19, and
notes.
" In the Book of Enoch.
" Psalms of Solomon 17 : 32.
" " On Curses," sec xi.

" " On Rewards and Punishments," sec. xv-xx.
*° Matt. 3:2.

"lb. 16:13-19; cf. John 4:26; see Holtzmann,
Judenthum und Christenthutn, vol 11, p. 373; idem,
Das Messiashewusstsein Jesti und seine neueste Be-
streitung (Giessen, 1902).
^'Matt. 16:20.
"/&. 17:9-13.

^The idea of a "suffering Messiah" was not
common among the Jews of that time. It is possible
that the few references to this idea found in the
Talmud are of later Christian origin ; see Drummond,
loc cit., bk. II, ch. xxii ; Dalman, Der leidende Mes-
sias, etc., (Karlsruhe, 1887) ; cf., however, Wunsche,
Die Leiden des Messias (Leipzig, 1870).

312 NOTES [pp. 80-87

CHAPTER III

""The Talmud," pp. 24-5 (Philadelphia, 1895);
cf. Dembitz, "Jewish Services in Synagogue and
Home," p. 44 et scq. (Philadelphia, 1898).

^Cf. Sanhedrin 67"; see Bacher, Agada der Tan-
naiten, vol. i, p. 217, n. i (Strassburg, 1903).

* Compare the attitude of Rabbi Meir toward Elisha
ben Abuyah (Aher), Hagigah 15% ^

*Thus, Hillel, one of the later Amoraim, was but
mildly rebuked by Rabbi Joseph, when he dared
declare that Israel has no Messiah any more, an
utterance which would have appeared nothing less
than heresy to later generations (Sanhedrin 99"; cf.
Weiss, Dor Dor we-Dorshaw, vol. i, pp. 230-1).

° Cf. Mendelssohn's discussion of this subject in his
Jerusalem (Gesammelte Schriften, vol. iii, sec. 2) ;
cf. Schechter, " Studies in Judaism," p. 147 et seq.

" The most prominent of these were Theudas and
Simon of Cyprus ; see Josephus, " Antiquities," xx,
8, § 6; Graetz, Geschichte der Juden, vol. in, p. 16.

^In 1866. The quotations here are taken from
the German translation of the Syriac version, in
Kautzsch's edition of Apokryphcn und Pseudepigra-
phen dcs Alten Testaments (Tubingen, 1900). The
Book of Baruch is in vol. 11, pp. 402-57. The quota-
tions from the Ezra apocalypse are taken from i
Esdras in the usual edition of the Apocrypha.

* Esdras 7 : 39-43, missing in the English version
("The Missing Fragment"). "A week of years''
corresponds to the week of creation. See the de-
scription of the Day of Judgment in the Assumption
of Moses, 10:3-10; cf. Gunkel's Introduction to the
Book of Ezra in Kautzsch's edition, vol. 11, pp. 331-

pp. 87-94] NOTES 313

52; cf. Schiefer, Die religiosen und ethischen
Anschanungen des IV Ezrabuches (Leipzig, 1901),
especially pp. 51-69. In one place (13:23-25), Ezra
seems to believe that the Messianic period will last
only forty years.

" Baruch 30: 1.

^'Ib. 50; 51: 1-12; cf. I Cor. 15:35-50.

^' Sanhedrin 90^

'^The fact that Bar-Cochba, although not repre-
sented as a descendant of the house of David, at-
tracted so many followers, proves the intensity of
the Messianic hope among the Jews of the time
when Roman persecution assumed its most cruel
form. Klausner, in his monograph, entitled Die MeS'
sianischen Vorstellungen dcs j'Udischen Volkes im
Zeitalter der Tannaiten (Cracow, 1903), p. 5, wishes
to derive from this fact a corroboration of his
theory, that the Jews of that period hoped for a
political redeemer and not for a Messiah like the one
pictured by the prophets. See his note ad he.

" Sanhedrin 99''.

" Yerush. Ta'anith iv, 5 ; Lam. Rabba 11, 5.

"He was called Bar-Coziba ("the son of lies'"),
Cant. Rabba 11, 18; comp. Weiss, loc. cit., vol. 11, pp.
129-30.

" Cf. Klausner, loc. cit., p. 3.

"Berachoth 28"; Aboth R. Nathan xxv, i; Ye-
rush. Sotah IX, end ; see Levy, Neuhebr. Worterbuch,
vol. II, p. 362, s. V. SD3, who makes this saying re-
fer to Gamaliel; cf. Klausner, loc. cit., pp. 4, 70, and
Friedmann in his Introduction to Seder Eliyahu, p,
21 (Vienna, 1902),

"Dan. 12:1, 7, 10; Matt. 24:15, 21; Sybil, in.

314 NOTES [pp. 94-95

line 795 et seq.; Enoch 80:2-8; 91:6, 7; 99:4-9;
Jubilees, ch. 23, et al.

"'n^ti-rD ■'S^n; Shabbath ii8a; cf. Matt. 24:6-8; see
Dalman, Der leidende Messias, etc., p. 17 (Karls-
ruhe, 1887) ; Wiinsche, Die Leiden dcs Messias
(Leipzig, 1870), Klausner, loc. cit., p. 47.

-"Gen Rabba XLii 7, Yalkut Shime'oni, Gen, 72;
cf. Mic. 7:6; Matt. 10 : 35, 36,

^ Sanhedrin 98".

^^b.; Shabbath ii8\

""Kethuboth 112".

"* Sotah 49^ Sanhedrin 97", Can^. Rabba n, 29.

^'Sanhedrin 97"; c/. Derech Erez Zuta x, where
Rabbi Nehemiah, Rabbi Gamaliel, and Rabbi Simeon
ben Johai express similar views.

'* Rabbi Johanan, Rabbah, in Sanhedrin 97*.

^' lb. 98"; cf. Drummond, loc. cit., bk. 11, ch. 5.

^ Cf. Ezek. chs. 38-9 ; Yalkut on Is., 452 ; Targum
to Ps. 2:2; and to Is, 11:4, mentions a monster by
the name of Armilus, who will wage war against
Israel; see "The Jewish Encyclopedia," s. v.; see
below, p. 320; also pp. 124, 169.

^ ' Eduyoth 11, 10.

°" Targum to Lam. 4 : 22, Targum Jonathan to
Gen. 49: 11; to Num. 24, 17-20, 24; see Drummond,
loc. cit., ch. 12; cf. Koran, 21:96 et seq.; also vv.
104 et seq. about the Day of Judgment.

^ Cf. Seder Eliyahu Rabba, ed, Friedmann, ch.
XVIII, p. 97, and Introduction, p. 11, where the Mes-
siah son of Joseph is identified with the child that
was restored to life by Elijah (l Kings 17:17-24);
Messiah son of Ephraim is mentioned in Targum
to Cant. 4: 5, and Targum Jonathan to Exod. 40: 11 ;
Messiah son of Manasseh in Num. Rabba xiv, 2.

pr. 95-96] NOTES 315

^Stikkah 52* ; cf. Y crush. Sitkkah v, 2; Pesikta
Rabbati, ch. 36, ed. Friedmann (Vienna, 1880), p.
161''; cf. Pesikta Zutarta on Balak, pp. 258-9 (Vilna,
1880) ; Jellinek, Beth Hamidrash, vol. iii, pp. 141-3;
cf. Klausner, loc. cit., ch. ix.

^ Menahoth 45"; Baba Med' a 3% et al; cf. Mishnah
Shekalim 11, 5; Aboth R. Nathan xxxiv, 4.

^'Eduyoth viii, 7; Kiddushin 71^.

" Cf. Friedmann's Introduction to Seder Eliyahu
Rabba, pp. 22-5 ; " The Jewish Encyclopedia," s. v.,
Elijah, quoting Yalkut Hadash, ed. Radawil, 58";
cf. Drummond, loc. cit., ch. vi; Klausner, loc. cit.,
ch. VI.

'* (a) He will bring before the Israelites Moses and
the generation of the wilderness; (b) he will revive
Korah and his followers; (c) he will revive the
Messiah son of Joseph (cf. Jellinek, loc. cit., vol.
in, p. 72) ; (d) he will restore the three mysteriously-
lost objects of the sacred utensils of the Temple,
viz. : the ark, the vessel of Manna, and the vessel of
sacred oil; (e) he will display the sceptre given to
him by God; (f) he will crush mountains like straw;
(g) he will reveal the great mystery (Jellinek, loc.
cit.; cf. Seder Eliyahu Rabba, p. 129; Tosefta Sotah
XIII, 1-3; cf. Malkuyyoth service for Rosh ha-Shanah,
s. v., Ansichah). At the first blast of his trumpet
the primitive light will appear, at the second blast,
the dead will rise {Yerush. Shabbath i, 3; Mishnah
Sotah, end; Y crush. Shekalim in, 3; cf., however,
'Abodah Zarah 20"; Yalkut on Is. 363; Alfasi on
'Abodah Zarah and Rabbi Nissim ad loc, Tosefoth
Yam Tob on end of Sotah; see Agadath Shir Ha-
shirim (ed. Schechter, Cambridge, 1896) p. 44 and note

3l6 NOTES [p. 96

to lines 1297-1303; and at the third blast the Divine
Majesty will appear (Jellinek, loc. cit., vol. v, p. 128).
He will make his appearance three days before the
coming of the Messiah ('Erubin 43") ; he will not
come on a Friday or on the eve of a festival, in
order not to interrupt the preparations for the Sab-
bath or the festival ; cf. Pesahim 13" ; cf., however,
Seder 'Olam Rabha, ed. Ratner (Wilna, 1897), ch.
XVII, where it appears that Elijah will come after
the advent of the Messiah; see n. 13 ad loc). On
the first day of his arrival, he will lament over the
devastation of Palestine, and will conclude his lamen-
tations with the words, " Peace will now come over
the earth." On the second day, he will go up on
the mountains of Israel and say, "Good hath come
to the world." On the third day, he will say, " Sal-
vation hath come to the world." Then the archangel
Michael will blow the trumpet, and Elijah and the
Messiah will make their appearance (Pesikta Rab-
bati XXXV, p. 161"; Yalkut on Is., 475; Jellinek,
loc. cit., vol. II, pp. 62, 125).

"'' Pirke R. Eliezer xliii, end, xlvii.

'^Gen. Rabba Lxxxv, 2; his mother will be of the
tribe of Dan {Yalkut, vol. i, 160), and his birthplace
will be the city of Bethlehem {Yerush. Berachoth
IT, 4; Lam. Rabba i, 57; Targnm on Mic. S:i).
His name was created in the mind of God before
He created the world {Gen. Rabba 1, 5; cf. Pesahim
54"; Nedarim 39"). He is called "Ben David"
{Sanhedrin. 97* et al), "David" {Yerush. Bera-
choth II, 4; Sanhedrin 98"; Lam. Rabba 1, 57),
"Menahem son of Hezekiah" {Sanhedrin 98"),
"Zemah" {Lam. Rabba I, 57; Zemah and Menahem
are there identified, both having the same numerical

pp. 96-100] NOTES 317

value, viz., 138), "Shalom" (Derech Erez Zuta xi,
after Is., 9:5), or "Hadrak" {Sifri to Deut. 1:1,
after Zech., 9:1; Cant. Rabba vii, 10). Many other
names are given to the Messiah in the Targumim,
Talmudim, and Midrashim; see Drummond, loc. cit.,
ch. x; Klausner, loc. cit., ch. vii.

''C/., however, Derech Erez Zuta i, end; see also
Y crush. Berachoth 11, 4; Lam. Rabba i, 57.

*" Hagigah 14"; Sanhedrin 38".

*" Y crush. Ta'anith 11, I end ; cf. E.xod. Rabba
XXIX, 4; cf. Bacher, Agada der Paldstinensischen
Amorder, vol. 11, p. 118 (Strassburg, 1896).

" Sanhedrin 98" ; Targmn Jonathan on Gen. 35 : 21 ;
on Exod. 13:42; cf. Drummond, loc. cit., ch. ix, end;
Bacher, loc. cit., vol. i, pp. 146, 190.

" Yalkut, vol. II, 988, end.

** Sanhedrin no"; cf. Musaf for the Day of
Atonement, s. v. Of el Almanah.

'^Sanhedrin in'.

"^Berachoth 34^ 'Erubiii 43"-

"Sanhedrin 99'.

*^Pesahim 118"; G^n. Rabba lxxviii, 16.

"'Abodah Zarah 3^

"/&., Caw? i?a&&a 11, 4; i^fl^^M^ on Is., 452.

'^^ Exod. Rabba xxx, i.

w -,1^ _ sharp, severe ; ^\^^ = soft, mild ; Cant. Rab-
ba VII, 10; Sifri on Deut. i : i.

'^Cant. Rabba vii, 10; Sifri on Deut 1:1; 5o&a

Bathra 76°.
" Yalkut, vol. I, 159-
"' Foma 5"-
'^ Lev. Rabba ix, 7.
"^ Yalkut on Is., 429.
«^/. Rabbi Joseph in Niddah 6r; see Yad Mala-

3l8 NOTES [pp. 101-106

cht, vol. I, p. 75^ No. 437 (Berlin, 1847); cf. Weiss,
Dor, etc., vol. i, p. 229 and note; Hamburger, Rcal-
Encyclopddie, vol. 11, p. 747, n. 12.

"" Berachoth 15", Sanhedrin 92" ; c/. Aboth iv, 22.

®° G^n. Rabba xiii, 4.

"^ Kethuboth III^

^^ Kiddusliin 39".

*^ Mishnah Sanhedrin x, i.

^ Kethuboth iii", Yerush. Kilayim ix, 3.

*"* Yalkut on Is., 428. Mention is made of dew,
with which God will perform the miracle of resur-
rection (Hagigah 12", Shabbath 88"; cf. Lcz/. 7?a&fca
XIV, 8, and Musaf for the first day of Passover).

^ Baba Bathra 74^

^'' Lev. Rabba xxii, 7.

'^Berachoth 34^ Sanhedrin 99"; r/". Hagigah I2^

*°Lct;. Rabba xiii, 3.

'"Shabbath 30"; r/. Kethuboth iii% where still
greater exaggerations are recorded.

" Sanhedrin 97".

"/&. 97^ see Rabbi Elijah Wilna's note arf he.

''^'Abodah Zarah 9"; r/. Tosafoth s. v. Lcahar,
ad loc.

''* Sanhedrin 97^

''lb.

""" Kethuboth in*, see Rashi ad loc; cf. Derech
Eres Zuta xi.

"" Pesahim 56', 54^

'^Sanhedrin 97*.

" Fojna 86% Yalkut on Is., 498.

'"Shabbath ii8b.

** L^Z*. Rabba iii, i ; r/. Weber, ^'j^.yf^'m J^r a/^
synagogalen Paldstinensischen Theologie, p. 322
(Leipzig, 1880).

pp. 106-121] NOTES 319

"" Rosh Hashanah ii".

'^ Cf. Num. Rabba xi, 3 ; Jellinek, loc. cit., vol. iii,
p. 154. The duration of the Messianic reign is
limited according to the Haggadah and is variously-
given as three generations (Mechilta to Exod. 17 : 16,
based on Ps, 72 : 5, *in = one generation and D''in
= two generations), forty, seventy, three hundred
and sixty-five, four hundred, one thousand, two thou-
sand, four thousand, or seven thousand years {San-
hedrin 97^ 99*, Pcsikta Rabbati i, end, p. 4*,").

"Graetz, Geschichte der Juden, 3d ed., vol. iv, p.
345, and n. 34.

*° Cf., however, Bacher, Agada der Paldst. Amorder,
vol. Ill, pp. 111-13, and notes.

" Socrates, Historia Ecclesiastica, vol. vii, p. 36
(Bohn's ed.).

" Sanhedrin 97".

CHAPTER IV

* Graetz, Geschichte der Juden, vol. v, p. 152, and
n. 14; cf. Pinsker, Likkute Kadmoniyoth, pp. 12-16
(Vienna, i860).

* See Graetz, loc. cit., n. 14.

^ Ps. 119: 164, " Seven times a day do I praise Thee,
because of Thy righteous judgment."

* Maimonides, Iggereth Teman, p. 50 (ed. Hallub,
Vienna, 1875).

"Graetz, loc. cit., n. 15, suggests that Abu-Isa
declared himself the Messiah son of Joseph, and
not the Messiah son of David, because it was known
that he was not of the tribe of Judah, the family of
the expected Messiah. Abu-Isa, therefore, resolved
to gain Palestine for the Jews by force of arms,

320 NOTES [pp. 121-133

since it was supposed to be the province of the Mes-
siah son of Joseph to conquer Israel's enemies in
war.
*Cf. Pinsker, loc. cit., p. 10.

'■'Nnr p Jljroty "n nnr\D3, published in Jellinek's
Beth Hamidrash, vol.' in, pp. 78-82; cf. Graetz, loc.
cit., n. is; "The Jewish Encyclopedia," s. v. Apo-
calyptic Literature, No. 10.

*See Graetz, loc. cit., p. 412, n. i; "The Jewish
Encyclopedia," vol. 11, s. v. Armilus, where the legend
of Armilus having been born of Satan and the
marble statue of a woman in Rome, is given in full;
cf. also Guttmann, Religionsphilosophie des Saadia,
p. 236, n. 4 (Gottingen, 1882).

'See Graetz, loc. cit., p. 190, and n. 18; Pinsker,
loc. cit., pp. 10, 25-26.

" Cf. Friedlaender, Die Messiasidee im Islam
(Berlin, 1903)-
" Deut. 30 : 3-

^This argument against Christianity was used
much earlier by the Jews of Spain (672), who based
their views especially on the tradition that the Mes-
siah would appear in the seventh millennium. This
mode of reasoning seems to have caused much an-
noyance to the early Christian theologians, so that
Julian of Toledo, in his apologetic work, Contra
Judaeos, endeavors to refute it ; see Graetz, loc. cit.,

p. 133, n. 2.

^ Cf. Guttmann, loc. cit., p. 226, n. 4.

" lb. ch. 7 ; cf. Spiegler, Geschichte der Philosophic
des Judenthums, p. 240; Bernfeld, Da'ath Elohim,
p. 125; idem, Sa'adia Gaon, pp. i3-i4-

"C/. Guttmann, loc. cit., p. 239; Bernfeld, Da'ath
Elohim, p. 125, n. I ; Graetz, loc. cit., p. 275, n. i.

pp. 133-140] NOTES 321

"See Bernfeld, loc. cit., p. 125, n. i, quoting the
Letters of Maimonides (ed. Leipzig), 11, 5"; Graetz,
loc. cit., vol. VI, p. 280.

" Graetz, loc. cit., p. 84.

" See Guttmann, loc. cit., p. 215 et seq.

" Ta'am Zekenim, pp. 59-61 (ed. Ashkenazi,
Frankfort-on-the-Main, 1854) ; cf. Dalman, Der
leidende Messias, etc., p. 58.

'" Hegion Hanefesh, p. 42%" (Leipzig, i860). He
believed that the Messiah would come in 1358 (51 18
A. M.) ; see Feinman's Introduction to the Hegion
Hanefesh, p. xv, n. 11 ; cf. Graetz, loc. cit., p. loi.

^'' Published in Jellinek's Beth Hamidrash, vol. 11,
PP- 54-57 ; cf. Graetz, loc. cit., pp. 53-55 ; " The Jewish
Encyclopedia," vol. i, pp. 682-3.

'^ Cf. Graetz, loc. cit., p. 53, n. 4 (1068?).

"The references here are to Harkavy's edition of
Halevi's Poems (Warsaw, 1893).

« Pt. I, pp. 57-8.

^ lb. p. 60; cf. Luzzatto's notes 2 and 3 ad. loc;
pt. II, p. 13 and n. i ; Halevi expected the redemption
to come during the first millennium after the destruc-
tion of the Temple.

*" Pt. I, p. 69 ; pt. II, p. 13.

=" Pt. I, pp. 69, 71-

"' Pt. I, p. 74, and n. 4 ; pt. 11, pp. 12-27.

*Pt. I, p. 72.

*° Kusari, pt. 11, 36-44, PP- ^43-7, in Cassel's ed.
(Leipzig, 1869).

" Is. 53 : 4 ; cf. Cassel's n. 3 to p. 142 ; cf. Wiinsche,
Die Leiden des Messias, pp. 34-50; Dalman, Der
leidende Messias, etc., passim.

^^ Kusari, pt. iv, 23; see Cassel's n. 3 ad loc; cf.
ib. pt. II, 34.

322 NOTES [pp. 140-167

""Ih. pt. I, 115.

®* Poems, pt. I, p. 18; pt. II. p. ^T,.

^° Cf. Friedlaender, "The Jewish Religion," p. 232
(London, 1900).

'^ Massaoth Rabbi Benjamin of Tudela, p. 12''
(Lemberg, 1859) ; cf. Graetz, loc. cit., vol. vi, pp.
244-8 ; " The Jewish Encyclopedia," s. v. Alroy ;
Iggeroth Harambani, p. 15 (Warsaw, 1878).

" " Studies in Judaism," p. 164.

^ Yad Hahacakah, Hilchoth Melachim, chs. xi, xii.

'^ lb. Hilchoth Teshubah, ch. ix, 2.

*° Graetz, loc. cif., p. 281.

"■ Of Alexandria, Iggeroth Harambam, p. g.

** D'nnn n''nn; Graetz, loc. cit., pp. 289, 305;
cf. Bernfeld, Da'ath Elohim, p. 297 ; Yellin and Abra-
hams, " Maimonides," p. 194 (Philadelphia, 1903)-

" Cf. Bernfeld. loc. cit., p. 475 ; " The Jewish En-
cyclopedia," s. V. Crescas.

" Sanhedrin 93".

*"Ikkarim, pt. iv, 35; cf. pt. i, 23. Neither Albo
nor his teacher, Hasdai. included the belief in the
coming of the Messiah among the cardinal principles
of Judaism; cf. 'Ikkarim, pt. iv, 42; pt. i, 23.

CHAPTER V

^ Quoted from Schechter's " Studies in Judaism,"
p. 105.

^ See Graetz, loc. cit., vol. vii, pp. 120-3, and n. 2.

* nrD'on 'n mm, ed. Jellinek (Vienna, 1872).

* " For one hundred and eighteen years in the
sixth millennium we shall still be in the hands of

pp. 167-173] NOTES 323

the nations of the world," ib. p. 39. Nahmanides
obviously expected the Messiah to come in 1358
(SI 18 A. M.).

*/&. p. 27; cf. Nahmanides commentary to Gen.
2:3.

° Cf. Nahmanides' commentary to Exod. 17 : g.

"* Cf. Schechter, loc. cit., pp. 115-16.

* Published in Jellinek's Beth Hamidrash, vol. iv,
pp. 117-26; see Graetz, loc. cit., vol. vii, p. 127 and
n. 7; see, however, Buttenwieser, in "The Jewish
Encyclopedia," vol. i, p. 684, who assumes that this
apocalypse was composed during the Crusades.

' TVWyO n73p, which was supposed to endow one
with the power of performing miracles.

^"Cf. Jellinek's Introduction to nSapH flDDn TJl
pp. 16-26 (Leipzig, 1853) ; idem, Introduction to vol.
Ill, of his Beth Hamidrash, p. xli ; idem, Introduc-
tion to his Philosophie und Kabbalah, pt. i, pp. v-
xii (Leipzig, 1854) ; idem, Sefer ha-Oth, in Graetz's
Jitbelschrift, Hebrew section, pp. 65-88 (Breslau,
1887) ; cf. Graetz, loc. cit., pp. 191-5.

" See Perles, Rabbi Salomo ben Adereth, pp. 6, 63,
n. 22 (Breslau, 1863).

" Ib. p. 64, n. 24.

^*Lit. "splendor" (after Dan. 12:3), a mystical
commentary to the Pentateuch, supposed to have
been communicated by the Tanna Rabbi Simeon
ben Johai to his disciples. Many later additions,
as the Midrash Hane'elam ("the hidden Midrash"),
the Ra'aya Mehemna ("the faithful shepherd"),
and others, are included under the general name of
Zohar.

"This is a moot question; see Graetz, loc. cit.,

324 NOTES [pp. 173-182

n. 12; Ginzberg, "The Kabbalah" (London, 1865);
Jellinek, Introduction to nb^pH TSOyn '?JJ, pp. 25-6

^"Zohar (Amsterdam. 1788), vol. i, p. 25*; cf.
Graetz, loc. cit. p. 436.

" Zohar, vol. i, p. 117"; every letter of the Hebrew-
alphabet has its numerical value, the He = S^ the
Waw = 6, and the Yod^: 10. Thus, bj' an arbitrary
arrangement of the letters, the author of the pas-
sage in the Zohar calculates, that the Messianic
period will commence in the year 1300 (5060 A. M.),
and will reach its highest culmination in the year
1840 (5600 A. M.). It is apparent that the author or
the compiler expected the beginning of the Messianic
era in his own lifetime.

" Ra'aya Mchcmna, vol. iii, p. 252\

^^Midrash Hane'elam, vol. 1, p. I39^

"l1S2f ip.

"^ Zohar, vol. ir, p. 7^

*'/&. vol. I, p. 119'.

^ Ih. vol. Ill, p. 2I2^

^Ib. vol. II. p. 212'' ; cf. vol. Ill, p. 2l8'.

'^ r;?')^ 'J3T kSd'H ; cf. Myer, " Qabbalah and the
Philosophy of Avicebron," p. 338 (Philadelphia,
1888).

'^ See Wiinsche, Die Leiden des Messias, pp. 88,
95-103; cf. Piyyuf for Miisaf Kedushah for the Day
of Atonement, .$■. v. As, in.

'^ Midrash Hane'elam, vol. i, p. 102".

" Cf. Zohar, vol. 11 1, p. 203^

'^Ib.; HNnn n^'^j.

"nSlKjn mJK, quoted in Albo's 'Ikkarim, pt. iv.
42.

"Albo, loc. cit.. pt. I, 2, 23.

pp. 183-190] NOTES 325

^'Ib. pt. IV, 42.

^' Cf. Graetz, loc. cit., vol. viii, pp. 115-18, 177, and
n. 3-

'"Cf. Kethuboth II2^

" Cf. Sanhedrin 97".

^° A play on the expression f)1J3ty niDty: iSo'ty !;>-
Yebamoth 62*. In this expression, e]U, ordinarily
meaning body, is interpreted to refer to a special
depository where the souls are kept ; cf. Rashi ad loc,
s. V. «]1J, 'Abodah Zarah 5% Tosafoth s. v. |'K ; see
below p. 328.

""Cf. Graetz, loc. cit., vol. vii, p. 372, n., vol. viil,
p. 16.

" Cf. Monatsschrift fiir Geschichte imd Wissen-
schaft des Judenthums, vol. 28 (1879), PP. 78-83;
Graetz, loc. cit., vol. viii, pp. 97-9, and n. 2.

°* Graetz, loc. cit., vol. vii, p. 361.

^T\ywr\ ^y}!-o .r\m^' ]}'n^n .ih'B'd r^);w\

*° Compare his views on the Haggadah in niyit!?"'
irriyD , p. 17*, and on the character of the prophet
Elijah in the Talmud, ib. p. 22*.

"njDX tyK"1, chapters xiv and xxiii (Konigsberg,
1861), in^tyn VAm^' {ibidem, 1861), p. 27^Dnp;r^ -i£3D
D''Tp1j;n IK, the book ' Ikkarim [principles] or rather
' Okarim [uprootings].

*^in'iyD n)yw\ p. 25" et seq.

**nmw"r\ 'ym, pp. 6^ 7" (Stettin, i860).

"/&. ch. X et a/.;in'tyori"li;m\ p. 13' et al., and in
other parts of his works.

"iH'B'D mi;ity% p. 31".

"Graetz, loc. cit., vol. ix, p. 215, and n. 3; cf.
Seder Hadoroth (ed. Maskileison, Warsaw, 1897),
pt. 1, p, 238, where the author relates that his grand-

3^6 NOTES [pp. 190-207

father, Seligmann Ganz, who lived at that time, tore
up the oven that was used for baking Mazzoth,
firmly believing that the end of the Galuth had come,
and he would not need the oven for next year, since
he would then be in Jerusalem. Eliezer Treves,
the Rabbi of Frankfort, a teacher of the author of
the Seder Hadoroth, also believed in Lammlein's
Messiahship, and said it was probably due to the
sins of Israel that the Messiah had not come at that
time.

*^ For a detailed account of the adventures of these
two pseudo-Messiahs, see Graetz, loc. cii., vol. ix,
ch. VIII, and n. 5; Seder Hadoroth, pt. i, p. 240.

" See Graetz, loc. cit., vol. ix, p. 547, quoting from
Luzzatto's Maskir, v, 45, for some ingenious com-
binations of Hebrew letters to indicate the near
approach of the Messianic period, which were com-
posed by a contemporary (Joseph of Arli). In
connection with this, I may mention a specimen of
such entertainments, which I heard among the chil-
dren, while at Heder. The first word of the Bible,
n'ty«13, was read by them "njD3'7N ,N'Dn nS303
aiyn K3' /tl/Sty, i. e., at the fall of Russia, in the
time of Alexander the Third, the Tishbite (Elijah)
will make his appearance.

CHAPTER VI

^ Polemische Deutsche Schriften (ed. Irmischer,
Erlangen, 1841), vol. in, ch. 28, p. 46 et seq.; cf.
Graetz, loc. cit., vol. ix, p. 197.

*For the life of Manasseh ben Israel, see Kayser-

pp. 207-215] NOTES 327

ling. Manasseh hen Israel, etc., in Jahrbuch fur die
Geschichte der Juden, vol. in, pp. 83-189 (Leipzig,
1861) ; English translation by F. de Sola Mendes
(London, 1877) ; Graetz, loc. cit., vol. x, ch. 4.

' Midrash Hane'elam, vol. i, p. 139''.

^Sxity nipO, ch. XII et scq. (Warsaw, 1841) ;
see the Introduction (31 ntyyo), where an account
of Montezino's travels is given.

' Dedicated to his friend, David Vossius.

' See Kayserling, loc. cit., p. 144 and n. 174 ; Eng.
ed., p. 38.

' Manasseh's idea of the resurrection is given in
his book, De Resurrectione Mortuorum, 3 parts
(Amsterdam, 1636), and in his D"n HOiyj, pt. i,
chs. xv-xvii, pp. 24d-3od (Leipzig, 1862).

' Accounts of the interesting exploits of Sabbatai
Zebi and of his followers can be found in any good
Jewish history. Only their Messianic teachings and
the chief events in their careers are included here.

'tynflon Dty.

" Yoma 69^ cf. Sotah 38\

" Rabbi Hai Gaon in Ta'am Zekeniin, p. 57a, b ;
cf. Maimonides Yad Hahasakah, Hilchotli Teiillah,
XIV, 9 ; cf. " The Jewish Encyclopedia," s. v. Shem
ha-Meforash.

^^ By the high priest on the Day of Atonement, and
by the priests in pronouncing the blessing for the
community (D'jriD HDi:)).

" Cf. Graetz, loc. cit., vol. x, pp. 189-190. There
was a belief among the medieval Jews that a proper

328 NOTES [pp. 215-238

combination of the letters of the name of God enabled
one to perform miracles (cf. Gittin 68"). In the
biographies of Jesus written by Jews of that period,
much prominence is given to the fact, that Jesus
performed miracles, because he had learned the
correct combination of the letters of the Tetragram-
maton, which he had found inscribed on a stone on
the Temple mount; see Gershom Bader, Helkath
Mehokek, p. 10 and n. 5.

"See David Kahana in Hashiloah, vol. 11, pp. 326-
334-
" Cf. Graetz, loc. cit., pp. 188-9, 436-41.
" See above p. 162.

"O:^'? nn nDn("My beloved is like a roe," Cant.

2 : 9) was applied to Sabbatai by his followers thus,

"My beloved (God) equals Zebi (Heb. for 'roe')."

'"For a list of Sabbatian festivals, see David

Kahana in Hashiloah, vol. v, p. 55.

"■Yebatnoth 62", 63"; Rashi s. v. f]U ; 'Abodah
Zarah 5% Tosafoth s. v. V^; Niddah I3^ Tosafoth
s. V. li;, and Maharsha ad loc, s. v. !'«
^ Cf. Graetz, loc. cit., p. 443.
" Cf. ib., p. 440.

** Graetz, Frank und die Frankisten, pp. 35-6
(Breslau, 1868).
''Ib. p. 36, n. I.

''Ib. p. 48; cf. Krochmal, Moreh Nebuche ha-Ze-
man, p. 255 (Warsaw, 1894), where a comparison
is drawn between these sects and the sects in the
early history of Christianity.

^ Schechter, " Studies in Judaism," p. 17 ; cf. Dub-
now, in "Jewish Encyclopedia," s. v. Hasidim.

pp. 244-255! NOTES 329

CHAPTER VII

' Baha Bat lira 3^

^Bernfeld, Toledoth Hareformation Hadathith
B' Israel, p. 66 (Cracow, 1900).

* Ritter, Geschichte der judischen Reformation, pt.
11, p. 41 (Berlin, 1861) ; Schreiber, "Reformed Juda-
ism and its Pioneers," p. Z7 (Spokane, 1892).

* Bernfeld, loc. cit., p. 66.

'/&. p. 67; cf. Schreiber, loc. cit., p. 38.

'For the changes introduced in the first three
reform prayer-books, see Bernfeld, loc. cit.. Appen-
dix, pp. 240-53.

' Abraham Geiger's Nacligelassene Schriften, vol.
V, PP- 54-56 (Berlin, 1878), Hebrew translation given
by Rabinowitz in his biography of Leopold Zunz,
pp. 156-7 (Warsaw, 1896),

* Translated into English by Bernard Drachman
(New York, 1899). The quotations here are from
the English translation.

Ih. pp. 161-3 ; cf. Bernfeld, loc. cit., pp. 125-8, who
criticises Hirsch's standpoint rather too severely.

" Bernfeld, loc. cit., p. 137, and note.

"Zunz, Gesammelte Schriften, vol. 11, p. 202; cf.
Rabinowitz "Leopold Zunz" (Hebrew), pp. 186-9,
who gives an excellent analysis of Zunz's idea of
Jewish nationality as shown by his article on Cir-
cumcision.

"1842, Nos. 7-9.

"C^. Rabinowitz, "Zachariah Frankel" (Hebrew),
pp. 76-81 (Warsaw, 1898); Bernfeld, loc. cit., pp.
141-3.

330 NOTES [pp. 256-263

"C/. Schreiber, loc. cit., pp. 132-46; Bernfeld, loc.
cit., p. 148 and note, where a list of the controversial
literature on this subject is given.

^ Nachgelassene Schriften, pt. i, pp. .113-97; cf.
Bernfeld, loc. cit., pp. 144-8.

^'Orient, 1842, Nos. 23, 25; cf. Bernfeld, loc. cit,
pp. 167-8.

" Autonomie der Rabbinen, p. 21, n. 11 (Schwerin,
1843).

^^ Cf. Bernfeld, loc. cit.. p. 169.

"/&. pp. 151-61; Schreiber, loc. cit., p. 207, says
that Riesser was one of the "strong supporters and
enthusiastic members of this society." The authority
for this statement is not given. From some of
Riesser's utterances quite the contrary might be in-
ferred; cf. M. Isler, Gabriel Riesser's Lcben, vol. i,
PP- 357-60 (Riesser's Letters to Stern; Leipzig, 1867) ;
cf. also Bernfeld, loc. cit., p. 158, note i.

^ Cf. Rabinowitz, " Zachariah Frankel," p. loi ;
Bernfeld, loc. cit., p. 184.

""Bernfeld, loc. cit., p. 196; cf. Einhorn's Predigten,
pp. 314-31 (ed. Kohler, New York. 1881). His
position on this question is clearly and forcibly stated
in two sermons, one delivered in Pesth, in 1852,
entitled Was hat Israel durch die Zerstoning
gewonnen? and the other delivered in Baltimore, in
1859, entitled Der Geburtstag des Messias.

^'Bernfeld, loc. cit., p. 197.

^ Cf. ib. pp. 190-5 ; Ritter, loc. cit., pt. 3, pp. 190-5 ;
Schreiber, loc. cit., pp. 220-2.

^'See "The Jewish Encyclopedia," s. v. Confer-
ences.

pp. 263-275] NOTES 331

^ We majr mention in connection with this the
resolution adopted at the convention of the Union of
Hebrew Orthodox Congregations, held in New York,
in 1898, which reads as follows : " The restoration to
Zion is the legitimate aspiration of scattered Israel,
in no way conflicting with our loyalty to the land
in which we dwell or may dwell at any time." Cf.
" The Jewish Encyclopedia," vol. iv, p. 217.
=* Slutzki, Shibath Zion, pt. 2, p. 45 (Warsaw, 1892).

"/&. p. 48.

^ Kalischer succeeded in interesting the famous
socialist Moses Hess (1812-75) in his plan. Hess
then wrote his work, Rom und Jerusalem, die letzte
Nationalifdtsfrage (Leipzig, 1862; 2d edition, with
preface by Dr. Bodenheimer, Leipzig, 1899). In
this book, Hess endeavors to establish the fact that
the Jewish nationality cannot be destroyed. He even
goes so far as to declare, that if emancipation were
incompatible with Jewish nationality, the Jews should
give up their claims to emancipation. He saw in
the Jewish colonization of Palestine the only solu-
tion of the Jewish problem; cf. Zlocisti's Introduc-
tion to his edition of Hess' Jiidische Schriften
(Berlin, 1905).

" Cf. Hess, Rom und Jerusalem, ed. Bodenheimer,
Introduction, p. xv.

'"Rabbi Jonathan Eliashberg, in Slutzki's Shibath

Zion, pt. I, p. 30.

"C/. Kethuboth ii2% Yerush, Shekalim in, 3, end;
Maimonides, Yad Hahasakah, Hikhoth Melachim,
V, 10-12.

°^ Rabbi B. B. Demont, in Slutzki's Shibath Zion,
pt. I, p. 41, and Rabbi Z. Barit, ib. p. 51.

332 NOTES [pp. 275-289

" Rabbi Mordecai Eliashberg, Shehil Hazahab, p.

50 et seq. (Warsaw, 1897).

^ Luah Ahiasaf, vol. vi (1898), p. 166.

^' See Giidemann, Das Judenthum, pp. 93-105
(Vienna, 1902), where the universalistic elements of
the Messianic idea are emphasized, and the belief in
the coming of a personal Messiah considered as the
fancy of homilists. The proof brought there from
the services for Rosh ha-Shanah (see Appendix, pp.
289-90) cannot be gainsaid, still, even there, the hope
of the coming of the Messiah son of David finds ex-
pression; cf. Joseph, Judaism as Creed and Life, pp.
'^(>7-72) (London, 1903), where both views are given
and discussed ; Leo Back, Das Wesen des Juden-
thums, pp. 142-6 (Berlin, 1905),

APPENDIX

^Berachoth 28", Megillah I7^

* See Elbogen, Geschichte des Achtsehngebetes, p.

51 (Breslau, 1903) ; cf., however, Mannheimer, Das
Gebetbnch und der Religionsunterricht, pp. 32-7
(Darmstadt, 1881).

' rwhi ]*np ; Megillah I7^

* Cf. Is. 27: 13 ; Zech. 9 : 14,
"Is. 11: 12.

* /&. 43 : 5 ; 49 : 12 ; Zech. 8 : 7.
'Is. 1:26.

* Missing in Palestinian version ; cf. " Jewish Quar-
terly Review," vol. x, pp. 654-9; Dalman, Messia-
nische Texte, p. 20 (Leipzig, 1898) ; cf. Psalm of
Ben Sira (Hebrew, ch. 51).

'Megillah i8% Pesahim II7^

pp. 290-299] NOTES 333

"The translation is from Singer's edition of the
prayer-book.

" Also on week days, according to Siddur Rab
Amram, p. 10" (Warsaw, 1865).

" Cf. a study on the Kaddish, by I. Schwab, in the
" Year Book of the Central Conference of American
Rabbis," vol. xv, pp. 205-22, who considers the Kad-
dish as a characteristic Messianic prayer.

" Omitted in Sefardic ritual.

" The reference is to Elijah, who is identified in
the Talmudic Haggadah with Phineas, son of Eliezer,
the priest; cf. Friedmann, Introduction to Seder
Eliyahu, pp. 8-9 (Vienna, 1902).

" Pesahim 13% ' Ertibin 43".

"See Hamanhig, Hilchoth Shabbath, § 71, p. 35'
(ed. Goldberg, Berlin, 1855) ; cf. Friedmann, loc.
cit. p. 23.

" Rosh Hashanah 11', according to Rabbi Joshua.

" Cf. A. A. Green, " Revised Hagada," p. 20
(London, 1897).

" Pesahim 116"; cf. Green, loc. cit., p. 55, n. i.

'"The same sentence is also recited in some
communities at the conclusion of the services on the
Day of Atonement.

^ Cf. Jer. 23 : 6 ; see also Z2, '■ 16, where this name
is applied to Jerusalem.

"' Sanhedrin 99*.

'^ s. V. I Pathros.

^Rosh Hashanah 11°, according to Rabbi Eliezer.

^ s. V. Weye'ethayu.

^ Cf. Siddur Rab Amram, p. 13^, where the descrip-
tion of this feast is given in still greater detail. This
section is the only place in the whole range of the

334 NOTES [pp. 299-300

Jewish liturgy where the material elements of the
Messianic hope are elaborated. A reference to the
pre-existence and to the sufferings of the Messiah
is found in one of the Piyyutim recited in some con-
gregations during the Musaf Kedushah of the Day
of Atonement, s. v. As iii ; cf. Wiinsche, Die Leiden
des Messias, pp. 106-7; Dalman, Der leidende und
sterbende Messias, etc., pp. 46-50; Zunz, Literatur-
geschichte der synagogalen Poesie, pp. 56, 604.

^Rosh Hodesh, s. v. Emunathecha.

^'Abadah for Parashah Wayera, s. v. Shaananah.

^ First Sabbath after Passover, s. v. Shebuyyah. . .

^ E. g. third Sabbath after Passover, .y. v. Omes;
fourth Sabbath after Passover, s. v. Asihah et al.
As an example of this kind of Piyyutim, I present
here a free translation of the Piyyut s. v. Segulathi,
recited on the fourth Sabbath after Passover:

" My Treasure ! I gave thee birth, covered thy
nakedness, and opened to thee the portals of My
mansion. Here in the vale of Lebanon did I find
thee a resting place; prepared for thee clusters of
grapes ; confounded thy enemies and destroyed them,
O My Treasure !

" My Beloved ! Forlorn was I and forsaken, as
a woman divorced. Fainting and enfeebled, I sank
beneath the hand of the oppressor. Hasten the
period of my redemption. Let me again be called
' the sought one,' and let my enemies behold and be
covered with shame, O my Beloved !

" My Treasure ! I beheld thee enslaved, in the
grief of thy youth. Rent were thy garments, thy
hair dishevelled. Golden bells around thy locks.

pp. 300-301] NOTES 335

Thy despair wrought My pity and I enfolded thee in
My love and spread My mantle over thee, O My
Treasure !

" My Beloved ! I was entrapped in the net ;
caught in the snare of the enemy; a captive in
Babylon and an outcast in Persia ; despoiled by the
hands of Greece, forsaken in Rome. Make me as
a seal, fastened as of yore, and let the daughters of
Judah rejoice, O my Beloved!

" My Treasure! I love thee and thou shalt be held
in My memory. In thy youth I pitied thee, I also
behold thy fear now. I shall yet beautify thy coun-
tenance and make thy light to shine forth. Thy
God is coming to thee, He will bind up thy wounds.
Zion, loosen thy shackles. Arise, give light, for thy
light has come, O My Treasure !

" My Beloved ! I have been devoured by the teeth
of bears and lions. My sanctuary has been made a
lair of wild beasts, Moab and Amalek, Kedar and
Nebayoth. Grant Thou a year of redemption for the
captured sheep and gather us near to Thy service,
O my Beloved !

" My Treasure ! I led thee into captivity and saw
thee bowed beneath the chains of thy enemy, scat-
tered in the lands of darkness and My sanctuary in
ashes. But thou shalt yet return to its holy of
holies, for the Lord has chosen Jacob to be His
own, O My Treasure!"

'^ For further reference, I would direct the reader
to the studies of Zunz on these subjects, with the
guide of the valuable key to Zunz's Literaturge-
schichte der synagogalen Poesie prepared by Gerst-
ner (Berlin, 1889).

INDEXES

INDEX TO SCRIPTURAL REFERENCES

Exodus

PAGE [

Isaiah (continued)

FAGB

15:18

291

45:4

45

Deuteeonomt

45:6

47

30:3

129,

320

47:1

310

I Samuel

49 : 5-8

46

10:27

25

49: 12

288, 332

24:7

25

52: 7

306

II Samuel

53:4

139, 321

7 : 12-16

26

54: 11,12

46

I Kings

56:7

47

2:4

26

60:15

46

17 : 17-24

814

60: 21

47

II Kings

64 : 9-10

44

19 : 21

310

66:23

47

Isaiah

Jeremiah

1:26

288,

332

3: 15

42

2:2-4

35-6

3:19

309

7:6

31

23: 5

307

7:14

33

23: 6

333

9:5

88,

317

30:3

42

11

33-5

30:9

25, 305

11 : 1-9

34

30 : 22, 25

42

11 :10

35

31:27

41

11 :12

288,

332

33:9

41

23:12

310

33:15

307

26:14

60

33:16

333

26:19

60

33 : 25, 26

41-2

27:13

332

46: 11

310

29: 18

306

EZEKIEL

30:26
35:5

306
306

20 : 6, 15

309

37:22

310

36:22

306

40:1

45

37

308

42 : 1-7

46

37 : 11-14

42

43:5

288,

332

37 : 24, 25

25, 305

45:1

45

38,39

95, 814

340

INDEXES

HOSEA

PAGE

Zechakiah (continued) page

2:2

20

9:14

332

2:20

80

14:9

291

3:5

25, 29, 305

Malachi

6:2

308

1:11

49

JOKL

3:22

55

3:4-5

42

3 : 23, 24

65, 307

4 : 15, 16

306

Psalms

Amos

9: 11, 14-15

29

16:10

59

MiCAH

22 : 28-32

307

4:1-4

35-6

65 : 3, 6

307

7:6

314

72:5

319

Nahum

72 : 7-11, 17

26

2:1

39

86:9

307

Zephaniah

87

307

1: 15

40

88:11-13

308

2:10

41

119:164

120, 319

3:7

41

146 : 10

291

3:9

40

Job

3 : 12, 13

41

8:7

23

3:15

41

14:12

308

H AGO A I

Song of Songs

1 : 2

49

2:9

221, 328

2 : 6, 7, 21, 22

307

Lamentations

2:23

48

2:13

310

3 : 1

41

Zechaeiah

Ecclesiastes

1 : 14-17

48

7:14

308

2:15

49

Daniel

3:8

307

8:9

309

6:12

307

11 : 16, 45

309

8:3

48, 307

12: 1

313

8:7

288, 332

12 : 2, 3

61

8 : 20-23

49

12:3

323

9:1

317

12 : 1, 10

313

INDEX TO TALMUDIC REFERENCES

MISHNAH

'Erobin

PAGE

page

43" 98,

294,

316,

317,

333

Shekalim II,

5

315

Pesahim

SOTAH, end

315

13»

294,

316,

333

Sanhbdbin X,

1

101

318

54*

316

'Eduyoth II, 10

95,

314

54"

106,

318

'Eduyoth VIII

, 7

96,

315

56»

106,

318

Aboth IV, 22

101

318

116"

296,

333

117"

288-9,

332

JERUSALEM TALMUD

118"

98,

317

Berachoth

Y'OMA

11, 4

96,

316,

317

5"

100,

317

KiLAYIM

69"

215,

327

IX, 3

102,

318

86»

108,

318

Shabbath

SUKKAH

I, 3

315

52"

95,

315

Shekalim

ROSH Hashanah

III, 3

275,

315,

331

11«

106

295

319,

333

SUKKAH

Meqillah

V, 2

95,

315

17"

284,

288,

332

Ta'anith

18«

288-9,

332

n, 1

97,

317

Hagigah

IV, 5

90,

313

12"

318

Sotah

14»

97,

317

IX, end

92,

313

15«,"

312

BABYLONIAN TALMUD

Berachoth

15" 101, 318
28" 92, 284, 313, 332
34" 98, 102, 317, 318

Shabbath

30" 103, 318
88" 318

Yebamoth
62" 184
63"

KBTH0BOTH
111«
111"

112«

112" 94

222

102
101

,184

,325,
222,

106,
103,
275,
314,

328
328

318
318
331
325

1188

94,

314

Nedabiu

118"

106,

318

SS"

316

342

INDEXES

GiTTIN

page

Sanhedrix

(continued) page |

68«

328

93a

152, 322

SOTAH

97»

94

,95,

104, 106, 184

38«

327

314,

316, 318, 325

49"

94, 314

97"

105,

111, 318, 319

KiDDCSHIN

98»

94

[, 97, 314, 317

SG"

101, 318

98"

95,

305, 314, 316

40"

23, 305

99«

98,

102, 312, 317 1

71»

96, 315

318, 319 '-

Baba. Kama

99"

90, 313

82»

307

110"

98, 317

Baba Mezia

111*

98, 317

3»

96. 315

'Abodah

Zarah

Baba Bathra

3"

98, 99, 117

3"

244, 329

5«

222, 325, 328

74b

102, 318

9"

105, 318

76"

100, 317

20"

315

Sanhedbin

Menahoth

38" 22,

97, 305, 317

45»

96, 315

67"

812

NiDDAH

90"

88, 313

13"

222, 328

92*

101, 818

61"

101, 318

INDEX TO NAMES AND SUBJECTS

Abarbanel, Isaac, 186-90

Abbahu, 97

Abraham Abulafia, 170, 172

Abraham b. Hlyya, 134

Adam, 22, 303

Adam Kadmon, 220

Addir Hu, 296

Ages of Man, The, 22

Akdamuth, 298

Akiba, 90, 97, 98, 189

Albo, Joseph, 152, 182, 187,

322
'Alenu, 291
Alliance Israelite Vniverselle,

268
'Amidah, 287, 289, 291
Amos, 29
Anan, 125, 126
Anti-Semitism, 269-70
Apocryphal and Apocalyptic

Books, 62, 66 et seq., 308
Armilus, 124, 169, 314, 320
Asher Lammlein, 189-90,

325-6
Ashi, 110
'Attik Yomin, 220
Azariah de Rossi, 165

Bar-Cochba, 89, 313
Baruch, The Apocalypse of,

86-8
Baruch Gad, 217
Basle Congress, 276
Beer of Miesricz, 237
Ben Sira, 63, 309
Bernays, Isaac, 252, 253
Bressler, M. J., 249

Caro, Joseph, 195
Cassel, David, 262
Circumcision, Celebration of

the, 293
Cohn, Albert, 267
Colonization in Palestine,

268, 272-5, 331
Cromwell, 213
Cyrus, God's anointed, 45

Daniel, 60, 67, 105

David, type of the Messiah,

25
David Alruy, 141-3
David Reubeni, 192-9
Day of Judgment, 87, 125,

153, 312, 314
Day of the Lord, 29, 40
Deutsch, Emanuel, 80-1
Dogmas, 7-9, 54, 82-4, 322
Donmiih, 227
Driver, S. R., 32, 46

Eger, Akiba, 246

Eibeschtitz, 229

Einhorn, David, 261, 330

Eliashberg, 274

Eliezer Kontras, 133

Elijah, 55, 76, 77, 93, 96,
104, 134, 137, 138, 149,
168, 231, 232, 294, 309,
315, 325, 333; cup of,
295.

Elijah of Wilna, 240

Emancipation 243, 246-8,
264, 265

Emden, 229

344

INDEXES

Emunoth ive-De'oth, 128
Enoch, The Apocalypse of,

68, 72
Ezehiel, 42, 183, 306
Ezra, 53, 58, 275, 307
Ezra, The Apocalypse of, 86

Fall of man, the, 22
Feast of the Righteous, 102,

283, 333
Felgenhauer, 212
Fifth Monarchy Men, 208.

212
Frank, the false Messiah,

231-6
Frankel, Saeckel, 249
Frankel, Zachariah, 253 et

seq., 257, 262
Friediander, David, 246, 247

Gamaliel, 89, 103, 284, 813
Gederah, 272
Gehenna, 69, 125, 134
Gelger, Abraham, 250, 257,

262
Gentiles in Messianic Times,

43, 73, 98-9, 113, 134
Oeonim, 116 et seq., 125
Geronimo de Santa Fe, 183
Ginzberg, Asher, 276
Gog and Magog, Wars of,

95, 105, 149, 211
" Good Tidings for Israel,"

212
Guf, 222, 325
Guttmacher, Elijah, 265

HaMalah, 294
Haftarah, 294
Haggai, 48, 49
Hal Gaon, 134

Ilalachah and Ilaggadah,

80-3
Hanina, 105

Hasdai Crescas, 151, 185
Hasdal Halevl, 150
Hasidim, 227, 237
Hayylm b. Galipapa, 182
Hayylm Malach, 227
Hayyun, Nehemiah, 228
Hebrew in the Prayer-Book,

247, 257, 262
Hephzi-bah, 136
Herzl, Theodor, 277
Hess, Moses, 331
Hezekiah, 31, 34, 37, 92
Hillel, 91

Hillel (Amora), 312
Hirsch, S. R., 251-2
Holdhelm, S., 249, 258, 261
Holmes, Nathaniel, 209
Hosea, 29, 30
Hosha'anoth, Hosha'ana

Ralha, 300

'Ikkarim 187, 325
Immanuel, the child, 32
Ineffable Name, The, 215,

327-8
Isaac Prime, 221
Isaiah, 30-6, 43-7, 60, 283,

306
Isavites or Ispahanites, 122
Israel Baal Shem, 237, 240
Israel's sufferings accounted

for, 130, 139

Jabne, 89, 92
Jacob Querldo, 226
Jehadah Halevl, 137-41
Jeremiah, 41, 76, 183
Jerusalem, restored, 46, 64,
69, 100, 288, 307

INDEXES

345

Jesus, 72 et seq., 76, 129,
167, 183, 208, 212, 213,
232, 328

Joel, 42

Joffe, Mordecai, 274

Johanan (Amora), 94

Johanan b. Zakkai, 85, 86,
92

John the Baptist, 75, 76

Jose the Galilean, 97

Joseph (Amora), 312

Joseph ha-Kohen, 184, 199

Joseph Escapa, 216

Joshua b. Levi, 97

Joslah, 38

Judah (Tanna), 95

Judah Hasid, 227

Judah Judghan, 127

Judges, 24

Julian the Apostate, 107

Julian of Toledo, 320

Kaibalah, 159 et seq.
Kaddish, 292, 333
Kalischer, Hirsch, 265, 266
Karaism, 126, 128
Kedushah, 289, 290, 334
Kelippoth, 219
Kinnoth, 301
Koferim, 223
Kuaari, 139

Law, The, 54, 55, 82, 85,

155 ; a new, 100
Lei Shimmurim, 295
Levi, Aaron, 210
Leviathan, 102, 299
Lobele Prossnltz, 22S
Lurya, Isaac, 200
Luther, 204, 205
Luzzatto, Moses Hayyim,

230-1

Maccabees, 64, 71
Maggid, ha-, 268
Maimonldes, 8, 103, 133,

143-51, 157, 158, 187
Malachi, 49, 54, 183, 307
Malka Kadisha, 220
Malkuyyotli, 297
Manasseh b. Israel, 207-13
Mantin, Jacob, 197
Marranos, the, 191, 193,

230
Mazzoth, 295, 326
Mendelssohn, Moses, 7, 236,

243, 250
Messiah, the person of the,
96, 107, 136-7 ; nature of
the, 146, 165, 186; names
of the, 72, 99, 316
Messiah, son of Joseph, 95,
124, 131, 135, 137, 168,
180, 200, 211, 225, 314,
319
Messianic Reign, duration of

the, 87, 313, 319
Messianic Woes, 94, 176
Metatron, 123, 136, 220
Micah, 35

Michael Cardoso, 225
Mikweh Israel, 211
Mlkweh Israel (school), 268
Mishneh Torah, 148, 159
Mission of Israel, the, 140,

254, 255
Mohammedanism, 115 et seq.
Mohilever, Samuel, 274
Mordecai of Elsenstadt, 226
Moses, 24

Moses Botarel, 184
Moses of Crete, 110
Moses de Leon, 173

346

INDEXES

Moses b. Nahman, 164-8
Musaf, 291
Mutazllists, 127
Mysticism, see Kabbalah

Nahum, 39

Nathan Ghazatl, 217, 224

Nationalism, Jewish, 251 et

seq., 273 et acq., 331
Natronai Gaon, 120
Nisslm b. Abraham, 171
Nlssim b. Reuben, 185
mzozoth, 219
Nordau, Max, 277

Obayah Abu-Isa b. Ishak,

120, 319
<Olam ha-Tikkun, 219
Omeyyads, 121, 124

Pablo Christian!, 164

Palestine, Colonization of,
268, 272-5, 331

Parzuflm^ 228

Persian Influence, 56

Personal Messiah, 27, 35,
40, 43, 55, 63, 64-5, 72,
74, 134, 276, 291, 309,
332

Petah Tikwah, 268

Philo, 74

Piyyutim, 284, 286 et seq.

Prayer-Book, 8, 283 et seq.

" Precious Stone, The," 213

Promised End, The, 132

Psalms, The, 49; of Solo-
mon, 72

Pseudo-Messiahs, 110, 118,
120, 127, 141, 162, 170,
171, 184, 189, 192 et seq.,
214, 225, 226, 228, 231

Puritans, 209

Rabbinical Conferences, 260
Rabbinism, opposition to,
by Arabian Jews, 117,
118 ; by Karaites, 126 ;
by Pseudo-Messiahs, 119,
162, 163, 220, 222, 232,
233 ; by modern reformers,
250
Rahaman, ha-, 293
Rappel des Juifs, 209
Reform in Worship, 245,

248-52
Remnant, in Isaiah, 32 ; in

Zephaniah, 41
Redemption, the date of the,
68. 103, 104, 133, 137,
138, 150, 174, 186, 188,
195, 211, 320, 321, 323,
324, 326
Resurrection, 42, 57-61, 69,
74, 87, 88, 101, 129-32,
140, 144, 148, 150-3, 168,
180, 188, 211, 249, 263,
286, 288, 308, 318, 327
Riesser, Gabriel, 259, 330
Rome, 97, 123, 136, 177,
189, 195, 196, 197, 199,
205
Rothschild, Anselm Mayer,
266

Saadia Gaon, 128-32
Sabbatai Zebi, 207, 214-24
Sabbatians, Messianic Theo-
ry of the, 219 et seq.
Sachs, Michael, 262
Sacrifices in Messianic

Times, 100, 289
Sadducees, 288
Salomon, Gotthold, 256
Samael, the Satan, 96

INDEXES

347

Sambation, 217

Samuel (Amora), 98

Samuel Abulafla, 185

Saul, 25

Schechter, S., 7, 143, 165

Scribes, 53-9

Sects, 61, 64, 122, 227, 328

Seder Service, 295

Seflroth, 170, 220

Selihoth, 300

Serene of Syria, 118

" Servant of the Lord, The,"

45, 139, 306-7
Shammai, 91
Shechinah, 228, 299
Shema', 291

Shenioneh 'Esreh, 284, 287-9
Shiites, 127
Shor ha-Bar, 102, 299
Shulhan Aruch, 174, 195
Silluli. 296

Simeon b. Johal, Mysteries
of, 122 ; Prayer of, 169 ;
author of Zohar, 173, 323

Simon the Just, 61

Simon Maccabee, 310

Sira}, 144 et seq.

Solomon b. Adereth, 171

Solomon Ayllon, 228

Solomon Molclio, 194-9

Suffering Messiah, The, 78,

179, 311, 334
Sybilline Books, The, 70, 310

Tannaim, 91
Teflllah, 287
Ten Tribes, The, 98, 210,

224
Tikkun Hazoth, 301
Tobit, Book of, 63
Twelve Patriarchs, The

Apocalypse of the, 70

Vital, Hayyim, 200

World to come. The, 68, 134,
152, 179, 219

Yeshibafi, 85
Yozer, 295, 299

Zecharlah, 48-50
Zemiroth, 294, 300
Zephanlah, 40
Zerubbabel, 48-9, 275 ; The

Apocalypse of, 135
Zionism, Modern, 265 et seq.
Zohar, The, 173-81, 208, 214.
218, 224, 230, 234, 237,
240, 323
j Zulath, 297
I Zunz, 253, 329

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