Doomsday, apocalypse, nuclear winter, irrevocable climate change, polycrisis—these terms are all familiar to anyone who reads the news or spends time among catastrophists. Some will even tell you that it is predicted in the Torah itself—prophecies of a future battle of epic proportions, a final showdown before the End of Days. Is there any way to avoid World War III?
This text is a snippet from the lengthy prophecy in Yechezkel that describes a final battle in the End of Days featuring a prince called Gog from the land of Magog:
Therefore prophesy, O mortal Yechezkel, and say to Gog: Thus said the sovereign G-d, “Surely, on that day when Moshiach arrives, when My people Israel are living securely in their land, you, Gog, will take note, and you will come from your place, the country of Magog which is in the farthest north, you and many nations with you—all of them mounted on horses, a vast congregation, a mighty army—and you will advance upon My people Israel, like a cloud covering the earth. This shall happen on that distant day of the final Redemption, I will bring you to My land, Israel, and defeat you in battle so that the nations may know Me when, before their eyes, I manifest My holiness through you, Gog!”
Oh My Gog!
One of the most mysterious predictions in the Torah is what is known as the war of Gog and Magog. Multiple prophets allude to this cataclysmic battle, but the most comprehensive account is found in the book of Yechezkel. What is going to happen?
At the end of days, Gog, a prince from a land called Magog, will wage a devastating war against the Jewish people that will cause much death and destruction. Ultimately, G-d Himself will defeat Gog, avenging the suffering he wrought on his victims, and sanctifying G-d’s name before the eyes of all the nations of the world.
Many nations have led oppressive wars against the Jewish people. Some even claim that they fight for G-d, as it were. But Gog’s historically epic battle will be unique because his war is demonstratively opposed to G-d. He will acknowledge the existence of a Jewish G-d, but hold a deep hatred for Him that motivates him to fight and destroy everything and everyone that represents the Divine in this world.
So G-d will take matters into His own hands, like the builders of the tower of Bavel, for whom the Torah says, “And G-d descended...” to disperse them, and the armies of the wicked Sancheriv poised to launch an attack on Yerushalayim, who were miraculously wiped out by a G-dly intervention without the besieged Jews lifting a finger.
The incentives of each side of the Gog and Magog battle for world dominion and the ultimate and permanent results of global redemption that will result are clearly set out by the prophets. But many details remain enigmatic. What is the timeline of this conflict, who are Gog and Magog, and what events might unfold on the battlefield?
The Second Rebbe of Sochatchov on Gog and Magog
The second Rebbe of Sochatchov, Rabbi Shmuel Bornsztain, sheds light on the war of Gog and Magog by explaining a teaching from the Chassidic masters in his work Shem Mishmuel:
We have a tradition from our holy Rebbes, that at this point in our exile we have been absolved from the war of Gog and Magog and it is no longer a prerequisite for Moshiach, and after he arrives, there will be an ingathering of the exiles and the Jews will dwell peacefully in their land forever without having to endure any further suffering. The explanation: It is just as in Egypt—where the Jews sojourned for 210 years even though G-d had told Avraham that his descendants would be exiled for four hundred years—when the harshness of the slavery compensated for the remainder of the four hundred years.
Similarly in this current exile, time can be exchanged for the harshness of the exile but in the opposite way, that the extreme length of the current exile, lasting nearly two thousand years, compensates for some of the harshness of the oppression and the many evils and tribulations that are destined to befall the Jews. Since the duration has been so long and has compensated for the suffering destined to occur before Moshiach’s arrival, no longer will the birth pangs of Moshiach’s arrival be so unbearably harsh; instead, it is more accurate to say that the cleansing accomplished through suffering concluded while we are in exile, ensuring that when the exiles are gathered, we will no longer need to be cleansed.
Part of the Process
When the Jews were exiled from their land almost two thousand years ago, they simultaneously lost the ability to perform numerous aspects of Jewish law. Many of the 613 mitzvot, G-d’s original commandments in the Torah, are contingent on Jews living in the Land of Israel with the Holy Temple in service. In fact, a Jew in exile has the ability to perform a maximum of 369 mitzvot.
Exile, however, is not a proverbial “time out” as the Jewish nation awaits the rebuilding of the Temple, when the ideal service of G-d will be restored. Far from their homeland, unsettled as they are among the nations of the world, this away period is a deliberate step in the ultimate battle of good winning over evil.
G-d created the world with a purpose, the task to elevate physicality on a spiritual plane. The exile of the Jewish people from the Holy Land is part of this refinement process. Through their exiles and migrations, foreign environments are transformed into expressions of G-dliness. Cleansing requires the application of powerful chemicals and elbow grease. The world’s spiritual purification also entails abrasives and bristles, and each generation of exile has their particular experiences. Jews have endured many physical hardships throughout history and have persevered through various spiritual challenges imposed by the political forces and cultural winds of each age.
Rabbi Shmuel Bornsztain (1856-1926), was the son of the founder of the Sochatchov Chassidic dynasty. Following his father’s passing, he became the second Rebbe and published his father’s halachic responsa, Avnei Nezer, with his own prolific notes. He had a unique love for the Land of Israel, and attempted to establish a Chassidic settlement there, only to be denied by the Ottomans. He passed away at the age of 70 and was laid to rest in Sochatchov next to his father. He was Rebbe of Sochatchov for sixteen years.Every challenge is a stepping stone for growth and plays a vital role in the purpose of creation. Embrace small daily battles and celebrate the little victories toward meaningful, spiritual engagement with others and with the world—each one matters.
SOURCES & FURTHER READING:
- Vayikra Rabbah 27:11
- Or Hatorah, Bereishit
- Likkutei Sichot Vol. 32, Pg. 184-5
- Hamelech Bemesibo, Achron Shel Pesach 5730
Every small battle is another front, a stage in the macro-war against the ideas and objects that conceal G-dliness. The culmination of this war, its final victory, is the ultimate Redemption from exile.
The Battle Already Won
This is where the brazen Gog comes in. He represents a worldly perspective that defies G-d. The war of Gog and Magog has, in reality, already been fought in numerous incremental steps over many generations. One of its first iterations was two and a half millennia ago, when the cruel Sancheriv invaded from the north and laid siege to the holy city of Yerushalayim in the days of the righteous King Chizkiyah. In this existential battle against the Jewish nation’s right to sovereignty in their land, the Jews, with G-d’s help, prevailed.
And the battle endures today. Gog and Magog represent every alien force that has attempted, throughout the Jewish people’s exile, to impede their mission of acknowledging and connecting the mundane with the Divine. The gematria, the numerical value, of all the letters of Gog and Magog (גוג ומגוג) in Hebrew equal seventy. This parallels the seventy foreign nationalities that have subjugated the Jews throughout time. Every micro-victory of good over evil endured in exile is an aspect of the grand triumph of a physical world that will one day reveal its true G-dly energy.
As the text above attests, this lengthy, spiritual process has replaced the need for a dramatic and violent battleground. After nearly two thousand years of physical and spiritual wanderings, Jews stand at the cusp of redemption.
The outcome of the war of Gog and Magog has already been spiritually accomplished through nearly two thousand years of challenges in exile, negating the need for a final, apocalyptic battle.
Each generation has its particular struggles to overcome, the physical hardships and spiritual challenges of exile.
Dedicated by Yossi and Yael MichelashviliIn memory of his father R. Avraham ben R. Eliyahu
25 Elul, 5780
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