INTERNET’S WORD FOR THE NEW YEAR
The closer to the New Year we become, the louder is the voice of those many websites “prophesying” the coming of Messiah in 2017. The English sites are full of articles about Rabbi Judah ben Samuel and his prophecy about 2017. A simple Google search can find thousands of webpages dealing with this prophecy; the Hebrew sites, however, are much more moderate and cautious. Let’s try to understand why.
I suppose most of my readers have already seen this text, but in case you are not familiar with it, let’s look at part of it again. The prophecy attributed to Judah Ben Samuel – the “internet prophecy”, as it has already been called – goes like this:
“When the Ottomans conquer Jerusalem they will rule over Jerusalem for eight jubilees. Afterwards Jerusalem will become no-man’s land for one jubilee, and then in the ninth jubilee it will once again come back into the possession of the Jewish nation – which would signify the beginning of the Messianic end time.”
This prophecy appeared for the first time in 2008, in the Christian/Messianic Magazine Israel Today, translated and summarized from the original German by Ludwig Schneider. Since then, it has made its way to thousands of webpages, and Rabbi Judah Ben Samuel has become more famous than he has ever been.
Rabbi Judah Ben Samuel (Hebrew name is Yehudah Hachassid – Judah the Pious), son of the famous Kalonymus family of rabbis and mystics, lived and worked in Germany from the end of the 12th century until the beginning of the 13th century. Rabbi Judah wrote several books, certainly had mystical leanings, and wrote a lot of stories about the supernatural (witches, vampires and other strange creatures). According to his students, he was very passionate about the coming of the Messiah, and this might explain the prophecy about the Messianic age. If this prophecy does indeed belong to him – if this text does come from the 13th century – it would be truly amazing!
The problem is, however, that there is no reference to this “prophecy” in any of the available works of Judah Ben Samuel. The Hebrew sites are acutely aware of this. There have been some Israeli writers and researchers who have tried to contact Ludwig Schneider, requesting information about the source of the prophecy, but to no avail. Therefore, at this point we know for sure about one source of this “prophecy” only: the article in Israel Today magazine (March 2008, page 18) that became the beginning of this surge of interest around Rabbi Judah. I am not saying there was no such a prophecy – all I am saying is that we have no proof that there was.
Having said that, I have to admit that I completely understand these feelings about 2017, and also tend to see it as a year of prophetic significance. We all know that God’s prophetic clock is attached to Israel and Jerusalem. The first official act by a Gentile nation that gave the Jews legal right to the Holy Land, was the Balfour Declaration, and it happened in 1917. Then, 50 years later, in 1967, after the Six-Days War, Jerusalem was recaptured, reunited and declared to be the eternal undivided capital of the State of Israel. 50 years after 1967, entering year 2017 – and entering it from Jerusalem – I can’t help but foretaste the significance of this year for my country and my city, for Israel and for Jerusalem, – and for the whole world.
GOD’S WORD FOR THE NEW YEAR
This means that, as we approach the New Year, we have all the more reason to listen to what God is saying to us! I happen to believe that weekly Torah portions are divinely ordained, and that God speaks to His people – and to each one of us personally – through these Parashot Shavua. So, it was only natural that, a while ago, I checked the Torah portion for the last Shabbat of 2016 (which also happens to be the last day of the year – December 31!) The coming year began to seem even more significant when I realized that the entrance to this year would be marked by Parashat Miketz!
Miketz portion starts from Genesis 41:1 where we read: at the end of two full years Pharaoh dreamed. There is a slight and seemingly insignificant difference when read in Hebrew: MiKetz Shnataim Yamim (מִקֵּץ שְׁנָתַיִם יָמִים ) – at the end of “two years of days”. The word yamim, days, doesn’t occur in any English translations, which speak only about “two years” or “two full years”, while the original text speaks of “two years of days”.
I believe the Hebrew text here conveys a very profound message – a message that is completely lost in translation. For Joseph, these two years of imprisonment consisted of many single days – days full of struggle, and pain, hopes, and disappointments. The word “days” assures us that God saw every single day of these two years: He knew the pain and the anguish of each of these days. He knew that every single day Joseph had to choose to believe and to trust Him anew.
I believe, this is the message for each one of us at this change of the years. Even today, in modern Hebrew, the word “days” is often added when we speak of time: e.g. a week of days, a month of days. שבוע ימים. חודש ימים. . This means that, even though our lives are measured by years (or months or weeks), these years consist of days – days full of challenges and choices, hopes and disappointments – and God also sees and knows the pain and the anguish of each and every one of these days. Every single day we face new challenges; every single day we need to choose to trust Him – oftentimes in spite of our circumstances, in spite of all the pain, the struggles and disappointments. I don’t know what you have been going through these past two, or three, or five years of days, but trust His Word: Not only did God see every one of these days but, at some point, the end of these years of days will inevitably come, – just as it came in Joseph’s life in the Torah portion marking the entrance into 2017.
TO ALL MY READERS, STUDENTS AND FRIENDS: MAY YOU AND YOUR LOVED ONES HAVE A WONDERFUL, TRULY BLESSED YEAR! I GREATLY APPRECIATE YOU ALL! HAPPY NEW YEAR !
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I will be waiting for GOD 4.4.2017 at Jerusalem.
Dear Julia,
I haven’t read the prophecy itself. What puzzles me, however, is the reference to the OTTOMAN EMPIRE, which emerged relatively suddenly on the historical scale in AD 1299. As I understand, Rabbi Judah Ben Samuel must have died a long time – at least half a century – before this event. In my opinion, he MIGHT have supposed that the Holy Land would fall in Muslim hands within his lifespan – in fact, Muslims returned the control over Jerusalem in AD 1187, taking it from the Crusaders. Christians still were permitted access to and activities in the city within the next few centuries. Anyway, I really doubt that the Rabbi has used this specific term (Ottoman Empire). To my best knowledge, the prophets used terms as BEAST or DRAGON for superpowers that were still to emerge by the time of the revelation (cf. Daniel’s references to the Romans as well as the Book of Revelation for the powers in the End Days). Jerusalem indeed fell in Ottoman hands in AD 1517, but they took it from the Egypt mamelukes, I think.
Meanwhile, it is interesting that basically Turks (Ottomans) and Arabs have never been in good terms with. Arabs even aided the British Army in WWI (Lawrence the Arabian) against the Ottoman Empire.
You are absolutely correct, Lyuben, the reference to the Ottoman empire, in these exactly words, is a stumbling stone indeed – and it does make one doubt the source and the time (and therefore , the “revelation” itself). Either we have to have a proven reference to the proven text of Rabbi Judah – or we can not relate to these words as 12th or 13th century prophecy.
Shukrani
Thank you for interpreting the parashat miketz in a manner that radiates light which is what the word of the Lord is. It creates a consciousness to dare to live each day of the year assured the Lord has you in mind to bring you victory. Happy new year friends.
Thank you, Julia.
It is so wonderful to be totally confident that when Messiah returns, I am prepared by his merits and not by my doing. No fear. Only a wonderful expectation. My Father lived daily expecting that Messiah would return. Although he died 36 years ago, I also long for Messiah’s return with great expectation. If he returns while I am still living, it will be an experience that none of us have even imagined. In an instant, my mortality will become immortal. Wow; what a thought. So, come YHWH, Yeshua!!!
No fear; only great expectation.
The is great significance.. Immediately I thought After 2 days… after 2 years…
Come, and let us return unto the LORD: for he hath torn, and he will heal us; he hath smitten, and he will bind us up. After two days will he revive us: in the third day he will raise us up, and we shall live in his sight.
(Hosea 6:1-2)
Thankyou,
Toda rav.
I was interested to read your post Janet because my mind also went immediately to the ‘after two days’ scripture you quoted, and wondered if it was relevant here. Another related scripture is Ex. 19:10 “And the LORD said unto Moses, Go unto the people, and sanctify them today and tomorrow, and let them wash their clothes, 11 And be ready against the third day: for the third day the LORD will come down in the sight of all the people upon mount Sinai.” (& these are just two such scriptures – there are others) The Miquetz portion you refer to Julia is, of course, the last one before Vayigash, where Joseph reveals his true identity to his brothers, and I think you agree that there are profound prophetic implications in this story, as Joseph is clearly a ‘type’ of Christ. Although we may be ‘clutching at straws here’, nevertheless, I too am expectant that 2017 will be a very significant year for Israel for Israel in the plan of God. Let us “Pray for the peace of Jerusalem.”
It is easy to get caught up in all these prophetic expectations and crunching of numbers, as we all long for Yeshua’s return, and the removal of Israel’s veil, but let it only serve to draw us closer to Him, that we might be found faithful, with our ‘lamps burning’ when He does return. “So then, dear friends, since you are looking forward to this, make every effort to be found spotless, blameless, and at peace with Him.” (2 Pet 3:14)
Thank you, Dorothy and Janet! This juxtaposition is so beautiful and so profound. I haven’t thought of this Scripture from Hosea that you quoted, in connection with “two years of days” from Genesis 42; I haven’t thought about “the third day” at all, just about the two years – but thanks to you both, I’ve realized that this whole passage is even deeper than I thought: after the second day or year comes the third one – and we all know how significant and meaningful and important “the third day” is! Thank you for pointing it out!
Thankyou for the encouragement!!
Nothing is impossible to those who believe . I’m so glad to have a wonderful Saviour who cares about every second of every day .
Fight the good fight of FAITH – the only fight we have anything to do with .
The battle belongs to the Lord !!
Julia every seven years is the shemitah, after the seventh shemitah is the year of the jubilee but dose the jubilee occur every 50 years or every 49 years?
400 years is equal to 8 x 50 years or 7 x 57 years plus 1 the jubilee year. This matters to get a reasonable understanding of the correctness of the method used to predict 2017 as the coming of Messiah. This date will come and go just as did 2012, the end of the Maya calendar.
The Mashiah will not return until 2027, 60 years after the Jews regained Jerusalem after a 6 day war and 2000 years after Yahshua was crucified 4000 years after the creation of Adam. I can provide evidence to backup these dates if needed.
Hi Chris, I don’t believe we can predict the year of Messiah’s coming. I don’t think we need to try, either – and that is why I spoke about the “Internet prophecy” and the fact that we don’t have any proven sources of this prophecy. As for the jubilee year, it is always the 50th year from the precious jubilee and therefore, it occurs after 49 years.