בס "ד

Short summary of the lesson. It is highly recommended to watch the full lesson for the complete context and nuance.

The Messiah Is Not Here: Is It the Jews’ Fault?

The statement, “I love the Jews, but they’re not bringing the Messiah because they’re not doing teshuvah,” may sound pious. But it reflects something very old.

For two thousand years, Jews have been placed at the center of the world’s disorder:
You killed Christ.
You rejected the prophet.
You caused corruption.

Now the structure is inverted:
Non “you caused the world’s fall,” but “you are preventing its redemption.”

The constant is not theology. It is the centralization of blame.

So we ask three questions:

  1. What is redemption according to Tanakh?
  2. What does teshuvah really mean?
  3. Who is responsible for the moral direction of the world?

What Kind of World Would the Messiah Enter?

The prophets do not describe a magical reset.

In Zechariah 14:9, G-d is recognized as King over all the earth. In 8:23, the nations attach themselves to Israel.

But such a reality presupposes a world capable of sustaining it: functioning courts, less violence, real accountability.

In Isaiah 2:2–4, Torah goes forth from Zion and war ceases. Why? Because “the earth shall be filled with the knowledge of the L-rd” (11:9).

Redemption, in Tanakh, means a world becoming more just, not merely more religious.

Even Amos begins by condemning surrounding nations for violence and cruelty before addressing Israel. G-d judges injustice everywhere.

What Is Teshuvah?

The Talmud (Sanhedrin 97b) teaches that teshuvah brings redemption closer.

Teshuvah literally means “return” , a reorientation toward the good. Not perfection, but movement.

The Rambam, in the Mishneh Torah, writes that Israel will be redeemed through teshuvah. But moral responsibility is not exclusively Jewish.

The nations, too, have universal obligations: prohibitions against murder, theft, corruption, sexual immorality, and the duty to establish courts. When societies reduce violence and strengthen justice, that too is teshuvah.

With roughly 15 million Jews in a world of 8 billion people, the moral condition of humanity cannot logically rest on them alone.

Stop Calculating the End

In Sanhedrin 97–99, the Talmud sharply warns against calculating the exact time of redemption. When people are overly certain about the timetable, they begin assigning blame when reality does not match their theory.

The Rambam’s Model

In the Mishneh Torah (Hilchot Melachim 11–12), the Rambam describes the Messiah as a human king from the line of David: restoring sovereignty, gathering exiles, rebuilding the Temple.

No suspension of nature. No instant cosmic reset.

The sages did not long for messianic days to dominate others, but to serve G-d freely, without oppression.

Redemption unfolds within history.

Shared Responsibility

If redemption requires justice, protection of life, moral integrity, and honest courts, then those are universal obligations.

Israel has its role.
The nations have theirs.
Both matter.

The real question is not:
“Why aren’t the Jews bringing the Messiah?”

La vera domanda è:
Are we aligning ourselves with the moral structure the Messiah represents?

The timing belongs to G-d.
The direction, and the work, belong to all of us.

Di Rabbi Tani Burton

Altri shiurim di Rabbi Tani Burton

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