Iyar 4, 5772 · April 26, 2012
Mashiach’s Name
Metzora; Leviticus 14:1-15:33
Adapted from
Likkutei Sichos, Vol. VII, p. 100ff;
Vol. XXII, p. 77ff; Parshas Tazria, 5751;
Sefer HaSichos 5751, p. 491ff
Consummate Perfection and Superficial Flaws
Our Sages ask:1 “What is Mashiach’s name?” and reply “The leper of the House of Rebbi.”2 This is very difficult to understand. Mashiach will initiate the Redemption, and is associated with the pinnacle of life and vitality. How can his name be linked with leprosy (tzaraas), which is identified with death3 and exile?4
This difficulty can be resolved based on the statements of Likkutei Torah, which explain that a person affected by tzaraas will be:
A man of great stature, of consummate perfection….5 Although such a person’s conduct is desirable, and he has corrected everything,… it is still possible that on the flesh of his skin there will be lower levels on which evil has not been refined. This will result in physical signs on his flesh, in a way which transcends the natural order….6
Since the filth on the periphery of his garments has not been refined, therefore [blemishes] appear on his skin…. Moreover, these blemishes reflect very high levels, as indicated by the fact that they are not considered impure until they have been designated as such by a priest.
The passage implies that there are sublime spiritual influences which, because of the lack of appropriate vessels (as evidenced by the “filth on the periphery”), can produce negative effects. For when powerful energy is released without being harnessed, it can cause injury. This is the reason for the tzaraas with which Mashiach is afflicted.
Mashiach’s Burden
The Jewish people as a whole are compared to a human body. This applies within every generation, and also to the entire nation throughout history.7 All Jews those of the past, present, and future are part of a single organic whole.
Since good is eternal, while evil is only temporary,8 our people’s spiritual level has been constantly advancing. A vast reservoir of good has been filling up over the centuries. The Jewish people as they exist in ikvesa diMeshicha, the age whenMashiach’s approaching footsteps can be heard, have attained the level of perfection mentioned in Likkutei Torah.
Nevertheless, there are still blotches of evil “on the periphery,” for the world is still scarred by injustice and strife. And thus the light of redemption cannot yet become manifest; this is reflected in the leprous blemishes which are visited on Mashiachhimself. For as the prophet states:9 “He has borne our sicknesses and endured our pain… with blemishes, smitten of G-d, and afflicted.” Mashiach endures suffering, not for his own sake, but for the Jewish people as a whole.
Positive Import
There is still a difficulty. Although the above passage explains why Mashiach must endure suffering, it does not show why that suffering is identified with Mashiach. Mashiach’s name who he is should be positive.
This difficulty can also be resolved on the basis of the passage from Likkutei Torahcited previously. For that passage explains that leprous blemishes reflect “very high levels,” their source being transcendent spiritual light10 that are associated withMashiach. Nevertheless, for this light to be expressed in a positive manner, suitable vessels are required.
Mashiach’s suffering will bring about a final refinement in the world at large, making it a fit vessel for the revelation of its transcendent potential. Since this revelation lies at the heart of the Era of the Redemption, the catalyst necessary to bring it about is therefore associated with Mashiach’s name.
The Name of the Torah Reading
The above concepts also clarify a difficulty with regard to the name of our Torah reading, Parshas Metzora. Metzora means “leper.” One might think that the name of a reading in the holy Torah would be associated with a word of more positive import. This question is reinforced by the fact that in the works of the early Rabbinic sages, Rav Saadia Gaon,11 Rashi,12 and the Rambam,13 a different name was employed for this reading. All of these authorities refer to the reading by the name Zos Tihiyeh(“This shall be”). It is only in the later generations that the name Metzora became prevalent.
The explanation is that in these later generations, cracks have appeared in the wall of exile, and through them the light of Mashiach shines. In the light of Mashiach, Metzorais not a negative factor but, as explained above, an expression of transcendent G-dliness.
Through the Medium of Study
The Torah reading begins with a description of the purification process to be undergone by a person afflicted with tzaraas, saying “These are the laws of themetzora.” By focusing on Toras hametzora (the laws of the metzora), not taharas hametzora, “the purification of the metzora,” an allusion is made to a fundamental concept.
Torah study develops human vessels that allow light all light, even the most sublime to be accepted by and internalized in our world. Through Torah study, the transcendent influence of tzaraas can be channeled into a positive force.
Similarly, with regard to Mashiach: studying the teachings about Mashiach precipitate his revelation, drawing his influence into our world.
With New Life
Often, Parshas Metzora is read in connection with Parshas Tazria, which is associated with the sowing of seeds and the conception of life.14 This implies that the seeds of our Divine service will not wait endlessly in the dark ground of exile, but that Metzora, the Redemption, will blossom immediately after the last seeds have been sown.
Conversely, the fusion of the two readings implies that Metzora, the Redemption, has already been conceived; we are only waiting for the birth. For the suffering whichMashiach endures is the final step before his revelation. May it take place in the immediate future.
| FOOTNOTES |
| 1. | Sanhedrin 98b. |
| 2. | See also Rashi, Sanhedrin 98a, who states that Mashiach will be afflicted bytzaraas and will sit among others who share this affliction. See the comments of the Maharal in his Chiddushei Aggados (Sanhedrin, loc. cit.:a,b), which state that just as a leper must be separate from all other people, so too, a king and how much more so Mashiach is distinguished from others. |
| 3. | Nedarim 64b. See the commentary of the Maharsha in his Chiddushei Aggados. |
| 4. | Vayikra Rabbah, the conclusion of ch. 15. |
| 5. | See Zohar, Vol. III, p. 48a. |
| 6. | See the Mishneh Torah, conclusion of Hilchos Tzaraas, where the Rambamstates that tzaraas is not a physical disease, but a Divine sign above the natural order. |
| 7. | See Tanya, ch. 2, Iggeres HaKodesh 7, based on Zohar, Vol. II, p. 141b and other sources. |
| 8. | See Tanya, ch. 25. |
| 9. | Isaiah 53:4. |
| 10. | This is reflected in the fact that the Hebrew word for leprous blemish, נגע, has the same letters as the Hebrew word ענג, meaning “pleasure” (Zohar, Vol. I, p. 26b). As explained by the Kabbalah (see Tanya, Shaar HaYichud VehaEmunah, ch. 1), the letters which make up a word reflect its inner life-force. The inner life-force ofנגע is the expression of Divine pleasure. See also Sefer HaYetzirah 2:4. |
| 11. | In his Siddur, with regard to the laws of the reading of the Torah. |
| 12. | In his commentary to Leviticus 13:8. |
| 13. | In his Seder Tefillos at the conclusion of Sefer HaAhavah. |
| 14. | Note the previous essay, entitled “Conceiving New Life.” |
By Eli Touger More articles... |  Please note: Although we bring you a selection from Parshat Metzora, we read two Parshiyot this week, Tazria and Metzora. We hope you enjoyed this lesson. Shabbat Shalom! |
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