My friends, did you ever wonder what Ancient Egypt was like during the Ten Plagues?
The sense of danger surrounded you. You felt as if you were in the grip of something totally beyond your control. You were completely powerless, unless you had access to the Power Who controls all. Closeness to Hashem is the only lifeline!
Ancient Egypt was the center of the world. The plagues destroyed it and the Children of Israel were freed.
Today, world systems are near collapse because of a microscopic organism which entered the world from a seafood market in China.
I have often quoted the Malbim on Ezekiel 32:17. He foretells events preceding the advent of Moshiach ben Dovid and predicts a war between Yishmoel and Edom (the Moslem and Western Civilizations), followed by the collapse of their cultures.
The culture of Yishmoel-Edom dominates the world. It is axiomatic that, when Moshiach appears and the Holy Temple is rebuilt, Yishmoel-Edomwill no longer be dominant. One need not imagine every step, but somehow, the world domination of Yishmoel-Edom will end and the worldwide preeminence of Torah will begin. How will it happen?
I would like to point out that all problems in the world began with unrestrained eating. In the Garden of Eden, Chava (Eve) and Adam ate a fruit which was forbidden to them and brought sickness, pain and death into the world. The Torah instructs us, “Lo sasuro acharei levav-chem …. Do not explore after your heart and after your eyes….” (Numbers 15:39) The Al-Mighty has commanded all nations concerning permitted and forbidden foods. The Children of Noah – all human beings – are prohibited from eating the limbs of a living animal. (Genesis 9:4) This is relevant to the current world situation.
Eating restrictions for the Children of Israel reach their highest point during Passover. Apparently, we need to increase sanctity in order to free ourselves from subjugation to foreign cultures and prepare for the Redemption. The eating habits of the nations of the world are at the opposite end of the scale from what is permitted for us. We need to understand this.
At this moment in history, the nations of the world are in a state of deep rebellion against Hashem. It seems that the Ruler of the Universe wants to free His Children very soon from subjugation to these nations. Hashem told Avraham Avinu that the “fourth generation” of his children would enter Eretz Yisroel “for the iniquity of the Emorite shall not yet be full until then.” (Genesis 15:16; see also Sotah 9a. Thanks to Rabbi Shaul Geller Shlita”h)
My friends, it may well be that the iniquity of the nations is nearing the level termed “fullness.” It may be that the world moral decline has reached levels which the Ruler of the Universe will not tolerate. When this level is reached, we can expect world-shaking events.
At Mount Sinai, “The sound of the Shofar was very powerful and the entirepeople shuddered.” (Exodus 19:16) At this very moment in history, we are preparing to hear the sound of the Great Shofar and witness events which will change the world forever. May this happen soon in our days and may the world be transformed from darkness to light!
