The Rebbe's Rambam | Marking the completion of the entire set

Hilchos Melachim | Ch 11

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438

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of David will arise [135] [136] who is immersed in Torah and occupied in mitzvos like his ancestor

 Tosfos explains that the Roman emperors were called Caesar because one emperor was delivered surgically due to the death of his mother in childbirth. The word keisar, Tosfos explains, stems from the Hebrew wold karus, meaning “cut.” He was dubbed “Caeser,” and the name carried on from there. 431 This demonstrates that the term ‘caesar’ connotes something exceptional and out of the ordinary. [In Hebrew, a child born through cesarean section is called “ yotzeh dofen,” a word commonly used in Torah litera ture to mean “out of the ordinary.”] Likewise with Moshiach: his function as a king will be extraordinary; the entire world will be perfected under his rule, and this function is therefore referred to as “caesar.” His function as a teacher, however, will be less extraordi nary, and is therefore referred to only as a “half caesar.” Likkutei Sichos vol. 35 pg. 208 132. “If a king from the house of David will arise” There is a required order for fulfilling the three mitzvos that are obligatory upon entering Eretz Yisroel, discussed in Chapter 1; first appointing a king, then wiping out Amalek and lastly building the Beis Hamikdash. Here too, the Rambam writes that the sequence of events is first the rising of a king, who will then fight Hashem’s wars, and finally, builds the Beis Hamikdash. Likkutei Sichos vol. 16 pg. 304 fn. 49 133. “If a king from the house of David will arise” The Zohar says that had Noach existed in a different generation, such as the generation of Avraham, Moshe, or David, he would have been considered “nothing.” 432 The Zohar specifically chose those three examples, because those three played an integral role in further ing the world towards the goal of the Messianic age: Avraham was the first Jew. As the Midrash says, he was positioned against the entire world. 433 The entire world worshipped idols, yet he stood steadfast in his belief in one G-d. (This is also the foundation of our Divine worship — that we remain steadfast in our beliefs without regard for the opposition of the rest of the world).

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Pardes Hamelech

Moshe Rabbeinu represents the entrance of the Torah into the world. From that point onward, the world was not a contradiction to worshiping G-d, but rather an asset. When Jewish people study Torah and observe mitzvos, they bring purpose and meaning into the existence of the world as well. David Hamelech represented the goal of bringing Hashem’s dominion over the entire world. He con quered the entire Land of Israel, and upon his death, with the ascension of his son Shlomo, kings from all over brought gifts and paid tribute. This represented the dissemination of G-dliness among the non-Jews as well. This leads us to the completion that will be achieved by Moshiach himself: Moshiach will bring the world to a state in which all people of the world worship Hashem in unison, and where even all creatures of the world will live in peace with each other; G-dliness will be pervasive throughout the universe. Likkutei Sichos vol. 35 pg. 17 134. “If a king from the house of David will arise who is immersed in Torah” In Kabbalistic terms, the specific wording employed by the Rambam references different Sefiros. The entire section refers to the sefirah of Malchus, reflecting Moshiach’s status as king, and each section of this halachah reflects another sefirah: “if a king from the house of David will arise who is immersed in Torah” refers to Tiferes of Malchus, as Torah is Tiferes . 434 “ fights t he battles of G-d” is Malchus of Netzach . “Builds the Holy Temple in its place” refers to Malchus of Hod (a sefirah which is associated with the Beis Hamikdash), and “gathers the dispersed of the Jewish people” is Malchus of Yesod, which is a sefirah associated with the concept of unity . Finally, “I will convert the nations to a pure language that all may call upon the name of G-d and serve Him with one accord” is the ultimate of Malchus of Malchus . Tazria-Metzorah 5751. Sefer Hasichos vol. 2 pg. 500 fn. 105 135. “Who is immersed in Torah” It seems puzzling that one of the qualifying factors of Moshiach is that he “is immersed in Torah.” After

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