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

Hilchos Melachim | Ch 12

mikln zekld

451

nor to love of G-d. And likewise, [153] one should not try to calculate the end-times of Moshiach’s arrival. The Sages said: [154] “The wisdom of those who calculate the end-times of Moshiach’s arrival shall leave them.” Rather, one should await and believe in the general principle of the matter, the coming of Moshiach, as we have explained. In the days of the King Moshiach, when his kingdom will be settled and the entire Jewish nation will gather around him, the decipher ment of proper lineage of them all will be done

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 153. “One should not try to calculate the end-times” The Rambam states that it is forbidden to determine the ketz of Moshiach’s arrival. Nevertheless, we find many kitzin which were indeed offered; in the Talmud, by other great Torah leaders throughout the genera tions, 492 and, in fact, even by the Rambam himself. 493 This continued into later generations as well, including by the Alter Rebbe. 494 How can this be reconciled with the prohibition? On a simple level, as the Rambam points out elsewhere, 495 one should not determine the ketz be cause it may mislead many and cause them to lose their belief in Moshiach if a false ketz passes unevent fully. However, the kitzin determined by these legitimate sources were revealed with the goal of inspiring the Jewish nation at times that they already started losing hope, by showing that redemption is near. In fact, when a tzadik reveals a ketz, it is because he sees the effect which every positive action has towards the great revelations of the redemption. The ketz is his determination of when these actions will accumulate to cause the final redemption. Consequently, when they revealed a ketz , they were not promising redemption at a certain point; rather, they were witnessing our merits accumulate in real time, and urging us to intensify our work so that the revelation would indeed arrive. Therefore, their revelations of kitzin were not only

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Pardes Hamelech

permitted by halachah, they were encouraged , because this revelation inspires our Divine service. Likkutei Sichos vol. 29 pg. 15 & fn. 88 154. “The wisdom of those who calculate the end-times of Moshiach’s arrival shall leave them” Before Yaakov Avinu passed away, “he attempted to reveal the end of times, but the Shechinah withdrew from him. So he began to say other things.” 496 Although there remained 139 years to the Egyptian exile, Yaakov desired to lighten the Jewish people’s burden by revealing the end date of their suffering, despite knowing that part of the process of exile is the despair felt in not knowing the end. However, Hashem wanted the eventual redemption to be a complete one; this would only be possible after fully completing our mission during exile, and He therefore took away Yaakov’s prophetic abilities. However, since a wish of a tzaddik doesn’t go unanswered, Yaakov’s desire to reveal the end date to the Jewish nation gave us the power to transcend the exile and worship G-d in a manner of freedom. It also enabled many future Gedolei Yisrael to have the ability to predict the arrival of Moshiach in the various kitzin that are published in their works. While this is perhaps not a task for ordinary Jews, it teaches us that every Jew should hope and desire for the end of the exile, and this itself will bring about the immediate redemption. Likkutei Sichos vol. 20 pg. 233

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úåôñåäá ø"åîãà ç"åî ÷"ë úçéù) å"ñøú úðù òâåðá ò"ðãà ÷"ë éøáã .(çôøú 'ò ,à"ùðú ,ú"ä÷ ¯ ïôåñá å"ñøú î"äñì .495 .ïîéú úøâà .496 .íù é"ùø à ,èî úéùàøá