Gog-Magog, Iran & Sukkot | Rabbi Tovia Singer - Living Inspired

3 years ago exactly, we were facing a threat that was existential. Iran was on the precipice of acquiring nuclear weapons. There would have been thousands of missiles launched us a day. Right now, we're in a war that is identified in Ezekiel 38 and 39 as a war between Persia and Israel. That's transparent, means everything he's saying is happening with such precision. Welcome back to the podcast. My name is Aaron Sokl and you're watching Parsha Inspired. Our guest tonight is Rabbi Tubia Singer. Rabbi Singer, welcome to the podcast. >> Wonderful to be with you. Thank you. >> Rabbi Singer Sukus is coming and look at the world right now. The war with Iran is unresolved. Hormos is virtually shut down and Israel is dealing with wars on multiple fronts. So, are these separate crisises or are we actually watching one much larger biblical process unfold? And how does this relate to the end times of go? >> Right? So, um this is easy to solve because we're told this in unambiguous language in Ezekiel 38:5. Persians the lead, but we're given around it a many other peoples that are attacking Israel. And it it continues to go on that there's a major attack in the north. And as it turns out, right now, Israel is dealing with our enemies in the north who are uh directly connected to Iran. These are the Hezbollah, which is a terror organization. That's a Shia Muslim group that's funded. They're are proxies of Iran. So Tanakh addresses that very directly and people will say what's about the north and that's what's going literally it's going on now in real time. We have frequently used the Passover meal on the night of the 15th of the first month which is called strangely a seder. You know, the reason when I say that that people are surprised because we're so acclimated to that name since we're children. I'm just going to guess that that's your among your most fond memories as a child being at your Passover s your family that we just don't stop to think about what does that mean. So the seder is the means literally an order and that's an odd name for a meal that designates the redemption from Egypt. In that case, 15 discrete separations. Each piece takes us to the next level. Now, I I'm only asking this question rhetorically because I know the answer and many of our viewers do too. If I were to ask you, well, how long is Kadesh the first when we make Kdesh, how long should that take take to complete? you no question anyone would say I don't know this time is not dependent it's just very critical to sanctify the festival if I ask you how long is m when we're re filling a mitzah from the Torah to return the going out of Egypt the gods how long does that take you would very confidently say oh there's no time litter on that And you would also point out that in the Hagada recitation, we are told about Tanoyam that were in Benak. That's not really very far away, is it? And they were these were the greatest giants of the generation. They were the Baliha Mishna. So they're giants. And they were discussing the going out of Egypt all night until the Hagada says that their disciples, their students came to them and said, "Our teacher um it is the time to recite the crema, the morning shama filling that mess up." It's very striking. They didn't say it's enough. They simply said there was another overriding issue that had emerged that inserted itself as it was time to recite the Schma. which meant that they could have kept on going and which everyone knows conveys to us that if these great men among the greatest people that ever lived could talk about the going out of Egypt all night then us we certainly could engage in speaking about the redemption for an an unlimited amount of time. What are we conveying in all of this? That means each stage is not timebound. Each stage rather is bringing us to the next level. It's very important. Now it all becomes easy for our viewers to get this part. That means each stage of the redemption whether we go back to the very long exile. Wow, what a long exile this has been. It is now the night is coming to a close and the morning is now coming. um the Jacob's trouble, how how long was that? The return of the children of Israel to the land of Israel, Jerusalem, uh 19 years after the state of Israel. So each stage is not in any way designed with a time limit. Quite the contrary, there is something else that's very striking that's guiding each of these lens. So right now we're in a war that is identified in Ezekiel 38 and 39 as a war between Persia and Israel. That's transparent and that's the that's the headlines around the world and there could be a war going on in in Africa and Nigeria. No one pays attention to that. This is the big one. And what's striking is here is that people are consumed with this. And moreover, how many people do you think in the last three years since October 7th have repented? We don't know the number, but it's enormous. They they can't even make such quickly enough to keep up with the demand. So imagine for a moment now everyone will get it. Imagine if instead of the stages just suddenly uh you I was in Hungary where my family was from and you were somewhere in Europe or Russia wherever and suddenly there were trumpets blown in Zion because that's the model people in America please don't be angry at me if you live in Lakewood but I think people there think that there's going to be trumpets blowing and then they're going to get themselves to Newark airport. See, that would be a nightmare if if this would simply be that we're all over the place and then Msiah comes, which is kind of the kind of the juvenile way that I thought about this. That would be a nightmare. No one would have time to repent. Moreover, no one would notice it. That means it suddenly just happened. If it suddenly just happens, no one has a chance to rectify their ways to come to the God of Israel. So these stages are intrinsically beneficial in that they are turning the eyes of of the Jewish people and the world to Hashem. Now how do I know this? Because it says it explicitly. I want to say you the viewers that the end of Ezekiel is all messianic from 34- 48. Moreover, unlike other prophets, Ezekiel uh provides his own commentary in that he's very generous and explain every step of the way why it's happening. Why is there a valley of dry bones? Why the vision? He tells you he's like his own rashi, but he's him. Other prophets are not as generous with information. He gives it all cuz he had to. He was basically the end of that period. And he explains very simply why this has to happen. So that my glory will be spread around the world and the nations will see the glory of Hashem and they should repent and recognize the God of Israel explicitly. I plead with you the viewer to read Ezekiel 39:21. That's where it says that. Read the last verse of 38. It says exactly that. Look at verse 22. So in case any of the Jews are think well we know what's going on in 39:22 explicitly addresses the Jewish people the ben Israel in 3922 it says that this end time war is to wake up the ben Israel the children of Israel that they will know how this redemption is going down that I am Lord literally and that's why there's been a shift a marvelous shift among the children of Isra Israel as we watch you very often these painful events and it is Ezekiel incidentally early on that says you live by your blood. So everything that is emerging here is explicitly in again Ezekiel 39:22 so that the children of Israel will know 39:21 so the go will know that's the purpose of this. How could there possibly be a time? It can't be. It has to rather we have to get to the next point. The next point, by the way, 23:24, it addresses Israel sins. What about all those sins? They'll be forgotten. They'll be wiped away. We can see in Isaiah why they'll be wiped away. Isaiah 1:27. We're not going to go there now. But the key point is that the complete restoration of the Jews to the land signals to everyone, Jews included, that Hashem is Lord. And this is how his prophecies unfolding and therefore to bring us to the point of Isaiah 59:20 and a redeemer come to Zion to those who repent in Jacob. So, and the reason this question is so valuable and I and I I I know why you're asking it is because we're wondering aloud like why is it taking so long? It's simply because um the God of Israel is dragging Iran into this Ezekiel 38:4 with um hooks in a mouth of like a beast. And what's very striking about it is Iran has no good reason to be in this war. Meaning it could keep its wealth. It sits on one of the largest oil reserves in the world. Uh or I should say oil wells in the world and natural gas in the world. Just let the straits of oil moves open up. like let it just be open to free traffic and abandon any ambition for a nuclear program. That's all Iran would have to do and it could it has a population of nearly 100 million people that are at the edge of d economic destruction. Just let it go. Just drop it and go on with your life. But no, they'd rather be attacking fellow Muslims. Granted, they're Sunni in almost all cases. They're attacking not Israel so much right now, but attacking Arab countries right now. And they don't need this. But it's clearly God is doing to Iran what God did to Pharaoh. He's not letting them act like a a a rational interlocator and therefore they are forcing the envelope. Trump doesn't want this. Trump wants to get to the midterm elections and win in the legislative branch. He wants this to go away. And I'm sure he's scratching his head. What will it take for Iran to go away without him attacking? It won't go away. And Iran will force it by moving pushing the envelope. So that's why it's taking this amount of time so that repentance will take place among the nations of the world. That's what the Messiah redemption is. and among the children of Israel they'll understand their proper role. >> So how does this connect to Sukkot? >> Yeah. So this is very striking in that Ezekiel tells us in that very same chapter that this is this nation or this con this uh conglomerate or co of nations this gathering of nations they're called goug in the land of go essentially what does that mean like if we went to an atlas I don't think go would come up. There's no such country in the nearly 200 countries in the UN. What kind of what's happening here? There is no country called Gi. Everything in Ezekiel is written as though Ezekiel were somehow alive now. Watching everything that's happening and somehow going back in time and putting it in his in his book 2 and a half thousand years ago means everything he's saying is happening with such precision. He seems to have complete access to the future. Well, as it turns out, he did. But not by coming here now because the God of Israel is eternal. He's shad in Hebrew means a roof. The reinforced um steel concrete roof that is protecting me right now from whatever is outside. It protects us all. That's what the Gagas, the people who trust in the material roof, go to war. They go to war against the children of Israel here in the Holy Land, a very tiny place, smaller than the state of New Jersey. And it's to the people that don't trust in the roof, but rather trust in the God of Israel. And in this case, trust in the clouds of heaven. If we look at the suka, the the most important feature of this tabernacle, which we'll all go into very shortly and eat in for seven or eight day to seven days or whatever you're not in Israel, um the most important part is the the covering. The has to be made out of things that are not connected to the ground which cannot be tum cannot become impure because they're not kalin they're not vessels of any kind um they're just branches or bamboo just thrown up there the point is the of any suka is so vulnerable that a great wind can come and blow it away there in fact if it rains it's going right True. And if your suka has a tree over it that's actually connected to the ground, it's invalid. So therefore, the people who trust in that roof, what does the roof represent? It represents the ananha co the claws of guri which protect miraculously protected the children of Israel on their journey through wilderness for 40 years before they came to the promised land um across the Jordan opposite Jericho led by Joshua of blessed memory. So therefore what Sukkot is about is we are saying that we're leaving our Das Keva our permanent home which is does have a concrete roof on it and we're going into dear a temporary dwelling something that really can't protect us from very much at all. What are we saying? So we're saying the following. We trust you. We trust in the clouds of glory. And this works out very delightful. This is a very delightful point because we just completed Aryam Kipur um festival in which we told God that we're really sorry and we regret the past and we're looking to a new future and we regret our sins. We spent an entire day fasting and praying 25 hours. But after all, it was basically a lot of talking and chest pounding and fasting, but that was it. So what we're doing on Sukkot really is we're saying to God, do you remember what we did like for those from Rashant Kipur, those 10 days of repentance? Again a lot of praying and confessing and hope and asking God for forgiveness but it was after all a lot of talk yam kipur again repentance prayer but it was after all talk. Okay now now we want to physically demonstraably make it clear that we everything we said we really meant Lord we love you very very much. We meant it. So we're leaving the the roof and we're going into the suka with it means we're here and we're going to be here for these seven days demonstrate that we meant all of it. And therefore those who trust in the clouds of heaven, they are the ones as pictured in Zechariah as an example who will be saved. And even the non-Jews were told in Zechariah 14 will therefore celebrate the festival of Sukkot which is odd because the Jewish holidays are between God and Israel. Leviticus 23. In what universe do non-Jews celebrate Sukkot? in this universe, the messianic universe. Meaning those who somehow resisted the temptation of trusting in the roof in that reinforced concrete roof, but instead chose the God of Israel, Jew and Gentile. They will stand side by side and will be beneath the clouds of glory in the suka. See Zechariah 14:1 16. And that's where it plays in one against the other. And this all explodes in a powerful chapter of Daniel chapter 7. So Daniel 7 is very intriguing where all of Jewish history comes into view. One of the greatest men who ever lived. And what's striking is Messiah is spoken about explicitly. One like a son of man. He's called the son of man because he's immortal. So in the ancient world, the gods were born to women who were virgins, not this spell. This person is born to a father. So he's he's called like a son of man because we just had four other creatures that were like something. So it's like a like the lion in the night vision Babylon, like the bear, Persia. There was no real bear. These are all a a vision night vision of Daniel. So it's like a son of man coming with clouds of heaven. Why does he need clouds of heaven? He's coming with the clouds of heaven. Why? Oh, I see why. Because it is the clouds of glory. That makes sense. And who is he coming to? Look how God is called here. He's called the ancient of days. What does that mean? That means God. What do you mean ancient of days Lord? Ancient of days mean that the Lord who told us had made a promise made a promise to Abraham Genesis 15 where God begins to reveal to him uh the history that would be full of his descendants that that the Lord who is eternal uh that Lord who told us from the ancient of days was able to tell what would happen Messiah would come to him and this is really delightful. You remember what I shared with you a moment ago? Ezekiel is writing as though he somehow crept into the modern age, witness what was happening and went back into the ancient world. Well, we know what happened. He really had access in the ancient of days to what would happen now. And therefore we are told he's come with the clouds of heaven and all the people who follow him will be blessed and all nations verse 14 will serve him. Sheh will be after all the Davidic king everyone will acknowledge it means now no one's acknowledging anything then every and his um Hashem will bestow upon him the glory and so on and people will recognize that Mashiach is the true leader of the world after all his mandate is to give to the world God is going to put his spirit upon him Isaiah 11:2 and three and he will rebuke the world also. Isaiah verse 2 3 and 4. So when the Jews left Egypt there was a cloud by when the Egyptians were shooting their arrows and the cloud caught the arrows and shot them back. Um this war started uh October 7th was the the final day or the day after Sukkot. Um, and we've just been getting these missiles shot at us in the sky. And this whole war really took place in the clouds. This whole uh recent technology of being able to fight wars above in the clouds. So, I wanted to just see if maybe the RV could expand on the concept of the connection between go sukkot in the way it's being played out right now. You see, two years ago, I'm sorry, 3 years ago, we had October 7th. Exactly one year ago on Sukkot, there were still 20 live hostages who were returned like literally the last moments of Sukkot. So, like if God or maybe perhaps Hamas, maybe they know the significance of this day, but there it's just too much to ignore that Sukkot and these clouds have been playing such a large part in what's going on right now. Isaiah um contains this very powerful passage. Isaiah chapter 8 which means let them in this case it's the enemies of Israel come up with a plan let them speak and come up with some sort of attack, it will it will not be established. It will not come to pass. That why not? Why why is there this case where the cloud turns it back? Because of one reason, and it's not because we're smarter than our opponents, our plaquable foes. Not because Jews are clever. It's not because the Israeli Defense Force is better uh better trained, but there's one reason because the God of Israel is with you. When God is with you, nothing is impossible. There is this theme throughout Jewish history that when the nations come against us, it saves us. I quoted the passage earlier, Ezekiel chapter 16 verse 6, that you survive by your blood. That's how it was 3,300 years ago for our ancestors. The Egyptians threw spears against us, but that cloud in the heaven turned it all around. is a little painful. But as it turns out, be four three years ago exactly. We were facing a threat that was existential. Iran was on the precipice of acquiring nuclear weapons that they couldn't weaponize. Imagine those ballistic missiles that you and I saw and heard and felt. Imagine if they were armed with a a nuclear weapon. We don't want to think about that. So, we were at the precipice of destruction three years ago. Iran had us surrounded. Hamas was in Gaza set to destroy us. The Houthis were in the way in the south in the Arabian Peninsula. They were set to destroyers. Asbellah, well, we know exactly what Azbella had and what would they were prepared to do. Nasella was there. Everyone was ready. And I was there. What happened? We knew what happened at the very end of the Sukat Sukkot festival. It turned into a very dark moment at that time on that horrible Shabbat. It usually does happen on Shabbat. You know, the massacre was in Shabbat. The destruction of Rome's Jews was Shabbat. What a shabas that was, but we didn't know at the time how bad it was. We do now. 1,189 people murdered in the most horrific way. I was going to say imaginable, but I can't say that word. It wasn't a barbarity that even the Nazis didn't know of. 251 taken hostage. I don't need to say more. Think about this. Contemplate this for a moment. We of course wish that we had known and we don't know yet what happened and I guess it will come out. That's not Germaine. What is remain that if there was no if October 7 did not occur, we don't want to talk about this, but I might as well. Iran would have acquired the nuclear weapon and had the delivery system. Israel is a tiny place, really small, because there only four states in the United States that are smaller than the state of Israel, just 26,000 square kilometers. It would have been this tiny place would have been destroyed and if Israel would try to somehow knock those or attack Iran's nuclear weapons on own what would have happened then is between Hezbollah Hamas the Houthis Iran there would have been thousands of missiles launched us a day I mean this is just simple stuff if Israel could take out 95% of That means 5% gets through gets through. I I don't want to go further. There's no need to the heartbreak is there. So, as it turns out, this almost coming to destruction. We from Iran's we somehow saved by the worst attack against our people since the Holocaust. something that our minds I mean even the Nazis you know executed Jews before they they burnt their bodies these people didn't think that part was necessary these are barbarians but in this in we all know that and somehow we God saved us so yeah they were shooting at us in history this is the way it happened I mean why do Jews run from Europe come to the land of Israel because they saw anti-semitism and the pale of the settlement in the Russian Empire because of the Drifus triggered Hersaw because the Kishna programs triggered Jabotinsky and everybody else. We were respon the there many people who were totally dialed in understand this is a messianic time. There were the in the 19th century. These are all religious Zionists. they in the part before the state who just got it all were able to just put it all together. But it's very transparent that we are reacting to the arrows that come towards us and Hashem then protects us and those arrows turn back and take out the enemy and ultimately it's Egypt that pursued us into the sea. And if they had just stayed behind and not gone into the sea in hot pursuit. After all, they just seen it 10 major plagues. They should have would have put anybody on tilt, right? You know, maybe this is not a good idea. Just go back. Oh no, they keep going. Very much like present day Iran. They just won't give up. Well, here we are and the God of Israel has delivered us. and the words of Isaiah chapter 54. This is at the as the waters of Noah that no weapon formed against you will succeed. Hashem is uh we're living in a remarkable time when we see the hand of God. The hand of God in Tanakh always means the salvation of Israel for the eyes of the nations of the world. May you merit to see the coming of the true Messiah. Amen.