Turkey Neutered - 5776

Adjust your lens and see in sharper focus the impending Geulah. Whereas Turkey once boldly could bully Israel, today things have shifted in favor of little Israel.

See what transpires now in Turkey after the so-called “coup attempt” (on י׳ תמוז). The killings and brutality among the populace has begun. Because a huge swath of humanity has suddenly become terrorized by a radical, oppressive Muslim element from within, grievances will abound. For the long term, children will learn to hate, fear and be vengeful of neighbors as they grow up, while adults will seethe against many injustices that abound from of a forced, undesirable cultural upheaval.

The perspective from Israel, however, is now pleasing. As a member of NATO, and having the second largest army therein, Turkey long held a prominent position of might. Turkey at one point was strongly opposed to Israel’s existence.

Here’s how one foreign policy newspaper described the situation following the Marmara flotilla’s attempt to break Israel’s Gaza siege:

“One of the most striking political consequences of Israel’s raid on the Gaza flotilla at the end of May has been the emergence of a seeming new strategic triangle in the region: an Iran-Turkey-Syria axis. While Iran and Syria are touted as implacable ‘enemies’ of Israel, it is precisely moderate Turkey’s tentative alignment with the two revisionist powers that has caused much anxiety in Western corridors of power.”

Turkey, with virulent Erdogan at the helm, could well have become a powerful enemy of Israel. But suddenly, this aggressive giant has been emasculated. Just as in Ancient Egypt the ruling class had been decimated by a strong element from within, represented by their “firstborns” (“למכה מצרים בבכוריהם”) [Psalms 136:10], just prior to the Jewish emancipation, so too today, Turkey, a "firstborn” among Muslim nations, is being punished by internecine, savage warfare - from within - just prior to the Geulah.

Just as God recently debilitated other Israel-haters, as when He instigated “Egyptians against Egyptians” to stultify Egypt’s threat against Israel, as when Syrians clash with Syrians, so too now God is eliminating Turkey’s threat - by imploding the country from internal strife.

As was prophesied:

 וסכסכתי מצרים במצרים, ונלחמו איש באחיו ואיש ברעהו, עיר בעיר, ממלכה בממלכה

“And I’ll incite Egyptians against Egyptians, and brother against brother will fight, man against friend, city against city, nation against nation.” (Isaiah 19:2)

Erdogan may now feel safer than before, but to be sure, the country - its citizenry - is destined for years of oppression. After all, so many people have been “purged” indiscriminately and unfairly. The bitterness will simmer for years because suddenly tens of thousands of jobs, careers and educational goals became impacted. Many more years of internal dissension seems evident. As a result, Turkey’s aggressive “foreign policy” against Israel will have to be shelved for now; For now, “Israel’s existence as a threat” has become less than compelling.

(A previous post, invoking the Ba'al Shem Tov as the source, spoke of the significance of Istanbul's fall: here.)

The Dash to Redemption in 5776

The Lubavitcher Rebbe inaugurated 1990 as the “year of miracles”. Since then we saw the dissolution of the Soviet Union, bringing Communism to a halt without one shot fired; The takedown of the Berlin Wall; The miraculous Persian Gulf War where 39 Scud missiles fired into Israel from Iraq killed nobody, this when just one Scud missile killed scores of American soldiers stationed in Saudi Arabia; As well as a significant reduction of nuclear proliferation by the superpowers - ;“and they will turn their swords into plowshares”. (Isaiah 2:4).

Another not small miracle becoming apparent is the coming demise of the Islamic world. The whole world now has an open window to the cruelty and depravity of Islamic culture, where over 50 Muslim countries have zero to show in terms of success or advancement since the Middle Ages. Islam is still eating dust. It looks like Arab borders will soon disintegrate entirely; Whereas once you had Iraq, Yemen, Saudi Arabia, Libya, Egypt, Lebanon, etc., ever since the “Arab Spring” it seems these borders will soon disappear, leaving behind havoc and anarchy. So the world will see, if not acknowledge, that this Jew-hating culture is and always was morally destitute.

We are watching the unfolding of Isaiah’s prophecy “I will instigate Egyptian against Egyptian, brethren against brethren and peer, city against city, kingdom against kingdom” (19:2), where Muslim enemies of the Jews swallow each other up, as Israel sits with arms crossed watching the show (thank God!).

The World War of Gog & Magog is pressing full-steam ahead while generally Jews remain and will remain untouched, as the Rebbe prophesied in 1980! (link)

The Arab chaos recently shifted into higher gear with the sudden onset of “Isis”, to accelerate the process.

Recall what Torah says of the Muslim (Yishmael): “He will be a human maniac; He will impose on every nation, and then every nation will be against him.” (Gen. 16:12) Torah tells us about this - that when Yishmael ultimately falls, Israel will finally rise. (eg, Baal HaTurim; Gen.25:18)

That is, before their fall, Muslims will become a gigantic threat across civilization. The tsunami of Muslims invading Europe may just be God’s payback to that continent where Jewish blood spilled like water. In an ironic twist, we see how today’s virulent anti-Semites now have Germans and other past supporters of Hitler as bedfellows.

This while waves of Jewish immigrants, mostly from invaded Europe, are flying to Israel.

And, while most Western countries have been thrown into economic distress, little Israel is finding gas and diamonds, building military prowess (eg. “Iron-Dome” technology, drones), and pushing forward full of vigor. (Even as domestic Muslims and queer sympathizers do their utmost to destroy the country from within.)

In summary, we are witnessing God promise in Torah coming true: As per the words of Bilam, “The Jewish nation will by itself prevail, without kowtowing to other nations”. (Numbers 23:9)  Despite prevalent and rising anti-Semitism in the West, in the U.N. and elsewhere, the Jewish people have a loyal shepherd in Hashem protecting them, taking His People to redemption.

We’ve turned the corner of exile, now dashing headlong to the Era of Ultimate Redemption. Soon we’ll dance with Moshiach in the streets of Yerushalyim, may it happen NOW, amen!

(Of course, if your perspective derives through the prism of “Nature”, then of course you will remain distraught about the “natural” threats of missiles, ISIS, tunnels, cyber attacks, etc. However, in contradistinction, trust in the Rebbe’s words and in Hashem’s Torah renders an alternate, very bright perspective.)

“The Great Shabbat” before Pesach - as of 5776

We call the Shabbat before Pesach “The Great Shabbat” because of a great miracle that transpired on the Shabbat before the Jewish Exodus from ancient Egypt.

What miracle was that? It turns out many answers exist to this question, but here we’ll only consider the unique view of Chabad’s Alter Rebbe, from his “Shulchan Aruch”.

“When the Jews ushered in their Pesach lambs on that Shabbat, Egyptian firstborns clustered around them and asked the Jews what they were doing ... They were told, ‘It’s for a sacrifice to God Who will kill the Egyptian firstborns.’”

“The firstborns then went to their fathers and to Pharaoh requesting they expel the Jews. When rejected, the firstborns went to war against their fathers and Pharaoh, killing many of them. This is what is meant by ‘the Egyptians were struck down by their firstborn’.” [Psalms 136:10]

Note the Alter Rebbe makes no mention of the Jews’ success but rather highlights the internal war that arose between the firstborns and their fathers. So what greatness is there in this miracle?

The answer lies in what the Rebbe continues to say, that this miracle served as “the start of the redemption and the miracles.” That is, the greatness of this miracle is not just because many Egyptians were killed (“the Egyptians were struck down by their firstborn”), but rather the order and demand by the Egyptian firstborns to free the Jewish People was the turning-point that embodied the beginning of the Exodus!

This miracle had even higher value than the miracles of their exit from Egypt. The exodus from Egypt occurred once the power and force of Egypt was broken or annulled, during the Plague of Firstborns, when God took out the Jews. In contrast, the miracle of The Great Shabbat occurred while Jews were still within the Egyptian exile, when, nevertheless, the dominant representatives of Egypt (their firstborns) demanded the freedom of the Jews.

This is why on The Great Shabbat we read part of The Hagaddah, for, just as on the night of Pesach, when the Jews left Egypt, we read The Hagaddah, so too we read part of it on this Shabbat, because that’s when actually began “the start of the redemption and the miracles”!

So what has this to teach us now? In my humble opinion, we are seeing the start of The Ultimate Era of Redemption as today we watch all enemies of Israel striking down and destroying each other (in accord with Isaiah 19:2).

(On the other hand, why we continue to suffer horribly from individual sacrifices by Muslim vermin - eludes me! It is simply unintelligible and horrifying.)

Isaiah 19's Prophecy

Prophecies in the 24 holy books were not transcribed unless they also pertained to the future. Thus, although a prophecy came to pass on Egypt, for example, had it also not held its content to be applied for a future date, that prophecy would not have been inscribed.

Isaiah 19 begins by prophesying on Egypt's "Burden", one that, when it comes, will swiftly makes its way. A three-pronged onslaught is depicted. The first attack will come from infiltrators from foreign soil (Rashi 19:1). The second will result when, as God says, "I will provoke Egyptians against Egyptians" (19:2). In other words, the infiltration of foreigners will bring about the second phase of God's offensive, by causing an Egyptian civil war. The third phase will come when the Nile River shall no longer serve as the vital resource it always was.

This last attack would be especially disastrous because Egypt always depended on this river for its sustenance. Perhaps because of some association with the relatively newly-built Aswan Dam, or because of a natural disaster that will lower river's level, the river's ability to vitalize the economy will sharply decline. This last attack becomes all the more significant because 98% of the population lives on 3% of Egyptian territory - along the Nile River.

When the Jews first made their original exodus from Egypt, it happened on the 7th day that the Jews found themselves stuck between an Egyptian military onrush on one side and the sea on the other. The Jews split along 4 factions of thought as to what to do and how to react. That's when God had His plans to execute; He told Moses to tell the Jewish people that none of their opinions count. God told him to tell the Jews, "God will fight for you - and you - just stay still" (Ex.14:14).

So far, we see the same events unfolding in Egypt today. Just as back then, prior to the Jewish deliverance, Egyptians attacked their brethren (Psalms 136:10), we see the same phenomenon playing itself out in Egypt (and in Syria, in Tunisia and elsewhere in Arab sectors).

The fighting may well have started because infiltrators from foreign territory, such as Al-Queida from Afghanistan or Moslem Brotherhood terrorists from wherever, began to impose upon local policy.

The 3rd phase I suppose has yet to happen for us to recognize it.

The chapter ends with solace for the Egyptian people. It will be a time when they will finally realize the Redemption of the Jewish people is in full swing and they will then acknowledge God and acquiesce, by accepting the yoke of the 7 Noahide Laws, and peace will make its triumphant finale as the Era of Ultimate Redemption materializes in full bloom.