The following references are taken from the section of the Zohar called Heikhalot Rabbati. These citations show what some of the mystical rabbinic Jews taught about Messiah, Enoch, and the end times.
In these quotes, Enoch is said to have become the younger YHWH named Metatron, and that the Messiah will be imprisoned for eight years due to Israel’s sinfulness and unworthiness. What makes these rabbinic traditions so remarkable is that they plainly state that Israel will reject the Messiah as a madman, only to then regret their assessment after he appears in glorious splendor riding the chariot of God as he is accompanied by the hosts of heaven!
These rabbinic citations also apply the following OT texts either to the Messiah or to the Messianic Era: Pss. 2:2; 9:4, 17; 20:7; 27:10; 24:23; 50:3; 72;10; 89:24; Isa. 52:14; 53:6; 54:7; 57:18; 63:2-3; Dan. 7:13-14; 12:1-2, 6; Haggai 2:9; Micah 7:16-17; Zech. 3:9; 14:1-5, 11-12; Mal. 3:1.
I now quote the references. All emphasis will be mine.
Chapter 31 → Metatron Enthroned: The Secret of the Seventh Palace and the Voice of Israel
Chapter 31 of Heikhalot Rabbati reveals the mystery hidden since eternity, exalting Hanokh as Metatron, enthroned beside the Kisseh ha-Kavod (Throne of Glory) as the “Lesser Lord.” Rabbi Akiva narrates the celestial liturgy where the Hayyah called “Israel” proclaims the Shema, waving the Ofanim and Cherubim, while the divine decree retains the Shekhinah of the Holy of Holies. This chapter reveals cosmic authority, the mysteries of the Torah, and Metatron’s role in leading the celestial hosts.
1 → El, servants of El, workers of El, do not trouble Me with this matter. A secret (raz) emanates from the house of My treasures, and a mystery (seter) of cunning from My storehouses, I reveal them to a beloved people. Hidden from the days of eternity and from the days of Bereshit (Beginning), they are prepared for them, and it did not occur to My heart to deliver them to all these generations from the days of eternity until now. For this generation, it was reserved to be preserved until the end of all generations, for they turned from evil to evil, and did not know Me (Jeremiah 9:2). The exiles escaped from their hearts, and the words of the Torah were hard to them like copper and iron. It is appropriate to use it to bring the Torah like water (mayim) among you and like oil (shemen) in your bones. This is what happened to Israel: My anger burned against them, and I struck them down; the mountains trembled, and their corpses were like refuse in the streets of the land (Isaiah 5:25).
2 → In what shall we rejoice? In what shall we be comforted? Or what good measure is there in the house of My treasures that we may be comforted? For I looked and saw silver and gold with My people, silver and gold in the world, precious stones and pearls with My people, precious stones and pearls in the world. But what does the world lack? This secret and this mystery that does not exist in the world—a measure of pride for the children to be proud of.
3 → Rabbi Akiva said: I heard a qol (voice) coming from beneath the Kisseh ha-Kavod (Throne of Glory), saying: And what did it say? “I took him, I conquered him, I appointed him—this is Hanokh, son of Yared, whose name is Metatron.” And I took him from among humanity and made for him a kisseh (throne) corresponding to My kisseh (throne). And what is the measure of this kisseh (throne)? Thousands of myriads of parsangs of esh (fire). And I delivered seventy mal’akhim (angels) corresponding to the seventy nations, and I appointed in his hand all the pamalya (retinue) above and all the pamalya (retinue) below. And I provided for him all the ordinances of Bereshit (Beginning), and I established his name as Adonai ha-Qatan (the Lesser Lord), whose name in gematria is seventy-one. And I gave him wisdom and understanding greater than all the angels, and I made his greatness greater than that of all the ministering angels.
4 → Rabbi Akiva said: Every day, a single mal’akh (angel) stands in the middle of the raqia (firmament) and opens it, saying: “YHVH is King,” and the entire host of marom (the heights) responds after him until it reaches “Blessed be He.” When it reaches “Blessed be He,” there is a single ḥayah (living being) whose name is Yisrael, and engraved on his forehead is “My people are Mine.” He stands in the middle of the raqia (firmament) and says: “Blessed be YHVH, the Blessed.” And all the sarei ma’alah (princes of the heights) respond after her: “Blessed be YHVH, the Blessed, forever and ever.” Before she finishes speaking, the Ofanim (Wheels) tremble and shudder, shaking the whole world, and they say: “Blessed be the Kavod (Glory) of YHVH in His place.” And that ḥayah (living being) remains in the midst of the raqia (firmament) until all the sarei ma’alah (princes of the heights), and tafsarim (officers), and battalions, and all the camps tremble, and each one in his place says to the ḥayah (living being): “Shema Yisrael, YHVH Eloheinu, YHVH Eḥad” (Hear, O Israel, YHVH our Elohim, YHVH is One) (Deuteronomy 6:4).
5 → Rabbi Yishmael said: Thus said Rabbi Akiva in the name of Rabbi Eliezer the Great: Our ancestors refused to place stone upon stone in the Heikhal (Palace) until they compelled the King of the Universe and all His servants, and they heeded them and revealed to them the sod (secret) of the Torah—how they should make it and how they should use it. Immediately, the Ruaḥ ha-Qodesh (Holy Spirit) appeared from the great entrance that is in the House of YHVH, for the Shekhinah (Divine Presence) did not descend nor dwell in the House of the Holy of Holies because of the decree. And when they saw the Kisseh ha-Kavod (Throne of Glory) erected and standing between the Ulam (Portico) and the Mizbeaḥ (Altar), even though the gate was built.
Chapter 32 → Metatron, Zorobavel, and the Hidden Messiah: Vision of the Second Temple
Chapter 32 of Heikhalot Rabbati narrates the vision of Zerubbabel ben Shealtiel at the Foundation Stone of the Second Temple. Standing between the Ulam and the Mizbeaḥ, the Kisseh ha-Kavod (Throne of Glory) is revealed, and Metatron, Sar Tzeva YHVH, reveals the hidden Messiah—Menachem ben Amiel, of the house of David, hidden in Rome until the time of the End. This mystical chapter intertwines the glory of the Temple, the Torah, and eschatological hope.
1 → It was not built, but rather molded from the base of the Shetiyyah stone (Foundation Stone), forms that rose up to perfect upon it the Ulam (Portico), the Mizbeach (Altar), and the entire Bayit (House). And when our fathers saw the Kisseh ha-Kavod (Throne of Glory), which revolved from within it and rose between the Ulam, the Mizbeach, and the Malkhut (Kingdom) of the world, they immediately prostrated themselves with their faces to the ground. And at that time it was said (Haggai 2:9): Great shall be the glory of this Bayit (House), this latter, greater than the former.
2 → For the first Temple did not demand anything of Me, nor of My children, nor of all My servants, nor of My Throne. And behold, My children, why do you prostrate yourselves? Arise and return before My Throne, in the same measure that you sit in the Yeshiva (Aula), and grasp the Crown, and receive the Seal, and learn the Seal, and learn this Book of the Torah, how you will inquire into it and how you will serve it, for it elevates the paths of your hearts.
3 → They were contemplating the Torah with their hearts; immediately Zorubbavel ben Shealtiel responded on the fourth day of the seventh month, the month of the Festivals (Chagim), and he stood up as a Turgeman (Interpreter) and was expounding the Shemot (Names) as a Turgeman.
4 → And Zerubbabel said, “Hasten to me, where is the Rock of Eternity?” And He answered me from the gates of Heaven and said to me, “You are Zerubbabel.” And I said, and He answered and spoke to me as a man speaks to his friend, and addressed me with many righteous words.
5 → And I said to Him, “Who are You, Adonai?” And He said to me, “I am Metatron, Sar Tzeva YHVH (Prince of the Army of YHVH),” and He has placed my name as His name. And He showed me a man like a young man, handsome and adorned, and said to me, “Metatron, this is Mashiach YHVH (Messiah of YHVH), and this one was born in the house of David, and YHVH hid him to be a Nagid (Leader) over Israel. And this is Menachem ben Amiel, and this one was born in the house of Nebuchadnezzar, and a Ruach (Spirit/Wind) carried him and placed him in Nineveh, the city of blood, which is Romi (Rome), until the time of Ketza (End).”
Chapter 33 → The Imprisoned Messiah: Menahem ben Amiel and the Trials Before Redemption
Chapter 33 of Heikhalot Rabbati reveals the hidden sufferings of Menaḥem ben Amiel, the Messiah, imprisoned for eight years, despised by Israel and disfigured, as foretold in Isaiah 52:14. Guarded by Metatron and Michael, his judgment purifies a generation of unfaithful leaders until those who sleep in the dust rise up in his defense, fulfilling Daniel 12:2 and announcing the final redemption.
1 → And I asked, “What are the signs that Menaḥem ben Amiel will perform?” And he said to me, “Meṭaṭron and Mikhael, one year before the week, the Qadosh Barukh Hu (Holy One, Blessed be He) sends a messenger to Israel in confidence, in peace, in joy, in exultation, and in jubilation. But that generation is poor, without any merit, and yet they rise up and act arrogantly against them, despising them in the marketplaces and in the streets, calling them thieves and apostates, and speaking about them words that the ears cannot bear to hear.
2 → At that time, the Qadosh Barukh Hu (Holy One, Blessed be He) said: “They have not yet fulfilled their servitude, and already they desire more.” The Qadosh Barukh Hu (Holy One, Blessed be He) became angry and imprisoned the Mashiḥ (Messiah) for exactly eight years, corresponding to the eight days of the milah (circumcision). Just as an eight-day-old child who has not been circumcised is not worthy to enter the congregation, so too during the years that the Mashiḥ (Messiah) was imprisoned, the Qadosh Barukh Hu (Holy One, Blessed be He) hid His face from him.
3 → Then the Holy One, Blessed be He, grants Israel greater freedom of speech against him, and they say to one another: “Know that this man has gone astray and led Israel astray. Did Pharaoh imprison Moses so that this messenger might also be imprisoned?”
4 → In the first year of his imprisonment, they proclaimed against him in all the cities of Israel, and the mighty of the Torah and the mighty of sustenance gathered against him, conspiring in a qanuntia (conspiracy) and disfiguring his appearance, as it is written: “So disfigured was his appearance, unlike that of a man” (Isaiah 52:14). And no one defended him, except those who sleep in the dust, as it is written: “And many of those who sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake” (Daniel 12:2). And the dead of the world said to one another: “Perhaps we were wrong in our supposition, and it has been annulled.” A Bat Qol (Heavenly Voice) came forth and said: “Fear not, for in your merit you stand firm.”
5 → And in those years when he is imprisoned, the powerful Torah scholars in the city gather, and the men of faith cease, and wisdom disappears from the cities, and an empty generation remains, without leaders of yeshivas to defend him, nor faithful or pious friends to annul the decree. The heavens are closed, and the gates of sustenance are locked—all this for seven years. But in the final year, when the Mashiḥ (Messiah) emerges from the house of the prisoners, that generation goes and falls into the grave alive because of the decrees that were imposed upon them, and many die before their time in servitude.
Chapter 34 → The Decrees of Edom and Gog and Magog: Israel’s Trials and the Ascension of the Messiah
Chapter 34 of Heikhalot Rabbati reveals the terrible decrees that precede redemption: the nine-month dominion of Edom, the seven-eyed mortal beings, and the dominion of Gog and Magog. Amidst persecution, Torah denial, and despair, the Messiah emerges from prison, despised by Israel but welcomed by the Holy One, Blessed be He, fulfilling the psalms of salvation and ruin of the nations.
1 → This first decree (gezerah) is the uprooting of the mountains: whoever has a son, the son denies the father; whoever has a field, denies it. This first decree (gezerah) is Edom ha-Resha’ah (Edom the Wicked), who is destined to rule over Israel for nine months, as it is written (Shemuel Alef 3:4): “I swore to the house of Eli,” teaching that the Holy One, blessed be He (ha-Qadosh Barukh Hu), swore that Edom ha-Resha’ah will rule at the end of times (qetz ha-acharon) from summit to summit. And you must teach what their decree (gezerah) is: they double it. If it is about the mighty ones of the Torah (gibborei Torah), for every eleven, whoever gives ten dinars of silver, they will demand from him ten dinars of gold. And whoever has none, they will cut ten dinars of flesh from his flesh. And they decree that they shall not circumcise their children, nor observe the laws of niddah (ritual impurity). And whoever mentions the Name of the Holy One, blessed be He (ha-Qadosh Barukh Hu), shall have his head cut off.
2 → The third decree (gezerah) is from the Aysfod: they do not need to wage war, but just by looking, everyone dies. They have seven eyes: two like all humans have, one on the head, one on the top of the head, one between the shoulders, one in the heart, and one in the navel, as it is written (Zechariah 3:9): “For behold, the stone that I have laid before Joshua; upon one stone are seven eyes.” At that time, Israel cries out and says in one voice: “Blessed is the one who was not created; blessed are the generations past that did not see such things.” And why all this? Because of the powerful of the Torah (gibborei Torah) who did not believe in the beginning and did not remember the Name (ha-Shem).
3 → The first decree (gezerah) of all decrees is the kingdom of Gog u-Magog, which seeks neither the Torah nor the commandments (mitzvot), but only that hour when each of Israel will be subjugated to him for five hundred and eighteen thousand years, as it is written (Psalm 2:2): “The kings of the earth arise,” which in gematria is equivalent to this.
4 → And even the Holy One, blessed be He (ha-Qadosh Barukh Hu), does not move from His place at that hour. They surround the world in all four directions (arba ruchotav), and each one of Israel has nowhere to flee, as it is said (Psalm 139:8): “Where can I go from Your Spirit (Ruach)?” Thus they said: Woe to the generation in which the Messiah (Mashiach) is revealed.
5 → And the Holy One, blessed be He (ha-Qadosh Barukh Hu), rises to bring the Messiah (Mashiach) in person from the house of prisoners, as it is said (Chavaqquq 3:13): “You went forth for the salvation of your people,” and it is written (Qohelet 4:14): “From the house of prisoners he went forth to reign.” But when he comes out of the house of prisoners and sees all the armies gathered against him, he trembles and says: “Who can withstand all these armies?” At that time, he brings armies of Israel, and goes to Babylon and begs for mercy. But all Israel despises him, and his companions turn away from him, saying: “Woe to him who has been imprisoned for eight years in the house of prisoners!” He says: “I am a messenger,” and now, when they take him out of the house of prisoners, he rises and begs for mercy. In the face of their contempt, the Holy One, blessed be He (ha-Qadosh Barukh Hu), responds to them, as it is written (Psalm 20:7): “I know that YHWH has saved His Messiah (Mashiach).” And all fall before Him, as it is written (Psalm 9): “They stumbled and fell.”
Chapter 35 → Ephraim, the Righteous Messiah: Consolation, Rejection, and Final Redemption
Chapter 35 of Heikhalot Rabbati depicts the Messiah’s embrace by the Holy One, Blessed be He, the repentance of Israel and the shame of the nations, and the paradox of Ephraim, the Righteous Messiah—comforted, burdened with iron shackles, rejected as a “fool,” but revealed in radiant glory, fulfilling Isaiah, Micah, Psalms, and Daniel in the drama of final redemption.
1 → And after that, the Qadosh Barukh Hu (Holy One, Blessed be He) places him in His bosom, embraces him, kisses him, and enhances His splendor from canopy to canopy, and the mighty ones of the Torah, all Israel, say to one another: “How we erred, bearing our iniquities!”, and we did not know, as it is written (Isaiah 53:6): “We all, like sheep, have gone astray.” And after that, He comforts him and his mourners, as it is written (Isaiah 57:18): “I have seen his ways, and I will heal him,” and to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor, and through Zechariah it is written (Zechariah 14:1): “Behold, the day of the Lord is coming.”
2 → Another interpretation: “Behold, a day is coming” – against whom was this said? It was said only against that week in which the Mashiah (Messiah) will come, for He is hidden and will come through all these generations, and a deep sleep will fall upon them, and the Mashiah will be hidden from them. And when the Qadosh Barukh Hu (Holy One, Blessed be He) so desires, He will shake the four corners of the world and come and assure Israel, saying to them: “Redemption has come,” and men, women, and children will gather and seek great mercies, as it is written (Isaiah 54:7): “For a brief moment I forsook you.”
3 → And they return in teshuvah (repentance) at that time, six hundred thousand of Israel, and all the nations of the world gather and seek to return in teshuvah when they see Israel going to the synagogues and houses of study and imploring mercy in a loud voice. And they see as those who do not see and do not hear, the nations will see and be ashamed (Micah 7:16).
4 → They sit, lament, and say, “Surely there is redemption for Israel, and we mock them,” as it is written (Micah 7:17): “They will lick the dust like a serpent.” It is fitting that the verse says, “They came out of her”; what does it teach by saying “from her”? They are terrified by the voice of the Mashiah (Messiah) at that moment when they hear his voice while he is in the galgal (wheel) of the Merkavah (Chariot) of Qadosh Barukh Hu (Holy, Blessed be He). The world says, “God forbid that this one, born of woman, should not falter at his voice.”
5 → And the nations of the world immediately return in teshuvah (repentance). The sar (prince) of the Messiah rises and is praised before the Qadosh Barukh Hu (Holy One, Blessed be He) and says before Him: “Master of the Universe, if you have greater afflictions than these, afflict me, but let none of the nations of the world see or delight in the good reserved for Israel.” The Qadosh Barukh Hu (Holy One, Blessed be He) says to him: “Ephraim, Messiah Tzidki (Ephraim, My Righteous Messiah), I too would wish to do so, but I spared your honor.” Immediately, the Qadosh Barukh Hu (Holy One, Blessed be He) takes two iron collars and places them on the shoulders of the Messiah and says to him: “One for the iniquity of your generation, and the other so that the nations of the world may not prevail.” At that time, Israel returns to a new understanding and despises the Messiah, saying, “Woe to us, who follow this madman!” The Holy One, Blessed be He, says to them, “You call him a madman? Now you will see his light surrounding him,” as it is written in Psalm 50:3: “And around him is a great storm.” And all who believed in him are not blotted out of the Book of Life, as it is written in Daniel 12:1: “And at that time your people will escape.”
Chapter 36 → The Last Year of Affliction and the Sudden Revelation of the Messiah
Chapter 36 of Heikhalot Rabbati describes the final year before redemption: severe afflictions, heavy decrees, and a transformed world. When the Messiah rises from prison, the nations challenge Him, but the Holy One, Blessed be He, defends His people through the merit of the Torah and the Shema. Suddenly, as foretold, the Redeemer arrives at His Palace, fulfilling the mystery of the unexpected redemption.
1 → In the last year, afflictions are severe and numerous and heavy servitude and many diseases are decreed, and the world is transformed, and the taste of everything is given, and there is scarcity, and for those who go out and come in, there is no shalom (peace) (Zechariah 8:10). And those who possess emunah (faith) are gathered, and immediately the Mashiach (Messiah) is revealed.
2 → And when the Messiah ascends from Beit ha-Asurin (the house of prisoners), he will meet with the nations of the world, and each nation will say to him: Why do you seek to uproot seventy nations because of one? All the evils that are in our people are in your people: thieves are among us, thieves are among you; bloodthirsty people are among us, bloodthirsty people are among you; libertines are among us, libertines are among you.
3 → At that hour, he is silent, and the Messiah does not answer, and even Michael, sar ha-gadol (the great prince), is silent and does not answer, as it is written (Job 32:17): “I waited, for they did not speak.” Immediately, the mercies of Ha-Kadosh Barukh Hu (the Holy One, Blessed be He) are manifested in favor of the Messiah, and He answers him on Yom Tsarah (Day of Anguish), saying to them: “You fools of the world, how do you reason as My children do? Is there among you anyone who recites the Shema in the morning as My children do?” At that hour, it is written (Isaiah 57:12): “I will declare your righteousness” (tzedakah), do not read “your works,” but “these your works.”
4 → Who has ever heard of such a thing? Who has ever seen such a thing? In the beginning, the intention of Ha-Kadosh Barukh Hu was to divert Israel to the desert for six months, from Nisan to Tishrei. But when He contemplated the suffering of the Messiah during all those years, immediately, suddenly, He will come to His Palace (Malachi 3:1).
5 → Another interpretation: Because Israel says that in that generation, perhaps the world will follow its normal course, and there will be redemption this year, but they do not know that He will come suddenly.
Chapter 37 → Gog and Magog, the betrayal of the nations and the final liberation of Israel.
Chapter 37 of Heikhalot Rabbati foresees the conversion of the nations and their union with Israel in the commandments, only to be betrayed when Gog and Magog rise up against Jerusalem. The Holy One, blessed be He, wages war with seven shepherds and eight princes, while angels question His solitary battle. Finally, Gog and Magog fall, and Israel dwells in safety under the Redeemer’s eternal covenant.
1 → Another matter: Behold, the day of the Messiah is coming, when the nations of the world will convert and come with Israel, establishing the commandments of Sukkah (Tabernacle), Milah (Circumcision), Tefillin (Phylacteries), and Tzitzit (Fringes). They will go in and out with Israel for forty years, as it is written: “And your circumciser, the nations of the world” (uncertain source). After forty years, Gog and Magog will come upon Israel, he and all the kings of the east and west, and the province of Gomer and all its flanks, as it is written: “Gomer and all its flanks, etc.” (Ezekiel 38:6). When the converts see Gog and Magog and all their troops who have come with them, they ask: “Where are you going?” They are told: “Against the Lord and against his Messiah!” (Psalm 2:2). Immediately, they tear off their fringes, tear down their tents, take up their mezuzot, and set out against Israel, as it is written: “Let us break their chains!” (Psalm 2:3). At that hour, the Holy One, blessed be He, sits and laughs, and every man of Israel surrounds Him with nine thousand five hundred swords, as it is written: “The nations raged” (Psalm 46:7), which in gematria is equivalent to this.
2 → Behold, the day of the LORD is coming, the day when Gog and Magog will come upon Israel, causing an earthquake in the heavens and in the earth, and a great commotion in the land of Israel. They will go up to conquer Jerusalem, as it is written: “And I will gather all nations to Jerusalem” (Zechariah 14:2). At that time, He wages war against Gog and Magog, and seven shepherds and eight princes go out with Him: David in the center, Adam, Seth, Enosh, and Methuselah on his right, Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Moses, and Aaron on his left; the eight princes are Saul, Samuel, Amos, Zephaniah, Elijah, Malchi-Zedek, Isaac, and Khaziah. At that hour, the minds of the Malakhei ha-Sharet (Angels of Service) are calmed before the Holy One, blessed be He, for when the Holy One, blessed be He, treads upon Romi (Rome), He does so alone, as it is written: “I alone have trodden the winepress” (Isaiah 63:3). The Malakhei ha-Sharet (Angels of Service) say before the Holy One, blessed be He: “Master of the Universe, from where do you come?” He answers them: “From Marom (the Heights).” They ask Him: “Why are your garments red?” (Isaiah 63:2). He says before Himself: “Master of the Universe, is there any king who goes to war without horsemen? Why did you not call us to go with you?” He answers them: “It was a small winepress, and I did not need you.” Even so, their minds are not calmed. He tells them, “Wait a little while; I have another large winepress, and you are needed by me,” as it is written: “And you will flee to the valley of my mountains, for the valley of the mountains will come to you…” (Zechariah 14:5).
3 → When Gog and Magog attack Israel, the Holy One, blessed be He, will go forth with all sorts of punishments to fight against them, and the Malakhei ha-Sharet (Angels of Service) will go forth, as it is written: “And I will enter into judgment against him with pestilence and with blood” (Ezekiel 38:22). The Holy One, blessed be He, will strike them with a great blow, and all will fall before Him, as it is written: “And this shall be the plague…” (Zechariah 14:12). Israel will no longer need to cut wood, except for its provisions and utensils. After Gog and Magog, Israel will dwell in safety, as it is written: “And they shall dwell therein, and there shall be no more curse” (Zechariah 14:11), and it is written: “The Redeemer of Israel, His Holy One” (Isaiah 49:7).
Chapter 38 → The Revelation of the Messiah, the Shame of the Nations, and the Judgment of Gehenna
Chapter 38 of Heikhalot Rabbati describes the revelation of the Messiah—clothed in light, accompanied by Chayot, Seraphim, and Cherubim—before whom the nations prostrate themselves in disgrace. They turn to idols, the sun and the moon, only to see their light extinguished. The rejected gifts lead to the final decree: the Messiah casts the nations into Gehenna, fulfilling Isaiah, Psalms, Daniel, and Deuteronomy in the drama of the final judgment.
1 → Another point: Thus says YHWH (the Lord), the Redeemer of Israel, His Holy One. Against whom did Yeshayahu (Isaiah) utter this verse? It was uttered only concerning Israel, whom Ha-Kadosh Barukh Hu (the Holy One, Blessed be He) distinguished from the seventy nations, as it is written: “Kadosh Yisrael la-YHWH (Holy is Israel to the Lord), the firstfruits of His harvest” (Jeremiah 2:3). But, because of our many iniquities, they have fallen into the depths of the earth; “Nafalah (she has fallen) and will not rise again, Betulat Yisrael (the virgin of Israel)” (Amos 5:2). And who is destined to raise her up? The Mashiah (Messiah), who will cover all His enemies with shame and disgrace. And when the nations of the world see him, they will kneel and prostrate themselves before him, as it is written: “Kings will see him and rise up” (Isaiah 49:7).
2 → And you must teach: When the Messiah is revealed, will he appear as flesh and blood or as an angel? This has already been clarified in Daniel: “And behold, with the clouds of heaven came one like the Son of Man” (Daniel 7:13). This teaches that five hundred thousand galgalei (wheels of light) are given to him, along with the Holy Living Beings, Seraphim and Cherubim. And when the nations of the world see him, at that moment they will say to one another: “Could this be the one they call Messiah?” And he says to them: “I am the Messiah,” and they all fall under the soles of his feet, as it is written: “I will crush his adversaries before him and strike down those who hate him” (Psalm 89:24). “I will crush his adversaries before him” refers to the parasim (Persians), who oppress the ruach (spirit) of Israel like basar (flesh) in a kederah (cauldron). “U-mesan’aiv agof (and those who hate him I will strike down)” refers to the kings of Edom ha-resha’ah (wicked Edom), for Ha-Kadosh Barukh Hu is destined to repay their deeds upon their heads, as it is said: “Ashiv nakam le-tzaraiv u-le-mesan’ai ashalem (I will repay vengeance to My adversaries and I will repay those who hate Me)” (Deuteronomy 32:41).
3 → “Yoshev ba-shamayim yisḥak (He who sits in the heavens laughs)” (Psalm 2:4). What does the Messiah do with the deceptions he is destined to carry out against the nations of the world? When they see him, they are ashamed and say, “What shall we do?” And he says to them, “Whom are you afraid of? Turn to your foreign worship, and it will save you.” Immediately, each one goes to his object of fear, but falls. They say to one another, “In vain have we labored all these years.” They return and come to the Messiah and say, “Your gods have no substance.” He says to them, “Do not be afraid; you have no deities more difficult than these, which are the sun and the moon.” Immediately, they go to the altar and to the altar, and see its light extinguished, as it is written: “Ve-ḥafrah ha-levanah u-voshah ha-ḥamah (the moon will be confused, and the sun ashamed)” (Isaiah 24:23). They return to the Messiah and say to him: “The altar and to the altar—its light has been extinguished,” as it is written: “Hamu goyim, mattu mamlakhot (the nations raged, the kingdoms tottered)” (Psalm 46:6).
4 → Immediately they said to one another, “What remedy do we have now? Come, let us offer a doron (gift) to the Messiah; perhaps he will accept us.” Immediately they brought a doron and went to him, as it is written: “Sheva u-Seva ashkar yakrivu (Sheba and Seva will offer tribute)” (Psalm 72:10). He said to them, “Who am I, and what is my malkhut (kingdom)? Go and present it to Ha-Kadosh Barukh Hu.” They said to him, “Ha-Kadosh Barukh Hu accepts shoḥad (bribes)? Does he not reward those who accept shoḥad? Why have you transgressed his commandment and accepted shoḥad?”
5 → They ask him, “What remedy do we have?” He replies, “There is a remedy, and its name is Gehinnam (Hell).” They ask, “What is it and what does it resemble?” He replies, “There are good gifts in it: esh (fire) and gofrit (sulfur), ḥoshekh (darkness) and afelah (dark clouds).” They say to him, “There is no mercy in your judgment! Are the hands of Ha-Kadosh Barukh Hu so limited?” He replies, “I also judge you according to His mission. In the measure that you treated My children, so I will treat you.” At that moment, he calls the Sar shel Gehinnam (Prince of Hell) and says to him, “Ephraim Mashiah Tzidki (Ephraim, My Righteous Messiah), enough of speaking to them!” Immediately, the Messiah seizes the four kanfot ha-aretz (corners of the earth) and shakes them into Gehinnam, as a man shakes his kesut (garment) of dust, as it is said: “Le-eḥoz be-kanfot ha-aretz (to seize the corners of the earth)” (Job 38:13).
Chapter 39 → Nehemiah ben Hushiel, Armilus, and the Revelation of Menaquim ben Amiel
Chapter 39 of Heikhalot Rabbati predicts the ascension and martyrdom of Nehemiah ben Hushiel in Jerusalem, the mourning of Israel, and the emergence of *Armilus, son of Belial and of the stone. The prophecy culminates with the revelation of Menachem ben Amiel, the Messiah of YHWH, destined to appear before Israel on the fourteenth day of Nisan and proclaim redemption.
1 → Forty years before the coming of the Messiah, son of David, whose name is Menakim, son of Ammiel, Necamiah, son of Cusiel, a man from Ephraim, son of Joseph, will come. He will present himself in Jerusalem, and all Israel will gather around him. He will gather every man and his family, and the children of Israel will offer a sacrifice (korban), which will be pleasing to the Lord. And the children of Israel will be numbered according to their families. Forty years after the coming of Necamiah, son of Cusiel, Shidui, king of Persia, will rise up and slay Necamiah, son of Cusiel, in Jerusalem. And all Israel will mourn for him with great grief and weeping. And after this, Shepzibah, the wife of Nathan, son of David, the prophet, will come. And these signs will come in the month of Av, on the sixth day of the month, when Siddui, king of Parah, will slay Nacamiah, son of Cusiel, in Jerusalem. And the news will reach Israel with mourning, and it will greatly afflict them, and they will scatter in the wilderness of Jerusalem to observe the mourning for Nacamiah for forty-one days. His body will be thrown at the gates of Jerusalem, and neither man nor beast, nor wild animal, nor bird may touch it. And after forty days, the Holy One, Blessed be He, will bury him in the tombs of the House of Judah.
2 → And I, Zerubbabel, continued to inquire of Metatron and Michael, Sar Tzva YHVH (Prince of the Army of YHVH), concerning the covenant with the saints. And he said to me: This heifer lies there, and all her branches are consumed (Isaiah 27:10). And this city was Nineveh, the city of blood; it was Romi Rabbati (Great Rome). And I said to him: My lord, how long will these wonders end? (Daniel 12:6). And he seized me, took me by the hand, and led me to the House of Reprobation, and there he showed me a marble stone with a face like that of a beautiful woman who had never known a man. And he said to Zerubbabel: What do you see? And I said to him: I see a marble image, and the likeness of its face is like that of a beautiful woman. And he answered and said to me: The man who spoke to me said: This woman was the wife of Beliyal (Unworthiness). And at the time when Beliyal knew the woman, she conceived and gave birth to this *Armilus. And he will be the head of all idolatry. And he will be entirely carved on one side, for half of him is of stone, and half of him is of Beliyal, and the other half of him, also of stone, will be sealed with the appearance of stone.
3 → And this matter was in the prophecy of YHWH to Zerubbabel, and my soul was deeply distressed. Then I arose and went to the spring of the waters and made a prayer (moed) there with YHWH, the God of Israel, who is the God of all flesh. And He sent His messenger, and my prayer (tefilá) was still in my mouth, and I did not cease. And I saw that he was speaking to me all the previous words, and I bowed down and prostrated myself before YHWH. And He answered me and said: Ask before I depart from you. And I continued to ask Him about the Messiah YHWH. And I said to Him: When will He come to Israel? And He answered and said to me: As the life of YHVH who sent me, who appointed me over Israel, now I will tell you the deed of YHVH, for El ha-Kadosh (Holy God) said to me: Go and inform Zerubbabel, my servant, about what he asks.
4 → And he said: Come near to me, and I will speak to you the word of Elohim. Know that Menachem ben Amiel will come on the fourteenth day of Nisan and stand in my valley. And Menachem ben Amiel will answer and say to the elders: I am the Messiah YHVH, whom He has sent to bring you good news.
* Armilus: A malevolent figure, the Messiah of the Gentiles, enemy of the Jewish Messiah.
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