Chizkiya, Pesach, and Mashiach

(לה) וַיְהִי֮ בַּלַּ֣יְלָה הַהוּא֒ וַיֵּצֵ֣א ׀ מַלְאַ֣ךְ ה' וַיַּךְ֙ בְּמַחֲנֵ֣ה אַשּׁ֔וּר מֵאָ֛ה שְׁמוֹנִ֥ים וַחֲמִשָּׁ֖ה אָ֑לֶף וַיַּשְׁכִּ֣ימוּ בַבֹּ֔קֶר וְהִנֵּ֥ה כֻלָּ֖ם פְּגָרִ֥ים מֵתִֽים׃ (לו) וַיִּסַּ֣ע וַיֵּ֔לֶךְ וַיָּ֖שָׁב סַנְחֵרִ֣יב מֶֽלֶךְ־אַשּׁ֑וּר וַיֵּ֖שֶׁב בְּנִֽינְוֵֽה׃ (לז) וַיְהִי֩ ה֨וּא מִֽשְׁתַּחֲוֶ֜ה בֵּ֣ית ׀ נִסְרֹ֣ךְ אֱלֹקָ֗יו וְֽאַדְרַמֶּ֨לֶךְ וְשַׂרְאֶ֤צֶר [בָּנָיו֙] הִכֻּ֣הוּ בַחֶ֔רֶב וְהֵ֥מָּה נִמְלְט֖וּ אֶ֣רֶץ אֲרָרָ֑ט וַיִּמְלֹ֛ךְ אֵֽסַר־חַדֹּ֥ן בְּנ֖וֹ תַּחְתָּֽיו׃ (פ)

(35) That night an angel of the LORD went out and struck down one hundred and eighty-five thousand in the Assyrian camp, and the following morning they were all dead corpses. (36) So King Sennacherib of Assyria broke camp and retreated, and stayed in Nineveh. (37) While he was worshiping in the temple of his god Nisroch, his sons Adrammelech and Sarezer struck him down with the sword. They fled to the land of Ararat, and his son Esarhaddon succeeded him as king.

(לב) ע֥וֹד הַיּ֖וֹם בְּנֹ֣ב לַֽעֲמֹ֑ד יְנֹפֵ֤ף יָדוֹ֙ הַ֣ר בית־[בַּת־] צִיּ֔וֹן גִּבְעַ֖ת יְרוּשָׁלִָֽם׃ (ס) (לג) הִנֵּ֤ה הָאָדוֹן֙ ה' צְבָא֔וֹת מְסָעֵ֥ף פֻּארָ֖ה בְּמַעֲרָצָ֑ה וְרָמֵ֤י הַקּוֹמָה֙ גְּדוּעִ֔ים וְהַגְּבֹהִ֖ים יִשְׁפָּֽלוּ׃ (לד) וְנִקַּ֛ף סִֽבְכֵ֥י הַיַּ֖עַר בַּבַּרְזֶ֑ל וְהַלְּבָנ֖וֹן בְּאַדִּ֥יר יִפּֽוֹל׃ (ס) (א) וְיָצָ֥א חֹ֖טֶר מִגֵּ֣זַע יִשָׁ֑י וְנֵ֖צֶר מִשָּׁרָשָׁ֥יו יִפְרֶֽה׃ (ב) וְנָחָ֥ה עָלָ֖יו ר֣וּחַ ה' ר֧וּחַ חָכְמָ֣ה וּבִינָ֗ה ר֤וּחַ עֵצָה֙ וּגְבוּרָ֔ה ר֥וּחַ דַּ֖עַת וְיִרְאַ֥ת ה'׃ (ג) וַהֲרִיח֖וֹ בְּיִרְאַ֣ת ה' וְלֹֽא־לְמַרְאֵ֤ה עֵינָיו֙ יִשְׁפּ֔וֹט וְלֹֽא־לְמִשְׁמַ֥ע אָזְנָ֖יו יוֹכִֽיחַ׃ (ד) וְשָׁפַ֤ט בְּצֶ֙דֶק֙ דַּלִּ֔ים וְהוֹכִ֥יחַ בְּמִישׁ֖וֹר לְעַנְוֵי־אָ֑רֶץ וְהִֽכָּה־אֶ֙רֶץ֙ בְּשֵׁ֣בֶט פִּ֔יו וּבְר֥וּחַ שְׂפָתָ֖יו יָמִ֥ית רָשָֽׁע׃ (ה) וְהָ֥יָה צֶ֖דֶק אֵז֣וֹר מָתְנָ֑יו וְהָאֱמוּנָ֖ה אֵז֥וֹר חֲלָצָֽיוץ מִצְרָֽיִם׃

(32) This same day at Nob He shall stand and wave his hand. O mount of Fair Zion! O hill of Jerusalem! (33) Lo! The Sovereign LORD of Hosts Will hew off the tree-crowns with an ax: The tall ones shall be felled, The lofty ones cut down: (34) The thickets of the forest shall be hacked away with iron, And the Lebanon trees shall fall in their majesty. (1) But a shoot shall grow out of the stump of Jesse, A twig shall sprout from his stock. (2) The spirit of the LORD shall alight upon him: A spirit of wisdom and insight, A spirit of counsel and valor, A spirit of devotion and reverence for the LORD. (3) He shall sense the truth by his reverence for the LORD: He shall not judge by what his eyes behold, Nor decide by what his ears perceive. (4) Thus he shall judge the poor with equity And decide with justice for the lowly of the land. He shall strike down a land with the rod of his mouth And slay the wicked with the breath of his lips. (5) Justice shall be the girdle of his loins, And faithfulness the girdle of his waist.

יָעַץ מְחָרֵף לְנוֹפֵף אִוּוּי, הוֹבַשְׁתָּ פְגָרָיו בַּלַּיְלָה, כָּרַע בֵּל וּמַצָּבוֹ בְּאִישׁוֹן לַיְלָה, לְאִישׁ חֲמוּדוֹת נִגְלָה רָז חֲזוֹת לַיְלָה, וַיְהִי בַּחֲצִי הַלַּיְלָה.

The blasphemer [Sancheriv whose servants blasphemed when trying to discourage the inhabitants of Jerusalem] counseled to wave off the desired ones, You made him wear his corpses on his head at night [II Kings 19:35]; Bel and his pedestal were bent in the pitch of night [in Nevuchadnezar's dream in Daniel 2]; to the man of delight [Daniel] was revealed the secret visions at night, and it was in the middle of the night.

עוֹד הַיּוֹם בְּנֹב לַעֲמוֹׁד עַד גָּעָה עוֹנַת פֶּסַח, פַּס יַד כָּתְבָה לְקַעֲקֵעַ צוּל בַּפֶּסַח, צָפֹה הַצָּפִית עֲרוֹךְ הַשֻּׁלְחָן בַּפֶּסַח, וַאֲמַרְתֶּם זֶבַח פֶּסַח.

Still today [Sancheriv will go no further than] to stand in Nov [Isaiah 10:32], until he cried at the time of Pesach; a palm of the hand wrote [Daniel 5:5] to rip up the deep one [ the Bayblonian one - Balshatsar] on Pesach; set up the watch, set the table [referring to Balshatsar, based on Psalms 21:5] on Pesach. "And you shall say, 'it is the Pesach sacrifice'"

(א) ויצא מלאך ה' ויך במחנה אשור...הציץ רבשקה על החומה ושמע שהיו קוראין את ההלל ואמר לסנחריב חזור לאחוריך כי נסים נעשים להם בזה הלילה והיה מבזה את הדבר שנאמר ינופף ידו הר בת ציון:

עוד היום בנוב לעמוד...כי מטו לירושלם שדי ליה ביסתרקי עד דסליק ויתיב מעילוי שורה עד דחזיוה לכולה ירושלם כי חזייה איזוטר בעיניה אמר הלא דא היא קרתא דירושלם דעלה ארגישית כל משיריתי ועלה כבשית כל מדינתא הלא היא זעירא וחלשא מכל כרכי עממיא דכבשית בתקוף ידי עלה וקם ומניד ברישיה מוביל ומייתי בידיה על טור בית מקדשא דבציון ועל עזרתא דבירושלם אמרי נישדי ביה ידא האידנא אמר להו תמהיתו למחר אייתי לי כל חד וחד מינייכו גולמו הרג מיניה מיד (מלכים ב יט, לה) ויהי בלילה ההוא ויצא מלאך ה' ויך במחנה אשור מאה ושמונים וחמשה אלף וישכימו בבקר והנה כלם פגרים מתים

“This very day shall he halt at Nov” (Isaiah 10:32)? ...When they arrived in Jerusalem they cast mats [bistarkei] for Sennacherib and piled them high until he ascended and sat above the wall, to the extent that he was able to see the entire city of Jerusalem. When he saw it, it seemed small in his eyes and he said: Is this the city of Jerusalem for which I have disrupted all my camps and for which I have conquered all these countries? Is it smaller and weaker than all the cities of the nations that I have conquered with my might? He went up and shook his head in contempt, and dismissively waved his hand at the Temple Mount that is in Zion and at the courtyard that is in Jerusalem. His officers said to him: Let us attack now and begin the conquest of Jerusalem. Sennacherib said to them: You are weary. Tomorrow, each and every one of you will bring me a piece of a stone from the wall equivalent in size to the seal [gulmo harag] of a letter, and this will suffice to breach the wall and vanquish the city. The verse recounts that immediately: “And it came to pass that night, that the angel of the Lord went forth and smote in the camp of the Assyrians one hundred and eighty-five thousand; and when men arose in the morning, behold, they were all dead corpses” (II Kings 19:35)

(ו) לםרבה [לְמַרְבֵּ֨ה] הַמִּשְׂרָ֜ה וּלְשָׁל֣וֹם אֵֽין־קֵ֗ץ עַל־כִּסֵּ֤א דָוִד֙ וְעַל־מַמְלַכְתּ֔וֹ לְהָכִ֤ין אֹתָהּ֙ וּֽלְסַעֲדָ֔הּ בְּמִשְׁפָּ֖ט וּבִצְדָקָ֑ה מֵעַתָּה֙ וְעַד־עוֹלָ֔ם קִנְאַ֛ת ה' צְבָא֖וֹת תַּעֲשֶׂה־זֹּֽאת׃ (ס)

(6) In token of abundant authority And of peace without limit Upon David’s throne and kingdom, That it may be firmly established In justice and in equity Now and evermore. The zeal of the LORD of Hosts Shall bring this to pass.

א"ר תנחום דרש בר קפרא בציפורי מפני מה כל מ"ם שבאמצע תיבה פתוח וזה סתום ביקש הקב"ה לעשות חזקיהו משיח וסנחריב גוג ומגוג אמרה מדת הדין לפני הקב"ה רבש"ע ומה דוד מלך ישראל שאמר כמה שירות ותשבחות לפניך לא עשיתו משיח חזקיה שעשית לו כל הנסים הללו ולא אמר שירה לפניך תעשהו משיח

Rabbi Tanḥum says that bar Kappara taught in Tzippori: Due to what reason is it that every letter mem in the middle of a word is open and this mem, of the word lemarbe, is closed? In the Masoretic text, the letter mem in the word “lemarbe” is written in the form of a mem that appears at the end of a word, closed on all four sides. This is because the Holy One, Blessed be He, sought to designate King Hezekiah as the Messiah and to designate Sennacherib and Assyria, respectively, as Gog and Magog, all from the prophecy of Ezekiel with regard to the end of days (Ezekiel, chapter 38), and the confrontation between them would culminate in the final redemption. The attribute of justice said before the Holy One, Blessed be He: Master of the Universe, and if with regard to David, king of Israel, who recited several songs and praises before You, You did not designate him as the Messiah, then with regard to Hezekiah, for whom You performed all these miracles, delivering him from Sennacherib and healing his illness, and he did not recite praise before You, will You designate him as the Messiah? It is for that reason that the mem was closed, because there was an opportunity for redemption that was thwarted.

בָּרוּךְ אַתָּה ה' אֱלֹקֵינוּ מֶלֶךְ הָעוֹלָם, אֲשֶׁר גְּאָלָנוּ וְגָאַל אֶת־אֲבוֹתֵינוּ מִמִּצְרַיִם, וְהִגִּיעָנוּ הַלַּיְלָה הַזֶּה לֶאֱכָל־בּוֹ מַצָּה וּמָרוֹר. כֵּן ה' אֱלֹקֵינוּ וֵאלֹקֵי אֲבוֹתֵינוּ יַגִּיעֵנוּ לְמוֹעֲדִים וְלִרְגָלִים אֲחֵרִים הַבָּאִים לִקְרָאתֵנוּ לְשָׁלוֹם, שְׂמֵחִים בְּבִנְיַן עִירֶךְ וְשָׂשִׂים בַּעֲבוֹדָתֶךָ. וְנֹאכַל שָׁם מִן הַזְּבָחִים וּמִן הַפְּסָחִים אֲשֶׁר יַגִּיעַ דָּמָם עַל קִיר מִזְבַּחֲךָ לְרָצון, וְנוֹדֶה לְךָ שִׁיר חָדָש עַל גְּאֻלָּתֵנוּ וְעַל פְּדוּת נַפְשֵׁנוּ. בָּרוּךְ אַתָּה ה', גָּאַל יִשְׂרָאֵל.

Blessed are You, Lord our God, King of the universe, who redeemed us and redeemed our ancestors from Egypt, and brought us on this night to eat matsa and marror; so too, Lord our God, and God of our ancestors, bring us to other appointed times and holidays that will come to greet us in peace, joyful in the building of your city and happy in your worship; that we should eat there from the offerings and from the Pesach sacrifices, the blood of which should reach the wall of your altar for favor, and we shall thank you with a new song upon our redemption and upon the restoration of our souls. Blessed are you, Lord, who redeemed Israel.

(ו) עַד הֵיכָן הוּא אוֹמֵר, בֵּית שַׁמַּאי אוֹמְרִים, עַד אֵם הַבָּנִים שְׂמֵחָה. וּבֵית הִלֵּל אוֹמְרִים, עַד חַלָּמִישׁ לְמַעְיְנוֹ מָיִם. וְחוֹתֵם בִּגְאֻלָּה. רַבִּי טַרְפוֹן אוֹמֵר, אֲשֶׁר גְּאָלָנוּ וְגָאַל אֶת אֲבוֹתֵינוּ מִמִּצְרָיִם, וְלֹא הָיָה חוֹתֵם. רַבִּי עֲקִיבָא אוֹמֵר, כֵּן ה' אֱלֹקֵינוּ וֵאלֹקֵי אֲבוֹתֵינוּ יַגִּיעֵנוּ לְמוֹעֲדִים וְלִרְגָלִים אֲחֵרִים הַבָּאִים לִקְרָאתֵנוּ לְשָׁלוֹם, שְׂמֵחִים בְּבִנְיַן עִירֶךָ וְשָׂשִׂים בַּעֲבוֹדָתֶךָ, וְנֹאכַל שָׁם מִן הַזְּבָחִים וּמִן הַפְּסָחִים כוּ', עַד בָּרוּךְ אַתָּה ה' גָּאַל יִשְׂרָאֵל:

(6) Up until which point should he recite? The House of Shammai says: Up to 'as a happy mother of children'. The House of Hillel says: Up to 'flint stone into a water-spring', and conclude with the blessing of redemption. Rabbi Tarfon says: 'who redeemed us and our ancestors from Egypt', but without a concluding blessing. Rabbi Akiva says: 'O YHVH our God and God of our ancestors--may we come to reach other seasons and festivals in peace, joyful in the rebuilding of your city, and jubilant in your Temple service, where we will eat from the offerings and Passover sacrifices etc.' until 'Bless you YHVH, Redeemer of Israel.