It is said that during the time we are living in, it is the darkest of the dark, and Hashem seems to be silent and allowing all.... but we have our Prophets to listen to
This haftarah (which is read when Shabbos is also Rosh Chodesh) [...] From the beginning Yeshayahu had the almost impossible task of revealing the future while dealing with people who live in the present [...] :
The Haftarah from Yeshayahu, a Voice Speaking to Jews Today – When Mashiach Comes
66:1 Thus saith the LORD, The heaven is my throne, and the earth is my footstool: where is the house that ye build unto me? and where is the place of my rest? 66:2 For all those things hath mine hand made, and all those things have been, saith the LORD: but to this man will I look, even to him that is poor and of a contrite spirit, and trembleth at my word.
66:3 He that killeth an ox is as if he slew a man; he that sacrificeth a lamb, as if he cut off a dog's neck; he that offereth an oblation, as if he offered swine's blood; he that burneth incense, as if he blessed an idol.
Yea, they have chosen their own ways, and their soul delighteth in their abominations.
66:4 I also will choose their delusions, and will bring their fears upon them; because when I called, none did answer; when I spake, they did not hear: but they did evil before mine eyes, and chose that in which I delighted not.
66:5 Hear the word of the LORD, ye that tremble at his word; Your brethren that hated you, that cast you out for my name's sake, said, Let the LORD be glorified: but he shall appear to your joy, and they shall be ashamed.
66:6 A voice of noise from the city, a voice from the temple, a voice of the LORD that rendereth recompence to his enemies.
66:7 Before she travailed, she brought forth; before her pain came, she was delivered of a man child.
66:8 Who hath heard such a thing? who hath seen such things? Shall the earth be made to bring forth in one day? or shall a nation be born at once? for as soon as Zion travailed, she brought forth her children.
66:9 Shall I bring to the birth, and not cause to bring forth? saith the LORD: shall I cause to bring forth, and shut the womb? saith thy God.
66:10 Rejoice ye with Jerusalem, and be glad with her, all ye that love her: rejoice for joy with her, all ye that mourn for her: 66:11 That ye may suck, and be satisfied with the breasts of her consolations; that ye may milk out, and be delighted with the abundance of her glory.
66:12 For thus saith the LORD, Behold, I will extend peace to her like a river, and the glory of the Gentiles like a flowing stream: then shall ye suck, ye shall be borne upon her sides, and be dandled upon her knees.
66:13 As one whom his mother comforteth, so will I comfort you; and ye shall be comforted in Jerusalem.
66:14 And when ye see this, your heart shall rejoice, and your bones shall flourish like an herb: and the hand of the LORD shall be known toward his servants, and his indignation toward his enemies.
66:15 For, behold, the LORD will come with fire, and with his chariots like a whirlwind, to render his anger with fury, and his rebuke with flames of fire.
66:16 For by fire and by his sword will the LORD plead with all flesh: and the slain of the LORD shall be many.
66:17 They that sanctify themselves, and purify themselves in the gardens behind one tree in the midst, eating swine's flesh, and the abomination, and the mouse, shall be consumed together, saith the LORD.
66:18 For I know their works and their thoughts: it shall come, that I will gather all nations and tongues; and they shall come, and see my glory.
66:19 And I will set a sign among them, and I will send those that escape of them unto the nations, to Tarshish, Pul, and Lud, that draw the bow, to Tubal, and Javan, to the isles afar off, that have not heard my fame, neither have seen my glory; and they shall declare my glory among the Gentiles.
66:20 And they shall bring all your brethren for an offering unto the LORD out of all nations upon horses, and in chariots, and in litters, and upon mules, and upon swift beasts, to my holy mountain Jerusalem, saith the LORD, as the children of Israel bring an offering in a clean vessel into the house of the LORD.
66:21 And I will also take of them for priests and for Levites, saith the LORD.
66:22 For as the new heavens and the new earth, which I will make, shall remain before me, saith the LORD, so shall your seed and your name remain.
66:23 And it shall come to pass, that from one new moon to another, and from one sabbath to another, shall all flesh come to worship before me, saith the LORD.
66:24 And they shall go forth, and look upon the carcases of the men that have transgressed against me: for their worm shall not die, neither shall their fire be quenched; and they shall be an abhorring unto all flesh. https://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/yeshayahu-isaiah-chapter-66
What Does The Haftorah Say:
Yeshayahu (Isaiah) talks about three "voices" being heard before the Geulah, as the process begins. "A sound from the city," a "voice from the sanctuary," and "the voice of Hashem repaying His enemies." He then explains what these voices are.
The first is the voice of the small number of people who make their way back to Yerushalayim many years before the Geulah actually begins. The war of Gog and Magog will occur, which is called her "labor pains." The result will be many of Her children returning to her, but they are still considered to be at this point far from the massive numbers that will come. Yerushalayim at this point is likened to a woman who bears her first child – many more are to come.
The next step is a vast return as innumerable people are all caught up in the tribulations of birth so that the entire nation is affected until the actual birth, the actual Geulah arrives full force. The entire nation will be reborn. Part of the inspiration will come through the miracles that will happen, miracles unlike any others that ever took place.
Its not only the miracle that will do it. It is a change in our relationship to Hashem. Even people who are so far will come to trust Hashem the way a baby loves and trusts his mother. It is already there in our hearts, but latent and mute. We have to want to find it. For this to happen, evil has to finally meet its end.
The third voice is the voice of the destruction of the very heart of evil as the conclusion of the chapter of our history called now.
The remaining members of the nations of the world will serve Hashem with us in the Beis HaMikdash. These non-Jews will enable the estranged Jews in their lands to return by providing whatever they need to make it happen. Every month and on the Shabbosos, new people will constantly arrive at the Beis HaMikdash to return to serve Hashem as they never had before.
The real finish wll take place in the valley of Yehoshafat. The worms that consumed the bodies of the armies of Gog will remain in silent testimony of the final defeat of evil.
The changes will reflect the inner changes we make in the way we think, serving Hashem with honesty and humility.
What does the Haftarah Mean?
The haftarah tells you that your mind ultimately is what determines your personal reality. We interpreted and reply the scenes of our lives innumerable times. You revisit and interpret what your life is about – what you really want [what your fears are and what you see yourself becoming]. It is possible to redefine conclusions that have been with you for years, and to bring in a new figure, one that may have lurked in the background.
You can learn to teach yourself to notice Hashem. There is nothing He doesn't know, no obstacles before Him to prevent Him from His plans. He created the world, and your personal world, to give you the backdrop that will let you make choices that bring you to dveikus, the deepest joy we can ever know.
You can sit back and watch how Yeshayah's predictions are slowly materializing. The atrocities of Oct. 7 have opened the hearts of many to see what Hamas taught us. A Jew is a Jew.
What does it mean to You?
It means that the time has come to bridge the gap between the way you live externally with the forces that may have drowned out the voice of the inherent longing for Hashem that every Jew feels. This is a time of rediscovery, a time of "chiddush." Its time to bridge the gap between today and tomorrow.
The above was written by Rebbetzin Tziporah (Heller) Gottlieb.
[I typed it from the INYAN Magazine of HaModia 28 Shevat issue, p 21.]
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