Also Known As
Mashiakh Ben Yosef משיח בן יוסף : Mashiach Ben Yosef, (Mashiah, Mashiaḥ, Messiah, “Annointed” King), Messiah Son of Joseph, Mashiakh Ben Efrayim, Messiah Son of Ephraim.
Mashiakh Ben Yosef and Yhoshua
As the New Testament evidences, Yhoshua יהושע (Historical Jesus) already knows the Rabani רבני (Rabbinic) tradition about another future King of Yisrael, called Mashiakh Ben Yosef משיח בן יוסף (“Messiah Son of Joseph”).
The New Testament itself shows how ancient this Rabani prophetic tradition is, existing at least five centuries before the Talmud and a millennium before Hai Gaon. Yhoshua also expects this prophetic warrior leader to appear at a future time, during the salvation of the children of Yisrael.
Prophecies describe spiritual forces, the discernable patterns. It is possible to “destroy evil” by repenting and returning to a life of God and compassion. It is possible to “destroy enemies” by these enemies becoming compassionate allies. But it is impossible to “calculate” how prophecies play out because they depend on human freewill. There are spiritual influences that are in play - pattern, probabilities, even inevitabilities - and it is wise to anticipate them. Prophecies of judgment, failure, or grief, remind us of our choice between two futures: the painful way or the difficult way.
As other Yhudim (Jews) hope for this future Mashiakh Ben Yosef, so does Yhoshua. Thus the Notsrim (Christians) also − according to the New Testament − hope for this holy warrior leader to succeed to make a better world possible.
(Vere, Stein Atle. ©2011. “Mashiakh Ben Yosef, The Olive Tree”. brakha.blogspot.com.)
The name “Mashiakh Ben Yosef” משיח בן יוסף is actually a title, the “Anointed” King “the Child of Yosef”. It refers to a future king from Efrayim, one the two tribes that descend from Yosef. The other tribe is Mnashe. (Interestingly, today Samaritans descend from Yosef via the tribe of Efrayim.)
The Children of Yisrael officially anoint Ben Yosef to rule the Land of Yisrael. He frees the capital city, Yrushalayim (Jerusalem), from the Empire of Rome. But then the nations expel the remaining Children of Yisrael, forcing them to become stateless persons that inhabit the “wildernesses” of the Diaspora (perhaps like today refugee camps). This king arises during a future seven-year period that heralds a new age of humanity, the Mashiakh Age.
Note, the earliest mention of the title “Mashiakh Ben Yosef” is in the Book of the Talmud, in Suka (pages 52ab). Inferring from the Tanakh (Hebrew Bible), from the Book of Zkharya (Zechariah 12:10), it refers to a “pierced” Mashiakh, who the nations kill. However, the person that this title refers to, is already an ancient prophetic tradition, many centuries old even by the time of the Talmud. The New Testament mentions him in the Book of Revelation (chapter 11:).
The New Testament refers to Mashiakh Ben Yosef as one of “the two olivetrees” αι δυο ελαιαι. Here the New Testament cites the Book of Zkharya (4:12, 14), where it explains, “The two branches of the olivetrees” שְׁתֵּי שִׁבֲּלֵי הַזֵּיתִים are “two children of the oliveoil that ‹are› standing on ‹behalf of› the Lord ‹God› of all of the Land” שְׁנֵי בְנֵי־הַיִּצְהָר הָעֹמְדִים עַל־אֲדֹון כָּל־הָאָֽרֶץ .
This word “oliveoil” יּצהר literally means something like “shining” olive oil, a high quality. This is the kind of oil that is used to officially inaugurate certain government leaders. In other words, to crown them. Instead of crowns, the Tanakh uses a pouring of olive oil on the head to ritually install the Melekh (king) and also to install the Kohen Ha'Gadol (“the Great Kohen”, the high priest). Both of these persons are a Mashiakh משיח , literally one who is “Anointed” to rule. One is the Anointed King, and the other is the Anointed Kohen. The New Testament refers to this future king poetically, as Zkharya does, as an “olivetree”. The Talmud refers to this same king more specifically as Mashiakh Ben Yosef, a member of the tribe of Efrayim, to distinguish him from the more famous king, Mashiakh Ben David, a member of the tribe of Yhuda (Judah), who is also a descendent of ancient King David who will restore a Neo-Davidic Dynasty. This Return from Exile to Yrushalayim with a simultaneous anointment of a King and a Kohen, resembles the first Return from Exile from Bavel to Yrushalayim, when the both the political Nkhamya (Nehemiah) and the priestly Ezra become rulers.
Below I supply two parallel versions from the traditions about Mashiakh Ben Yosef. The first one is the Rabani consensus on these traditions, that Rav Hai Gaon רב האי גאון transmits in his response letter, The Salvation הישועה , during the Medieval Age circa 1000. The second one is an example of these traditions from one thousand years earlier, that Yhokhanan יהוחנן , one of the students of Yhoshua, transmits in his Book of Revelation, during the Classical Age circa 60.
Note, I suspect Yhokhanan composes Revelation before 70, before the destruction of the Second Temple. I find this context unlikely to fail to mention the destruction if it already occurs. He says the Temple and its Innercourt still exist in purity, despite the Roman soldiers patrolling the Outercourt, thus defiling the outer part. Today scholars tend to date his book to circa 90, after the destruction. Either way, the document is circa 00s, transmitting a proto-rabbinic tradition of the first century CE.
Revelation by Yhokhanan stylizes the prophetic traditions. Its structure uses separate visions and chains of events that sometimes unfold simultaneously. This can make the chronological sequence uncertain. Fortunately, The Salvation by Hai Gaon summarizes the same traditions in straightforward manner, and helps clarify the sequence of the future events.
Hai Gaon. Medieval Age circa 1000. The Salvation. | Yhokhanan. Classical Age circa 00s. Revelation 11-12. (NASV) |
( Sevensome Of Years ) | (The armies of the |
Sages ‹ of the Talmud › gave us a sign . And they said : « ‹ In › a sevensome ‹ of years › , ‹ Mashiakh › the Child of David ‹ is › coming . » Etcetera . ( Sanhedrin 97a . ) Per such ‹ per this order of kingships › , when we are seeing that | Then there was given me a measuring rod like a staff; and someone said: “Get up and measure the “Leave out the court which is outside the |
( Mashiakh Ben Yosef ) | (The “two olivetrees”, Mashiakh the King and Mashiakh the Kohen, will stand in Yrushalayim, before the |
And in that time , a person will stand , ‹ from the Tribe of Efrayim › from the Children of Yosef . ‹ But › solely in the outland . And he will be called Mashiakh ( Anointed King ) of God . And persons amassing will collect toward him in Ha'Galil Ha'Elyon ( And even other persons will get gleaned to him . Two and three ‹ persons › from this state , and five and four from this ‹ other › state . And on the same hour , he is saying : « And, I will take you ones , a one from a town . » Etcetera . ( Yirmyahu . ) But the majority of ‹ the Kin of › Yisrael ‹ will stillmore be › in their Diaspora . As ‹ reason › that it will not get clear to them , as so , the extremity ‹ is › coming . | “And I will grant authority to my two witnesses, and they will prophesy for twelve hundred and sixty days, clothed in sackcloth.” These are the two olive trees and the two lampstands that stand before the Lord of the earth. |
( Mashiakh Ben Yosef Frees Yrushalayim ) | (The “two olivetrees” wield the power of the words of the Tora to free Yrushalayim.) |
And then Mashiakh Ben Yosef will go up from Ha'Galil to Yrushalayim ( And they will kill the official that ‹ belongs › to the King of Edom and the kin that ‹ are › with him . On the same hour , ‹ Mashiakh Ben Yosef › is saying : « And, I will give my vengeance at And they will return to Yrushalayim ‹ for › several days . And they will regret , as per their deeds . On the same hour , ‹ Mashiakh Ben Yosef › is saying ‹ from Yrushalayim › : « And, I will make you ones pass under the staff ‹ of leadership of the Tora › . And, I will bring you ones in the tradition of ‹ the Tora › the Treaty ‹ with God › . » And ‹ however › masses will go out from the treaty of Yisrael . As ‹ reason › that they will awaken in their lifes . And about them he is saying : « And, I made you ones pass ‹ under the staff › . And my clearing ‹ away › from you ones ‹ is › the rebels and criminals at me . » ( Ykhezkel 20:37-38 . ) | And if anyone wants to harm them, fire flows out of their mouth and devours their enemies. So if anyone wants to harm them, he must be killed in this way. These have the power to shut up the sky, so that rain will not fall during the days of their prophesying; and they have power over the waters to turn them into blood, and to strike the earth with every plague, as often as they desire. |
( Armilus the King of Edom Rome ) | (The “Beast” is the King of Rome, identified as the “Fourth Beast” of the Book of Daniel. See Revelation 13.) |
And it was , as ‹ the time › that Mashiakh Ben Yosef inhabited in Yrushalayim , and all of the kin that ‹ is › with him . And Armilus ‹ the King of Edom Rome › heard the report of them . And he is coming . And he does sorceries and seductions to make masses ‹ of the ethnicities › stray in ‹ regard to Yrushalayim › . And he will go up and war at Yrushalayim . And he will triumph ‹ against › Mashiakh Ben Yosef and ‹ the ones › with him . And he will kill ‹ some › from them . And he will capture ‹ some › from them . And he will divide their loot . On the same hour , ‹ Armilus › is saying : « And, I will gather all of the ethnicities toward Yrushalayim for war . » ( Zkharya 14:2 . ) And ‹ Armilus › will even kill Mashiakh Ben Yosef . And ‹ there › will be a great besiegement for Yisrael . And on the same hour ‹ Mashiakh Ben Yosef › is saying : « And, they will look toward me ‹ the one › that they stabbed . » Etcetera . In that day , the eulogy will greaten in Yrushalayim . ( Zkharya . ) | When they have finished their testimony, the Beast that comes up out of the abyss will make war with them, and overcome them and kill them. |
( Laborpains of Mashiakh ) | (The Satan the “dragon” − an aspect of the human impulse of the bad יצר הרע − desires to capture the new government of Mashiakh Ben David − an aspect of the triumph of the human impulse of the good יצר הטוב . The “woman” is Yrushalayim, the capital city of the |
And these ones were found that remained in Yrushalayim . They will be smelted . And they ‹ are › being refined . And even if only these ones that went out to the wildernesses ‹ are being › examined and were refined . And it went from these ones , two hands ‹ being two parts › , and a third ‹ part › from these ones remained . About them ‹ God › is saying : « And, it will be in all of the Land . The oracle of God : ‹ From the whole › mouth , two ‹ thirds › will be severed , and ‹ one › third will be extra in ‹ Yrushalayim › . » Etcetera . And in ‹ the › same hour , all of the laborpains of Mashiakh will pass over them , thats being explicated in an amount of sites from the Bible and from the talks of our Rabot ‹ master teachers of Tora › . ( Zkharyahu 13:8 ) | A great sign appeared in heaven: A woman clothed with the sun, and the moon under her feet, and on her head a crown of twelve stars. And she was with child. And she cried out, being in labor and in pain to give birth. Then another sign appeared in heaven: And behold, a great red dragon. And the dragon stood before the woman who was about to give birth, so that when she gave birth he might devour her child. |
( Mashiakh Ben David ) | (In the Book of Revelation, this “child” is Mashiakh Ben David. Apparently, Revelation preserves a prophecy about a future king, who is someone different from Yhoshua the Historical Jesus. Yhoshua sees himself in spiritual unity with the Kingship of God, but in several places, he rejects identification with the physical king that is futurely to restore the ancient Davidic Dynasty. Thus in Revelation, this “son who is to rule all the nations” apparently refers to a future physical king, who is not Yhoshua, but some other descendent of David. The power of this king comes from God, thus transcends the power of the Satan. Because a king represents the whole kingdom of his citizens who he heads, he as a kingdom is “born” sotospeak, in Yrushalayim, when the Children of Yisrael officially anoint him the King of Yisrael, the Mashiakh Ben David.) |
And also Mashiakh Ben David ( Anointed King the Child of the Dynasty of King David ) will be revealed to these ones thats remaining in the | And she gave birth to a son, a male child, who is to rule all the nations with a rod of iron. And her child was caught up to God and to His throne. |
( Mashiakh Ben David Enlivens Mashiakh Ben Yosef ) | (Revelation says, Mashiakh Ben Yosef resurrects when “the breath of life from God came into them”. Hai Gaon specifies this breath happens when Mashiakh Ben David “will enliven him by the talk of God”, that is, by the power of speaking the words of the Tora of God. From both descriptions, this is eternal resurrection that transcends physical vulnerability, not a temporary resuscitation. It is a firstfruit, a special “beginning” of the “enlivenment of the dead ones” that later Yisrael as a whole nation experiences together.) |
And ‹ the Children of › Yisrael that ‹ will be › in the Land of Yisrael with Mashiakh Ben David , about them , it ‹ is › saying : « In those days , the House of David will go on ‹ account of › the House of Yisrael . » Etcetera . And the majority of the ones killed inside the Land will be ‹ there for › forty day . As ‹ reason › that Mashiakh Ben Yosef , in his being killed , his corpse will be being tossed ‹ unburied for › forty day . And no impure thing will touch at him upto the coming of Mashiakh Ben David . And ‹ Mashiakh Ben David › will enliven ‹ Mashiakh Ben Yosef › by the talk of God . And this is the beginning of the signs that ‹ Mashiakh Ben David › will do . And this ‹ sign › is the enlivening of the dead ones , ‹ so › that he will enliven . | (The two olive trees.) And their dead bodies will lie in the street of the great city which mystically is called (That is, the “great city” is Yrushalayim during the time that the Beast conquers it at makes it part of the Empire of Rome. It is called Those from the peoples and tribes and tongues and nations will look at their dead bodies for three and a half days. And they will not permit their dead bodies to be laid in a tomb. And those who dwell on the earth will rejoice over them and celebrate. And they will send gifts to one another, because these two prophets tormented those who dwell on the earth. But after the three and a half days, the breath of life from God came into them, and they stood on their feet; and great fear fell upon those who were watching them. And they heard a loud voice from heaven saying to them, "Come up here " Then they went up into heaven in the cloud, and their enemies watched them. (Note, there are different opinions about how long the corpse of Mashiakh Ben Yosef stays dead, out in the open. Hai says, it remains for forty days. Revelation says, the nations watch the corpse for three and a half days. Arguably, the corpse “will lie in the streets” for forty days, but the nations “will look at their dead bodies for three and a half days”, toward the end of the forty days.) |
And then Mashiakh Ben David will inhabit . And Eliyahu and Yisrael thats coming from the wildernesses to Yrushalayim . Securely serene amassing days . And they will build houses , and they will incline vineyards , and they will succeed in acquisition ‹ of commodities › and acquirement ‹ of assets › | Then the seventh angel sounded (a Shofar). And there were loud voices in heaven, saying, "The kingdom of the world has become the Kingdom of our Lord (God) and of His Christ (Mashiakh). And (our Lord God) will reign forever and ever." |
Hai Gaon. The Salvation. | Yhokhanan. Revelation 10. (NASV) |
( Why Kill Mashiakh Ben Yosef ? ) | ( The prophecy tastes sweet as honey because Mashiakh Ben Yosef, one of the “two olivetrees”, will be able to liberate Yrushalayim and become the Anointed King of Yisrael. But the prophecy becomes bitter because God allows the King of Rome to kill Mashiakh Ben Yosef. (An angel with a small book about this prophecy stands on a coastline. Possibly his foot on the Land refers to the authority over the Land of Yisrael, while his foot on the Sea refers to the authority over the Children of Yisrael who live in the Exile among the wildernesses of the nations. These are the ones who make Mashiakh Ben Yosef their king.) |
And because of what was authorization ‹ from God › given to Armilus ‹ the King of Edom Rome › to kill Mashiakh Ben Yosef ‹ the King of Yisrael › ? So as to break the doubleheart of the divided ones that ‹ belong › to Yisrael . That theres no trust ‹ that belongs › to them . And they will say : This ‹ is › the person that for him we are hoping . And already he came , and he was killed . And a salvation for them does not remain . And they will go out from the Treaty of Yisrael ‹ with God › . And they will adhere in the nations . And ‹ however the nations › will kill them . And about them ‹ Armilus › is saying : « They will die by the sword , all who sin with me . » ( Amos . ) | I saw another strong angel coming down out of heaven, clothed with a cloud; and the rainbow was upon his head, and his face was like the sun, and his feet like pillars of fire. And he had in his hand a little book which was open. He placed his right foot on the sea and his left on the land. Then the voice which I heard from heaven, I heard again speaking with me, and saying: “Go, take the book which is open in the hand of the angel, who stands on the sea and on the land.” So I went to the angel, telling him to give me the little book. And he said to me, “Take it and eat it. It will make your stomach bitter, but in your mouth it will be sweet as honey.” I took the little book out of the angels hand and ate it. And in my mouth it was sweet as honey. And when I had eaten it, my stomach was made bitter. And they said to me: “You must prophesy again concerning many peoples and nations and tongues and kings.” |
Image
• (Vere, Stein Atle. ©2011. Image: “Mashiakh Ben Yosef − The Olive Tree”. brakha.blogspot.com. Source of derivation. Sharif, Ilan. אילן שריף . Public domain 2010. Image: “The Warrior” הלוחם. Archeological Sites In Israel. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:PikiWiki_Israel_7681_Archeological_sites_of_Israel.JPG. Note: The warrior is closeup of a mosaic from Bet Khag Ha'Nilus בית חג הנילוס “The Vacation House of The Nile”, from the Classical Age circa 500s, in the ancient City of Tsipori ציפורי , in the northern region of Ha'Galil, Yisrael.)
See Also
• (Hai Gaon האי גאון . Medieval Age circa 1000. “The Salvation” הישועה . Hebrew edition and English translation via Stein Atle Vere. ©2011. brakha.blogspot.com. Source of transmission: The Sensicality Of Elders טעם זקנים . Gleaned via Eliezer Ashknazi. ©1855.
http://brakha.blogspot.com/2011/04/hai-gaon-salvation-english.html, 2011.)
