SIGNS OF THE MAHDI IN THE TORAH AND OTHER JUDAIC TEXTS

Belief in the coming of the Mahdi is one of Judaism's fundamental beliefs. Ever since the 12th century, the Jews have regarded Rabbi Maimonides (or in Arabic, Ibn Maimun) as the greatest scholar of the Torah. Maimonides stated that of the 13th fundamental dogma of Judaism, the 12th was "To believe in the coming of the Messiah [Mahdi]." According to these principles, Jewish belief regarding the Mahdi is set out as follows: "I sincerely believe in the coming of the Messiah [Mahdi], and even if his coming is delayed, I await his coming every day."

The Mishnah, one of the Judaic scriptures, describes the position of those who deny the coming of the Mahdi:

Whoever does not believe in him, or does not await his coming, denies not only [the statements of] the other prophets, but also [those of] the Torah and of Moshe, our teacher... . (Maimonides, Mishnah Torah, Laws of Kings 11:1)

In addition, the Shmoneh Esrei prayer, which Jews perform three times every day, refers to the coming of the Mahdi being close at hand. They recite this prayer in the expectation of the Mahdi, for the reconstruction of justice as a requirement of religious moral values, for immorality, sin and evil to come to an end, and for the truth to prevail.

This section contains those parts of the distorted Torah that concern the Mahdi and that agree with the verses of the Qur'an and the hadiths of our Prophet (may Allah bless him and grant him peace).

THE EVENTS LEADING UP TO THE APPEARANCE OF
THE MAHDI IN JUDAIC SOURCES

According to Jewish tradition, before the appearance of the Mahdi (or Messiah, as they refer to him), there will be a huge moral collapse stemming from atheism. People's feelings of shame will decline. Pride and oppression will grow. No one will have any compassion, the devout will be reviled, and corruption and denial will spread. On the larger scale, there will be a succession of wars and oppression. The lands will become increasingly less fertile, and the cost of living, famine and poverty will increase.

Some of the features of this period preceding the coming of the Mahdi are described in Judaic scriptures:

1. The appearance of portents in the End Times:

And I ... am about to come and gather all nations and tongues, and they will come and see my glory. I will set a sign among them... . (Isaiah 66:18-19)

2. The spread of atheism:

The generation in which [the Mahdi] will come... all the governments will be turned over to Minuth (will embrace the religion of the Minim [atheism]), and no preaching will avail... . (Talmud, Sanhedrin 11:97a)

"Both prophet and priest are godless; even in my temple I find their wickedness," declares the Lord. (Jeremiah 23:11)

The [Mahdi] will not come until the whole world is converted to the belief of the heretics. (Talmud, Sanhedrin 11:97a)

3. The abandonment of religious values:

In the generation in which the [Mahdi] will come... truth will be missing. (Talmud, Sanhedrin 97a)

4. The reviling of the devout:

In the footsteps of the [Mahdi]... Fearers of sin will be despised, and truth will be lacking. (Talmud, Sotah 49b)

... and he that departs from evil makes himself a prey... . He who departs from evil will be dubbed a fool by his fellow-men. (Talmud, Sanhedrin 97a)

5. Admiration of the wicked:

In the generation in which [the Mahdi] will come ... an evil man will be honored. (Talmud, Sanhedrin 97a)

6. The abandonment of religious education:

[The Mahdi] will not come... unless the disciples will decrease. (Talmud, Sanhedrin 11:97a)

7. State leaders turn their backs on religious values:

In the footsteps of the [Mahdi] ... The government will turn to heresy, and there will be none [to offer them] reproof. (Talmud, Sotah 49:2)

8. Rulers become immature:

And I will make children their chiefs, and foolish ones will have rule over them. (Isaiah, 3:4)

9. A rise in female leaders:

... a babe is their master, and women rule over them... . (Isaiah 3:12)

10. Leaders look to their own interests:

The generation in which [the Mahdi] will come... The leaders of that generation will have the nature of dogs. (Talmud, Sanhedrin 97a)

  ... judges are wolves of the desert, they leave not a bone for the morrow. (Zephaniah 3:3)

11. The wicked become strong:

... They strengthen the hands of evildoers, so that no one turns from his wickedness ... (Jeremiah 23:14)

... their course is evil, and their force is not right... . (Jeremiah 23:10)

Her princes in the midst of her are roaring lions... . (Zephaniah 3:3)

12. No one is left to establish justice:

The [Mahdi] will not come until all judges and officers are gone... . (Talmud, Sanhedrin, 98a)

13. Increasing poverty:

[The Mahdi] will not come ... until the pockets will be empty... (Talmud, Sanhedrin 97a)

14. An increase in unfair earnings:

  ... the plunder of the poor is in your houses... . What do you mean by... grinding the faces of the poor? (Isaiah 3:14-15)

15. Hunger and famine:

... in the seven-year cycle at the end of which the [Mahdi] will come... the arrows of hunger will be sent forth; ... a great famine, in the course of which men, women, and children, pious men and saints will die. (Talmud, Sanhedrin 97a)

16. The land becomes less fertile:

... the vintage shall fail, the ingathering shall not come. Smiting upon the breasts for the pleasant fields, for the fruitful vine; for the land of my people whereon thorns and briers come up; yea, for all the houses of joy and the joyous city. (Isaiah 32:9-13)

  ... the seeds are shrivelled beneath the clods. The storehouses are in ruins, the granaries have been broken down, ... flames have burned up all the trees of the field... . (Joel 1:17, 19)

  The fields are ruined, the ground mourns; the grain is destroyed ... . grieve for the wheat and the barley, because the harvest of the field is destroyed. (Joel 1:10-11)

17. A decrease in sources of fresh water:

The [Mahdi] will not come until a fish is sought for an invalid and cannot be procured, as it is written, "Then will I make their waters deep, and cause their rivers to run like oil." (Talmud, Sanhedrin 98a)

 ... the water brooks are dried up... . (Joel 1:20)

18. Drought:

The earth dries up and withers, the world languishes and withers... . (Isaiah 24:4)

... the pastures of the wilderness are dried up... . (Jeremiah 23:10)

The vine withers... . (Isaiah 24:7)

The vine is dried up and the fig tree is withered; the pomegranate, the palm and apple tree—all the trees of the field—are dried up... . (Joel 1:12)

19. Animals suffer:

How the cattle moan! The herds mill about because they have no pasture; even the flocks of the sheep are suffering... even the wild animals pant for you. (Joel 1:18-20)

A similar plague will strike the horses and mules, the camels and donkeys, and all the animals in those camps. (Zechariah 14:15)

20. A time of trial and tribulation:

The cry on the day of the Lord will be bitter the shouting of the warrior there. That day will be a day of wrath, a day of distress and anguish, a day of trouble and ruin, a day of darkness and gloom, a day of clouds and blackness... . (Zephaniah 1:14-15)

Therefore their path will become slippery; they will be banished to darkness and there they will fall. (Jeremiah 23:12)

... in the generation when the [Mahdi] will come, ... and as for the rest [other than scholars], their eyes will fail through sorrow and grief. (Talmud, Sanhedrin 97a)

Let him [Mahdi] come… When one goes out into the field and meets a bailiff, it is as though he had met a lion. When he enters the town, and is accosted by a tax-collector, it is as though he had met a bear. On entering his house and finding his sons and daughters in the throes of hunger, it is as though he were bitten by a serpent!... Ask you now, and see whether a man travails with child? Wherefore do I see every man [geber] with his hands on his loins, as a woman in travail, and all faces are turned into paleness? (Talmud, Sanhedrin 98b)

21. A succession of disasters:

... in the generation when the [Mahdi] will come, ... evil decrees will be promulgated anew, each new evil coming with haste before the other has ended. (Talmud, Sanhedrin 97a)

 "When will the [Mahdi] come?" He replied, "When darkness covers those people." (Talmud, Sanhedrin 99a)

 When you see a generation overwhelmed by many troubles as by a river, await him, as it is written, when the enemy shall come in like a flood... the Redeemer [the Mahdi] shall come... (Talmud, Sanhedrin 98a)

 In the generation in which the [Mahdi] will come ... [There will be] test after test. (Talmud, Kethuboth 112b)

 ... a curse consumes the earth... . (Isaiah 24:6)

 Whoever flees at the sound of terror will fall into a pit; whoever climbs out of the pit will be caught in a snare… (Isaiah 24:18)

22. A rise in corruption:

…in the generation when [the Mahdi] will come… Multitudes of trouble and evil decrees will be promulgated anew, each new evil coming with haste before the other has ended… (Talmud, Sanhedrin 97a)

O my people, your guides lead you astray; they turn you from the path. (Isaiah 3:12)

... But they were still eager to act corruptly in all they did. (Zephaniah 3:7)

23. The rule of despair:

[The Mahdi] will not come ... unless they will renounce their hope to be redeemed. (Talmud, Sanhedrin 97a)

24. The spread of prostitution:

In the generation in which the [Mahdi] will come, the houses of assembly will be converted into houses of prostitution. (Talmud, Sanhedrin 97a)

... and traded boys for prostitutes... . (Joel 3:3)

 The land is full of adulterers... . (Jeremiah 23:10)

25. A decline in people's sense of shame:

... in the generation when [Mahdi] comes ... a son will not be abashed in   his father's presence. (Talmud, Sanhedrin 97a)

Insolence will increase and honor dwindle. (Talmud, Sotah 49b)

A son will not feel ashamed before his father. (Talmud, Sotah 49b)

... the child shall behave insolently against the aged, and the base against the honorable. (Isaiah 3:5)

26. Increasing immorality:

The [Mahdi] will come only in a generation that is ... altogether wicked. (Talmud, Sanhedrin 98a)

When you see a generation ever dwindling, hope for him [the Mahdi]. (Talmud, Sanhedrin 98a)

In the footsteps of the [Mahdi] ... Youths will put old men to shame, the old will stand up in the presence of the young. (Talmud, Sotah 49b)

In the footsteps of the [Mahdi] ... The meeting-place [of scholars] will be used for immorality. (Talmud, Sotah 49:2)

... all of them become ... as Sodom, and ... as Gomorrah ... (Jeremiah 23:14)

27. An increase in lies and fraud:

... [they] walk in lies... . (Jeremiah 23:14)

In the generation in which the [Mahdi] will come ... [trhere will be] plunderers and plunderers of the plunderers. (Talmud, Kethuboth 112b)

... people shall oppress one another, every man his fellow, and every man his neighbour... . (Isaiah 3:5)

28. Faces grow ugly:

The face of the generation [of the Mahdi] will be like the face of a dog... . (Talmud, Sotah 49b)

29. The marginalization of feelings of love and compassion :

In the footsteps of the [Mahdi]... The dewellers on the frontier will go about (begging) from place to place without anyone to take pity on them... . (Talmud, Sotah 49b)

30. A growth of disrespect:

In the footsteps of the [Mahdi], insolence will increase... (Talmud, Sotah 49:2)

... [In the] generation in which [the Mahdi] will come, insolence will increase, ... respect will be missed... . (Talmud, Sanhedrin 97a)

31. Increasing rebelliousness:

... in the generation when [the Mahdi] comes, ... daughters will rise up against their mothers, and daughters-in-law against their mothers-in-law. (Talmud, Sanhedrin 97a)

In the footsteps of the [Mahdi] ... A son will revile his father... a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law. (Talmud, Sotah 49b)

32. A weakening of family ties:

In the footsteps of the [Mahdi] ... a man's enemies will be the members of his household... . (Talmud, Sotah 49b)

33. Rising numbers of hypocrites:

... the [Mahdi] will not come until denunciators are in abundance. (Talmud, Sanhedrin 97a)

  The treacherous deal treacherously; yea, the treacherous deal very treacherously. (Ishaiah, 24:16)

34. A decline in the number of scholars:

  ... in the generation when the [Mahdi] will come, scholars will be few in number... . (Talmud, Sanhedrin 97a)

35. Intellectual bigotry:

In the footsteps of the [Mahdi] ... The wisdom of the learned will degenerate... . (Talmud, Sotah 49:2)

In the generation in which the [Mahdi] will come, there will be prosecution against scholars. (Talmud, Kethuboth 112b)

... her priests have profaned that which is holy, they have done violence to the law [of God]. (Zephaniah 3:4)

36. Increasing wars:

... in the seven-year cycle at the end of which the [Mahdi] will come... in the seventh, wars; and at the conclusion of the septennate the [Mahdi] will come. (Talmud, Sanhedrin 97a)

I will gather all the nations ... to fight against it; the city will be captured, the houses ransacked, and the women raped. Half of the city will go into exile ... (Zechariah 14:2)

And I will show wonders in the heavens and in the earth, blood, and fire, and pillars of smoke. (Joel 2:30)

37. Bloodshed in the Middle East:

"When will the [Mahdi] come?" ... "give us a sign." ... the waters of the grotto of Paneas* turn into blood... . (Talmud, Sanhedrin 98a)

*Paneas: The name of an ancient city on the banks of the River Jordan, some 200 km from Jerusalem.

38. Ruin in the Middle East:

In the footsteps of the [Mahdi]... Galilee* will be destroyed, Gablan** desolated. (Talmud, Sanhedrin 97a; Sotah 49:2)

*Galilee: the region to the west of the River Jordan, consisting of the modern Israel and former Palestinian territory.
** Gablan: the region including part of the modern-day Golan Heights, northwest Jordan and southwest Syria.

39. The killing of the innocent:

... they shed innocent blood. (Joel 3:19)

40. Rising numbers of refugees:

And the dwellers on the frontier will go about [begging] from place to place without anyone to take pity on them. (Talmud, Sotah 49:2)

41. An increase in rebellion and revolt:

... transgression thereof is heavy upon it, and it shall fall, and not rise again. (Isaiah 24:20)

42. Looting:

The earth shall be utterly emptied, and despoiled... . (Isaiah 24:3)

... the houses rifled... . (Zeccariah 14:2)

43. Premature aging among the young:

The generation in which the [Mahdi] will come, young men will make pale the faces of the old, old men will rise before youth... . (Talmud, Sanhedrin 97a)

44. Signs in the bodies of those who oppose the truth:

This is the plague with which the Lord will strike all the nations that fought... their flesh shall consume away while they stand upon their feet, and their eyes shall consume away in their sockets, and their tongue shall consume away in their mouth. (Zechariah 14:12)

  ... their words and deeds are against the Lord... . The look on their faces testifies against them; they parade their sin like Sodom; they do not hide it... . (Isaiah 3:8-9)

45. Unhappiness:

... all the merrymakers groan. (Isaiah 24:7)

Surely the joy of mankind is withered away. (Joel 1:12)

... all joy turns to gloom, all gaiety is banished from the Earth. (Isaiah 24:11)

... the noise of the revelers has stopped... . (Isaiah 24:8)

46. Despair among men of religion:

  The priests are in mourning, those who minister before the Lord. (Joel 1:9)

  Put on sackcloth, O priests, and mourn; wail, you who minister before the altar. (Joel 1:13)

47. Eclipses of the Sun and Moon

The sun and the moon become black, and the stars withdraw their shining. (Joel 3:15)

The stars of heaven and their constellations will not show their light. The rising sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light. (Isaiah 13:10)

The moon will be abashed, the sun ashamed... . (Isaiah 24:23)

48. Earthquakes:

... the foundations of the Earth shake... the Earth is broken up, the Earth is split asunder, the Earth is thoroughly shaken... it sways like a hut in the wind... . (Isaiah 24:18-20)

... the heavens and the earth shall shake... . (Joel 3:16)

Therefore I will make the heavens to tremble, and the earth shall be shaken out of her place. (Isaiah 13:13)

The earth trembled and quaked, and the foundations of the mountains shook ... The valleys of the sea were exposed and the foundations of the earth laid bare... . (Psalm 18:7, 15)

49. Ever more natural disasters:

The Lord of Armies will punish you with thunder, earthquakes, and loud noises, with windstorms, rainstorms, and fire storms. (Isaiah 29:6)

... I will show wonders in the heavens and on the Earth ... . (Joel 2:30)

... the windows on high are opened. (Isaiah 24:18)

50. Floods in one region and drought in another:

... in the seven-year cycle at the end of which the [Mahdi] will come-in the first year, this verse will be fulfilled: And I will cause it to rain upon one city and cause it not to rain upon another city. (Talmud, Sanhedrin 97a)

51. Locust attacks:

What the locust swarm has left the great locusts have eaten; what the great locusts have left the young locusts have eaten; what the young locusts have left other locusts have eaten... . A nation has invaded my land, powerful and without number... (Joel 1:4,6)

52. Rising environmental pollution:

The Earth is defiled by its people... . (Isaiah 24:5)

53. The coming of Prophet Elijah (pbuh) as the herald of the Mahdi:

"The travails of the [Mahdi]": "day" is written here; whilst there it is written, Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the great and terrible day of the Lord comes. (Talmud, Shabbath 118a)

See, I will send you the prophet Elijah before that great and dreadful day of the Lord comes. (Malachi 4:5)

54. Spiritual decline:

The [Mahdi] will only come when all the souls destined to [inhabit earthly] bodies will be exhausted... . (Talmud, ‘Abodah Zarah 5a)

55. War in Iraq:

An oracle concerning Babylon* that Isaiah ... saw ... (Isaiah 13:1)

55.1 Distant countries wage war in Iraq:

... They come from faraway lands, from the ends of the heavens... to destroy the whole country. (Isaiah 13:5)

*Babylon: Name of an ancient city in present-day Iraq

55.2 The death of children and the young:

Their bows will strike down the young men; they will have no mercy on infants nor will they look with compassion on children. (Isaiah 13:18)

55.3 The looting of people's homes:

... their houses will be looted... . (Isaiah 13:16)

55.4 Enormous bloodshed:

 Whoever is captured will be thrust through; all who are caught will fall by the sword. Their infants will be dashed to pieces before their eyes... . (Isaiah 13:15-16)

55.5 The public in a state of fear and suffering:

  Terror will seize them, pain and anguish will grip them... . (Isaiah 13:8)

55.6 People flee to neighboring countries:

  Like a hunted gazelle, like sheep without a shepherd, each will return to his own people, each will flee to his native land. (Isaiah 13:14)

55.7 Cities deserted after the war:

But desert creatures will lie there, jackals will fill her houses; there the owls will dwell, and there the wild goats will leap about. Hyenas will howl in her strongholds, jackals in her luxurious palaces... . (Isaiah 13:21-22)

55.8 The razing of Iraqi cities:

Babylon, the jewel of kingdoms... will be overthrown by God. (Isaiah 13:19)

56. The appearance of the peoples of Gog and Magog:

"'The travails of the [Mahdi]": "day" is written here... The wars of Gog and Magog: "day" is written here; whilst there it is written, in that day when Gog shall come. (Talmud, Shabbath 118a)

... and some in the war of Gog and Magog, and the remaining [period] will be the era [of the Mahdi]. (Talmud, Sanhedrin 97b)

56.1. A vast population:
... all the hordes gathered... . (Ezekiel 38: 7)

... like a cloud that covers the land... . (Ezekiel 38: 16)

... all of them brandishing their swords... . (Ezekiel 38: 4)

56.2. They constitute a multinational society:

... many nations with you, all of them riding on horses... . (Ezekiel 38: 15)

  You and all your troops and the many nations with you will go up, advancing like a storm... . (Ezekiel 38: 9)

56.3. They have large armed forces:

... your whole army—your horses, your horsemen fully armed, and a great horde with large and small shields, all of them brandishing their swords. (Ezekiel 38: 4)

  ... all of them riding on horses, a great horde, a mighty army. (Ezekiel 38: 15)

56.4. They come from northern Asia (from far north of the Middle East):

You will come from your place in the far north... . (Ezekiel 38: 15)

... . I will bring you from the far north... . (Ezekiel 39:2)

56.5. They cause corruption:

... you will devise an evil scheme. (Ezekiel 38: 10)

You will say, ... "I will attack a peaceful and unsuspecting people." ... (Ezekiel 38: 11)

Every man's sword will be against his brother. (Ezekiel 38: 21)

56.6. They are an aggressive, plundering society:

I will plunder and loot and turn my hand against the resettled ruins... . (Ezekiel 38: 12)

  [People will ask,] "Have you come to plunder? Have you gathered your hordes to loot, to carry off silver and gold, to take away livestock and goods and to seize much plunder?" (Ezekiel 38: 13)

56.7. They wage war in the mountains:

I will summon a sword against Gog on all my mountains... .(Ezekiel 38: 21)

I will ... send you against the mountains of Israel. (Ezekiel 39: 2)

... you will invade a land that has recovered from war, whose people were gathered ... to the mountains of Israel, which had long been desolate. (Ezekiel 38: 8)

56.8. They perish from sickness and disasters:

I will execute judgment upon him with plague and bloodshed... . (Ezekiel 38: 22)

I will pour down torrents of rain, hailstones and burning sulfur on him and ... on the many nations with him. (Ezekiel 38: 22)

Men will be regularly employed to cleanse the land... . (Ezekiel 39: 14)

56.9. Mass deaths:

For seven months, the house of Israel will be burying them in order to cleanse the land. (Ezekiel 39: 12)

All the people of the land will bury them... . (Ezekiel 39: 13)

56.10. A huge earthquake occurs at the time of their appearance:

... at that time there shall be a great earthquake in the land of Israel. (Ezekiel 38: 19)

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