Devar/5771/Vayigash
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< Devar | 5771
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And thou, son of man, take thee one stick, and write upon it: For Judah, and for the children of Israel his companions; then take another stick, and write upon it: For Joseph, the stick of Ephraim, and of all the house of Israel his companions (Eze 37:16)
In this week's haftarah, the prophet Ezekiel tells the prophecy he received from God. In the prophetic vision, God tells him to take two sticks and to bring them together until they are one stick. The two sticks symbolize the kingdoms of Israel and Judah, and the various groups among the Jewish people, who were exiled among the Gentiles and no longer dwelt together.
He continues: And say unto them: Thus saith the Lord GOD: Behold, I will take the children of Israel from among the nations, whither they are gone, and will gather them on every side, and bring them into their own land; and I will make them one nation in the land, upon the mountains of Israel, and one king shall be king to them all; and they shall be no more two nations, neither shall they be divided into two kingdoms any more at all (ibid 21-22). The separate sticks are really one stick, and the Jewish people is one people. With these powerful words, God tells us that we are not broken into camps, neither Ashkenazim or Sefaradim or anything else. Rather, we are one nation in the Land.
And finally the Divine promise: My dwelling-place also shall be over them; and I will be their God, and they shall be My people (ibid 27). The time has come to unite the "sticks", and to forget all the exiles which caused the fictitious differences between us. It certainly is time to prepare the path for the king Messiah, may he speedily be revealed, who will reign over the united people in their single Land. May it be His will!
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