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How Western World leadership (Esau) will be replaced by Moshiach (Jacob)

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• The history of the struggle between these twins
• The ultimate decline of Esau's leaders
• How Moshiach will overtake modern-day leaders

Contents

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Historically

1. Pregnancy
2. Birth
3. Youth
4. Race for inheritance/blessings
5. Encounter by the River
6. Esau's kings
7. Jacob's kings
8. Esau = Rome
9. Moshiach – the final encounter

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Fighting in the Womb

1. Pregnancy

• Rebecca finally becomes pregnant.
• But there was fighting in the womb.
• Unusual pregnancy... She seeks counsel.
• She's told by G-d that she's bearing twins.
• And they're fighting over who's going to rule the world.
• They'll continuously take over each other.
• Ultimately the younger one will rule.

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Not Concurrently.

כשזה קם זה נופל

When one rises the other will fall.

Both are rulers, but

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Jacob = "Will Overtake"

2. Birth

• Esau comes out first into the world.
• He will dominate it.
• Jacob comes out holding Esau's heel.
• Hence he was called Jacob = יעקב / Yaakov:
• The first letter "י" for future tense, and "עקב / Akav" means overtake.

Jacob will eventually overtake Esau in This World, thereby bringing the Next World, where Jacob will dominate.

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Esau Forsakes Birthright

3. Youth

• Jacob cooks a lentil stew.
• Esau comes home, desperate for that red stew.
• Jacob will give it to him if he sells his birthright. 
• Esau not interested in his birthright – sells it to Jacob.

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Jacob Snatches Blessings

4. Inheritance

• Isaac has the power of blessing. He becomes blind.
• Wants to bless his firstborn (Esau) before he dies. 
• Rebecca finds out and has Jacob pretend to be Esau so that he gets the blessings instead. 
• Esau misses out. Starts plotting against Jacob. 
• Jacob runs away. 

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Preparing for Battle

5. By the River

• 22 years later, Jacob encounters Esau on his way back home. 
• Wants to make peace.
• Esau not ready for that – comes with an army.
• Jacob prays, sends presents ahead, and prepares for war.
• The brothers meet but no war eventuated then.
• Each parted ways.

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Esau's 1st Royal Dynasty

6

Esau (his descendants) was first to establish a line of kings. 

8 of them:

1. Bela, son of Beor
2. Jobab, son of Zerah
3. Chusham from the Land of Yemen
4. Hadad, son of Bedad

5.  Samlah of Masreka

6.  Saul of Rehoboth by the river

7.  Baal Hanan, son of Achbor

8.  Hadar, whose city was Pau

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Jacob's 1st Royal Dynasty

7

• Jacob overtakes Esau with his own 8 kings,
• Ending Esau's dynasty,
• Ruling over Esau (from King David)

1. Saul
2. Ish Bosheth
3. David
4. Solomon

5.  Rechavam

6.  Abijah

7.  Asa

8.  Jehoshaphat

After Jehoshaphat, there were further kings to Jacob but Esau rebelled and became independent.

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Roman Empire

8

• One of Esau's tribes (Magdiel) rises to greatness.
• Eventually becomes the Roman Empire. 
• Takes over the world,
• Jacob (Judea) included.

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Rome later evolves into

Medieval Christian Europe

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And more recently –

The Western World.

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Final Encounter.

And this is when Moshiach comes, 

for the

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Bilaam's Prophecy

At the End of Days... A Ruler [Moshiach] shall come out of Jacob and destroy the remnant of the city [Capital City of Esau].

 

(Numbers 24:19. Rashi)

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WW3?

So what's it going to be -

Moshiach and his army

taking on the rest of the world?

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Here's another prophecy

about how this will happen:

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The house of Jacob shall be fire... and the house of Esau shall become stubble.

Obadiah 1:18

One spark will emerge from Joseph that will consume all of Esau's Chiefs.

Midrash Tanchuma Vayeshev 1

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Sturdy

• Resilient to change,
• Unready for Moshiach.
• Its leaders (chiefs) were men of stature and purpose.
• Hence a bloody war would have been required to overtake and beat it.
• But today it is like stubble. 

In the past, the world was

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Leadership

• The confusion and purposeless of modern societies reflects on its leaders.
• Directionless.  Empty.
• Just not made of royal material.
• Stubble.

By the End of Days

becomes vacant.

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• Meaning.  
• Compelling.  Consuming. 
• And to extents beyond imagination.
• He will easily "go viral".

Purpose

Moshiach will introduce the world to

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Fire Vs. Stubble

Summary

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• In modern times, Esau is the Western World.
• Esau's Chiefs – his leaders – go into a decline at the End of Days. 
• Moshiach (from Jacob) is on the rise (hence the decline of Esau's Chiefs). 
• Moshiach will easily take over Esau's leaders. It's a no-brainer, like fire consumes stubble.

References

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Esau & Jacob fighting in the womb and the Prophecy:  Genesis 25:19-23.

They will not rule concurrently:  Talmud Megila 6a.

Esau will dominate This World and Jacob the Next World:  Midrash Yalkut Shimoni 110.

Jacob = Will Overtake:  Midrash Pirkei DeR' Eliezer 32

Esau forsakes his birthright:  Genesis 25:29-34

Jacob snatches the blessings:  Genesis 27.

Preparing for battle:  Genesis 32:4-33:16.

Esau's first royal dynasty:  Genesis 36:31-39

Jacob's first royal dynasty overtaking Esau's:  Midrash Bereshit Rabba 83:2.

Magdiel rises to greatness... Rome:  Midrash Pirkei DeR' Eliezer 38. The meaning of his name "Magdiel" which contains allusions to the words "Magdil = increase/make big" and "E-l = G-d" meaning G-d has taken this tribe to greatness. This is the same meaning of "Rome" = high. (Gur Aryeh on Genesis 36:43). Also see the Radak's (Rabbi David Kinchi) commentary on Obadiah (in the beginning): "The early Romans were mostly from Edom (Esau)".

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Rome = Western World:  As alluded to in Daniel's prophecy regarding "The King of the North": "he will exalt himself and magnify himself over every powerful one" (11:36) meaning that Rome will spread across the whole world like no other kingdom has (Ramban on Genesis 36:43).

It's interesting to note that there was one more chief after Magdiel: Iram (עירם). This name obviously shares more direct resemblance to "Rome". Indeed, the Midrash (Rabba, Vayishlach 83:4) writes he is called by that name for he will amass (Arema / ערימה) treasures for Moshiach. That is, its greatness will be used to support Jacob/Moshiach (Sefer Hasichot 5751 Pt.1 p.172).

Deliverers (will ascend up the Mount of Esau):  Obadiah 1:25. "Deliverers" in the plural alludes to Moshiach and his ministers (Metzodat David).

Moshiach being compelling:  "... And all the nations will flow to it [Jerusalem]... and they shall say, "Come, let us go up to the L-rd's mount, to the house of the G-d of Jacob, and let Him teach us of His ways, and we will go in His paths..." (Isaiah 2:2-3).  Note even though the nations are going up, they are "flowing" like water that gravitates down, as they'll be so attracted to Moshiach (MALBI"M's (Meir Leibush ben Yehiel Michel Wisser) commentary on this verse).

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Democracy

Jacob snatches the kingdom off Esau.

is the vehicle.

There's a deeper connection between Esau and Democracy...

Coming up next.