RMPS - Int2/Higher - World Religions - Judaism - Education Scotland

SECTION 5
The concept of the Messiah
THE FINAL AIM OF EXISTENCE
Messiah (in Hebrew Mashiach, pr. Ma-shee-ach, ‘ch’ as in ‘loch’) means
anointed, as were the kings and high priests of ancient Israel. Judaism
believes that at some time in the future, a Messiah, a descendant of King
David, will come. When that time comes, peace will reign on earth and,
as described particularly in Isaiah, ‘the wolf also shall dwell with the
lamb, and the leopard shall lie down with the kid; and the calf and the
young lion and the fatling together; and a little child shall lead them …
They shall not hurt or destroy in all my holy mountain; for the earth
shall be full of the knowledge of the Lord, as the waters cover the sea’
(Isaiah 9: 6–7). The Messiah would be a man who, at the end of days 1 ,
would lead the Jewish people back to the land of Israel. He would be a
prophet, teacher and leader. The Messiah was always to be an agent of
God and not a saviour in the Christian sense.
In this ideal and perfect world all the difficult problems which beset us
will be solved and all the difficult questions will be answered. There is
no accurate description of the Messianic era. It is a collection of ideas
and hopes for the future, the details of which are uncertain.
Jewish people do not believe that the Messiah has yet come, if only because
the world is so obviously not at peace and so many of our problems remain
unsolved. But the idea remains a hope and an expectation, one which has
often been disappointed over the last two thousand years but to which all
Jews continue to look forward. The Messianic idea does not originate in the
Pentateuch, but it gradually develops throughout the time of the prophets
as can be seen from the quotations below:
Sources
In that day will I raise up the tabernacle of David that is fallen, and close up
the breaches (gaps) thereof, and I will raise up his ruins and I will build it as
in the days of old.
Amos 9: 11
1 This term refers to the Messianic period of peace and tranquillity at the end
of our present days of world-wide strife.
RMPS: WORLD RELIGIONS – JUDAISM (INT 2, H) 53
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