Introduction: The Condition for Redemption
Chapter 8 in Zechariah follows directly upon the introduction we saw in the previous chapter. The prophet informed the people that fasting in and of itself does not rectify the past, nor does it turn away Hashem's wrath; the entire matter depends on removing the root cause - and the cause was that they did not listen to the words of the prophets and did not practice justice and righteousness. Here the prophet comes and tells them: Know that it is possible for this House that you are engaged in building to become a sublime Temple, for the Shechinah to return to it, and for there to be a general ingathering of all the tribes of Israel to the Land of Israel - and it all depends on one thing: if you practice justice and righteousness.
(א) וַיְהִי דְּבַר־יְהֹוָה צְבָאוֹת לֵאמֹר׃ - And the word of Hashem of Hosts came, saying:
Zeal for Zion and Wrath upon the Enemies
(ב) כֹּה אָמַר יְהֹוָה צְבָאוֹת קִנֵּאתִי לְצִיּוֹן קִנְאָה גְדוֹלָה וְחֵמָה גְדוֹלָה קִנֵּאתִי לָהּ׃ - So said Hashem of Hosts: I have been zealous for Zion with great zeal, and with great wrath have I been zealous for her.
The Malbim explains: Even though I was extremely angry, and even though I declared that I would not listen when they call out and cry to Me - now zeal for Zion has been aroused within Me. "To be zealous for Zion" (lekaneh le-Tziyon) means to be zealous on behalf of Zion; the letter lamed indicates purpose and direction, as in "Are you zealous for my sake?" (Ha-mekaneh atah li) - on my behalf. There are two aspects here: the zeal is for the honor of Hashem that was desecrated - "I have been zealous for Zion with great zeal"; and the wrath is because the enemies harmed the Jewish people and on account of their evil deeds - "and with great wrath have I been zealous for her."
The Return of the Shechinah - and Its Conditions
(ג) כֹּה אָמַר יְהֹוָה שַׁבְתִּי אֶל־צִיּוֹן וְשָׁכַנְתִּי בְּתוֹךְ יְרוּשָׁלָ͏ִם וְנִקְרְאָה יְרוּשָׁלַ͏ִם עִיר הָאֱמֶת וְהַר־יְהֹוָה צְבָאוֹת הַר הַקֹּדֶשׁ׃ - So said Hashem: I have returned to Zion and will dwell in the midst of Jerusalem; and Jerusalem shall be called the City of Truth, and the mountain of Hashem of Hosts, the Holy Mountain.
"I have returned to Zion" - it is My intention to return to Zion, so that the Shechinah will rest permanently in Zion. "And will dwell in the midst of Jerusalem" - that I will dwell among the people; prophecy will return, and all of her precious treasures from ancient days will return as well. However, this is contingent upon a condition: "And Jerusalem shall be called the City of Truth" - that they will render true judgment between a person and their fellow, and speak the truth with integrity; and "the mountain of Hashem of Hosts, the Holy Mountain" - that the kohanim will be holy to their God and walk in the ways of Hashem. If this is so, then indeed, "I have returned to Zion" - I will return to dwell in Zion as of old. And as is the Malbim's consistent approach: "Zion" designates the holy precinct, the Temple and the Sanhedrin, while "Jerusalem" designates the dwelling place of the general populace.
The Seven Fears of the People
We have already cited in the name of the Abarbanel that the people's question stemmed from a fear that exile might recur: Is there any point to this entire endeavor we are engaged in, given the fear that the exile will return? In the previous chapter, the Abarbanel enumerated seven factors that made them fear this building might be temporary and not endure: that there were no miracles in the Second Temple as there were in the First, and five things were missing from it; that the majority of the Jewish people had not arrived and the Ten Tribes had not returned; that of those who did ascend, only around fifty thousand came, and more. In other words, they feared that this redemption was so partial that it could not truly be termed a redemption. The Malbim explains that in this prophecy, the prophet dispels these fears one by one.
Regarding the first fear - that the Shechinah did not return in the Second Temple as it had in the First - he says: "I have returned to Zion." There is a possibility and an opening for Me to return to Zion, and the matter depends on you; if you better your ways, says Hashem, I am prepared to return to Zion.
The Elderly and Children in the Streets - Tranquility Without Fear
(ד) כֹּה אָמַר יְהֹוָה צְבָאוֹת עֹד יֵשְׁבוּ זְקֵנִים וּזְקֵנוֹת בִּרְחֹבוֹת יְרוּשָׁלָ͏ִם וְאִישׁ מִשְׁעַנְתּוֹ בְּיָדוֹ מֵרֹב יָמִים׃ - Thus says the Lord of Hosts: Old men and old women shall yet sit in the streets of Jerusalem, each man with his staff in his hand because of advanced age.
(ה) וּרְחֹבוֹת הָעִיר יִמָּלְאוּ יְלָדִים וִילָדוֹת מְשַׂחֲקִים בִּרְחֹבֹתֶיהָ׃ - And the streets of the city shall be full of boys and girls playing in its streets.
This statement comes to reinforce the consolation. According to the Malbim, it addresses the second apprehension: the people feared that since they had not arrived through conquest but solely by the goodwill and permission of Darius, they remained dependent upon him, raising the grave fear that he might exile them a second time. To this, the prophet tells them: you have nothing to fear - "Old men and old women shall yet sit in the streets of Jerusalem." The peace will be so profound that the elderly and the young alike will sit and play in the streets without fear or anxiety. For in a place of even slight danger, only the able-bodied adults venture out; but in a place of serene tranquility, everyone goes outside without fear. Thus, the fear of a second exile at the hands of Darius is completely unfounded as well.
"Though It Be Wondrous" - The Wonder in the Eyes of the People and in the Eyes of Hashem
(ו) כֹּה אָמַר יְהֹוָה צְבָאוֹת כִּי יִפָּלֵא בְּעֵינֵי שְׁאֵרִית הָעָם הַזֶּה בַּיָּמִים הָהֵם גַּם־בְּעֵינַי יִפָּלֵא נְאֻם יְהֹוָה צְבָאוֹת׃ - Thus says the Lord of Hosts: If it is wondrous in the eyes of the remnant of this people in those days, it will also be wondrous in My eyes, says the Lord of Hosts.
"Though it will be wondrous" - the matter will seem like a wonder in their eyes: the immense kindness that I will bestow upon them. And Hashem says: In truth, it is wondrous even in My eyes - how I turned back from the fierce wrath I harbored, and now desire them once more.
Rashi cites the homiletic teaching of the Sages in tractate Sukkah regarding the time when the Holy One, blessed be He, will slaughter the Yetzer Hara (evil inclination), and both these weep and those weep; the righteous marvel and say: How could we have stood against it? The Yetzer Hara was so powerful, like a towering mountain - how did we withstand it? Regarding this it is said, "it will also be wondrous in My eyes" - as if to say, even in My eyes it was wondrous how those righteous individuals managed to contend with the Yetzer Hara throughout their lives.
The Radak explains that this is stated as a rhetorical question. For could anything truly be wondrous in the eyes of Hashem? Therefore, he does not accept the interpretation that it will literally be a wonder "in My eyes as well." Rather: "Should it also be wondrous in My eyes?" - Does it seem to you that it is wondrous to Me? To Me, it is entirely natural and not wondrous at all.
And the Malbim explains: according to the current state of affairs, it is indeed wondrous in your eyes, since by natural standards it is inconceivable that you should attain complete sovereignty and that the Shechinah should return, while you remain under the thumb of oppressors - under Toviyah and Sanballat and all those who sought to disrupt the rebuilding of the Beit HaMikdash and succeeded in stalling it for a time. To this Hashem replies: given the present conditions, you are correct, it is a wonder even in My eyes; under the present conditions you are not destined to remain here long, and even if you do, you will be few and downtrodden. Yet all of this is true only according to the situation right now.
The Ingathering of the Exiles from East and West
(ז) כֹּה אָמַר יְהֹוָה צְבָאוֹת הִנְנִי מוֹשִׁיעַ אֶת־עַמִּי מֵאֶרֶץ מִזְרָח וּמֵאֶרֶץ מְבוֹא הַשָּׁמֶשׁ׃ - Thus says the Lord of Hosts: Behold, I am going to save My people from the land of the east and from the land of the setting sun.
The whole wonder is only in light of the present reality where you are few, but there will be an additional redemption. "From the land of the east" - these are the tribes who were exiled to the east; "and from the land of the going down of the sun" - these are the tribes of Yehudah and Binyamin who were exiled to the west, where the sun sets. Not only will those who are here not be exiled, but even those who were already exiled will yet return here. Therefore, do not wonder.
(ח) וְהֵבֵאתִי אֹתָם וְשָׁכְנוּ בְּתוֹךְ יְרוּשָׁלָ͏ִם וְהָיוּ־לִי לְעָם וַאֲנִי אֶהְיֶה לָהֶם לֵאלֹהִים בֶּאֱמֶת וּבִצְדָקָה׃ - "And I will bring them, and they shall dwell in the midst of Yerushalayim; and they shall be My people, and I will be their God, in truth and in righteousness."
"And I will be their God" - that I will designate My divine providence upon them. However, "in truth and in righteousness" is a condition: truth refers to matters between man and his fellow; and righteousness refers to matters between man and God. The Malbim always explains that *tzedakah* (righteousness) pertains to matters between man and God, not in our conventional sense of giving charity, but in the sense of being a *tzaddik* - serving Hashem with righteousness. If these two conditions are kept, then indeed, "And I will bring them, and they shall dwell in the midst of Yerushalayim; and they shall be My people."
However, if they are not His people in truth and righteousness, then "should it also be wondrous in My eyes?": by natural means, there is no chance you will achieve dominion and attain such lofty, exalted heights; this can only occur through a wonder. And how could it happen? If you act with truth and righteousness - then there is no need for wonders; it comes to you by right. But if you do not act with truth and righteousness, and yet the good promises are fulfilled - that is a wonder; it would even be wondrous in My eyes how I could bring you these goods when you are not genuinely doing the will of Hashem. And with this, says the Malbim, the prophet also removes the third fear - namely, their seeing that not all the exiles had returned to their land; this too is possible, that all the exiles will return, provided you improve your deeds.
"Let Your Hands Be Strong" - The Removal of the Curse from the Day the Temple Was Founded
(ט) כֹּה־אָמַר יְהֹוָה צְבָאוֹת תֶּחֱזַקְנָה יְדֵיכֶם הַשֹּׁמְעִים בַּיָּמִים הָאֵלֶּה אֵת הַדְּבָרִים הָאֵלֶּה מִפִּי הַנְּבִיאִים אֲשֶׁר בְּיוֹם יֻסַּד בֵּית־יְהֹוָה צְבָאוֹת הַהֵיכָל לְהִבָּנוֹת׃ - "Thus says the Lord of Hosts: Let your hands be strong, you who hear in these days these words from the mouth of the prophets who were there on the day the foundation was laid for the House of the Lord of Hosts, that the Temple might be built."
Here, the Malbim explains, the prophet comes to remove the fourth fear: they saw that the land had deteriorated and was cursed, not returning to its former strength, not yielding its produce as before. In their eyes, this was proof that perhaps we are not in the process of redemption and are not heading toward what we anticipated. To this he says to them: Chaggai already prophesied about this when they founded the House, promising that from the day the House was founded the curse would cease. From this you should know and understand that the time for rebuilding has already arrived, and the reason the curse befell you was because you delayed the construction; the moment you begin to build, the curse will cease. Chaggai's prophecy took place two years earlier, and there the prophets told them that with the start of the rebuilding of the Beit HaMikdash, blessing would begin to rest upon them. Therefore, "let your hands be strong" - to come forward and begin the building.
(י) כִּי לִפְנֵי הַיָּמִים הָהֵם שְׂכַר הָאָדָם לֹא נִהְיָה וּשְׂכַר הַבְּהֵמָה אֵינֶנָּה וְלַיּוֹצֵא וְלַבָּא אֵין־שָׁלוֹם מִן־הַצָּר וַאֲשַׁלַּח אֶת־כׇּל־הָאָדָם אִישׁ בְּרֵעֵהוּ׃ - "For before those days there was no hire for man, nor any hire for beast; neither was there any peace to him who went out or came in because of the adversary, and I set all people every one against his neighbor."
This was the reality until that day, as we saw explicitly in Chaggai: "Consider your ways: you have sown much and brought in little... and he who earns wages earns wages to put them into a purse with holes" - a reality of curse and lack of blessing. "Nor any hire for beast" - because there was an adversary from without, no one wanted to go out and come in, and consequently it was impossible to hire out animals for riding, for journeys outside the city, or for work in the fields, for "there was no peace to him who went out or came in." And "there was no hire for man" - for "I set all people every one against his neighbor," and whenever anyone earned anything, others would come and rob him.
A Change of Will for Good and the Blessing of the Land
(יא) וְעַתָּה לֹא כַיָּמִים הָרִאשֹׁנִים אֲנִי לִשְׁאֵרִית הָעָם הַזֶּה נְאֻם יְהֹוָה צְבָאוֹת׃ - "But now I will not be unto the remnant of this people as in the former days, says the Lord of Hosts."
The curse that existed until now stemmed from the wrath and anger I had toward them; now My will turns toward them for good, the external adversary and the internal enemies will cease, and there will be peace in the land.
(יב) כִּי־זֶרַע הַשָּׁלוֹם הַגֶּפֶן תִּתֵּן פִּרְיָהּ וְהָאָרֶץ תִּתֵּן אֶת־יְבוּלָהּ וְהַשָּׁמַיִם יִתְּנוּ טַלָּם וְהִנְחַלְתִּי אֶת־שְׁאֵרִית הָעָם הַזֶּה אֶת־כׇּל־אֵלֶּה׃ - (12) For the seed shall be peace; the vine shall give its fruit, and the ground shall give its produce, and the heavens shall give their dew; and I will cause the remnant of this people to inherit all these.
This peace will be the seed that benefits both the fruit of the tree and the fruit of the ground - it will influence even the produce of the land, until the earth responds with grain, wine, and oil, and the heavens respond and give their dew. I will respond to the heavens, meaning I will bestow influence upon them through peace, and I will cause the remnant of this people to inherit - that this land will remain as an inheritance for them.
From a Curse to a Blessing Among the Nations
(יג) וְהָיָה כַּאֲשֶׁר הֱיִיתֶם קְלָלָה בַּגּוֹיִם בֵּית יְהוּדָה וּבֵית יִשְׂרָאֵל כֵּן אוֹשִׁיעַ אֶתְכֶם וִהְיִיתֶם בְּרָכָה אַל־תִּירָאוּ תֶּחֱזַקְנָה יְדֵיכֶם׃ - (13) And it shall come to pass that just as you were a curse among the nations, O house of Judah and house of Israel, so will I save you, and you shall be a blessing; fear not, let your hands be strong.
This addresses the fifth apprehension: that they were lowly and despised among the nations, and could not bring themselves to believe that anything was about to change, seeing as foreign rule was still over them. He says to them: I will save you and you shall be a blessing, you will escape the grip of foreign rule - and therefore, "let your hands be strong," do not slacken from rebuilding the Beis HaMikdash.
Radak explains "just as you were a curse among the nations" - that the nations cursed you; whenever famine or calamity struck their land, they would say it was due to the sin of Israel dwelling among them. And this has been the reality throughout the generations: the Black Plague - the Jews are to blame; "the Jews poisoned the wells"; "Beat the Jews and save Russia"; the Protocols of the Elders of Zion. They always know who is to blame for all the world's afflictions.
And we have already noted that in truth the nations are right - though not for the reasons they think. The ones responsible for all of this is indeed the Jewish people, for "I have cut off nations, their towers are desolate; I said, 'Surely you will fear Me, you will receive instruction'" (Tzefanyah 3:6-7), and everything the Holy One, Blessed is He, does in the world, He does only for the sake of Israel. However, the nations accuse us with worldly charges - that we ruined the economy, that we are plotting to take over the world - and that is the error. These are not earthly causes, but spiritual ones: if something negative happens in the world, it is for the sake of Israel, but for spiritual reasons - because we are not at our proper spiritual level. And when we are at our proper level, Jerusalem is the fountainhead of abundance for the entire world, and the entire world is influenced for good through Israel. We used to bring seventy bullocks corresponding to the seventy nations of the world, because when peace, blessing, and abundance reign among us, from that abundance flows bounty to the entire world.
Corresponding to this, according to Radak, he says: "So will I save you, and you shall be a blessing" - then the nations will be blessed through you, and will say that all good and abundance exist for the sake of Israel. Even today, a certain awakening is beginning. An Arab journalist once wrote an article titled "Europe Died in the Holocaust," where he writes: Look at what happened. There was a clever and educated people here, a people integrated into all the central hubs of accomplishment - university heads, deans, innovators behind scientific breakthroughs. We took the Jews and cast them into Auschwitz. Afterward, they beat their chests in remorse, and who did they bring in? Ignorance and backwardness. We are raising within our midst a growing majority of ignorant and backward fundamentalists, who plot to kill those who do good to them, who drive trucks into crowds and run people down shouting "Allahu Akbar." The Jews who benefited us so greatly were burned in ovens, and those who explicitly declare they want to destroy us because in their eyes we are infidels - them they welcomed, granting them integration packages, social security, and everything. Why do Muslims go to Europe? Because it is paradise for them; they are given everything there. Tell me, have we lost our minds? Without question. Today the Jew is still viewed as a source of curse, but gradually they will realize "and you shall be a blessing": nations will be willing to pay for Jews to live in their regions, because they will recognize the blessing in them. Even today, America pays fortunes to attract brilliant minds to Silicon Valley, offering salaries eight times higher than what is earned here, so inventors and innovators flock there. Thus they will be blessed through you, and will understand that having a Jew in your country is a blessing, not a source of curse.
"I Thought and Did Not Repent" - A Decree That Is a Rectification
(יד) כִּי כֹה אָמַר יְהֹוָה צְבָאוֹת כַּאֲשֶׁר זָמַמְתִּי לְהָרַע לָכֶם בְּהַקְצִיף אֲבֹתֵיכֶם אֹתִי אָמַר יְהֹוָה צְבָאוֹת וְלֹא נִחָמְתִּי׃ - (14) For so said the Lord of Hosts: Just as I thought to do evil to you when your fathers provoked Me to wrath, said the Lord of Hosts, and I did not repent;
(טו) כֵּן שַׁבְתִּי זָמַמְתִּי בַּיָּמִים הָאֵלֶּה לְהֵיטִיב אֶת־יְרוּשָׁלַ͏ִם וְאֶת־בֵּית יְהוּדָה אַל־תִּירָאוּ׃ - (15) So have I returned and thought in these days to do good to Jerusalem and to the house of Judah; fear not.
If you should ask: How could the will of the Holy One, Blessed is He, change from "not desiring" to "desiring"? After all, there is no change of will with Him, so how can you say that now it will be different? To this the prophet replies: "Just as I thought to do evil to you... and I did not repent."
The Malbim offers an introductory premise: when the Holy One, blessed be He, decrees an adverse decree against the Jewish people, it is accompanied by an element of regret and relenting. We can frame it this way: a defusing mechanism is built into the bomb. The decree is issued with an exit option - there is a possibility that it will not materialize - and this entire mechanism is designed to ensure that when the Jewish people repent, the Holy One, blessed be He, will defuse the decree, as regret and relenting were already built into it from the outset.
However, when the adversity serves a beneficial purpose - meaning it is not intrinsically negative harm, but rather comes to bring about good, "to terminate transgression and end sin," to remove sins and transgressions in order to do good in the ultimate end - then the Holy One, blessed be He, does not relent at the time of the decree. Rather, He issues a decree without a cancellation mechanism, an absolute decree, in the words of the verse in Yirmiyahu: "Because I have spoken, I have purposed, and I have not relented."
Accordingly, He tells them: Just as I purposed to harm you when your ancestors provoked Me - "and I did not relent." And why? "So have I returned and purposed in these days to do good to Jerusalem and to the house of Yehudah." All of that adversity was a preparation for the good: through the exile the land appeased its sabbaths - for the seventy years of exile corresponded to the seventy years in which Shemitah was not observed - and through this their iniquity was also appeased, and they themselves would repent and be prepared for salvation. Since the adversity served a good end, there was no mechanism of relenting or cancellation attached to it. The root zamam denotes a plan with no exit option - and this itself demonstrates that the plan is for the good, since only when a plan serves a good purpose is there no mechanism for cancellation.
To illustrate with a parable: A father wishing to discipline his son threatens him, "I will do such-and-such to you"; when the child takes fright and mends his ways, the father refrains from doing it. But if the father takes the child to the dentist - which from the child's perspective is far worse than many blows - and the child begins to scream and plead, it will not help him. Why? Because relenting applies only when he said "I will strike you," since from the start that was a threat intended to get him to reform, and the cancellation mechanism was embedded within it from the outset. But "I am taking you to the dentist" is not said with the intent of "behave nicely and I will not take you." Quite the contrary, no matter what happens, I will take you, because this is for your own good and I must take care of your teeth. There, no cancellation mechanism exists from the start, because the father did not state it as a threat.
This concept was also discussed at length in Mishnat HaGilgulim regarding the decree of the exile in Egypt. It is astounding: the Holy One, blessed be He, says, "And they shall serve them, and they shall afflict them four hundred years," yet Avraham Avinu does not even attempt to plead for mercy. For wicked Sodom he pleaded for mercy, yet here - instead of saying, "Perhaps they will be righteous, perhaps they will repent" - Avraham accepts the words as they are. How can this be? These are your children! But according to the principle we have established, the matter is beautifully clear: there it was not a punishment, but a refining process. And because it was a refinement, the Holy One, blessed be He, said: They must undergo this no matter what; there is no possibility that they will bypass it. It is a reward for Avraham's devotion to the way of Hashem - Yitzchak and Yaakov, from you shall emerge a root that will undergo the refinement of Egypt and become worthy of the giving of the Torah. And one does not plead for discounts or dispensations on rewards. Therefore, no option was given along the lines of "if you act with righteousness and justice there will be no Egyptian exile" - just as a parent does not say, "If you behave nicely we will not take you to the doctor," but will certainly take him, because he needs it and it will cure him. Regarding this He tells them: "Fear not" - now that the sins have already been purged, you are ready for the salvations and consolations.
These Are the Things You Shall Do
(טז) אֵלֶּה הַדְּבָרִים אֲשֶׁר תַּעֲשׂוּ דַּבְּרוּ אֱמֶת אִישׁ אֶת־רֵעֵהוּ אֱמֶת וּמִשְׁפַּט שָׁלוֹם שִׁפְטוּ בְּשַׁעֲרֵיכֶם׃ - "These are the things that you shall do: Speak the truth, every man to his neighbor; execute the judgment of truth and peace in your gates."
These are the things you must do so that you may truly be prepared for the salvation. The prophet foresaw in his mind's eye that the destruction of the Second Temple would occur because of the sin of baseless hatred; he saw in his vision a flying scroll coming to punish false oaths; and he saw two women carrying the ephah, which was explained earlier as flattery and arrogance among them, on account of which they were exiled a second time. Therefore, he sees the need to warn them against these things - no flattery, no arrogance, no baseless hatred - so that they do not fall into corruption and into yet another exile.
The Radak explains "Speak the truth" - that one should not say one thing with the mouth and another in the heart; when you say something to your fellow, let the speech be genuine. "And judgment of peace" - that if you judge justly, there will be peace between the litigants. As the Gemara says regarding a person whose cloak was taken by the court to satisfy a judgment, "he walks along the way singing." A person who was found liable in court, and yet he sings? The Gemara answers: Yes, as it is stated, "and all this people shall also go to their place in peace" - "all this people," meaning not only the one acquitted, who naturally leaves satisfied, but even the one who was found liable and had his cloak taken because he lacked payment - he too sings, because he knows that true justice has been rendered here and righteousness prevailed.
Our Sages expound "the judgment of peace" as referring to compromise; a judge is commanded to open with a proposal for compromise, to render a judgment that brings peace between them. What is a judgment that contains peace? You must say: this is mediation - that is, compromise, finding a middle ground rather than letting "strict justice pierce the mountain," and thereby both parties are satisfied. "Judge in your gates" - the city gate was the seat of the elders and the courts of law, as it is written, "to the gate unto the elders," "the elders who are in the gate," and "do not sit in the gate" - and our Sages said: On that very day they appointed a judge over them.
Devising Evil and False Oaths
(יז) וְאִישׁ אֶת־רָעַת רֵעֵהוּ אַל־תַּחְשְׁבוּ בִּלְבַבְכֶם וּשְׁבֻעַת שֶׁקֶר אַל־תֶּאֱהָבוּ כִּי אֶת־כׇּל־אֵלֶּה אֲשֶׁר שָׂנֵאתִי נְאֻם־יְהֹוָה׃ - "And let none of you devise evil in your hearts against his neighbor, and do not love a false oath; for all these are things that I hate, says the Lord."
The prophet continues and cautions regarding interpersonal matters, which were what brought about the destruction of the Second Temple. "And let none of you devise evil in your heart against his neighbor" - just as we saw earlier, "and devise not evil against his brother," where we explained that some commentators interpret this to mean that it is forbidden even to think ill of one's fellow, and so said Rav Shimshon Pincus. But we saw that on the other hand, the peshat commentators do not interpret it this way, but rather the meaning is: do not plan to do harm to your fellow, do not scheme to damage him, devising wicked plots like "I will take from him, I will hurt him" - it is about such a thought that the verse speaks, not merely about having a negative thought. For the Chafetz Chaim stated that thinking a negative thought about another does not entail a prohibition; certainly, a person must judge his fellow favorably, and certainly this does not cultivate good character traits within him, but a formal prohibition there is not - the Torah does not demand that a person be a fool, and if he saw his fellow commit a bad deed, the Torah does not forbid him from thinking that this deed was negative, as we discussed at length regarding the verse we saw above.
"And love no false oath" - and why did it use the phrasing "do not love"? Because further on, the Holy One, blessed be He, says, "which I hate," meaning: that which I hate - at least do not love it yourselves. Even if you do not reach the level of hating it, at least do not love it, and that is already progress. Therefore, the verse concludes: "For all these are things that I hate, says the Lord" - all these things are contrary to the Divine will.
The Answer to the Question Regarding the Fasts
(יח) וַיְהִי דְּבַר־יְהֹוָה צְבָאוֹת אֵלַי לֵאמֹר׃ - And the word of the Lord of Hosts came to me, saying:
If you perform all the things that I commanded you, therein lies the answer to the question you asked: Must we observe all these fasts, now that we are already in the process of redemption?
(יט) כֹּה־אָמַר יְהֹוָה צְבָאוֹת צוֹם הָרְבִיעִי וְצוֹם הַחֲמִישִׁי וְצוֹם הַשְּׁבִיעִי וְצוֹם הָעֲשִׂירִי יִהְיֶה לְבֵית־יְהוּדָה לְשָׂשׂוֹן וּלְשִׂמְחָה וּלְמֹעֲדִים טוֹבִים וְהָאֱמֶת וְהַשָּׁלוֹם אֱהָבוּ׃ - Thus says the Lord of Hosts: The fast of the fourth month, and the fast of the fifth, and the fast of the seventh, and the fast of the tenth, shall become joy and gladness and cheerful feasts to the House of Judah; therefore love truth and peace.
The fast of the fourth month - this is the Seventeenth of Tammuz; Nisan, Iyar, Sivan, Tammuz - the fourth month. The fast of the fifth month - Tisha B'Av, the month that follows. The fast of the seventh month - Av, Elul, Tishrei; this is Tzom Gedalyah. The fast of the tenth month - another three months from Tishrei: Cheshvan, Kislev, Tevet, the tenth month, which also falls on the tenth of the month - Asarah B'Tevet.
He says to them: You ask whether you need to fast or not - know that these days will become joy and gladness. But notice: according to the Malbim, as well as most commentators, such as the Alshich and Radak, he had not yet told them that they do not need to fast; on the contrary, he told them that they indeed must. According to their approach, "therefore love truth and peace" is the condition. The reason I exiled you was the evil deeds you committed and your refusal to listen to the voice of the prophets; therefore, these days will become joy and gladness on condition that you "love truth and peace" - if you do not repeat the corrupt deeds of your fathers, then there will be a complete redemption, and then the fasts and the lamentations will cease.
Radak notes precisely: Why did it emphasize "to the House of Judah"? Because this refers to the Second Temple era, and in the Second Temple era the Ten Tribes had not yet returned. Thus, it speaks of the House of Judah and not of Israel, who were still in exile - and indeed, to this day, the Ten Tribes have not returned.
The First Stage: The Nations Come to Jerusalem
(כ) כֹּה אָמַר יְהֹוָה צְבָאוֹת עֹד אֲשֶׁר יָבֹאוּ עַמִּים וְיֹשְׁבֵי עָרִים רַבּוֹת׃ - Thus says the Lord of Hosts: It shall yet come to pass that peoples shall come, and the inhabitants of many cities.
(כא) וְהָלְכוּ יוֹשְׁבֵי אַחַת אֶל־אַחַת לֵאמֹר נֵלְכָה הָלוֹךְ לְחַלּוֹת אֶת־פְּנֵי יְהֹוָה וּלְבַקֵּשׁ אֶת־יְהֹוָה צְבָאוֹת אֵלְכָה גַּם־אָנִי׃ - And the inhabitants of one city shall go to another, saying: "Let us go continually to entreat the favor of the Lord, and to seek the Lord of Hosts; I will go also."
Here the prophet begins to prophesy about what will occur in the End of Days, when all the nations will recognize the true faith and know Hashem from the smallest to the greatest of them. This will unfold in two stages, two distinct phases, rather than all at once. The first stage: close to the time of the redemption, the nations will recognize, each according to its own faith, that Jerusalem is the holy city, and they will travel there to pray. The Malbim explains - and this is our reality today - that both the Christians according to their faith and the Ishmaelites (Muslims) according to their faith consider Jerusalem a holy place, the "Holy Land," and they come there to pray. One of the State of Israel's major sources of revenue is pilgrimage tourism - pilgrims who arrive to pray in Jerusalem.
"And the inhabitants of one will go to another" - the residents of one city will go to the residents of another city and invite them: let us go to beseech the presence of Hashem, let us go pray there. And afterward, "and to seek Hashem, Master of Legions" - what does this add to "beseech the presence of Hashem"? The Malbim explains: this refers to seeking faith, investigating matters of faith, to ascertain what the true faith is. And even though the Jewish people will still be considered inferior in their eyes, and they will still maintain that Christianity is primary or that Islam is primary, each according to its own vanity and folly - nevertheless, they will seek matters of faith here in Jerusalem, and one will say to his fellow, "I too will go."
The Malbim explains that in Lashon HaKodesh there is a distinction between lechallot ("to beseech") and levakesh ("to seek"): lechallot means to entreat through prayer, as in "I beseeched the presence of Hashem"; whereas levakesh means to know Hashem - not necessarily to pray to Him, but to recognize His existence and study matters of godliness, as in "and it was, anyone seeking Hashem would go out to the Tent of Meeting outside the camp" - where the intent was not prayer, but attaining an apprehension of godliness.
(כב) וּבָאוּ עַמִּים רַבִּים וְגוֹיִם עֲצוּמִים לְבַקֵּשׁ אֶת־יְהֹוָה צְבָאוֹת בִּירוּשָׁלָ͏ִם וּלְחַלּוֹת אֶת־פְּנֵי יְהֹוָה׃ - "And many peoples and mighty nations shall come to seek Hashem, Master of Legions, in Jerusalem, and to beseech the presence of Hashem."
This will increase to such an extent that it will no longer be a matter of individual cities where the people of one city approach another; rather, many peoples and mighty nations will come to seek Hashem, Master of Legions, in Jerusalem. The primary purpose of their coming will be "to seek Hashem" - to learn the principles of faith, as well as to pray before Him. All this will still take place before the redemption, when the Jewish people are despised in their eyes, yet Jerusalem will already be elevated in their esteem. They will seek Hashem in Jerusalem and beseech His presence, yet they will not yet accept the Torah of Israel as the true faith. And what is the difference between amim ("peoples") and goyim ("nations")? Amim refers to nations that have a king, whereas goyim refers to a multitude of nations without a unified king and leadership, as the Malbim explains in many places.
The Second Stage: "For We Have Heard that God Is with You"
(כג) כֹּה־אָמַר יְהֹוָה צְבָאוֹת בַּיָּמִים הָהֵמָּה אֲשֶׁר יַחֲזִיקוּ עֲשָׂרָה אֲנָשִׁים מִכֹּל לְשֹׁנוֹת הַגּוֹיִם וְהֶחֱזִיקוּ בִּכְנַף אִישׁ יְהוּדִי לֵאמֹר נֵלְכָה עִמָּכֶם כִּי שָׁמַעְנוּ אֱלֹהִים עִמָּכֶם׃ - "Thus said Hashem, Master of Legions: In those days, ten men from all the languages of the nations will take hold, and they will grasp the corner of the garment of a Jewish man, saying, 'We will go with you, for we have heard that God is with you.'"
In the second stage, they will begin to recognize the faith of Israel and their Torah, and they will realize that our Torah is the truth - that the New Testament and the Quran are complete vanity, falsehood with no substance. They will then come and say: "We have heard that God is with you" - you are the only ones who received the Torah, you are the only ones with whom the Holy One, blessed be He, spoke and to whom He revealed Himself. At that point, the Malbim notes, they will not merely travel to Jerusalem to seek faith there; rather, they will seek the truth of the Jewish faith directly from the Jewish people.
There is a striking detail here: the Malbim writes that specifically the Ishmaelites will seek the truth of Israel's faith, and that they will no longer merely go from city to city and from there to Jerusalem to seek Hashem, but rather the Ishmaelites will seek the true faith directly from the Jewish people and recognize that God is with Israel. It is difficult to understand why he mentions the Ishmaelites twice here, when earlier he spoke of Christians as well. It seems that this was due to fear of the censor: the Malbim lived in Europe, where he could not openly write that Christians would come to recognize the Jewish faith as the true religion, and so he omitted them. In truth, however, "Ishmaelites" here represents Ishmaelites, Christians, Hindus, and anyone else - all false faiths will recognize that there is a God in Israel.
This is like what Rav Yeruchem of Mir said regarding the prayer, "May every made thing know that You made it, may every formed thing understand that You formed it, and may everything that has breath in its nostrils say, Hashem, God of Israel, is King, and His kingship rules over all": if even one ignorant person remains in the depths of the African jungles who does not recognize Hashem, there would be a deficiency in the revelation of His kingdom, may He be blessed. Not a single person will be left without the understanding that Hashem, God of Israel, is King and His kingship rules over all. This is the meaning of "for we have heard that God is with you" - specifically with you, and not with Ishmael, nor with Christianity, nor with any of the other religions of vanity.
"And they will grasp the corner of the garment of a Jewish man" - when they see tzitzit on the corner of his garment, they will know he is a Jew. The tzitzit signifies remembering the mitzvot and the resting of the Shechinah upon Israel: the techelet resembles the sea, the sea resembles the sky, and the sky resembles the Throne of Glory. They will then say to him, "We will go with you" - not merely accompanying you to Jerusalem, for they will no longer be satisfied with Jerusalem alone, but will desire to learn the faith of Hashem. "For we have heard that God is with you" - once they know that God is with us, they will seek to know the true faith for its own sake, unlike the attraction of Christians and Ishmaelites to Jerusalem today, which is not a genuine attraction to the Torah itself.
The Reward of the Mitzvah of Tzitzit
Chazal expound on this: ten men will come from each of the seventy languages - which totals seven hundred men. And these seven hundred take hold of just one corner; on two corners - one thousand four hundred; on four corners - two thousand eight hundred. From this you can understand how much a Jew loses if he does not wear tzitzit: every Jew who wears tzitzit will merit two thousand eight hundred servants to attend him. Seventy nations, ten from each nation, times four corners - that equals two thousand eight hundred. Furthermore, Chazal teach that in Heaven a person is called to account during a time of danger as to why he did not wear tzitzit, and the Gemara states that our era is an era of danger, a time when the Satan prosecutes - and at such a time a person will be held accountable for why he did not wear tzitzit. Therefore, let every Jew take upon himself to wear tzitzit upon his body, so that it will serve as protection and a shield for him, and thereby fulfill the mitzvah of Hashem.
Another explanation for "ten men": Radak explains that according to the peshat, this is not an exact number. We find many times in Tanach that "ten" is a general term denoting a multitude, such as, "Ten women shall bake your bread" - does it mean specifically ten, and not eleven or nine? Rather, the text wishes to express a large number, and therefore says ten; and so too here, the verse employs the expression "ten men will take hold."
In summary:
The entire chapter is an answer to the anxieties of the people rebuilding the Second Temple. Hashem announces that His jealousy for Zion has been aroused, and that He is ready to return and dwell in Jerusalem - yet everything is conditional: "and Jerusalem shall be called the City of Truth," truth between man and his fellow and righteousness between man and God. One by one, the prophet dispels their fears: the Shechinah can return; there will be no exile at the hands of Darius, for the elderly and children will sit securely in the streets; even the exiles in the east and the west will return; the curse upon the land will cease from the day the foundation of the Sanctuary was laid, and blessing will come upon the vine, the earth, and the dew of the heavens; and from being a curse among the nations, you will become a blessing. The decree that had been issued was a decree without relenting, for it was not mere punishment but refinement and rectification, and now that the iniquities have been cleansed, you are ready for redemption. Hence the practical directive: speak truth, execute the judgment of peace, do not devise evil against one another, and do not love false oaths - then the four fasts will be transformed into joy and gladness, "therefore love truth and peace." Finally, the vision of the End of Days is revealed in its two stages: first, the nations will ascend to Jerusalem to entreat and seek, and ultimately, ten men from all the languages of the nations will take hold of the corner of the garment of a Jewish man, saying: We will go with you, for we have heard that God is with you.