JERUSALEM (Realist English). Israeli public figure and publicist Avigdor Eskin argues that we live in an era of “incredible acceleration,” when the connection with ordinary time is lost, and biblical prophecies about the confrontation with Persia are taking on visible shape.
However, he warns: the current wars are only a “prelude,” not the messianic revelation itself. Israel is still far from perfection, the world is not ready, half of the Jewish population is still in the diaspora. But the “seven-league steps” of history, in his view, are leading to the whole world soon hearing the “messianic footsteps.”
In an interview with Realist English, Eskin explains why not a single Israeli soldier was killed in this war, while Iranian leaders have “passed into oblivion.” He believes that the Strait of Hormuz is not Israel’s problem but America’s and the Arab countries’, and that the fall of Iran’s regime will automatically solve 90% of the problems with proxies in the Middle East.
Speaking about the Third Temple, Eskin draws a fine line: “practical preparations are in full swing,” but the building itself cannot be erected now because the “spiritual evolution” has not yet taken place. He rejects the dogma that the Temple can only be built by the Messiah — people will build it, but they must possess the “messianic spirit.”
For Eskin, the US-Israeli war against Iran is not just another military campaign but a “prelude to messianic revelation,” a sign that cannot be understood without a metaphysical perspective.
You are the author of books on Psalms and Kabbalah. What is more important for you today — political journalism or spiritual practices? How do you see your purpose?
Avigdor Eskin: For half a century now, I have been actively participating in various political processes in different countries of the world, always remaining faithful to Israel not only as my homeland and my country, but as the cradle of all world civilization. Everything else follows from this. It is a search for meanings, a search for the metaphysical significance of events. Participating in them is simultaneously understanding what is happening.
The US-Israeli war with Iran has been going on for more than a month. From your point of view, is this a war for Israel’s survival or a biblical battle heralding the coming of the Messiah?
Avigdor Eskin: This is a wonderful question about whether the war with Iran is a necessity to defend one’s right to exist or a biblical battle.
The truth is that the people who are waging this war in Israel today are almost all guided exclusively by considerations of necessity and security. If a country declares the destruction of another and actively acts in this direction, as in the case of Iran toward Israel, then any preventive measures are not just a right but a necessity.
It should be noted that the war itself is absolutely supernatural in nature, when we speak of the deeds of Israel. There is no example in history where, in a few weeks of battle, one side eliminated the entire leadership of a country several times over. Iran, in response, spread rumors about Netanyahu’s death… At this moment we are pausing and can sum up the results. Not a single Israeli soldier died in the war itself. Our civilian casualties from Iranian missile strikes — twenty-three civilians. In Iran, fifteen thousand strategic and state facilities were hit. This belongs to extra-rational categories. It is no wonder that the press is unable to comprehend these simple facts and, moreover, to reveal their historiosophical meaning.
The leaders of Israel themselves live in the paradigms of security and the right to survival. At the same time, people who try to understand the meanings will see that these events are more than events.
For a deeper understanding, let us give the example of the establishment of the State of Israel in 1948. Was it a messianic phenomenon or a natural need of a persecuted people to return to their land and establish their own state? Some kind of answer to World War II, the Holocaust.
Of course, for the people who lived then, the main motive was the events that preceded the creation of the State of Israel in such manifestations as pogroms, persecution, and the Hitlerite catastrophe. That is one side. A deeper view should prompt us to open a new page of the messianic movement of all humanity.
What right do we have to say this? Those who doubt must answer the question: which book has been the foundation of spiritual enlightenment and the revelation of absolute good for the past two thousand years? And further, they are invited to open the texts of the biblical prophets, which presented the exiles of Israel and its return. These are objective categories of knowledge, not personal preferences.
This process of return is presented in the Bible as a manifestation of light and goodness, and, most importantly, the establishment of the Kingdom of God. Therefore, every person must decide for himself on which side his heart and consciousness lie.
At present, the construction of the Temple is not realistic, because we are not ready for it, and the world is not ready for it.
Is it true that some rabbis and religious Zionists are already preparing the utensils, priestly garments, and even the red heifer for ritual purification? How do you assess the practical steps toward the construction of the Third Temple?
Avigdor Eskin: Practical preparation for the Third Temple is in full swing, but the most important thing is internal preparation and spiritual evolution: the establishment of goodness, the renewal of prophecy. This has not yet happened. Therefore, in the current situation, we will not yet see the Temple in Jerusalem.
Many Orthodox Jews believe that the Temple can only be built by the Messiah. Do you share this view or do you believe that people should begin construction themselves to hasten the coming?
Avigdor Eskin: The assertion that the Temple must be built by the Messiah is weak, because it will be built by people who have knowledge of construction and architecture. And most importantly, it must be a generation that possesses the messianic spirit. The Messiah embodies spiritual correction and the establishment of the Kingdom of God. We have not yet reached this.
From the perspective of accelerating events, we must prepare for this. And first of all, prepare spiritually. We must bring to the whole world the message of the prophets, the message of the Bible, of Tradition with a capital T. The victory of good must be achieved through a message from Jerusalem. We are now carrying it on the battlefield, but that is not enough. It must be a spiritual message that penetrates souls and hearts.
The war with Iran, the strikes on Beirut, Tehran, Lebanon — what chapters of prophecy do they remind you of?
Avigdor Eskin: A careful study of the eschatological chapters of prophets such as Isaiah, Jeremiah, and Ezekiel will convey the ideas of what is happening today. To this we must add Tradition with a capital T, that is, the spirit from above that was transmitted from Adam to our days.
Yes, we can find there a direct mention of a confrontation with Persia, which will clothe itself in forms of evil not characteristic of the Persian Empire of Cyrus. And this does not mean that this empire must be destroyed; it will be reborn into an empire in the image of Cyrus, and the messianic spirit will touch it as well in the most positive sense.
What does Kabbalah say about the signs of the coming? Do you personally feel that the Messiah is already near, and what specifically should happen in the near future?
Avigdor Eskin: We are undoubtedly witnessing the messianic footsteps. What does this mean? An incredible acceleration of events. Let’s start with that. An acceleration that can be defined as absolutely super-rational and irrational. In these days, a realist can only be a person who recognizes metaphysical meanings. Everyone else is confused by such a cascade of phenomena.
We lose connection with our own time if we do not look at it with messianic eyes and metaphysical eyes. Without this, there is no understanding of the news feed today, when we do not see the main thing.
However, wars and the complete transformation of the world picture are a prelude to messianic revelation, not the Revelation itself.
This must be understood very well: the wars that Israel is now waging in a miraculous way are a sign, but they are not a spiritual goal in themselves nor a final destination. This is a prelude, not the revelation of the messianic process in its manifest universal sense. Understanding this, we begin to open our eyes to the meanings of our era.
If the Messiah comes tomorrow, what will be his first task — the political liberation of Israel, the rebuilding of the Temple, or the establishment of universal peace? And how should the Jews of the diaspora behave?
Avigdor Eskin: We can say that in Israel we are witnessing a colossal spiritual revival, a frontal strengthening of the spiritual factor. This is a society that is generally developing in a messianic direction. However, it is still far from perfection, and far not only from the form but also from the content that it must carry. Israel must shine so that the whole world will feel this light. Has this already happened? No, it has not yet happened.
Unlike our enemies, we bring to the world wonders of technology, progress in medicine, agriculture, and the preservation of culture. We are also a world power in the study of sacred texts. We have become the best on the battlefield. But this is not yet an active and conscious revelation of the light of the Messiah. We are not there yet. But the whole world is moving toward this in seven-league steps.
