Can Moshiach Come From the Dead?

Yes. The Talmud teaches that Moshiach may come “from the living” or “from the dead” (Sanhedrin 98b). The Lubavitcher Rebbe, King Moshiach, taught that the tzaddikim of past generations arise first, at the very start of the Redemption, before the resurrection of the Jewish people as a whole.

What does the Talmud say about Moshiach coming from the dead?

Rav says Moshiach may be living, like Rebbi, or from the dead, like Daniel (Sanhedrin 98b).

Rav was one of the greatest students of Rabbi Yehudah HaNasi, called “Rebbi” or “our holy teacher.” Rav names two possibilities. Moshiach may be the living leader of the generation, like Rebbi. Or he may be a tzaddik who already left this world and returns, like Daniel.

All the sages agree on the starting point. G-d brings the Redemption through a human being, not an angel, and that man is a king from the House of David (Rambam, Hilchos Melachim 11:1-4). The question in the Talmud is only whether he must be alive in this world at the moment he is revealed.

Which other classic sources discuss it?

The Zohar, the Abarbanel and the Sdei Chemed all allow that Moshiach may be one who rises from the dead.

• Zohar. The Zohar on Parshas Balak discusses the possibility that Moshiach passes from the world and rises again before the Redemption.
• Abarbanel. In Yeshuos Meshicho (part 2, second Iyun, ch. 11) he cites Tractate Derech Eretz Zuta, “Nine entered the Garden of Eden alive,” Moshiach among them. He adds that it is no difficulty to say Moshiach will be among those who are resurrected, since the Talmud already said “if he is from the dead, like Daniel.”
• Sdei Chemed. Rabbi Chizkiyahu Medini (Pe’as HaSadeh, Ma’areches Alef) quotes the Abarbanel. He notes that if the Jewish people have great merit, the Redemption will be above nature, and Moshiach rising from the dead is entirely possible.

What did the Rebbe teach about the tzaddikim rising first?

The Rebbe taught that the tzaddikim arise first, before the general resurrection (Shabbos Parshas Bo 5752).

Speaking days before Yud Shvat 5752, the Rebbe said this surely applies to the Previous Rebbe, the leader of our generation. The Previous Rebbe never saw himself as a private person, so he will share this with the members of his generation. Together we will then go to Eretz Yisrael, to Jerusalem and to the Beis Hamikdash (Sichos In English, “A Lifetime Renewed”).

In another talk the Rebbe added that the righteous will rise while the Jewish people are still obligated in the mitzvos, and will keep them on the higher level of the Era of the Redemption (Sichos In English, Shabbos Parshas Vaeira 5752). The resurrection of the dead is not one event at the end. It begins with the tzaddikim.

What does the declaration Yechi HaMelech have to do with it?

The Rebbe linked Yechi HaMelech to “Arise and sing, those who dwell in the dust” (Beis Nissan 5748).

The sicha marked 68 years, the numerical value of chaim (life), since the Previous Rebbe took on the leadership (Sefer HaSichos 5748, vol. 1, pp. 350-354). The Rebbe explained that when the nation proclaims Yechi HaMelech, it adds life to the king. When editing the sicha, the Rebbe added in his own hand that the time has come for “Arise and sing, those who dwell in the dust,” the Previous Rebbe, up to and including “Arise and sing,” David, King Moshiach.

The booklet Yechi HaMelech (N’Shei Chabad, based on Rabbi Shloma Majeski) points out the difference in wording. For the Previous Rebbe the Rebbe wrote “those who dwell in the dust,” the language of techiyas hameisim. For King Moshiach he wrote only “Arise and sing.” This is why Chassidim continue the proclamation of Yechi Adoneinu at every gathering.

How do the commentators describe the redeemer’s concealment?

Rabbeinu Bechaye writes that the final redeemer will be revealed, then concealed, then revealed again (on Shemos 5:22).

The prophet says, “As in the days of your exodus from Egypt, I will show you wonders” (Michah 7:15). The final Redemption follows the pattern of the first. Moshe came with the message of redemption, and then the slavery grew harder. Our sages add that Moshe disappeared for a time, and only afterwards returned to bring the ten plagues.

Rabbeinu Bechaye applies this to the end of the exile: the redeemer is revealed, concealed and revealed again, because the final Redemption is in the image of the first. The Midrash says the same: “Just as the first redeemer was revealed and then concealed from them, so the final redeemer will be revealed to them and then concealed from them” (Ruth Rabbah 5:6).

Doesn’t the Rambam say that a Moshiach who dies cannot be Moshiach?

The Rambam rules that one who failed or was killed is not Moshiach (Hilchos Melachim 11:4); Gimmel Tammuz was neither.

The Rambam speaks of a leader whose mission collapsed, as happened with Bar Kochba. On Gimmel Tammuz (3 Tammuz 5754) the Rebbe was concealed from our eyes of flesh. The booklet Yechi HaMelech states it plainly: Gimmel Tammuz did not bring an interruption in the Rebbe’s life; there is a concealment. The Rebbe’s mission continues through his emissaries in every corner of the world.

The Rebbe himself taught how to relate to such a concealment. After Yud Shvat 5710 he wrote that the will of the Previous Rebbe is that there be no weakening in any work done before, and that every kind of service should continue and even grow (Igros Kodesh, vol. 3, pp. 237 and 327). The Rambam’s laws of Moshiach judge a redeemer by the success of his mission, and that mission is still going forward.

Does a tzaddik live on after his passing?

Yes. The Talmud teaches, “Our father Yaakov did not die” (Taanis 5b).

The Talmud explains: “Just as his descendants are alive, he is alive.” The Rebbe taught that the infinite dimension of a person’s life is revealed after his passing, because then it is plain that his life was never limited to his physical person (Sichos In English, Shabbos Parshas Vaeira 5752). The Alter Rebbe writes that a tzaddik is found in all the worlds even more than in his lifetime (Tanya, Iggeres HaKodesh 27).

The Rebbe declared many times that ours is “the last generation of the exile and the first generation of the Redemption” (for example, Shabbos Parshas Bo 5752). This is why Chassidim continue to write to the Rebbe and pray at the Ohel, and why they speak of the Rebbe in the present tense. They await the moment the Rebbe is revealed and leads the world to the Redemption, as Moshe returned to lead the Jews out of Egypt.

Our part is the one the Rebbe gave: to learn about the Redemption, add in goodness and kindness, and stand ready to greet Moshiach. The Rebbe explained who is worthy of being Moshiach in every generation, and in our generation the Rebbe is Moshiach.