'The Era of the Messiah Has Come’: What Netanyahu’s Remarks Mean Amid Gaza War

On September 2, 2024, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu reaffirmed his commitment to “crush the resistance in Gaza due to its Islamic doctrine aimed at destroying Israel,” assuring Israelis of their eventual victory and declaring that “the era of the Messiah will come.”

Netanyahu, appealing to the aspirations of Israelis and the American Christian Zionist movement, implied that the arrival of the awaited Messiah was imminent.

The far-right factions within Netanyahu's government believe in the coming of the Messiah, whom they see as “the final king from the line of [prophet] David, destined to establish the Kingdom of God and rebuild the Temple in place of al-Aqsa Mosque.”

Netanyahu's remarks were more religious than political, as he sought to justify prolonging the war with religious arguments, cloaked in military plans, such as his refusal to withdraw from the Philadelphi Route, which he described as “the divine path” that will save “Israel” from an “existential threat.”

This extended his portrayal of Palestinians as the children of darkness and Israelis as the children of light, while claiming that he is working to fulfill “Isaiah's prophecy” of bringing “devastation” to the land of the enemies.

Who Is the Messiah?

The Messiah (Mashiach in Hebrew) is the savior or liberator, referring to the “awaited Messiah” whom far-right groups believe to be the final king from the line of Prophet David who will “establish the last Kingdom of God,” according to Israeli newspapers.

These extremist Zionist groups, followers of what is known as the “redemptive doctrine,” believe that the current era is the “time of the awaited Messiah.”

They believe that the world must reach the brink of a major war for “the Messiah to descend and save it,” which is why they encourage the continuation and expansion of the genocidal war in Gaza, extending it to Lebanon, Iran, and beyond, believing that “this is the era of the Messiah.”

Currently, these redemptive Zionist movements are preparing for the arrival of the Messiah through Torah rituals, such as breeding red heifers to be sacrificed, using their ashes to purify Jews, and preparing the priests and temple tools needed for the temple.

Researcher in heritage studies, Ahmed el-Aktash, explains that the word “Messiah” in the Old Testament (the Torah) is derived from “Mashiach,” from the verb “mashach,” meaning “anointed with oil” (a religious ritual for appointing individuals).

He clarified, through a series of tweets, that “when the Israelites asked the Prophet Samuel to appoint a king for them, God revealed to him to anoint [with oil] a man from the tribe of Benjamin as their leader, and that man was Saul [Talut].”

The Prophet Samuel is believed to be a leader in the ancient “Kingdom of Israel,” mentioned in the Book of Samuel in the Torah, and is referenced in the Quran without being named. He was the one the Israelites asked, “Appoint for us a king, so we may fight in the way of God.”

Belief in the Messiah and the commitment to awaiting his arrival is one of the core tenets upheld by ultra-Orthodox Jews and one of the Thirteen Principles of Jewish Faith, authored by Maimonides, the great medieval Jewish rabbi.

These principles are recited daily after the morning prayer, with the twelfth principle stating, “I believe with complete faith in the coming of the Messiah, and though he may delay; nevertheless, I wait for his coming every day,” according to Hebrew for Christians.

In ancient times, the term “Mashiach” was used for the kings of “Israel,” whose heads were anointed with sacred oil during their coronation. From this, the title “HaMashiach” (the Messiah) was derived from the Hebrew verb “Mashach,” or the Arabic “Masaha,” meaning to anoint.

The term “HaMashiach” appears in Jewish history as a title for “a righteous king who will rule the world, sent by God to save the Jewish people.” Yet, despite this, they threaten war, destruction, and the eradication of “enemies,” even though the “Mashiach” is supposed to bring justice to the entire world.

A Significant Role

Rabbi Menachem Mendel Schneerson, Netanyahu's religious advisor with influence in the White House, told Netanyahu that “God had an important role for him in the future, long before he came to prominence in Israel,” according to the Israeli website By Faith, on June 15, 2024.

The rabbi reportedly told Netanyahu in a private meeting that “he would be Israel’s last Prime Minister,” and that he would be the one to hand over the scepter to the Messiah. When Netanyahu became the Israeli Occupation’s prime minister, many felt this confirmed the rabbi's prophecy.

“When the Rebbe met Netanyahu, he reminded him of his job to do something to hasten the coming of Messiah and to move forward with God’s will,” according to the Hebrew website.

The report revolves around “who told Netanyahu to prepare Israel for the Messiah, where will the Third Temple be built and what will happen to the Dome of the Rock and Al-Aqsa Mosque.”

The Chabad sect, one of the extreme Jewish groups that believes in the concept of the “Mashiach” and calls for the destruction of al-Aqsa Mosque to build the Temple in its place, also believes Netanyahu is Israeli Occupation’s last prime minister before power is handed over to the “Mashiach.”

Supporters of this sect were seen waving their flag, which bore the words “Mashiach” and “Crown,” during attacks by Zionist militias on American student protesters supporting Gaza at Columbia University.

The crown in the flag of the extremist Chabad Jewish sect, which was found building tunnels in New York in May 2024, sparking controversy, symbolizes the “coming King of Israel,” or the Messiah.

But what does Netanyahu’s adoption of the far-right Jewish rhetoric about the “imminent descent of the Messiah” mean? And does this explain his refusal to stop the war until the Messiah arrives?

Dr. Abdallah Marouf, a professor of Jerusalem Studies and former Head of Media and Public Relations at al-Aqsa Mosque, believes that Netanyahu's remarks about the Messiah are a clear declaration of his belief in the ideas of the redemptive movement.

These are the ideas that claim it is necessary to drag the world into a major war so that God is "forced" to send down the Messiah.

He emphasized that extremist religious Zionist right-wing groups, followers of the redemptive doctrine, believe that this era is “the time of the awaited Messiah.”

The Temple Construction

A study published by the left-wing Israeli newspaper Haaretz on August 29, 2024, highlighted how these extremist groups are preparing the stage for the arrival of the “Mashiach,” particularly by activating the plan to build the Temple and demolish al-Aqsa Mosque.

It emphasized that the far-right Zionists, who are currently in power in Netanyahu's government, are very serious about “rebuilding the Temple.” They are recruiting the Kohanim (priests of Aaron’s lineage in the Torah).

They are also raising red heifers and accelerating architectural plans for the Temple. “Anyone who thinks that Ben-Gvir and his cohorts want only to pray on the Temple Mount should look again [because] the big project is already underway” according to Haaretz.

The ambition to build the Third Temple has been engraved in the hearts of Jews for 2,000 years, but there was never a practical plan to execute it due to religious prohibitions stating that “Jews should not ascend to the Temple Mount,” according to the Talmud.

But now, the path is clear, as a group of Jewish extremists has reached the corridors of power in Israel, adds Haaretz.

These individuals see the Temple Mount as “an embodiment of the new Jewish national identity,” in which the religious element is deeply intertwined. They believe the failure of the secret movements to demolish al-Aqsa Mosque in the past was due to their haste, but efforts have not ceased.

Over the past two decades, a growing number of organizations have been established to promote this sacred goal, with successful attempts to unify them, such as the creation of the “Joint Forum of Temple Mount Organizations” in 2012.

There has also been “a reversal in the official position of the religious Zionist movement. Whereas in the past religious Zionism had supported the rabbinic prohibition, still in place, against visiting the Temple Mount for reasons of impurity, it now forsook this approach,” according to Haaretz.

“The result: From just a few visits in the past, 2023 saw visits and prayers by more than 50,000 Jews (according to the organization Beyadenu [In Our Hands]: Returning to the Temple Mount), all under the auspices of the government, under the leadership of National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir,” the same source said.

All of this is under the sponsorship of Netanyahu's government, led by National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir. These visits doubled during 2024 and no longer consist solely of visits but include prayers and ritual prostration.

Haaretz states that visiting the Temple Mount is one thing, but the practical preparations to build and operate a new temple are an entirely different matter. The priests who are expected to manage the Temple are preparing and training for that day.

Their garments have been sewn, musical and priestly instruments, and working tools have been crafted, strictly adhering to the detailed instructions outlined in the Torah.

The Temple building, as described by architect Yoram Ginsberg, located near the “Jewish Quarter,” will include a heating system and underground parking.

“What had been the main problem to date – finding a red heifer for immolation, whose ashes can be used to purify the Children of Israel and enable them to ascend to the Mount – is also about to be resolved. After a large number of failed attempts to breed a proper heifer, both in Israel and in the United States, a herd containing a number of such animals is currently being raised at a secret location in the Golan Heights,” as per Haaretz.

For many in the extremist movements, the era of Ben-Gvir represents a period of miracle and opportunity, as the step-by-step theory aiming to establish the Temple at any cost is now becoming practical and progressing,” according to the same source.

Dr. Abdullah Marouf described what Haaretz published as revealing that what Ben-Gvir and the leaders of the religious Zionist movement are discussing is not merely wishful thinking, but actual planning.

What was heard in the 1980s and 1990s about the preparations of extremist groups for the Temple tools, the clothing of the Temple priests, and everything related to the Temple is no longer just the dreams of extremists.

Marouf saw that the announcement by the far-right National Security Minister Ben-Gvir of his intention to build a synagogue inside al-Aqsa is part of a series of changes in the temporal and spatial status of the mosque.

He confirmed that the Zionist extremists have already begun constructing this synagogue, and that the war in Gaza, the raids in the West Bank, and the violations in Jerusalem are all part of the plan to change the overall situation in Palestine and eliminate the Palestinian resistance.