225. Olam HaBa vs. The Messianic Era
Teshuvah 9:1
We have established that the reward for following the path set by God is life in the Next World as per Deuteronomy 22:7, “So that it will be good for you and you will extend your life.” We have also seen that evil people are punished with kareis (spiritual excision), as per Numbers 15:31, “This soul will be utterly cut off; his sin will be upon him.” This being the case, what are we to make of statements found throughout the Torah like, “If you observe the Torah, you will earn the following benefits” and “If you do not observe the Torah, the following punishments will be brought upon you?” All of these promises refer to things in the physical world: abundance or famine, war or peace, conquering or being conquered, settling in the land or being exiled, success or failure, and all the other things mentioned.
All of these promises are true. They have been fulfilled in the past and will be fulfilled again in the future. When we fulfill the mitzvos, we merit all the benefits of this world; when we violate the mitzvos, we earn the evils described. Nevertheless, those rewards are not the true reward for performing mitzvos, nor are those punishments the real price to be paid for violating the mitzvos.
It’s like this: God gave us the Torah, which is the tree of life. Whoever fulfills what is in the Torah and internalizes it properly will earn life in the Next World to a degree commensurate with his achievements. If we fulfill the Torah with joy and constantly meditate on its wisdom, God will remove the things that impede our efforts, like illness, war and famine. He will also grant us all the good things that facilitate observing the Torah, including abundance, peace, and wealth. This is so we should not have to occupy ourselves in mundane matters. Rather, we will be free to study God’s wisdom and perform his mitzvos, earning life in the Next World. We see this in the Torah when Deuteronomy 6:25 says, “It will be righteousness to us if we take care to perform (the laws of the Torah).”
Likewise, the Torah warns about abandoning God’s way and occupying ourselves with empty things until “Jeshurun (i.e., Israel) became fat and rebelled” (Deuteronomy 32:15). God will then remove the benefits of this world that enabled that rebellion. He will also bring upon the rebels all the evils that will prevent them from earning life in the Next World so that they will be destroyed. Deuteronomy 28:47-48 says, “Because you did not serve God... you will serve your enemies, whom God will send against you.”
Therefore, if we serve God, He will grant blessings and remove curses in order to facilitate us doing things that help us earn life in the Next World. We will subsequently enjoy a good life in this world that leads us to life in the Next World. But if we abandon God in favor of the pleasures of this world, He will bring the curses upon us and remove the blessings until we are unable to do the things necessary to earn life in the Next World. A person in this situation loses two worlds because one who is occupied with sickness, war and hunger in this world cannot involve himself with the things necessary to earn life in the Next World.
Teshuvah 9:2
This is why we have yearned so strongly for the messianic era - so that we can rest from oppression that impedes our ability to study the Torah and perform the mitzvos. With rest from our current burdens, we will be able to increase our knowledge and earn life in the Next World. In messianic times, knowledge, wisdom and truth will be abundant as per Isaiah 11:9, “The earth will be full of the knowledge of God.” Jeremiah 31:33 says, “A person will no longer need to teach his neighbor, nor a person his brother...because all will already know Me.” Ezekiel 36:26 says, “I will remove the heart of stone from your body and give you a heart of flesh.” All this is because of the king who will arise from the Davidic dynasty, who will be even wiser than Solomon and nearly as great a prophet as Moses. He will teach the nation and lead them in the path of God.
All the other nations will come to hear him as per Isaiah 2:2, “It will come to pass in future days that the mountain of God's house will be established on the top of the mountains...and all the nations will stream towards it.”
As great as this is, the true reward and the ultimate goodness is life in the Next World. The messianic era is still part of this world, and the world will continue in its normal way except that the Jews will no longer be subjugated. The Sages already said, “There is no difference between the current era and the messianic era except for the lack of subjugation by other nations” (Talmud Brachos 34b).