THE JEWISH ENCYCLOPEDIA
Apocalyptic Literature
successor has reigned three months, the nine months' (lomiuion of the "wicked empire" will set in for Israel; tlicn the course of events is described us before set forth under the " Apocaly pse of Zerubbiibel " and. liniilly, the picture of the future world is dniwn. After the dispersed Isnielites are cuthered to;;ether, and the eartldy Jerusalem in addition to the heathen part of its population is consumed by fire from liraven. the glorious new Jcrusaleni will descend from heaven: Israel will dwell in it for 2,000 years in perfect peace, and as in the "Apocalypse of Baruch " (xxix. 4), and IV Esdras ( vi. 52), will feast on the Behemoth and the Leviathan. At the end of this time God will descend into the vallcj" of Jehiisliaiihat to hold judgment, and heaven and earth will ilisajiiiear; the heathen will be put into hell; Israel will enter into paradise; and for a year the sinners in Israel will sntfer the tortures of hell and then be admitted to paradise. 11. The Prayer of R. Simon b. Yoljiai
I'J;Dl" n n^Sn): This ajioealypse was pubby Jellinek in "B. H." iv. 117-126, according to a manuscript of Mortara. It shows the closest relation to the preceding and begins with a similar retrospect of the Mohammedan history, but carries it on to a later date, and finally refers to events
OnV
p
lislied
which. Jelliuek observes {ih. p. 8), may be unmistakably recognized as the Crusades. Graetz thought that this apocalypse contained allusions to the inroads of the Mongols in 1258-GO, and believed that these events led directly to Its composition (I.e. vii. But this is out of the question; 139, 449 et seq.). for the passage about the appearance of deformed, swift-footed
men from
the far East,
upon which
Graetz founded his argument, occurs in the middle of the historical retrospect, and not in the description of the events immediately preceding the end. In this part of the apocalyp.se the reference is soleljto the Crusades, and could hardlj- be plainer. The point in question is a favorite one in Mention apocalyptic description, and is simply of the taken from older writings; "The Wars Crusades, of King Messiah " also contains it but in the latter the picture of the monstrosities is still more horrible and bears more resemblance to the description in the Revelation of John, ix. 13 et seq., which is the oldest example of the sort. written erroneously in one place jn'J, and in JITJ another pTi'jn the collapse of which is taken in the "Revelations of R. Simon b. Yohai" and in the "Prayer of R. Simon b. Yohai," as well as in the ajjocalypse treated below (the "Midrash of the Ten Kings" which also has the corruption jlTJ). as an ominous prognostication of the inuninent fall of the Islamic kingdom, is nothing else, as Steinschueider clearly proves (" Apocalypsen," ])p. 639, 599), than the famous eastern gate, Bfib Girun, of the Mosque
—
in
—
Damascus.
The Midrash of the Ten Kings (tmo D'37Dn mtJ'V)' This belongs to the same class as the two preceding apocalj'pses. It has been published b}^ C. M. Horowitz in "Sammlung Kleiner ]Midraschim" ("Bet 'Oked Agadot "), i. 37-.55, according to a manuscript of De Rossi's. The ajiocalypse begins with a very diffuse description of the eight kings who have already ruled the first being God the last, Alexander the Great and relates, in con12.
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nection with this subject, the destruction of the Temple bj' Titus and the Hadrianic persecution, and leads over in this way to Simon b. Yohai's hiding from the Roman emperor in a cave, and to the revelations regarding the end, which he received while there. As in the two preceding books, the different
684
Islamic rulers, beginning with Mohanuued, are described. The two rulers menlioiii-d at the beginning of ])age .")3 are beyond doubt llisham and his successor, Walid II. The references to the six following rulers are so vague that no certain conclusions can be drawn regarding their identity. The remainder of the book is taken up with prophecy of the future, in which, at first, occasional allusions to historical events seem to be intcrsi)crs(il. Here also the iirojiheiiesof the future begin with Describes the announcement of the period of nine Islamic months of iuten.sc persecution, whereRulers. ujion Armilus will reign forty daj'S. At the termination of his reign. Messiah b. .loseph will apjiear and restore the Temple in Jerusalem, and will estnblish fur Israel an ejioch of peace. At the conclusion of thisiieriod. Gog and ^lagog will march upon Jerusalem, and ^Messiah b. Joseph will fall in battleagaiust him. Three-fourths of the Isiiielites will wander into exile. God will then destroy the armies of Gog and JIagog; and Israel, including the "nine and a half tril)es, will return to Jerusalem. The rulcrshij) will recur to the house of David; Messiah b. David will rule as the ninth king over the whole world and Israel will enjoy the Ijlessings of the Messianic kingdom. At the end of 2,000 years God will Himself descend to
judgment. 13. The Persian Apocalypse of Daniel: This apocalyjise was ]iublished and translated by Zotenberg in Merx, "Archiv," i. 386-427. It also belongs to the group just treated; but at the same time it occupies, as Bousset observes {I.e. p. 69), a peculiar jiliice within the Neo-Hebrew aiiocalypse, by reason of the role which Messiah b. Josejih Jilays in it. The account, however, is not perfectly clear. First comes a very diffuse legendary narrative of the events of the time of Daniel; that is, from the appearance of the prophet Jeremiah down to the time of King Darius I., Hystaspes (n.c. 485). Then it relates how Daniel mourns and fasts because of the destruction of the Temple, and how an angel ajipears to unveil the future to him. Here follows abruptly, regardless of the thousand interwniug years, a f ransjiareut description of Mohammed and the Islamic rulers following him. In the ruler with three .sons (p. 411, 1. 12 from the bottom), as Bousset observes, Hardn al-Raschid and his three .sons are with certaintv recognizable.
Two
and then the The nine months'
further rulers are mentioned,
prophecy of the future begins.
sovereignty of Rome is predicted, and the appearance of one who is not mentioned by name, but whose description corresponds exactly with that of Armilus in the preceding ajwcalypses. The army of Gog and Magog will unite with him. and, as in "The " Prayer of R. Simon Warsof King Jlessiah "and the b. Yohai." he will claim to be the Jlessiah. He will subdue the world an<l persecute Israel. "A man of " will then appear; and the the children of Epiiraim Israelites will all gatherarouud him and to " that wicked one." and demand from
go with him him that he
lirove by miracles, particularly b_v waking the dead, that he is the Messiah. Enraged at this demand, he will persecute them anew, and the Israelites will flee before him into the wilderness. There Michael and Gabriel will appear and forthwith auDescribes nouuce to them their delivery. Then the Resur- they will kill him who claims to be the rection. Messiah and also the Messiah ben Joseph will be killed, and the flag of Messiah b. David will be raised. The latter will destroy the whole army of Gog and Magog. Then Elijah will appear; the dead will arise; and the Israelites
