Is the global heatwave God removing the sun from its ‘sheath’ for final judgement?
Israel, like many other regions of the world, is currently experiencing a heat wave. While global warming is the focus of political debate, Jewish sources relate that a drastic increase in solar heat is expected as the Final Redemption approaches and that it will play multiple roles in the end of days.
Israel is currently experiencing an intense and prolonged heat wave. The highest temperatures of 38°-43°C (100°-109°F) were recorded in southern Israel and the Jordan Valley. The heat even reached the heights of the government as Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was hospitalized briefly for dehydration. Vacationing in Tiberias, where temperatures reached 38 Celsius (100.4 Fahrenheit), the 73-year-old PM complained of dizziness.
“Yesterday, I spent the day with my wife in the Sea of Galilee, in the sun, without a hat, with no water,” a smiling Netanyahu shared from the hospital. “It’s not a good idea.”
The heat wave, dubbed Kleon by meteorologists, has affected the entire Mediterranean region as well as the Balkans and much of Europe. It is expected to continue into the middle of next week
More than a third of Americans were under extreme heat advisories, watches and warnings as a blistering heat wave that’s been the hottest weather of the year.
Global warming alarmists were quick to claim the weather was a permanent trend. Swedish climate activist Greta Thunberg posted on Twitter that global heat records should serve as an urgent wake-up call.
“Last week, we experienced the hottest days ever recorded, many days in a row. We are also experiencing record-high sea level temperatures and record-low ice levels. This is an emergency.”
Indeed, CNN reported that global average daily temperatures reached an unofficial record high of 17.23 degrees Celsius (63.01 degrees Fahrenheit) on Thursday. This was based on data from the US National Centers for Environmental Prediction. Before this week, the record in NCEP’s data was 16.92 degrees Celsius and was set in August 2016.
The global heat wave has special meaning for the Biblically-minded. According to Jewish tradition, Elohim is the name of God, designating His aspect revealed through nature. It is also the name of God describing his aspect of judgment. The Bible frequently describes divine retribution coming through extreme natural conditions. In Deuteronomy, Israel is warned that God’s displeasure at their sins could be expressed in extreme heat waves.
“And thy heaven that is over thy head shall be brass, and the earth that is under thee shall be iron.” Deuteronomy 28:23
In Malachi, heat waves are clearly described as a part of the process of geulah (redemption), a punishment for those who oppose God.
“Then shall ye again discern between the righteous and the wicked between him that serveth God and him that serveth Him not. For behold the day cometh it burneth as a furnace; and all the proud and all that work wickedness shall be stubble; and the day that cometh shall set them ablaze saith Hashem of hosts that it shall leave them neither root nor branch.” Malachi 3:18-19
The Bible also describes the sun as having healing properties. After self-circumcising, Abraham was sitting in front of his tent recuperating. Hashem appeared to him by the terebinths of Mamre; he was sitting at the entrance of the tent as the day grew hot. Genesis 18:1
Global warming is hinted at in Isaiah as part of a Messiah-age healing process::
“And the light of the moon shall become like the light of the sun, and the light of the sun shall become sevenfold, like the light of the seven days, when Hashem binds up His people’s wounds and heals the injuries it has suffered.” Isaiah 30:26
Conversely, the Talmud in Nedarim 8b describes a form of global warming as a punishment, literally hell on earth. Reish Lakish states: “In the future (in messianic times) there will be no Gehennom. Rather God will remove the sun from its sheath; the righteous will be cured by it, and the wicked will be judged by it.”
Global warming plays a fascinating role in differentiating between the Jews and the nations in the end of days. The Talmud (Baba Metzia 86b) explains that God removed the sun from its “sheath,” and the sun healed him. This phenomenon is described in an end of days context in the Talmud (Avoda Zara 3). The Talmud relates that when Moshiach comes, the nations of the world will complain to God, saying: “if you would have given us the opportunity to do mitzvot, then we too would have done them faithfully as the Jews did. God replies, “I will give you one mitzvah; we shall see if you can do it”. He gives them the commandment of sitting in the Sukkah. As soon as they made their Sukkot and got comfortable, God removed the sun from its sheath and made it unbearably hot, causing the people to kick the walls of the Sukkah and leave.
The Talmud questions this incident: Is there no obligation to sit in the Sukkah if it is causing one discomfort? The Talmud answers, “Yes that is correct! There is, however no excuse for kicking the walls. For that, they lost their chance at earning a reward.”
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