When the final redemption comes, God will redeem Israel from one place only: Zion. Not from the desert, not from the waters, not from any place of exile — from the Temple Mount. "From Zion, perfection of beauty, God shines forth" (Psalm 50:2). The center of creation, the navel of the world, the stone from which God began building outward — that is where it ends.
The rabbis grounded this in Zechariah's vision of the Day of the Lord: "And His feet shall stand on that day upon the Mount of Olives" (Zechariah 14:4). The redemption is physical. The feet stand on a real mountain. The geography of salvation is not metaphorical. Jerusalem is the city where the final act is located — which is why exile from it is so devastating, and return to it is so longed for.
Aggadat Bereshit reads the Psalms of Ascent through this lens: "I will lift up my eyes to the mountains; from where does my help come? My help comes from the Lord, the Maker of heaven and earth" (Psalm 121:1-2). The mountains toward which Israel lifts its eyes are the mountains of Zion. The help comes from there not because the mountains have power but because God has made them the location of his promise. Every Jewish prayer that faces Jerusalem, every pilgrimage that ascends the Temple Mount, is an act of orientation toward the place where, the rabbis believed, the story would one day be completed.
Chapter (52) 53: Prophets [1] "She vowed a vow and said, etc." (1 Samuel 1:11). "Gilead is mine, etc." (Psalm 60:9). Rabbi Berachiah said: There are four opinions. One says there is no resurrection of the dead. The Holy One, blessed be He, said to him, "Behold, Elijah, who revived the dead man from Gilead" (1 Kings 17:1), will come and testify before me. "Gilead is mine" (Psalm 60:9). And one says that the Holy One, blessed be He, does not accept repentance. The Holy One, blessed be He, said to him, "Behold, Manasseh, who angered me so much, who committed so many sins, and yet I accepted him when he repented. He will come and testify before me." "Woe to me because of Manasseh!" And one says that the Holy One, blessed be He, does not save from the fire. The Holy One, blessed be He, said to him, "Behold, Hananiah and his companions were saved from the fiery furnace that was in Judah" (Daniel 1:6) [Edit. also Daniel 3:20]. "Hoy Yehudah Mechokekai" means "Judah, you are the lawmakers." And one saying goes, "A barren woman does not give birth." God said, "Let Elkanah from Mount Ephraim come, and he will testify about his wife who was barren and gave birth," as it says, "There was a certain man from Ramathaim-zophim in the hill country of Ephraim" (1 Samuel 1:1). "Hoy Ephraim Me'oz Roshi" means "Ephraim, you are the strength of my head." [2] Another interpretation: "And she vowed a vow and said..." (1 Samuel 1:11). This is in reference to "And the Lord God, Lord is remembered" (Hosea 12:6) [tzevaot - Armies, war etc.] the Hosts , Lord God Hosts [edit. YHVH elohiy Tzevaot]" (Amos 3:13), indicating that God brings about our glory both in the heavenly hosts and the earthly hosts. How does He bring about our glory in the earthly hosts? As it says, "He who calls the waters of the sea and pours them out upon the face of the earth" (Amos 9:6). And how does He bring about our glory in the heavenly hosts? As it says, "The stars in their courses fought against Sisera" (Judges 5:20). Hannah said [to God], "If you grant me children from the armies below, as you have promised, then I will be blessed among all nations, and there shall be no barrenness in me" (Deuteronomy 7:14). But if it is from the armies above that I seek, then make me a sign that I may be established as they are, with life and continuity. Therefore it is said, "The Lord of hosts." [3] Another interpretation: And she vowed a vow, and said, "If you will see me, then you will see that I am barren, and Zion is barren, as it is said, "Sing, O barren one" (Isaiah 54:1). If you see me, then you will also see Zion, and remember me, for me, and do not forget your truth, for Zion. There are seven barren ones corresponding to the seven days of creation. The first is Sarah, as it is written, "And Sarai was barren" (Genesis 11:30), corresponding to the first day. And what was created on the first day? Heaven and Earth, which belong to this purchase by the Holy One, blessed be He, as it is said, "Blessed is Avram to G-d on High, Possessor of heaven and earth" [Rashi: having acquired them by creating them] (Genesis 14:19). The second is Rebecca, as it is said, "And Isaac entreated the Lord for his wife, because she was barren" (Genesis 25:21), corresponding to the second day. And what was created on the second day? The firmament, as it is said, "Let there be a firmament in the midst of the waters, and let it separate between water and water" (Genesis 1:6). Rebecca also gave birth to two sons, Jacob and Esau, as it is said, "And I will separate you from the peoples" (Leviticus 20:26). The third is Leah, as it is said, "And the Lord saw that Leah was hated, and He opened her womb" (Genesis 29:31), corresponding to the third day. And what was created on the third day? Vegetation, as it is said, "Let the earth sprout vegetation" (Genesis 1:11). And Reuben, the son of Leah, built, as it is said, "And Reuben went in the days of the wheat harvest" (Genesis 30:14). The fourth is Rachel, corresponding to the fourth day. And what was created on the fourth day? The sun, moon, stars, and constellations, as it is said, "And God said, 'Let there be lights'" (Genesis 1:14). And Joseph, the son of Rachel, stood as her offspring, and they bowed down to him, as it is said, "And behold, the sun, the moon, and eleven stars were bowing down to me" (Genesis 37:9). The fifth corresponds to Thursday, and what was created on Thursday? Birds that fly in the air (Genesis 1:20). And so was Samuel, the son of Hannah, like a bird flying from place to place and from country to country, and eventually returning to his nest. And so was Samuel involved in the affairs of Israel, going to all places, as it is said, "And he used to go yearly on circuit to Bethel and Gilgal and Mizpah, and he judged Israel in all these places" And his return was to Ramah, for there was his home. (1 Samuel 7:16-17) The sixth corresponds to the Hazzelelponith, the mother of Samson, as it is written: "And their sister (Hazzelelponith) [Hazzelelponi]"(1 Chronicles 4:3) . What was created on the sixth day? Man, and what happened to man? He died by the hand of his wife, as it is written: "And to Adam He said... for from the tree... you shall surely die" (Genesis 3:17), and Samson, too, died at the hands of his wife, as it is written: "And he loved a woman in the valley of Sorek, and her name was Delilah" (Judges 16:4). The Philistines seized him and gouged out his eyes (Judges 16:21). The seventh corresponds to Zion, as it is written: "And on the seventh day He rested" (Exodus 20:11). And Zion is my resting place forever (Psalm 132:14). Therefore, Isaiah said: "Sing, O barren one, you who did not bear" (Isaiah 54:1).
