Our sages pondered just such a return, a return from exile so profound it would reshape the world. This vision is beautifully captured in Shir HaShirim Rabbah, the commentary on the Song of Songs. Specifically, the eighth section.
The verse we're looking at is "Look from the peak of Amana" (Song of Songs 4:8). Rabbi Ḥunya, quoting Rabbi Yusta, sees in this a prophecy: the exiles are destined to reach Mount Amana – which some identify with Mount Hor mentioned in Numbers 34:7-8, according to the Targum Yerushalmi – and there, they will sing! A song of liberation, a song of joy.
But it gets even more interesting. According to this interpretation, the nations of the world themselves will bring the Jewish people back, like ministers escorting royalty to the messianic king. Why Amana? Because the word tashuri, "look," also suggests an offering, like the word teshura, meaning "gift," as in "We have no gift [teshura] to bring to the man" (I Samuel 9:7).
The text goes on to say, this kind of offering is fitting for the nations of the world to give to the messianic king. It's not sufficient coming from God. It's almost as if the text is saying, "Haven't I already done this before?"
To illustrate this, the text refers to the story of Ḥazael in II Kings 8:9. Ḥazael brought a massive tribute to Elisha: "Ḥazael went to meet him, taking with him as tribute all the good of Damascus, forty camel-loads." Rabbi Yehuda asks, was all the good of Damascus really a burden for forty camels? No, the point is that Ḥazael possessed gems and pearls so valuable they equaled the worth of all the good of Damascus.
If Ḥazael could bring such a gift to Elisha, imagine the gift to the messianic king! Therefore, the nations themselves will bring the Jews back.
The proof text for this is Isaiah 66:20: "They will bring all your brethren from all the nations as an offering to the Lord, with horses and with chariots and with covered wagons [uvakirkarot]." What does uvakirkarot mean? Rabbi Berekhya, quoting Rabbi Yehuda, says it's like the elders who can't ride covered wagons and are carried on sedan chairs.
Rabbi Aḥa makes a powerful point about how this return should happen, citing Psalms 96:7: "Render to the Lord, families of the peoples, [render to the Lord glory and splendor]." It’s not "Peoples, render to the Lord families," but "families of the peoples, render to the Lord glory and splendor." The return shouldn't be demeaning, but filled with honor and magnificence.
What earns this kind of treatment? Several reasons are offered. One is the merit of the song the Israelites sang at the sea after the Exodus. Rav Naḥman attributes it to the faith of Abraham, as it says, "And he believed in the Lord" (Genesis 15:6). Rabbi Ḥelbo, in the name of Rabbi Yoḥanan, connects it to the faith of Israel in Egypt, "The people believed" (Exodus 4:31), even before they saw the full extent of God's power.
It all comes down to faith, doesn't it? Faith in the promise of return, faith in the possibility of redemption. And perhaps, faith that even the nations of the world can play a part in bringing about a better future. What kind of offering will we bring to help bring about that future?