Tag Archives: Rabbi Akiva

Metatron & the Book of Enoch

What really happened to Enoch when God “took him”? Who is the mysterious angel Metatron? And why did Rabbi Elisha ben Avuya become a heretic after seeing him in Heaven? Find out in the class below, where we also compare the three Books of Enoch, discuss Azazel and the Watchers, and uncover the true identity of the Biblical “Son of Man”. Also: who was the teacher of Moses and how did Joseph know 70 languages?

For lots more on the Four Who Entered Pardes and a different interpretation of Elisha’s vision of Metatron, see here.

See also ‘Who is Metatron?’

For part one of the series on the Apocrypha, see here.

For the class on the Watchers and the Book of Jubilees, see here.

Apocrypha, Part 2: Ben Sira & Maccabees

Continuing our journey into the Apocrypha, we explore the mysterious books of Ben Sira and the Maccabees. Along the way, we uncover what really happened with King Ptolemy and the 72 Sages who produced the Septuagint, where the name of the continent “Africa” came from, the origin of the ancient holiday called Yom Nicanor, and the true identity of the first rabbi, Shimon haTzadik.

For part one of this series, see here.
For more on “When Jews and Greek were Brothers”, see here.
On the identity of Shimon haTzadik

Mashiach: Now or Never

How has the coming of Mashiach been understood throughout Jewish history? Are we long overdue for the arrival of the Messiah? How might we understand Mashiach ben Yosef, Mashiach ben David, and their adversary “Armilus”?

Find out in this class, where we also discuss whether a Jew is required to believe in the notion of a messiah, how long the Israelites really spent in ancient Egypt, and explore mysterious figures like Zerubbabel and Nehemiah ben Hushiel.

More End of Days secrets from Nistarot d’Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai here.
For a list of fulfilled prophecies, see here.
For a brief bio of the intriguing life of Abba Hillel Silver, see here.