Rabbi Ovadia Yosef’s Dream of the Messiah: Details and Facts
It is known that our revered Rabbi Ovadia Yosef, of blessed memory, recounted that he once dreamed of the Messiah on Shabbat night.
According to his description, the Messiah had a long, white beard, and his face radiated a spiritual light that stretched from the heavens to the earth. Rabbi Yosef asked him why he had not yet come to redeem Israel. Here are all the details of the dream.
The First Time Rabbi Yosef Shared the Dream
Rabbi Yosef first shared this story at the engagement celebration of his grandson, Rabbi David Toledano, now a prominent scholar and former member of the “Birkat Avraham” study hall. This account is recorded in the book “Kenyan Torah of Maran” by his brother, Rabbi Ovadia Yosef Toledano. The text recounts: “During my brother’s engagement, despite his frail health, Maran attended and spoke words of Torah. Although the groom was his grandson and the bride the granddaughter of his teacher, Rabbi Ezra Attia, he did not speak about the family or marriage. With a broken voice, he recounted how he saw, in his dream, a holy Jew with a long, flowing beard standing at the gates of Jerusalem. When asked who he was, he replied that he had been sent to redeem Israel, yet had not been granted permission to do so because a million children still did not know how to say ‘Shema Yisrael.’ The dream repeated three times. Maran told him of Israel’s suffering and pleaded with him to come and redeem them, but he replied, ‘My feet remain on the ground because a million children cannot yet say Shema Yisrael.’ The engagement meal transformed into an awakening call for the public to take action, to spread the light of Torah among our lost brethren. Maran then went to the Kotel to pray about this matter, which he felt more deeply than anything else.”
Rabbi Yosef’s Public Sharing of the Dream
The same week, on Saturday night, during his regular class at the Yazdin synagogue, Rabbi Yosef publicly recounted this dream. It is
documented in the book “Maadanei HaMelech” on the topic of children’s education, where he said: “On Friday night, I dreamed that I saw the Messiah at the Kotel. The plaza was filled with people, and he told them, ‘Gentlemen, I have come now because there are a million students not learning Torah, studying in secular schools. I want all the yeshiva students to enlist and say, “Whoever is for God, follow me!” to teach them Torah.’”
In “From Maran to Maran” (p. 167), it provides a longer version: “Maran recounted: ‘I went to sleep, and in my dream, I saw the Messiah standing in front of the Western Wall. He declared that redemption had arrived, and there was peace, no more wars. The Wall was full, packed with Jews from all over Israel. I saw a man with the face of an angel, clearly the Messiah. He explained what was about to happen and said he wanted all yeshiva students to immediately begin teaching Torah to the masses. He had a special banner inscribed with “By the breath of his lips, he shall slay the wicked,” and repeatedly called out, “Whoever is for God, follow me!” I asked why the redemption was delayed, and he replied that a million children still did not know what “Shema Yisrael” was. This taught that the redemption depends on educating the children of Israel according to the path of Torah.’”
Rabbi Yosef Chaim Siman Tov, in his book “Shalhevet Yosef Chai,” also brings this story of Maran’s dream.
More Details About Rabbi Yosef’s Dream of the Messiah
Additional details were provided by Rabbi Ben Zion Mutzafi, who said that on Shabbat night, Rabbi Yosef stayed up learning. After some time, he became tired and went to bed around 2:30 a.m., where he dreamt of being at the Western Wall, which was packed with Jews from Israel and abroad. At the head of the crowd was the Messiah, with a banner stating, “The breath of his lips shall slay the wicked.” Rabbi Yosef asked him why he had not come, and the Messiah explained that the people of Israel were in distress. He urged Rabbi Yosef to convey to all yeshiva students to engage in outreach, to teach Torah to secular Jews, and to strengthen their observance.
Rabbi David Toledano, mentioned above, also added that the Messiah told Rabbi Yosef he was appointing him as an emissary to encourage the public to return to God.
After Rabbi Yosef’s Passing: A Message from the Dream
After Rabbi Yosef’s passing, Rabbi Yaakov Zamir, a member of the Supreme Rabbinical Court, dreamed of him, where Rabbi Yosef requested that he tell others that in the World of Truth, great importance is given to the fact that the children of Israel know how to recite the Shema.
The Practical Message from Rabbi Yosef’s Dream
The lesson we should take from this is the importance of enrolling children from secular homes in Torah schools to give them a Torah-based education, thereby bringing the arrival of the Messiah closer. However, it does not imply that the Messiah’s arrival will be delayed until all children know Shema. There are two possible ways for the Messiah to arrive: either through our merits, as seen in Rabbi Yosef’s dream, or at a time known only to God, which can happen at any moment. This matter is further explained in the article “When Will the Messiah Come?“