The Great Blessing: Fulfilled When Moshiach Comes

21a“He shall also be blessed.” The verse's intent can be explained, it seems, from the two blessings Yitzchak Avinu gave Yaakov: one when Yaakov came and brought him delicacies, and one when he fled from Esav his brother.¹ The first was the great blessing, and the second the small one. The small blessing shelters us in this world; the great blessing is kept for the time to come, and it will be fulfilled when our righteous Moshiach comes, speedily in our days.

21bThe writings of the Arizal comment on the verse “On that day Hashem will be One.”² As we know, the Name yud-hei (י״ה) is not in exile, for the outside forces, the powers of evil, draw no nourishment from it. But the Name vav-hei (ו״ה) is in exile with us, as it were, for the outside forces do draw nourishment from it.³ In the time to come, when Hashem, blessed be He, destroys the sitra achra, the “other side” opposed to holiness, and its helpers, the vav-hei will be at the level of yud-hei. This is the meaning of “On that day Hashem yihyeh, will be”: the Name Havayah will be at a level as though it were yud-hei twice, as yihyeh (יהיה) is yud-hei written twice. So far the Arizal's words, with some explanation of my own. Our verse, “He shall also be blessed,” gam baruch yihyeh, means the same: this blessing will be fulfilled in the time to come, when Hashem destroys the sitra achra and the Name Havayah stands at the level of yihyeh.⁴ One who understands will understand.