The Face of a Dog

Rav Isser Zalman Meltzer of Slutzk said in the name of Rav Yisrael Salanter how to understand the statement of Chazal in Sanhedrin 97a that the generation before Moshiach has the face of a dog.

When a dog runs in front of a wagon, he looks as if he is leading the way. But the real leader is revealed at the crossroads, where the dog waits to see which way his master turns and then follows, only to run ahead again as if he were in charge.

This is a parable for the generation before Moshiach. Brazen people who try to be leaders walk in front as if they know the way, but wherever the generation actually turns, they run ahead again as if they had chosen the path, when in truth they only follow the crowd.