Sunday marks the Seventeenth of Tammuz, a Jewish fast day commemorating the breach of the walls of Jerusalem before the destruction of the Second Temple in 70 CE.. It marks the beginning of The Three Weeks, also known as Bein haMetzarim (between the narrow places), a mourning period leading up to Tisha B’Av, the ninth of Av, the day on which both Jewish Temples were destroyed. The day also traditionally commemorates the destruction of the two tablets of the Ten Commandments and other historical calamities that befell the Jewish people on the same date.

The fast of Tammuz, according to Rabbi Akiva’s interpretation, is the fast mentioned in the Book of Zechariah as “the fast of the fourth [month]” (Zechariah 8:19).

According to tradition, the Jewish Messiah will be born on the ninth of Av. The laws pertaining to fast days that were established after the destruction of Solomon’s Temple state that these days were celebrated as joyous holidays during the construction of the Second Temple and will be celebrated again in the Messianic era when the Third and final Temple will be built. Judaism emphasizes that within the sadness of Tisha B’Av are planted the seeds of joy that will appear in the Messianic era, as described by the Prophet Zechariah.

But Judaism emphasizes that within the sadness of these days of austerity and mourning are planted the seeds of joy that will appear in the Messianic era, as described by the Prophet Zechariah.

Thus said God of Hosts: The fast of the fourth month, the fast of the fifth month, the fast of the seventh month, and the fast of the tenth month shall become occasions for joy and gladness, happy festivals for the House of Yehuda; but you must love honesty and integrity. Zechariah 8:19

This was expressed by Rabbi Eliyahu ben Shlomo Zalman, the leading Torah scholar of the 18th century known as the Vilna Gaon,in a book about the final redemption called Kol HaTor (Voice of the turtle dove).

“Know in advance: every crisis leads to salvation, which comes from suffering,” the Gaon stated. “The Land of Israel is acquired through hardship, but in that way it is fully acquired… We must never retreat due to hardship. Be assured: from the narrow straits, Jacob will be saved; from the depths, we will reach broad expanses.”

Rabbi Yoel Schwartz,  one of the most respected Torah scholars of this generation, a prolific writer, winner of the Moskowitz Prize for Zionism, and a member of the nascent Sanhedrin until he passed away in 2022, noted that one of the catalysts that may bring about this end-of-days change might be Christians joining the Jewish people in mourning the loss of the Temple in Jerusalem. He noted that we are clearly in the days before the Messiah as described by Zechariah in that chapter.

Thus said God of Hosts: There shall yet be old men and women in the squares of Yerushalayim, each with staff in hand because of their great age. And the squares of the city shall be crowded with boys and girls playing in the squares. Zechariah 8:4-5

“If you don’t believe this prophecy can happen, has in fact already come about, I suggest you take a bus around Jerusalem,” Rabbi Schwartz said to Israel365 News. He said that it might now be forbidden for Jews to fast on the Ninth of Av. The rabbi cited the Talmud (Tractate Rosh Hashanna 18b) “When the Jews are free and living in their land, it is forbidden to fast.”

Some have suggested that the darkness of the Holocaust preceded the dawn of redemption revealed by the creation of the State of Israel. Indeed, the horrors of Oct. 7th and the ongoing war have been a period of difficulty and darkness for Israel. But there have also been the sparks of redemption being revealed. While antisemitism is rising to levels never seen before, many from the nations have woken up to their love of Israel. The red heifers are in Shiloh and just last week a test run was held in which an actual red heifer (albeit one that been disqualified) was burned. Record numbers of Jews are ascending to our holiest site; the  Temple Mount. More and more Israelis are waking up to the need for the Third Temple, may it be built quickly and in our time.