5 Things You Can Do Today to Help Bring the Redemption Closer

For thousands of years, the Jewish people have longed for redemption. We pray for it every day, asking God to "Return in mercy to Jerusalem, Your city," "Speedily cause the offspring of David, Your servant, to flourish," and "May our eyes behold Your return to Zion in mercy."

On Tisha B'Av, the national day of mourning for the destruction of the Holy Temples, many people ask themselves: Is there anything I can do today to help bring the redemption closer?

The Sages answer with a resounding yes. Jewish tradition teaches that every individual has the ability to participate in hastening the redemption.

Following are several practical ways we can do so.

1. Never Become Comfortable Without the Holy Temple

The Midrash (Yalkut Shimoni, Eichah 997) relates that at the time of the destruction, Isaac asked God whether there was still hope for his descendants. God replied: "Do not say such a thing. There is a generation that longs for My kingdom, and they are immediately redeemed."

From this we learn that longing for redemption is itself a force that brings redemption closer.

The Maharal explains this profound idea: "The Holy One, blessed be He, Himself waits to redeem Israel, for then the world will reach its perfection. Since He desires the perfection of the world, He awaits the redemption... He arranged all of creation according to its proper order, and exile is a disruption of that order. Therefore He longs for redemption to remove exile. How much more so should a person living in exile long for redemption with all his heart." (Netzach Yisrael, Chapter 31)

We should never become accustomed to the absence of the Holy Temple or accept exile as the natural state of the world.

2. Truly Anticipate Salvation

The Talmud teaches that one of the questions every person will be asked after life is: "Did you anticipate the redemption?" (Shabbat 31a)

This shows that waiting for redemption is not merely an inspiring idea. It is a spiritual responsibility.

Likewise, the Talmud states: "Whoever mourns for Jerusalem will merit seeing her consolation."
(Taanit 30b)

The Midrash (Pesikta Rabbati, Chapter 34) adds another remarkable promise: "It is My oath that everyone who waited for My kingdom, I Myself will testify on his behalf for good."

Faith is essential, but Judaism calls for something even deeper: actively expecting God's salvation and living with hope that it will come.

3. Do Not Lose Hope Because of the Long Wait

Although redemption has been delayed, it will certainly come. In fact, God Himself revealed that there would be a period of waiting.

The prophet Habakkuk writes: "Though it may tarry, wait for it, for it will surely come and will not fail." (Habakkuk 2:3)

The Sages explain that this verse does not express uncertainty. On the contrary, we are expected to wait with the confidence of someone who knows that a precious gift is on its way, even if the exact moment of its arrival remains unknown.

4. Pray for the Three Things We Lost

Longing and waiting are themselves part of the process that leads to redemption. God wants us to ask, to yearn, and to feel the absence of what has been lost: the Kingdom of Heaven, the Davidic monarchy, and the Holy Temple.

The prophet Hosea foretold this process: "For many days the children of Israel shall remain without king, without prince, and without sacrifice... Afterwards the children of Israel shall return and seek the Lord their God and David their king. They shall come in awe to the Lord and to His goodness in the end of days." (Hosea 3:4-5)

The Jewish people would spend a long period without their complete national and spiritual reality, but eventually they would return and seek God, the Davidic kingdom, and the restoration of the Temple.

Rashi, quoting the Sages, explains that Israel rejected three things during the days of Rehoboam: the Kingdom of Heaven, the kingdom of the House of David, and the Holy Temple. Rabbi Shimon ben Menasya therefore taught that Israel will not see complete redemption until they sincerely seek all three once again.

Our prayers should therefore include a longing for God's kingship, the restoration of the House of David, and the rebuilding of the Holy Temple.

5. Live as Though Redemption Could Come Today

The Talmud and Maimonides (Laws of Nazir 4:11) rule that if someone declares, "I will become a nazir on the day the son of David arrives," he must refrain from drinking wine forever because every day is considered a possible day for the coming of Mashiach.

This principle is reflected in one of Maimonides' Thirteen Principles of Faith, recited daily in many prayer books: "I believe with complete faith in the coming of Mashiach, and although he may delay, nevertheless I await his coming every single day."

Believing in Mashiach is not enough. We are called to renew that expectation every day.

A Daily Checklist for Bringing Redemption Closer

• Pray with sincerity for Jerusalem and the rebuilding of the Holy Temple.

• Remember that the world is still waiting for its complete repair, and never become comfortable with exile.

• Truly anticipate redemption, not merely believe that it will come.

• Deepen your relationship with God through Torah study, prayer, and mitzvot.

• Pray for the three things the Sages identified: the Kingdom of Heaven, the House of David, and the Holy Temple.

• Speak about redemption and strengthen the hope for it in your own heart and in the hearts of others.

• Hold firmly to faith even when redemption seems delayed, trusting that God's promise will certainly be fulfilled.

• Strengthen love and unity among the Jewish people, repairing the divisions that contributed to the destruction.

• Live each day with the awareness that redemption could come today.

• Turn your longing into one concrete action every day.