We're in the middle of our analysis of the order of the berachot (blessings) in our Amidah. We left off in the middle of the section of bakasha, personal requests, with the beracha of Teka B'Shofar. The Gemara tells us that from the beracha of Teka B'Shofar up until the beracha of Modim, all the berachot pertain to the coming of Mashiach. And it's a beracha where we're supposed to be requesting the coming of Mashiach.
I was once giving a class to some boys around the table, and I threw out a question. I said, “Boys, let me ask you an honest question. When was the last time you thought of Mashiach?” One guy looked at me and said, “Rabbi, I really don't know. I don't know what I think of Mashiach. I'm not sure.” The next guy told me, “Oh, Rabbi, I think a month ago. I think a month ago I thought of Mashiach.” Then one guy raised his hand. He's the tzaddik (righteous person). He said, “Oh, Rabbi, call on me, call on me.” I said, “Yeah, yeah, yeah, Jack, when was the last time you thought of Mashiach?” He said, “Rabbi? A week ago I thought of Mashiach.” I was expecting everyone to pat him on the back. I told them, “Do you know that there are seven—now, these are people around the table who all pray in the Amidah three times a day, good kids—do you know that in the Amidah we have seven berachot from Teka B'Shofar up until Modim that all discuss the coming of Mashiach? That means you're saying over 20 berachot a day that pertain to Mashiach, which means you thought of Mashiach. A week ago, you've said over a hundred berachot that have to do with Mashiach without thinking of Mashiach.”
Now, to be honest and fair, I don't think we could really blame this person. How many people, right after they finish Barechenu and get up to Teka B'Shofar, have their minds shut off until they get to Shema Koleinu? So I think it's good that we're doing what we're doing here today: understanding the setup of these berachot. So the Gemara in Masechet Megillah says that these berachot are talking about the coming of Mashiach. These berachot are talking about the coming of Mashiach. These berachot are talking about the coming of Mashiach. These berachot are talking about the coming of Mashiach. These berachot are talking about the stages and how Mashiach is going to come.
We start with the beracha Teka B'Shofar. Hashem, you should blow the shofar (ram's horn). What's shofar? What are we talking about? It's not Rosh Hashanah. What shofar are we talking about? It's talking about the shofar that's going to be blown when Mashiach is ready to come. As the beracha ends, it says that Hashem is going to gather all the scattered people from around the world and bring them to Yerushalayim. Then it says, Hashem, you should reestablish the Beit Din (rabbinical court). The Gemara tells us: What's going to happen after Mashiach comes? The first thing is that we're going to have a reestablishment of our Beit Din. After that, the beracha says, Hashem, you should wipe out the wicked. What's going to be the first order of business for the Beit Din? After the Beit Din is reestablished, they're going to go and judge all the wicked Resha'im in the world. After the elimination of the Resha'im, what is going to happen? When the wicked are removed, the tzaddikim are going to rise and the tzaddikim are going to be recognized.
Then, once we have the tzaddikim, the beracha continues: Hashem, you should rebuild Yerushalayim, which we end with, “Baruch atah Hashem, bonei Yerushalayim (Blessed are You, Hashem, Who rebuilds Jerusalem).” After we have Yerushalayim, the Resha'im are gone, the tzaddikim are elevated, and Yerushalayim is ready, rebuilt. What happens? It says that David, which is the Mashiach, should sprout. As the beracha says, the horn of salvation should rise. Then the beracha continues: We're going to be so close to HaKadosh Baruch Hu (The Holy One, blessed be He) at this moment that when we say our tefillot (prayers), they're going to be so heard by Hashem, so close and so beloved by Hashem, that Hashem is going to want to answer all our tefillot. So Shema Koleinu is a culmination of the steps of the coming of Mashiach.
Then we say the beracha of Retzeh, which says, Hashem, you should return the korbanot (sacrifices) and ha'avodah (service) back to your house. We end with, “Baruch atah Hashem”—Hashem, you should return your Shechina (Divine Presence) back to Zion, to Yerushalayim. So the next time anyone asks a good guy who prays three times a day, “When was the last time you thought of Mashiach?” the guy should not say, “Oh, I don't know,” or, “Oh, a month ago,” or, “Oh, Rabbi, call on me, a week ago.” The answer should be, “Rabbi, I thought of Mashiach during 21 berachot that I said today.” Have a great day, everybody.