Pereh
Adam - The Final Exile and the Battle that Ends History 

Last Friday, just after sunrise minyan at the
Kotel, I was talking with friends when one of the guys from New York spotted me
and gave me a huge hug proclaiming loudly, “Rabbi Bibi, one of my favorite
rabbis, they miss you in Miami.”  

At that moment, a soldier with his machine gun observing
walked over: “Are you Bibi from New York — the one involved with the helmets
and vests?” 

Before I could answer, someone else said, “Yes,
that’s him.” 

The soldier gave me a long hug.

No words. Just a hug. 

Those moments at the Kotel are hard to explain
— the raw mixture of danger, holiness, exhaustion, and gratitude. 

As I walked toward the plaza to record a class,
a young man from America approached me. 

“Rabbi… what exile are we in right now?”
“I know Egypt, Babylonia, Greece, Rome… but what is this?” 

I immediately thought of something my rabbi, Rabbi
Asher Abittan זצ״ל, taught me over twenty-five years ago. 

He said: “The four exiles listed by Daniel are
not the end of history.

The Mekubalim speak of a fifth exile — the exile of Yishma’el.” 

Unlike the previous exiles — symbolized by animals
— this one is represented by a person. 

A dangerous person. 

A wild human. “Ve-hu yih’yeh pereh adam” “He will be a
wild man.” 

Rabbi Abittan added: “When a wild animal
realizes it is cornered — it becomes the most dangerous.” That is what we
are witnessing. 

Ma’aseh Avot, Siman Labanim - The actions of
the fathers shape the destiny of the children. 

The Midrash teaches that when Avraham walked
into Eretz Canaan, every step left a spiritual imprint.

History follows those footprints. 

Rabbenu Beḥaye (Bereshit 21) writes: “There is
no nation that hates Israel more than the children of Yishma’el.” 

How did that hatred begin? 

1. S̱arah afflicts Hagar וַתְּעַנֶּהָ
שָׂרַי — “Sarai afflicted her.” 

Ramban explains: S̱arah sinned in afflicting
Hagar, and Avraham erred by permitting it.

Therefore, Hagar’s offspring will afflict S̱arah’s descendants.  

Not revenge.

Consequence. 

Pain leaves a scar on history. 

2. Avraham blesses Yishma’el 

When Hashem promises Avraham a son through
S̱arah, Avraham responds: Lu Yishma’el yiḥyeh lefanekha — “Would that
Yishma’el live before You.”

Rav Eliyahu Svei זצ״ל, quoting Rav Mendel Kaplan זצ״ל, cites the Zohar: Avraham’s
words gave Yishma’el spiritual power until the end of days. 

3. The Brts Milah at age 13 

The Zohar HaKadosh states: “Woe to the world
that Yishma’el received Milah.” 

Yes — he has a covenant. But it is incomplete —
only skin deep. 

Rabbi Frand explains: Our bris is on day eight
— before ego, before identity, before pride.

Theirs is chosen, not commanded. 

Because of this partial holiness:  

• Yishma’el
  has temporary rights in Eretz Yisrael. 
• But
  not eternal ones. 

We may say it this way: 

Yishma’el holds a visa.

Yitzḥak holds the deed. 

The Gemara (Sanhedrin) describes a gentile
acting with insane cruelty. 

Rav Ashi comments: “This is not hatred. This is
madness.” 

Rav Chaim Vital (Sha’ar HaPesukim) writes: “The
exile of Yishma’el is worse than all others because Yishma’el is called adam
— a human — yet behaves like a wild animal.” 

He cites Tehillim 124:2: “Lulei Hashem… bekum
aleinu adam.” “If not for Hashem… when a man rose against us.” Rav Chaim
Vital says: That “adam” is Yishma’el — the pereh adam. 

The other exiles — described in Daniel — are
animals:  

• Lion
  — Babylonia 
• Bear
  — Persia 
• Leopard
  — Greece 
• Terrifying
  beast — Rome/Edom 

  

But Yishma’el? 

A human with the instincts of a wild beast. 

Animals do not:  

• Strap
  bombs to themselves. 
• Use
  their own children as shields. 
• Livestream
  murder. 

That is פֶּרֶא אָדָם. 

Rabbi Abittan זצ״ל told us: “When the wild
animal senses the end — that is when it becomes the most violent.” 

In the year 2000, something historic happened. 

Pope John Paul II visited Jerusalem. From the
Kotel plaza, in front of the world, he called the Jewish people: “Our older
brothers.” 

Rabbi Abittan said: “That was the moment the
exile of Edom began to end.” 

Soon after — during the High Holidays of 2000 —
the Intifada exploded. The era of Yishma’el began. 

Not political.

Not territorial. 

Biblical. 

Almost 2000 years ago, Midrash Pirkei
deRabbi Eliezer tells us: Avraham visits Yishma’el’s home.

Yishma’el’s wife gives him water contaminated with worms — kindness used as
cruelty. 

Avraham tells Yishma’el: “Change the threshold
of your house.” (Meaning: change your home — or change your destiny.) 

The Midrash concludes: “In the end of days, the
children of Yishma’el will rule the land for a time, to provoke Israel to
return to their Father in Heaven.” 

In other words: Their rise is designed to wake
us up. 

The Zohar (II:32a) adds: Yishma’el has brit
milah — but not the brit of day eight. Therefore, his rule is temporary. 

Yishma’el rises…  

• not
  to win, 
• but
  to reveal, 
• to
  expose, 
• to
  force us back to Hashem. 

The end of Yishma’el is not when they fall — It’s
when we wake up. 

  

  

  

We Are Seeing Today  

• Suicide
  bombers 
• Human
  shields 
• Killing
  children for “honor” 

That is not politics. 

That is exactly what the Torah predicted: פֶּרֶא
אָדָם — a wild man. Even the Hebrew teaches this. In Hebrew grammar, the
noun comes first: 

פֶּרֶא אָדָם
Pereh adam — “animal-human,”

not adam pereh — “human-animal.” 

The animal is primary.

The humanity is secondary — buried. 

And yet, the verse continues: “Al penei kol
eḥav yishkon” “He will dwell opposite all his brothers.” 

Opposite.

Never together.

Never permanent. 

Rome/Edom collapses when the world admits we
are the older brother.  

Yishma’el collapses when we remember Who our
Father is. 

They cry, “Allahu akbar.”

We answer, “Shema Yisrael…” 

And the world will know the difference. 

Rav Chaim Vital said: “If not for Hashem, they
would swallow us alive.” (Tehillim 124) 

If we cling to Hashem — no פֶּרֶא אָדָם can
touch us. 

History is not happening to us. 

History is happening for us.** 

We are not watching the world fall apart. 

We are watching it fall into place. 

I believe — deeply — 

We are the last generation of Galut

and the first generation of Geulah. 

Shabbat Shalom. 

David Bibi