For the week ending 20 December 2003 / 25 Kislev 5764
Eretz Hachayim Land of the Living
After prophesying the utter destruction of Israels foremost enemies the Prophet Yechezkel thus promises, in the Name of Hashem, that the grandeur which was theirs will be bestowed upon Eretz Yisrael:
"I shall establish My glory in the land of the living." (Yechezkel 26:20)
Our Talmudic Sages (Mesechta Ketubot 111a) explain that Eretz Yisrael is called the "land of the living" because it will be the scene of the eventual resurrection of the dead. The remains of those buried outside of Eretz Yisrael will be transported in miraculous fashion to the "land of the living" for a return to life.
