Menahem ben Ammiel, or ben Amiel, is a character in apocalyptic Jewish texts, the future

Messiah ben David The Messiah in Judaism () is a savior and liberator figure in Jewish eschatology, who is believed to be the future redeemer of the Jewish people. The concept of messianism originated in Judaism, and in the Hebrew Bible a messiah is a king or H ...

of the

Sefer Zerubbabel Sefer Zerubavel ( he, ספר זרובבל), also called the Book of Zerubbabel or the Apocalypse of Zerubbabel, is a medieval Hebrew apocalypse written at the beginning of the 7th century CE in the style of biblical visions (e.g. Daniel, Ezekiel) p ...

. He fights against

Armilus Armilus ( he, ארמילוס) (also spelled Armilos and Armilius) is an anti-messiah figure in medieval Jewish eschatology who will conquer the whole Earth, centralizing in Jerusalem and persecuting the Jewish believers until his final defeat at t ...

, the Jewish apocalyptic counterpart of the Christian

Book of Revelation The Book of Revelation is the final book of the New Testament (and consequently the final book of the Christian Bible). Its title is derived from the first word of the Koine Greek text: , meaning "unveiling" or "revelation". The Book of R ...

Antichrist In Christian eschatology, the Antichrist refers to people prophesied by the Bible to oppose Jesus Christ and substitute themselves in Christ's place before the Second Coming. The term Antichrist (including one plural form) 1 John ; . 2 John . ...

. He was born during the reign of king

David David (; , "beloved one") (traditional spelling), , ''Dāwūd''; grc-koi, Δαυΐδ, Dauíd; la, Davidus, David; gez , ዳዊት, ''Dawit''; xcl, Դաւիթ, ''Dawitʿ''; cu, Давíдъ, ''Davidŭ''; possibly meaning "beloved one". w ...

. In some copies of the text he is born on the day the First Temple is destroyed. A wind carried him to the city of

Nineveh Nineveh (; akk, ; Biblical Hebrew: '; ar, نَيْنَوَىٰ '; syr, ܢܝܼܢܘܹܐ, Nīnwē) was an ancient Assyrian city of Upper Mesopotamia, located in the modern-day city of Mosul in northern Iraq. It is located on the eastern ban ...

(representing

Rome , established_title = Founded , established_date = 753 BC , founder = King Romulus (legendary) , image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg , map_caption ...

) where he remains waiting for the end days. He can be found at the “house of filth” near the market where he is imprisoned. He is presented as having a despicable, broken down image and to be in pain. His appearance is an illusion. Some have suggested that Amiel is a cipher for Hezekiah and that he is the same as

Menahem ben Hezekiah In the Babylonian Talmud Menahem ben Hezekiah was a quasi- messianic Jewish teacher born on the day the Second Temple was destroyed (AD 70). He may be the same as Menahem ben Judah; also see Menahem ben Ammiel. In the Babylonian Talmud Sanhedrin ...

Pirke De-Rabbi Eliezer Pirkei de-Rabbi Eliezer (also Pirkei DeRabbi Eliezer; Aramaic: פרקי דרבי אליעזר, or פרקים דרבי אליעזר, Chapters of Rabbi Eliezer; abbreviated PdRE) is an aggadic-midrashic work on the Torah containing exegesis and re ...

, like the Sefer Zerubbabel, refers to Menahem ben Ammiel. He is referred to as the son of Joseph. In others editions, the name Menahem son of Ammiel son of Joseph is omitted and the text simple refers to the son of David. According to the Zohar and the Sefer Zerubbabel, Menahem is the Messiah ben David.

References

{{reflist Apocalyptic literature Jewish messianism

See also

References