Amalek, Erev Rav, and Nega Ra are our greatest historic and present enemies. If we are willing to engage them in serious battle, these powers can be defeated .

In Tikkunei HaZohar 41b, the Rabbinic sages coined the acronym Nega Ra, "Negative (or evil) Affliction" to describe five different groupings of "Erev Rav" souls. These are:

1. Nega Ra (Negative affliction): the "Nephilim." These are they who seek lust and power.
2. Giborim, who seek to gain an honorable name for themselves, even building synagogues and donating items for the Sefer Torah, only for fame and personal honor.
3. Anakim are those who ridicule Torah scholars and sincere students.
4. Refaim refers to those who slacken off from doing kindness and charity for those who learn Torah
5. Malekim are the leaders of the nation and people of Y'israel during the exile and those who steal from poor Jews

The Nega Ra and the Erev Rav, with their significant influence over Jews and non-Jews today, are not just historical concepts but living realities. We witness their presence and actions as manifestations of the spirit of Amalek in our contemporary society.

As a dear Jewish friend once noted to me, We Jews are masters of division, but we are terrible at multiplication! As we learn from the Chofetz Chaim:

Our Sages state: "Jerusalem was only destroyed [by God] because its inhabitants limited their decisions to the [letter of the] law of Torah" (Bava Metzia30b), which seems difficult to understand because the Scripture records many sins of which that generation was guilty. Our discussion sheds light on the matter. Had the people overlooked the wrong caused them, HaShem would have forgiven them as well. However, they were absolutely unrelenting toward each other, demanding whatever they could extract according to the law — and Heaven judged them accordingly.

The Sages contrast the Nega Ra with the sons of Kayin. They explain that Kayin (i.e., Cain ben Adam) is the source of the Erev Rav evils in the world because, according to the Talmud, the Serpent that approached Chava (Eve) in the Garden of Eden placed a zuhama (a spirit of impurity) into her consciousness during their sinful dalliance (whatever it was), and this is what led to the conception of Kayin and possibly to his murder of Hevel (Abel)! This Rabbinic understanding may be the origin of Augustine's "Original Sin" doctrine held by some, but there are key differences. Although the Rabbis had yet to write down the Talmud, observant first-century Jews like the Apostle Paul, a self-acclaimed student of the great Rabbi Gamliel, would have known the doctrine through the Oral Traditions.

Adam and Chavah had two sons named Kayin and Hevel. Hevel was, for the most part, righteous. Kayin was severely afflicted by the zuhama (the spirit of impurity) he inherited from Chavah and the Serpent. HaShem warned Kayin to make teshuvah according to Genesis 4:7: "If you repent, good, and if not, you are opening the door to sin." But he refused. Kayin, therefore, is an example of the Nega Ra impulse to mix (erev rav) good and evil. Likewise, regardless of which of the five elements they manifest, the Erev Rav always seeks to turn Righteousness into Unrighteousness, Positive into Negative, and Unity into Division.

In the evening following Shabbat Teshuvah, 5570 (1809), Rebbe Nachman's talmidim discussed the coming of the Messiah. Many hoped Rebbe Nachman might be him. Some felt certain he was and that the Messianic Reign would begin that year. But Rebbe Nachman disagreed. He explained that in the days when the Messiah comes, most people will not concern themselves with matters of faith. He foretold the coming of Great Atheism in that generation. He said, "Although many tzaddikim [or righteous people] will still be around at that time who will be crying out loudly until they become hoarse about emunah [real faith] as I am today, it will not help." But, he explained, the voice of the Nega Ra will be powerful and influential in those days. He said this to underscore the urgency and importance of his message for the final generation of the Olam Hazeh as those with emunah resist the future Erev Rav.

The toxic root of Erev Rav is often referred to as Amalek. The Chazal explain that the two sons of Bilaam typify the leaders of the Erev Rav. Amalek is referred to as reishis goyim, the "first" nation, indicating that they were the first of the nations to wage war against the Jewish people [after we became a nation].

According to the Tanach, Amalek was the son of Eliphaz, the son of Esau, the ancestor of the Edomites, and the brother of our father Ya'akov and Eliphaz's concubine Timna, as is known. Timna was a Horite and sister of Lotan. According to a midrash, Timna was a Gentile princess who wanted to convert to Judaism, but Avraham, Yitzhak, and Ya'akov all rejected her conversion for unclear reasons. She replied that she would rather be a handmaiden to the dregs of Israel (a not-so-subtle insult to our Patriarchs) than be the mistress of a nation. I've witnessed such anger among well-meaning Gentiles who various rabbis have rejected. Some of them have become enemies of our people due to such rejection. Doubtless, our Patriarchs had good reason to deny Timna, but the Erev Rav today pushes far too many truth-seekers away to our shared shame.

In her anger at being rejected and wanting to punish the Patriarchs for their rejection of her, Timna gave birth to Amalek (by the power of the Nephilim), whose descendants have caused Israel so much distress and whose name has come to represent anti-Semitism and pro-Nephilim views to our days. We see these pro-Nephilim negative views among the Nega Ra to this day.

Another common use of these terms is found among the non-Israelites who left Egypt with us. Scripture calls them "a mixed multitude or an erev rav: "erev" meaning mixed and "rav" meaning great. Some of our teachers claim that the Golden Calf was created by these Gentiles who caused and fomented the first rebellion against Moshe, but Moshe gives us no justification for this claim in the Torah. Aaron created the image, not the Gentile erev rav. Scripture is clear that at various points during the Exodus, the Israelites wanted to give up and return to Egypt. In any case, the Egyptians during this period may be divided into thirds:

1. One group of Egyptians wanted to keep the Israelites as slaves. These people all died in the plagues.
2. A second group supported Israel's demand for liberation and rose in revolt against Pharaoh's policies. These people gave the Israelites gold, silver, and jewels as they prepared to leave.
3. The third group was the erev rav. They celebrated the first Pesach with Israel and then left Egypt with them. Most of them assimilated and became Israelites.

However these terms are applied, the power behind all erev ravim comes through the use of ta'aruvot (unholy mixtures) to bring in ra: diverse forms of negativity, evil, spiritual darkness, division, and strife. This divisive power comes with the hypocrisy of mixing truth with falsehood and assimilating with other gods for unholy purposes. Those infected demand that others adhere to their laws to the last letter while practicing all manner of wickedness while presenting themselves as holy. As explained by the Choftez Chaim, such sin caused the Second Temple's destruction. How blasphemous it is for those holding such Nega Ra prejudices and "letter-of-the-law" demands to declare, "We want Mashiach Now!" when such hypocrisies had such devastating results in the first century! Will we never learn?

These terms, Amalek, Erev Rav, and Nega Ra, are perhaps the most complicated and deep matters of the Torah. Humanity has battled against or succumbed to these traits since Nimrod and Semiraimus established the Ziggurat of Babel and promised human divinity through Paganism. Even before that, they have been active since the Nephilim entered human affairs (Genesis 6:1-4). Like those who came before us, GOD is calling us to resist the ways of Amalek, the Great Reset to Paganism, and to help defeat the Nephilim once and for all.

* © Rabbi Shlomo Nachman, © August 11, 2024)



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