Editing The Third Temple (section)

== Building the Temple ==
Two opinions were stated regarding the building of the Third Temple, by whom it will be built:

According to one opinion - the Third Beis Hamikdash will be built by the Holy One, Blessed be He, Himself, and in Rashi's words: "The future Temple that we anticipate is already built and perfected, it will be revealed and will come from heaven, as it is said 'The Temple of Hashem, established by Your hands.'" For this reason, the Third Beis Hamikdash will not be destroyed, because it is the handiwork of Hashem, unlike the previous Temples which were the handiwork of man.

According to the second opinion - the Third Beis Hamikdash will be built by the Jewish people under the leadership of the King Moshiach. The Rambam ruled according to this opinion in halacha.

The Rebbe addressed this dispute several times and presented several possibilities to reconcile the opinions:

* According to the words of Chazal on the verse "Her gates sank into the ground," that during the destruction, the Temple doors sank into the ground - it is possible that the entire Temple will indeed descend from heaven, but the Jewish people under Moshiach's leadership will set up its doors, and setting up doors in a house is considered according to halacha as an act of acquisition to merit the entire house.
* According to Chazal's reconciliation of contradictory prophecies regarding redemption, there is a simple form of redemption if Israel is not worthy ("Lo zachu"), but if they are worthy ("Zachu"), the form of redemption will be more elevated and miraculous - similarly in our case, in a state of "Lo zachu" the Temple will be built by human hands, and in a state of "Zachu" it will be revealed from heaven.

In our time, the Rebbe announced that we have merited this form of redemption, and therefore without doubt the Temple will descend built and perfected from heaven. At the conclusion of the sicha, the Rebbe says that certainly the Jewish people will build the Beis Hamikdash, but in a state of "Zachu," the Temple from above will afterward be clothed in the Temple below, as per the following reconciliation.

* The Temple will be built by Israel under Moshiach's leadership, since building the Temple is a halachic obligation incumbent upon Israel; but in addition to Israel's physical building as required by halacha, the Temple that descends from above will also "clothe" itself within the physical Temple.
* According to the Rambam's words that in Yechezkel's prophecy about the building of the Third Temple there are explicit parts and parts that are not clear - Israel under Moshiach's leadership will build the known parts, and the unknown parts will be completed by Heaven.

The Rebbe also explained the reasons for both opinions according to the inner dimensions of Torah.

Rav Mordechai Eliyahu, in his conversation with the Rebbe, noted that we prefer the possibility that it will come from above, since that is faster...

In Kuntres Beis Rabbeinu SheBavel, the Rebbe writes that the Beis Hamikdash will first be revealed from heaven in Beis Rabbeinu SheBavel - 770, and only afterward will it move to Jerusalem.