Resumption of Suspended Mitzvot

"The wrath of G‑d will be kindled against you . . . and you will perish quickly from upon the good land that G‑d gives you. And you shall set these words of Mine upon your heart and upon your soul..." (Deuteronomy 11:17-18).

"Even after you have been exiled, make yourselves distinctive with My commandments: Put on tefillin and make mezuzot, so that these will not be new to you when you return. Similarly, it is said (Jeremiah 31:20), 'Set up markers for yourself.' This is analogous to a king whose wife was sent on a faraway journey. 'Continue beautifying yourself,' he tells her, 'so that you will know how to do it properly when you return'" (Midrash).

Quantitatively, too, we then will finally be capable of performing so many mitzvot which we are unable to do todayAs we see from this Midrash, the mitzvot we do today pale in comparison to those we will perform when we will be returned to the Holy Land. In fact, to a certain extent they are merely "practice" or "keeping in shape" for the real high-quality mitzvot we will perform in the Holy Land. The Jewish nation, the Torah, and the Land of Israel constitute one indivisible whole—and the greatest of mitzvot are performed when all three are joined.1

And side for the greater quality of mitzvot performed in the Land of Israel, and specifically once all the Jews have been returned to the Land after being freed of the yoke of – physical and spiritual – exile, quantitatively, too, we then will finally be capable of performing so many mitzvot which we are unable to do today. In fact, of the 613 mitzvot that the Torah commands us, only 369 are practicable today! (See How many of the Torah's commandments are still in force? for more on this topic.)

Here are some of the mitzvot we will resume practicing with the coming of Moshiach:

• The perpetual calendar we follow today will be discontinued. With the reinstatement of the Sanhedrin (Rabbinical Supreme Court) in Jerusalem, we will once again revert to sanctifying new months and establishing leap years based on the testimony of witnesses who see the new moon and other seasonal factors (see Months for more on this subject).
• The laws of ritual purity and impurity will again become germane. Ritually impure people will be unable to enter the Holy Temple or partake of certain holy foods until they are divested of their impurity. Nine Red Heifers (See the 19th chapter of Numbers) were processed from the times of Moses through the destruction of the Second Temple. The tenth one will be processed by Moshiach. We will all avail ourselves of the ashes of this Red Heifer to purify ourselves.
• With the rebuilding of the Holy Temple, we will once again resume Temple services as mandated by the Torah.
• The laws of the Sabbatical and Jubilee years will once again be in effect. (Though today the Sabbatical year is observed in Israel, it is only by rabbinic injunction. With the coming of Moshiach, it will revert to being a Biblical obligation.)
• All agricultural laws detailed in the Torah will be resumed. This includes the tithing laws, as well as the many gifts for the poor prescribed in the Torah.