Again, the Targum on Ruth i. 1 speaks of the Messiah; and again on Ruth iii. 15 paraphrases the six measures of barley as referring to six righteous ones, of which the last was the Messiah, and who were each to have six special blessings.
Ruth iv. 18. The Messiah is called the son of Pharez,' who restores what had been lost to humanity through the fall of Adam. See our remarks on Gen. ii. 4.
The Messianic interpretation of Ruth iv. 20 has already been given under Gen. iv. 25.
1 Sam. ii. 10. The latter clause of this promise is understood by the Targum (and also is some of the Medrashim) as applying to the Kingdom of the Messiah.
2 Sam. xxii. 28. In a Talmudic passage (Sanh. 98 a, line 19, &c., from the bottom), which contains many references to the coming of the Messiah, His advent is predicted in connection with this passage.
2 Sam. xxiii. 1 is applied by the Targum to the prophecy of David concerning the latter Messianic days.
2 Sam. xxiii. 3. The ruling in the fear of God' is referred in the Targum to the future raising up of the Messiah.
In 2 Sam. xxiii. 4 the morning light at sunrise is explained in the Midrash on the passage (par. 29, ed. Lemberg, p, 56 b, lines 7-9 from the top), as applying to the appearance of the Messiah.
The expression, 1 Kings iv. 33, that Solomon spoke of trees, is referred in theTargum to his prophecy concerning kings that were to reign in this age, and in that of the Messiah.
On the name Anani,' in 1 Chr. iii. 24, the Targum remarks that this is the Messiah, the interpretation being that the word anani is connected with the word similarly written (not punctuated) in Deut. vii. 13, and there translated clouds,' of which the explanation is given in Tanchuma (Par. Toledoth 14, p. 27 b).
Ps. ii. as might be expected, is treated as full of Messianic references. To begin with, Ps. ii. 1 is applied to the wars of Gog and Magog in the Talmud (Berach. 7 b and Abhod. Zarah 3 b), and also in the Midrash on Ps. ii. Similarly, verse 2 is applied to the Messiah in Abhod. Zach, u. s., in the Midrash on Ps. xcii. 11 (ed. Warsh. p. 70 b, line 8 from the top); in Pirqué de R. Eliez. c. 28 (ed. Lemberg, p. 33 b, line 9 from top). In Yalkut (vol. ii. par. 620, p. 90 a, line 12 from the bottom), we have the following remarkable simile on the words, against God, and His Messiah,' likening them to a robber who stands defiantly behind the palace of the king, and says, If I shall find the son of the king, I shall lay hold on him, and crucify him, and kill him with a cruel death. But the Holy Spirit mocks at him, He that sitteth in the heavens shall laugh.' On the same verse the Midrashon Ps. ii. has a curious conceit, intended to show that each who rose against God and His people thought he was wiser than he who had preceded him. If Cain had killed his brother while his father was alive, forgetful that there would be other sons, Esau proposed to wait till after his father's death. Pharaoh, again, blamed Esau for his folly in forgetting that in the meantime Jacob would have children, and hence proposed to kill all the male children, while Haman, ridiculing Pharaoh's folly in forgetting that there were daughters set himself to destroy the whole people; and, in turn, Gog and Magog, ridiculing the shortsightedness of all, who had preceded them, in taking counsel against Israel so long as they had a Patron in heaven, resolved first to attack their heavenly Patron, and after that Israel. To which apply the words, against the Lord, and against His Anointed.'