Covering the Sea

For these reasons, all Israel, their prophets and their Sages, have yearned for the Messianic age so they can rest from the (oppression of) the gentile kingdoms who do not allow them to occupy themselves with Torah and mitzvot properly. They will find rest and increase their knowledge in order to merit the World to Come, for in that era, knowledge, wisdom, and truth will become abundant as the verse states, “The earth will be full of the knowledge of God.” [Isaiah 11:9]

                            Maimonides, Laws of Repentance 9:2

            In discussing the World to Come, in the penultimate chapter of his Laws of Repentance, Maimonides quotes a verse from Isaiah’s vision of the Messianic era, which reads in full:

They shall not hurt nor destroy in all My holy mountain; for the earth shall be full of the knowledge of God, as the waters cover the sea.

            Isaiah’s formulation seems inaccurate: water does not “cover” the sea, rather defines it.

            It is likely that this point is exactly what the prophet wishes to convey: just as water is the defining characteristic of the sea, so too the defining characteristic of the Messianic era will be a direct and personal knowledge of God.