"The Holy One, blessed be He, will tell him (the Messiah) in detail what will befall him...
their sins will cause you to bend down as under a yoke of iron and make you like a calf
whose eyes grow dim with suffering and will choke your spirit as with a yoke, and
because of their sins your tongue will cleave to the roof of your mouth. Are you willing
to endure such things?... The Messiah will say: 'Master of the universe with joy in my
soul and gladness in my heart I take this suffering upon myself provided that not one
person in Israel shall perish, so that not only those who are alive be saved in my days, but
also those who are dead, who died from the days of Adam up to the time of redemption.'"