PM Benjamin Netanyahu with the Rebbe.

 “Let me tell you something,” said Netanyahu “In 1984, after I came to the UN as Israel’s Ambassador, I met with the Rebbe of Lubavitch. He began speaking to me – he spoke to me for 40 minutes.

 “You know what he told me, back in 1984?” Netanyahu asked.

“He told me, ‘you are going to a place of deep darkness and lies, and if you will light one candle of truth, you will dispel the darkness. That is what I tried to do here – to present the truth clearly and with confidence.”

“You will go into a house of lies,” the Rebbe told him in that memorable meeting on Simchat Torah at Lubavitch Headquarters. “That’s how he called a particular institution ...”

The Rebbe said to him: “Remember that in a hall of perfect darkness, totally dark, if you light one small candle, its light will be seen from afar; its precious light will be seen by everyone.” 

The Prime Minister said that the Rebbe gave him the “mission to light a candle for truth and for the Jewish people.” 

In what appears to have been a profound moment in his life, the Prime Minister, speaking with emotion and admiration for the Rebbe, described in detail his impressions of that Simchat Torah in 770, when the Rebbe danced with the Torah, “bathed in light.” Netanyahu ended his speech reiterating the Rebbe’s message, and appealing to his audience to do likewise, and “light a candle for truth and justice for the Jewish people,” this Yom Kippur.
                                                                                                                 April 19, 1988
________________

Benjamin Netanyahu: “Rebbe, I came to see you.”

The Rebbe:  “Just to see, not to talk?”“You are going to the house of lies, and when you are there remember that even when you are in the darkest place, it is your job to ignite the flame of truth. This flame spreads into a light that can be seen from afar and dispels the darkness. You have to ignite this flame because you defend in the world [the United Nations] the truth of the Jewish people.

You have to stand strong and proud for the Jewish people in the United Nations. We see from the history of the wars that the land of Israel has fought, that only by standing strong can you be successful and win. Look at the crowd here, most of them are still youngsters, these are our future generations...

”The Rebbe asked: “Why is Peres not requesting to enlarge the budget [that the United States was granting to Israel], what is this wastefulness? Now is the time to request.”

                                                                             Simchat Torah 5745, October 18, 1984
___________________

The Rebbe:  “I have read a lot of your work here. A good and sweet year. Success in all your endeavors and great success in all your matters.”

Benjamin Netanyahu: “Honored Rabbi, you constantly follow what is occurring in the State of Israel...”

The Rebbe: “I always follow, however to my disappointment we do not hear...” [that in Israel they heed the warnings spoken from here]

Benjamin Netanyahu: “They hear more than the Rebbe assumes.”

The Rebbe: “Maybe they hear, however there is no good news [of following through what is spoken]. The deed is the essential, however perhaps you could influence them from here [in the United Nations].”

Benjamin Netanyahu: “I am planning in the near future to return to Israel and to battle over the issues there and have influence [from there].”

The Rebbe:  “There is plenty more to influence here in the United Nations.”

Benjamin Netanyahu: “It is possible to struggle [for these issues]from the land of Israel. There is an important need for a good replacement.”

The Rebbe:  “There is no one to be confident in.”

Benjamin Netanyahu: “There are several good candidates.”

The Rebbe: “That is doubtful, and a doubt does not overrule certainty [of your influence in the UN].  You know that in the UN there is a need to speak of the Seven Noahide Laws.”

Benjamin Netanyahu:  “Yes, yes...”

The Rebbe: “It is the duty of a Jew to encourage non-Jews. And this is your duty to be actively encouraging non-Jews regarding the Seven Noahide Laws in the UN.”

Benjamin Netanyahu: “I have not forgotten our first meeting, and I have been active in that which the honored Rabbi told me, to stand proud and strong [as a Jew], it has been engraved in me and I have acted accordingly.”

Rebbe:  “You surely know that Benjamin was the only one of the tribes who was born in the Land of Israel, and was afterwards active with non-Jews and leader of non-Jews with appropriate strength and “pride of Jacob.”

Benjamin Netanyahu:  “I am serving here for five years...”

Rebbe:  “You should continue to serve here until Moshiach comes!”

                                                                            Hoshana Raba 5748, October 14, 1987
______________________

Benjamin Netanyahu: “I just finished my term as Ambassador of Israel in the United Nations, and I have started my position as a Knesset member.”

The Rebbe: “Much success. I had a lot of pleasure from your speech. May it be G-d’s will that you should continue in this direction, and G-d helps all those who want “to purify others,” and especially when it begins with ‘self improvement’. Do not take offence that I speak of these issues publicly.”

Benjamin Netanyahu: “I plan to continue in this precise direction, and have understood the Rebbe’s message well.”

The Rebbe: “This is the best direction [to stand with strength] in order not to come to warfare and the like. It should be ‘In return [to G-d] and with [G-d’s] Kindness and Mercy you will be saved’.”

Benjamin Netanyahu: “I thank the Rebbe for the possibility he has given me these last few years to come and receive the guidance the Rebbe has given me, not just for me, but for the entire Jewish nation.”

The Rebbe: “I am just in the beginning of my work, and you are also in the beginning of your work [in the Knesset].”

Benjamin Netanyahu: “I have come to you at the beginning of my work. And I plan to return to you, honored Rebbe.”

The Rebbe: “You will need to struggle with 119 people. You will surely not be influenced by them, since G-d offers favor for this side. Blessing and success.”
                                                                                                   April 19, 1988