The Harbinger: The Ancient Mystery that Holds the Secret of America's Future

Goren learns from her secretary that the employees in the building have left, and her secretary will leave soon. Kaplan continues his story as he and the prophet get out of the rowboat and walk through the park. The two go to the Bethesda Fountain in Central Park, and the prophet tells Kaplan that “Bethesda” comes from the Hebrew khesed, meaning mercy or love, reminding Kaplan that mercy and love are God’s motivations. Kaplan correctly predicts that the next harbinger is a cedar tree, following Isaiah 9:10, and the prophet specifies that the Hebrew word used in Isaiah is erez. The prophet clarifies that erez refers to any conifer, which is any tree with cones and needle-shaped leaves. The Israelites replaced the sycamores with erez because erez, specifically cedars, are much stronger than sycamores, growing taller and making better building material. Kaplan asks how this relates to America, and the prophet reveals that, in the same spot as the fallen sycamore after 9/11, a new conifer, or erez, tree was planted.

The prophet comments that the tree was planted to show hope, but it was a false hope, as the conifer, like the stone block, is a symbol of the nation’s defiance against God.