Naftali Hertz ben Yaakov Elchanan

Naftali Hertz ben Yaakov Elchanan (Bacharach) (17th century) was a German rabbi, born in Frankfurt, author of the controversial work Emeq HaMelekh [1] (Valley of the King, 1648, Amsterdam)[2] on the subject of the Lurianic Kabbalah.

The book had a major impact on later kabbalah as it was regarded among many, including the Chabad Hasidim and the followers of the Vilna Gaon, as an authoritative statement of Luria's kabbala.

Although Emeq HaMelekh contained approbations from well-respected scholars,[3] it also met with substantial disapproval from contemporary kabbalists such as Chaim Joseph David Azulai, Berechiah Berak, and Moses Hagiz.

According to the introduction, a stranger appeared on the evening of Yom Kippur to serve as the 10th man of the minyan and thus complete the required number of people for a prayer service.

That night, the hazzan of the synagogue dreamed that the man was speaking to him and told him that he was Avraham Avinu, the Patriarch of the Jewish people who is buried nearby in the Cave of Machpela.