This year marks the 280th anniversary of the Baal Shem Tov's famous "upliftment of the soul," which occurred on Rosh Hashanah 5507.
In a letter to his brother-in-law, Rabbi Gershon of Kitov, the Baal Shem Tov recounts how, during his spiritual ascent, he reached the palace of Moshiach. There, he saw Moshiach studying Torah with the righteous and asked him, "When will the Master come?"
Moshiach answered: when the Baal Shem Tov's teachings spread and its "springs flow forth," then all concealments will disappear and the "time of favor and Redemption" will arrive.
These words became one of the most important sources of the Chassidic teaching on the connection between the spread of the inner Torah and the approach of Geula.
Throughout the year 5751, the Rebbe repeatedly emphasized that the spread of the springs had already been completed: on 21 Kislev — "the work in exile has already ended," on 26 Sivan—"the spread of the springs has already occurred to a sufficient degree," and on 7 Elul — "the spread of the springs has been completed in all corners of the world."
And here we can see another symbolic allusion. 280 is 10 times 28, and the numerical value of the word "יחי" (Yehi) is 28. Ten times 28 can be seen as an expression of completeness and perfection — the symbolic completion of the work associated with the proclamation of "Yehi Adoneinu..."
Thus, the 280 years that have passed since the Baal Shem Tov's spiritual ascent and his encounter with Moshiach can be seen as a symbolic completion of this process: the springs have already been poured out, the work of dissemination is complete — and the conditions have been created for the revelation of the Rebbe King Moshiach and the advent of Geula.