All Questions
219 questions
48
votes
5
answers
10k
views
Which alphabet were the original Torah scrolls in?
I've assumed that the Torah scrolls we read today as the same that Moses wrote. I always assumed it's been the same alphabet.
However lately I came across documents explaining the evolution of the ...
- 2,689
23
votes
7
answers
2k
views
Where in Tanach is Shavuot associated with Matan Torah?
There is nowhere I can see in the tanach that associates Shavuot with Matan Torah.
However, we say in the prayers on Shavuot: "Z'man Matan Toratainu" (the time of the giving of the Torah).
Whenever ...
- 1,751
18
votes
7
answers
669
views
How would Har Sinai without the Torah have been enough?
In the Hagada of Peasach it says "even if he brought us to Har Sinai but didn't give us the Torah it would have been enough." What would be the purpose of going to Har Sinai if we didn't get the Torah?...
- 3,107
17
votes
5
answers
1k
views
Why wasn't the Torah given in Israel?
One might naturally expect that the Jewish people would enter the land and then receive the Torah there. It seems logical to me that the Torah should come from a holy place characterized by the ...
- 4,550
16
votes
2
answers
1k
views
Why do we say that Hashem chose us if He offered to the Torah to all the other nations first?
According to Midrash Sifri (Deuteronomy 343), Hashem first went around to all the nations and offered them the Torah before offering it to Bnei Yisroel. So why do we say in Kiddush and Birchas ...
- 33.5k
16
votes
2
answers
350
views
How is the story of the Torah being given told in the Torah itself?
How was the Torah (aka the Five Books of Moses) given if the story of the Torah being given is contained in these books?
In other words, the Torah tells the story - close to halfway through it - of ...
- 1,386
14
votes
5
answers
3k
views
Native American Traditions and Mass Revelations
In Deuteronomy(4:32-34), two points are made in reassuring Israel that God has not abandoned them. The reader is tasked with searching from one end of the heavens to the other to see if a God ever ...
- 8,320
14
votes
2
answers
550
views
Ten Commandments. What did Moshe hear?
Rashi on 20 (1) says
all these words: [This] teaches [us] that the Holy One, blessed be He, said the Ten Commandments in one utterance, something that is
impossible for a human being to say [in a ...
- 48.7k
13
votes
5
answers
1k
views
Do angels have jealousy?
In a famous Midrash in Shab. 87a-b, the angels object to the Torah being given to humans, until Moshe proves that it is only relevant to humans because of their nature. In one example, he asks ...
- 41.9k
13
votes
2
answers
479
views
What is the point of the luchos if they are never even taken out of the aron?
What purpose do the luchos serve? By this I mean to say the physical tablets themselves. Had Moshe gone up to Har Sinai and come down with nothing, or perhaps a fully written out torah scroll, would ...
user1520
12
votes
3
answers
986
views
Is there a deeper significance of squares and cubes?
I've noticed that many of the structures in the Mishkan as well as elsewhere in Judaism are cubes and squares, or multiples of cubes and squares.
The luchot are two half-cubes which combine to make a ...
- 9,126
12
votes
4
answers
372
views
Why did Moshe need to go up Har Sinai to be told to go down?
Exodus 19:20-21
וַיֵּ֧רֶד יְהוָ֛ה עַל־ הַ֥ר סִינַ֖י אֶל־ רֹ֣אשׁ הָהָ֑ר
וַיִּקְרָ֨א יְהוָ֧ה לְמֹשֶׁ֛ה אֶל־ רֹ֥אשׁ הָהָ֖ר וַיַּ֥עַל
מֹשֶֽׁה׃ וַיֹּ֤אמֶר יְהוָה֙ אֶל־ מֹשֶׁ֔ה ...
- 59.1k
11
votes
3
answers
580
views
Yeshivat Sheim v'Eiver
Assuming that our patriarchs Abraham Isaac and Jacob spent time learning in the House of Study of Sheim v'Eiver, the descendents of Noach, what were they learning? The seven commandments of the ...
- 6,059
11
votes
1
answer
413
views
What is the qualitative difference between the revelation at Sinai and other miracles according to Rambam?
In Hilchot Yesodei HaTorah (8:1), Rambam writes:
משה רבינו לא האמינו בו ישראל מפני האותות שעשה שהמאמין על פי האותות יש בלבו דופי שאפשר שיעשה האות בלט וכשוף אלא כל האותות שעשה משה במדבר לפי הצורך ...
- 50.3k
11
votes
2
answers
3k
views
Origin, need, and purpose of "Upper" trope for reading 10 Commandments
Most תקון לקוראים (study "guide used by Torah reader to prepare for reading weekly Torah portion) that I have seen have a special trope for the reading of the 10 Commandments called טעם עליון (loosely ...
- 71.5k
11
votes
2
answers
893
views
How long after the Torah was given did the Jewish people start wearing tefillin?
From one of the explanations of eating milky foods on Shavuos, we understand that it was not possible to do all the mitzvos connecting with preparing meat for food immediately after accepting the ...
- 48.7k
10
votes
3
answers
370
views
Seven Mitzvot of Benei Noach without Na'aseh veNishma
Why are Benei Noach obligated in their Seven Mitzvot if they never said Na'aseh veNishma?
- 6,059
10
votes
2
answers
576
views
Standing during the Aseres HaDibros
There are people that always stand by Laining and people that always sit. Among those that sit there are those that stand at certain points, such as the Aseres HaDibros or the Shira, etc. Is it proper ...
- 141k
10
votes
1
answer
217
views
Why don't we have to work every non-Shabbos day?
We are told multiple times in the Torah
ששת ימים תעבוד
Six days you should work.
But many people do not actually work 6 days a week. For example, in the United States, Sunday is considered a weekend ...
- 25.1k
9
votes
2
answers
2k
views
When Did Moses Receive the Torah
I apologize for the fact that this threatens to be the most ignorant question ever asked on this site, but I'm not sure where else to ask it.
My understanding is that God gave the entire Torah to ...
- 191
9
votes
5
answers
713
views
Why the specific commandments in the Aseret haDibrot
What is HKBH trying to teach us by his choice of commandments that make up the Aseret haDibrot
- 91
9
votes
2
answers
244
views
Chosen Nation? Or Last option? [duplicate]
We say every day "Asher Bachar Banu Mi'Kol Ha'amim" - Chosen from among all the nations.
Yet we all know the famous medrash (quoted in Avodah Zara 2b) which says that G-d went to all the nations and ...
- 15.7k
8
votes
3
answers
6k
views
Can the 10 commandments be violated to save a life?
According to a book I'm reading (Judaism: Everything You Need to Know About: Jewish Religion) and various other Jews I have talked to say, you can violate the 10 commandments to save a life.
Is this ...
- 315
8
votes
2
answers
12k
views
What does adultery mean in the 7th commandment?
Exodus 20:14, the 7th 'commandment' of the Decalogue.
Does it mean only having sex with someone else' wife or having sex outside marriage?
What is the actual Hebrew word and what possible ...
- 4,383
8
votes
3
answers
717
views
Is the first of the 10 Commandments considered a mitzvah?
I realize that the English translation of עשרת הדברים / דברות is better translated as "Ten pronouncements" rather than "10 Commandments". However, in viewing the text, 2 - 10 seem to be commanding ...
- 71.5k
8
votes
3
answers
1k
views
Why did Hashem offer the Torah to all the other nations?
Why did Hashem bother to ask all the other nations if they wanted to get the Torah when He knew they'd say no? (See Midrash Sifri, Deuteronomy 343)
(I already know Hashem is beyond time)
- 1,405
8
votes
2
answers
188
views
Did the people of Israel know they would get the Torah?
When we think about the desert of Sinai our mind thinks straight away to "Kabalat Torah". This looks like the biggest thing that our people had when they left Egypt. It is almost as if the people of ...
- 499
8
votes
1
answer
645
views
Did Jethro convert? Before or after Matan Torah?
Did Jethro convert? And, was it before or after the Torah was given? I heard a few things this past shabbat, but I would like to see if we can compile all of the midrashic and aggadic opinions.
- 6,059
8
votes
2
answers
317
views
What does 'the New Torah' in these medrashim mean?
The Yalkut Shimoni on Yishaya, remez 429, mentions how Hashem will sit and be doresh a new Torah that he will give by the hand of Moshiach.
This medrash is apparently taken from the Osios diRabi ...
- 34.1k
8
votes
1
answer
370
views
Milk and 'Ever Min HaḤai
This article at the end mentions a famous Halachic distinction made between the prohibition of 'Ever Min HaḤai as it pertains to Jews vs gentiles. For gentiles 'Ever Min HaḤai doesn't apply to milk, ...
- 41.9k
8
votes
3
answers
600
views
Why was the torah given on a mountain?
I have seen many divrei torah about the fact that Har Sinai was not the tallest mountain (based on Sota 5a) and the importance of humility in acquiring torah. But, why was the torah given on a ...
7
votes
4
answers
781
views
Why did God need to command the Jews not to kill?
There is a principle 'svara lamah li krah i.e. if a certain idea is logical and self evident to the average healthy mind, the Torah does not need to teach that idea. Additionally, what seems to be ...
- 9,948
7
votes
3
answers
133
views
When the Torah scroll was available at first for Dor Hamidbar?
What are the different Rabbinical approaches to when exactly were (at least the first 4 books of) the Torah scrolls available to the Jews in the wilderness?
I'm asking specifically about the scrolls ...
- 28k
7
votes
3
answers
346
views
Shavuos Versus Simchas Torah
What is the difference between Shavuos and Simchas Torah if they are both fundamentally celebrations of the Torah?
- 33.5k
7
votes
3
answers
278
views
Changing name of 10 Hadvarim to 10 Hadibrot
Inspired by this discussion.
When did the Decalogue (עשרת הדברים) begin being called the Aseres Hadibros (no Biblical source for those words) as opposed to the Aseres Hadevarim (Shemos 34:28, Devarim ...
- 21.2k
7
votes
3
answers
371
views
Why are Milochos based on the construction of the Mishkan?
If we were to receive all the laws for shabbos at Sinai why then is it the Mishkan to where we direct our attention when it comes to classifying all the things we cannot do on Shabbos? Wasn't the ...
- 904
7
votes
2
answers
289
views
Source for the Aseres Hadibros being set up in pairs?
I have heard from different rebbeim that each of the aseres hadibros is linked to another, specifically in terms of the root concept of that commandment being the same as another one of the aseres ...
- 71
7
votes
1
answer
112
views
What does "נגללים" mean about the tablets?
The commentary of the Rav (R. Ovadya) to Avos chapter 5 "והלחות" reads:
של סנפרינון היו ארכן ששה ורחבן ששה ועבין שלשה כאבן אחת שארכה ורחבה ועביה שוין ונחלקה לשנים ונגללים היו וחצובים מגלגל ...
- 74k
7
votes
2
answers
197
views
Were the Israelites' pots really ben yoman when they received the Torah?
In the Mishnah Brurah's explanation for the custom of eating dairy foods on Shavuot (Orach Chaim 494:12), he mentions that the Israelites' pots had been used for non-kosher food within the past 24 ...
- 25.1k
7
votes
1
answer
84
views
Ruining the celebration of the Mishkan but not Har Sinai
Hashem did not want to mete out any punishments at the giving of the Torah in order to not ruin the joy of the moment (Rashi to Shemos 24:11). But Hashem was fine with seemingly ruining the joy of ...
- 59.1k
7
votes
1
answer
207
views
Where were the Luchos for the year before the Mishkan was erected?
After the erection of the Mishkan, the Luchos were kept in the Aron therein. But there is an issue of timing. Moshe received the Luchos shortly after leaving Egypt, but the Mishkan was only erected ...
- 8,381
7
votes
3
answers
537
views
Did Israelites who stayed in Egypt become halachically Jewish?
Some sources indicate that not all of the Israelites left Egypt during the Exodus. On the other hand, the initial "conversion" of the Israelites to Judaism occurred at Matan Torah at Mt. Sinai during ...
- 1,458
6
votes
1
answer
436
views
Is there a Jewish tradition of God reviving Israel at Sinai?
I once heard that according to "Jewish tradition", though it could be mere hearsay, that there was a story or legend that when the Israelites saw God's presence upon Mt. Sinai (or heard His audible ...
6
votes
4
answers
590
views
Why do we refer to Shavuot as the "time of receiving the Torah" when all that occured was hearing the 10 Commandments?
During Shavu'ot, during Shmoneh Esreh and bentching we refer to the holiday as Z'man Matan Torateinu - "The time of the giving of our Torah"
Discounting the discussions of the exact calendar date of ...
- 71.5k
6
votes
5
answers
908
views
603,550 Jews at Sinai and 603,550 Jews Entering Promised Land?
Why in Exodus 38:26 does it say there were 603,550 men over age 20, and then in Numbers 1:46 the exact same number (603,550) is again listed?
Didn’t all the Jews of the generation in Exodus all die ...
- 81
6
votes
1
answer
5k
views
Source for "Ben Adam Lemakom" and "Ben Adam Lechavero"
Where does the concept of Ben Adam Lemakom and Ben Adam Lechavero come from?
I know there is a concept of the first five of the ten commandments being between 'man and his friend' and the second ...
- 193
6
votes
1
answer
746
views
Why do some of the Ten Commandments include Noahide Laws?
Of the Seven Noahide Laws, at least three are identical to one of the Ten Commandments. To be specific I am referring to
Do not murder
Do not steal
Do not deny God
Do not blaspheme
I understand that ...
- 1,386
6
votes
6
answers
371
views
Is sarcasm a violation of the 9th commandment?
Is talking sarcastically with a friend as an innocent joke (not intending to offend him or bother him) a transgression of the ninth commandment, Don't lie (לא תענה)?
- 4,666
6
votes
1
answer
204
views
Is there debate about what the 10 statements are?
I see in this webpage it says "The passage in Exodus contains more than ten imperative statements, totalling 14 or 15 in all. However, the Bible itself assigns the count of '10'..." So is there ...
- 2,185
6
votes
3
answers
542
views
Is it true the Torah states that no one will claim national revelation?
Many kiruv/outreach Rabbis, in an attempt to prove the veracity of the Torah, will base their claim on the concept of National Revelation. Part of that proof, they say, is that the Torah states that ...
- 20.2k