The Unbreakable Covenant: The Timelessness of Torah

The ninth principle of the 13 Principles of Faith teaches that the Torah we possess will never be replaced. In this final article of the series, we focus on the greatest historical proof of the Torah's eternity: its acceptance witnessed by an entire people.

1. Mount Sinai: Proof of the Torah's Eternity

The event at Mount Sinai aimed to establish an eternal covenant to uphold the Torah, as declared by the Israelites: "And all the people answered together and said, 'All that Hashem has spoken we will do'" (Exodus 19:8).

At Mount Sinai, the people of Israel were chosen in an unparalleled revelation. It was not a vision to a single prophet, but before 3 million people! An entire nation witnessed the might and grandeur of the Creator during the ten plagues in Egypt and heard Hashem's voice at the magnificent revelation of Mount Sinai.

I've often asked individuals of other faiths why they believe in their religion without any large-scale eyewitness testimonies from their ancestors. They struggle with this question because their religion is based on blind faith in the words of an individual. As the proverb says, "The simple believes every word" (Proverbs 14:15).

When they asked me the same question, my answer was simple: We believe in the Torah not because of Moses' personal testimony of hearing Hashem's voice at the burning bush, but because the entire nation of Israel heard Hashem's voice at the burning Mount Sinai.

This is explicitly stated in the Torah: "Behold, I come to you in a thick cloud, so that the people may hear when I speak with you, and believe in you forever" (Exodus 19:9).

As Ramban explains: "...and they will believe forever in all generations. Should a prophet or dreamer arise among them with words against you, they will immediately recognize falsity, for they have seen with their own eyes and heard with their ears how you reached the highest level of prophecy."

This is truly the greatest proof of our enduring covenant with the children of Israel. A simple proof without parallel: such a covenant has existed with no other.

If Hashem wished, chas v'shalom, to change the original covenant, it would require another public revelation to all of Israel. Should this new covenant be with another nation, it too would need to be proclaimed to millions in prophetic grandeur.

After the grand historical revelation witnessed by millions of Israelites at Mount Sinai, it is inconceivable for Hashem to change even a detail of this covenant without a similarly grand revelation. It's akin to signing a personal contract with witnesses and then attempting to annul it with a missive delivered by an agent, without contract or witnesses. Such a notion is absurd! Similarly, Christians and Muslims who believe that Hashem would break His historical covenant with Israel through a lone "messenger" like Jesus or Muhammad... Can one rationally believe that Hashem whispered to a solitary individual to undo an event witnessed by 3 million people? As it says, only a simpleton believes every word.

The Torah itself stands uniquely, set against all religions by declaring Mount Sinai as its testament:

"What nation is so great that it has Hashem so near to it, as Hashem our God is whenever we call to Him? ...Has any people heard the voice of Hashem speaking from the midst of the fire, as you have heard, and lived? Or has Hashem attempted to go and take for Himself a nation from within another nation, by trials, by signs, and by wonders, and by war, and by a mighty hand, and an outstretched arm, and by great terrors, as Hashem your God did for you in Egypt before your eyes? ...You have been shown, that you might know that Hashem He is God... and you heard His words from the midst of the fire, because He loved your ancestors and chose their descendants after them, and He brought you out of Egypt with His presence and His great power, to drive out nations greater and stronger than you from before you..." (Deuteronomy 4; see expanded verses there).

After such words, which other religion can stand and argue against the Torah of Israel? None have the foundational testimony of a revelation to an entire people.

To this day, we celebrate Passover, Sukkot, and Shavuot to commemorate the incredible wonders witnessed by all of Israel. "Remember the days of old, consider the years of many generations; ask your father, and he will show you, your elders, and they will tell you" (Deuteronomy 32:7). The Torah commands us to remember and keep the covenant made with our ancestors. Is there another people who can claim their ancestors witnessed earth-shattering miracles and wonders?

This is an undeniable proof based on unbreakable logic. The covenant with Israel was made before the eyes of the entire nation and no such public covenant has been made with any other people.

No amount of ideological debate or textual interpretation brought by Christians can match the scale of this historical eyewitness account. No spoken claim compares to the sight of an entire nation standing before the mountain engulfed in flames, hearing Hashem's voice as it spoke to them.

And thus we reach the essence: from this eternal covenant, we are commanded not to heed any prophet who seeks to alter the Torah:

"Everything I command you, be careful to do it; do not add to it or take away from it. If a prophet or dreamer arises among you and gives you a sign or a wonder, and the sign or wonder comes to pass, but he says, 'Let us follow other gods...' you shall not listen to the words of that prophet or dreamer, for Hashem your God is testing you to know whether you love Hashem your God with all your heart and soul. Follow Hashem your God, fear Him, keep His commandments, obey His voice, serve Him, and cling to Him" (Deuteronomy 13:1).

The Torah clearly tells us that even when false prophets arise to tempt us from keeping the commandments, we must stand firm and continue serving Hashem as commanded at Mount Sinai. This is the greatest historical testament to the eternal covenant of the people of Israel.

2. The Supernatural History of the Jewish People

As noted earlier, seeing is believing. Yet we also have an equally compelling testimony from the supernatural history of the Jewish people over 2000 years of exile.

Look around and ask, where is another nation scattered across all lands, persecuted for three thousand years, yet maintaining its original identity and faith, returning after millennia to its ancestral land? Such phenomena are unheard of.

The survival of the Jewish people is a wondrous mystery that thinkers have failed to fully explain. How can a small nation continue to exist over centuries of exile? Why has a peace-seeking people been relentlessly pursued by the greatest empires the world has known, only to outlast them all?

Egypt, Persia, Babylon, Greece, Rome, Christianity, and, more recently, the Nazi empire. These phenomena cannot be rationally explained, as the reasons cited for the persecution of the Jewish people have ranged widely—from one culture to an entirely different ideology. Only the intense hatred remained constant, like an old garment with new decor.

Yet despite their power, they all failed to erase the Jewish identity. This is a historical fact: Israel endured thousands of years without an army or sovereignty, preserving its original identity unlike any other nation.

What is even more astonishing is that all the strange and unpredictable ordeals the Jewish people faced were foretold in the Torah given to Israel 3300 years ago. All prophecies were fulfilled (see remarkable prophecies in Leviticus 26 and Deuteronomy 4 and 30). History still centers on us, led by Hashem toward our complete redemption.

Particularly notable is the prophecy that the Land of Israel would remain loyal to its people during their exile—a supremely unnatural idea, yet factually accurate: "The land will be desolate for your enemies' settlement" (Leviticus 26:32), and Ramban wrote 800 years ago: "Since we left it, no nation or language has established itself there, despite all efforts to settle it."

The supernatural history of the Jewish people, combined with the prophecies in the Torah, stands as clear evidence that we are the chosen people, and the covenant we hold is eternal.