Everything You Wanted to Know: 613 Commandments

What. The 613 commandments is a term referring to the total number of commandments mentioned in the Torah, which according to the Sages is 613 (in gematria: TaRYaG). The Torah itself does not reference the number of commandments, and this count first appears in the teachings of the Sages, though even there the specific components of this count are not detailed. The Geonim were the first to engage in counting the 613 commandments in detail, followed by the Rishonim. Among the most well-known are the enumeration by Maimonides (Rambam) and the enumeration by an unknown author from the Rishonim period published as Sefer HaChinuch.

The 613 commandments are divided into two groups: 248 positive commandments and 365 negative commandments.

Why. In the Gemara (Makkot 23) the source for the number of commandments is brought:"Rabbi Simlai taught: Six hundred and thirteen commandments were given to Moses - three hundred and sixty-five negative commandments, corresponding to the days of the solar year, and two hundred and forty-eight positive commandments, corresponding to the parts of the human body. Rav Hamnuna said: What is the scriptural proof for this? 'Moses commanded us the Torah as an inheritance.' The numerical value of 'Torah' is six hundred and eleven; 'I am' and 'You shall have no other' we heard directly from the Almighty."

Indeed, there is importance in knowing the exact number of commandments, for several reasons, including:

• There are practical laws dependent on the enumeration of commandments. For example: the punishment of lashes for someone who violated a Torah prohibition, where one needs to know how many transgressions occurred to determine how many lashes are required.
• According to certain opinions, this has importance in the layers of interpretation, allusion, and mysticism in the Torah. Examples: The first of the ten sefirot is Keter, which has a numerical value of 620. This is the count of the 613 Torah commandments plus the seven Noahide laws (613+7=620). According to others, the name of the convert Ruth has a numerical value of 606. This is because she observed the seven Noahide laws even before converting, and upon conversion, she added 606 commandments, totaling 613 commandments (606+7=613).
• It fulfills the commandment to study Torah.

Something interesting to conclude. Beginning in the Geonic period, lists of the 613 commandments were written, some in the form of an enumeration, but most in the form of a poem. The poems about the enumeration of commandments are called "Azharot," like those by Saadia Gaon and Solomon ibn Gabirol. The author of Halachot Gedolot (BaHaG) is considered the first to compile such a list. Later, Maimonides wrote a detailed enumeration of the commandments, but Nachmanides disputed him in many places and disagreed with him on the question of when and how a commandment enters this count. Additional enumerators of commandments include: Sefer HaChinuch, Sefer Charedim, Sefer Mitzvot Gadol, Sefer Mitzvot Katan, and others. Among those who enumerated the commandments, we find quite a few disputes regarding which commandments are included in this count. For example, priestly garments - are they one commandment or several? Sacrifices - should we count the types of sacrifices or the acts of offering? Rabbinical commandments - are they included in the count of commandments? Nevertheless, all enumerators of commandments agreed that the total should reach the known number of 613 commandments.