Proof of the Oral Torah: How the Written Torah Points to an Ancient Tradition

"I am looking for proof that the Oral Torah exists according to the Written Torah. You mentioned that God commanded us to keep Shabbat, but without details, and that only the Oral Torah explains how. Then I noticed that in the book of Shemot there are verses about not working and not kindling fire on Shabbat."

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The Written Torah mentions the commandments, but not the details. For example, the Torah commands us not to perform melacha (work) on Shabbat, but it never defines what “work” actually means.

• Is a security guard sitting in his chair doing melacha?

• Is a merchant buying and selling on Shabbat doing melacha?

• Is chopping a salad on Shabbat melacha?

• Is moving heavy furniture melacha?

Clearly, the written text alone is not enough. We need a detailed list of the 39 categories of work that are forbidden on Shabbat. That list is found only in the Oral Torah.

Specific Verses Still Require Explanation

• The Torah says: “You shall not kindle fire in all your dwellings on Shabbat” — but is it allowed to leave a fire burning from before Shabbat? Can food be heated or cooked on an existing flame? The Oral Torah provides the precise laws.

• The Torah says: “Let no man leave his place on the seventh day” — what does “place” mean? A house? A street? A neighborhood? A city? The Oral Torah defines this as the laws of techum Shabbat (the boundaries of movement on Shabbat).

• The Torah says: “You shall slaughter… as I have commanded you” — but nowhere does the Written Torah explain how to slaughter an animal properly. The rules of kosher slaughter were transmitted through the Oral Torah.

• The Torah commands us to write mezuzot on the doorposts, but it doesn’t say what a mezuzah is or what text goes inside. The Oral Torah explains it.

• The Torah commands us to put on tefillin, but it doesn’t say what tefillin look like, what shape they should have, or what to write in them.

Even brit milah (circumcision) is not described in detail in the Written Torah. All these details were handed down orally.

Why the Oral Torah Is Essential

Without the Oral Torah, there is simply no way to practice the commandments with certainty. The Written Torah contains the commandments, but the Oral Torah provides the instructions. The two are inseparable.

The Written Torah Testifies to the Oral Torah

1. Shemot 24:12 — “And the Lord said to Moses: Come up to Me on the mountain and be there, and I will give you the stone tablets, and the Torah, and the commandment, which I have written, to teach them.”
   Here the word “commandment” refers to the Oral Torah. It’s explicit that together with the written text, God gave instructions on how to fulfill it.

2. Devarim 4:14 — “And the Lord commanded me at that time to teach you statutes and judgments, that you might do them.” God didn’t just give Moses a book, but He commanded him to teach Israel how to carry out the commandments in practice.

3. Devarim 31:24 — “And it came to pass, when Moses finished writing the words of this Torah in a book, until they were completed…” This indicates that the Torah was only written down in its final form at the end of Moses’ life. Until then, the commandments were transmitted orally. The Oral Torah actually preceded the Written Torah.