What is the Source of the Existence of the Oral Torah?
How do we know to observe the commandments that are not explained in the written Torah? The proof of Jewish tradition.
- דניאל בלס
- פורסם כ"ב סיון התשע"ה
#VALUE!
I want you to prove to me that the Oral Torah exists according to the written Torah because I saw a lecture where it said that Hashem commanded us to keep Shabbat but it is not explained how, and the Oral Torah provides the explanation. Yet recently, I saw that the Book of Exodus gives a brief explanation that states not to work and not to kindle a fire.
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Hello and blessings,,
In the Torah, it is said that one should not perform work on Shabbat, but it is not specified what constitutes work.
Is a guard sitting on a chair performing work?
Is a trader buying and selling on Shabbat performing work?
Is cutting a salad on Shabbat considered work?
Is moving a heavy cabinet on Shabbat considered work?
And so on, we need to receive a detailed list of the principal labors prohibited on Shabbat. This was received only in the Oral Torah.
Also, it is said in the Torah "You shall not kindle a fire in any of your dwellings on the Sabbath day" - but it is not explained whether it is permissible to leave a fire burning beforehand, and whether it is allowed to heat or cook food on Shabbat with a fire kindled before Shabbat.
In the Oral Torah, we received explanations for the precise prohibitions on cooking and heating on Shabbat..
Additionally, about Shabbat it is said in the Torah: "Let no man leave his place on the seventh day," which is the prohibition of boundaries on Shabbat, yet the Torah does not specify what "place" means. Is it forbidden for a person to leave their house, or perhaps the street, neighborhood, or city?
The Torah says "And you shall slaughter as I have commanded you" - but nowhere in the Torah is it mentioned how to slaughter an animal, as the rules of slaughtering were handed down in the Oral Torah.
The Torah states "And you shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates" - but it is not explained in the Torah what a mezuzah is, or what is to be written inside it. This too was transmitted in the Oral Torah. It is also commanded to put on tefillin, but the Torah does not describe what tefillin are or how they appear. Even circumcision does not receive a detailed explanation in the Torah. Everything was handed down in the oral tradition from Sinai.
The Torah does not detail any commandment completely, as the explanations for all the commandments were given in the Oral Torah. It is entirely impossible to observe the Torah with certainty without the Oral Torah, which has been passed down from generation to generation until our times.
Additionally, the Torah itself testifies to the existence of the Oral Torah:
1. It is explicitly stated in the Torah: "Hashem said to Moses: Come up to Me on the mountain and stay there; I will give you the tablets of stone, and the law, and the commandment which I have written to instruct them." (Exodus 24:12).
The word "commandment" indicates an explicit testimony to the existence of an Oral Torah transmitted together with the written Torah at Mount Sinai. It means that at the Sinai revelation, the Israelites received all 613 commandments along with oral instructions on how to perform each one mentioned in the Torah.
1. It is explicitly stated in the Torah: "Hashem said to Moses: Come up to Me on the mountain and stay there; I will give you the tablets of stone, and the law, and the commandment which I have written to instruct them." (Exodus 24:12).
The word "commandment" indicates an explicit testimony to the existence of an Oral Torah transmitted together with the written Torah at Mount Sinai. It means that at the Sinai revelation, the Israelites received all 613 commandments along with oral instructions on how to perform each one mentioned in the Torah.
2. Further in the Torah, it is said: "And Hashem commanded me at that time to teach you statutes and ordinances for you to perform them" (Deuteronomy 4:14) - Hashem commanded Moses "at that time" (i.e., at the Sinai revelation) to teach the Israelites exactly how to fulfill the commandments practically, explaining to them how to carry them out, not just giving them written laws in a sealed book without explanation. This is further testimony to the existence of the Oral Torah.
3. To complete the proof, we need to notice an important historical fact: the instruction of the commandments preceded their being written in the book. Towards the end of the Torah it says:"When Moses finished writing the words of this Torah in a book, to the very end." (Deuteronomy 31:24) - the entire Torah was delivered in full to the Israelites only at Moses' death. This means that the 613 commandments were transmitted orally until then; the Oral Torah thus preceded the written Torah! Because the instruction of the commandments preceded their documentation in the book, there is clear evidence of the existence of the Oral Torah.
3. To complete the proof, we need to notice an important historical fact: the instruction of the commandments preceded their being written in the book. Towards the end of the Torah it says:"When Moses finished writing the words of this Torah in a book, to the very end." (Deuteronomy 31:24) - the entire Torah was delivered in full to the Israelites only at Moses' death. This means that the 613 commandments were transmitted orally until then; the Oral Torah thus preceded the written Torah! Because the instruction of the commandments preceded their documentation in the book, there is clear evidence of the existence of the Oral Torah.
For further details and additional proofs of the existence of the Oral Torah, please see the following links::
https://www.hidabroot.org/he/article/70961
https://www.hidabroot.org/he/comment/reply/2213
Also, I recommend searching on Google for the words "Critical Conversation." It is a booklet describing a dialogue with God after death, containing answers to all your questions about faith, especially regarding the Oral Torah. Highly recommended..
