The purpose of this study is to follow after the purest form of the law and not rabbinical additions to it.
The 613 Commandments are statements and principles of law, ethics, and spiritual practice contained in the Torah or Five Books of Moses. These principles are also known as “Mosaic Law” or the “Covenant Code.” There have been many attempts to codify and enumerate the Commandments contained in the Torah but the traditionally accepted view is based on Maimonides 12th century version. According to prior research, there are 365 negative and 248 positive commandments. There are 26 commandments that only apply within the land of Israel. There are 271 commandments that can be observed today (77 positive and 194 negative). This means that 342 commandments of the 613 cannot be observed today by dispora Israelites (including the 26 that only apply in Israel). There are various reasons for this. The Temple no longer exists for tribes commanded to do various duties in the land of Israel, such as the priestly duties of the Levites in the Temple. The Messiah came as the most high priest, omitting the need for another priest and He also came as the most high sacrifice, omitting the need for future animal sacrifices. These are the main reasons.
So, when the Most High commands us to be diligent in keeping the Commandments, it is a given that certain laws can’t be kept but can still be honored as a part of the Law of Moses and remind us of the reason behind those Laws in their historical context. For example, Law #596 (Maimonides’ List) says “Destroy the seven Canaanite nations” and is based on Deut. 20:17 “But thou shalt utterly destroy them…as the Lord thy God hath commanded thee.” Deut. 7:1 says the seven nations are “…the Hittites, the Girgashites, the Amorites, the Canaanites, the Perizzites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites, seven nations greater and mightier than you.” This is a one-time law, meaning once it is achieved it is no longer necessary to follow it. The Israelites completed this Commandment so it is no longer needs to be kept. However, we can remember why it was commanded.
There is also a very important issue with Oral Law vs. Written Law. Oral Law is the portion of the Law that was not written in the Torah but supposedly passed down over the years and eventually added later by Rabbi’s of the Judaic faith. The Talmud is a record of rabbinic discussions pertaining to Jewish law, ethics, philosophy, customs and history. It has two components: the Mishnah (200 CE) which is Judaism’s Oral Law and the Gemara (500 CE) which discusses the Mishnah and other writings.
Hebrew Israelites are not followers of rabbinical oral law additions or Judaic religion therefore it is necessary to dissect the traditional written version of the commandments and determine what part is pure and based on actual scripture and what part has been tainted? We also had to do this with the actual name of the Messiah, as it is stated by many that early Rabbi’s of the 10th century placed vowel points at the incorrect location in the Messiahs name, purposefully. This has caused many to call the Messiah Yehoshua and Yeshua when his name should be Yehusha or Yahusha.
What did the Messiah say about the Rabbi’s of his day? Matt. 23:3 confirms he never promoted disobedience to them but at the same time he told the Israelites not to do as they do. He said, “..for they do not practice what they preach.” In verse 5 he says, “Everything they do is done for men to see. They make their phylacteries wide and the tassels on their garments long; they love the place of honor at banquets and the most important seats in the synagogues; they love to be greeted in the market places and to have men call them ‘Rabbi.’ But you are not to be called ‘Rabbi,’ for you have only one Master and you are all brothers. And do not call anyone on earth ‘father,’ for you have one Father, and He is in heaven. Nor are you to be called ‘teacher,’ for you have one Teacher, The Messiah. ” Verse 13 says, “Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You shut the kingdom of heaven in men’s faces. You yourselves do not enter, nor will you let those enter who are trying to. Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You travel over land and sea to win a single convert, and when he becomes one, you make him twice as much a son of hell as you are.” He goes on to tell them in verse 33, “How will you escape being condemned to hell?”
The purpose of this study is to follow after the purest form of the law and not rabbinical additions to it.
The ironic dilemma in studying the Laws of Moses and the ways of the original Hebrews is that many converts who are not the true Israelites descendents are more knowledgeable of the Mosaic faith than the actual Israelites themselves who have been scattered around the world, stripped of knowledge of self. Therefore, those Israelites may find themselves studying the ways of converts in order to get back to their historical roots. However, those converts over the generations have not sought to keep the Torah pure but have added religious rituals and requirements to it. Therefore, we must decipher what parts of the documented 613 Commandments are pure and what part are traditions established over time in Judaic religion.
Many Christians today would say that the Laws are no longer in effect, quoting the Messiah in John 15:12-17 “My command is this: Love others as I have loved you.” However, the Messiah had just stated in chapter 14:31 “The world must learn that I love the Father and that I do exactly what my Father has commanded me.” All throughout the NT the Messiah comes speaking what he was commanded by the Most High. Now, he’s giving his own command to love one another. But this command does not trump the Father's. The Messiah clearly says “My command is this…” He’s made a clear distinction between what the Father commands and what he himself is commanding, which is simply to love one another. Love is the most essential part of keeping the Commandments. This is what makes it so great but it this command does not replace the Laws of the Most High.
Others say the new or renewed covenant spoken of in Jer. 31:31-33 details a new covenant where the Law is no longer. However, Jer. 31:33 says, “This is the covenant I will make with the House of Israel after that time, I will put my Law in their minds and write it on their hearts. I will be there God and they my people…for I will forgive their wickedness and will remember their sins no more.” The new covenant is the forgiveness of sins, not the removal of the Law. The Law being removed is clearly not a part of the new covenant. The forgiveness it executes is intended to draw men to the Most High so much so, that the Laws would be written on their hearts. In I John 1:3, the Apostle John reiterates “We know that we have come to know him if we obey His commands.” Verse 7 says, “Dear friends, I am not writing you a new command but an old one, which you have had since the beginning.” In spite of other false apostles teaching people not to keep the commands, John is reiterating that nothing has changed since the coming of the Messiah.
Now that it’s clear that we should keep the Commandments, this study will help to dissect them. Upon the completion of this study, I expect to have a series of Laws (originally based on Maimonides 12th century format and classification) that are applicable to today’s Hebrew Israelites, untainted by the religion of Judaism.
*Omitted (should not have been added to the Laws)
**Changed (a misinterpretation of the Law or based on the wrong scripture)
***No Longer Kept (No longer applicable today)
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