The Law Given at Sinai

Moses then called the multitude together and told them he was leaving them to go up Mount Sinai to be with God, and that he would come back to them bringing something useful from him. He told them to pitch their tents near the mountain and to prefer the dwelling place nearest to God to one farther off. When he had said this, he went up Mount Sinai. It is the highest of all the mountains in that country, and because of its great height and its sheer cliffs, men not only cannot climb it but cannot even look at it without pain to the eyes. Besides this, it was dreaded and unapproachable because of the report that went around that God lived there. The Hebrews moved their tents as Moses had told them and took possession of the lowest slopes of the mountain, lifted up in spirit, expecting Moses to return from God with promises of the good things he had held out to them. So they feasted and waited for their leader. They kept themselves pure, both in other ways and by not sleeping with their wives for three days, as he had ordered them before. They prayed to God to receive Moses kindly as he spoke with him, and to grant them some gift by which they might live well. They also ate more richly than usual, and they dressed splendidly, together with their wives and children. [a]

So they spent two days feasting in this way. But on the third day, before sunrise, a cloud such as no one had ever seen spread over the whole camp of the Hebrews and surrounded the place where they had pitched their tents. While all the rest of the sky was clear, strong winds came, bringing heavy downpours of rain, which grew into a mighty storm. There was lightning, terrifying to those who saw it, and thunder with its thunderbolts was sent down, declaring that God was present there, and present graciously, to those to whom Moses wished him to be gracious. As to these matters, every one of my readers may think as he pleases; but I am obliged to tell this history as it is written in the sacred books. This sight, and the astonishing sound that reached their ears, disturbed the Hebrews beyond measure, for these were not things they were used to; and the report that had spread, that God came to that mountain, greatly alarmed them. So they kept sorrowfully inside their tents, supposing that Moses had been destroyed by the divine wrath and expecting the same destruction for themselves.

While they were in this fear, Moses appeared, joyful and greatly uplifted. When they saw him, they were freed from their fear and allowed themselves better hopes about what was to come. The air too became clear and pure of its former turmoil when Moses appeared. Then he called the people to an assembly to hear what God had said to him, and when they were gathered, he stood on a height from which they could all hear him, and said: “God has received me graciously, Hebrews, as he did before. He has shown me a happy way of life for you and an order of government, and he is now present in the camp. So I charge you, for his sake, and for the sake of his works and of what we have done by his means, not to think little of what I am about to say because the commands have been given by me who now deliver them to you, or because it is a man’s tongue that delivers them. If you give due weight to how important the things themselves are, you will understand the greatness of the one whose laws they are, who has not disdained to give them to me for our common good. For you must not suppose that the author of these laws is merely Moses, the son of Amram and Jochebed. He is the one who made the Nile run with blood for your sake and tamed the arrogance of the Egyptians with judgments of many kinds; the one who opened a way through the sea for us; the one who devised a way to send us food from heaven when we were in distress for lack of it; the one who made water pour out of a rock when we had very little before. He is the one by whose means Adam was given the fruits of both land and sea; by whose means Noah escaped the flood; by whose means our forefather Abraham, a wandering pilgrim, was made heir of the land of Canaan; by whose means Isaac was born to parents who were very old; by whose means Jacob was blessed with twelve virtuous sons; by whose means Joseph became a powerful lord over the Egyptians. It is he who gives you these instructions through me as his interpreter. Let them be sacred to you, and fight for them more earnestly than for your own children and your own wives. For if you follow them, you will lead a happy life: you will enjoy a fruitful land, a calm sea, and children born whole, as nature requires, and you will be dreaded by your enemies. For I have been admitted into the presence of God and allowed to hear his imperishable voice, so great is his care for your nation and its continuance.” [c]

When he had said this, he brought the people, with their wives and children, so near the mountain that they might hear God himself speaking to them about the commands they were to keep, so that the force of what was said would not be weakened by being spoken through a man’s tongue, which could only imperfectly convey it to their understanding. And they all heard a voice that came to all of them from above, so that not one of these words escaped them. Moses wrote them on two tablets. It is not lawful for us to set them down word for word, but we will declare their meaning. [d]

The first commandment teaches us that there is only one God, and that we must worship him alone. The second commands us not to make the image of any living creature to worship it. The third, that we must not swear by God over any frivolous matter. The fourth, that we must keep the seventh day by resting from every kind of work. The fifth, that we must honor our parents. The sixth, that we must not murder. The seventh, that we must not commit adultery. The eighth, that we must not steal. The ninth, that we must not bear false witness. The tenth, that we must not allow ourselves to desire anything that belongs to another. [e]

When the multitude had heard God himself giving the commands Moses had spoken of, they rejoiced at what was said, and the assembly broke up. But in the following days they came to his tent and asked him to bring them other laws from God as well. So he laid down such laws, and afterward instructed them how they should act in every case. I will mention these laws in their proper place, but I will keep most of them for another work and explain them there separately. [f]

When things had reached this point, Moses went up Mount Sinai again, as he had told them beforehand he would. He made the ascent in their sight. Since he stayed there so long — he was away from them forty days — fear took hold of the Hebrews that some harm had come to him; nothing else so saddened and troubled them as the thought that Moses had perished. Opinions about it varied. Some said he had fallen among wild beasts, and those who held this view were mostly those who were ill disposed toward him. Others said he had departed and gone to God. But the wiser sort were led by reason to accept neither view with any confidence. They thought that just as men do sometimes fall among wild beasts and die that way, so it was quite possible that he had departed and gone to God because of his virtue; and so they kept quiet and waited for the outcome. Yet they were exceedingly grieved at the thought that they had lost a governor and protector such as they could never find again. Nor would this suspicion let them expect any happy outcome for the man, nor could they keep from distress and gloom over it. The camp, however, did not dare to move all this time, because Moses had told them before to stay there.

But when the forty days and as many nights were over, Moses came down, having tasted none of the food ordinarily eaten for men’s nourishment. His appearance filled the army with gladness. He told them how God cared for them, and by what way of life they might live happily. During these days of his absence, he told them, God had also instructed him that he wished a tabernacle to be built for him, into which he would descend when he came to them; and how they should carry it about with them when they moved from that place; and that there would no longer be any need to go up Mount Sinai, for God himself would come and pitch his tabernacle among them and be present at their prayers. The tabernacle was to be of the dimensions and construction God had shown him, and they were to set to the work and press it on diligently. When he had said this, he showed them the two tablets with the ten commandments engraved on them, five on each tablet; and the writing was by the hand of God. [g]