By Garry Maddux

December 4, 2022

Opening Scripture I Jn 5:1-2

The law converts our souls and opens our eyes to understanding God and his desire for our life.

Psalm 19:7  The law of the LORD is perfect, converting the soul: the testimony of the LORD is sure, making wise the simple. 

Psalm 19:8  The statutes of the LORD are right, rejoicing the heart: the commandment of the LORD is pure, enlightening the eyes. 

In this study, all reference to The Law refers to the Mosaic law except where noted.

All scriptures are quoted in the KJV unless stated otherwise.

There are 613 laws and commandments related to the Law with scripture support. It is broken down into 248 positives and 365 negative commandments.

We are responsible to know and follow God’s law which is to do good.  If someone does not follow God’s law, it is sin or transgression of the law.

When we study the Commandments, we are to base it upon the precepts of how we love God and how we love our neighbor.

Mat 22:37  Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. 

Mat 22:38  This is the first and great commandment. 

Mat 22:39  And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself. 

Mat 22:40  On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets. 

Those that do the commandments have the right to the tree of life.

Rev 22:14  Blessed are they that do his commandments, that they may have right to the tree of life, and may enter in through the gates into the city.

Some Facts about the Law

The positive commandments are things God desires us to do. The negative commandments are things God desires us not to do.

Many lists are available online which list the 613 commandments.  Lists vary with various scripture and comments.  Some lists have more Jewish words others use a modern version.  Some list all 613 in one list while others break down the list into positive and negative.

In a review of The Law Part II, we covered the first 8 positive commandments.

• We are to acquire knowledge of God’s existence.
• We are to have our minds fixed there is only one God.
• We are to meditate upon these commandments.
• We are to fear the Lord.
• We are to serve the Lord in prayer.
• We are to cleave to God and the wise.
• We are to swear in God’s name.
• We are to emulate God in our daily walk.

In studying the law, first is to look at the context of when the law was in place beginning at the time of Moses.  Then find references to a particular law in the Old Testament and during the time of Christ.  Thirdly, see how the law is applied today. Lastly, think about the Law in the Kingdom of God.

In this study, it’s important to look at the Law with modern terminology.

Many laws are not able to be enforced at present for some laws only apply when there is a temple and others refer to the city of Jerusalem.

We are not here to change the law or add or subtract from it but to realize the law is flexible for each generation.

Let’s begin with examining the positive commandants beginning at 9 through 17.

• 9th Positive Commandant (Sanctify God’s Name)

  The 9th commandant is we are commanded to sanctify God's Name.

  The biblical source of this commandment is. "Sanctify Me amidst the Israel people."

  Lev 22:32 Neither shall ye profane my holy name; but I will be hallowed among the children of Israel: I am the LORD which hallow you, 

  Hallowed and hallow is the word H6942 kaw-dash'

  A primitive root; to be (causatively make, pronounce, or observe as) clean (ceremonially or morally): - appoint, bid, consecrate, dedicate, defile, hallow, (be, keep) holy (-er, place), keep, prepare, proclaim, purify, sanctify (-ied one, self), X wholly. (Webster, 1828)

  This commandment tells us to adhere to our beliefs about the Law and God publicly.  This is done without fear of retribution (not to outwardly deny), even if we still maintain belief in Him in our hearts.

  Example:  The actions of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego in the days of the wicked Nebuchadnezzar, who forced people to bow down to a statue, and everyone including Israel, bowed down. There was nobody there to sanctify God's Name, and this was a massive shame to Israel. Everyone did not fulfill this commandment, and there was nobody to fulfill it; everyone was afraid.

  Let three Israelites stand up in fear of death and sanctified God’s presence and name.

  Dan 3:10  Thou, O king, hast made a decree, that every man that shall hear the sound of the cornet, flute, harp, sackbut, psaltery, and dulcimer, and all kinds of musick, shall fall down and worship the golden image: 

  Dan 3:11  And whoso falleth not down and worshippeth, that he should be cast into the midst of a burning fiery furnace. 

  Dan 3:12  There are certain Jews whom thou hast set over the affairs of the province of Babylon, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego; these men, O king, have not regarded thee: they serve not thy gods, nor worship the golden image which thou hast set up. 

  We should not be ashamed to sanctify our Lord.

  Isa 29:22 Therefore thus saith the LORD, who redeemed Abraham, concerning the house of Jacob, Jacob shall not now be ashamed, neither shall his face now wax pale. 23  But when he seeth his children, the work of mine hands, in the midst of him, they shall sanctify my name, and sanctify the Holy One of Jacob, and shall fear the God of Israel. 

  Example today:  When we denied taking the vaccine, we sanctified God’s name.

• 10th Positive Commandment (Recite the Law daily)

  The 10th commandment is we are commanded to read the Law daily, both in the evening and in the morning.

  Deu 6:5 And thou shalt love the LORD thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy might. 6 And these words, which I command thee this day, shall be in thine heart: 7 And thou shalt teach them diligently unto thy children, and shalt talk of them when thou sittest in thine house, and when thou walkest by the way, and when thou liest down, and when thou risest up. 

  A 2021 online study conducted over social media asked 496 participants to read a book in bed before sleeping and 496 participants to not read a book before sleeping. After a week, 42 percent of the readers felt their sleep improved. In contrast, only 28 percent of the non-readers reported better sleep. (unknown source)

  Do you fall asleep reading the bible?

  “How is this possible? Well, when you’re reading, your eye muscles are having to quickly scan in a very patterned way, moving from left to right. Your body becomes tired. Another way reading can make you sleepy is if you’re performing the activity in a location associated with sleep, i.e. your bed. This happens because your body has conditioned itself to associate that place with sleep. The trick here is to select a spot for bible reading, such as a chair or a sofa. Create positive associations and you should be able to read and focus for hours.” (Curtis, 2022)

  If this is, you can choose a different place for your reading and meditation on the Law and God.

  Making it a habit will change your outlook on God’s law and convert your soul.

• 11th Positive Commandant (Teach the Wisdom of the Law and Bible)

  The 11th mitzvah is we are commanded to study and teach the wisdom of The Law.

  Deu 6:7 And thou shalt teach them diligently unto thy children, and shalt talk of them when thou sittest in thine house, and when thou walkest by the way, and when thou liest down, and when thou risest up. 

  We see many references in the Bible to being taught by others, elders, or the more mature.

  Example: Elisha (sons of prophets came): Paul taught by Gamaliel: Samuel

  2Ki 4:38  And Elisha came again to Gilgal: and there was a dearth in the land; and the sons of the prophets were sitting before him: and he said unto his servant, Set on the great pot, and seethe pottage for the sons of the prophets. 

  Act 22:3  I am verily a man which am a Jew, born in Tarsus, a city in Cilicia, yet brought up in this city at the feet of Gamaliel, and taught according to the perfect manner of the law of the fathers, and was zealous toward God, as ye all are this day.  One similarly finds all over students are called children, as it is written, 'And the children [i.e. the students] of the prophets went out.'"

  1Sa 19:20  And Saul sent messengers to take David: and when they saw the company of the prophets prophesying, and Samuel standing as appointed over them, the Spirit of God was upon the messengers of Saul, and they also prophesied. 

  The Bible encourages us many times; "Learn them," "Do them," and "So you will learn them."

  My family has kept this habit for years, reading the bible first thing in the morning and right before bedtime. I also follow this habit but I read a portion of the law morning and night along with other scripture reading.

  I have heard stories of families having a bible reading before or after they have eaten

  We are to be able to give an account when someone asks us.

  1Pe 3:15  But sanctify the Lord God in your hearts: and be ready always to give an answer to every man that asketh you a reason of the hope that is in you with meekness and fear: 

• 12th Positive Commandment (Actions involve an item for head)

  These next few commandments teach us about different ways to activate ourselves to remember the Law.

  The first is to put the law into your mind. When the Law was written and in Israeli traditions, people wore tefillin or a symbol on their heads.

  The source of this commandment is, "And they shall be for remembrance between your eyes."

  Deu 6:8 And thou shalt bind them for a sign upon thine hand, and they shall be as frontlets between thine eyes. 

  It is repeated three other times.

  Exo 13:9 And it shall be for a sign unto thee upon thine hand, and for a memorial between thine eyes, that the LORD'S law may be in thy mouth: for with a strong hand hath the LORD brought thee out of Egypt. 

  Exo 13:16 And it shall be for a token upon thine hand, and for frontlets between thine eyes: for by strength of hand the LORD brought us forth out of Egypt. 

  Deu 11:18 Therefore shall ye lay up these my words in your heart and in your soul, and bind them for a sign upon your hand, that they may be as frontlets between your eyes. 

  I do not encourage a person to wear tefillin.

  There are other ways to put the law in our mind besides wearing tefillin. (I will give examples later in this lesson)

• 13th Positive Commandment (Actions involve the tefillin for arm)

  The 13th commandment is we are commanded in the actions involving wearing something on our hand.

  Deu 6:8 And thou shalt bind them for a sign upon thine hand, and they shall be as frontlets between thine eyes.

  In the public speaking classes it is taught there are four ways of learning

  • Visual
  • Auditory
  • Reading – Writing
  • Kinesthetic

  God desires us to learn the law in a way we learn best.

       Examples of putting on the law

  • Cell phones are a good way to put the law into our head
  • You can record it.
  • You can listen to it
  • You can read it
  • You watch a video about it
  • Example of putting the law on your arm
  • You can make a bracelet
  • You can put the Law or scripture on it
  • You can put scriptures on an armband
  • Like quarterbacks to read the play
  • Example of writing the law
  • You can write one law over and over until you have it memorized
  • You can several passages on a piece of paper
  • You type it into your computer
  • You can read text from other sources on the Law

  Example of Kinesthetic (Hands on Learning)

  • You can act out a skit with others
  • You can join a study group
  • You can visualize how Moses and others kept the law
• 14th Positive Commandment (Actions involve a prayer shawl (tallit)

  Num 15:38 Speak unto the children of Israel, and bid them that they make them fringes in the borders of their garments throughout their generations, and that they put upon the fringe of the borders a ribband of blue: 

  Example: The tallit is referred to as a prayer shawl today. I know of Christians who wrap a shawl around themselves when they go into their prayer closet. They believe it separates them from the world and they feel closer to God.

  Mat 6:5  And when thou prayest, thou shalt not be as the hypocrites are: for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and in the corners of the streets, that they may be seen of men. Verily I say unto you, They have their reward. 

  Mat 6:6  But thou, when thou prayest, enter into thy closet, and when thou hast shut thy door, pray to thy Father which is in secret; and thy Father which seeth in secret shall reward thee openly. 

  According to Dean (2022) in an article titled Christian Prayer Shawl: Definition and should Christians use it. “The Bible doesn’t specifically require the use of a prayer shawl; however, it does require the Israelites wear specific tassels which they can choose to make into the prayer shawl. The Hebrew word for this prayer shawl is “tallit”, and the fringes are called “tzitzit.” Tzitzit represents the number 600. Each tassel had eight strands and five knots. When you add them all together you get 613. There are 613 laws in the Bible which these are said to represent. Each is to be a reminder to keep the law according to the book of Numbers.”

  Num 15:39 And it shall be a tassel for you to look at and remember all the commandments of the Lord, to do them, not to follow after your own heart and your own eyes, which you are inclined to whore after. :40  That ye may remember, and do all my commandments, and be holy unto your God. 

  Again, these commandments teach us to do something that constantly reminds us of the 613 commandments.

  Other examples:

  Write out scripture or the law on note cards and put them on the bathroom medicine cabinet.

  One lady I knew had them printed on small plastic tags and made a key chain out of them. She could stop and read them when her car was stopped.

  Make a note on your calendar to read or study a particular law each day.

  If you like to journal then add a comment in your journal about what a particular law represents.

•  15th Positive Commandment (Actions involve placing scripture or the law on your door posts)

  The 15th Commandment is we are commanded in the actions involving the mezuzah (an item to put on the wall).

  Deu 11:20 And thou shalt write them upon the door posts of thine house, and upon thy gates.

  According to Gordon-Bennett (2019), The Definition of a Mezuzah, in Hebrew, the word mezuzah (מְזוּזָה ‎)  means "doorpost". The mezuzah is known as a piece of parchment, called a klaf, with specific verses from the Torah that is then placed inside a mezuzah case, which is then affixed to the doorposts of an Israelite home.

  While we don’t make a mezuzah case today, we can post the Law and scriptures around our house and above our doorpost.

  According to Richoka (2022), D6-19: What is the purpose of affixing a Mezuzah to your doorpost “It should be noted the “doorposts” in this Scripture refer to your home while the “gates” refer to the point of entry of the city or village. In those days, the city gates functioned as the town square where court proceedings were held. The mezuzah being posted at the city gates is kind of similar to how in America we use to post the 10 Commandments in our courts of Law.”

  Visual learner seeing the law around the house on the wall or above the door is a reminder of keeping the law.

• 16th Positive Commandment (Actions involve placing scripture or the law on your door posts)

  And the 16th commandment is we are commanded to gather the entire nation on the second day of tabernacles in the year of Jubilee and to read before them certain verses from the Book of Deuteronomy.

  Deu 31:10  And Moses commanded them, saying, At the end of every seven years, in the solemnity of the year of release, in the feast of tabernacles, 

  Deu 31:11  When all Israel is come to appear before the LORD thy God in the place which he shall choose, thou shalt read this law before all Israel in their hearing. 

  In a post by (Bright, 2012), Deuteronomy 31:9-13: The law is to be read every seven years, “There are a few purposes to this law, and all of them are very straightforwardly understood. Let us examine them now. For one, it was the responsibility of the religious and civil leaders of Israel to make sure that the whole law (at the very least, the whole law of Deuteronomy) was read every seven years at the Feast of Tabernacles. Since many of these laws (see, for example, Deuteronomy 17:14-20) deal with the behavior of leaders and judgment and protection of the rights of the poor and strangers, it was important for there to be periodic reminders to everyone, since all were commanded to appear before God at the Feast of Tabernacles.”

  Many churches have a reading of the Law every Sunday or on special occasions. As stated above the Law has many important instructions for leaders and behaviors of all of Israel.

  We will end with one additional laws.

• 17th Positive Commandment (The King shall write a copy of the Torah)

  The 17th commandment is we are commanded every king who sits in rulership over the Israel people shall write a copy of Law for himself; and that it shall never be separate from him.

  Deu 17:18  And it shall be, when he sitteth upon the throne of his kingdom, that he shall write him a copy of this law in a book out of that which is before the priests the Levites: 

  Deu 17:19  And it shall be with him, and he shall read therein all the days of his life: that he may learn to fear the LORD his God, to keep all the words of this law and these statutes, to do them: 

  Deu 17:20  That his heart be not lifted up above his brethren, and that he turn not aside from the commandment, to the right hand, or to the left: to the end that he may prolong his days in his kingdom, he, and his children, in the midst of Israel. 

  George Washington was an avid reader of the Old Testament and understood the Abraham line.

  In closing, I will read you this quote from Mariottini (2009), George Washington and the Old Testament.

  This excerpt originally appears in his letter to the Hebrew Congregation at Newport, written in August 1790:

  May the children of the stock of Abraham who dwell in this land continue to merit and enjoy the good will of the other inhabitants—while every one shall sit in safety under his own vine and fig tree and there shall be none to make him afraid.

Works Cited

Bright (2012), Deuteronomy 31:9-13: The law is to be read every seven years, https://edgeinducedcohesion.blog/2012/03/05/deuteronomy-319-13-the-law-is-to-be-read-every-seven-years/

Curtis (Aug 2, 2022), What Does Reading Before Bed Do to an Adult’s Brain? https://www.dreams.co.uk/sleep-matters-club/what-does-reading-before-bed-do-to-an-adults-brain

Dean (2022) Christian Prayer Shawl: Definition and should Christians use it. https://justdisciple.com/christian-prayer-shawl/

Gordon-Bennett (2019), The Definition of a Mezuzah https://www.learnreligions.com/what-is-a-mezuzah-2076794

Mariottini (2009), George Washington and the Old Testament https://claudemariottini.com/2009/05/08/george-washington-and-the-old-testament/

Richoka (2022), D6-19: What is the purpose of affixing a Mezuzah to your doorpost? https://messianic-revolution.com/d6-19-purpose-affixing-mezuzah-doorpost/

Webster (1828), Definitions: Webster's American Dictionary of the English Language, 1828.