Page 32 - Prophetic Word Newsletter Archive 2010

The Torah is based on the first five books of the Bible: Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers and
Deuteronomy. However, to become Torah-observant is not to study the first five books of the Bible as
they were written, but rather it is a thrust to become compliant to the 613 commandments that
Rabbinical Judaism’s Rabbis have selected from the first five books of the Bible. Big difference!

Over the years I have taught many wonderful truths from the first five books of the Bible. Exodus and
Deuteronomy hold many sober examples for us of the Children of Israel as they rebelled against God
in the wilderness. Paul tells us plainly that these things were written for us as examples so that we
would not repeat their sins (see 1 Cor. 10:1-13). Exodus-Numbers contain the great pictures of the
Tabernacle of Moses that contain revelational types and shadows of what is to be the normal Christian
life. The book of Leviticus contains the Seven Feasts of the Lord which are immense prophetic type
and shadows of the life and ministry of Jesus Christ, past, present and future. Teaching these types
and shadows continues to be a major thrust in my ministry. My point in stressing these areas to you is
to convey that I am not against teaching to New Testament believers from the first five books of the
Bible. I am not against Torah teaching if it is presented as it is written. However, this is not what is
behind becoming Torah observant. Rather it is a focus upon the 613 commandments Rabbinical
Judaism has derived from the first five books of the Bible:

“The 613 Mitzvot Taryag Mitzvot, "613 commandments") are
statements and principles of law and ethics contained in the
Torah or Five Books of Moses. These principles of Biblical law
are sometimes called commandments) or collectively as the "Law
of Moses" (Torat Moshe, ‫)תורת משה‬, "Mosaic Law", or simply
"the Law“… The Talmud (“oral tradition of Judaism”) notes that
the Hebrew numerical value of the word "Torah" is 611, and
combining Moses's 611 commandments with the two received
directly from God adds up to 613. The Talmud attributes the
number 613…The tzitzit ("knotted fringes") of the tallit
("[prayer] shawl") are connected to the 613 commandments by
interpretation:…Each tassel has eight threads (when doubled
over) and five sets of knots, totalling 13. The sum of all
numbers is 613. This reflects the concept that donning a garment
with tzitzit reminds its wearer of all Torah commandments.”

(From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia)

God gave the Jews the Ten Commandments.
They have expanded them into 613. Where does this revered number come from?
As stated above, the Hebrew word “Torah” has a numerical value of 611. They add 2
more commandments that they say were given directly to them from God. So the

Rabbis set out to find in all the first five books of the Bible, 613 commandments.

The “tallit” is a prayer shawl worn by Jews as well as by Messianic Jews, and sadly, even
worn by Gentile believers who are being swept into this movement. It is worn as a symbol

of reverence for these 613 commandments. As stated above, each tassel has eight
threads (when doubled over) and five sets of knots, totaling 13. The sum of all numbers is
613. So we can see the focus of this prayer shawl is to remember the 613 Torah laws, not
as spelled out by God, but rather as emphasized by Rabbinic interpretation of God’s Word.
Before you as a Gentile believer in Christ start wearing this revered prayer shawl, consider this: It is a
known fact that Jewish rabbis continually squabble over the interpretation of what constitutes “Torah
Law.” Even when rabbis attempt to compile a specific list of the 613 commandments, they face a
number of extreme difficulties. For instance, which statements of Torah are to be counted as among
the 613 commandments? Is it every command by God given to any individual? Is it only the
commandments given to the entire people of Israel? How does one count commandments in a single
verse which offers multiple prohibitions? Should each prohibition count as a single commandment, or
does the entire set count as one commandment? Even though birthed in such ambiguity of definition,
the concept of 613 commandments became accepted as denoting “Torah” in the Jewish community.
Today, even among those who do not literally accept this count as accurate, it is still a common
practice to refer to the total system of commandments within the Torah as the "613 commandments.”