613

A couple of times in his recent comments, Marcus mentioned that there were 613 laws in 'the Law'. So I did a websearch for '613' and turned up this page which lists them and (handily) categorises them. I've listed them below (summarised slightly from the original list and with some of the Jewish phrases expressed in English) and colour coded them according to my perception of whether contemporary Christians consider them binding or not.

This is a long post. Sorry, but its a long list. Also, some of the colour coding is a bit arbitrary, but I've used it to get the overall impression, not to get too hung up on the detail.

• Laws listed in red are ones which I think most Christians would probably consider to still be binding today.
• Laws listed in orange are ones which many consider to be binding, but others would dispute this.
• Laws listed in green are ones which I think most Christians would probably consider as not being binding today.
• Laws listed in blue are ones which I think some Christians might do anyway, but not consider as a matter of law.
• Laws listed in purple are civic laws, where Christians would probably defer to the equivalent in the laws of the country in which they live, rather than sticking to the Biblical laws.
  

(Marcus, I hope you can distinguish between these colours!)

I'll try not to pass much comment on the laws here, but may do so in future posts.

In summary, however, I would say that approximately:

• 69% of the law would be dismissed as not applicable anymore
• 13%% of the law might be followed, but not as a matter of law
• 9.5% of the law would be dismissed by deferring to local laws
• Only 7% of the law would be considered as still binding today (half of which laws relate to sex, mostly to incest)
• Only 1.5% of the law would be disputed by different groups of Christians (that's only 9 laws, one of which I'm breaking here by questioning 'the law')
  

So here goes:

God

1. To know that God exists (Ex. 20:2; Deut. 5:6)
2. Not to entertain the idea that there is any god but the Eternal (Ex. 20:3)
3. Not to blaspheme (Ex. 22:28), the penalty for which is death (Lev. 24:16)
4. To hallow God's name (Lev. 22:32)
5. Not to profane God's name (Lev. 22:32)
6. To know that God is One, a complete Unity (Deut. 6:4)
7. To love God (Deut. 6:5)
8. To fear Him reverently (Deut. 6:13; 10:20)
9. Not to put the word of God to the test (Deut. 6:16)
10. To imitate His good and upright ways (Deut. 28:9)

Torah

11. To honor the old and the wise (Lev. 19:32)
12. To learn Torah and to teach it (Deut. 6:7)
13. To cleave to those who know Him (Deut. 10:20)
14. Not to add to the commandments of the Torah, whether in the Written Law or in its interpretation received by tradition (Deut. 13:1)
15. Not to take away from the commandments of the Torah (Deut. 13:1)
16. That every person shall write a scroll of the Torah for himself (Deut. 31:19)

Signs and Symbols

17. To circumcise the male offspring (Gen. 17:12; Lev. 12:3)
18. To put tzitzit on the corners of clothing (Num. 15:38)
19. To bind tefillin on the head (Deut. 6:8)
20. To bind tefillin on the arm (Deut. 6:8)
21. To affix the mezuzah to the doorposts and gates of your house (Deut. 6:9)

Prayer and Blessings

22. To pray to God (Ex. 23:25; Deut. 6:13)
23. To read the Shema in the morning and at night (Deut. 6:7)
24. To recite grace after meals (Deut. 8:10) [in my experience, most Christians - if they do this - do it before the meal...]
25. Not to lay down a stone for worship (Lev. 26:1)

Love and Brotherhood

26. To love all human beings who are of the covenant (Lev. 19:18)
27. Not to stand by idly when a human life is in danger (Lev. 19:16)
28. Not to wrong any one in speech (Lev. 25:17)
29. Not to carry tales (Lev. 19:16)
30. Not to cherish hatred in one's heart (Lev. 19:17)
31. Not to take revenge (Lev. 19:18)
32. Not to bear a grudge (Lev. 19:18)
33. Not to put any Jew to shame (Lev. 19:17)
34. Not to curse any other Israelite (Lev. 19:14) [of course, as this says 'other' this law is only applicable to Israelites]
35. Not to give occasion to the simple-minded to stumble on the road (Lev. 19:14)
36. To rebuke the sinner (Lev. 19:17)
37. To relieve a neighbor of his burden and help to unload his beast (Ex. 23:5)
38. To assist in replacing the load upon a neighbor's beast (Deut. 22:4)
39. Not to leave a beast, that has fallen down beneath its burden, unaided (Deut. 22:4)

The Poor and Unfortunate

40. Not to afflict an orphan or a widow (Ex. 22:21)
41. Not to reap the entire field (Lev. 19:9; Lev. 23:22)
42. To leave the unreaped corner of the field or orchard for the poor (Lev. 19:9)
43. Not to gather gleanings (the ears that have fallen to the ground while reaping) (Lev. 19:9)
44. To leave the gleanings for the poor (Lev. 19:9)
45. Not to gather ol'loth (the imperfect clusters) of the vineyard (Lev. 19:10)
46. To leave ol'loth (the imperfect clusters) of the vineyard for the poor (Lev. 19:10; Deut. 24:21)
47. Not to gather the peret (grapes) that have fallen to the ground (Lev. 19:10)
48. To leave peret (the single grapes) of the vineyard for the poor (Lev. 19:10)
49. Not to return to take a forgotten sheaf (Deut. 24:19) This applies to all fruit trees (Deut. 24:20)
50. To leave the forgotten sheaves for the poor (Deut. 24:19-20)
51. Not to refrain from maintaining a poor man and giving him what he needs (Deut. 15:7)
52. To give charity according to one's means (Deut. 15:11)

Treatment of Gentiles

53. To love the stranger (Deut. 10:19)
54. Not to wrong the stranger in speech (Ex. 22:20)
55. Not to wrong the stranger in buying or selling (Ex. 22:20)
56. Not to intermarry with gentiles (Deut. 7:3)
57. To exact the debt of an alien (Deut. 15:3)
58. To lend to an alien at interest (Deut. 23:21)

Marriage, Divorce and Family

59. To honor father and mother (Ex. 20:12)
60. Not to smite a father or a mother (Ex. 21:15)
61. Not to curse a father or mother (Ex. 21:17)
62. To reverently fear father and mother (Lev. 19:3)
63. To be fruitful and multiply (Gen. 1:28)
64. That a eunuch shall not marry a daughter of Israel (Deut. 23:2)
65. That a mamzer shall not marry the daughter of a Jew (Deut. 23:3)
66. That an Ammonite or Moabite shall never marry the daughter of an Israelite (Deut. 23:4)
67. Not to exclude a descendant of Esau from the community of Israel for three generations (Deut. 23:8-9)
68. Not to exclude an Egyptian from the community of Israel for three generations (Deut. 23:8-9)
69. That there shall be no harlot (in Israel); that is, that there shall be no intercourse with a woman, without previous marriage with a deed of marriage and formal declaration of marriage (Deut. 23:18)
70. To take a wife by kiddushin, the sacrament of marriage (Deut. 24:1) [well, it is generally held that marriage is important]
71. That the newly married husband shall (be free) for one year to rejoice with his wife (Deut. 24:5)
72. That a bridegroom shall be exempt for a whole year from taking part in any public labor, such as military service, guarding the wall and similar duties (Deut. 24:5)
73. Not to withhold food, clothing or conjugal rights from a wife (Ex. 21:10)
74. That the woman suspected of adultery shall be dealt with as prescribed in the Torah (Num. 5:30)
75. That one who defames his wife's honor (by falsely accusing her of unchastity before marriage) must live with her all his lifetime (Deut. 22:19)
76. That a man may not divorce his wife concerning whom he has published an evil report (about her unchastity before marriage) (Deut. 22:19)
77. To divorce by a formal written document (Deut. 24:1)
78. That one who divorced his wife shall not remarry her, if after the divorce she had been married to another man (Deut. 24:4)
79. That a widow whose husband died childless must not be married to anyone but her deceased husband's brother (Deut. 25:5)
80. To marry the widow of a brother who has died childless (Deut. 25:5)
81. That the widow formally release the brother-in-law (if he refuses to marry her) (Deut. 25:7-9)

Forbidden Sexual Relations

82. Not to indulge in familiarities with relatives, such as kissing, embracing, winking, skipping, which may lead to incest (Lev. 18:6)
83. Not to commit incest with one's mother (Lev. 18:7)
84. Not to commit sodomy with one's father (Lev. 18:7)
85. Not to commit incest with one's father's wife (Lev. 18:8)
86. Not to commit incest with one's sister (Lev. 18:9)
87. Not to commit incest with one's father's wife's daughter (Lev. 18:11) [that's a step-sister, right?]
88. Not to commit incest with one's son's daughter (Lev. 18:10)
89. Not to commit incest with one's daughter's daughter (Lev. 18:10)
90. Not to commit incest with one's daughter (this is not explicitly in the Torah but is inferred from other explicit commands that would include it)
91. Not to commit incest with one's fathers sister (Lev. 18:12)
92. Not to commit incest with one's mother's sister (Lev. 18:13)
93. Not to commit incest with one's father's brothers wife (Lev. 18:14)
94. Not to commit sodomy with one's father's brother (Lev. 18:14)
95. Not to commit incest with one's son's wife (Lev. 18:15)
96. Not to commit incest with one's brother's wife (Lev. 18:16)
97. Not to commit incest with one's wife's daughter (Lev. 18:17)
98. Not to commit incest with the daughter of one's wife's son (Lev. 18:17)
99. Not to commit incest with the daughter of one's wife's daughter (Lev. 18:17)
100. Not to commit incest with one's wife's sister (Lev. 18:18)
101. Not to have intercourse with a woman, in her menstrual period (Lev. 18:19)
102. Not to have intercourse with another man's wife (Lev. 18:20)
103. Not to commit sodomy with a male (Lev. 18:22)
104. Not to have intercourse with a beast (Lev. 18:23)
105. That a woman shall not have intercourse with a beast (Lev. 18:23)
106. Not to castrate the male of any species; neither a man, nor a domestic or wild beast, nor a fowl (Lev. 22:24)

Times and Seasons

107. That the new month shall be solemnly proclaimed as holy, and the months and years shall be calculated by the Supreme Court only (Ex. 12:2)
108. Not to travel on Sabbath outside the limits of one's place of residence (Ex. 16:29)
109. To sanctify Sabbath (Ex. 20:8)
110. Not to do work on Sabbath (Ex. 20:10)
111. To rest on Sabbath (Ex. 23:12; 34:21)
112. To celebrate the festivals [Passover, the Festival of Weeks and the Feast of Tabernacles] (Ex. 23:14)
113. To rejoice on the festivals (Deut. 16:14)
114. To appear in the Sanctuary on the festivals (Deut. 16:16)
115. To remove [specified bread products] on the Eve of Passover (Ex. 12:15)
116. To rest on the first day of Passover (Ex. 12:16; Lev. 23:7)
117. Not to do work on the first day of Passover (Ex. 12:16; Lev. 23:6-7)
118. To rest on the seventh day of Passover (Ex. 12:16; Lev. 23:8)
119. Not to do work on the seventh day of Passover (Ex. 12:16; Lev. 23:8)
120. To eat [specified flatbread] on the first night of Passover (Ex. 12:18)
121. That no [specified bread products] be in the Israelite's possession during Passover (Ex. 12:19)
122. Not to eat any food containing [specified bread products] on Passover (Ex. 12:20)
123. Not to eat [specified bread products] on Passover (Ex. 13:3)
124. That [specified bread products] shall not be seen in an Israelite's home during Passover (Ex. 13:7)
125. To discuss the departure from Egypt on the first night of Passover (Ex. 13:8)
126. Not to eat [specified bread products] after mid-day on the fourteenth of Nissan (Deut. 16:3)
127. To count forty-nine days from the time of the cutting of the Omer (first sheaves of the barley harvest) (Lev. 23:15)
128. To rest on the Festival of Weeks (Lev. 23:21)
129. Not to do work on the the Festival of Weeks (Lev. 23:21)
130. To rest on the Jewish New Year (Lev. 23:24)
131. Not to do work on the Jewish New Year (Lev. 23:25)
132. To hear the sound of the [ram's horn instrument] on the Jewish New Year (Num. 29:1)
133. To fast on the Day of Atonement (Lev. 23:27)
134. Not to eat or drink on the Day of Atonement (Lev. 23:29)
135. Not to do work on the Day of Atonement (Lev. 23:31)
136. To rest on the the Day of Atonement (Lev. 23:32)
137. To rest on the first day of the Feast of Tabernacles (Lev. 23:35) .
138. Not to do work on the first day of the Feast of Tabernacles (Lev. 23:35)
139. To rest on the eighth day of the Feast of Tabernacles (Shemini Atzeret) (Lev. 23:36)
140. Not to do work on the eighth day of the Feast of Tabernacles (Shemini Atzeret) (Lev. 23:36)
141. To take during the Feast of Tabernacles a palm branch and the other three plants (Lev. 23:40)
142. To dwell in booths seven days during the Feast of Tabernacles (Lev. 23:42)

Dietary Laws

143. To examine the marks in cattle (so as to distinguish the clean from the unclean) (Lev. 11:2)
144. Not to eat the flesh of unclean beasts (Lev. 11:4)
145. To examine the marks in fishes (so as to distinguish the clean from the unclean (Lev. 11:9)
146. Not to eat unclean fish (Lev. 11:11)
147. To examine the marks in fowl, so as to distinguish the clean from the unclean (Deut. 14:11)
148. Not to eat unclean fowl (Lev. 11:13)
149. To examine the marks in locusts, so as to distinguish the clean from the unclean (Lev. 11:21)
150. Not to eat a worm found in fruit (Lev. 11:41)
151. Not to eat of things that creep upon the earth (Lev. 11:41-42)
152. Not to eat any vermin of the earth (Lev. 11:44)
153. Not to eat things that swarm in the water (Lev. 11:43 and 46)
154. Not to eat of winged insects (Deut. 14:19)
155. Not to eat the flesh of a beast that is terefah (lit torn) (Ex. 22:30)
156. Not to eat the flesh of a beast that died of itself (Deut. 14:21)
157. To slay cattle, deer and fowl according to the laws of shechitah if their flesh is to be eaten (Deut. 12:21) ("as I have commanded" in this verse refers to the technique)
158. Not to eat a limb removed from a living beast (Deut. 12:23)
159. Not to slaughter an animal and its young on the same day (Lev. 22:28)
160. Not to take the mother-bird with the young (Deut. 22:6)
161. To set the mother-bird free when taking the nest (Deut. 22:6-7)
162. Not to eat the flesh of an ox that was condemned to be stoned (Ex. 21:28)
163. Not to boil meat with milk (Ex. 23:19)
164. Not to eat flesh with milk (Ex. 34:26)
165. Not to eat the of the thigh-vein which shrank (Gen. 32:33)
166. Not to eat chelev (tallow-fat) (Lev. 7:23)
167. Not to eat blood (Lev. 7:26)
168. To cover the blood of undomesticated animals (deer, etc.) and of fowl that have been killed (Lev. 17:13)
169. Not to eat or drink like a glutton or a drunkard (not to rebel against father or mother) (Lev. 19:26; Deut. 21:20)

Business Practices

170. Not to do wrong in buying or selling (Lev. 25:14)
171. Not to make a loan to an Israelite on interest (Lev. 25:37)
172. Not to borrow on interest (Deut. 23:20)
173. Not to take part in any usurious transaction between borrower and lender, neither as a surety, nor as a witness, nor as a writer of the bond for them (Ex. 22:24)
174. To lend to a poor person (Ex. 22:24) [this is a legal requirement!]
175. Not to demand from a poor man repayment of his debt, when the creditor knows that he cannot pay, nor press him (Ex. 22:24)
176. Not to take in pledge utensils used in preparing food (Deut. 24:6)
177. Not to exact a pledge from a debtor by force (Deut. 24:10)
178. Not to keep the pledge from its owner at the time when he needs it (Deut. 24:12)
179. To return a pledge to its owner (Deut. 24:13)
180. Not to take a pledge from a widow (Deut. 24:17)
181. Not to commit fraud in measuring (Lev. 19:35)
182. To ensure that scales and weights are correct (Lev. 19:36)
183. Not to possess inaccurate measures and weights (Deut. 25:13-14)

Employees, Servants and Slaves

184. Not to delay payment of a hired man's wages (Lev. 19:13)
185. That the hired laborer shall be permitted to eat of the produce he is reaping (Deut. 23:25-26)
186. That the hired laborer shall not take more than he can eat (Deut. 23:25)
187. That a hired laborer shall not eat produce that is not being harvested (Deut. 23:26)
188. To pay wages to the hired man at the due time (Deut. 24:15)
189. To deal judicially with the Hebrew bondman in accordance with the laws appertaining to him (Ex. 21:2-6)
190. Not to compel the Hebrew servant to do the work of a slave (Lev. 25:39)
191. Not to sell a Hebrew servant as a slave (Lev. 25:42)
192. Not to treat a Hebrew servant rigorously (Lev. 25:43)
193. Not to permit a gentile to treat harshly a Hebrew bondman sold to him (Lev. 25:53)
194. Not to send away a Hebrew bondman servant empty handed, when he is freed from service (Deut. 15:13)
195. To bestow liberal gifts upon the Hebrew bondsman (at the end of his term of service), and the same should be done to a Hebrew bondwoman (Deut. 15:14)
196. To redeem a Hebrew maid-servant (Ex. 21:8)
197. Not to sell a Hebrew maid-servant to another person (Ex. 21:8)
198. To espouse a Hebrew maid-servant (Ex. 21:8-9)
199. To keep the Canaanite slave forever (Lev. 25:46)
200. Not to surrender a slave, who has fled to the land of Israel, to his owner who lives outside Palestine (Deut. 23:16)
201. Not to wrong such a slave (Deut. 23:17)
202. Not to muzzle a beast, while it is working in produce which it can eat and enjoy (Deut. 25:4)

Vows, Oaths and Swearing

203. That a man should fulfill whatever he has uttered (Deut. 23:24)
204. Not to swear needlessly (Ex. 20:7)
205. Not to violate an oath or swear falsely (Lev. 19:12)
206. To decide in cases of annulment of vows, according to the rules set forth in the Torah (Num. 30:2-17)
207. Not to break a vow (Num. 30:3)
208. To swear by His name truly (Deut. 10:20)
209. Not to delay in fulfilling vows or bringing vowed or free-will offerings (Deut. 23:22)

The Sabbatical and Jubilee Years

210. To let the land lie fallow in the Sabbatical year (Ex. 23:11; Lev. 25:2)
211. To cease from tilling the land in the Sabbatical year (Ex. 23:11) (Lev. 25:2)
212. Not to till the ground in the Sabbatical year (Lev. 25:4)
213. Not to do any work on the trees in the Sabbatical year (Lev. 25:4)
214. Not to reap the aftermath that grows in the Sabbatical year, in the same way as it is reaped in other years (Lev. 25:5)
215. Not to gather the fruit of the tree in the Sabbatical year in the same way as it is gathered in other years (Lev. 25:5)
216. To sound the Ram's horn in the Sabbatical year (Lev. 25:9)
217. To release debts in the seventh year (Deut. 15:2)
218. Not to demand return of a loan after the Sabbatical year has passed (Deut. 15:2)
219. Not to refrain from making a loan to a poor man, because of the release of loans in the Sabbatical year (Deut. 15:9)
220. To assemble the people to hear the Torah at the close of the seventh year (Deut. 31:12)
221. To count the years of the Jubilee by years and by cycles of seven years (Lev. 25:8)
222. To keep the Jubilee year holy by resting and letting the land lie fallow (Lev. 25:10)
223. Not to cultivate the soil nor do any work on the trees, in the Jubilee Year (Lev. 25:11)
224. Not to reap the aftermath of the field that grew of itself in the Jubilee Year, in the same way as in other years (Lev. 25:11)
225. Not to gather the fruit of the tree in the Jubilee Year, in the same way as in other years (Lev. 25:11)
226. To grant redemption to the land in the Jubilee year (Lev. 25:24)

The Court and Judicial Procedure

227. To appoint judges and officers in every community of Israel (Deut. 16:18)
228. Not to appoint as a judge, a person who is not well versed in the laws of the Torah, even if he is expert in other branches of knowledge (Deut. 1:17)
229. To adjudicate cases of purchase and sale (Lev. 25:14)
230. To judge cases of liability of a paid depositary (Ex. 22:9)
231. To adjudicate cases of loss for which a gratuitous borrower is liable (Ex. 22:13-14)
232. To adjudicate cases of inheritances (Num. 27:8-11)
233. To judge cases of damage caused by an uncovered pit (Ex. 21:33-34)
234. To judge cases of injuries caused by beasts (Ex. 21:35-36)
235. To adjudicate cases of damage caused by trespass of cattle (Ex. 22:4)
236. To adjudicate cases of damage caused by fire (Ex. 22:5)
237. To adjudicate cases of damage caused by a gratuitous depositary (Ex. 22:6-7)
238. To adjudicate other cases between a plaintiff and a defendant (Ex. 22:8)
239. Not to curse a judge (Ex. 22:27)
240. That one who possesses evidence shall testify in Court (Lev. 5:1)
241. Not to testify falsely (Ex. 20:13)
242. That a witness, who has testified in a capital case, shall not lay down the law in that particular case (Num. 35:30)
243. That a transgressor shall not testify (Ex. 23:1)
244. That the court shall not accept the testimony of a close relative of the defendant in matters of capital punishment (Deut. 24:16)
245. Not to hear one of the parties to a suit in the absence of the other party (Ex. 23:1)
246. To examine witnesses thoroughly (Deut. 13:15)
247. Not to decide a case on the evidence of a single witness (Deut. 19:15)
248. To give the decision according to the majority, when there is a difference of opinion among the members of the Sanhedrin as to matters of law (Ex. 23:2)
249. Not to decide, in capital cases, according to the view of the majority, when those who are for condemnation exceed by one only, those who are for acquittal (Ex. 23:2)
250. That, in capital cases, one who had argued for acquittal, shall not later on argue for condemnation (Ex. 23:2)
251. To treat parties in a litigation with equal impartiality (Lev. 19:15)
252. Not to render iniquitous decisions (Lev. 19:15)
253. Not to favor a great man when trying a case (Lev. 19:15)
254. Not to take a bribe (Ex. 23:8)
255. Not to be afraid of a bad man, when trying a case (Deut. 1:17)
256. Not to be moved in trying a case, by the poverty of one of the parties (Ex. 23:3; Lev. 19:15)
257. Not to pervert the judgment of strangers or orphans (Deut. 24:17)
258. Not to pervert the judgment of a sinner (a person poor in fulfillment of commandments) (Ex. 23:6)
259. Not to render a decision on one's personal opinion, but only on the evidence of two witnesses, who saw what actually occurred (Ex. 23:7)
260. Not to execute one guilty of a capital offense, before he has stood his trial (Num. 35:12)
261. To accept the rulings of every Supreme Court in Israel (Deut. 17:11)
262. Not to rebel against the orders of the Court (Deut. 17:11)

Injuries and Damages

263. To make a parapet for your roof (Deut. 22:8)
264. Not to leave something that might cause hurt (Deut. 22:8)
265. To save the pursued even at the cost of the life of the pursuer (Deut. 25:12)
266. Not to spare a pursuer, but he is to be slain before he reaches the pursued and slays the latter, or uncovers his nakedness (Deut. 25:12)

Property and Property Rights

267. Not to sell a field in the land of Israel in perpetuity (Lev. 25:23)
268. Not to change the character of the open land (about the cities of) the Levites or of their fields; not to sell it in perpetuity, but it may be redeemed at any time (Lev. 25:34)
269. That houses sold within a walled city may be redeemed within a year (Lev. 25:29)
270. Not to remove landmarks (property boundaries) (Deut. 19:14)
271. Not to swear falsely in denial of another's property rights (Lev. 19:11)
272. Not to deny falsely another's property rights (Lev. 19:11)
273. Never to settle in the land of Egypt (Deut. 17:16)
274. Not to steal personal property (Lev. 19:11)
275. To restore that which one took by robbery (Lev. 5:23)
276. To return lost property (Deut. 22:1)
277. Not to pretend not to have seen lost property, to avoid the obligation to return it (Deut. 22:3)

Criminal Laws

278. Not to slay an innocent person (Ex. 20:13)
279. Not to kidnap any person of Israel (Ex. 20:13)
280. Not to rob by violence (Lev. 19:13)
281. Not to defraud (Lev. 19:13)
282. Not to covet what belongs to another (Ex. 20:14)
283. Not to crave something that belongs to another (Deut. 5:18)
284. Not to indulge in evil thoughts and sights (Num. 15:39)

Punishment and Restitution

285. That the Court shall pass sentence of death by decapitation with the sword (Ex. 21:20; Lev. 26:25)
286. That the Court shall pass sentence of death by strangulation (Lev. 20:10)
287. That the Court shall pass sentence of death by burning with fire (Lev. 20:14)
288. That the Court shall pass sentence of death by stoning (Deut. 22:24)
289. To hang the dead body of one who has incurred that penalty (Deut. 21:22)
290. That the dead body of an executed criminal shall not remain hanging on the tree over night (Deut. 21:23)
291. To inter the executed on the day of execution (Deut. 21:23)
292. Not to accept ransom from a murderer (Num. 35:31)
293. To exile one who committed accidental homicide (Num. 35:25)
294. To establish six cities of refuge (for those who committed accidental homicide) (Deut. 19:3)
295. Not to accept ransom from an accidental homicide, so as to relieve him from exile (Num. 35:32)
296. To decapitate the heifer in the manner prescribed (in expiation of a murder on the road, the perpetrator of which remained undiscovered) (Deut. 21:4)
297. Not to plow nor sow the rough valley (in which a heifer's neck was broken) (Deut. 21:4)
298. To adjudge a thief to pay compensation or (in certain cases) suffer death (Ex. 21:16; Ex. 21:37; Ex. 22:1)
299. That he who inflicts a bodily injury shall pay monetary compensation (Ex. 21:18-19)
300. To impose a penalty of fifty shekels upon the seducer (of an unbetrothed virgin) and enforce the other rules in connection with the case (Ex. 22:15-16)
301. That the violator (of an unbetrothed virgin) shall marry her (Deut. 22:28-29)
302. That one who has raped a damsel and has then (in accordance with the law) married her, may not divorce her (Deut. 22:29)
303. Not to inflict punishment on Sabbath (Ex. 35:3)
304. To punish the wicked by the infliction of stripes (Deut. 25:2)
305. Not to exceed the statutory number of stripes laid on one who has incurred that punishment (Deut. 25:3)
306. Not to spare the offender, in imposing the prescribed penalties on one who has caused damage (Deut. 19:13)
307. To do unto false witnesses as they had purposed to do (to the accused) (Deut. 19:19)
308. Not to punish any one who has committed an offense under duress (Deut. 22:26)

Prophecy

309. To heed the call of every prophet in each generation, provided that he neither adds to, nor takes away from the Torah (Deut. 18:15)
310. Not to prophesy falsely (Deut. 18:20)
311. Not to refrain from putting a false prophet to death nor to be in fear of him (Deut. 18:22)

Idolatry, Idolaters and Idolatrous Practices

312. Not to make a graven image; neither to make it oneself nor to have it made by others (Ex. 20:4)
313. Not to make any figures for ornament, even if they are not worshipped (Ex. 20:20)
314. Not to make idols even for others (Ex. 34:17; Lev. 19:4)
315. Not to use the ornament of any object of idolatrous worship (Deut. 7:25)
316. Not to make use of an idol or its accessory objects, offerings, or libations (Deut. 7:26)
317. Not to drink wine of idolaters (Deut. 32:38)
318. Not to worship an idol in the way in which it is usually worshipped (Ex. 20:5)
319. Not to bow down to an idol, even if that is not its mode of worship (Ex. 20:5)
320. Not to prophesy in the name of an idol (Ex. 23:13; Deut. 18:20)
321. Not to hearken to one who prophesies in the name of an idol (Deut. 13:4)
322. Not to lead the children of Israel astray to idolatry (Ex. 23:13)
323. Not to entice an Israelite to idolatry (Deut. 13:12)
324. To destroy idolatry and its appurtenances (Deut. 12:2-3)
325. Not to love the enticer to idolatry (Deut. 13:9)
326. Not to give up hating the enticer to idolatry (Deut. 13:9)
327. Not to save the enticer from capital punishment, but to stand by at his execution (Deut. 13:9)
328. A person whom he attempted to entice to idolatry shall not urge pleas for the acquittal of the enticer (Deut. 13:9)
329. A person whom he attempted to entice shall not refrain from giving evidence of the enticer's guilt, if he has such evidence (Deut. 13:9)
330. Not to swear by an idol to its worshipers, nor cause them to swear by it (Ex. 23:13)
331. Not to turn one's attention to idolatry (Lev. 19:4)
332. Not to adopt the institutions of idolaters nor their customs (Lev. 18:3; Lev. 20:23)
333. Not to pass a child through the fire to Molech (Lev. 18:21)
334. Not to suffer any one practicing witchcraft to live (Ex. 22:17)
335. Not to practice onein (observing times or seasons as favorable or unfavorable, using astrology) (Lev. 19:26)
336. Not to practice nachesh (doing things based on signs and portents; using charms and incantations) (Lev. 19:26)
337. Not to consult ovoth (ghosts) (Lev. 19:31)
338. Not to consult yid'onim (wizards) (Lev. 19:31)
339. Not to practice kisuf (magic using herbs, stones and objects that people use) (Deut. 18:10)
340. Not to practice kessem (a general term for magical practices) (Deut. 18:10)
341. Not to practice the art of a chover chaver (casting spells over snakes and scorpions) (Deut. 18:11)
342. Not to enquire of an ob (a ghost) (Deut. 18:11)
343. Not to seek the maytim (dead) (Deut. 18:11)
344. Not to enquire of a yid'oni (wizard) (Deut. 18:11)
345. Not to remove the entire beard, like the idolaters (Lev. 19:27)
346. Not to round the corners of the head, as the idolatrous priests do (Lev. 19:27)
347. Not to cut oneself or make incisions in one's flesh in grief, like the idolaters (Lev. 19:28; Deut. 14:1) .
348. Not to tattoo the body like the idolaters (Lev. 19:28)
349. Not to make a bald spot for the dead (Deut. 14:1)
350. Not to plant a tree for worship (Deut. 16:21) 351. Not to set up a pillar (for worship) (Deut. 16:22)
352. Not to show favor to idolaters (Deut. 7:2)
353. Not to make a covenant with the seven (Canaanite, idolatrous) nations (Ex. 23:32; Deut. 7:2)
354. Not to settle idolaters in our land (Ex. 23:33)
355. To slay the inhabitants of a city that has become idolatrous and burn that city (Deut. 13:16-17)
356. Not to rebuild a city that has been led astray to idolatry (Deut. 13:17)
357. Not to make use of the property of city that has been so led astray (Deut. 13:18)

Agriculture and Animal Husbandry

358. Not to cross-breed cattle of different species (Lev. 19:19) (according to the Talmud, this also applies to birds)

359. Not to sow different kinds of seed together in one field (Lev. 19:19) 360. Not to eat the fruit of a tree for three years from the time it was planted (Lev. 19:23)
361. That the fruit of fruit-bearing trees in the fourth year of their planting shall be sacred like the second tithe and eaten in Jerusalem (Lev. 19:24)
362. Not to sow grain or herbs in a vineyard (Deut. 22:9)
363. Not to eat the produce of diverse seeds sown in a vineyard (Deut. 22:9)
364. Not to work with beasts of different species, yoked together (Deut. 22:10)

Clothing

365. That a man shall not wear women's clothing (Deut. 22:5)
366. That a woman should not wear men's clothing (Deut. 22:5)
367. Not to wear garments made of wool and linen mixed together (Deut. 22:11)

The Firstborn

368. To redeem the firstborn human male (Ex. 13:13; Ex. 34:20; Num. 18:15)
369. To redeem the firstling of an ass (Ex. 13:13; Ex. 34:20)
370. To break the neck of the firstling of an ass if it is not redeemed (Ex. 13:13; Ex. 34:20)
371. Not to redeem the firstling of a clean beast (Num. 18:17)

Priests and Levites

372. That the priests shall put on priestly vestments for the service (Ex. 28:2)
373. Not to tear the High priest's robe (Ex. 28:32)
374. That the priest shall not enter the Sanctuary at all times (i.e., at times when he is not performing service) (Lev. 16:2)
375. That the ordinary priest shall not defile himself by contact with any dead, other than immediate relatives (Lev. 21:1-3)
376. That the priests defile themselves for their deceased relatives (by attending their burial), and mourn for them like other Israelites, who are commanded to mourn for their relatives (Lev. 21:3)
377. That a priest who had an immersion during the day (to cleanse him from his uncleanness) shall not serve in the Sanctuary until after sunset (Lev. 21:6)
378. That a priest shall not marry a divorced woman (Lev. 21:7)
379. That a priest shall not marry a harlot (Lev. 21:7)
380. That a priest shall not marry a profaned woman (Lev. 21:7)
381. To show honor to a priest, and to give him precedence in all things that are holy (Lev. 21:8)
382. That a High priest shall not defile himself with any dead, even if they are relatives (Lev. 21:11)
383. That a High priest shall not go (under the same roof) with a dead body (Lev. 21:11)
384. That the High priest shall marry a virgin (Lev. 21:13)
385. That the High priest shall not marry a widow (Lev. 21:14)
386. That the High priest shall not cohabit with a widow, even without marriage, because he profanes her (Lev. 21:15)
387. That a person with a physical blemish shall not serve (in the Sanctuary) (Lev. 21:17)
388. That a priest with a temporary blemish shall not serve there (Lev. 21:21)
389. That a person with a physical blemish shall not enter the Sanctuary further than the altar (Lev. 21:23)
390. That a priest who is unclean shall not serve (in the Sanctuary) (Lev. 22:2-3)
391. To send the unclean out of the Camp of the Shechinah, that is, out of the Sanctuary (Num. 5:2)
392. That a priest who is unclean shall not enter the courtyard (Num. 5:2-3)
393. That the priests shall bless Israel (Num. 6:23)
394. To set apart a portion of the dough for the priest (Num. 15:20)
395. That the Levites shall not occupy themselves with the service that belongs to the priests, nor the priests with that belonging to the Levites (Num. 18:3)
396. That one not a descendant of Aaron in the male line shall not serve (in the Sanctuary) (Num. 18:4-7)
397. That the Levite shall serve in the Sanctuary (Num. 18:23)
398. To give the Levites cities to dwell in, these to serve also as cities of refuge (Num. 35:2)
399. That none of the tribe of Levi shall take any portion of territory in the land (of Israel) (Deut. 18:1)
400. That none of the tribe of Levi shall take any share of the spoil (at the conquest of the Promised Land) (Deut. 18:1)
401. That the priests shall serve in the Sanctuary in divisions, but on festivals, they all serve together (Deut. 18:6-8)

T'rumah, Tithes and Taxes

402. That an uncircumcised person shall not eat of the t'rumah (heave offering), and the same applies to other holy things. This rule is inferred from the law of the Paschal offering, by similarity of phrase (Ex. 12:44-45 and Lev. 22:10)
403. Not to alter the order of separating the t'rumah and the tithes; the separation be in the order first-fruits at the beginning, then the t'rumah, then the first tithe, and last the second tithe (Ex. 22:28)
404. To give half a shekel every year (to the Sanctuary for provision of the public sacrifices) (Ex. 30:13)
405. That a priest who is unclean shall not eat of the t'rumah (Lev. 22:3-4)
406. That a person who is not a priest or the wife or unmarried daughter of a priest shall not eat of the t'rumah (Lev. 22:10)
407. That a sojourner with a priest or his hired servant shall not eat of the t'rumah (Lev. 22:10)
408. Not to eat tevel (something from which the t'rumah and tithe have not yet been separated) (Lev. 22:15)
409. To set apart the tithe of the produce (one tenth of the produce after taking out t'rumah) for the Levites (Lev. 27:30; Num. 18:24) [not necessarily 'of the produce' or 'for the Levites' but some consider the tithe to be still legally binding; but the details given in other laws are dismissed]
410. To tithe cattle (Lev. 27:32)
411. Not to sell the tithe of the herd (Lev. 27:32-33)
412. That the Levites shall set apart a tenth of the tithes, which they had received from the Israelites, and give it to the priests (called the t'rumah of the tithe) (Num. 18:26)
413. Not to eat the second tithe of cereals outside Jerusalem (Deut. 12:17)
414. Not to consume the second tithe of the vintage outside of Jerusalem (Deut. 12:17)
415. Not to consume the second tithe of the oil outside of Jerusalem (Deut. 12:17)
416. Not to forsake the Levites (Deut. 12:19); but their gifts (dues) should be given to them, so that they might rejoice therewith on each and every festival
417. To set apart the second tithe in the first, second, fourth and fifth years of the sabbatical cycle to be eaten by its owner in Jerusalem (Deut. 14:22)
418. To set apart the second tithe in the third and sixth year of the sabbatical cycle for the poor (Deut. 14:28-29)
419. To give the priest the due portions of the carcass of cattle (Deut. 18:3)
420. To give the first of the fleece to the priest (Deut. 18:4)
421. To set apart t'rumah g'dolah (the great heave-offering, that is, a small portion of the grain, wine and oil) for the priest (Deut. 18:4)
422. Not to expend the proceeds of the second tithe on anything but food and drink (Deut. 26:14).
423. Not to eat the Second Tithe, even in Jerusalem, in a state of uncleanness, until the tithe had been redeemed (Deut. 26:14)
424. Not to eat the Second Tithe, when mourning (Deut. 26:14)
425. To make the declaration, when bringing the second tithe to the Sanctuary (Deut. 26:13)

The Temple, the Sanctuary and Sacred Objects

426. Not to build an altar of hewn stone (Ex. 20:22)
427. Not to mount the altar by steps (Ex. 20:23)
428. To build the Sanctuary (Ex. 25:8)
429. Not to remove the staves from the Ark (Ex. 25:15)
430. To set the showbread and the frankincense before the Lord every Sabbath (Ex. 25:30)
431. To kindle lights in the Sanctuary (Ex. 27:21)
432. That the breastplate shall not be loosened from the ephod (Ex. 28:28)
433. To offer up incense twice daily (Ex. 30:7)
434. Not to offer strange incense nor any sacrifice upon the golden altar (Ex. 30:9)
435. That the priest shall wash his hands and feet at the time of service (Ex. 30:19)
436. To prepare the oil of anointment and anoint high priests and kings with it (Ex. 30:31)
437. Not to compound oil for lay use after the formula of the anointing oil (Ex. 30:32-33)
438. Not to anoint a stranger with the anointing oil (Ex. 30:32)
439. Not to compound anything after the formula of the incense (Ex. 30:37)
440. That he who, in error, makes unlawful use of sacred things, shall make restitution of the value of his trespass and add a fifth (Lev. 5:16)
441. To remove the ashes from the altar (Lev. 6:3)
442. To keep fire always burning on the altar of the burnt-offering (Lev. 6:6)
443. Not to extinguish the fire on the altar (Lev. 6:6)
444. That a priest shall not enter the Sanctuary with disheveled hair (Lev. 10:6)
445. That a priest shall not enter the Sanctuary with torn garments (Lev. 10:6)
446. That the priest shall not leave the Courtyard of the Sanctuary, during service (Lev. 10:7)
447. That an intoxicated person shall not enter the Sanctuary nor give decisions in matters of the Law (Lev. 10:9-11)
448. To revere the Sanctuary (Lev. 19:30)
449. That when the Ark is carried, it should be carried on the shoulder (Num. 7:9)
450. To observe the second Passover (Num. 9:11)
451. To eat the flesh of the Paschal lamb on it, with unleavened bread and bitter herbs (Num. 9:11)
452. Not to leave any flesh of the Paschal lamb brought on the second Passover until the morning (Num. 9:12)
453. Not to break a bone of the Paschal lamb brought on the second Passover (Num. 9:12)
454. To sound the trumpets at the offering of sacrifices and in times of trouble (Num. 10:9-10)
455. To watch over the edifice continually (Num. 18:2)
456. Not to allow the Sanctuary to remain unwatched (Num. 18:5)
457. That an offering shall be brought by one who has in error committed a trespass against sacred things, or robbed, or lain carnally with a bond-maid betrothed to a man, or denied what was deposited with him and swore falsely to support his denial. This is called a guilt-offering for a known trespass
458. Not to destroy anything of the Sanctuary, of synagogues, or of houses of study, nor erase the holy names (of God); nor may sacred scriptures be destroyed (Deut. 12:2-4)

Sacrifices and Offerings

459. To sanctify the firstling of clean cattle and offer it up (Ex. 13:2; Deut. 15:19)
460. To slay the Paschal lamb (Ex. 12:6)
461. To eat the flesh of the Paschal sacrifice on the night of the fifteenth of Nissan (Ex. 12:8)
462. Not to eat the flesh of the Paschal lamb raw or sodden (Ex. 12:9)
463. Not to leave any portion of the flesh of the Paschal sacrifice until the morning unconsumed (Ex. 12:10)
464. Not to give the flesh of the Paschal lamb to an Israelite who had become an apostate (Ex. 12:43)
465. Not to give flesh of the Paschal lamb to a stranger who lives among you to eat (Ex. 12:45)
466. Not to take any of the flesh of the Paschal lamb from the company's place of assembly (Ex. 12:46)
467. Not to break a bone of the Paschal lamb (Ex. 12:46)
468. That the uncircumcised shall not eat of the flesh of the Paschal lamb (Ex. 12:48)
469. Not to slaughter the Paschal lamb while there is [specified bread products] in the home (Ex. 23:18; Ex. 24:25)
470. Not to leave the part of the Paschal lamb that should be burnt on the altar until the morning, when it will no longer be fit to be burnt (Ex. 23:18; Ex. 24:25)
471. Not to go up to the Sanctuary for the festival without bringing an offering (Ex. 23:15)
472. To bring the first fruits to the Sanctuary (Ex. 23:19)
473. That the flesh of a sin-offering and guilt-offering shall be eaten (Ex. 29:33)
474. That one not of the seed of Aaron, shall not eat the flesh of the holy sacrifices (Ex. 29:33)
475. To observe the procedure of the burnt-offering (Lev. 1:3)
476. To observe the procedure of the meal-offering (Lev. 2:1)
477. Not to offer up leaven or honey (Lev. 2:11)
478. That every sacrifice be salted (Lev. 2:13)
479. Not to offer up any offering unsalted (Lev. 2:13)
480. That the Court of Judgment shall offer up a sacrifice if they have erred in a judicial pronouncement (Lev. 4:13)
481. That an individual shall bring a sin-offering if he has sinned in error by committing a transgression, the conscious violation of which is punished with excision (Lev. 4:27-28)
482. To offer a sacrifice of varying value in accordance with one's means (Lev. 5:7)
483. Not to sever completely the head of a fowl brought as a sin-offering (Lev. 5:8)
484. Not to put olive oil in a sin-offering made of flour (Lev. 5:11)
485. Not to put frankincense on a sin-offering made of flour (Lev. 5:11)
486. That an individual shall bring an offering if he is in doubt as to whether he has committed a sin for which one has to bring a sin-offering. This is called a guilt-offering for doubtful sins (Lev. 5:17-19)
487. That the remainder of the meal offerings shall be eaten (Lev. 6:9)
488. Not to allow the remainder of the meal offerings to become leavened (Lev. 6:10)
489. That the High priest shall offer a meal offering daily (Lev. 6:13)
490. Not to eat of the meal offering brought by the priests (Lev. 6:16)
491. To observe the procedure of the sin-offering (Lev. 6:18)
492. Not to eat of the flesh of sin offerings, the blood of which is brought within the Sanctuary and sprinkled towards the Veil (Lev. 6:23)
493. To observe the procedure of the guilt-offering (Lev. 7:1)
494. To observe the procedure of the peace-offering (Lev. 7:11)
495. To burn meat of the holy sacrifice that has remained over (Lev. 7:17)
496. Not to eat of sacrifices that are eaten beyond the appointed time for eating them (Lev. 7:18)
497. Not to eat of holy things that have become unclean (Lev. 7:19)
498. To burn meat of the holy sacrifice that has become unclean (Lev. 7:19)
499. That a person who is unclean shall not eat of things that are holy (Lev. 7:20)
500. A priest's daughter who profaned herself shall not eat of the holy things, neither of the heave offering nor of the breast, nor of the shoulder of peace offerings (Lev. 10:14, Lev. 22:12)
501. That a woman after childbirth shall bring an offering when she is clean (Lev. 12:6)
502. That the leper shall bring a sacrifice after he is cleansed (Lev. 14:10)
503. That a man having an issue shall bring a sacrifice after he is cleansed of his issue (Lev. 15:13-15)
504. That a woman having an issue shall bring a sacrifice after she is cleansed of her issue (Lev. 15:28-30)
505. To observe, on the Day of Atonement, the service appointed for that day, regarding the sacrifice, confessions, sending away of the scapegoat, etc. (Lev. 16:3-34)
506. Not to slaughter beasts set apart for sacrifices outside (the Sanctuary) (Lev. 17:3-4)
507. Not to eat flesh of a sacrifice that has been left over (beyond the time appointed for its consumption) (Lev. 19:8)
508. Not to sanctify blemished cattle for sacrifice on the altar (Lev. 22:20)
509. That every animal offered up shall be without blemish (Lev. 22:21)
510. Not to inflict a blemish on cattle set apart for sacrifice (Lev. 22:21)
511. Not to slaughter blemished cattle as sacrifices (Lev. 22:22)
512. Not to burn the limbs of blemished cattle upon the altar (Lev. 22:22)
513. Not to sprinkle the blood of blemished cattle upon the altar (Lev. 22:24)
514. Not to offer up a blemished beast that comes from non-Israelites (Lev. 22:25)
515. That sacrifices of cattle can only take place when they are at least eight days old (Lev. 22:27)
516. Not to leave any flesh of the thanksgiving offering until the morning (Lev. 22:30)
517. To offer up the meal-offering of the Omer on the morrow after the first day of Passover, together with one lamb (Lev. 23:10)
518. Not to eat bread made of new grain before the Omer of barley has been offered up on the second day of Passover (Lev. 23:14)
519. Not to eat roasted grain of the new produce before that time (Lev. 23:14)
520. Not to eat fresh ears of the new grain before that time (Lev. 23:14)
521. To bring on the Festival of Weeks loaves of bread together with the sacrifices which are then offered up in connection with the loaves (Lev. 23:17-20)
522. To offer up an additional sacrifice on Passover (Lev. 23:36)
523. That one who vows to the Lord the monetary value of a person shall pay the amount appointed in the Scriptural portion (Lev. 27:2-8)
524. If a beast is exchanged for one that had been set apart as an offering, both become sacred (Lev. 27:10)
525. Not to exchange a beast set aside for sacrifice (Lev. 27:10)
526. That one who vows to the Lord the monetary value of an unclean beast shall pay its value (Lev. 27:11-13)
527. That one who vows the value of his house shall pay according to the appraisal of the priest (Lev. 27:11-13)
528. That one who sanctifies to the Lord a portion of his field shall pay according to the estimation appointed in the Scriptural portion (Lev. 27:16-24)
529. Not to transfer a beast set apart for sacrifice from one class of sacrifices to another (Lev. 27:26)
530. To decide in regard to dedicated property as to which is sacred to the Lord and which belongs to the priest (Lev. 27:28)
531. Not to sell a field devoted to the Lord (Lev. 27:28)
532. Not to redeem a field devoted to the Lord (Lev. 27:28)
533. To make confession before the Lord of any sin that one has committed, when bringing a sacrifice and at other times (Num. 5:6-7)
534. Not to put olive oil in the meal-offering of a woman suspected of adultery (Num. 5:15)
535. Not to put frankincense on it (Num. 5:15)
536. To offer up the regular sacrifices daily (two lambs as burnt offerings) (Num. 28:3)
537. To offer up an additional sacrifice every Sabbath (two lambs) (Num. 28:9)
538. To offer up an additional sacrifice every New Moon (Num. 28:11)
539. To bring an additional offering on the Festival of Weeks (Num. 28:26-27)
540. To offer up an additional sacrifice on the Jewish New Year (Num. 29:1-6)
541. To offer up an additional sacrifice on the Day of Atonement (Num. 29:7-8)
542. To offer up an additional sacrifice on the Feast of Tabernacles (Num. 29:12-34)
543. To offer up an additional offering on Shemini Atzeret, which is a festival by itself (Num. 29:35-38)
544. To bring all offerings, whether obligatory or freewill, on the first festival after these were incurred (Deut. 12:5-6)
545. Not to offer up sacrifices outside (the Sanctuary) (Deut. 12:13)
546. To offer all sacrifices in the Sanctuary (Deut. 12:14)
547. To redeem cattle set apart for sacrifices that contracted disqualifying blemishes, after which they may be eaten by anyone. (Deut. 12:15)
548. Not to eat of the unblemished firstling outside Jerusalem (Deut. 12:17)
549. Not to eat the flesh of the burnt-offering (Deut. 12:17). This is a Prohibition applying to every trespasser, not to enjoy any of the holy things. If he does so, he commits a trespass
550. That the priests shall not eat the flesh of the sin-offering or guilt-offering outside the Courtyard (of the Sanctuary) (Deut. 12:17)
551. Not to eat of the flesh of the sacrifices that are holy in a minor degree, before the blood has been sprinkled (on the altar), (Deut. 12:17)
552. That the priest shall not eat the first-fruits before they are set down in the Courtyard (of the Sanctuary) (Deut. 12:17)
553. To take trouble to bring sacrifices to the Sanctuary from places outside the land of Israel (Deut. 12:26)
554. Not to eat the flesh of beasts set apart as sacrifices, that have been rendered unfit to be offered up by deliberately inflicted blemish (Deut. 14:3)
555. Not to do work with cattle set apart for sacrifice (Deut. 15:19)
556. Not to shear beasts set apart for sacrifice (Deut. 15:19)
557. Not to leave any portion of the festival offering brought on the fourteenth of Nissan unto the third day (Deut. 16:4)
558. Not to offer up a beast that has a temporary blemish (Deut. 17:1)
559. Not to bring sacrifices out of the hire of a harlot or price of a dog (apparently a euphemism for sodomy) (Deut. 23:19)
560. To read the portion prescribed on bringing the first fruits (Deut. 26:5-10)

Ritual Purity and Impurity

561. That eight species of creeping things defile by contact (Lev. 11:29-30)
562. That foods become defiled by contact with unclean things (Lev. 11:34)
563. That anyone who touches the carcass of a beast that died of itself shall be unclean (Lev. 11:39)
564. That a lying-in woman is unclean like a menstruating woman (in terms of uncleanness) (Lev. 12:2-5)
565. That a leper is unclean and defiles (Lev. 13:2-46)
566. That the leper shall be universally recognized as such by the prescribed marks. So too, all other unclean persons should declare themselves as such (Lev. 13:45)
567. That a leprous garment is unclean and defiles (Lev. 13:47-49)
568. That a leprous house defiles (Lev. 14:34-46)
569. That a man, having a running issue, defiles (Lev. 15:1-15)
570. That the seed of copulation defiles (Lev. 15:16)
571. That purification from all kinds of defilement shall be effected by immersion in the waters of a mikvah (Lev. 15:16)
572. That a menstruating woman is unclean and defiles others (Lev. 15:19-24)
573. That a woman, having a running issue, defiles (Lev. 15:25-27)
574. To carry out the ordinance of the Red Heifer so that its ashes will always be available (Num. 19:9)
575. That a corpse defiles (Num. 19:11-16)
576. That the waters of separation defile one who is clean, and cleanse the unclean from pollution by a dead body (Num. 19:19-22)

Lepers and Leprosy

577. Not to drove off the hair of the scall (Lev. 13:33)
578. That the procedure of cleansing leprosy, whether of a man or of a house, takes place with cedar-wood, hyssop, scarlet thread, two birds, and running water (Lev. 14:1-7)
579. That the leper shall shave all his hair (Lev. 14:9)
580. Not to pluck out the marks of leprosy (Deut. 24:8)

The King

581. Not to curse a ruler, that is, the King or the head of the College in the land of Israel (Ex. 22:27)
582. To appoint a king (Deut. 17:15)
583. Not to appoint as ruler over Israel, one who comes from non-Israelites (Deut. 17:15)
584. That the King shall not acquire an excessive number of horses (Deut. 17:16)
585. That the King shall not take an excessive number of wives (Deut. 17:17)
586. That he shall not accumulate an excessive quantity of gold and silver (Deut. 17:17)
587. That the King shall write a scroll of the Torah for himself, in addition to the one that every person should write, so that he writes two scrolls (Deut. 17:18)

Nazarites

588. That a Nazarite shall not drink wine, or anything mixed with wine which tastes like wine; and even if the wine or the mixture has turned sour, it is prohibited to him (Num. 6:3)
589. That he shall not eat fresh grapes (Num. 6:3)
590. That he shall not eat dried grapes (raisins) (Num. 6:3)
591. That he shall not eat the kernels of the grapes (Num. 6:4)
592. That he shall not eat of the skins of the grapes (Num. 6:4)
593. That the Nazarite shall permit his hair to grow (Num. 6:5)
594. That the Nazarite shall not cut his hair (Num. 6:5)
595. That he shall not enter any covered structure where there is a dead body (Num. 6:6)
596. That a Nazarite shall not defile himself for any dead person (by being in the presence of the corpse) (Num. 6:7)
597. That the Nazarite shall shave his hair when he brings his offerings at the completion of the period of his Nazariteship, or within that period if he has become defiled (Num. 6:9) .

Wars

598. That those engaged in warfare shall not fear their enemies nor be panic-stricken by them during battle (Deut. 3:22, 7:21, 20:3)
599. To anoint a special priest (to speak to the soldiers) in a war (Deut. 20:2)
600. In a permissive war (as distinguished from obligatory ones), to observe the procedure prescribed in the Torah (Deut. 20:10)
601. Not to keep alive any individual of the seven Canaanite nations (Deut. 20:16)
602. To exterminate the seven Canaanite nations from the land of Israel (Deut. 20:17)
603. Not to destroy fruit trees (wantonly or in warfare) (Deut. 20:19-20)
604. To deal with a beautiful woman taken captive in war in the manner prescribed in the Torah (Deut. 21:10-14)
605. Not to sell a beautiful woman, (taken captive in war) (Deut. 21:14)
606. Not to degrade a beautiful woman (taken captive in war) to the condition of a bondwoman (Deut. 21:14)
607. Not to offer peace to the Ammonites and the Moabites before waging war on them, as should be done to other nations (Deut. 23:7)
608. That anyone who is unclean shall not enter the Camp of the Levites (Deut. 23:11)
609. To have a place outside the camp for sanitary purposes (Deut. 23:13)
610. To keep that place sanitary (Deut. 23:14-15)
611. Always to remember what Amalek did (Deut. 25:17)
612. That the evil done to us by Amalek shall not be forgotten (Deut. 25:19)
613. To destroy the seed of Amalek (Deut. 25:19)

Make me a Christian...

I have managed to catch a few bits of the Channel 4 show 'Make me a Christian' last week and last night. The whole concept intrigued me, but the actual reality of the show irritated me.

Because it seems that, for the makers of this show and the ministers behind the project, living life as a Christian very simply means 'follow the rules'.

They're imposing legalism on these people and saying very little about grace. Humph.

Old Covenant vs. New Covenant

Hebrews 8v8-13 (quoting Jer 31v31-34)
"The days are coming, declares the Lord, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah.

It will not be like the covenant I made with their ancestors when I took them by the hand to lead them out of Egypt, because they did not remain faithful to my covenant, and I turned away from them, declares the Lord.

This is the covenant I will establish with the house of Israel after that time, declares the Lord. I will put my laws in their minds and write them on their hearts. I will be their God, and they will be my people.

No longer will they teach their neighbors, or say to one another, 'Know the Lord,' because they will all know me, from the least of them to the greatest.

For I will forgive their wickedness and will remember their sins no more."

By calling this covenant "new," he has made the first one obsolete; and what is obsolete and outdated will soon disappear.

'Obsolete' is a very strong word. I've looked into it and the Greek word used here is also a strong word which kind of suggests 'redundant through old age'. The word translated 'outdated' here has more or less the same connotations. By using both words together, the author of Hebrews is really pushing his point home - the Old Covenant is no more, you are not bound by it, you do not need it.

So why do we have the Old Testament in our bibles today? A couple of times in the teaching from 'The Meeting House' (who I may have mentioned before) they assert that the story of the Old Testament is kind of like a history of what doesn't work. Its (apparently) a bit like an alcoholics anonymous programme, where before you get to discussing the things that do work, very often the group discusses all the things they've tried that don't work. So we need the Old Testament as a warning, showing us the sort of thinking and lifestyle and decisions that do not work.

But, we are not bound by it. The laws in there do not apply to us. We live by grace, not by law.

When we become part of the New Covenant, God writes his 'laws' on our hearts, so we no longer need the rule book.

So, does that mean we can do what we want? Fundamentally yes! If our hearts are right, having been written on by God, we won't want wrong things.

If only it were that easy though, 'what about our "sinful nature"?' I hear you cry. We're not perfect yet. OK, yes, things aren't that straightforward, but that doesn't need we need to return to law-based living. We have been freed from that 'burden'.

If you think about the amazing statement from Hebrews (and Jeremiah) above, and then look at the teaching and attitudes of much of the church, you'll realise that we are not living as God intended. There's still an awful lot of law in our Church. Sometimes it looks as if someone decided 'we no longer need those laws, what we really need are these new laws...'

No! Jesus died 'once for all' to get rid of all that!

A quick aside: The clearest example of the legalist mentality in the church in my experience came when I was 13. It was Christmas 1983 and the present that 13 year-old boys most wanted was the Sinclair ZX Spectrum. Stocks were limited, most of us that wanted them didn't actually get them in time for Christmas (mine arrived in January), but one of my friends (from a good, well respected, Christian family) got one on Christmas day. A Sunday. The sabbath. The day on which any form of TV watching was forbidden in his house. And in those days you needed to plug the Spectrum into a TV to use it. So he was given the thing he most wanted in the world, and then was told he had to wait until the following day to use it, because of the rules. Law, not grace. You could give and recieve presents on the sabbath and play with them - unless they involved switching on a TV...

So what's the deal with the old laws? Why did God give them?

Well, this is an imperfect analogy, but its the best I can offer...

I have a 6 year old daughter. I have imposed two 'laws' on her with regard to sleeping. She is to go to bed before 8pm and is not to get up until after 7am. The reason I have done this is that I know (although she does not) that if she doesn't have about 11 hours of sleep at night, she'll be too tired to get the most out of the day that follows and will often get grumpy and upset - with no apparent cause. Now, there is nothing special or magical about 8pm or 7am, but those are just the best times that fit our household lifestyle. Furthermore, these 'laws' will undoubtedly change as she gets older (and needs less sleep), and ultimately I hope she will learn the value of sleep and will begin to self-regulate her sleeping, such that no laws from me are needed anymore. It will take time and growth in maturity for her to internalise the principle, but she will get there one day.

In general terms, I see the same in the Old Covenant laws. There are a great many principles that the people of God need to internalise, but once we have - once they're written on our hearts - then we no longer need the laws, many of which draw lines in the sand that do not correlate to 'special' or 'magical' standards.

For example, there are laws in the OT clearly prohibiting inter-racial marriage. Not only would we reject that today (OK, not everyone would), but even in the context of the OT we see grace rather than law at work there - look at Rahab, look at Ruth, notice how they both feature in the genealogy of King David and ultimately in the genealogy of Jesus. The principal was there for a purpose - to preserve the uniqueness of the people of God - but sometimes the law needed broken (or disregarded) in God's plan. Even Moses - the law giver - had a non-Jewish wife!

So, once you've internalised the essence of the law, you can disregard the written law and even, in some instances, do the opposite of what it actually says because you realise that it doesn't apply in this situation. Don't work on the sabbath, but if you're a doctor and you see someone injured on the sabbath the right thing would be to attend to their needs, and disregard the law.

And we have internalised some of the principles, but we (by which I mean Christians) still have laws that are supplemental to the laws of the countries in which we live. We still haven't fully got it.

So, many of us are free and easy with sabbath observance (yes, we take a day off at least one day in seven, but I did drive about 20 miles in total yesterday (Sunday) and I did go to a supermarket and buy food for dinner. Most of us are dismissive of dietary laws (many of which were quite sensible before fridges and freezers were invented, but are obsolete now) and laws regarding what we wear. But we are still rigidly adherent to the letter of the law on some issues, particularly with regard to sexuality. That was the point of my last post, and I'll re-address the issue in another one soon.

Feel free to say 'yes, but...' now:

Time for a little heresy...

I was listening to a sermon on this passage yesterday on the way home from work:

Mark 2v23-28
One Sabbath Jesus was going through the grainfields, and as his disciples walked along, they began to pick some heads of grain. The Pharisees said to him, "Look, why are they doing what is unlawful on the Sabbath?"

He answered, "Have you never read what David did when he and his companions were hungry and in need? In the days of Abiathar the high priest, he entered the house of God and ate the consecrated bread, which is lawful only for priests to eat. And he also gave some to his companions."

Then he said to them, "The Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath. So the Son of Man is Lord even of the Sabbath."

The principle here is that the Law (regarding the sabbath) was created as a benefit for mankind (we need a day off every week!) but the legalists had taken that to the nth degree such that it wasn't a benefit anymore, in fact it became a burden. By sticking to the letter of the law, the pharisees had entirely missed the spirit of the law.

Its worth pointing out here that the Law in question is one of the big 10. This wasn't some minor disagreement, this goes right to the very core of the Law itself. And the message is 'these things were given to be a benefit to you, not to be a burden'.

And then I found myself considering the current debate in the Anglican communion, that of homosexuality. And I found myself wondering if the same principle should apply. Surely sex was made as a benefit for man, not man made to serve the rules of sex? And the Son of Man (not the Law) is Lord over sex. And of course, this isn't one of the big 10. The only sex-related command in the big 10 relates to infidelity, and as far as I know nobody is debating that one these days.

I know most orthodox, conservative and evangelical believers will automatically claim that the principle doesn't apply. That sabbath observance is one thing, but sex is entirely another. But I just want to ask "Why?"

Can someone please explain to me why this principle doesn't work here?

If Jesus (not the written law) is Lord over sex, if someone has their relationship with Him right, then everything else should fall into place. If it happens to fall into the place of a loving, committed, faithful, homosexual relationship, where is the problem?

Army Chaplains

I found myself wondering about army chaplains today. Fundamentally, how do they get past trying to instill the Christian value of "love your enemies" into the troops? If they succeeded in this task, the army would fail in its task.

I've read that (in a recent debate) an army chaplain defended his ministry by claiming it was better to be involved than not: "We have to participate in the reality of the world and minister to people who are involved in actions of last resort. It is either isolation or involvement. And God's choice is involvement" (Revd Jonathan Woodhouse [ref])

Yes. God chose to be involved in this world. He became part of it and let us kill him in order to demonstrate just how non-violent we should be.

I disagree with the chaplain quoted above. Yes, we should address the spiritual needs of the soldiers, but by encouraging them to follow Christ, lay down their arms and serve their enemies, to be prepared to die but not kill.

For the majority of people in Afghanistan, Iraq, Iran and many other bits of the middle east, the only 'Christians' they ever see are the ones with guns in their hands. Where did it all go wrong?

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On a related note, I've bought and downloaded the documentary "Prince of Peace: God of War" (it cost a whopping $4.99 which was only £2.59 in real money). It addresses the whole issue of how can people who claim to follow Christ take part in or defend violence of any kind. Haven't managed to watch it yet, but will review it once I have. You can see snippets of the film for free online - follow the link above.

Turn the other cheek

In a comment on the previous posting, my nephew Matt made the following statement: "i don't think i've ever heard anyone preach a satisfying sermon on the "turn the other cheek" passage". The thing is, I've heard (and read) at least two satisfying takes on that passage so far this year.
So here is a condensed version of what I heard/read, which I am in good agreement with, based on sermon podcasts from The Meeting House in Canada, the book 'The End of Religion' by Bruxy Cavey and the book 'The Lost Message of Jesus' by Steve Chalke and Alan Mann.

I think the basic problem people have with this passage is that they implicitly assume that Jesus can't have actually meant what he appears to say. Surely he doesn't mean that if someone hits us, we don't merely stand there and take it, we actually make it easier for them to hit us again? Ridiculous, right? So what did Jesus say:

Luke 6v27-31
"But I tell you who hear me: Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you. If someone strikes you on one cheek, turn to him the other also. If someone takes your cloak, do not stop him from taking your tunic. Give to everyone who asks you, and if anyone takes what belongs to you, do not demand it back. Do to others as you would have them do to you.

In this passage, Jesus doesn't start with the 'turn the other cheek' bit, he builds up to it. Why is someone striking you on the cheek? Maybe they cursed you first? Maybe they hated you before that? Maybe they were your enemy from the outset?

What if you had actively loved them before they made any negative move towards you, when they were merely your enemy? Not 'what if you'd not-hated them' at the start, but what if you'd shown your love for them? 'Love your enemies' means going out of your way to serve them, to help them and to generally be a blessing to them. Maybe if you did this they'd never get to the stage of striking you?

But if simply loving them didn't work, you move on to doing good for them, to blessing them, to praying for them. Basically the call is to 'be like Jesus' to them. To return hate with love, to return cursing with blessing, to return violence with the opposite of violence.

Seriously, it does mean if someone hits you then you should not fight back. If someone wants to hit you then you offer yourself for further hitting. Remember the 'living sacrifice' bit? Sacrifice hurts. Jesus demonstrated this to the ultimate degree, he didn't merely turn the other cheek, he offered his back for whipping, his head for piercing and his hands and feet for nailing to a cross. The man who demonstrated that he could heal wounds, walk on water, etc. could certainly have got down from the cross if he wanted to. But he chose not to - to show us the ultimate way. Jesus didn't merely teach us the way, he showed us the way. As John has it, he is the way.

Jesus lived the way he taught. Turning the other cheek was just the start. After watching Jesus take everything that was thrown at him, and seeing the way he died, only then did the centurion declare "Surely this man was the Son of God!" (Mark 15v39).

What good does it do to not fight back? Well, maybe you have to go the whole way to death before people will see God in you. Surely that's worth dying for?


That's the way Luke presents the story, but Matthew has a slightly different spin on the teaching:

Matthew 5 v 38-48
"You have heard that it was said, 'Eye for eye, and tooth for tooth.'But I tell you, Do not resist an evil person. If someone strikes you on the right cheek, turn to him the other also. And if someone wants to sue you and take your tunic, let him have your cloak as well. If someone forces you to go one mile, go with him two miles. Give to the one who asks you, and do not turn away from the one who wants to borrow from you.

"You have heard that it was said, 'Love your neighbor and hate your enemy.' But I tell you: Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be sons of your Father in heaven. He causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous. If you love those who love you, what reward will you get? Are not even the tax collectors doing that? And if you greet only your brothers, what are you doing more than others? Do not even pagans do that? Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect.

Its basically the same teaching arranged in a slightly different order (its reasonable to assume that Jesus actually preached on this subject in a number of different times and places and may have said it in different ways each time), but there is one minor detail in Matthew that isn't in Luke. Jesus says "if someone strikes you on the right cheek..." - why specify which cheek? Is there a message in there?

Culturally at the time, people did different things with their left hand from their right. Nobody was left-handed, it would have been trained out of any natural lefties at an early age. Everyone (unless they simply had a non-functioning right hand) used their right hand for noble purposes - such as greeting others - and their left for ignoble purposes - such as toilet related activities. Culturally, fighting was actually a noble purpose, so the right hand would be used.

If someone strikes you with their right hand on your right cheek, this must be a slap with the back of the hand - a dismissive strike as a master would give to a servant. If you offer the other cheek - the left cheek - then they (using their right hand) would have to slap you with the palm of their hand. This kind of slap is not a master-servant slap, but a slap used between equals.

So turning the other cheek is actually a subversive non-violent response, it really says 'you can strike me again, but if you do, you must acknowledge me as your equal'.

The other teaching of Jesus in these verses follows a similar non-violent yet subversive approach. If someone wants to sue you for your tunic, give him your cloak as well - in a culture where people only wore two items of clothing (no underwear) that was quite a statement. If someone wants some of your clothes, give him them all. That would really put the other to shame. And Roman soldiers were within their rights to demand that a Jew carry their stuff for about a mile, but Roman law limited the distance. In the first mile the relationship is oppressor to oppressed, in the second mile the relationship is different, the person carrying the stuff is doing it because he chooses to, not out of obligation. The first mile is slavery, the second is freedom. And that second mile gives you even more opportunity to evangelise the oppressor.

The message is this, return hate with love, cursing with blessing, violence with non-violence and oppression with free choice.

Do not use the methods of your enemy, but simply love them.

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Update: two further comments

Above I have presented the teaching of others, which I agree with and hope to be able to live out. But there are two issues which are either not addressed in the teaching I have heard or I remain uncertain of, despite the clear teaching of those I refer to above.

1. Jesus teaching on 'turning the other cheek' is very individualistic. That is, "if someone hits you, your response should be..." - this offers no guidance in the scenario where someone threatens violence against a friend or family member. I hope I'd be willing to let someone hit me if they wanted to - according to the teaching of Jesus, but I'm really not sure if it would be right to let someone hit, for example, my daughter. If, in that scenario, I could take her place, I would. But what if that is not an option - surely I should not be passive but take action to save her? But here there is no teaching from Jesus.
   
   
2. The use of violence by 'the authorities'. The teaching from 'The Meeting House' is clear on this one - rulers and authorities have the God given right to use violence and the threat of violence. This is taken from the first few verses of Romans 13. They go from here to basically deduce that it is inappropriate for a Christ-follower to hold political power, especially a position where the choice to use violence (through war, etc.) is an option. While I accept the validity of the deduction - it probably is inappropriate for a Christ-follower to be in such a position of power - I'm not sure about the first bit. Are all governments agents of God? Was Saddam? Was Hitler? Or even in Paul's day, was Nero or Herod? Was the slaugher of the innocents by any or all of these rulers ordained by God? Not by the God I know. I still have to wrestle with this issue.
   

Red Letter Christianity

Rabbi Hillel once famously said "What is hateful to yourself, do not do to your fellow man. That is the whole Torah; the rest is just commentary. "

I've begun to view the bible in somewhat similar terms - the stuff Jesus said is the real important stuff; the rest is just commentary.

The church was founded on the teachings of Jesus. Some years later the apostles Paul, Peter, John and others wrote letters to some bits of the church and said other stuff. But that was supplemental to the basic gospel that the churches already knew. So (as I've said before) how come most 'confessions of faith' or equivalent are based on the supplemental writings?

I came across the term "Red Letter Christian" a week or two ago. I like the sound of it - its a group of Christians who seek to base their lives primarily on the teachings of Jesus ('cos in some bibles, the words spoken by Jesus are highlighted in red text). But I was slightly annoyed that when I looked into it further (Wikipedia, Google) that the term seems to be being exclusively used of certain politically active Christians in the USA, who stand against some of the policies of the Republican party, even though something like 4 out of 5 'evangelical Christians' tend to vote Republican.

Can we not divorce the idea from politics and just all pay more attention to the things that Jesus actually said?

ps I'm currently (and slowly) working my way through the gospels - to look again at what Jesus actually did (and didn't) say. Its taking me a while, but I'll have some thoughts to post on it eventually...

'How we believe' by Michael Shermer

About a decade ago I read "Why people believe weird things" by Michael Shermer. It was a quite interesting look at the reasons why people believe in things like ESP, paranormal things, etc. and even got onto serious topics like Holocaust deniers. Not long after that I heard that the author of that book was working on a new book looking specifically addressing the reasons why people believe in God(s).

But I never got around to reading the book when it came out. A couple of years ago I happened upon the second edition of the book on Amazon and hit the 'add to wishlist' button. There it sat for a year or two until someone bought it for me last Christmas (thanks Lisa!). And so I've finally read it.

"How we believe: Science, Skepticism and the Search for God"
by Michael Shermer

It is an interesting look at belief and religion and goes quite deeply into some aspects of the psychology of belief. It discusses the development of religion in evolutionary terms, pointing out (quite rightly) that our current makeup is the result of thousands of years of evolving and it is only during the last tiny bit of that process that we have made any advances in technology or science, etc., thus our mental processes are heavily influenced by thought patterns built into our makeup in a pre-scientific age.

Shermer's main thesis is twofold:

1. Humans are pattern seeking animals - we see patterns where none exist and come to conclusions based on our interpretations of these non-existent patterns.
   
2. Humans are storytelling animals - having interpreted these non-existent patterns, we then turn this into narrative and tell others. Who believe it. And so on.

This is fine, and reasonably compelling, but he does lay it on a bit thick.

The thing that annoyed me about the book (in much the same way that Pascal Boyer's book "Religion Explained" did some years ago) is that it never actually addresses the central issue. The subtitle of the book speaks of the 'search for God' and yet Shermer never once makes any attempt to do so. The whole book is taken up with explaining why people might believe in gods that do not exist, without ever once actually setting that aside and asking "so if there were a God, how would we know?"

Shermer starts out with two basic assumptions which are never addressed in the book:

1. There is no god.
2. This is unprovable by science.

He then puts all his faith in science as being the answer to all our problems and questions (despite having just acknowledged that science cannot prove some things...). In a manner similar to other atheist authors he sees faith as the enemy of science. However, he also seems to have that peculiar understanding of faith as being the mechanism by which people can believe things that are contrary to the evidence. This has never been my understanding or experience of faith. That kind of faith is probably the enemy of science, but it is not the kind of faith that a great many believers have.

But it boils down to this, yes, the book explains how people can have belief in non-existent gods, but it never touches on the possibility that there might be more 'out there' (or even in here) than has been observed by science so far. What if some beliefs are based on patterns that actually were there? This is never considered and the book is flawed as a result.

So interesting, but also annoying and unsatisfying.