The Positive Commandments

Positive Commandments

1 The first of the positive commandments is to know that there exists God, as it is written "I am the LORD, thy God" (Exodus 20,2; Deuteronomy 5,6).

2 To acknowledge His Oneness, as it is written "the LORD our God, the LORD is One" (Deuteronomy 6,4).

3 To love Him, as it is written "and thou shalt love the LORD thy God" (Deuteronomy 6,5; Deuteronomy 11,1).

4 To fear Him, as it is written "thou shalt fear the LORD thy God" (Deuteronomy 6,13; Deuteronomy 10,20).

5 To pray to Him, as it is written "and ye shall serve the LORD your God" (Exodus 23,25); this service is prayer.

6 To cleave to Him, as it is written "and to Him shalt thou cleave" (Deuteronomy 10,20).

7 To swear by His Name, as it is written "and by His name, shalt thou swear" (Deuteronomy 6,13; Deuteronomy 10,20).

8 To imitate His good and upright ways, as it is written "and walk in His ways" (Deuteronomy 28,9).

Mitzvot 1-7: to know, acknowledge His Oneness, to love Him, to fear Him, to pray to Him, cleave to Him, swear by His Name, how do you do all these because He commands, and specifically because He commands Israel, and not because it was natural to Adam to do these? And what is to walk in His ways (#8) if not to perform all that He commands to Israel always and be ready if there is more to do — all while having obeyed within one’s heart, mind and soul commandments 1-7…? …so that everything that is done is done in imitation of His good and upright ways with a heart, mind and soul in this obedience? In summary, everything hinges on the heart, mind and soul, being obedient in this way and not being simply natural in the way of Adam’s heart, mind and soul in the beginning, before their disobedience.

For what is repentance? Is it simply going back to what was natural to Adam before their disobedience? For did not Adam also then walk with God? But it is important to understand that Adam walked with God first because it was necessary for them to do so in order for Adam to be Adam, and was placed under commandment in order that they might continue to walk with God, not in order to correct them from not walking with God. But at Mt. Sinai Israel was placed under commandment in order to seal and perfect the redemption of Israel out of bondage to sin, and therefore to the world of Egypt, that is the fallen world of Adam. The Torah was given to Israel in order to instruct the sinner in righteousness. All of this is the context of the commandment and the question of obedience and must be made thoroughly clear and completely understood if the understanding of the relationship of Jew and Gentile to the commandments and to the covenant of God and to redemption and salvation is to be rightly known and understood.

It is essential to recite the Shema when you lie down and when you rise up, if you are Israel. Since it is essential to recite it and listen to what it says, it is all the more essential to hear God saying it. How does Israel hear Hashem saying that He is One? This is in Mashiach.

Clearly, the understanding here is that one generation is to teach the next. It is not heard as a commandment only to parents to teach their own children. Is it then also not only a commandment to a community to teach the children in that community. It is not to be heard as a commandment to a collective of individuals to teach only the children for whom they are otherwise immediately responsible to care for. It can only be heard as a commandment to the nation as being a corporate whole, even while giving identity and responsibility to many members, to pass on the instruction of the Torah generation by generation. Else-wise, how would Torah Israel remain Torah Israel. And so it is seen that this bedrock foundational commandment is addressed to a corporate entity and is a corporate responsibility.