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We ask the following database queries:
(1) How does the Bible describe sins as attacking God? (2) Can any commandments
be said to be personally delivered by God (instead of Moses)?
The reader is encouraged to perform the queries using a standard Biblical Konnkordance or search engine.
These database queries yield the list below.
The list justifies the following Rashi inference:
(1) Of all commandments only idolatry/blasphemy is categorized as despising Gods word.
(2) Of all commandments only the prohibition of idolatry/blasphemy can be categorized as
given personally by God.
The 2 lists below presents the results of the database query and show examples
| Verse
| Commandment
| Description of sin abuse
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| Lv18-21
| Offering Children to the Molech idolatry
| Desecration of God's name
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| Lv19-12
| Swearing false oaths
| Descecration of God's name
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| Lv19-29
| Raising your daughter as a prostitute
| Prostituting the land
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| Lv21-05
| Violating Priest obligations
| Descecrating God's name
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| Lv22-02
| Violating Priest Temple obligations
| Descecrating God's name
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| Gn17-13
| Violating Circumcision
| Nullifying my convenant
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| Nu15-31
| Idolatry / Blasphemy
| Despising the word of God; nullifying His commandment
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As can be seen the normal rankout for violation of a serious commandment is
descecrating God's name. The rankout despising God's word is only
used by Idolatry / Blasphemy.
| Verse
| Commandment
| From God or Moses?
| Grammatical Proof
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| Ex20-01,03
| Idolatry, Commandments #1 & #2
| God
| I am the Lord thy God;...You will have
no other Gods in my presence
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| Ex20-07
| False oaths, Commandment #3
| Moses
| Don't bear God's name for nought...He will
not forgive...
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| Dt05-12
| Sabbath, Commandment #4
| Moses
| Observe the Sabbath... as God commanded you
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| Dt05-16
| Honoring parents, commandment #5
| Moses
| Honor your parents ... as God commanded you
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In the Decalogue table the inferences are based on whether God is referred to in the first
vs 3rd person. I and my indicate a direct communication from God while
as God commanded or he indicate something spoken by Moses in the name of God.
We infer from this that God personally delivered the coAugandment prohibiting idolatry
while the other commandments were given by Moses in the name of God.
Advanced Rashi:
This example is a peach of a Rashi aptly illustrating the database method.
Without the database method Rashi appears to be picky on words: The
verse says For he despised God's word. And indeed we find that only
the commandment prohibiting idolatry was personally spoken by God vs. Moses
Such an approach to Rashi based on minutae is neither appealing nor convincing.
However the database method exposes a certain broadness to the Rashi.
The phrase despising God's word is rare. The usual term to indicate violation
of a serious commandment is descecrating God's name. This database
observation allows us to focus on the uniqueness in the phrase despising God's word.
Similarly the database study of the Decalogue clearly shows a difference
between the 1st two commandments which were said in first person and the other commandments
which were said in third person. Thus the database queries expose certain minutae
as reflective of broader categories: There is emphasis on God's word since that phrase
is never used and there is even more emphasis on God vs. Moses. This broader emphasis
provided by the database queries allows us to fullly appreciate the Rashi comments
as emanating from clearly intended nuances vs. picky minutae.
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