In honor of Israel’s 75th birthday, Israel365 is excited to launch a new series of essays that will unlock the secrets of the Hebrew Bible!
Excerpted from Rabbi Akiva Gersh’s forthcoming book, 75 Hebrew Words You Need to Understand the Bible, these essays illuminate the connection between related Hebrew words, revealing Biblical secrets only accessible through Hebrew.
Enjoy the series – and happy 75th birthday to the State of Israel!
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MITZVAH
MITZ-VAH
COMMANDMENT
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Though many are familiar with the word mitzvah, its meaning is generally misunderstood. Mitzvah does not mean āa good deed,ā as it is so often understood in popular culture, but rather ācommandment.ā While all human beings must observe the seven mitzvot that God commanded to Noah, the people of Israel were given 613 commandments as part of their unique mission to bring Godliness into all aspects of our lives, through thought, speech and action.
God Himself promises that if the Israelites keep Godās commandments, āI will grant the rain for your land in seasonā and āI will also provide grass in the fields for your cattleāand thus you shall eat your fill.ā (Deuteronomy 11:14-15). The spiritual devotion of the Israelites will bring physical blessing to the world. This appears to contradict the sagesā teaching that the Bible does not tell us the reward for keeping Godās commandments. The Baal Shem Tov explains that the Bible is not telling us the reward for fulfilling Godās commandments, but that nature will naturally bring blessings to the world when the Israelites follow Godās word.
The mitzvah of wearing tzitzit, a four-cornered garment with fringes, reminds us of all of the commandments, as it says, ālook at it and recall all the commandments of God and observe themā (Numbers 15:39). The numerical value of the Hebrew word tzitzit is 600. The fringes on each corner are doubled over to make 8 strings and those strings are tied into 5 sets of double knots. When we add 600, 8 and 5, we get 613, the total number of commandments in the Bible. By looking at the tzitzit, we recall all 613 of Godās commandments.
