When the Old Testament repeats a idea or command from God through his prophets is there any significance to this? I thought I heard once that when scripture repeats itself it is highly regarded as significant.
There is not one word, not one letter wasted in G-d’s Torah. When there is a repetition, there are always reasons for the repetition. Sometimes, for example, the answers are found in small differences in the Hebrew. A demonstrative example: you are likely familiar with the Jewish prohibition of meat and milk together. G-d says that Jews cannot cook a goat in its mother’s milk. Our sages tell us that “goat” refers to any animal. This prohibition is in the Torah three times, and tradition informs us that this means a Jew may not, 1) cook meat and milk together, 2) eat meat and milk together, and 3) benefit from the combination of meat and milk.
Regards,
Eliahu Levenson