G-d and Torah
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The Text of the Bible
Has the text of the Bible been preserved exactly? In many places, the Talmud, the Midrash and the Rishonim appear to have had different spellings or punctuations of words in the Tanach than we do. For a long list see…
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Fallen Angels and Satan
Who were the fallen angels? Was Satan one of them? In the Jewish tradition, Satan isn’t a “fallen” angel; he’s an angel whose occupation is tempting men to sin, as illustrated in Ch.1 of Job. “Satan” means something like “adversary”;…
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Magic and Witchcraft
What is the Jewish attitude toward witchcraft? Witchcraft and magic are forbidden by the Torah, and in some cases they carry the death penalty; see Ex.22:18 and Lev.20:27.
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The Age of the Torah
How old is the Torah? The Torah existed before the creation of the world (Proverbs 8:22-31). It was given to us through Moses, on Mount Sinai, about 3500 years ago.
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The Purpose of the Torah
What is the purpose of the Torah? The Torah tells us how the world was created, how the Jewish people originated, and how they should behave.
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The Status of Angels
Why were angels created? Apparently G-d wanted to populate both the heavens and the earth with thinking beings; and in both cases the beings weren't perfect – they had free will, and were capable of sin.
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Y-H-V-H and SH-A-D-AI
What is the meaning of Ex. 6:3, "I revealed Myself to Abraham,Isaac, and Jacob as E-L SH-A-D-AI, and didn’t make Myself knownto them by My Name Y-H-V-H"? The commentators explain that the Name Y-H-V-H implies that G-d keeps His promises,…
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The 72-Letter Name of G-d
What is the 72-letter Name of G-d? A Divine Name that has the numerical value 72 is obtained by spelling out the four letters of the Tetragrammaton: Yud (=20), He (=15), Vav (=22), He (=15) (G. Scholem, Kabbalah, p.172), where…
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The Translation of the Torah into Greek
What is the story about the translation of the Torah into Greek? Ptolemy Philadelphus II (285-244 B.C.E.), one of a dynasty of Ptolemies who ruled Egypt (including Eretz Yisroel), asked the High Priest to send him 72 elders of Israel,…