The Two Sets of Tablets

Question

Hello.

As I understand, the Israelites on Mount Sinai only heard the commandments but didn’t see Hashems finger of fire inscribe the tablets. Why is this?

And why did Moses write the second tablets instead of God rewriting it?

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Answers

  1. The Just Ask! - AskTheRabbi.org Team

    The Ten Commandments were given orally by Hashem to the Jewish Nation at Sinai. The first set of tablets that contained the Ten Commandments written down, was only brought down from Sinai later on by Moses. Moses’ descent from Sinai with the Tablets occurred as the people were worshiping the Golden Calf. After managing to receive Divine forgiveness for what they, the people, had done, Moses then ascended Sinai again, where he was commanded by Hashem to write the Ten Commandments onto a new set of tablets.

    The reason why Moses wrote them and not Hashem, as in the first set, was because the sin of the Golden Calf changed the dynamics of the relationship between Hashem and the Jewish Nation, and they were no longer worthy of being the recipients of Tablets written directly by Hashem.

    Best wishes from the AskTheRabbi.org Team