5.2.5

The Covenant at Sinai 2

Test yourself

The Biblical Story

In the Biblical story, the giving of the commandments was very dramatic and scary (Exodus 20:1-17).

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Thunder and lightning

  • According to the Bible, there was thunder and lightning, and smoke coming out of Mount Sinai.
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The power of God

  • The events at Mount Sinai were dramatic to impress upon the nation the power of God and the respect the people needed to have for Him.
  • As each person heard God for themselves, they didn’t need to accept a story or a belief. The people knew what they heard and understood what they had to do.

The Covenant

At Mount Sinai, the Jews became God’s chosen people. By entering into a covenant with God, they were committing to taking on extra responsibilities in life.

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Keeping the covenant

  • If the Jews keep the laws, they will be blessed and if they do not, they are punished. There is no option of breaking the agreement.
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Joining the covenant

  • A child born to a Jewish mother is born Jewish (this is called matrilineality).
  • Anyone can convert to Judaism and become part of the covenantal relationship with God.

Jump to other topics

1Buddhism

2Christianity

3Catholicism (Christianity)

4Islam

5Judaism

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