Iyini ITorah?

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Iyini ITorah?

Impendulo yeBhayibheli

Igama lesiNgisi elithi “Torah” lithathwe kwelesiHebheru elithi toh·rahʹ, elingahunyushwa ngokuthi “isiqondiso,” “imfundiso,” noma “umthetho.” a (IzAga 1:8; 3:1; 28:4) Izibonelo ezilandelayo zibonisa indlela leli gama lesiHebheru elisetshenziswe ngayo eBhayibhelini.

Elithi toh·rahʹ ngokuvamile libhekisela ezincwadini zokuqala ezinhlanu zeBhayibheli—uGenesise, Eksodusi, uLevitikusi, uNumeri noDuteronomi. Lezi zincwadi zibizwa nangokuthi iPentateuch, okuyigama elithathelwe egameni lesiGreki elisho ukuthi “umqulu wezincwadi ezinhlanu.” ITorah yabhalwa uMose, ngakho ibizwa ngokuthi “incwadi yomthetho kaMose.” (Joshuwa 8:31; Nehemiya 8:1) Ubufakazi bubonisa ukuthi ekuqaleni kwakuyincwadi eyodwa kodwa kamuva yahlukaniswa ukuze kube lula ukuyisebenzisa.
Elithi toh·rahʹ liphinde lisetshenziselwe ukubhekisela emthethweni owanikwa u-Israyeli ngokuphathelene nezindaba ezithile, ‘njengomthetho [i-toh·rahʹ] womnikelo wesono,’ “umthetho ophathelene nochoko,” kanye ‘nomthetho ophathelene noMnaziri.’—Levitikusi 6:25; 14:57; Numeri 6:13.
Elithi toh·rahʹ libuye lisho isiqondiso noma imfundiso ethile, kungaba evela kumzali noma kwabahlakaniphileyo noma kuNkulunkulu uqobo.—IzAga 1:8; 3:1; 13:14; Isaya 2:3.

Yini ebhalwe kuyiTorah noma kuyiPentateuch?

Umlando wendlela uNkulunkulu asebenzelana ngayo nabantu kusukela ekudalweni kwayo yonke into kuze kube sekufeni kukaMose.—Genesise 1:27, 28; Duteronomi 34:5.
Iziqondiso zoMthetho kaMose. (Eksodusi 24:3) Lowo Mthetho unemiyalo engaphezu kuka-600. Omkhulu kuyo iShema, noma isivumo sokholo samaJuda. Enye ingxenye yeShema ithi: “Kumelwe uthande uJehova uNkulunkulu wakho ngayo yonke inhliziyo yakho nangawo wonke umphefumulo wakho nangawo onke amandla akho.” (Duteronomi 6:4-9) UJesu wachaza le ngxenye ‘njengomyalo omkhulu kunayo yonke futhi ungowokuqala.’—Mathewu 22:36-38.
Igama likaNkulunkulu elithi Jehova elivela izikhathi ezingaba ngu-1800. Kunokuba iTorah ivimbele ukusetshenziswa kwegama likaNkulunkulu, iqukethe imiyalo ebonisa ukuthi kwakuyimfuneko ukuba abantu bakaNkulunkulu balibize.—Numeri 6:22-27; Duteronomi 6:13; 10:8; 21:5.

Imibono eyiphutha ngokuphathelene neTorah

Umbono oyiphutha: Imithetho yeTorah eyaphakade, ayisoze yashintshwa.

Iqiniso: Ezinye izinguqulo zeBhayibheli zibhekisela emiyalweni ethile yeTorah—kuhlanganisa naleyo ehlobene neyeSabatha, ubupristi kanye noSuku Lokuhlawulelwa—njengezohlala “phakade.” (Eksodusi 31:16; 40:15; Levitikusi 16:33, 34, I-King James Version) Nokho, igama lesiHebheru elisetshenziswe kula mavesi lingasho okuyohlala kuze kube sesikhathini esizayo esingaziwa, hhayi ukuthi kuhlale kuze kube phakade. b Ngemva kokuthi isivumelwano soMthetho kaMose sase sineminyaka engaba ngu-900 sisebenza, uNkulunkulu wabikezela ukuthi wayezomisa “isivumelwano esisha” esikhundleni somthetho kaMose. (Jeremiya 31:31-33) “Ngokusho kwakhe ukuthi ‘isivumelwano esisha,’ [uNkulunkulu] wenzé [isivumelwano sangaphambili] sangabe sisasebenza.” (Hebheru 8:7-13) Isivumelwano esisha samiswa eminyakeni engaba ngu-2000 edlule ngenxa yokufa kukaJesu Kristu.—Efesu 2:15.

Umbono oyiphutha: Amasiko amaJuda adluliselwa ngomlomo neTalmud anegunya elifanayo neleTorah ebhalwe phansi.

Iqiniso: Abukho ubufakazi obungokomBhalo bokuthi kwaba nomthetho owawuzodluliselwa ngomlomo uNkulunkulu awunika uMose owawuhambisana neTorah yona eyayibhalwe phansi. Kunalokho, iBhayibheli lithi: “UJehova waqhubeka wathi kuMose: ‘Zilobele phansi la mazwi.’” (Eksodusi 34:27) Umthetho owawudluliselwa ngomlomo, kamuva owabhalwa phansi futhi waziwa ngokuthi iMishnah, owagcina usuyingxenye yeTalmud wawunamasiko amaJuda ayesungulwe abaFarisi. La masiko ayevame ukuphikisana neTorah. Yingakho uJesu athi kubaFarisi: “Nilenzé ize izwi likaNkulunkulu ngenxa yesiko lenu.”—Mathewu 15:1-9.

Umbono oyiphutha: Abesifazane akufanele bafundiswe iTorah.

Iqiniso: UMthetho kaMose wawunesiqondiso sokuthi bonke abantu bakwa-Israyeli, kuhlanganise nabesifazane nezingane, kwakufanele bafundelwe wonke uMthetho. Kungani? “Ukuze balalele futhi bafunde, njengoba kumelwe bamesabe uJehova uNkulunkulu [wabo] baqaphele ukuwafeza wonke amazwi alo mthetho.”—Duteronomi 31:10-12. c

Umbono oyiphutha: ITorah inamazwi ayimfihlo.

Iqiniso: UMose, owaloba iTorah, wathi umyalezo okuyo ucacile futhi noma ubani angawufunda, awubhaliwe ngendlela eyimfihlo. (Duteronomi 30:11-14) Lo mbono wokuthi kunemiyalezo eyimfihlo kuyiTorah uthathelwa enkolweni yobuKabbalah, inkolo yobuJuda yokukholelwa ezintweni eziyimfihlakalo, esebenzisa izindlela “eziklanywe ngobuciko” ukuze kuchazwe imiBhalo. d—2 Petru 1:16.

a Bheka iNguqulo Ebukeziwe ye-The Strongest Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance of the Bible, inombolo 8451 ngaphansi kwengxenye ethi “Hebrew-Aramaic Dictionary-Index to the Old Testament”.

b Bheka i-Theological Wordbook of the Old Testament, Umqulu 2, amakhasi 672-673.

c Ngokuphambene nalokho okufundiswa iTorah, amasiko angokomthetho amaJuda ayevame ukwenqabela abesifazane ukuba batadishe iTorah. Ngokwesibonelo, iMishnah icaphuna uRabi u-Eliezer ben Hyrcanus ethi: “Noma ubani ofundisa indodakazi yakhe iTorah, kufana nokuthi uyifundisa into eyichilo.” (Sotah 3:4) ITalmud yaseJerusalema inamazwi akhe athi: “Amazwi eTorah angamane ashiswe ngomlilo kunokuba afundiswe abesifazane.”—Sotah 3:19a.

d Ngokwesibonelo, i-Encyclopaedia Judaica ichaza indlela inkolo yobuKabbalah ebheka ngayo iTorah: “ITorah empeleni ayisho lutho olutheni, nakuba eqinisweni isho izinto eziningi ezihlukahlukene ezimweni ezihlukahlukene.”—INguqulo yesibili, Umqulu 11, ikhasi 659.