A Thought for the Week with Rabbi Jay Kelman
Yitro- Nine Dibrot

It is customary in most shuls to read the aseret hadibrot in what is known as ta'am elyon , the upper cantillation. Whereas the taam tacton , the lower cantillation, used throughout the Torah, divides the aseret hadbirot into 13 verses, the ta'am elyon divides the dibrot into their ten distinct units, leading thereby to quite differing liturgical notations of the aseret hadibrot .

Apparently the ta'am tacton sees no distinction between the aseret hadibrot and the rest of the Torah, each word of the Torah being of equal importance, coming as they do from the Divine author. On the other hand the ta'am elyon attempts to recreate the grandeur of Divine revelation at Sinai, highlighting these specific 10 utterances with which G-d revealed Himself. We are not just engaging in public Torah study but we are also re-experiencing Sinai. No wonder we stand when we hear these special words that changed the course of history.

The experiential aspect of Torah explains why the first of the dibrot describes G-d who took us out of Egypt rather than the seemingly more powerful statement that G-d created the heaven and the earth. Our primary relationship to G-d is through His role in history in His intervention in our actual life. The abstract notion of creation, important as it may be, is only revealed as a detail of the command to keep Shabbat.

We learn in childhood that the aseret hadibrot are to be divided into two sections of five, each section containing either mitzvoth between man and G-d or man and man. Yet such a division is nowhere mentioned in the Torah itself. Furthermore a cursory look at the Torah (or any printed text) will quickly reveal that while there are ten "paragraphs" one for each of the dibrot , what we refer to as the first two dibrot, belief in G-d and the prohibition of idolatry, are actually combined into one. The Torah combines the positive aspect of belief followed by the prohibition flowing from this belief similar to Shabbat where the positive command to remember the Shabbat and the prohibition of melacha are part of one "command".

Logically this division makes perfect sense. Many have argued that the first commandment is no commandment at all. Belief in G-d serves as the basis for and an introduction to all other commandments but in and of itself is not and can not be a command. Observing the other mitzvoth of the Torah if one does not belief in G-d is an oxymoron. Either one believes in G-d or one does not. But without belief in a Commander, there can be no commandments. Interestingly the cantillation of the ta'am elyon follows this breakdown linking anochi and lo Yeheh lecha (what we generally refer to as the first two "commandments") into one "verse".

Of course if we combine the first two of the dibrot we must divide another to get to ten. A quick glance at any Chumash will note that the last of the dibrot, lo tachmod, not to be jealous is in fact so divided. The first prohibiting jealousy towards a person's home and the second towards his wife (and all else). While this breakdown of the aseret hadibrot seems strange to us, and is in fact rejected by most commentaries, it does appear to be the simple reading of the text.

Read this way the first set of five dibrot would begin with the notion of one G-d and conclude most appropriately with the prohibition to murder those created in His image. The second set of five would then begin with the prohibition of adultery and conclude, most appropriately, with the command not be jealous of someone else's wife.

However we divide the aseret hadibrot we begin with the notion of one G-d Who is Master of the universe and end with the probation against jealousy. Jealousy is a most difficult trait to avoid, and thus may actually be two of the aseret hadibrot, as it is rooted in our inability to fully appreciate G-d's mastery over the universe. Were we able to do so we would gladly accept our lot without comparing ourselves to others. May we merit to channel our jealousy to areas of spiritual growth.