How Many Commands Exist?

There are 613 commandments in the written Torah (Law or the first 5 books of the Bible). 248 of these are affirmative, and 365 are negative. Moses Margolioth was one of the translators of the English Revised Version of the Christian Bible, and also published a catalogue of the 613 Commandments in English in 1743.  A few scholars dispute this finding by claiming that there are a few more but at least Margolioth gave us a rough idea of how many there are. Click here for a list of THE 613 COMMANDMENTS from a Jewish site called Chabad.org.

According to Dr. Richard Booker of “Sounds of the Trumpet” Ministries, (www.rbooker.com) from The Woodlands, Texas, there are more commands to bible believers in the New Testament scriptures than in the Old. On page 31 of his book entitled “Torah: Law or Grace?” he states, “While there are 613 Commandments in the Torah for the Jews, the New Testament contains approximately 1050 commandments to the followers of Jesus, be they Jew or Gentile”. His footnote on this subject reads “Stern, page 58” in reference to “David Stern, Restoring the Jewishness of the Gospel (Jerusalem: Jewish New Testament Publications, 1988) …”

Though we are happy that Dr. Booker has discovered 1050 commandments in the NT and rightly thinks they are for both Jews and Gentiles he wrongfully thinks that Jews are the only ones who have to do the 613 commandments in the OT. What he is failing to realize is that once a gentile gets saved or born again by entering Yahweh’s covenant, he is no longer a gentile but has been grafted into the “tree of Israel” according to Romans Chapter 11. From now on he or she is no longer a stranger or alien but has been merged into “one new man” with Israel whereby the people of Israel are the only surviving partner in the merger and have become a part of the Commonwealth of Israel according to Ephesians Chapter 2. Yes, Gentiles get annexed or assimilated into Israel and leave their past identities behind. Put simply … if a gentile gets saved or born again, and still thinks they are a gentile, their salvation is still in question. You cannot separate yourself from Israel and still be in covenant with Yahweh, and anyone who thinks that is possible is missing the point. So, we look to Jews as family, equal heirs and fellow citizens of the Kingdom of Elohim (God).