Home -- Content: Series 7 (Laws) -- Translation: English -- Book: 1 (Tora) -- Part: 1 (Positive) -- Command: 17 -- Text
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The Sharia of Moses in the TORA
Part 1 - The 248 Positive Commandments of the Tora
17 - A KING TO WRITE A SCROLL OF LAW
According to the Sefer Ha-chinuch, this commandment was intended as a check upon the secular authority of the king. The Scroll of the Law, which was to be written in his own name, was calculated to impress upon him the supremacy of Divine Law as laid down in the Torah. It was to act as a constant reminder of his subservience to the Lord, and was therefore to accompany him at every turn: “When he goes forth to battle he shall take it forth with him, and when he returns he shall bring it back with him; when he sits in judgment it shall be with him, and when he sits at meat it shall be before him.”*