Rabbinic Judaism Debunked: Debunking the myth of Rabbinic Oral Law

This book provides a critical survey of Judaism, making it an excellent introduction for anyone interested in learning about the Jewish faith.

Second Edition, Revised and Expanded (August 2022) - Translated from Hebrew



The purpose of this book is to prove that the God of Israel did not bestow upon Moses the Oral Law (Oral Torah), but only the written Bible. The oral law refers to rabbinic laws and statutes which, in addition to the Pentateuch, God allegedly gave to Moses. The book is based on modern studies written by leading biblical scholars, historians and archeologists. We intend to demonstrate, in light of modern research, that although the people of Israel adhere to various traditions )a vast majority of which is derived from pagan sources, as later in the book(, we can hardly accept the claim that God gave Moses a veiled oral law on Mt. Sinai, one that only rabbis are authorized and capable of interpreting. In this book, we will list all of the popular arguments disseminated by the rabbis in their publications, lectures and sermons; we will scrutinize them and reveal the logical flaws behind them. We will present arguments of our own, seeking to prove that the oral law given at Mt. Sinai cannot exist - not in biblical terms, not in historical terms and not in logical terms. In addition, we will expose the sources and intentions of the Oral Law (Oral Torah).

Nowadays, the rabbinical law is based entirely on the perception that, in addition to the written Bible, God gave the people of Israel another "oral" law. Therefore, dispelling the existence of such a law means dispelling the most important foundations of the rabbinical law. In practice, there is no "greater threat to rabbinical Judaism than the denial of the oral law as handed down to Moshe at Sinai."

We wish to clarify three points in advance. First, this book will introduce you to quite a few surprising issues and perhaps some that may seem provocative. However, we wish to assure you that everything will be backed with academic research. We refer to hundreds of studies conducted by Israeli scholars, quoting over two hundred different sources. The book takes an academic-research perspective (thus it contains over 1200 quotes and footnotes) and it presents logical biblical and historical arguments, all based on works created by the best Jewish minds and specifically by Israeli scholars. However, we tried to simplify the content as much as possible in order to enable convenient reading for non-academics. Second, we wish to clarify that we highly regard the Jewish people's (of which we are a part) dedication to God for 2000 years and its desire to uphold the Written Law rules. In addition, we recognize that upholding the traditions helped retain our distinct existence in the diaspora; however, we are saddened that most of the traditions based on what is known as "oral law" have actually led to the creation of a different Judaism, completely foreign to the Hebrew Bible. Third, this critique is offered in the context of an intramural discussion between Jews who believe in Yeshua (Jesus) and those who do not yet follow Him. It should not be understood as an attack on the Jewish people.