Writing Down the Oral Torah

b. Temurah 14b

R. Judah bar Naḥmani, the disseminator for Resh Lakish, expounded [as follows]: One verse says: Write you these words, and one verse says [i.e., it states later in that same verse]: For by the mouth of these words (Exodus 34:27). [These phrases serve] to say to you: Words that were [taught] orally you may not recite in writing, and [words] that are written you may not recite orally [i.e., by heart].

And [furthermore], the school of R. Ishmael taught: [The word “these” in the command] write you these words [serves to emphasize that] these [words, i.e., those recorded in the Written Law], you may write, but you may not write halakhot [i.e., the mishnayot and the rest of the Oral Law].

They said [in response to the question of how R. Dimi could propose writing down the halakhah in a letter]: Perhaps [with regard to] a new matter it is different [i.e., it might be permitted to write down new material so that it not be forgotten. One proof for this suggestion is] that R. Yoḥanan and Resh Lakish [would] read from a scroll of aggadah [containing the words of the sages] on Shabbat. And [they did so because] they taught as follows: [Since one cannot remember the Oral Law without writing it down, it is permitted to violate the halakhah, as derived from the verse:] It is time to work for the Lord; they have made void your Torah (Psalm 119:126). They said it is better to uproot [a single halakhah of the] Torah [i.e., the prohibition of writing down the Oral Torah] and [thereby ensure] that the Torah is not forgotten from the Jewish people [entirely].