Torah for the Nations?

Mekhilta de-Rabbi Ishmael, Baḥodesh 1

3rd Century

They encamped in the wilderness (Exodus 19:2). The Torah was given in public, openly in a free place. For had the Torah been given in the land of Israel, the Israelites could have said to the nations of the world: You have no share in it. But now that it was given in the wilderness publicly and openly in a place that is free for all, everyone…

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Rabbinic sources about Israel and the nations exhibit diverse perspectives with respect to the idea of Israel’s chosenness and its particularist claims. This passage from Mekhilta de-Rabbi Ishmael sounds a universalistic note when it states that God made the Torah available to all the nations. In contrast, Sifra Aḥare Mot depicts the laws of the Torah as differentiating Israel from the nations.

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The Nations

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Real and Imagined "Others" in Ancient Jewish Literature

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Ancient Jewish Literature

4th Century BCE–6th Century CE

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