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According to theHebrew Bible, theTablets of the Law (alsoTablets of Stone,Stone Tablets, orTablets of Testimony;Biblical Hebrew: לוּחֹת הַבְּרִיתlūḥōṯ habbǝrīṯ "tablets of the covenant", לֻחֹת הָאֶבֶןluḥōṯ hāʾeḇen or לֻחֹת אֶבֶןluḥōṯ ʾeḇen or לֻחֹת אֲבָנִיםluḥōṯ ʾăḇānīm "stone tablets", and לֻחֹת הָעֵדֻתluḥōṯ hāʿēḏuṯ "tablets of testimony") were the twostone tablets inscribed with theTen Commandments whenMoses ascendedMount Sinai as written in theBook of Exodus.[1]
According to the biblical narrative, the first set of tablets, inscribed by thefinger of God, (Exodus 31:18) were smashed by Moses when he was enraged by the sight of theChildren of Israel worshiping agolden calf (Exodus 32:19), and the second were later chiseled out by Moses and rewritten by God (Exodus 34:1).
According to traditional teachings ofJudaism in theTalmud, the stones were made of bluesapphire as a symbolic reminder of the sky, the heavens, and ultimately of God'sthrone. ManyTorah scholars, however, have opined that the biblicalsapir was, in fact,lapis lazuli (seeExodus 24:10: lapis lazuli is a possible alternate rendering of "sapphire", the stone pavement under God's feet when the intention to craft the tablets of the covenant is disclosedExodus 24:12).[2]
According toExodus 25:10–22, the tablets were stored in theArk of the Covenant.
In the Hebrew Bible, the tablets are referred to by several names that emphasize different aspects of their function and meaning.[3] The termluhot ha-berit (“tablets of the covenant”)[4] underscores their role as the physical embodiment of the covenant between God and the Israelites, whileluhot ha-edut (“tablets of testimony”)[5] highlights their function as a witness to divine revelation and obligation. Rabbinic literature frequently emphasizes the symbolic significance of the tablets as both divine and material objects: heavenly in origin yet carried, broken, and renewed through human action.[6] The breaking of the first tablets is traditionally understood not merely as an act of anger, but as a dramatic expression of the rupture of the covenant, while the second tablets represent repentance and restoration of the relationship between God and Israel.[7][8]
Jewish tradition draws a significant distinction between the first and second sets of tablets. According to rabbinic interpretation, both the broken first tablets and the intact second tablets were placed together in theArk of the Covenant.[6] This juxtaposition has been understood symbolically as affirming the enduring value of failure and rupture alongside renewal and wholeness.[9] Medieval Jewish commentators further note differences between the two sets: the first tablets are described as entirely divine in origin, while the second involve human participation, as Moses is instructed to hew the stone himself. This distinction has been interpreted as reflecting a transition from a purely miraculous revelation to a covenant sustained through human responsibility.[10][11][12]
In rabbinic and medieval Jewish interpretation, the tablets are understood as covenantal documents that formalize the relationship between God and Israel.The Mekhilta of Rabbi Ishmael describes the tablets as testimony (edut) of the covenant established at Sinai,[13] while theSifre Deuteronomy emphasizes their function as witness to the obligations binding both parties.[14]Ramban (Nachmanides), commenting on Exodus 24:12, explicates this treaty framework more fully, arguing that the tablets serve as the written terms of thebrit (covenant), with the Ten Commandments functioning as the foundational stipulations analogous to ancient Near Eastern suzerainty treaties.[15] This interpretation connects the physical tablets to the broader legal corpus of the Torah, positioning them not merely as moral precepts but as the constitutional foundation of Israel's covenantal relationship with God. In this view, the placement of the tablets within the Ark of the Covenant parallels the ancient practice of depositing treaty documents in temples as sacred witnesses.[16][17]
In rabbinic interpretation, Moses' breaking of the first tablets is portrayed not as an act of uncontrolled anger but as a necessary and divinely sanctioned response to Israel's violation of the covenant through the golden calf. The Talmud (Shabbat 87a) records that God affirmed Moses' action with the words "יישר כחך ששיברת" ("Well done for breaking them"), suggesting that the tablets could not remain intact once the covenantal terms they represented had been violated.[18][19]Rashi, commenting on Exodus 32:19, explains that Moses reasoned that if even a single Israelite who had not participated in idolatry was forbidden to eat the Passover offering, how much more so should the entire nation be denied the tablets after committing idolatry.[20]Exodus Rabbah (46:1) further develops this theme, comparing the breaking to the annulment of a marriage contract (ketubah) when one party violates its terms; the physical destruction of the covenant document reflects the spiritual rupture that had already occurred.[21] In this view, the breaking of the tablets maintains the integrity of the covenantal relationship by acknowledging that the conditions under which they were given no longer existed, making their preservation impossible until the covenant could be renewed.
Jewish tradition distinguishes sharply between the first and second sets of tablets, emphasizing that while the first were entirely divine in origin, both the stone and the writing were the work of God, the second tablets involved human participation. According toExodus 34:1, God commands Moses: "Carve out two tablets of stone like the first, and I will inscribe upon the tablets the words that were on the first tablets, which you shattered." The contrast is explicit inExodus 31:18, which describes the first tablets as "inscribed by the finger of God", while the second required Moses to hew the stone himself. The Talmud and Midrash highlight this distinction, interpreting it as a demonstration that the renewal of the covenant required both divine guidance and human responsibility.[22][23][24][21]
In Jewish tradition, the broken tablets retain their sanctity and significance even after being shattered. The Talmud notes that both the broken first tablets and the intact second tablets were placed together in the Ark of the Covenant,[23] emphasizing that holiness is not lost through imperfection. Midrashic and rabbinic sources further interpret this as a broader lesson: even objects or people that have been “broken” can continue to carry spiritual or moral weight. This theme has been cited in Jewish thought as a metaphor for repentance, resilience, and the enduring value of the covenant despite human failings.[21][19]
In recent centuries, the tablets have been popularly described and depicted as round-topped rectangles, but this has little basis in religious tradition. According to rabbinic tradition, they were rectangles, with sharp corners,[23] and indeed they are so depicted in the 3rd-century paintings at theDura-Europos Synagogue and in Christian art throughout the 1st millennium CE,[25] drawing on Jewish traditions oficonography.
Depictions of round-topped tablets appear in the Middle Ages, following in size and shape contemporary hingedwriting-tablets for taking notes (with a stylus pressing on a layer of wax on the insides). ForMichelangelo (1475–1564) andAndrea Mantegna (1431–1506) they still have sharp corners (see gallery), and are about the size found in rabbinic tradition. Later artists, such asRembrandt (1606–1669), tended to combine the rounded shape with a larger size. While, as mentioned above, rabbinic tradition teaches that the tablets were squared, according to some authorities, the Rabbis themselves approved of rounded depictions of the tablets in replicas – so that the replicas would not exactly match the historical tablets.[26]
According to the Talmud, each tablet was square, six tefachim (approximately 50 centimeters, or 20 inches) wide and high, and more a thicker block than a tablet, at three tefachim (25 centimeters, 10 inches) thick,[27][28] though they tend to be shown larger in art. (Other Rabbinic sources say they were rectangular rather than square, six tefachim high and three wide and deep.[citation needed]) Also according to tradition, the words were not engraved on the surface, but rather were bored fully through the stone.[29]
Replicas of the tablets, known astabots or sellats, are a vital part of the practice ofEthiopian Orthodox Church, which claims that the original Ark of the Covenant is kept in theChurch of Our Lady Mary of Zion inAxum.[30]
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TheQuran states thattablets were given toMoses, without quoting their contents explicitly:
These tablets are not broken in the Quran, but picked up later:
Biblical scholarsAlan Millard andDaniel I. Block note parallels between the storage of the tablets in theArk of the Covenant with the practice of otherAncient Near Eastern cultures whose treaty texts were preserved in their temples.[31][32]
Alternatively, the scholarThomas Römer argued in 2015 that “clearly… the tablets of the law are a substitute for something else”.[33] He proposed that “the original Ark contained astatue [i.e. acult image] ofYhwh”,[34]: 4 which he specifically identifies as “twobetyles (sacred stones), or twocult image statues symbolizing Yhwh and his female companionAshera or a statue representing Yhwh alone”.[33]
{{citation}}: CS1 maint: work parameter with ISBN (link)As detailed in the Talmud, the two tablets were eight tefahim wide and high—perfect squares, [...] — equal to about 24 centimeters or eight inches, and four tefahim deep, with sharp, not curved, corners.
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