Commandments: God’s Blueprint for a Flourishing Life

What was God’s very first commandment to humanity? Contrary to popular belief, it wasn’t “Don’t eat from the Tree of Knowledge.” In the preceding phrase, God first commands Adam, “Of every tree of the garden you shall surely eat.”¹ 

This often-overlooked detail transforms our understanding of Judaism—the Torah doesn’t begin with limitation but with a divine mandate to savor the richness of creation!²

Living by Design

In this week’s Torah portion, the Torah makes this explicit: “You shall keep My ordinances and My laws, and the man shall do them and live through them: I am God.”^{3 The Hebrew phrase “וחי בהם” (v’chai bahem) literally means “and live through them,” indicating that commandments aren’t just rules to follow but pathways to a more fulfilled existence. The Torah doesn’t just suggest that mitzvot enhance life—it declares that their very purpose is to create life.}

As Rabbi Hirsch, the 19th century leader of German Orthodoxy, eloquently explains: “Through [mitzvah] observance, we achieve nothing more and nothing less than life in its most positive form.” Put simply, God gave us mitzvos to make our lives amazing.

Living in mitzvah-observant Jewish communities for close to a decade, I’ve seen the incredible fruits of living according to God’s commands. The mitzvot enhance every dimension of human experience – from our relationships to our daily routines to our life transitions. Let me illustrate.

Marriage Transformed

In marriage, the results are particularly striking. Current trends in the US and world at large indicate a 50% divorce rate and severe discontentment within relationships. In the Orthodox world, the divorce rate remains below 10% and marriage satisfaction is, on average, outstanding.

Why such a difference? The Torah establishes several key commandments that appear restrictive but actually strengthen marriage. First, the Torah commands that in the first year of marriage, the husband must put the rest of his life on the backburner and dedicate himself to making his wife happy. This correct alignment of priorities—putting one’s spouse first—sets the foundation for the entire relationship.

Additionally, the Torah prohibits touching someone of the opposite gender who isn’t a close family member. This creates clear boundaries that prevent the casual physical intimacy that often leads to emotional confusion and relationship complications. Furthermore, it makes the experience of touching one’s spouse all the more special and intimate.

Perhaps most powerful are the laws of family purity. After a woman’s monthly cycle, couples separate physically for about 12 days, during which they focus on emotional and intellectual connection. This monthly rhythm creates a natural cycle of reunion and renewal. What initially appears as a restriction actually enhances pleasure. When the couple reunites, they experience the joy of closeness as if it were their wedding night all over again.

Aging with Purpose

The contrast is equally powerful when it comes to aging. At seven in the morning, I regularly cross paths with men in their 80s and 90s returning from morning prayers, energized and eager to spend their day immersed in Torah learning. While many societies struggle with epidemic loneliness among seniors, the mitzvot create communities where the elderly remain vital, respected, and engaged.

The commandment to “rise before the elderly and honor the face of an old person”^{4 establishes a culture where aging brings increased wisdom and status, not irrelevance. Families, guided by the mitzvah to “honor your father and mother,”5 visit and care for their parents with diligence and respect, ensuring that no elder is abandoned to face their final years alone.}

Community of Giving

The Torah’s economic mitzvot run completely counter to Western culture. In a world where accumulation defines success, Judaism mandates giving away at least 10% of one’s income to charity,^{6 providing interest-free loans to one’s fellow Jew,7 and the prohibition against withholding wages from workers, even for a day!8 These practices create communities of radical generosity where financial ethics and mutual support form the foundation of economic life.}

But it doesn’t stop there. My first experience with Shabbat remains etched in my memory—complete strangers welcomed me into their homes as family, providing delicious meals and engaging me in meaningful conversations. This remarkable hospitality flows directly from the mitzvah of hachnasas orchim (welcoming guests), so central to Jewish values that Abraham himself interrupted a conversation with God to welcome travelers.⁹ 

The impact of this mitzvah transforms Jewish homes into sanctuaries of giving, where hosts not only provide meals and lodging to strangers but profusely thank their guests for the opportunity to fulfill this sacred obligation. This culture of generosity permeates every observant community I’ve visited.

There are literally countless examples I could give to illustrate the fact that mitzvah observance leads to the most wonderful life imaginable. But the Torah’s promise of “and live by them” extends even further.

Deeper Dimensions of Life

The Ramban, commenting on our verse, offers a profound framework that deepens our understanding of how commandments create life. He explains that the “life” we receive depends on why we perform them:

1. Material Benefit – Those who observe mitzvot for purely for material benefits will indeed receive “long life, wealth, and honor in this world” — but miss the higher dimensions of existence.
2. Fear – Those who serve God out of fear, concerned with the spiritual consequences of their actions, will experience this life as a burden to be endured in order that their souls will ultimately “rest in eternal bliss.”
3. Love – Those who fulfill mitzvot out of love experience both “a happy life in this world” and “complete bliss” beyond it.
4. Divine Connection – At the highest level, those whose thoughts and actions are completely focused on their Creator transcend ordinary limitations of existence, experiencing a transformation where the boundary between physical and spiritual life dissolves—as exemplified by figures like Elijah who, according to tradition, never experienced physical death but ascended bodily to heaven.

This framework mirrors what we all know intuitively—that our intention transforms our experience. The same action performed from different motivations yields vastly different results, not just spiritually but in our lived experience.

The Ramban’s teaching invites us to examine not just what commandments we observe, but why we observe them. As we elevate our intentions from self-interest toward love of God and recognition of the inherent value of His commands, we unlock increasingly profound dimensions of the life promised through “וחי בהם”—living by them.

Get the Most Life Out of Your Life

With these concepts in mind, I invite you to use the Torah’s promise that we should “live by them” as motivation to enhance your mitzvah observance.

Consider which of the Ramban’s four levels inspires you most. Are you drawn to the practical benefits of a more structured life? The spiritual security of following divine instruction? The joy of connecting with tradition and community? Or the transcendent experience of divine connection?

If you’re newer to Jewish practice, choose one small mitzvah that resonates with your strongest motivation—perhaps lighting Shabbat candles or saying Modeh Ani (I give thanks) each morning. Even these simple acts begin to restructure your life around meaning and purpose.

If you’re already observant, identify an area where your practice has weakened. Are you seeing it just as a rote habit or burden? Instead, consciously shift your mindset by applying one of the Ramban’s perspectives in order to reignite your commitment.

The life promised through mitzvos isn’t some distant reward—it begins the moment we align ourselves with Torah’s infinite wisdom.

Wishing you a week of abundant life!

Shabbat Shalom,
Avraham

1. Bereishis 2:16
2. The Talmud teaches that when a person dies and goes for his divine judgement, one of the first questions they’ll ask him is, “Did you eat from all the fruits that you saw?”
3. Vayikra 18:5
4. Vayikra 19:32
5. Shemot 20:12
6. Devarim 14:22
7. Shemot 22:24
8. Vayikra 19:13
9. Bereishit 18:1-8

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