Experience of Individuals at Sinai

The Gemara cites additional homiletic interpretations on the topic of the revelation at Sinai. The Torah says, “And Moses brought forth the people out of the camp to meet God; and they stood at the lowermost part of the mount” (Exodus 19:17). Rabbi Avdimi bar Ḥama bar Ḥasa said: the Jewish people actually stood beneath the mountain, and the verse teaches that the Holy One, Blessed be He, overturned the mountain above the Jews like a tub, and said to them: If you accept the Torah, excellent, and if not, there will be your burial. Rav Aḥa bar Ya’akov said: From here there is a substantial caveat to the obligation to fulfill the Torah. The Jewish people can claim that they were coerced into accepting the Torah, and it is therefore not binding. Rava said: Even so, they again accepted it willingly in the time of Ahasuerus, as it is written: “The Jews ordained, and took upon them, and upon their seed, and upon all such as joined themselves unto them” (Esther 9:27), and he taught: The Jews ordained what they had already taken upon themselves through coercion at Sinai.

(1) (Ibid. 20:15) "And all the people saw the sounds and the lightnings": They saw what was visible and heard what was audible. These are the words of R. Yishmael. R. Akiva says: They saw and heard what was audible. There was nothing that left the mouth of the Omnipotent which was not inscribed on the tablets, as it is written (Psalms 29:7) "The voice of the L rd hews (with) flames of fire."

And it is stated (Exodus 20:15), "And all the people saw the sounds (literally, voices)" - it is not written, "sound," here, but rather, "sounds." Rabbi Yochanan said, "The voice would go out and divide into seventy voices for the seventy languages, so that all the nations would hear. And each and every nation would hear in the language of the nation and their souls would depart. But Israel would hear and they were not injured." How did the voice go out? Rabbi Tanchuma said, "It would come go with two faces; [one] would kill the idolaters who did not accept it, and [one] would give life to Israel that did accept it." This is what Moshe stated to them at the end of forty years (Deuteronomy 5:23), "As who is it, from all flesh that heard the voice of the living God speak from amidst the fire" - you would hear His voice and live, but the idolaters heard and died. Come and see how the voice would go out among all of Israel - each and every one according to his strength: the elders according to their strength; the young men according to their strength; the infants according to their strength; the sucklings according to their strength; the women according to their strength; and even Moshe according to his strength, as it is stated (Exodus 19:19), "Moshe would speak and God would answer him with a voice" - with a voice that He could withstand. And so [too,] it states (Psalms 29:4), "The voice of the Lord is in strength" - it is not stated, "in His strength," but rather "in strength"; in the strength of each and every one, and even the pregnant women, according to their strength. Hence one would say each and every one according to his strength.

(2) "And all the people saw": the sounds of sounds and the flames of flames. How many sounds were there and how many flames were there? The intent is that each heard according to his power (to absorb what he experienced), viz. (Psalms 29:4) "the voice of Adonai in power, the voice of Adonai in majesty." Variantly: "And all the people saw": to apprise us of the exalted state of Israel. When they all stood at Mount Sinai to receive the Torah, as soon as they heard the pronouncement, they assimilated it. As it is written (Devarim 32:10) "He encircled him; he invested him (with understanding). As soon as they heard the pronouncement, they assimilated it. R. Eliezer says: to apprise us of the exalted state of Israel. When they all stood at Mount Sinai to receive the Torah, there were no blind ones among them, viz. "And all the people saw." And whence is it derived that there were no mutes among them? From (Exodus 19:8) "And all the people answered together." And whence is it derived that there were no deaf ones among them? From (Ibid. 24:7) "All that the L rd has spoken, we shall do and we shall hear." And whence is it derived that there were no large ones among them? From (Ibid. 17) "And they stood at the foot of the mountain." And whence is it derived that there were no fools among them? From (Devarim 4:35) "You have been shown to know, etc."...