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Tanakhתנ״ך

Breaking the Tablets and Jerusalem's Walls

These sources explore the theological and mystical connection between Moses' breaking of the Tablets and the subsequent breaching of Jerusalem's walls. Jewish tradition commemorates both events on the Seventeenth of Tammuz and interprets their relationship through midrashic and Hasidic teachings about sin, judgment, and cosmic restoration.

נִשְׁתַּבְּרוּ הַלּוּחוֹת וּבָטַל הַתָּמִיד וְהוֹבְקְעָה הָ

15 sources · all verified

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What the sources say

Both the Babylonian and Jerusalem Talmuds record that the breaking of the Luchos and the breaching of the walls of Jerusalem share the same calendar date — the Seventeenth of Tammuz — listing them together among the five calamities of that day: Taanit 26b states that "the tablets were broken by Moses when he saw that the Jews had made the golden calf" and that "the city walls of Jerusalem were breached," while Jerusalem Talmud Taanit 4:5 confirms the same pairing, explicitly placing both events on "the Seventeenth of Tammuz."

The breaking of the Luchos itself is rooted in Moshe's witness of Israel's sin at the golden calf, as described in Shemot 32:15–19, where "he hurled the tablets from his hands and shattered them at the foot of the mountain," and retold in Moshe's own words in Devarim 9:15–17: "I gripped the two tablets and flung them away with both my hands, smashing them before your eyes."

The thematic unity running through both tragedies — the breach of the Luchos and the breach of Jerusalem's walls — is Israel's rupture of their covenant with God, a connection the Sefat Emet makes explicit when he notes that Sefat Emet, Bamidbar, Balak 24 anticipates that when Israel repairs the sin, the Seventeenth of Tammuz will be transformed into a festival and the original Luchos will shine once more.

Source 1 · Tanach
Verified

Exodus 32:15-19

שמות ל״ב:ט״ו-י״ט

Exodus 32:15-19

Moshe descends the mountain, sees the calf and the dancing, and shatters the tablets before the people. This is the foundational biblical passage for the breaking of the Luchos.

וַֽיְהִ֗י כַּאֲשֶׁ֤ר קָרַב֙ אֶל־הַֽמַּחֲנֶ֔ה וַיַּ֥רְא אֶת־הָעֵ֖גֶל וּמְחֹלֹ֑ת וַיִּֽחַר־אַ֣ף מֹשֶׁ֗ה וַיַּשְׁלֵ֤ךְ מִיָּדָו֙ אֶת־הַלֻּחֹ֔ת וַיְשַׁבֵּ֥ר אֹתָ֖ם תַּ֥חַת הָהָֽר׃

As soon as Moses came near the camp and saw the calf and the dancing, he became enraged; and he hurled the tablets from his hands and shattered them at the foot of the mountain.

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Source 2 · Tanach
Verified

Deuteronomy 9:15-17

דברים ט׳:ט״ו-י״ז

Deuteronomy 9:15-17

Moshe retells how he saw the molten calf and broke the tablets in anger. This passage frames the breaking of the Luchos as part of Israel's sin and Moshe's response.

וָאֵ֗רֶא וְהִנֵּ֤ה חֲטָאתֶם֙ לַיהֹוָ֣ה אֱלֹֽהֵיכֶ֔ם עֲשִׂיתֶ֣ם לָכֶ֔ם עֵ֖גֶל מַסֵּכָ֑ה סַרְתֶּ֣ם מַהֵ֔ר מִן־הַדֶּ֕רֶךְ אֲשֶׁר־צִוָּ֥ה יְהֹוָ֖ה אֶתְכֶֽם׃ וָאֶתְפֹּשׂ֙ בִּשְׁנֵ֣י הַלֻּחֹ֔ת וָֽאַשְׁלִכֵ֔ם מֵעַ֖ל שְׁתֵּ֣י יָדָ֑י וָאֲשַׁבְּרֵ֖ם לְעֵינֵיכֶֽם׃

I saw how you had sinned against the ETERNAL your God: you had made yourselves a molten calf; you had been quick to stray from the path that GOD had enjoined upon you. Thereupon I gripped the two tablets and flung them away with both my hands, smashing them before your eyes.

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Source 3 · Chazal
Verified

Midrash Tanchuma, Eikev 11

מדרש תנחומא, עקב י״א

Midrash Tanchuma, Eikev 11

Moshe broke the Luchos upon seeing Israel's sin, as stated in the pasuk where he says he took the two tablets and broke them before their eyes; the Kadosh Baruch Hu then told Moshe that he (Moshe) was correct to break them, because the writing had flown away from the tablets, and therefore breaking them was the right action.

שָׁבַר אֶת הַלּוּחוֹת, שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר: וָאֵרֶא וְהִנֵּה חֲטָאתֶם לַה' אֱלֹהֵיכֶם, וָאֶתְפֹּשׂ בִּשְׁנֵי הַלּוּחוֹת וָאַשְׁלִיכֵם מֵעַל שְׁתֵּי יָדַי וָאֶשְׁבְּרֵם לְעֵינֵיכֶם. לְפִיכָךְ אָמַר לֵיהּ הַקָּדוֹשׁ בָּרוּךְ הוּא, אַתָּה שִׁבַּרְתָּ. עַל מָה שִׁבְּרָן. עַל שֶׁפָּרַח הַכְּתָב מֵעֲלֵיהֶם, וּלְפִיכָךְ שִׁבְּרָן.

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Source 4 · Chazal
Verified

Sulam on Zohar, Mishpatim 364

הסולם על ספר הזהר, משפטים שס״ד

Sulam on Zohar, Mishpatim 364

Had the Luchos not been broken, all subsequent afflictions would not have befallen the world, and Israel would have remained in the form of the supernal angels above.

ואם לא נשברו הלוחות, כל מה שבא אח"כ לעולם לא היה בא, והיו ישראל בצורת מלאכים עליונים שלמעלה.

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Source 5 · Chazal
Verified

Devarim Rabbah 3:14

דברים רבה ג׳:י״ד

Devarim Rabbah 3:14

God responds to Moses' breaking of the Tablets by saying that Moses vents his fury on them, and asks whether Moses wants God to similarly vent His fury—noting that the world cannot endure even one hour without God's restraint—and then tells Moses that he broke them and he must replace them.

וַיִּחַר אַף משֶׁה וַיַּשְׁלֵךְ מִיָּדָו אֶת הַלֻּחֹת, אָמַר לוֹ הַקָּדוֹשׁ בָּרוּךְ הוּא הָא משֶׁה, אַתָּה מֵפִיג חֲמָתְךָ בְּלוּחוֹת הַבְּרִית, מְבַקֵּשׁ אַתְּ שֶׁאָפִיג אֶת חֲמָתִי וְאַתְּ רוֹאֶה שֶׁאֵין הָעוֹלָם יָכוֹל לַעֲמֹד אֲפִלּוּ שָׁעָה אֶחָת, אָמַר לוֹ וּמַה יֵּשׁ לִי לַעֲשׂוֹת, אָמַר לוֹ לָתֵת עָלֶיךָ קָטָרִיקֵי, אַתְּ שִׁבַּרְתָּ אוֹתָן וְאַתְּ מַחְלִיף אוֹתָן, הֲדָא הוּא דִּכְתִיב:

The Holy One blessed be He said to him: ‘So, Moses, do you vent your fury on the Tablets of the covenant?

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Source 6 · Chazal
Verified

Eikhah Rabbah, Petichta:30

איכה רבה, פתיחתא ל׳

Eikhah Rabbah, Petichta:30

Nebuchadnezzar, sent by God to destroy the Temple, initially stationed himself at Antioch and sent Nebuzaradan to devastate Jerusalem; after three and a half years of daily siege without being able to conquer it, God caused the city wall to sink progressively until it was completely submerged, at which point the enemies entered Jerusalem.

בֵּין כְּדִבְרֵי אֵלּוּ וּבֵין כְּדִבְרֵי אֵלּוּ הַכֹּל מוֹדִים שֶׁנְּבוּכַדְנֶצַּר הָיָה אֶחָד מֵהֶם, אֶלָּא כֵּיוָן שֶׁאָמַר לוֹ הַקָּדוֹשׁ בָּרוּךְ הוּא עֲלֵה וְהַחֲרֵב בֵּית הַמִּקְדָּשׁ, אָמַר לָא בָעֵי אֶלָּא מְצַמְצְמָא יָתִי מֶעֱבַד לִי כְּמָא דַּעֲבַד לְסָבִי, מֶה עָשָׂה, בָּא וְיָשַׁב בְּדַפְנֵי שֶׁל אַנְטוֹכְיָא וְשָׁלַח נְבוּזַרְאֲדָן רַב טַבָּחִים לְהַחֲרִיב אֶת יְרוּשָׁלַיִם וְעָשָׂה שָׁם שָׁלשׁ שָׁנִים וּמֶחֱצָה, בְּכָל יוֹם מַקִּיף אֶת יְרוּשָׁלַיִם וְלֹא הָיָה יָכוֹל לְכָבְשָׁהּ, בִּקֵּשׁ לַחֲזֹר נָתַן הַקָּדוֹשׁ בָּרוּךְ הוּא בְּלִבּוֹ הִתְחִיל מְמַדֵּד בַּחוֹמָה וְהָיְתָה שׁוֹקַעַת בְּכָל יוֹם טְפָחַיִם וּמֶחֱצָה עַד שֶׁשָּׁקְעָה כֻּלָּהּ, וְכֵיוָן שֶׁשָּׁקְעָה כֻּלָּהּ נִכְנְסוּ הַשֹּׂוֹנְאִים לִירוּשָׁלַיִם

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Source 7 · Chazal
Verified

Jerusalem Talmud Taanit 4:5

תלמוד ירושלמי תענית ד׳:ה׳

Jerusalem Talmud Taanit 4:5

The passage lists five calamities that befell the Jewish people on the Seventeenth of Tammuz, including the breaking of the tablets and the breaching of the city wall, which are commemorated together as part of the fast of the fourth month.

משנה: חֲמִשָּׁה דְבָרִים אֵירְעוּ אֶת אֲבוֹתֵינוּ בְּשִׁבְעָה עָשָׂר בְּתַמּוּז וַחֲמִשָּׁה בְּתִשְׁעָה בְאָב. בְּשִׁבְעָה עָשָׂר בְּתַמּוּז נִשְׁתַּבְּרוּ הַלּוּחוֹת וּבָטַל הַתָּמִיד וְהוֹבְקְעָה הָעִיר וְשָׂרַף אַפּוֹסְטוֹמוֹס אֶת הַתּוֹרָה וְהֶעֱמִיד צֶלֶם בַּהֵיכָל. בְּתִשְׁעָה בְאָב נִגְזַר עַל אֲבוֹתֵינוּ שֶׁלֹּא יִכָּנְסוּ לָאָרֶץ וְחָרַב הַבַּיִת בָּרִאשׁוֹנָה וּבַשְּׁנִיָּה וְנִלְכְּדָה בֶּיתָּר וְנֶחְרְשָׁה הָעִיר. תַּנֵּי רִבִּי שִׁמְעוֹן בֶּן יוֹחַי. עֲקִיבָה רִבִּי הָיָה דוֹרֵשׁ. כֹּה אָמַר יי צְבָאוֹת צוֹם הָרְבִיעִי וְצוֹם הַחֲמִישִׁי וְצוֹם הַשְּׁבִיעִי וְצוֹם הָעֲשִׂירִי יִהְיֶה לְבֵית יִשְׂרָאֵל לְשָׂשׂוֹן וּלְשִׂמְחָה. צוֹם הָרְבִיעִי זֶה שִׁבְעָה עָשָׂר בַּתַּמּוּז. יוֹם שֶׁנִּשְׁתַּבְּרוּ הַלּוּחוֹת. וּבָטַל הַתָּמִיד. וְהוֹבְקְעָה הָעִיר. וְשָׂרַף אַפּוֹסְטוֹמוֹס אֶת הַתּוֹרָה. וְהֶעֱמִיד צֶלֶם בַּהֵיכָל. צוֹם הַחֲמִישִׁי. זֶה תִשְׁעָה בְאַב. שֶׁבּוֹ חָרַב הַבַּיִת בָּרִאשׁוֹנָה וּבַשְּׁנִיָיה. צוֹם הַשְּׁבִיעִי זֶה שְׁלֹשָׁה בַתִּשְׁרֵי שֶׁנֶּהֱרַג בּוֹ גְּדַלְיָה בֶּן אֲחִיקָם. צוֹם הָעֲשִׂירִי. זֶה עֲשָׂרָה בַטֵּבֵת. יוֹם שֶׁסָּמַךְ מֶלֶךְ בָּבֶל עַל יְרוּשָׁלִַם.

MISHNAH: Five things happened to our forefathers on the Seventeenth of Tammuz and five on the Ninth of Av. On the Seventeenth of Tammuz were the tablets broken, the daily sacrifice ceased, the city was breached, Apostomos burned the Torah, and put up an idol in the Temple. On the Ninth of Av was decided that our forefathers would not enter the Land, the Temple was destroyed the first and second times, Betar was taken, and the city ploughed over. Rebbi Simeon ben Yohai stated: So was my teacher Aqiba explaining. So says the Eternal of Hosts, the fast of the fourth, the fast of the fifth, the fast of the seventh, and the fast of the tenth will be for the House of Israel enjoyment and joy. The fast of the fourth is the Seventeenth of Tammuz, the day when the tablets were broken, the daily sacrifice ceased, the city was breached, Apostomos burned the Torah, and put an idol in the Temple. The fast of the fifth is the Ninth of Av, when the Temple was destroyed the first and the second times. The fast of the seventh is the third of Tishre, when Gedalya ben Aḥiqam was murdered. The fast of the tenth is the Tenth of Tevet, the day when the King of Babylonia closed in on Jerusalem.

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Source 8 · Chazal
Verified

Taanit 26b

תענית כ״ו ב — ד"ה נִשְׁתַּבְּרוּ הַלּוּחוֹת

Taanit 26b:1

The Gemara links the destruction of the Beit HaMikdash and the walls of Jerusalem to the date of the seventeenth of Tammuz, when the tablets were broken. It is one of the key Chazal sources connecting the two events calendrically and thematically.

נִשְׁתַּבְּרוּ הַלּוּחוֹת, וּבָטַל הַתָּמִיד, וְהוּבְקְעָה הָעִיר, וְשָׂרַף אַפּוֹסְטְמוֹס אֶת הַתּוֹרָה, וְהֶעֱמִיד צֶלֶם בַּהֵיכׇל.

the tablets were broken by Moses when he saw that the Jews had made the golden calf; the daily offering was nullified by the Roman authorities and was never sacrificed again; the city walls of Jerusalem were breached; the general Apostemos publicly burned a Torah scroll; and Manasseh placed an idol in the Sanctuary.

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Source 9 · Rishonim
Verified

Rashi on Exodus 32:19

רש"י על שמות ל״ב:י״ט

Rashi on Exodus 32:19

Rashi explains Moshe's breaking of the tablets in response to the calf and draws on Chazal about the meaning of the act. It is a concise peshat-and-drash entry point.

וישלך מידו וגו'. אָמַר: מַה פֶּסַח שֶׁהוּא אֶחָד מִן הַמִּצְווֹת, אָמְרָה תוֹרָה כָּל בֶּן נֵכָר לֹא יֹאכַל בּוֹ (שמות י"ב), הַתּוֹרָה כֻּלָּהּ כָּאן וְכָל יִשְׂרָאֵל מְשֻׁמָּדִים וְאֶתְּנֶנָּה לָהֶם? (שבת פ"ז):

וישלך מידו AND HE CAST [THE TABLETS] OUT OF HIS HAND — He said: “What is the law regarding the Paschal lamb which is only one of the commandments? The Torah states: (Exodus 12:43) “No stranger shall eat thereof”! (cf. Rashi on that verse: a stranger means one who has enstranged himself by his doings from his Father in heaven — an apostate). “But the whole Torah is here (written on the tablets) and all the Israelites are apostates, can I possibly give it (the Torah) to them?!” (Shabbat 87a).

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Source 10 · Rishonim
Verified

Abarbanel on Torah, Exodus.32.15

אברבנאל על תורה, שמות ל״ב:ט״ו

Abarbanel on Torah, Exodus.32.15

The passage explains that Moses descended from the mountain after God's anger ceased, bringing the two Tablets of Testimony in his hands so that Israel would witness their destruction, and describes the miraculous nature of the Tablets—their thinness, the inscription that pierced through from one side to the other, and how they were written by God's hand rather than human effort.

והנה זכר שהיו שני לוחות העדות בידו. להגיד שלא הניח את הלוחות במקום שניתנו לו אבל הביאם בידיו כדי שיראו אותם ישראל וירגישו אבדתם כאשר ישברם לעיניהם ואמר ושני לוחות העדות בידו לא ששתיהם היו ביד אחת.

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Source 11 · Rishonim
Verified

Ramban on Exodus

רמב"ן על שמות ל״ב:י״ח

Ramban on Exodus 32:18

The Ramban discusses why Moshe shattered the tablets and what this revealed about the covenantal rupture caused by the Golden Calf. It is a major Rishon on the theological meaning of the event.

וְהִנֵּה מֹשֶׁה בְּעַנְוְתָנוּתוֹ הַגְּדוֹלָה לֹא הִגִּיד הָעִנְיָן לִיהוֹשֻׁעַ, כִּי לֹא רָצָה לְסַפֵּר בִּגְנוּתָן שֶׁל יִשְׂרָאֵל, אֲבָל אָמַר לוֹ כִּי קוֹל שְׂחוֹק הוּא:

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Source 12 · Acharonim
Verified

Shemot Rabbah 46:1

שמות רבה מ״ו:א׳

Shemot Rabbah 46:1

The Midrash discusses Moshe's descent, the sin of the calf, and the smashing of the tablets, highlighting their spiritual significance and Moshe's role as advocate for Israel.

דָּבָר אַחֵר, שֶׁפָּרְחוּ הַכְּתוּבִים מִן הַלּוּחוֹת, לְכָךְ שִׁבְּרָן, שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר (דברים ט, טז): וָאֵרֶא וְהִנֵּה חֲטָאתֶם לַה' אֱלֹהֵיכֶם, רָאָה משֶׁה שֶׁחָטְאוּ וְשִׁבֵּר אֶת הַלּוּחוֹת. מָשָׁל לְשַׂר שֶׁנָּטַל אִשָּׁה וְכָתַב לָהּ כְּתֻבָּה וּנְתָנָהּ בְּיַד הַשּׁוֹשְׁבִין, לְאַחַר יָמִים יָצָא עָלֶיהָ שֵׁם רַע, מֶה עָשָׂה הַשּׁוֹשְׁבִין קָרַע אֶת הַכְּתֻבָּה, אָמַר מוּטָב שֶׁתְּהֵא נִדּוֹנֵית כִּפְנוּיָה וְלֹא כְּאֵשֶׁת אִישׁ, כָּךְ עָשָׂה משֶׁה, אָמַר אִם אֵין אֲנִי מְשַׁבֵּר אֶת הַלּוּחוֹת אֵין לְיִשְׂרָאֵל עֲמִידָה, שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר (שמות כב, יט):

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Source 13 · Hasidic
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Sefat Emet, Deuteronomy, Eikev 19

שפת אמת, דברים, עקב י״ט

Sefat Emet, Deuteronomy, Eikev 19

A midrash interprets "a time to cast away stones" (from Kohelet) as referring to the breaking of the Luchos, and connects this to the phrase "gather stones together," explaining that after the sin the Luchos were given from below under the heavens in the manner of the cycles that occur under the sun.

ובמדרש בעת ההוא אמר ה"א פסל לך כו' לכל זמן ועת כו' עת להשליך אבנים זה שבירת הלוחות. כנוס אבנים פסל לך ע"ש. והענין הוא כי אחר החטא ניתנו הלוחות מלמטה תחת השמים והוא בדרך הכ"ח עתים שתחת השמש.

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Sefat Emet, Numbers, Balak 24

שפת אמת, במדבר, בלק כ״ד

Sefat Emet, Numbers, Balak 24

On the seventeenth of Tammuz, Moses descended with the first Luchos, and although they broke, the shards remained in the Ark because all gifts given by the Holy One to Israel are eternal; the Arizal teaches that in the future, when Israel rectifies the sin, the seventeenth of Tammuz will become a festival as the first Luchos will shine again.

בי"ז בתמוז ירד מרע"ה עם הלוחות ראשונות והגם שנשברו איתא שברי לוחות מונחין בארון כי כל המתנות שנתן הקב"ה לבנ"י הם לעולם. ואיתא בשם האר"י ז"ל חג לה' מחר כי לעתיד לבוא יהי' י"ז בתמוז חג כשיתקנו בנ"י החטא יאירו הלוחות ראשונות.

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Shem MiShmuel, Ki Tisa 1:4

שם משמואל, כי תשא א׳:ד׳

Shem MiShmuel, Ki Tisa 1:4

So long as the Luchos remained intact, death could not gain dominion over them, therefore the Luchos had to be broken so that matter and form would not remain unified, and then the body would be restored through the earth in which it is buried.

וכל עוד שהיו הלוחות קיימין לא הי' אפשר לשלוט בהם המיתה, ע"כ הצריך לשבר את הלוחות שלא יהי' החומר והצורה אחת, ואז יתתקן הגוף ע"י ארץ שיקבר, והבן:

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