Ten Commandments Elliott Friedman argues that the Ten Commandments at Exodus 20:1–17 "does not appear to belong to any of the major sources. It is likely to be an independent document, which was inserted here by the Redactor." In his view, the Covenant Code follows that version of the Ten Commandments in the northern Israel E narrative. In the J narrative in Exodus 34 the editor of the combined story known as the Redactor (or RJE), adds in an explanation that these are a replacement for the earlier tablets which were shattered. "In the combined JE text, it would be awkward to
Ten Commandments is read in "parashat Yitro" around late January–February, and on the festival of Shavuot, and the Deuteronomy version in "parashat Va'etchanan" in August–September. In some traditions, worshipers rise for the reading of the Ten Commandments to highlight their special significance though many rabbis, including Maimonides, have opposed this custom since one may come to think that the Ten Commandments are more important than the rest of the Mitzvot. In printed Chumashim, as well as in those in manuscript form, the Ten Commandments carry two sets of cantillation marks. The "ta'am 'elyon" (upper accentuation), which makes each Commandment into a separate