Deuteronomy 17:11 "You shall not deviate from the sentence which they shall tell you"

When Moshe received the Torah from HaShem, he wrote down the written law. These are the five "Chumashim," also called the Five Books of Moses.

HaShem taught him many explanations, definitions and detailed laws which help us understand the Torah.

For a long time, most of the detailed laws were studied orally and passed down from generation to generation, teacher to student. Even small children were so well learned and versed in Torah law that they knew these explanations by heart!

However, when the Jewish nation went into exile, we suffered many hardships that made it very difficult for people to devote most of their day to Torah study. Often, ruling nations forbade the study of Torah altogether!

It was then that the great Rabbis and Sages decided to write down the oral law so that it would not be forgotten.

The Rabbis were given authority by the written Torah to write and explain these detailed laws.

They based everything on what they learned from their teachers and their teacher's teachers - all the way back to Moshe who learned it from HaShem!

The Sages proved that every question that arises in any situation can be answered according to Torah law.

Because of this devotion to Torah, today, thousands of years later in a modern world with advanced technology, Torah law still applies to the very last detail!

The Torah gave Halachically trained Rabbis the authority to guide us in understanding and practicing Torah law.

We are commanded to listen to them and follow their instructions.

This Negative Mitzvah cautions us not to disobey their teachings.