565. "You shall not murder. You shall not commit adultery. You shall not steal" (Shemot 20:13-15). UNDER the word "shall not (Heb. lo)" in all three commandments, there is a tonal pause, for in the absence of this interruptive mark, harmony would be unattainable in the world. It would be forbidden to kill even one who transgresses the law. However, the presence of the pause TEACHES that in specific instances, killing may be prohibited or permitted.
566. "You shall not commit adultery:" in the absence of this tonal pause, it would be prohibited to engage in the commandments of procreation or to enjoy marital intercourse. The inclusion of the trope INDICTATES the possibility of prohibition or permission. "You shall not steal:" in the absence of the interruptive mark, it would be forbidden to deceive one's Torah teacher or a Torah scholar in order to gaze upon him. Furthermore, it would be prohibited for a judge to trick a swindling claimant or two disputants in order to clarify the truth. However, once again the punctuation INDICTATES that it is permitted or prohibited.
567. "You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor" (Shemot 20:13). Here there is no tonal pause, indicating that this is always forbidden. The Holy One, blessed be He, has placed supernal mysteries in all the words of Torah and instructed mankind how to strive towards perfection through it, as it is written, "I am Hashem your Elohim who teaches you for your profit, who leads you by the way that you should go" (Yeshayah 48:17).
568. Also in the commandment: "You shall not covet" (Ibid. 17), the tonal pause is absent. If you say that even desiring Torah is forbidden, due to the absence of the punctuation, come and behold, the previous prohibitions were stated in a general manner. However, specific details were stated in regards to this prohibition, as it is written, "Your neighbor's house, his field, or his manservant..." (Devarim 5:18). The prohibition extends ONLY towards material possessions, thus excluding the Torah, which is forever desirable. It is delight and eternal life in this world and the World to Come.
569. The Ten Utterances of the Torah contain the essence of all celestial and terrestrial commandments, the essence of the ten sayings of Creation. They were engraved on tablets of stone and all the hidden things in them were seen by everybody's eyes, so as to conceive and behold the secret of the 613 commandments of the Torah. Everything was revealed to their eyes, through understanding, to the attentive hearts of all of Yisrael. Everything shone before their eyes.
570. At that hour, all the mysteries of the Torah were revealed. No mystery of heaven and earth was held back from them, for they saw the splendor of the glory of their Master; that which has never occurred since the creation of the world, the revelation of the glory of the Holy One, blessed be He, upon Mount Sinai.
571. You might say that we learned that upon the crossing of the Red Sea, even a maid-servant saw more than the prophet Ezekiel - THAT IT RESEMBLED the day when Yisrael stood upon Mount Sinai. This is not so. For on this day all the dross was removed from them, and their bodies became as lucent as the angels above when they are clothed in radiant garments for the accomplishments of their Master's mission.
572. They penetrated fire without fear wearing those radiant garments, as we have read concerning the angel who appeared to Manoach, who entered a flame and ascended to heaven, as it is written, "The angel of Hashem ascended in the flame of the altar" (Shoftim 13:20). When all the impurity was removed from Yisrael, their bodies became lucent, without any impurity whatsoever, and the souls within the bodies were as bright as the splendor of the sky, ready to receive light.
573. Such was the state of Yisrael when they beheld the glory of their Master. It was not thus at the Red Sea, when the filth had not yet been removed from them. There, at Mount Sinai, when impurity was removed from their bodies, even the embryos in their mother's wombs could observe their Master's glory, and everyone received according to his worth.
574. On that day the Holy One, blessed be He, rejoiced more than on any previous day since He had created the world, for the world had no proper existence before Yisrael received the Torah, as it is written, "If my Covenant be not day and night, it is as if I had not made the ordinances of heaven and earth" (Yirmeyah 33:25).