1. The Sinai Covenant was made with an entire nation
God revealed Himself publicly to millions (Exod 19–20)
Voices, fire, smoke, shofar — not private visions
No later covenant matches this level of verification
Karaite principle:
Truth established publicly > claims based on a few witnesses
2. The Sinai Covenant is explicitly eternal
“A statute forever throughout your generations” (Exod 31:16)
“Not with our fathers only, but with us, all who are alive today” (Deut 5:3)
There is no verse in Tanakh saying it will expire, be replaced, or suspended.
3. Torah explicitly forbids alteration
“You shall not add to it or take from it” (Deut 4:2; 13:1)
Any “new covenant” that changes commandments self-disqualifies
From a Karaite view, this alone ends the discussion.
4. God does not contradict Himself
God calls the Torah:
Perfect (Ps 19:7)
Truth (Ps 119:142)
Eternal (Ps 119:160)
Claiming it was later “fulfilled and set aside” implies divine error, which Tanakh theology rejects outright.
5. Sinai defines sin, righteousness, and justice
Sin = breaking Torah
Repentance = returning to Torah
Atonement = repentance + obedience + God’s mercy
The NT redefines these categories — which, from a Karaite view, is theological replacement, not fulfillment.
6. No mediator replaces direct covenantal access
Sinai: God speaks directly to Israel
NT: access filtered through a single person
Tanakh consistently teaches:
“The word is very near you… in your mouth and heart” (Deut 30:14)
No incarnate intermediary is required or permitted.
7. The Sinai Covenant preserves divine unity
Absolute monotheism: God is one, indivisible (Deut 6:4)
No internal persons, no incarnation, no divine sonship
Any theology introducing complexity into God’s being violates Sinai’s first principle.
8. The covenant is lived, not believed
Torah emphasizes action, not mental assent
Obedience proves loyalty
Faith without law is meaningless in Tanakh
The NT’s emphasis on belief over observance is, from a Karaite view, a downgrade — not progress.
9. The Sinai Covenant aligns with observable reality
Blessings and curses are tangible (Deut 28)
National restoration is visible
Redemption happens in history, not metaphysics
A covenant whose promises cannot be verified in the world fails Tanakh standards.
10. God swears He will never abandon Israel or Torah
“I will not reject them… nor break My covenant” (Lev 26:44)
“As long as the sun and moon endure” (Jer 31:35–36)
Any claim that God replaced Israel’s covenant contradicts God’s own oath.
Karaite Bottom Line
From a Karaite perspective:
The Sinai Covenant is public
Eternal
Unchangeable
Law-based
Nation-centered
Strictly monotheistic
Confirmed by history
Never revoked
Never superseded
Never redefined
A later message that contradicts Sinai is, by definition, false —
even if it comes with signs, wonders, or sincerity (Deut 13).
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