What does the Bible say regarding the application of God’s commandments in exile without a temple?
Modern Christianity often insists the Torah has been “done away with.” Yet when pressed for Scripture, such claims collapse under the plain reading of the text. The Messiah Himself said plainly:
“Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them. For truly, I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away, not an iota, not a dot, will pass from the Law until all is accomplished. Therefore whoever relaxes one of the least of these commandments and teaches others to do the same will be called least in the kingdom of heaven, but whoever does them and teaches them will be called great in the kingdom of heaven.”
Matthew 5:17–19 (ESV)
Heaven and earth still stand. Therefore, the Torah still stands.
The Apostle Paul, so often misquoted to the contrary, affirmed the same truth:
“So the law is holy, and the commandment is holy and righteous and good.”
Romans 7:12 (ESV)
“Do we then overthrow the law by this faith? By no means! On the contrary, we uphold the law.”
Romans 3:31 (ESV)
The Messiah obeyed it perfectly, taught others to do the same, and warned against relaxing even the least of its commands (Matthew 5:19). The Apostles walked in it, worshiped in the temple, kept the Sabbaths, observed the feasts, and lived blamelessly according to it (Acts 21:24; 24:14).
So if the Torah remains God’s standard, the question becomes: How do we apply it today — in exile, outside the land, without a temple or priesthood?
What Commandments Still Apply — and What Does Not (and Why)
The first truth is simple: God’s law has not changed; our circumstances have.
Every commandment of the Torah expresses God’s own righteousness. Therefore, every believer should seek to apply every commandment in every way that it can be applied unless a prerequisite prevents obedience. The problem is not that the law has passed away; it’s that we live in conditions where some parts cannot yet be performed.
Let’s walk through clear examples Scripture itself gives.
Commands Limited by Identity or Role
- Gender-based commands:
- Some laws are given specifically to men (e.g., circumcision, Genesis 17:10) and some to women (e.g., laws of niddah, Leviticus 15:19–30).
- A man cannot fulfill commands meant for a woman, nor a woman those meant for a man.
- Occupational or positional commands:
- Some commands apply only to kings — “he shall write for himself in a book a copy of this law” (Deuteronomy 17:18).
- If one is not a king, he cannot fulfill that command.
- Homeowner commands:
- The law commands, “When you build a new house, you shall make a parapet for your roof” (Deuteronomy 22:8).
- Those without a house are exempt, not because the law is void, but because the condition is unmet.
Commands Limited by National or Geographical Context
Some commands apply only in the Land of Israel. For example, the land sabbath (Leviticus 25:1–4). Outside the land, these laws cannot be performed in their full agricultural form, they apply specifically to “THE LAND” that God is giving his people.
Commands Limited by Temple or Judicial Authority
The Torah includes commandments that depend on a functioning Temple, Levitical priesthood, and judicial system in the Land of Israel. These include sacrifices, offerings, and certain forms of purification (Leviticus 1–7; Numbers 19). They also include the administration of justice — civil, criminal, and capital — which required elders, judges, and the High Priest to hear and decide cases (Deuteronomy 16:18–20; 17:8–13).
The Torah’s Justice System Was Not Vigilantism
When Scripture speaks of capital punishment, it never authorizes individuals to execute judgment themselves. God’s law required due process and multiple witnesses:
“On the evidence of two witnesses or of three witnesses the one who is to die shall be put to death; a person shall not be put to death on the evidence of one witness.”
Deuteronomy 17:6 (ESV)
After witnesses testified, the matter was to be brought before the elders at the gate, who would weigh the testimony and render judgment (Deuteronomy 21:19; 22:15; Ruth 4:1–2). If the case was too difficult, it would ascend through the appellate system — “from your gates” to the Levitical priests and ultimately to the High Priest and the court at the sanctuary:
“If any case arises… that is too difficult for you, then you shall arise and go up to the place that the LORD your God will choose. And you shall come to the Levitical priests and to the judge who is in office in those days, and you shall consult them, and they shall declare to you the decision.”
Deuteronomy 17:8–9 (ESV)
This was not mob justice. It was a divine judicial order, resembling what we might today call a Supreme Court system. No individual, family, or tribe had the authority to execute punishment on their own initiative. Only the lawful authorities within the covenant nation could pronounce and carry out such judgments, and only after proper legal proceedings.
Why Those Commands Cannot Be Applied Today
In the days of Yeshua, Israel was under Roman occupation and had lost the authority to enforce capital sentences:
“Pilate said to them, ‘Take him yourselves and judge him by your own law.’ The Jews said to him, ‘It is not lawful for us to put anyone to death.’”
John 18:31 (ESV)
Rome ruled the land, and Roman law was supreme. For Israel to execute a criminal under Torah law would have been an act of rebellion against the occupying government. Yet Paul reminds us:
“Let every person be subject to the governing authorities. For there is no authority except from God, and those that exist have been instituted by God.”
Romans 13:1 (ESV)
The same holds true today. We live in gentile nations, under gentile courts that do not acknowledge the Torah’s authority or its definition of sin and justice. There are no elders at the gates, no Levitical judges, and no High Priest to hear a case or render a lawful verdict.
Therefore, even if one witnesses a biblical capital crime — such as murder (Exodus 21:12), adultery (Leviticus 20:10), or homosexual acts (Leviticus 20:13) — there is no righteous mechanism through which to prosecute or punish that crime according to Torah standards. We have no Sanhedrin, no priestly tribunal, no God-ordained court to which to bring the offender.
If a man today were to take judgment into his own hands, he would not be keeping Torah — he would be violating it. The Torah forbids murder, and to kill without lawful trial and witness procedure is murder, not justice.
The Principle for Exile
Thus, the commandments of justice and punishment are not abolished or suspended, but we cannot apply them until the conditions necessary for their lawful execution are restored. Just as sacrifices cannot be offered without a temple, righteous judgment cannot be rendered without righteous authority.
Until the Kingdom is restored under the Messiah — when the Torah will once again go forth from Zion and the nations will be judged in righteousness (Isaiah 2:3–4; Micah 4:2) — we must live peaceably under the governments in which we dwell, obeying the laws of the land so long as they do not compel us to sin, and upholding the moral standards of Torah in our homes, communities, and assemblies.
In short:
- The Torah’s judicial system required a divinely ordained court structure.
- That structure no longer exists.
- Therefore, those commands cannot presently be performed.
- But they remain holy, awaiting the day when Messiah restores justice to the earth.
“He will not grow faint or be discouraged till he has established justice in the earth; and the coastlands wait for his law.”
Isaiah 42:4 (ESV)
God’s Law is True, Holy, Just and Good.
All laws are holy, just, and good, and lawful, but not all laws apply to all people in every circumstance
Just as in modern America, not every law applies to every citizen. If you have no income, you owe no income tax; if you own no property, you pay no property tax; and if you don’t drive, you’re not subject to traffic laws on the interstate. Although the United States has well over 300,000 laws on the books, the average person will only encounter a few thousand that actually apply to daily life. The Torah operates in much the same way. Out of approximately 613 commandments, only about 370 are generally relevant to the average individual. Compared to the vast and complex legal system we live under today, the Torah is remarkably concise and accessible—a simple, unified code of life rather than an overwhelming web of regulations. It requires a very low level of intelligence and login to apply the law to any given situation, which is why ignorance of the law is no excuse when you are standing before the judge. As a citizen of America you have a duty and a responsibility to learn and obey the law, and so to as a citizen of the Kingdom the same applies.
Daniel: The Pattern of Obedience in Exile
When the First Temple was destroyed (586 BC) and Judah carried off to Babylon, the faithful remnant faced the same question we do today: How do we walk in obedience when the conditions for obedience no longer exist?
Daniel gives us the pattern.
He obeyed everything he could
Daniel refused to defile himself with unclean food:
“But Daniel resolved that he would not defile himself with the king’s food, or with the wine that he drank.”
Daniel 1:8 (ESV)
He couldn’t bring offerings to the temple, it was gone, but he could eat clean and keep himself undefiled.
He honored what he could not perform
When he could no longer offer the morning and evening sacrifices, he still prayed three times a day at those same hours:
“He got down on his knees three times a day and prayed and gave thanks before his God.”
Daniel 6:10 (ESV)
Jewish tradition and the timing of the temple service confirm these were the hours of sacrifice (morning and evening, Exodus 29:39). Daniel didn’t discard the Torah; he adapted his obedience according to the conditions, maintaining faithfulness until restoration came.
The Law Endures, Even When Circumstances Change
History proves this pattern.
When the temple was rebuilt under Darius, sacrifices resumed (Ezra 6:16–18).
When Antiochus defiled the altar, sacrifices ceased (1 Maccabees 1:45–50).
When Judas Maccabeus reclaimed and rededicated the temple, sacrifices resumed (1 Maccabees 4:52–59).
And when the Romans destroyed the Second Temple in 70 CE, sacrifices again ceased — not abolished, but suspended until the conditions return.
The prophets foretell that they will return:
“Then I will accept you as a pleasing aroma when I bring you out from the peoples and gather you out of the countries where you have been scattered.”
Ezekiel 20:41 (ESV)
“And every survivor of the nations… shall go up year after year to worship the King, the LORD of hosts, and to keep the Feast of Booths.”
Zechariah 14:16 (ESV)
These future prophecies show that temple worship and the appointed feasts will once again be central to God’s kingdom. The law remains waiting for the conditions of its full restoration.
The Sabbath and Dietary Laws: Eternal Patterns
These two commandments are most often dismissed today, yet both predate Sinai and extend beyond it.
The Sabbath
The Sabbath was established in creation:
“So God blessed the seventh day and made it holy, because on it God rested from all his work.”
Genesis 2:3 (ESV)
It was reaffirmed before Sinai (Exodus 16:23–30), enshrined in the Ten Commandments (Exodus 20:8–11), and promised to Gentiles who join themselves to the LORD:
“Blessed is the man… who keeps the Sabbath, not profaning it.”
Isaiah 56:2–6 (ESV)
It will be kept in the Messianic Kingdom:
“From new moon to new moon, and from Sabbath to Sabbath, all flesh shall come to worship before me, declares the LORD.”
Isaiah 66:23 (ESV)
The Sabbath is not bound to geography, temple, or priesthood. It is a temple in time — available wherever a week exists. Therefore, it applies universally, even in exile.
The Dietary Laws
Clean and unclean distinctions existed before Sinai:
“Take with you seven pairs of all clean animals… and a pair of the animals that are not clean.”
Genesis 7:2 (ESV)
The dietary commandments were given to Israel for holiness:
“For I am the LORD your God. Consecrate yourselves therefore, and be holy, for I am holy.”
Leviticus 11:44 (ESV)
— Leviticus 11:44 (ESV)
Daniel refused unclean food in exile (Daniel 1:8). Peter, long after Yeshua’s resurrection, still said, “I have never eaten anything that is common or unclean” (Acts 10:14). And in the age to come, Isaiah warns judgment against those eating what is abominable (Isaiah 66:17).
So, can we obey this command today? Yes. If both clean and unclean foods are available, we have all that is necessary to choose obedience.
Summary: Obedience in Every Possible Way
The Torah is not a list of arbitrary rules; it is a revelation of God’s own character.
It is holy, just, and good because He is holy, just, and good. His righteousness does not change — therefore, neither does His standard.
We are commanded:
“You shall be holy, for I the LORD your God am holy.”
Leviticus 19:2 (ESV)
If we can obey a commandment, we should.
If a prerequisite prevents obedience, we honor the commandment by remembering it, longing for its restoration, and applying its principles wherever possible.
The Torah is not “done away with.” It remains the covenant standard for those who love God and desire to walk as Messiah walked.
“Whoever says he abides in him ought to walk in the same way in which he walked.”
1 John 2:6 (ESV)
He walked in perfect Torah obedience — not as a Jew under bondage, but as a Son delighting in His Father’s instruction.
Let us do the same. Let us reject the lawlessness of modern religion and apply God’s Word to our lives in every way we can, waiting for the day when every condition for obedience will be restored.
“For the LORD gives wisdom; from his mouth come knowledge and understanding.”
Proverbs 2:6 (ESV)
