the Law or the Prophets

Matthew 5:17 "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." (NASB)

What does "the Law or the Prophets" refer to? The Hebrew word for the Old Testament is the Tanakh which is divided into 3 parts:

(1) T: the Law (Torah - Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Number, Deuteronomy)

(2) N: the Prophets (Nevi'im - any books related to the prophets, e.g. I & II Samuel, Isaiah, Ezekiel, Jeremiah)

(3) K: the Writings (Ketuvim - books related to history, wisdom & poetry, e.g. Psalms, Proverbs, Job, Ruth Esther)

So when Jesus refers to the Law or the Prophets, He was referring to the Scriptures that were in existence at the time of and before His birth. It could easily be written: "I did not come to abolish the Tanakh" or "I did not come to abolish the Hebrew Scriptures."

And whenever "the Law" is mentioned (and notice that it's mentioned many times throughout the Bible), it can rightly be concluded that "the Law" could more accurately be written "Torah."

Shanah Tovah!