The Torah in Genesis 1 is telling us something radical. The reality to which Torah is a guide is moral and ethical. The question Genesis seeks to answer is not "How did the universe come into being?" but "How then shall we live?" This is the Torah's most significant paradigm shift.… For the first time, religion was ethicised. Why was Abraham ordered to sacrifice his son? Was Jacob right in stealing the blessings? Why were we commanded to destroy Amalek? What was Moses' sin in hitting the rock? And how did the Ten Commandments change the Jewish people, and humankind, for good? Essays on Ethics is the second companion volume to Rabbi Jonathan Sacks's celebrated series Covenant & Conversation. Believing the Hebrew Bible to be the ultimate blueprint for Western morality, Rabbi Sacks embarks upon an ethical exploration of the weekly Torah portion, uncovering its message of truth and justice, dignity and compassion, forgiveness and love. In this wonderful volume of essays drawing ethical lessons from each weekly portion of the Hebrew Bible, Rabbi Sacks speaks in a strong, principled, and eloquent voice. His insights will enrich the reader's understanding of the Torah and guide the daily efforts each of us makes to choose good over evil.