IN A NUTSHELL
In the previous parasha, Hashem gave the children of Israel the Torah at Mount Sinai. This included the Ten Commandments. In this parasha we read more about the details of many of the laws and mitzvot.
This parasha mainly focuses on the laws of how the Israelites should live after they enter the land of Israel and create a society there. These kind of mitzvot are called civil laws. Here are some examples of the kind of mitzvot we learn in Mishpatim: we have laws about slaves and when they must be freed; laws about what happens if someone damages your property or hurts you; laws of social responsibility, justice, and compassion – how we must treat each other every day; and also some laws about Shabbat and the festivals.
At the end of the parasha, the covenant of the Torah (which is like a contract between God and the Jewish people) is “signed” in a symbolic ceremony with sacrifices. The people agree to their part of the covenant with the words, “We will do and we will hear.” Moshe then climbs to the top of Mount Sinai, to sit with God for forty days and forty nights.
QUESTION TO PONDER
What is the difference between “We will do” and “We will hear”? Why did the people need to make both these promises?