In Matthew 22:36 an expert in the Mosaic law asks Jesus, “Teacher, which is the great commandment in the Law?” And Jesus replies “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind. This is the great and foremost commandment. The second is like it, you shall love your neighbor as yourself. On these two commandments depend the whole Law and the Prophets.”

“The Law and the Prophets” was a euphemism the Jews used for what Christians call the Old Testament. The Law was the first five books (the “Pentateuch”), and the prophets were Joshua through 2 Kings except for Ruth, and Isaiah through Malachi except Lamentations and Daniel. The third division of the Old Testament is called “the Writings” which is Ruth, and 1 Chronicles through Song of Solomon plus Lamentations and Daniel.

The first letter of each of the three words for Law, Prophets, and Writings (Torah, Nevi’im, and Ketuvim) are used (TNK) to form the word “Tanakh” which is the Hebrew word for what we would call “The Old Testament.”

The entire Old Testament can be summed up in the ten commandments, and the ten can be summed up in two commandments: Love God (commandments 1-4), and Love your neighbor (commandments 5-10). That is what Jesus meant.

So in essence, a Mosaic legal scholar asked Jesus, “What’s the greatest commandment,” and Jesus’ answer was, “Yes.”