I Bought Her for Fifteen Pieces of Silver and the Sixty Commandments

Rabbi Yonah opened: "And I bought her for myself for fifteen pieces of silver and a homer of barley" (Hosea 3:2). Rabbi Yohanan said: "and I bought her" - I betrothed her. "For fifteen pieces of silver" - that is fifteen. "And a homer of barley" - that is thirty [a homer being thirty se'ah, here counted as fifteen]. "And a lethech of barley" (ibid.) - that is sixty. These are the sixty commandments that Moses wrote for us in the Torah, as Rabbi Yohanan said in the name of Rabbi Shimon ben Yohai: Moses wrote three portions for us in the Torah, and each one of them contains sixty commandments, and these are they: the portion of the Passover offerings, the portion of damages, and the portion of the holy ones. Rabbi Levi in the name of Rabbi Shila of Kefar Tamarta said: seventy each. Rabbi Tanhuma said: they do not disagree. The one who reckoned the Passover portion at seventy included with it the portion of phylacteries. The one who reckoned the portion of damages at seventy included with it the portion of the sabbatical year. The one who reckoned the portion of the holy ones at seventy included with it the portion of the fruit of the fourth year. Another interpretation: "and I bought her for fifteen pieces of silver" (ibid.) - this is the fifteenth of Nisan. When? "In this month," "This month shall be for you the beginning of months" (Exodus 12:2).