Exodus 20
1 And God spake all these words, saying,
2 I am the Lord thy God, which have brought thee out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage.
2 I am the Lord thy God, which have brought thee out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage.
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Exodus 20:3-5:
3 Thou shalt have no other gods before me. 4 Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image, or any likeness of any thing that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth. 5 Thou shalt not bow down thyself to them, nor serve them: for I the Lord thy God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation of them that hate me; |
Idolatry is banned by the first commandment, whereas the second commandment prohibits worship of such images. Man can only approach God on God’s terms and there can be no mediation between God and man except that which is ordered by God. As RJ Rushdoony wrote, The purpose of idols is to convey abstract concepts to simple minds. Whenever man begins to establish his own approach to God, he ends up establishing his own will, his own lusts, and finally himself as God. If man’s terms to approach God are defined by man, then the terms of man’s life and direction are dictated also by man. The only way to approach God is by His terms.
The Hebrew word for "graven image" is pecel, from the root pacal, which means "to cut" or to "shape by one's hands." The term likeness is from the Hebrew term tahmuwnah, which means a "resemblance to something recognized." Thus the argument would continue, the idolaters were guilty of making, by their own hands, representations of items they recognized in order to worship them. In the absence of authentic worship, the idolaters would worship the visceral and the visual forms found in nature. This is also referred to as "animism." ”Seeing that this brutish stupidity has overspread the globe, men longing after visible forms of God, and so forming deities of wood and stone, silver and gold, or of any other dead and corruptible matter, we must hold it as a first principle, that as often as any form is assigned to God, his glory is corrupted by an impious lie. In the Law, accordingly, after God had claimed the glory of divinity for himself alone, when he comes to show what kind of worship he approves and rejects, he immediately adds, “Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image, or anylikeness of any thing that is in heaven above, or in the earth beneath, or in the water under the earth,” (Exod. 20:4). By these words he curbs any licentious attempt we might make to represent him by a visible shape, and briefly enumerates all the forms by which superstition had begun, even long before, to turn his truth into a lie.” – John Calvin, Institutes Book 1, Ch. 11, Sect. 1 |
Charles L Allen
"Jealousy is not bad. In fact, it is normal and right. The Bible tells us that God is jealous (Ex 20:5). Jealousy comes from love and when love is cheated, it has a right to be jealous. Any person is jealous for that which it loves, and if one has the right to love, he or she also has the right to be jealous. But envy is a result of selfishness. St Paul tells us, "Love envies not" (I Cor 13:4). The envious person is always unhappy over the good fortune of another. It was envy that caused the first murder on earth. It was envy which nailed our Christ to the cross. "For he knew that for envy they had delivered him" (Matt 27:18)."
--Charles L Allen; When The Heart is Angry; 1955
--Charles L Allen; When The Heart is Angry; 1955
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The fear of man is not simply the fear of the harm that men may do to us. Surely the fear of harm partly drives our desire to be approved by men. However, most properly, the fear of man is, as Bunyan put it, “the fear of losing man’s favor, love, goodwill, help, and friendship.” Simply put, it is “an idol of approval.” We seek to avoid persecution because of “idols of approval,” “comfort,” or “pleasure.” These idols lead us to compromise in order to gain approval—to give in to wickedness in order to gain acceptance and peace. It puts us in a vicious cycle of idolatry. Miserable though it is, the fear of man is the soul’s default setting. --Nicholas Batzig
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The four themes of Genesis 1 are in marked contrast to these pagan beliefs. Whereas Genesis 1 teaches that there is one God who is creator of all, the pagan cultures worshiped multiple gods that mostly represented the forces and elements of nature. In the pagan creation stories the earth and man were created out of the chaos of war between the gods. This is in contrast to the Genesis 1 theme of God creating with wisdom and order. Genesis 1 teaches that creation occurred at God’s command whereas in the pagan creation stories creation resulted from a power struggle among the gods. Finally Genesis 1 teaches that man is the pinnacle of creation, created in God’s image to serve as God’s regents on earth. By contrast in the pagan creation stories had a low view of man. Mankind was created as an afterthought to do the menial work that gods did not want to do. -Emerging Scholars
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Exodus 20:6:
5 Thou shalt not bow down thyself to them, nor serve them: for I the Lord thy God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation of them that hate me;6 And shewing mercy unto thousands of them that love me, and keep my commandments. |
In Exodus 20:5-6, God warns the children of Israel not to follow false gods, saying, “You shall not bow down to them nor serve them. For I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children to the third and fourth generations of those who hate Me, but showing mercy to thousands, to those who love Me and keep My commandments.”
The word “iniquity” means to be bent toward a certain sin, and we see that the iniquity of the parents is carried on to the children to the third and fourth generations. So, a child will be bent like his or her parents, grandparents and great grandparents. They will all have an inner inclination toward the same certain sinful habits. Lamentations 5:7 says, “Our fathers sinned and are no more, but we bear their iniquities.” In other words, even though they may be dead and in the grave, their iniquity is sticking with you. --Walking By Faith |
Bad habits, bad relationships, the fruit of sin, etc, are generally passed to the next generation.
Why is God a jealous God? It is important to understand how the word "jealous" is used. Its use in Exodus 20:5 to describe God is different from how it is used to describe the sin of jealousy (Galatians 5:20). When we use the word "jealous," we use it in the sense of being envious of someone who has something we do not have. A person might be jealous or envious of another person because he or she has a nice car or home (possessions). Or a person might be jealous or envious of another person because of some ability or skill that other person has (such as athletic ability). Another example would be that one person might be jealous or envious of another because of his or her beauty.
In Exodus 20:5, it is not that God is jealous or envious because someone has something He wants or needs. Exodus 20:4-5 says, "You shall not make for yourself an idol in the form of anything in heaven above or on the earth beneath or in the waters below. You shall not bow down to them or worship them; for I, the LORD your God, am a jealous God..." Notice that God is jealous when someone gives to another something that rightly belongs to Him.
In these verses, God is speaking of people making idols and bowing down and worshiping those idols instead of giving God the worship that belongs to Him alone. God is possessive of the worship and service that belong to Him. It is a sin (as God points out in this commandment) to worship or serve anything other than God. It is a sin when we desire, or we are envious, or we are jealous of someone because he has something that we do not have. It is a different use of the word "jealous" when God says He is jealous. What He is jealous of belongs to Him; worship and service belong to Him alone, and are to be given to Him alone.
Perhaps a practical example will help us understand the difference. If a husband sees another man flirting with his wife, he is right to be jealous, for only he has the right to flirt with his wife. This type of jealousy is not sinful. Rather, it is entirely appropriate. Being jealous for something that God declares to belong to you is good and appropriate. Jealousy is a sin when it is a desire for something that does not belong to you. Worship, praise, honor, and adoration belong to God alone, for only He is truly worthy of it. Therefore, God is rightly jealous when worship, praise, honor, or adoration is given to idols. This is precisely the jealousy the apostle Paul described in 2 Corinthians 11:2, "I am jealous for you with a godly jealousy..."
Why is God a jealous God? It is important to understand how the word "jealous" is used. Its use in Exodus 20:5 to describe God is different from how it is used to describe the sin of jealousy (Galatians 5:20). When we use the word "jealous," we use it in the sense of being envious of someone who has something we do not have. A person might be jealous or envious of another person because he or she has a nice car or home (possessions). Or a person might be jealous or envious of another person because of some ability or skill that other person has (such as athletic ability). Another example would be that one person might be jealous or envious of another because of his or her beauty.
In Exodus 20:5, it is not that God is jealous or envious because someone has something He wants or needs. Exodus 20:4-5 says, "You shall not make for yourself an idol in the form of anything in heaven above or on the earth beneath or in the waters below. You shall not bow down to them or worship them; for I, the LORD your God, am a jealous God..." Notice that God is jealous when someone gives to another something that rightly belongs to Him.
In these verses, God is speaking of people making idols and bowing down and worshiping those idols instead of giving God the worship that belongs to Him alone. God is possessive of the worship and service that belong to Him. It is a sin (as God points out in this commandment) to worship or serve anything other than God. It is a sin when we desire, or we are envious, or we are jealous of someone because he has something that we do not have. It is a different use of the word "jealous" when God says He is jealous. What He is jealous of belongs to Him; worship and service belong to Him alone, and are to be given to Him alone.
Perhaps a practical example will help us understand the difference. If a husband sees another man flirting with his wife, he is right to be jealous, for only he has the right to flirt with his wife. This type of jealousy is not sinful. Rather, it is entirely appropriate. Being jealous for something that God declares to belong to you is good and appropriate. Jealousy is a sin when it is a desire for something that does not belong to you. Worship, praise, honor, and adoration belong to God alone, for only He is truly worthy of it. Therefore, God is rightly jealous when worship, praise, honor, or adoration is given to idols. This is precisely the jealousy the apostle Paul described in 2 Corinthians 11:2, "I am jealous for you with a godly jealousy..."
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Exodus 20:7:
"Thou shalt not take the name of the Lord thy God in vain; for the Lord will not hold him guiltless that taketh his name in vain." |
Many have reduced the meaning of this verse to mean a simple swear word. It means much much more than that. How many preachers preach of a God they do not really believe in and, hence, use His name vainly? How may of us cry out to God in anguish or frustration but really do not mean it? The world’s sin is unbelief…and churches are full of unbelievers. Lets not be counted among them.
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Ex 20:8-11:
“Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy. Six days shalt thou labor, and do all thy work…………..the Lord blessed the sabbath day, and hallowed it.” |
God declared the word, “Let there be…” and all things were created. God’s rest is grounded in the perfection of His work, redemption, and re-creation. God’s rest is thus an expression of His sovereignty and of the absoluteness of His government. Man cannot govern absolutely any aspect of his life or world, but he can rest in the fact that his God and Savior does govern absolutely and we can in His government. Only with such a faith and with such a God can man rest. Man, by himself, may worship and go through the religious motions without such a faith, but he cannot rest.
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The fourth commandment is not only the longest of the Ten Commandments, but it also begins differently from the other nine. The other nine start with "You shall" or "You shall not." (The first commandment may be an exception, but many consider its opening sentence—Exodus 20:2—to be a preamble to the whole Decalogue. Thus, the first would also begin with "You shall.") The fourth commandment, though, stands out by beginning, "Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy" (Exodus 20:8).
God could have made it conform to all the others, but He did not, making His departure from the norm significant. He could have said, "You shall keep the Sabbath day holy" or "You shall not work on My Sabbath day." But, no, He charges His people to remember the Sabbath day. Something about remembering is vital to understand what the Sabbath day is all about.
The Hebrew word in question is zākar (Strong's #2142), a primitive root that means "to remember, think of, mention." It can also carry the sense of "meditate upon," "pay attention to," "proclaim," and "commemorate," among others. Like other Hebrew terms (for instance, šāmaʿ, "to hear," which implies "to obey"), it blends a mental activity (remembering, thinking about) with an external one (in this case, observing the Sabbath). It is not enough to remember; remembrance must flow into observing the day as holy. English verbs, including "remember," sometimes possess this internal/external property too. The intent behind the battle cry, "Remember the Alamo!" was not just to reminisce over the heroism of the Texans who defended it but to encourage bravery and martial spirit to avenge those who had died there. --Remember the Sabbath Day
God could have made it conform to all the others, but He did not, making His departure from the norm significant. He could have said, "You shall keep the Sabbath day holy" or "You shall not work on My Sabbath day." But, no, He charges His people to remember the Sabbath day. Something about remembering is vital to understand what the Sabbath day is all about.
The Hebrew word in question is zākar (Strong's #2142), a primitive root that means "to remember, think of, mention." It can also carry the sense of "meditate upon," "pay attention to," "proclaim," and "commemorate," among others. Like other Hebrew terms (for instance, šāmaʿ, "to hear," which implies "to obey"), it blends a mental activity (remembering, thinking about) with an external one (in this case, observing the Sabbath). It is not enough to remember; remembrance must flow into observing the day as holy. English verbs, including "remember," sometimes possess this internal/external property too. The intent behind the battle cry, "Remember the Alamo!" was not just to reminisce over the heroism of the Texans who defended it but to encourage bravery and martial spirit to avenge those who had died there. --Remember the Sabbath Day
| The New Testament does not nullify our need to obey the moral precepts found in the Law of Moses. There are many reasons why Israel was commanded to be obedient to the Law of Moses. Grace multiplies the reasons why we should be obedient to these moral precepts. Jesus Christ did not come to destroy the law but to fulfill it (Matthew 5:17). He actually came to show us how to live by the law's moral precepts. He came to justify us through his sacrifice, which satisfied the laws demand for justice. It is the very nature of God that sets the law's bounds. God's law is not arbitrary, but it defines the essence of his nature. God must be true to the law, or else he denies his very nature. Although the law was an expression of his nature, it was necessary for him to meet the just demands of the law through the giving of his own Son. His nature demanded justice for sin, but his nature also required that he meet the just demands of the law through the sacrifice of his Son. It was the law that demanded a sacrifice for our freedom; it was God who provided the sacrifice. It was in Christ that justice and mercy met at the cross providing the means of God's grace for each of us. Today it is grace that motivates us to keep the law, while we rely upon Christ's sacrifice to save us from the condemnation of the law when we fail. Law needs love and grace as its driving force and it requires the sacrifice of Christ for our sins as we fail to live up to the perfect standard of the law. The first commandment requires that God have first place or no place. The ancient world worshipped a multiplicity of Gods but none of those religions required that their gods have first place. The Law of Moses was unique in that it required Israel to have only on God. Moses informs Israel why she must worship God. |
There are six important features of this passage which I wish to point out here:
(1) This commandment looks back for its basis. The first word of this commandment is “remember.”“Remember” points back, first to the rest of our Lord on the seventh day, the day which He sanctified and blessed in Genesis chapter 2. Second, we are reminded of the “Sabbath commandment” given Israel in Exodus chapter 16, which forbade the gathering of manna on the Sabbath. The two previous texts are thus viewed as foundational for the Fourth Commandment, as specified in Exodus 20.
(2) The Fourth Commandment is not just a requirement to “keep the Sabbath,” but more than this is the instruction to “keep the Sabbath holy” (cf. Exodus 16:23; 20:8). The Sabbath day is commemorated as a holy day, one designated such by the Lord (Genesis 2:1-3) and declared to be such in Exodus 16:23. Keeping the Sabbath involves much more than abstinence from labor, it requires the acknowledgment of the sacredness, the sanctity, of this day because of God’s deeds and declaration.
(3) The Fourth Commandment instructs each Israelite to plan and to finish his week’s work by the Sabbath. The reason why men do not wish to stop what they are doing is most often that they have not finished. The Fourth Commandment deals with this problem by instructing the Israelites to plan to be finished by the end of the sixth day, and to see to it that they do finish.
(4) The commandment here is broadened from the command given in Exodus chapter 16. In that passage, God specifically prohibited the Israelites from gathering manna on the seventh day of the week. Now, all labor is prohibited. This command is now so general it will require further clarification. We are thus prepared for the next revelation God will give the Israelites. Also, the number of those prohibited to work is significantly increased to include the Israelites’ servants and their beasts. Not only was rest guaranteed for all, but this would constitute a nation-wide shut down, which would make it more difficult for any who might be tempted to overlook this commandment.
(5) This commandment is not given in isolation, but it is given in relationship, in concert with the other nine. We cannot understand this command in isolation, apart from its relationship to the other commandments. We shall wait until our next passage to consider the relationship of the Fourth Commandment to the commandments as a whole. Here, I wish to point out the relationship of the Fourth Commandment to the preceding three, those which bear upon Israel’s relationship to her God. I believe that the Fourth Commandment makes a significant contribution to the Israel’s (true) worship of God.
(6) This commandment in verse 11 we are reminded that the Lord “made the heavens and the earth, the sea and all that is in them.” Previously in the Commandments, God had forbidden the worship of other gods and the use of idols and images. Specifically, God said, “You shall not make for yourself an idol, or any likeness of what is in heaven above or on the earth beneath or in the water under the earth” (Exodus 20:4). We find that the Israelites would be tempted to make images of those things which God created, either in the heavens above, on the earth, or in the sea. After they were forbidden to fashion any images in the form of any creatures in these three spheres, God then refers to the fact that He rested after having finished creating everything in the heavens above, on the earth, and in the sea (Exodus 20:11). Is there any significance to the repetition of these three spheres? I believe so. I believe that God is teaching a very important lesson about worship: ISRAEL WOULD BE WRONG TO TRY TO WORSHIP GOD BY IMITATING HIS CREATURES (MAKING IDOLS), BUT THEY WERE TO WORSHIP GOD BY IMITATING HIS ACTIONS AFTER CREATION—BY RESTING AS HE DID.
To summarize this matter concisely we might say that Israel could not worship with idols, but was to worship by being idle. Here is a crucial difference between false worship and the true. We are wrong to worship God by making imitation gods; we are right in imitating God in His response to having finished His creation. God is worshipped as we imitate His actions and character, not as we serve the things He created. {SOURCE: Robert L. (Bob)Deffinbaugh: Bible.org: The Meaning of the Sabbath (Exodus 20:8-11)]
(1) This commandment looks back for its basis. The first word of this commandment is “remember.”“Remember” points back, first to the rest of our Lord on the seventh day, the day which He sanctified and blessed in Genesis chapter 2. Second, we are reminded of the “Sabbath commandment” given Israel in Exodus chapter 16, which forbade the gathering of manna on the Sabbath. The two previous texts are thus viewed as foundational for the Fourth Commandment, as specified in Exodus 20.
(2) The Fourth Commandment is not just a requirement to “keep the Sabbath,” but more than this is the instruction to “keep the Sabbath holy” (cf. Exodus 16:23; 20:8). The Sabbath day is commemorated as a holy day, one designated such by the Lord (Genesis 2:1-3) and declared to be such in Exodus 16:23. Keeping the Sabbath involves much more than abstinence from labor, it requires the acknowledgment of the sacredness, the sanctity, of this day because of God’s deeds and declaration.
(3) The Fourth Commandment instructs each Israelite to plan and to finish his week’s work by the Sabbath. The reason why men do not wish to stop what they are doing is most often that they have not finished. The Fourth Commandment deals with this problem by instructing the Israelites to plan to be finished by the end of the sixth day, and to see to it that they do finish.
(4) The commandment here is broadened from the command given in Exodus chapter 16. In that passage, God specifically prohibited the Israelites from gathering manna on the seventh day of the week. Now, all labor is prohibited. This command is now so general it will require further clarification. We are thus prepared for the next revelation God will give the Israelites. Also, the number of those prohibited to work is significantly increased to include the Israelites’ servants and their beasts. Not only was rest guaranteed for all, but this would constitute a nation-wide shut down, which would make it more difficult for any who might be tempted to overlook this commandment.
(5) This commandment is not given in isolation, but it is given in relationship, in concert with the other nine. We cannot understand this command in isolation, apart from its relationship to the other commandments. We shall wait until our next passage to consider the relationship of the Fourth Commandment to the commandments as a whole. Here, I wish to point out the relationship of the Fourth Commandment to the preceding three, those which bear upon Israel’s relationship to her God. I believe that the Fourth Commandment makes a significant contribution to the Israel’s (true) worship of God.
(6) This commandment in verse 11 we are reminded that the Lord “made the heavens and the earth, the sea and all that is in them.” Previously in the Commandments, God had forbidden the worship of other gods and the use of idols and images. Specifically, God said, “You shall not make for yourself an idol, or any likeness of what is in heaven above or on the earth beneath or in the water under the earth” (Exodus 20:4). We find that the Israelites would be tempted to make images of those things which God created, either in the heavens above, on the earth, or in the sea. After they were forbidden to fashion any images in the form of any creatures in these three spheres, God then refers to the fact that He rested after having finished creating everything in the heavens above, on the earth, and in the sea (Exodus 20:11). Is there any significance to the repetition of these three spheres? I believe so. I believe that God is teaching a very important lesson about worship: ISRAEL WOULD BE WRONG TO TRY TO WORSHIP GOD BY IMITATING HIS CREATURES (MAKING IDOLS), BUT THEY WERE TO WORSHIP GOD BY IMITATING HIS ACTIONS AFTER CREATION—BY RESTING AS HE DID.
To summarize this matter concisely we might say that Israel could not worship with idols, but was to worship by being idle. Here is a crucial difference between false worship and the true. We are wrong to worship God by making imitation gods; we are right in imitating God in His response to having finished His creation. God is worshipped as we imitate His actions and character, not as we serve the things He created. {SOURCE: Robert L. (Bob)Deffinbaugh: Bible.org: The Meaning of the Sabbath (Exodus 20:8-11)]
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Exodus 20:12:
“Honor your father and your mother, that your days may be long upon the land which the Lord your God is giving you. |
Our tolerant culture has zero tolerance for aging, which has produced a cult of perpetual youth. In the resulting frenzy to appear young, Americans annually spend an amount on cosmetic procedures sufficient to feed and clothe fifty-four million starving children. Devoutly honoring the superficiality of appearance, we look with longing toward youth—and with loathing toward age and maturity. We desperately don’t want to grow up and give up childish ways (1 Cor. 13:11b), so, rather than showing the aged honor, we despise them. Dishonoring maturity, however, is not just the problem of our image-driven youth culture. Seeing the tendency in sixteenth century Geneva, John Calvin cautioned from his deathbed, “Let the young continue to be modest, without wishing to put themselves forward too much; for there is always a boastful character in young folks … who push on in despising others.” Perversely, our culture makes it a virtue to “push on in despising others,” especially parents. UCLA professor Jared Diamond argues that with technology and inexhaustible access to information, we no longer need the mature as a source of wisdom. Going down to the heart, the fifth commandment extends beyond honoring parents. It “requires the preserving the honor, and performing the duties, belonging to everyone in their several places and relations, as superiors, inferiors, or equals” (WSC 64). Enshrined in the fifth commandment is our entire duty to love our neighbor as ourselves—all of our neighbors. But honoring is hard; it requires us to suspend our self-worship, to give up the honor we imagine belongs to us and render it to another, to inconvenience ourselves for the benefit of others, to rise in the presence of the aged (Lev. 19:32), and thereby honor God. Intractable lovers of self, we find honoring others too difficult—actually, we find it impossible. So we cast about for a way out. Many have good reasons. An anguished young man once asked me, “How am I supposed to honor my father after what he’s done to my mother?” It was a good question. I knew what this father had done. He’d run off with another woman, leaving his pregnant wife to pick up the pieces of the domestic disaster created by his profoundly dishonorable behavior. Nevertheless, God tells this young man to honor his father. The Pharisees thought they had landed on the ultimate exception clause to honoring parents. They had cooked up a tradition that said when they declared their resources given to God, they were off the hook on the fifth commandment. Jesus exposed the fraud: “So for the sake of your tradition you have made void the word of God. You hypocrites! Well did Isaiah prophesy of you, when he said: ‘This people honors me with their lips, but their heart is far from me’ ” (Matt. 15:6–8). Only hearts that have been brought near to God in Christ can truly honor mother and father, even parents who have acted dishonorably. Just as “children obey your parents” does not include obeying their sinful commands, so “honor your father” does not include honoring his dishonorable behavior. Clearly, if Peter can urge first-century believers to honor everyone, including Emperor Nero (1 Peter 2:17), then the command to honor parents isn’t made void by having a dishonorable parent, any more than the command to love our neighbor is void when we have a neighbor who lobs beer cans over our fence. God’s commands still apply in a broken world of imperfect neighbors and dishonorable parents; they were gifted to us by our gracious heavenly Father for just such a world. Uniquely, the fifth commandment has annexed to it an enduring consequence for obeying it: “that your days may be long in the land that the LORD your God is giving you” (Ex. 20:12b). Long life--everlasting life. Unshakably secured by our elder Brother, whose obedience did surpass that of the scribes and Pharisees (Matt. 5:20), who alone is perfect as His heavenly Father is perfect (5:48), who did what no one has ever been able to do: perfectly fulfill all the duties required in God’s law. Pick your earthly hero; not one has perfectly honored his parents. Except Jesus. Honoring His Father’s will, Christ prayed, “My Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me; nevertheless, not as I will but as you will” (26:39). Forsaken on the cross, the Son perfectly obeyed and honored His Father—though it cost Him everything. “Honor your father and your mother.” Jesus did. In Him, we can grow daily in the grace of honoring our earthly parents for the still greater honor of our heavenly Father. --Douglas Bond |
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Exodus 20:13:
“You shall not murder. |
The verb used in this verse is best translated "to murder." It is used 49 times in the Old Testament, and it is always used to describe premeditated murder. It is never used of animals, God, angels, or enemies in battle. So the commandment is not teaching that all killing is wrong; it is teaching that murder is wrong.
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Exodus 20:14:
“You shall not commit adultery” |
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Exodus 20:16:
“Thou shalt not bear false witness against thy neighbour.” |
Exodus 20:16, when Moses addresses the Israelites: “Be not afraid; for God has come only in order to test you, and in order that the fear of Him may be ever with you, So that you do not go astray.”
What does ‘fear of God’ really mean then for the biblical authors?” asks Biblical scholar Martin Lockshin. In a word, the biblical uses of the Hebrew term yir-ah, usually translated as fear, frequently indicate reverence, respect, honour and awe. An individual’s fear or reverence for God is “virtually a synonym for ethical behaviour and fear of sin”. To be “God fearing” is therefore to be a morally conscious person who is known for being humble and loyal, honourable and trustworthy in both community relations and society at large. It is a view reiterated in both Jewish and Christian literature throughout the ages, be it in the simple piety of Tevye in Sholem Aleichem’s Fiddler on the Roof or the saintly humility of Bob Cratchit in Charles Dickens’s A Christmas Carol. The connection between the “God fearing” person and social obligations is a profound one that has not only been taught by the biblical tradition for millennia but also has been observed by a surprising corner of the current debate about the uses of religion. To be “God fearing” is therefore to be a morally conscious person who is known for being humble and loyal, honourable and trustworthy in both community relations and society at large. It is a view reiterated in both Jewish and Christian literature throughout the ages, be it in the simple piety of Tevye in Sholem Aleichem’s Fiddler on the Roof or the saintly humility of Bob Cratchit in Charles Dickens’s A Christmas Carol. The connection between the “God fearing” person and social obligations is a profound one that has not only been taught by the biblical tradition for millennia but also has been observed by a surprising corner of the current debate about the uses of religion. --Rachel Kohn |
The sins forbidden in the ninth commandment are, all prejudicing the truth, and the good name of our neighbors, as well as our own, especially in public judicature; giving false evidence, suborning false witnesses, wittingly appearing and pleading for an evil cause, outfacing and overbearing the truth; passing unjust sentence, calling evil good, and good evil; rewarding the wicked according to the work of the righteous, and the righteous according to the work of the wicked; forgery, concealing the truth, undue silence in a just cause, and holding our peace when iniquity calleth for either a reproof from ourselves, or complaint to others; speaking the truth unseasonably, or maliciously to a wrong end, or perverting it to a wrong meaning, or in doubtful or equivocal expressions, to the prejudice of the truth or justice; speaking untruth, lying, slandering, backbiting, detracting, talebearing, whispering, scoffing, reviling, rash, harsh, and partial censuring; misconstructing intentions, words, and actions; flattering, vainglorious boasting, thinking or speaking too highly or too meanly of ourselves or others; denying the gifts and graces of God; aggravating smaller faults; hiding, excusing, or extenuating of sins, when called to a free confession; unnecessary discovering of infirmities; raising false rumors, receiving and countenancing evil reports, and stopping our ears against just defense; evil suspicion; envying or grieving at the deserved credit of any; endeavoring or desiring to impair it, rejoicing in their disgrace and infamy; scornful contempt, fond admiration; breach of lawful promises; neglecting such things as are of good report, and practicing, or not avoiding ourselves, or not hindering what we can in others, such things as procure an ill name. --Barry Waugh; Reformation21; The Scope of Commandment Nine; 8.11.23
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Exodus 20:20:
Moses said to the people, “Do not be afraid. God has come to test you, so that the fear of God will be with you to keep you from sinning.” |
 Shane Idleman Files
We all fear something, and fear controls our actions. The Left fears the Right, and the majority of the Right fears the Left. We need to start fearing God again: As we’ve learned throughout history, men are either controlled by the Bible or by the bayonet.
Let’s be crystal clear here: A national awakening sparked by the fear of God is our only hope (cf. Ex. 20:20). Christian galas, events, festivals, and conferences are great, but they will never usher in God’s presence. Business, as usual, is not going to cut it anymore. The early church spent days waiting in an upper room before the fire fell. They understood that the secret to revival was the secret place. Spiritual awakenings aren’t birthed in arrogance; they are born in the womb of brokenness. --Shane Idleman; The Breaking of America: What Hurts the Most 11/14/23 |
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Exodus 20:25:
If you make me an altar of stone, you shall not build it of hewn stones, for if you wield your tool on it you profane it. |
 Charles Spurgeon
God’s altar was to be built of unhewn stones, that no trace of human skill or labor might be seen on it. Human wisdom delights to trim and arrange the doctrines of the cross into a system more artificial and more congenial with the depraved tastes of fallen nature; however, instead of improving the gospel carnal wisdom pollutes it, until it becomes another gospel, and not the truth of God at all. All alterations and amendments of the Lord’s own Word are defilements and pollutions.
The proud heart of man is very anxious to have a hand in the justification of the soul before God; preparations for Christ are dreamed of, humblings and repentings are trusted in, good works are cried up, natural ability is much vaunted, and by all means the attempt is made to lift up human tools upon the divine altar. It were well if sinners would remember that so far from perfecting the Saviour’s work, their carnal confidences only pollute and dishonor it. The Lord alone must be exalted in the work of atonement, and not a single mark of man’s chisel or hammer will be endured. There is an inherent blasphemy in seeking to add to what Christ Jesus in His dying moments declared to be finished, or to improve that in which the Lord Jehovah finds perfect satisfaction. Trembling sinner, away with your tools. Fall on your knees in humble supplication. Accept the Lord Jesus to be the altar of your atonement, and rest in Him alone. --Charles Spurgeon |