Deuteronomy 5:1-33
1 And Moses called all Israel, and said unto them, Hear, O Israel, the statutes and judgments which I speak in your ears this day, that ye may learn them, and keep,a and do them.
2 The LORD our God made a covenant with us in Horeb.
3 The LORD made not this covenant with our fathers, but with us, even us, who are all of us here alive this day.
4 The LORD talked with you face to face in the mount out of the midst of the fire,
5 (I stood between the LORD and you at that time, to shew you the word of the LORD: for ye were afraid by reason of the fire, and went not up into the mount;) saying,
6 I am the LORD thy God, which brought thee out of the land of Egypt, from the house of bondage.b
7 Thou shalt have none other gods before me.
8 Thou shalt not make 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 waters beneath the earth:
9 Thou shalt not bow down thyself unto 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,
10 And shewing mercy unto thousands of them that love me and keep my commandments.
11 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.
12 Keep the sabbath day to sanctify it, as the LORD thy God hath commanded thee.
13 Six days thou shalt labour, and do all thy work:
14 But the seventh day is the sabbath of the LORD thy God: in it thou shalt not do any work, thou, nor thy son, nor thy daughter, nor thy manservant, nor thy maidservant, nor thine ox, nor thine ass, nor any of thy cattle, nor thy stranger that is within thy gates; that thy manservant and thy maidservant may rest as well as thou.
15 And remember that thou wast a servant in the land of Egypt, and that the LORD thy God brought thee out thence through a mighty hand and by a stretched out arm: therefore the LORD thy God commanded thee to keep the sabbath day.
16 Honour thy father and thy mother, as the LORD thy God hath commanded thee; that thy days may be prolonged, and that it may go well with thee, in the land which the LORD thy God giveth thee.
17 Thou shalt not kill.
18 Neither shalt thou commit adultery.
19 Neither shalt thou steal.
20 Neither shalt thou bear false witness against thy neighbour.
21 Neither shalt thou desire thy neighbour's wife, neither shalt thou covet thy neighbour's house, his field, or his manservant, or his maidservant, his ox, or his ass, or any thing that is thy neighbour's.
22 These words the LORD spake unto all your assembly in the mount out of the midst of the fire, of the cloud, and of the thick darkness, with a great voice: and he added no more. And he wrote them in two tables of stone, and delivered them unto me.
23 And it came to pass, when ye heard the voice out of the midst of the darkness, (for the mountain did burn with fire,) that ye came near unto me, even all the heads of your tribes, and your elders;
24 And ye said, Behold, the LORD our God hath shewed us his glory and his greatness, and we have heard his voice out of the midst of the fire: we have seen this day that God doth talk with man, and he liveth.
25 Now therefore why should we die? for this great fire will consume us: if we hearc the voice of the LORD our God any more, then we shall die.
26 For who is there of all flesh, that hath heard the voice of the living God speaking out of the midst of the fire, as we have, and lived?
27 Go thou near, and hear all that the LORD our God shall say: and speak thou unto us all that the LORD our God shall speak unto thee; and we will hear it, and do it.
28 And the LORD heard the voice of your words, when ye spake unto me; and the LORD said unto me, I have heard the voice of the words of this people, which they have spoken unto thee: they have well said all that they have spoken.
29 O that there were such an heart in them, that they would fear me, and keep all my commandments always, that it might be well with them, and with their children for ever!
30 Go say to them, Get you into your tents again.
31 But as for thee, stand thou here by me, and I will speak unto thee all the commandments, and the statutes, and the judgments, which thou shalt teach them, that they may do them in the land which I give them to possess it.
32 Ye shall observe to do therefore as the LORD your God hath commanded you: ye shall not turn aside to the right hand or to the left.
33 Ye shall walk in all the ways which the LORD your God hath commanded you, that ye may live, and that it may be well with you, and that ye may prolong your days in the land which ye shall possess.
Deuteronomy: God’s Law of Love
Love and Obey the *LORD your God
Deuteronomy
Philip Smith
Chapter 5
v1 Then Moses called together all the *Israelites and he spoke to them. ‘People in *Israel, hear the rules and the laws that I am telling to you today. Learn them and be sure to *keep them. v2 The *LORD our God made a *covenant with us at *Mount Sinai. v3 The *LORD did not make that *covenant with our fathers. He made it with all of us who are alive today. v4 The *LORD spoke to you directly from the fire on the mountain. v5 At that time I stood between you and the *LORD. I told you what he said. You were afraid because of the fire. So you did not go up on the mountain. This is what the *LORD said:
v6 “I am the *LORD your God who rescued you from Egypt. You were *slaves there.
v7 You must never give honour to any false gods. I am your only God.
v8 Do not make an *idol in the shape of anything that is in the sky or on the earth. Do not make it in the shape of anything that is in the water or under the earth. v9 Do not kneel down in front of any *idols, and do not give honour to them. I am the *LORD your God and I am a jealous God. I will punish the people who hate me. I will punish them and their *descendants down to the 3rd and 4th *generation. v10 But I show constant love to 1000s of *generations of the people who love me. And I show constant love to the people who obey me.
v11 Do not use the name of the *LORD your God for wrong purposes. The *LORD will not excuse anyone who does that.
v12 You must *celebrate the *Sabbath day and you must keep it *holy. The *LORD your God has ordered this. v13 You can do all your work for 6 days. v14 The 7th day is the *Sabbath day. During that day, you must do no work. Neither you nor your son or daughter, nor your male and female *slaves must work. Neither your *ox, your *donkey nor any of your *cattle must work. The foreigners who live in your country must not work. Your *slaves must rest as you do. v15 Remember that all of you were *slaves in Egypt. The *LORD your God brought you out of Egypt with great power. That is why the *LORD your God has ordered you to *celebrate the *Sabbath
v16 Give honour to your father and to your mother because the *LORD your God has ordered that. If you do, you will live for a long time. Everything will be good in the country that the *LORD your God is giving to you.
v17 You must not murder anyone.
v18 You must not have sex with someone else’s wife or husband.
v19 You must not steal.
v20 You must not tell lies about other people.
v21 You must not desire your neighbour’s wife. Do not desire his house, his land, his *slaves, his *ox or his *donkey. Do not desire anything else that he owns.” ’
Verses 1-5 Moses reminded the *Israelites about the *covenant that God had made with their fathers. God spoke to the people directly. But Moses had to tell them what God said. They were too afraid to go close to God. In the same way, Jesus stands between God and us. Jesus is the Word of God. (See John 1:1.) Exodus 24:4-8 describes the ceremony that established the *covenant. Moses took blood that came from the *sacrifices. He splashed it over the *altar and over the people. Hebrews 9:16-22 also describes this ceremony. It is the blood that makes things and people *clean. Jesus died as a *sacrifice and now his blood makes us *clean from *sin.
Verse 6-21 Moses repeated the Ten *Commandments. The *Israelites had been *slaves in Egypt. When they were slaves, they were not free. However, they had their own possessions and homes. The *Egyptians did not own the *Israelites. God had rescued them. Therefore, God had the authority to ask them to obey his *commandments. He told them not to give honour to any false god. He told them not to make an *idol to which they would give honour. It was right for God to be jealous. He did not want the people to *worship any false gods. The *Israelites should put God first. That is the only right way.
Jesus demanded the same thing from the people who followed him. Matthew 16:24: ‘If anyone wants to follow me, he must say “no” to himself. He must take his cross and he must carry it.’ God wants us to give honour to him only. When people do not obey God, the results can continue for 3 or 4 *generations. But when people obey him, the results can last for a long time.
The *Israelites must not use God’s name in a wrong way. Some people hope that they will obtain God’s power in that way. They must not do that in order to get their selfish desires.
Jesus taught his disciples (students) to pray, ‘We pray that your name will receive *holy honour.’
The *Israelites must *celebrate the 7th day in the week as a day when they rest. The *Sabbath reminded the *Israelites that God had freed them from their situation as *slaves. Exodus chapter 20 describes another reason for the *Sabbath. It reminded the people that God had created the world.
Christians *celebrate Sunday. It is a special day because Jesus became alive again on that day. He died and then he became alive again. Because of those events, God can forgive our *sins.
The *Israelites would live for a long time if they respected their parents. God promised that. It was the first *commandment where God promised something.
In Ephesians 6:1-2, Paul says that Christians should respect their parents also.
The *Israelites must not murder. They must not kill someone on purpose.
The *Israelites must not have sex with someone who was married to someone else.
The *Israelites must not steal property that belonged to someone else.
The *Israelites must not tell lies about other people.
Finally, the *Israelites must not even desire anything or anyone that belonged to someone else.
To do a wrong thing is not just an action. The thought or intention is also wrong. In Matthew 22:37-39, Jesus said that just two *commandments describe all the other *commandments. ‘Love God’ and ‘Love your neighbour’.
v22 ‘The *LORD spoke these *commandments on the mountain to all of you. He spoke them in a loud voice. He spoke them from out of the fire, the cloud and the great darkness. He did not add anything else to them. Then he wrote them on two blocks of stone and he gave them to me.
v23 You heard the voice that came out from the darkness. Then all the leaders of your *tribes and the older men came to me. The whole mountain was on fire. v24 You said, “Look. The *LORD our God has shown us that he is magnificent and great. We have heard his voice out of the fire. Today we have seen this. A person can live, even if God speaks to him. v25 But we do not want to die. The fire will burn us completely. We will die if we continue to hear the voice of the *LORD our God. v26 We have heard the voice of the God who is alive. It came from the fire. Nobody else has lived after he has heard God’s voice like that. v27 Go near. Listen to all that the *LORD our God says. Then tell us what the *LORD our God tells you. We will listen and we will obey.”
v28 The *LORD heard you when you spoke to me. The *LORD said this. “I have heard what the people said to you. Everything that they said was good. v29 I wish that they would always think like this. I wish that they would always give honour to me. I wish that they would *keep my *commandments. Then good things would happen to them and their children for always.
v30 Go and tell the *Israelites to return to their tents. v31 But you stay here with me. Then I can give to you all the *commandments, rules and laws that you must teach to them. They must obey them in the country that I am giving to them to possess.”
v32 You must be careful to do what the *LORD your God has ordered you to do. Do not refuse to *keep his *commandments. v33 Obey them all. Then you will live and good things will happen to you. You will live for a long time in the country that you will possess.’
Moses reminded the *Israelites about the time when God told them about his laws. The people were afraid of God because he was very *holy. Nobody had taught them that God would forgive them. They wanted somebody who would go between them and God. So the people asked Moses to act instead of them. God spoke his message and he wrote it down. The people promised to obey. God showed that he loved them. This is what He said. If they always obeyed him, their life would be good. Moses encouraged the people to obey God. If they did, then they would live for a long time in their country. When nations and people obey God’s *covenant, he blesses them.
Lord ~ a name for God. It translates the word ‘Adonai’ in the Hebrew language, which means ‘my ruler’. The word ‘lord’ (without a capital letter) means an ordinary ruler.LORD ~ God gave this special name to himself. It translates the word ‘Yahweh’ in the Hebrew language. It is the Covenant name for God. It links to the words ‘I am’; it means that God has always been here.
covenant ~ the special promise that God made to his people. God’s covenant with the Israelites established a relationship between him and them. But they must obey him.
Israelite ~ a person from the nation called *Israel; Israelites is another name for the Jews.
Jew ~ a person who belongs to the family of the Israelites. Jews are descendants of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.
descendant ~ a person in your family who will live after you.
Israelite ~ a person from the nation called *Israel; Israelites is another name for the Jews.
Jew ~ a person who belongs to the family of the Israelites. Jews are descendants of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.
descendant ~ a person in your family who will live after you.
keep ~ to do whatever you should do because of a promise or a law; to respect and to give honour to the law.
covenant ~ the special promise that God made to his people. God’s covenant with the Israelites established a relationship between him and them. But they must obey him.
Israelite ~ a person from the nation called *Israel; Israelites is another name for the Jews.
Jew ~ a person who belongs to the family of the Israelites. Jews are descendants of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.
descendant ~ a person in your family who will live after you.
Mount ~ mountain. For example, ‘Mount Sinai’ means the mountain called Sinai.
idol ~ an image of a false god that people give honour to; an object of wood, stone or metal that people worship.
worship ~ when people show honour to God, or to a false god. People may sing or pray. Or they may kneel down or give a sacrifice.
sacrifice ~ something valuable that people give to God, or to a false god; or, to make such a gift.
descendant ~ a person in your family who will live after you.
generation ~ a period of about 20 to 30 years. During that time, children grow up and they have their own children.
celebrate ~ to praise an event or a person with honour and with happiness.
Sabbath ~ Saturday, the 7th day of the week, when Israelites did not work. There were also special Sabbaths that were not always on a Saturday.
Israelite ~ a person from the nation called *Israel; Israelites is another name for the Jews.
Jew ~ a person who belongs to the family of the Israelites. Jews are descendants of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.
descendant ~ a person in your family who will live after you.
holy ~ morally good; something completely good and perfect; something that people consider to be very important in their religion.
ox ~ a strong farm animal like a bull that can pull the plough.
bull ~ male farm animal; (the female is called a cow). The Israelites made a metal image of a bull, which they worshipped as an idol.
Israelite ~ a person from the nation called *Israel; Israelites is another name for the Jews.
worship ~ when people show honour to God, or to a false god. People may sing or pray. Or they may kneel down or give a sacrifice.
idol ~ an image of a false god that people give honour to; an object of wood, stone or metal that people worship.
Jew ~ a person who belongs to the family of the Israelites. Jews are descendants of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.
sacrifice ~ something valuable that people give to God, or to a false god; or, to make such a gift.
descendant ~ a person in your family who will live after you.
donkey ~ an animal like a small horse with short legs and long ears.
cattle ~ cows and bulls.
bull ~ male farm animal; (the female is called a cow). The Israelites made a metal image of a bull, which they worshipped as an idol.
Israelite ~ a person from the nation called *Israel; Israelites is another name for the Jews.
worship ~ when people show honour to God, or to a false god. People may sing or pray. Or they may kneel down or give a sacrifice.
idol ~ an image of a false god that people give honour to; an object of wood, stone or metal that people worship.
Jew ~ a person who belongs to the family of the Israelites. Jews are descendants of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.
sacrifice ~ something valuable that people give to God, or to a false god; or, to make such a gift.
descendant ~ a person in your family who will live after you.
sacrifice ~ something valuable that people give to God, or to a false god; or, to make such a gift.
altar ~ a table on which people give gifts or sacrifices to God or to a false god.
sacrifice ~ something valuable that people give to God, or to a false god; or, to make such a gift.
clean ~ good in thought and in action. But, in the Old Testament, many things could make a person not clean towards God. For example, if they touched a dead body, that would make them not clean. And the Israelites must not eat animals that God called not clean.
Old Testament ~ the first part of the Bible, it tells about the history and the beliefs of the Israelites.
Israelite ~ a person from the nation called *Israel; Israelites is another name for the Jews.
Jew ~ a person who belongs to the family of the Israelites. Jews are descendants of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.
descendant ~ a person in your family who will live after you.
commandment ~ a rule or a command that God gave to the Jews; the 10 rules that God gave to Moses. That was on the mountain called Mount Sinai (or Horeb); a command from someone who has authority.
Jew ~ a person who belongs to the family of the Israelites. Jews are descendants of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.
Mount ~ mountain. For example, ‘Mount Sinai’ means the mountain called Sinai.
Israelite ~ a person from the nation called *Israel; Israelites is another name for the Jews.
descendant ~ a person in your family who will live after you.
Egyptian ~ someone from the country called Egypt; anything with a relationship with Egypt. The Israelites were *slaves in Egypt before God freed them.
Israelite ~ a person from the nation called *Israel; Israelites is another name for the Jews.
Jew ~ a person who belongs to the family of the Israelites. Jews are descendants of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.
descendant ~ a person in your family who will live after you.
commandment ~ a rule or a command that God gave to the Jews; the 10 rules that God gave to Moses. That was on the mountain called Mount Sinai (or Horeb); a command from someone who has authority.
Jew ~ a person who belongs to the family of the Israelites. Jews are descendants of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.
Mount ~ mountain. For example, ‘Mount Sinai’ means the mountain called Sinai.
Israelite ~ a person from the nation called *Israel; Israelites is another name for the Jews.
descendant ~ a person in your family who will live after you.
worship ~ when people show honour to God, or to a false god. People may sing or pray. Or they may kneel down or give a sacrifice.
sacrifice ~ something valuable that people give to God, or to a false god; or, to make such a gift.
tribe ~ a group of people from the same race, who all came from one person. The tribes of *Israel were the 12 large families of Jacob’s sons.