XX. THE TEN COMMANDMENTS. (1) GOD SPAKE. — It is distinctly stated in Deuteronomy that the Ten Commandments were spoken to “all the assembly of Israel,” by God, “out of the midst of the fire, of the cloud, and of the thick darkness, with a great voice” (Deuteronomy 5:22). It was not till after their... [ Continue Reading ]
I AM THE LORD THY GOD. — The binding nature of commands upon the conscience depends upon the authority of the person who issues them. That there might be no dispute as to what the authority was in the case of the Decalogue, God prefaced the commands themselves by this distinct statement. By whomsoev... [ Continue Reading ]
THOU SHALT HAVE NO OTHER GODS BEFORE ME. — Heb., _There shalt be to thee no other god before me._ The result is the same, whether we translate _Elohim_ by “god” or “gods;” but the singular verb shows that the plural form of the name is a mere plural of dignity. BEFORE ME — literally, _before my face... [ Continue Reading ]
THOU SHALT NOT MAKE UNTO THEE ANY GRAVEN IMAGE. — The two main clauses of the second commandment are to be read together, so as to form one sentence: “Thou shalt not make to thee any graven image, &c., so as to worship it.” (See the explanation of Josephus, _Ant. Jud.,_ iii. 5, § 5: ‘Ο δεύτερος λóγο... [ Continue Reading ]
NOR SERVE THEM. — The idolatry of the ancient world was, practically, not a mere worship of celestial beings through material representations of them, but an actual culture of the images themselves, which were regarded as possessed of miraculous powers. “I myself,” says Arnobius, “not so very long a... [ Continue Reading ]
SHEWING MERCY UNTO THOUSANDS. — Rather, _to the thousandth generation,_ as is distinctly expressed in Deuteronomy 7:9. God’s mercy infinitely transcends His righteous anger. Sin is visited on three, or at most four, generations. Righteousness is remembered, and advantages descendants, for ever.... [ Continue Reading ]
THOU SHALT NOT TAKE THE NAME OF THE LORD THY GOD IN VAIN. — The Hebrew is ambiguous, as is to some extent the English translation. Most modern critics regard the phrase used as forbidding _false_ swearing only; but some think that it forbids also “profane” or “vain swearing.” Our Lord’s comment in t... [ Continue Reading ]
REMEMBER THE SABBATH DAY. — It is pertinent to remark that this command is introduced differently from any other by the word “remember.” But we cannot, therefore, conclude that the Sabbath was a primitive institution, which the Israelites were bound to have held in perpetual remembrance, since the r... [ Continue Reading ]
SIX DAYS SHALT THOU LABOUR. — The form is certainly imperative; and it has been held that the fourth commandment is “not limited to a mere enactment respecting one day, but prescribes the due distribution of a week, and _enforces the six days’ work as much as the seventh day’s rest_” (Garden in Smit... [ Continue Reading ]
BUT THE SEVENTH DAY IS THE SABBATH OF THE LORD THY GOD. — Heb., _But the seventh day_ (_shall be_) _a sabbath to the Lord thy God_ — _i.e.,_ it shall be a day of holy rest from things worldly, and of devotion to things heavenly. (See Note 2 on Exodus 20:8.) IN IT THOU SHALT NOT DO ANY WORK. — This n... [ Continue Reading ]
FOR IN SIX DAYS THE LORD MADE HEAVEN AND EARTH. — Comp. Genesis 2:2, and Exodus 31:17. It is not improbable that the work of creation was made to occupy six days because one day in seven is the appropriate proportion of rest to labour for such a being as man. God might have created all things on one... [ Continue Reading ]
HONOUR THY FATHER AND THY MOTHER. — It is not a matter of much importance how we divide the commandments; nor is it historically certain how they were originally distributed between the two tables. But, practically, the view that the fifth commandment begins the second table, which lays down our dut... [ Continue Reading ]
THOU SHALT NOT KILL. — From the peculiar duties owed by children to their parents, the Divine legislator went on to lay down those general duties which men owe to their fellow-men. And of these the first is that of respecting their life. The security of life is the primary object of government; and... [ Continue Reading ]
THOU SHALT NOT COMMIT ADULTERY. — Next to the duty of respecting a man’s life is placed that of respecting his domestic peace and honour. Adultery is an invasion of the household, a destruction of the bond which unites the family, a dissolution of that contract which is the main basis of social orde... [ Continue Reading ]
THOU SHALT NOT STEAL. — Our third duty towards our neighbour is to respect his right to his property. The framers of Utopias, both ancient and modern, have imagined communities in which private property should not exist. But such a condition of things has never yet been realised in practice. In the... [ Continue Reading ]
THOU SHALT NOT BEAR FALSE WITNESS AGAINST THY NEIGHBOUR. — Our fourth duty to our neighbour is not to injure his character. Our great poet has said — “Who steals my purse, steals trash, But he who filches from me my good name, Robs me of that which not enriches him, Yet leaves me poor indeed,” — Th... [ Continue Reading ]
THOU SHALT NOT COVET. — This command seems to have been added in order to teach the general principle that the Law of God is concerned, not with acts and words only, but with the thoughts of the heart. Rightly understood, the seventh and eighth commandments contain the tenth, which strikes at coveto... [ Continue Reading ]
AND ALL THE PEOPLE SAW THE THUNDERINGS — _i.e.,_ Perceived them. On the true character of the Sinaitic manifestation, see Note on Exodus 19:16. THEY REMOVED. — Moses had brought the representatives of the people as near to Sinai as possible — close to the foot of the great precipice of Ras Sufsâfe... [ Continue Reading ]
AT THE PEOPLE’S REQUEST, MOSES BECOMES THEIR INTERMEDIARY. (18-21) The delivery of the Ten Commandments by A voice manifestly superhuman impressed the people with an awful fear. They felt the near contact with God to be more than they could bear. Even Moses was so deeply moved that he exclaimed, “I... [ Continue Reading ]
SPEAK THOU WITH US. — Comp. Deuteronomy 5:24, where the words of the people are reported at greater length : — “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 liv... [ Continue Reading ]
MOSES SAID UNTO THE PEOPLE, FEAR NOT. — God approved the people’s proposal, and directed that they should withdraw to their tents (Deuteronomy 5:28). Moses then “drew near” to Him, and entered into “the thick darkness where God was” (Exodus 20:21). It is worthy of notice that the same manifestation... [ Continue Reading ]
LAWS CONCERNING RELIGION. (22) YE HAVE SEEN THAT I HAVE TALKED WITH YOU FROM HEAVEN. — It was important to identify the giver of the Book of the Covenant with the deliverer of the Ten Commandments, and accordingly this was done in the opening words of the Book.... [ Continue Reading ]
THE BOOK OF THE COVENANT. (22-26) In the remainder of Exodus 20, and in the three Chapter s which follow, we have a series of laws delivered by God to Moses, immediately after the delivery of the Decalogue, which constituted the second stage of the revelation, and stood midway between the first gre... [ Continue Reading ]
YE SHALL NOT MAKE WITH ME GODS OF SILVER. — The expression “make with me” is unusual, but does not seem to have any peculiar force. Gods of silver and gods of gold are specially forbidden, because it was to idolatry of this kind that the Israelites were specially inclined. The golden calf is no isol... [ Continue Reading ]
AN ALTAR OF EARTH THOU SHALT MAKE UNTO ME. — The earliest altars were, naturally, either of earth, or of unhewn stones, gathered into a heap, since these could be constructed with little labour, and without tools. But, as civilisation advanced, more elaborate structures took the place of the primiti... [ Continue Reading ]
IF THOU WILT MAKE ME AN ALTAR OF STONE. — Among civilised nations altars were almost always of stone, which superseded earth, as more durable. God does not absolutely prohibit the employment of stone altars by the Israelites, who are found to use them upon certain occasions (Joshua 8:31; 1 Kings 18:... [ Continue Reading ]
NEITHER SHALT THOU GO UP BY STEPS UNTO MINE ALTAR. — When the dress of the priests had been so arranged that no exposure of the person was possible (verses 42, 43), this precept became unnecessary. Thus it would seem that Solomon’s altar had steps. (Compare 2 Chronicles 4:1 with Ezekiel 43:17.)... [ Continue Reading ]