Exodus 20

The other ceremonial aspect of this commandment concerns the “work” that was forbidden on the Sabbath. The Israelites later expended much effort in determining what was “work” and what was “not work.” They missed the whole point. If the “work” was done in deference to God and for the benefit of a neighbor (or even an animal), then according to Christ it was allowable and even necessary (Matthew 12:11; Mark 3:1–5; Luke 13:10–17).

According to Deuteronomy 5:14–15, God was also concerned for the well-being of the servants in Israelite households. No one was to work—“so that your manservant and maidservant may rest, as you do.” Then God reminded the Israelites that they too had once been servants—slaves—in Egypt, and that He had delivered them with a mighty hand and an outstretched arm, symbols of God’s power on behalf of His people.

The fourth commandment is distinct from the other nine because it was meant in a special way for Israel alone; observing the Sabbath on the seventh day was to be a sign of the covenant between God and Israel(Exodus 31:12–17). It was a sign that the Israelites worshiped the one true God who created the universe in six days and rested on the seventh. This sign would visibly set Israel apart from all other nations on earth (see Genesis 17:10–11).

12 Honor your father and your mother. To“ honor” one’s parents means to value, to respect, and to care for them. For younger children and for older children living in the same household with parents, to honor them would also include obeying them⁶⁵ (see Ephesians 6:1–3). God has established all forms of authority, including parental authority (Romans 13:1); if children learn to obey their parents, they will be more likely to obey all other authorities.

According to Deuteronomy 5:16, God added a blessing to those who obeyed the command to honor their parents. He said: “Honor your parents, so that you may live long and that it may go well with you in the land (Canaan).” In Ephesians 6:2, Paul called this fifth commandment the first commandment with a promise.

13 You shall not murder. The basis of this commandment lies in the fact that all men and women are created in God’s image (Genesis 1:27; 9:6). The word “murder” means to “kill deliberately”; it does not apply to accidental killing. It may or may not apply to killing because of loss of self-control; such cases are difficult to judge.

The term “murder” does not apply to the killing of animals. It does not apply to killing a person in self-defense or to executions carried out by legitimate state authorities.⁶⁶ It does, however, apply to killing one’s self—suicide; this is always against God’s law.⁶⁷

Jesus taught that “murder” was not only an external act but also an internal attitude; in God’s sight, desiring to murder is as bad as doing it (Matthew 5:21–22; 1 John 3:15).

The penalty for murder in the Old Testament was death: life for life (Exodus 21:12,23). Usually the nearest kinsman of the murdered person took the lead in putting the murderer to death (Numbers 35:19).

14 You shall not commit adultery. The word “adultery,” as it was used in the Old Testament, meant sexual relations between a married woman and a man who was not her husband; in this case, both partners were committing adultery. However, in Old Testament times, if a married man had sexual relations with an unmarried woman, it was not considered adultery; in other words, this seventh commandment did not rule out polygamy, the taking of more than one wife.⁶⁸

Jesus had a much higher standard for sexual behavior; as with murder, Jesus was equally concerned with what was in a person’s heart (Matthew 5:27–28). Jesus also gave a broader meaning to the word “adultery” by applying it (under certain circumstances) to divorced people who married again (Matthew 19:3–9; Mark 10:2–12).

The penalty for adultery was death (Leviticus 20:10; Deuteronomy 22:22). But the penalty for seducing an unpledged virgin was the payment of money and the offer of marriage (Exodus 22:16–17; Deuteronomy 22:28–29). Thus the Old Testament makes a distinction between adultery and fornication: adultery is the greater sin because it defiles marriage, which God holds sacred.⁶⁹

15 You shall not steal. God owns everything in the universe; when we steal, we steal ultimately from Him. Furthermore, when we steal we hurt our neighbor; but God commands us to love our neighbor (Leviticus 19:18; Mark 12:31).

The person guilty of stealing was required to compensate the injured party in accordance with the value of the stolen property. The death penalty was never demanded for theft, because God puts much higher value on human life and on marriage than He does on property.

Stealing can take more subtle forms: to deprive a person of his or her rights is stealing; to withhold just wages is stealing; to neglect paying a debt is stealing; to defraud a neighbor in any way is stealing (James 5:4).

16 You shall not give false testimony against your neighbor. This commandment deals with two sins: speaking falsely and hurting one’s neighbor.⁷⁰ When these are combined, the sin is compounded. We must not speak falsely: God is a God of truth, and when we despise the truth we also despise God. However, some people speak falsely in an attempt to benefit their neighbor; such falsehoods are sometimes called “white lies.” As a general rule, lying is not justified—even with a good motive. Good motives do not justify wrong actions.⁷¹

In summary, the Apostle Paul has given us a positive version of this ninth commandment: speak the truth in love (Ephesians 4:15).

17 You shall not covet. This command is unique among the Ten Commandments, because it deals specifically with our inner attitudes rather than our outward actions. The presence of the tenth commandment demonstrates that God is vitally concerned with our desires, our intentions, our motivation; it shows that God is concerned not only with the acts of murder, adultery, theft and false witness, but also with every inner impulse that leads up to these acts (Ephesians 5:3).

The tenth commandment, therefore, shows how hard it is to keep any of the commandments. One can easily say: “I have never committed adultery; I have never stolen.” But can one also say: “I have never lusted after a woman; I have never coveted another person’s possessions”? The fact is, none of us can keep these commandments perfectly (Psalm 14:2–3; Romans 3:10–12). We need a new heart, and that is what Jesus came to give us. For out of the heart come evil thoughts, murder, adultery, sexual immorality, theft, false testimony, slander (Matthew 15:19).

To “covet” means to desire something with a selfish or evil motivation; it is the first stage of a sinful act (James 1:13–15). It is also the stage at which we can first identify a sinful impulse rising within us. Indeed, the tenth commandment is a great gift from God, because it acts like a warning light; it signals us to turn from a sinful act before we actually commit it (Romans 7:7). Then, with the Holy Spirit’s help, we can overcome the temptation and avoid the sin. The law itself does not give us the strength to obey it; only the Holy Spirit working in our hearts can do that (Romans 8:3–4).

18–21 After God had delivered the Ten Commandments to the people, they were filled with fear because of the thunder, lightning and smoke. But Moses reassured them, saying that God was testing them to make sure they would indeed have the fear of God⁷² (verse 20); this fear of God would help them keep from sinning.

However, the people requested that thenceforth Moses serve as a mediator between them and God: they wanted God to speak to Moses alone and then have Moses pass on God’s instructions to the people. Their request was granted; from that time on Moses acted as mediator, a role that would later be carried out by the priests and prophets and ultimately by Jesus Christ Himself (1 Timothy 2:5). Indeed, Moses predicted Jesus’ coming when he told the people later on that God would raise up . . . a prophet like himself who would speak God’s word to them (Deuteronomy 18:15–19).

Then Moses approached God in the thick darkness (verse 21) and received from Him the words of the Book of the Covenant (Exodus 24:7), the further instructions that God was about to give, starting at verse 22 and continuing to the end of Chapter 23.

Idols and Altars (20:22–26)

22 Here begins the Book of the Covenant, which is mainly an exposition of the Ten Commandments. Basic laws always need to be interpreted and applied to specific situations in human life, and that is why God gave Moses these additional laws. In this commentary, the numerous laws that follow will not be discussed in detail; only those laws that are of particular importance to Christians will be examined, as well as those laws which are difficult to understand.

23 See verses 4–6 and comment.

24–26 These verses list some instructions concerning the building of altars. They were not to be built using dressed stones (verse 25), probably because “dressing” stones with a tool was associated with making a stone idol. Also steps were not to be used, because when the priest ascended them he might expose himself to people standing below. Later the priest would be required to wear undergarments to prevent that possibility; for a priest to expose his nakedness (verse 26) was offensive to God (Exodus 28:42–43).

For a discussion of the burnt offerings and fellowship offerings (verse 24) that were to be offered on the altars, see Leviticus 1:1–17; 3:1–17 and comments.