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Scott's Reference Library
Exodus 20:1 through Exodus 20:17 (NIV)
1And God spoke all these words:
2“I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of Egypt, out of the land of
slavery.
3“You shall have no other gods before me.
4“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. 5You shall not bow down to
them or worship them; for I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God, punishing the
children for the sin of the fathers to the third and fourth generation of those
who hate me, 6but showing love to a thousand generations of those who love me
and keep my commandments.
7“You shall not misuse the name of the Lord your God, for the Lord will not hold
anyone guiltless who misuses his name.
8“Remember the Sabbath day by keeping it holy. 9Six days you shall labor and do
all your work, 10but the seventh day is a Sabbath to the Lord your God. On it
you shall not do any work, neither you, nor your son or daughter, nor your
manservant or maidservant, nor your animals, nor the alien within your gates.
11For in six days the Lord made the heavens and the earth, the sea, and all that
is in them, but he rested on the seventh day. Therefore the Lord blessed the
Sabbath day and made it holy.
12“Honor your father and your mother, so that you may live long in the land the
Lord your God is giving you.
13“You shall not murder.
14“You shall not commit adultery.
15“You shall not steal.
16“You shall not give false testimony against your neighbor.
17“You shall not covet your neighbor’s house. You shall not covet your
neighbor’s wife, or his manservant or maidservant, his ox or donkey, or anything
that belongs to your neighbor.”
Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary on the Whole Bible
VERSES 1-2
God speaks many ways to the children of men; by conscience, by providences, by
his voice, to all which we ought carefully to attend; but he never spake at any
time so as he spake the TEN COMMANDMENTS. This law God had given to man before;
it was written in his heart; but sin so defaced it, that it was necessary to
revive the knowledge of it. The law is spiritual, and takes knowledge of the
secret thoughts, desires, and dispositions of the heart. Its grand demand is
love, without which outward obedience is mere hypocrisy. It requires perfect,
unfailing, constant obedience; no law in the world admits disobedience to
itself. Whosoever shall keep the whole law, and yet offend in one point, he is
guilty of all, James 2:10. Whether in the heart or the conduct, in thought,
word, or deed, to omit or to vary any thing, is sin, and the wages of sin is
death.
VERSES 3-11
The first four of the ten commandments, commonly called the FIRST table, tell
our duty to God. It was fit that those should be put first, because man had a
Maker to love, before he had a neighbour to love. It cannot be expected that he
should be true to his brother, who is false to his God. The first commandment
concerns the object of worship, JEHOVAH, and him only. The worship of creatures
is here forbidden. Whatever comes short of perfect love, gratitude, reverence,
or worship, breaks this commandment. Whatsoever ye do, do all the glory of God.
The second commandment refers to the worship we are to render to the Lord our
God. It is forbidden to make any image or picture of the Deity, in any form, or
for any purpose; or to worship any creature, image, or picture. But the
spiritual import of this command extends much further. All kinds of superstition
are here forbidden, and the using of mere human inventions in the worship of
God. The third commandment concerns the manner of worship, that it be with all
possible reverence and seriousness. All false oaths are forbidden. All light
appealing to God, all profane cursing, is a horrid breach of this command. It
matters not whether the word of God, or sacred things, all such-like things
break this commandment, and there is no profit, honour, or pleasure in them. The
Lord will not hold him guiltless that taketh his name in vain. The form of the
fourth commandment, “Remember,” shows that it was not now first given, but was
known by the people before. One day in seven is to be kept holy. Six days are
allotted to worldly business, but not so as to neglect the service of God, and
the care of our souls. On those days we must do all our work, and leave none to
be done on the sabbath day. Christ allowed works of necessity, charity, and
piety; for the sabbath was made for man, and not man for the sabbath, Mark 2:27;
but all works of luxury, vanity, or self-indulgence in any form, are forbidden.
Trading, paying wages, settling accounts, writing letters of business, worldly
studies, trifling visits, journeys, or light conversation, are not keeping this
day holy to the Lord. Sloth and indolence may be a carnal, but not a holy rest.
The sabbath of the Lord should be a day of rest from worldly labour, and a rest
in the service of God. The advantages from the due keeping of this holy day,
were it only to the health and happiness of mankind, with the time it affords
for taking care of the soul, show the excellency of this commandment. The day is
blessed; men are blessed by it, and in it. The blessing and direction to keep
holy are not limited to the seventh day, but are spoken of the sabbath day.
VERSES 12-17
The laws of the SECOND table, that is, the last six of the ten commandments,
state our duty to ourselves and to one another, and explain the great
commandment, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself, Luke 10:27. Godliness and
honesty must go together. The fifth commandment concerns the duties we owe to
our relations. Honour thy father and thy mother, includes esteem of them, shown
in our conduct; obedience to their lawful commands; come when they call you, go
where they send you, do what they bid you, refrain from what they forbid you;
and this, as children, cheerfully, and from a principle of love. Also submission
to their counsels and corrections. Endeavouring, in every thing, to comfort
parents, and to make their old age easy; maintaining them if they need support,
which our Saviour makes to be particularly intended in this commandment, Matthew
15:4-6. Careful observers have noted a peculiar blessing in temporal things on
obedient, and the reverse on disobedient children. The sixth commandment
requires that we regard the life and the safety of others as we do our own.
Magistrates and their officers, and witnesses testifying the truth, do not break
this command. Self-defence is lawful; but much which is not deemed murder by the
laws of man, is such before God. Furious passions, stirred up by anger or by
drunkenness, are no excuse: more guilty is murder in duels, which is a horrible
effect of a haughty, revengeful spirit. All fighting, whether for wages, for
renown, or out of anger and malice, breaks this command, and the bloodshed
therein is murder. To tempt men to vice and crimes which shorten life, may be
included. Misconduct, such as may break the heart, or shorten the lives of
parents, wives, or other relatives, is a breach of this command. This command
forbids all envy, malice, hatred, or anger, all provoking or insulting language.
The destruction of our own lives is here forbidden. This commandment requires a
spirit of kindness, longsuffering, and forgiveness. The seventh commandment
concerns chastity. We should be as much afraid of that which defiles the body,
as of that which destroys it. Whatever tends to pollute the imagination, or to
raise the passions, falls under this law, as impure pictures, books,
conversation, or any other like matters. The eighth commandment is the law of
love as it respects the property of others. The portion of worldly things
allotted us, as far as it is obtained in an honest way, is the bread which God
hath given us; for that we ought to be thankful, to be contented with it, and,
in the use of lawful means, to trust Providence for the future. Imposing upon
the ignorance, easiness, or necessity of others, and many other things, break
God’s law, though scarcely blamed in society. Plunderers of kingdoms though
above human justice, will be included in this sentence. Defrauding the public,
contracting debts without prospect of paying them, or evading payment of just
debts, extravagance, all living upon charity when not needful, all squeezing the
poor in their wages; these, and such things, break this command; which requires
industry, frugality, and content, and to do to others, about worldly property,
as we would they should do to us. The ninth commandment concerns our own and our
neighbour’s good name. This forbids speaking falsely on any matter, lying,
equivocating, and any way devising or designing to deceive our neighbour.
Speaking unjustly against our neighbour, to hurt his reputation. Bearing false
witness against him, or in common conversation slandering, backbiting, and
tale-bearing; making what is done amiss, worse than it is, and in any way
endeavouring to raise our reputation upon the ruin of our neighbour’s. How much
this command is every day broken among persons of all ranks! The tenth
commandment strikes at the root; Thou shalt not covet. The others forbid all
desire of doing what will be an injury to our neighbour; this forbids all wrong
desire of having what will gratify ourselves.