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An Overview of the Ten Commandments (Exodus 20:1-17) Introduction We Know That “All Scripture Is Profitable” (2 Timothy 3:16)

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An Overview of the Ten Commandments (Exodus 20:1-17) Introduction We Know That “All Scripture Is Profitable” (2 Timothy 3:16) Deffinbaugh Notes Exodus 20 Dec 1, 2014 An Overview of the Ten Commandments (Exodus 20:1-17) Introduction We know that “all Scripture is profitable” (2 Timothy 3:16). We should also know that some portions of Scripture are more crucial than others. Some texts of Scripture serve as a key to the understanding of other Scripture. For example, the parable of the soils (Matthew 13:1-23; Mark 4:1-25) is a significant clue to understanding the teaching of our Lord. It is a key to grasping the reason for His use of parables (Mark 4:13). It was also the key to understanding the differing responses of men to the message of our Lord. The Decalogue1 (the Ten Commandments) is one of the keys to understanding the Old Testament. Cole writes: “… the ‘ten words’ are at once the beginning and the heart of the Mosaic revelation. Around the ‘ten words’ it is possible to group most of the provisions of the ‘book of the covenant’ in chapters 21-23, and around the book of the covenant in turn to group the rest of the Torah.”2 While all do not agree on this point, I believe that Cole is right in his conclusion that the Ten Commandments are an introductory summary of the Law,3 the central core of the more lengthy Law of Moses which will follow in the Pentateuch. The essence of the Law is outlined for us first, and then the more detailed documentation of the Law will follow. I am opposed in principle to the “red letter” editions of the Bible because they imply that the words of Jesus are somehow more inspired than those of the apostles and prophets. Nevertheless, I will remind you that verse 1 of chapter 20 begins by informing us that these commandments were not indirectly given to the Israelites, but were spoken by God directly: “Then God spoke all these words, saying …” (Exodus 20:1). We thus have one of the few “red letter” statements of the Old Testament before us. Surely we must sense that something significant has been spoken, to which we should give heed. In following lessons, we will look at each of the commandments in detail, but in this lesson we will attempt to gain an appreciation for the Ten Commandments as a whole. They are, after all, a unit, and must be understood individually in relationship to the whole. We will therefore seek to get an overall impression of the commandments as a whole in preparation for our more exacting study of the Law in its parts. The Structure of the Decalogue I suppose that most of us have a mental picture of the Ten Commandments, with five of them engraved into each of the two stone tablets. Actually, there is a great difference of opinion on this particular matter.4 1 “In 34:28 and Deuteronomy 4:13; 10:4 it is called literally ‘the ten words’ (translated ‘Ten Commandments’), and hence the name ‘Decalogue’ (from the Greek deka = ‘ten’ and logos = ‘word’), which was apparently used first by Clemens of Alexandria, and is appropriate.” W. H. Gispen, Exodus, trans. by Ed van der Maas (Grand Rapids: Zondervan Publishing House, 1982), p. 185. 2 R. Alan Cole, Exodus: An Introduction and Commentary (Downers Grove: InterVarsity Press, 1973), p. 149. 3 There are other such summaries, as Kaiser points out: “This penchant for reducing a maze of details into a limited set of principles is not limited to the two accounts of the Decalogue in Exodus 20 and Deuteronomy 5. There are at least seven other summaries to which the Jewish community have regularly pointed. These are: the eleven principles of Psalm 15 (cf. Ps. 24:3-6); the six commands of Isaiah 33:15; the three commands of Micah 6:8; the two commands of Isaiah 56:1; and the one command of Amos 5:4; Habakkuk 2:4; and Leviticus 19:2.” Walter C. Kaiser, Jr. Toward Old Testament Ethics (Grand Rapids: Academie Books, 1983), p. 81. 4 “There is no agreement as to whether each of the two tablets contained five commandments (Philo, Josephus, Irenaeus, etc), or one four and the other six (Calvin), or one three and the other seven (Augustine). Today some are of the opinion that each of the two tablets contained all ten commandments …” Gispen, pp. 187-188. 1 Deffinbaugh Notes Exodus 20 Dec 1, 2014 Also, there are a number of differences over the numbering of the commandments.5 Our attention, however, will be directed toward the overall structure of the commandments. It has been noted that there are really only three positive statements made in verses 2-17, while the remaining statements are negative—prohibitions. This has led some to view the commandments as having a three-fold division.6 Seen in this way, the commandments can be outlined in this way: Israel’s Worship (vss. 2-7); Israel’s Work (vss. 8-11); and Israel’s Walk (vss. 12-17). This is the general outline which will be assumed in our study of the commandments. The Characteristics of the Commandments As we consider the Ten Commandments as a whole, there are a number of characteristics which are noteworthy. (1) The content of the commandments is not really new. Kaiser points out that while the commandments are formally given as God’s Law here, the Book of Genesis reveals the fact that these formalized laws were already followed, or assumed as a moral standard: In spite of its marvelous succinctness, economy of words, and comprehensive vision, it must not be thought that the Decalogue was inaugurated and promulgated at Sinai for the first time. All Ten Commandments had been part of the Law of God previously written on hearts instead of stone, for all ten appear, in one way or another, in Genesis. They are: The first, Genesis 35:2: ‘Get rid of the foreign gods.’ The second, Genesis 31:39: Laban to Jacob: ‘But why did you steal my gods?’ The third, Genesis 24:3: ‘I want you to swear by the Lord.’ The fourth, Genesis 2:3: ‘God blessed the seventh day and made it holy.’ The fifth, Genesis 27:41: ‘The days of mourning my father are near.’ The sixth, Genesis 4:9: ‘Where is your brother Abel?’ The seventh, Genesis 39:9: ‘How then could I do such a wicked thing and sin against God?’ The eighth, Genesis 44:4-7: ‘Why have you stolen my silver cup?’ The ninth, Genesis 39:17: ‘[Joseph] came to me to make sport of me … but … he ran. …’ The tenth, Genesis 12:18; 20:3: ‘You are as good as dead because of the woman you have taken; she is a married woman.’ Of course, not every one of these illustrations are equally clear, for the text does not pause to moralize on the narratives, but each would appear to add to the orders of creation already given in the first chapters of Genesis.7 (2) The Decalogue is in the form of the suzerainty-vassal treaties of that day in the ancient Near East. Archeologists have discovered that there were certain literary forms by which treaties were made 5 “The laws are not numbered, however; therefore Roman Catholic and Lutheran communions make but one what Reformed and Greek Orthodox call the first two. In order to keep the number ten, the reformed and Greek Orthodox must divide the tenth commandment into two, making the first sentence of the tenth commandment number nine and the rest number ten.” Kaiser, p. 82. Cf. also, Cole, p. 152. 6 “There are only three positive statements in verses 2-17 of Exodus 20—all without a finite verb. … John J. Owens has suggested that these three clauses might serve as the basis for dividing up the Decalogue into three sections and govern the other seven commands. In fact, in Deuteronomy 5:6-21, the commands are connected (unlike Exodus 20:2-17) by the conjunction … (‘and’) that suggests that they are all governed by the fifth commandment. If adopted, the phrases might be rendered: (1) I being the Lord your God … [therefore observe commandments one to three]; (2) Remembering the Sabbath day … [therefore do vv. 9-11]; and (3) Honoring your father and mother … [therefore observe commandments six to ten]. It would seem appropriate, therefore, to use this outline for discussing the Decalogue: (1) Right Relations With God (vv. 2-7), (2) Right Relations With Work (vv. 8-11), and (3) Right Relations With Society (vv. 12-17).” Kaiser, p. 84. 7 Kaiser, pp. 81-82. Gispen seems to agree, when he writes, “… the archaeological discoveries support the thesis that the Ten Commandments are a restatement and clarification of the innate moral Law with which man was created (cf. Rom. 2:14-15).” Gispen, p. 186. 2 Deffinbaugh Notes Exodus 20 Dec 1, 2014 between the king and his subjects. Comparing the Decalogue with these Near Eastern treaties reveals that the same suzerainty-vassal treaty form was employed in the covenant which God gave Israel. … God reveals Himself precisely in those moral commandments. To Israel, the ‘book of the covenant’ is a definition of the terms under which God, as a great monarch, accepts Israel as His subjects under a ‘suzerainty treaty’ … The ‘great king’ stated his identity, outlined what he had done for his prospective vassal, promised future protection and, on the grounds and basis of this, demanded exclusive loyalty and laid down certain obligations for his subjects. Often lists of curses and blessings are appended: these too are familiar from the Old Testament.8 (3) The Decalogue, while similar in form to other Near Eastern treaties, is strikingly different in its content.
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