Exodus 20

The Ten Commandments

¹God spoke all these words, saying,

²“I am the LORD your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage.

³“You shall have no other gods before me.

⁴“You shall not make for yourselves an idol, nor any image of anything that is in the heavens above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth:

⁵you shall not bow yourself down to them, nor serve them, for I, the LORD your God, am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children, on the third and on the fourth generation of those who hate me,

⁶and showing loving kindness to thousands 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 him guiltless who misuses his name.

⁸“Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy.

⁹You shall labor six days, and do all your work,

¹⁰but the seventh day is a Sabbath to the LORD your God. You shall not do any work in it, you, nor your son, nor your daughter, your male servant, nor your female servant, nor your livestock, nor your stranger who is within your gates;

¹¹for in six days the LORD made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that is in them, and rested the seventh day; therefore the LORD blessed the Sabbath day, and made it holy.

¹²“Honor your father and your mother, that your days may be long in the land which the LORD your God gives 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, nor his male servant, nor his female servant, nor his ox, nor his donkey, nor anything that is your neighbor’s.”

The People's Fear and the Altar Law

¹⁸All the people perceived the thunderings, the lightnings, the sound of the trumpet, and the mountain smoking. When the people saw it, they trembled, and stayed at a distance.

¹⁹They said to Moses, “Speak with us yourself, and we will listen; but don’t let God speak with us, lest we die.”

²⁰Moses said to the people, “Don’t be afraid, for God has come to test you, and that his fear may be before you, that you won’t sin.”

²¹The people stayed at a distance, and Moses came near to the thick darkness where God was.

²²The LORD said to Moses, “This is what you shall tell the children of Israel: ‘You yourselves have seen that I have talked with you from heaven.

²³You shall most certainly not make gods of silver or gods of gold for yourselves to be alongside me.

²⁴You shall make an altar of earth for me, and shall sacrifice on it your burnt offerings and your peace offerings, your sheep and your cattle. In every place where I record my name I will come to you and I will bless you.

²⁵If you make me an altar of stone, you shall not build it of cut stones; for if you lift up your tool on it, you have polluted it.

²⁶You shall not go up by steps to my altar, that your nakedness may not be exposed to it.’

Previous Exodus 19

Next Exodus 21

God delivers the Ten Commandments to Israel at Mount Sinai, establishing the foundational moral and religious laws that will govern the covenant community. The commandments address both vertical relationships with God (worship, reverence, Sabbath) and horizontal relationships with others (family, life, marriage, property, truth). The people's fearful response to God's awesome presence leads Moses to mediate between them and God, who then provides additional instructions about proper worship and altar construction.

Context

Following the dramatic theophany at Sinai in chapter 19, this chapter presents the covenant stipulations that will define Israel's relationship with God throughout their wilderness journey and settlement in the promised land.

Key Themes

Outline

1-2
Divine Preamble God identifies himself as Israel's deliverer before giving the law
3-6
First and Second Commandments Exclusive worship of God and prohibition of idolatry
7-11
Third and Fourth Commandments Reverent use of God's name and Sabbath observance
12-17
Fifth through Tenth Commandments Social obligations covering family, life, marriage, property, and truth
18-21
The People's Fearful Response Israel requests Moses to mediate due to God's terrifying presence
22-26
Altar Laws Instructions for proper worship and altar construction

The Ten Commandments

20:1–20:17

law speech solemn

God delivers the Ten Commandments to Israel, establishing fundamental moral and religious laws that form the foundation of the covenant relationship. These commandments cover worship, ethics, and social relationships.

quotation_chain

God's self-identification as liberator from Egypt precedes every commandment, making obedience a response to grace rather than a prerequisite for salvation.

The People's Fear and the Altar Law

20:18–20:26

narrative dialogue fearful

The people fear God's awesome presence at Mount Sinai and ask Moses to mediate. God gives instructions for proper worship including altar construction and sacrifice.

person_contrast

Moses, typically portrayed as the lawgiver, here uniquely functions as both mediator of divine terror and instructor of sacrificial worship, bridging Israel's fear with proper altar construction.

Insight Quotation Chain

God's self-identification as liberator from Egypt precedes every commandment, making obedience a response to grace rather than a prerequisite for salvation.

Insight Character Study

Moses, typically portrayed as the lawgiver, here uniquely functions as both mediator of divine terror and instructor of sacrificial worship, bridging Israel's fear with proper altar construction.