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Ten Commandments from God Bible Study

Here are the Ten Commandments that our Father gave to us to live by. Some may say that they were only written for Israel but that is not true, they are for all mankind. The Ten Commandments can be found in Exodus 20:2-17 In verse one is the clue that they are for all of us. Lets take a look.

Exodus 20:1
V1 And God spake all these words, saying,

The word God here in Hebrew is Elohiym (el-o-heem), it is Strong's number 430. The essential meaning is the Creator. It shows His relation to mankind as His creatures. The 1st time it is used is in Genesis 1:1

Genesis 1:1
V1 In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth.

Another place where Elohiym is used is in Genesis 1:26

Genesis 1:26
V26 And God said, Let Us make man in Our image, after Our likeness: and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth.

So now that we know that it is God as Creator in relation to mankind as His creatures, we know that the Ten Commandments are written for all, not just Israel. Lets take a look at them.

Exodus 20:2-17

V2 I am the LORD thy God, which have brought thee out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage.
V3 Thou shalt have no other gods before Me.

gods 430 'elohiym (el-o-heem'); plural of 433; gods in the ordinary sense; but specifically used (in the plural thus, especially with the article) of the supreme God; occasionally applied by way of deference to magistrates; and sometimes as a superlative.

So many people today are looking everywhere but where they should for help and guidance. The latest new age thing, feel good book or what ever people look to for guidance, if it is not God, it is a dead end. There is only one God and He is the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. When we need help in our lives, He is the One to go to. He gave us the Bible for this very thing. The Bible covers all aspects of human life and that is the place we should go to for the answers.

V4 Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image, or any likeness of any thing that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth:
V5 Thou shalt not bow down thyself to them, nor serve them: for I the LORD thy God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation of them that hate Me;
V6 And shewing mercy unto thousands of them that love Me, and keep My commandments.

Graven image 6459 pecel (peh'-sel); from 6458; an idol
6458 pacal (paw-sal'); a primitive root; to carve, whether wood or stone

Jealous 7067 qanna' (kan-naw'); from 7065; jealous. Compare 7072.
7065 qana' (kaw-naw'); a primitive root; to be (causatively, make) zealous, i.e. (in a bad sense) jealous or envious
7072 qannow' (kan-no'); for 7067; jealous or angry

Iniquity 5771 `avon (aw-vone'); or `avown (2 Kings 7:9; Psalm 51:5 [7]) (aw-vone'); from 5753; perversity, i.e. (moral) evil.
5753 `avah (aw-vaw'); a primitive root; to crook, literally or figuratively (as follows):
KJV-- do amiss, bow down, make crooked, commit iniquity, pervert, (do) perverse (-ly), trouble, X turn, do wickedly, do wrong.

Back when God gave this law, graven images were made a lot. Now a days we have new things that can become an idol to us. Anything that comes between you and your love for God has become an idol to you. It could be your spouse, house, car, boat, job, friends, rock star etc. We are to always love God more than we love anything else.

III

V7 Thou shalt not take the name of the LORD thy God in vain; for the LORD will not hold him guiltless that taketh His name in vain.

Vain 7723 shav' (shawv); or shav (shav); from the same as 7722 in the sense of desolating; evil (as destructive), literally (ruin) or morally (especially guile); figuratively idolatry (as false, subjective), uselessness (as deceptive, objective; also adverbially, in vain)

If we are not talking directly to God or Jesus Christ or talking to some one about Them, we are taking the names of Them in vain. The next time you are with some people, count to yourself how many times they use the names God, Lord or Jesus Christ in their conversation. Were they praying to Them or talking to you about Them? If not, they were using the names in vain. Another way people take God's name in vain is using it with curse words. It is used so much that way that sadly most people do not even give it a second thought now a days.

V8 Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy.
V9 Six days shalt thou labour, and do all thy work:
V10 But the seventh day is the sabbath of the LORD thy God: in it thou shalt not do any work, thou, nor thy son, nor thy daughter, thy manservant, nor thy maidservant, nor thy cattle, nor thy stranger that is within thy gates:
V11 For in six days the LORD made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them is, and rested the seventh day: wherefore the LORD blessed the sabbath day, and hallowed it.

Jesus Christ has become our Sabbath. For more information on the Sabbath, try our Sabbath study.

V12 Honour thy father and thy mother: that thy days may be long upon the land which the LORD thy God giveth thee.

Honour 3513 kabad (kaw-bad'); or kabed (kaw-bade'); a primitive root; to be heavy, i.e. in a bad sense (burdensome, severe, dull) or in a good sense (numerous, rich, honorable; causatively, to make weighty (in the same two senses)

If our mom and dad do things that are pleasing to God, we should hold them in high respect.

Ephesians 6:1-4
V1 Children, obey your parents in the Lord: for this is right.
V2 Honour thy father and mother; (which is the first commandment with promise;)
V3 That it may be well with thee, and thou mayest live long on the earth.
V4 And, ye fathers, provoke not your children to wrath: but bring them up in the nurture and admonition of the Lord.

Colossians 3:20-21
V20 Children, obey your parents in all things: for this is well pleasing unto the Lord.
V21 Fathers, provoke not your children to anger, lest they be discouraged.

V13 Thou shalt not kill.

Kill 7523 ratsach (raw-tsakh'); a primitive root; properly, to dash in pieces, i.e. kill (a human being), especially to murder.

This was a bad translation, the word should be murder and not kill. There is a huge difference between killing a person and murdering them. If a person premeditates or would murder in anger they are to be put to death.

Numbers 35:16-21
V16 And if he smite him with an instrument of iron, so that he die, he is a murderer: the murderer shall surely be put to death.
V17 And if he smite him with throwing a stone, wherewith he may die, and he die, he is a murderer: the murderer shall surely be put to death.
V18 Or if he smite him with an hand weapon of wood, wherewith he may die, and he die, he is a murderer: the murderer shall surely be put to death.
V19 The revenger of blood himself shall slay the murderer: when he meeteth him, he shall slay him.
V20 But if he thrust him of hatred, or hurl at him by laying of wait, that he die;
V21 Or in enmity smite him with his hand, that he die: he that smote him shall surely be put to death; for he is a murderer: the revenger of blood shall slay the murderer, when he meeteth him.

If a person is killed by accident by some one that did not hate them in the past, they are not to be put to death.

Deuteronomy 19:4-6
V4 And this is the case of the slayer, which shall flee thither, that he may live: Whoso killeth his neighbour ignorantly, whom he hated not in time past;
V5 As when a man goeth into the wood with his neighbour to hew wood, and his hand fetcheth a stroke with the axe to cut down the tree, and the head slippeth from the helve, and lighteth upon his neighbour, that he die; he shall flee unto one of those cities, and live:
V6 Lest the avenger of the blood pursue the slayer, while his heart is hot, and overtake him, because the way is long, and slay him; whereas he was not worthy of death, inasmuch as he hated him not in time past.

Some may say that this is the Old Testament and that Jesus Christ has changed the law. Lets read what Jesus Christ has to say about that.

Matthew 5:17-18
V17 Think not that I am come to destroy the law, or the prophets: I am not come to destroy, but to fulfil.
V18 For verily I say unto you, Till heaven and earth pass, one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass from the law, till all be fulfilled.

Jot 2503 iota (ee-o'-tah); of Hebrew origin [the tenth letter of the Hebrew alphabet]; "iota", the name of the eighth letter of the Greek alphabet, put (figuratively) for a very small part of anything:

Tittle 2762 keraia (ker-ah'-yah); feminine of a presumed derivative of the base of 2768; something horn-like, i.e. (specially) the apex of a Hebrew letter (figuratively, the least particle)

For more information on this, see our Capital Punishment study.

VII

V14 Thou shalt not commit adultery.

Adultery 5003 na'aph (naw-af'); a primitive root; to commit adultery; figuratively, to apostatize: KJV-- adulterer (-ess), commit (-ing) adultery, woman that breaketh wedlock.

When you are married, you are only to have sexual relations with your spouse. In Matthew 5:27-30 Jesus Christ said that if we look upon a married women to the point of lusting after her, we have already committed adultery with her in our heart. For the ones that are not married and think it's ok to have relations with any one and every one you want, think again. Paul speaking about the unmarried in I Corinthians 7:8-9 said if we can not control ourselves, it is better to get married than to burn. For more information on fornication, read I Corinthians 6:12 to 7:17

VIII

V15 Thou shalt not steal.

Steal 1589 ganab (gaw-nab'); a primitive root; to thieve (literally or figuratively); by implication, to deceive: KJV-- carry away, X indeed, secretly bring, steal (away), get by stealth.

If it is not yours to begin with, you have no right in taking it. Even what we think is no big deal like taking a pen from the office is stealing.

V16 Thou shalt not bear false witness against thy neighbour.

Bear 6030 `anah (aw-naw'); a primitive root; properly, to eye or (generally) to heed, i.e. pay attention; by implication, to respond; by extens. to begin to speak; specifically to sing, shout, testify, announce:

False 8267 sheqer (sheh'-ker); from 8266; an untruth; by implication, a sham (often adverbial): KJV-- without a cause, deceit (-ful), false (-hood, -ly), feignedly, liar, + lie, lying, vain (thing), wrongfully.
8266 shaqar (shaw-kar'); a primitive root; to cheat, i.e. be untrue (usually in words): KJV-- fail, deal falsely, lie.

Witness 5707 `ed (ayd); contracted from 5749 concretely, a witness; abstractly, testimony; specifically, a recorder, i.e. prince:
5749 `uwd (ood); a primitive root; to duplicate or repeat; by implication, to protest, testify (as by reiteration); intensively, to encompass, restore (as a sort of reduplication)

We are not to speak lies or spread rumors about others but to always tell the truth.

V17 Thou shalt not covet thy neighbour's house, thou shalt not covet thy neighbour's wife, nor his manservant, nor his maidservant, nor his ox, nor his ass, nor any thing that is thy neighbour's.

Covet 2530 chamad (khaw-mad'); a primitive root; to delight in: KJV-- beauty, greatly beloved, covet, delectable thing, (X great) delight, desire, goodly, lust, (be) pleasant (thing), precious (thing).

We are not to greatly desire the things that other people have but be happy with the blessings that God has given us.

The Ten Commandments are some of the laws that God has given us to live by. Following the Ten Commandments not only makes God happy, but also helps us stay out of trouble. Jesus Christ did not do away with the Ten Commandments. Everyday we should do are best to follow the Ten Commandments.

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updated 10-9-99
posted 3-24-98