Commandment One

Commandments = Ten Words

The Bible Knowledge Commentary 20:1–2

The Ten Commandments are an excellent summary of 10 divine rules for human conduct. They might be called rules of (1) religion, (2) worship, (3) reverence, (4) time, (5) authority, (6) life, (7) purity, (8) property, (9) tongue, and (10) contentment.

b. The first commandment (20:3)

20:3. The first of the Ten Commandments is that Israel was to worship the one true God. Worshiping false gods would be setting up rivals to Him (before Me may mean “in opposition to Me” as well as “in My presence”) and thus overlooking His uniqueness (cf. vv. 22–23). Unfortunately Israel often disobeyed this very first command by worshiping the idols of other nations. This eventually resulted in her being exiled to Assyria and Babylonia.

The Decalogue, more commonly known as the Ten Commandments, is a fundamental element of the Christian life. It is also the core truth of Jewish law. The Law has never been a means of Saving Grace, but rather a standard by which humanity is measured through sin and obedience. Remember “There is none righteous, no, not one, -Rom. 3:10”

Exodus 20:1–3 1. And God spake all these words, saying, 2. I am the LORD thy God, which have brought thee out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage. 3. Thou shalt have no other gods before me.

Intro

1. The Word came directly from Yahweh

Nineveh the only City Zephaniah 2:15 “This is the exultant city that lived securely, that said in her heart, “I am, and there is no one else.” What a desolation she has become, a lair for wild beasts! Everyone who passes by her hisses and shakes his fist.”

I AM the LORD

Genesis 15:7  And he said unto him, I am the LORD that brought thee out of Ur of the Chaldees, to give thee this land to inherit it.

Exodus 3:13–15 13.  And Moses said unto God, Behold, when I come unto the children of Israel, and shall say unto them, The God of your fathers hath sent me unto you; and they shall say to me, What is his name? what shall I say unto them? 14. And God said unto Moses, I AM THAT I AM: and he said, Thus shalt thou say unto the children of Israel, I AM hath sent me unto you. 15. And God said moreover unto Moses, Thus shalt thou say unto the children of Israel, The LORD God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, hath sent me unto you: this is my name for ever, and this is my memorial unto all generations.

Jesus proclaims “I AM”

John 18:6 “When Jesus said to them, “I am he,” they drew back and fell to the ground.”

2. The reminder of their pat was one of:

a. Bondage

Exodus 1:8–12 “Now there arose a new king over Egypt, who did not know Joseph. And he said to his people, “Behold, the people of Israel are too many and too mighty for us. Come, let us deal shrewdly with them, lest they multiply, and, if war breaks out, they join our enemies and fight against us and escape from the land.” Therefore they set taskmasters over them to afflict them with heavy burdens. They built for Pharaoh store cities, Pithom and Raamses. But the more they were oppressed, the more they multiplied and the more they spread abroad. And the Egyptians were in dread of the people of Israel.”

b. Freedom

Exodus 14:18–19 “And the Egyptians shall know that I am the Lord, when I have gotten glory over Pharaoh, his chariots, and his horsemen.” Then the angel of God who was going before the host of Israel moved and went behind them, and the pillar of cloud moved from before them and stood behind them,”

Chapter 15: Bitter Water Made Sweet

Chapter 16: Manna from Heaven and Quail

Chapter 17: Water From The Rock

1. The Commandment was non-negotiable

SHAMA Deuteronomy 6:4 ““Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one.”

a. As a nation

Deuteronomy 11:26–28 ““See, I am setting before you today a blessing and a curse: the blessing, if you obey the commandments of the Lord your God, which I command you today, and the curse, if you do not obey the commandments of the Lord your God, but turn aside from the way that I am commanding you today, to go after other gods that you have not known.”

b. Individually

Numbers 16:31–34 “And as soon as he had finished speaking all these words, the ground under them split apart. And the earth opened its mouth and swallowed them up, with their households and all the people who belonged to Korah and all their goods. So they and all that belonged to them went down alive into Sheol, and the earth closed over them, and they perished from the midst of the assembly. And all Israel who were around them fled at their cry, for they said, “Lest the earth swallow us up!””

2. The Commandment references “other gods”

The Hebrew text of the OT uses the term elohim to refer to five different entities—even though this distinction is rarely clear in English translations:

1. Yahweh, the God of Israel (more than 2,000 times)

2. The gods of Yahweh’s heavenly council, both loyal and disloyal (Pss 82; 89; compare Deut 32:8–9, 43; Psa 58:11)

3. The gods of foreign nations (e.g., 1 Kgs 11:33)

4. Demons (Deut 32:17)

5. Spirits of dead people (1 Sam 28:13)

6. Angels (see note on Gen 35:7)

Other gods

Deuteronomy 32:17 “They sacrificed to demons that were no gods, to gods they had never known, to new gods that had come recently, whom your fathers had never dreaded.”

Deuteronomy 17:3 “and has gone and served other gods and worshiped them, or the sun or the moon or any of the host of heaven, which I have forbidden,”

1 Kings 22:19–23 “And Micaiah said, “Therefore hear the word of the Lord: I saw the Lord sitting on his throne, and all the host of heaven standing beside him on his right hand and on his left; and the Lord said, ‘Who will entice Ahab, that he may go up and fall at Ramoth-gilead?’ And one said one thing, and another said another. Then a spirit came forward and stood before the Lord, saying, ‘I will entice him.’ And the Lord said to him, ‘By what means?’ And he said, ‘I will go out, and will be a lying spirit in the mouth of all his prophets.’ And he said, ‘You are to entice him, and you shall succeed; go out and do so.’ Now therefore behold, the Lord has put a lying spirit in the mouth of all these your prophets; the Lord has declared disaster for you.””

Deuteronomy 4:19–20 “And beware lest you raise your eyes to heaven, and when you see the sun and the moon and the stars, all the host of heaven, you be drawn away and bow down to them and serve them, things that the Lord your God has allotted to all the peoples under the whole heaven. But the Lord has taken you and brought you out of the iron furnace, out of Egypt, to be a people of his own inheritance, as you are this day.”

Deuteronomy 32:8–9 “When the Most High gave to the nations their inheritance, when he divided mankind, he fixed the borders of the peoples according to the number of the sons of God. But the Lord’s portion is his people, Jacob his allotted heritage.”

Psalm 82 “A Psalm of Asaph. God has taken his place in the divine council; in the midst of the gods he holds judgment: “How long will you judge unjustly and show partiality to the wicked? Selah Give justice to the weak and the fatherless; maintain the right of the afflicted and the destitute. Rescue the weak and the needy; deliver them from the hand of the wicked.” They have neither knowledge nor understanding, they walk about in darkness; all the foundations of the earth are shaken. I said, “You are gods, sons of the Most High, all of you; nevertheless, like men you shall die, and fall like any prince.” Arise, O God, judge the earth; for you shall inherit all the nations!”

3. The Commandment was jealous in nature

Exodus 34:14 “(for you shall worship no other god, for the Lord, whose name is Jealous, is a jealous God),”

Deuteronomy 4:35 “To you it was shown, that you might know that the Lord is God; there is no other besides him.”

Exodus 15:11 ““Who is like you, O Lord, among the gods? Who is like you, majestic in holiness, awesome in glorious deeds, doing wonders?”