ETB Exodus 20:1-17

Cedric Chafee
ETB Winter 2025  •  Sermon  •  Submitted   •  Presented
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Session 7: 1/12/2025 God’s Commands p.64
Do you ever wonder about the bizarre warnings that come with some products? Reading those, do you think, What caused someone to think this warning was necessary? Like the instructions on a lawnmower: Do Not Use for Trimming Hedge. Or an iron: Do Not Iron Clothing Items While Wearing Them. Companies include these types of warnings so they won’t be sued. But you must wonder if someone tried these things first and the companies added the warning to prevent somebody else from doing the same thing. [ETB:PSG Win'25]
God however did not have to “wait” for someone to misuse a product but sees all of time and all His Creation at once. He then decided to use His servant Moses to share with all people 10 rules of life that He deemed to be beneficial enough for His people that He wrote them in stone with His “finger.” We have read about and maybe even memorized these commandments, but God can use His Word to show us new areas to apply them every time we read them.

Understand the Context

After the complaining at Rephidim in last week’s lesson, God used His people to defeat the Amalekites in Chapter 17.
In Chapter 18, Jethro, Moses’s father-in-law helps the Prophet/Judge/Leader see the benefit of delegating some of the leadership roles to some of the other “trustworthy” men in the congregation.
In Chapter 19 the nation had made their way to Mount Sinai and God began revealing Himself from the mountain top in the form of “thunders and lightnings and a thick cloud on the mountain and a very loud trumpet blast, so that all the people in the camp trembled.” The people are warned not to approach, and Moses goes up to hear from God and return with His words.
Chapter 20 begins with the first account of the “Decalogue” or “The Ten Words.”

Explore the Text

Exodus 20:1–2 ESV
1 And God 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 slavery.
Ask: Why do you think God introduced the commandments by reminding the people of who He is and what He has done? p.66
I liked Moody’s synopsis of the verses the best of any that I read this week.
The Moody Bible Commentary 1. Preamble (20:1–2)

The opening words of the Decalogue proclaim three great theological truths: The Lord is the God who speaks (in words), He is self-revealing, the God who relates: I am the LORD your God (emphasis added). The Lord is the God who acts, He is the God who redeems, who brought you out.

God does not change, and He continues to speak through His Word to us in a personal way and acts on our behalf. His redemption was completed through His Son and that proves His active, personal, love for all people. Not everyone accepts this and that makes His actions more astounding.
Transition: Having reiterated His authority; He was ready to reveal His expectations for the people Israel which included new ways of living and thinking.
Paul in the New Testament said that the way to get rid of the old sinful patterns is to replace them with godly ones.
Ephesians 4:22–24 “22 to put off your old self, which belongs to your former manner of life and is corrupt through deceitful desires, 23 and to be renewed in the spirit of your minds, 24 and to put on the new self, created after the likeness of God in true righteousness and holiness.”
As we read through and discuss these commandments most are worded in the “put off” or negative form. Think also about the “put on” or positive form of each.
Exodus 20:3–11 ESV
3 “You shall have no other gods before me. 4 “You shall not make for yourself a carved image, or any likeness of anything that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth. 5 You shall not bow down to them or serve them, for I the Lord your God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children to the third and the fourth generation of those who hate me, 6 but showing steadfast love to thousands of those who love me and keep my commandments. 7 “You shall not take the name of the Lord your God in vain, for the Lord will not hold him guiltless who takes his name in vain. 8 “Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy. 9 Six days you shall labor, and do all your work, 10 but the seventh day is a Sabbath to the Lord your God. On it you shall not do any work, you, or your son, or your daughter, your male servant, or your female servant, or your livestock, or the sojourner who is within your gates. 11 For in six days the Lord made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that is in them, and rested on the seventh day. Therefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath day and made it holy.
Describe the horizontal and vertical dimensions of the Ten Commandments. The first four commandments focus on our relationship with God (vv. 3-11); the last six commandments relate to our relationships with one another (vv. 12-17). [ETB:ALG Spr'24]
I have heard these divisions and other groupings of the Ten Commandments over the years. My personal favorite is that all 10 are about honoring God with obedience. The first few are about honoring God with obedient worship and the last few are about honoring God in our relationships by obeying the boundaries He sets. All ten are about obeying God.

The future of the Indicative is by Hebrew idiom frequently used for the Imperative. When this is the case, the Imperative is very forcible and emphatic; not being so much a mere command as the assertion of a fact which could hardly be otherwise. All the ten commandments are in this form.

1. No other Gods before me

Even though this commandment does not comment on whether these “other gods” might have some real existence, Moses’ statement to a later generation makes clear that only “the LORD is God; there is no other besides him” (Deut. 4:35, 39; see also Ps. 86:10; Isa. 44:6, 8; 45:5, 6, 18; and 1 Cor. 8:4–6).

What is the positive way to state this first commandment?
Mark 12:28–30 “28 And one of the scribes came up and heard them disputing with one another, and seeing that he answered them well, asked him, “Which commandment is the most important of all?” 29 Jesus answered, “The most important is, ‘Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. 30 And you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.’”
1 Corinthians 8:6 “6 yet for us there is one God, the Father, from whom are all things and for whom we exist, and one Lord, Jesus Christ, through whom are all things and through whom we exist.”
Moody reminds us that this commandment is one that “prohibits the honoring of any other entity, real or imaginary, as God.”

Today we can allow many things to become gods to us. Money, fame, work, or pleasure can become gods when we concentrate too much on them for personal identity, meaning, and security. No one sets out with the intention of worshiping these things. But by the amount of time we devote to them, they can grow into gods that ultimately control our thoughts and energies. Letting God hold the central place in our lives keeps these things from turning into gods.

The Ten Commandments is the only law of antiquity that forbids the worship of other gods. All other codes and cultures allowed, even encouraged, the worship of other deities. Why?

2. You shall not make for yourself a carved image or… bow down to them or serve them

This rejection of making a physical representation of God is called “aniconism.”

Although textual accurate, “carved” is not the same contextually as “graven”. One is viewed as a trinket or decoration, something you buy at a gift shop to remember the occasion. But an idol, or “divine image” (which is how the Hebrew word is more often translated in Scripture) is an item of worship. That was the intent behind the prohibition as the rest of the verses explain.
What is the positive way to state this?
John 4:24 “24 God is spirit, and those who worship him must worship in spirit and truth.””
Philippians 2:9–10 “9 Therefore God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name that is above every name, 10 so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth,”
Matthew 4:10 “10 Then Jesus said to him, “Be gone, Satan! For it is written, “ ‘You shall worship the Lord your God and him only shall you serve.’ ””
As added emphasis to the commandment, the Lord states a reason for this prohibition “I the Lord your God am a jealous God.”
This phrase proves that jealously is not “unholy” or “sinful” by itself, for God could not be jealous if it could not be done in a holy way. This links back to the first commandment and shows His reaction to our sin when we place anything else above Him. Lovingly and in righteous manner He longs and acts to regain that prominence in our heart and life. He knows exactly what will happen if He does not get it back and loves us so much that He does not want that to occur.

This passage does not suggest that future innocents will be held morally accountable for the sins of ancestors but refers to the mutual consequences of sins.

The rest of the verse describes this condition of misplaced worship as a generational issue. I am beginning to see this myself. A former pastor said, “What the parents do in moderation, the children will do in excess.” I see the children, whose parents barely went to church, having no interest in anything of any holy value. Idol worship, physical like these totems, or less material like careers, is a learned pattern of increasing decay.
ESV states the benefit going to “thousands” or a “thousand generations” but it could also be “thousands of generations” both of which point to the exhaustible blessings of the Lord.
Interestingly, if a generation is considered about 60 years, we are still within the “1000 generations” from the time these verses were being explained the first time and are therefore still reaping the blessing from it. Jesus made sure that blessing was extended by His work on the cross.
The Moody Bible Commentary b. No Idols (20:4–6)

Clearly, the imbalance of the consequence for obedience, blessings for thousands, as opposed to consequences for rebellion to three or four generations, shows that the Lord is not a vengeful God but He practices lovingkindness, being merciful and gracious. He loves His people and desires their best, and He is their best.

3. You shall not take the name of the Lord your God in vain
This is the one I had to think about the longest to state in a positive form. Scripture has some positive examples of using the Lord’s name.
Genesis 22:16 “16 and said, “By myself I have sworn, declares the Lord, because you have done this and have not withheld your son, your only son,”
Deuteronomy 6:13 “13 It is the Lord your God you shall fear. Him you shall serve and by his name you shall swear.”
Matthew records Jesus’ words that clarify the intent of this commandment to some extent.
Matthew 5:33–37 “33 “Again you have heard that it was said to those of old, ‘You shall not swear falsely, but shall perform to the Lord what you have sworn.’ 34 But I say to you, Do not take an oath at all, either by heaven, for it is the throne of God, 35 or by the earth, for it is his footstool, or by Jerusalem, for it is the city of the great King. 36 And do not take an oath by your head, for you cannot make one hair white or black. 37 Let what you say be simply ‘Yes’ or ‘No’; anything more than this comes from evil.”
Not only can the Lord’s name be misused verbally, but actions can be deemed as blaspheming God also.
2 Samuel 12:14 “14 Nevertheless, because by this deed you have utterly scorned the Lord, the child who is born to you shall die.””
Romans 2:23–24 “23 You who boast in the law dishonor God by breaking the law. 24 For, as it is written, “The name of God is blasphemed among the Gentiles because of you.””
The reverse of this Romans verse is the best “positive statement” I could imagine.
Colossians 4:5 “5 Walk in wisdom toward outsiders, making the best use of the time.”
James 5:12 “12 But above all, my brothers, do not swear, either by heaven or by earth or by any other oath, but let your “yes” be yes and your “no” be no, so that you may not fall under condemnation.”
for the Lord will not hold him guiltless
Other commandments have explanations and a couple have additional blessings.
How serious does God take the use of His name to have this the only commandment with a promise of judgment?

Yahweh is warning Israel against using his name as if it were disconnected from his person, presence, and power.

Mock Buddha and you’ll hear from the ACLU. Make fun of an Indian religion and you’ll be politically incorrect. But use the name of Jesus Christ in any manner whatsoever and no one will even raise an eyebrow

4. Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy
Ask: What does keeping the Sabbath look like for Christians today? Why is this commandment still important for believers? (p. 69)
Here is one of the positive commands.
How would you word it in the negative? What is this verse telling us “not to do?”
“Do not spend all your days on this world”
Hebrews 10:24–25 “24 And let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works, 25 not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near.”
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Exodus 20:12–17 ESV
12 “Honor your father and your mother, that your days may be long in the land that 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 bear false witness against your neighbor. 17 “You shall not covet your neighbor’s house; you shall not covet your neighbor’s wife, or his male servant, or his female servant, or his ox, or his donkey, or anything that is your neighbor’s.”
5. Honor your father and your mother
This is the only other “non-prohibitive” commandment. Maybe it is because we have tendency to do the negative.
Proverbs 15:5 “5 A fool despises his father’s instruction, but whoever heeds reproof is prudent.”
that your days may be long in the land
“Do not dishonor your parents or it will cut your life short.”
Hebrew prepositions rely heavily on context for their translation into English but sometimes they can be unclear.
“In the land”, “on the land,” and “upon the land” are all correct but each implies something slightly different and can shift the blessing expected by obeying this commandment.
Jer 35:7 “in the land” does not imply that the land is yours, but your life will be blessed wherever you are living.
“On” and “Upon” connect the blessing to the ground with its produce in which you honor your parents.
Ask: What does honoring parents look like for adult children?
How can adult children practically honor their parents, especially if their relationship is strained?
Honor is related to the word “glorify” and is the opposite of despising or treating dismissively as insignificant or unimportant. There is a time for children to “leave” father and mother (Gen. 2:24), but they should always demonstrate respect and compassion. An important application is providing for them when they can no longer care for themselves. [ETB:ALG Win'25]
6. You shall not murder.
Treat all life as holy.
Romans 13:9 “9 For the commandments, “You shall not commit adultery, You shall not murder, You shall not steal, You shall not covet,” and any other commandment, are summed up in this word: “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.””
Psalm 63:9 “9 But those who seek to destroy my life shall go down into the depths of the earth;”
7. You shall not commit adultery
Cleave to your spouse in faithful matrimony.
Job 31:1 “1 “I have made a covenant with my eyes; how then could I gaze at a virgin?”
Romans 7:2 “2 For a married woman is bound by law to her husband while he lives, but if her husband dies she is released from the law of marriage.”
1 Corinthians 6:18 “18 Flee from sexual immorality. Every other sin a person commits is outside the body, but the sexually immoral person sins against his own body.”
Hebrews 13:4 “4 Let marriage be held in honor among all, and let the marriage bed be undefiled, for God will judge the sexually immoral and adulterous.”
8. You shall not steal
This is one is little harder to state in the positive as it depends on what you consider the opposite of “stealing.” Is it giving to others?
Psalm 37:21 “21 The wicked borrows but does not pay back, but the righteous is generous and gives;”
Psalm 62:10 “10 Put no trust in extortion; set no vain hopes on robbery; if riches increase, set not your heart on them.”
Malachi 3:8 “8 Will man rob God? Yet you are robbing me. But you say, ‘How have we robbed you?’ In your tithes and contributions.”
Matthew 22:21 “21 They said, “Caesar’s.” Then he said to them, “Therefore render to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s, and to God the things that are God’s.””
Ephesians 4:28 “28 Let the thief no longer steal, but rather let him labor, doing honest work with his own hands, so that he may have something to share with anyone in need.”
9. You shall not bear false witness
Tell the truth in love.
Ephesians 4:25 “25 Therefore, having put away falsehood, let each one of you speak the truth with his neighbor, for we are members one of another.”
Ephesians 4:31–32 “31 Let all bitterness and wrath and anger and clamor and slander be put away from you, along with all malice. 32 Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you.”
1 Peter 2:1 “1 So put away all malice and all deceit and hypocrisy and envy and all slander.”
Speaking the truth, even when it may not be easy, is to show Christ’s love.
John 14:6 “6 Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.”
The Moody Bible Commentary e. Do Not Lie (20:16)

Lying is a denial that truth is always right. It is a denial of God’s character and of His attributes.

Proverbs 12:17 “17 Whoever speaks the truth gives honest evidence, but a false witness utters deceit.”
For Christians it to have a false witness brought against them is to be put in good company.
Matthew 5:11 “11 “Blessed are you when others revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account.”
1 Peter 4:14 “14 If you are insulted for the name of Christ, you are blessed, because the Spirit of glory and of God rests upon you.”
10. You shall not covet
Be content with God’s provisions
1 Timothy 6:6–8 “6 But godliness with contentment is great gain, 7 for we brought nothing into the world, and we cannot take anything out of the world. 8 But if we have food and clothing, with these we will be content.”
covet your neighbor’s house
Your neighbor’s house would include the land upon which is resides, possibly linking this back to verse 12 promise of prosperity “on your land.”
Coveting your neighbor’s wife definitely links back to verse 14 in attitude and intent.
Coveting in any form also points to our dissatisfaction of God’s provisions, which are complete in Christ.
Romans 8:32 “32 He who did not spare his own Son but gave him up for us all, how will he not also with him graciously give us all things?”

Because of the way that coveting values a particular thing over trust in and obedience to the Lord as the provider, it is also a breach of the first commandment, which the apostle Paul makes clear when he refers to coveting as idolatry (Eph. 5:5; Col. 3:5).

Psalm 119:36 “36 Incline my heart to your testimonies, and not to selfish gain!”
Ecclesiastes 5:10 “10 He who loves money will not be satisfied with money, nor he who loves wealth with his income; this also is vanity.”

To covet is to wish to have the possessions of others. It goes beyond simply admiring someone else’s possessions or thinking, “I’d like to have one of those.” Coveting includes envy—resenting the fact that others have what you don’t. God knows, however, that possessions never make anyone happy for long. Since only God can supply all our needs, true contentment is found only in him. When you begin to covet, try to determine if a more basic need is leading you to envy. For example, you may covet someone’s success, not because you want to take it away from him, but because you would like to feel as appreciated by others as he is. If this is the case, pray that God will help you deal with your resentment and meet your basic needs.

Matthew 6:24 “24 “No one can serve two masters, for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and money.”
Matthew 16:26 “26 For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world and forfeits his soul? Or what shall a man give in return for his soul?”

Apply the Text

Some have asked why should keep these “Old Testament” commandments. Isn’t that “legalistic?” I liked Courson’s illustration the best.

There is a rule I keep every single day. That is, in the morning—every morning—I brush my teeth. You might call this legalism. But I find it to be exceedingly refreshing. Not only that, it also releases me from philosophical questioning. I never once ask, “To brush, or not to brush? Do I have time? Is this the right day? Does brushing apply to me?” I could waste a great deal of energy debating and wondering if I should brush my teeth, but because brushing my teeth is a non-negotiable rule for me, I am released from all kinds of mental turmoil. And not only does brushing my teeth refresh and release me, but it relieves those around me. Thus, it’s a win-win-win situation. The same is true of God’s Law. It is the way I experience His love personally and express my love practically.

Pray: Remind us that loving You with a whole heart is the key first step toward keeping all Your commandments. Thank You for revealing Yourself to us and providing us with identity based on Your desire to relate with us individually. Help us to become more undivided in our devotion to You and Your ways. Guide us to be the best representatives of Your Kingdom that we can be so that Your name is honored and magnified.
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