Kristin Lee
(1B) The Decalogue
Reli 110-03 Spring 2014
Dr. Starbuck
Word Count = 000
The Decalogue surfaces primarily in two parts of the Torah: Ex. 20 and Deut. 5. Even though there are multiple accounts of the Decalogue, they consist of the same general points. The Decalogue is the account of the covenant made between the Lord and the Israelites through Moses’ leadership on Mount Sinai. This Covenant outlined the definitive expectations that the Lord had for his people. Although there are several other legal collections mentioned throughout Exodus, the Decalogue was specifically written and placed before all other laws in order to effectively convey the most important ordinances that should be followed according to the Lord.
In order to find the true meaning of the Decalogue, both passages must be compared. In both Ex. 20:1-17 and Deut. 5, the Ten Commandments are listed beginning with “I am the LORD your God…” and ending with “You shall not covet…anything that belongs to your neighbor.” The order of the Commandments is identical, but specific wording varies between both versions. In the Exodus account, God spoke the words to the people; whereas, in the Deuteronomy account, Moses spoke to Israel. This crucial difference indicates that there was a gap between God speaking the Commandments to Moses and Moses speaking the Commandments to the Israelites. Another difference between the two passages is located in the fourth Commandment where it states, “Remember the sabbath day, and keep it holy,” (Ex. 20:8). This differs from the Deuteronomy excerpt, which states, “Observe the sabbath day and keep it holy, as the LORD your God commanded you,” because of the key words “observe” and “remember.” Frequently in the Deuteronomy story, ...
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...west importance. Granted, every Commandment is equally necessary and valuable, but the Lord began with “…you shall have no other gods before me” for a reason (Ex. 20:3).
The Decalogue passages reveal that there is a fundamental purpose of organization and order. By finding the true meaning of the Decalogue through analysis of both the Exodus and Deuteronomy accounts, as well as observation of framework structure, the Commandments reveal a deeper understand of the Lord’s message. Even though the Israelites had various other legal collections, the laws presented in the Ten Commandments were specifically placed at the beginning of the excerpts in order to solidify the true purpose of the Covenant God made with the Israelites. By not making punishments a priority, the Lord created a more sustainable relationship with His people, thus effectively conveying His message.
The First Commandment. The first commandment is Thou shalt have no other gods before me.
Yet these foreigners were not required to keep most of the ceremonial aspects of the Mosaic law (Ex. 12:43,44,48; 9:33; Deut. 14:21). Only the circumcised were allowed to participate in the Passover, the old covenant communion meal. The two "marks of the covenant" separated members of the "church" from members of the "state." There was also a separation between the priests of the ceremonial law, the Levites, and the magistrates of the civil law, the elders and judges (Lev. 14:35; 27:11; Deut. 1:16; 16:18; 19:12; 21:2; 25:1).
How did people revere their gods differently among three civilizations? Did they worship with the same general intent? What were gods’ role(s) in people’s lives? A brief exploration into the religions of Egypt, Greece, and the Hebrew people may bring insight to these questions. Although the main idea of higher beings remains constant throughout societies’ religion, their form of presence in people’s lives varies. I will present the relationship between the leaders and the gods, as well as resemblance to monotheism and systems of government.
1. I, the Lord, am your God. You shall not have other gods besides me.
In chapter two, Jones covers how the law reflects the nature of God. Furthermore, he holds that God uses the law as a measure where humans will be judged. The author holds up the idea that general revelation its plentiful to bring salvation to the wicked heart of men. He comments, “natural law can simply be understood as the basic framework of moral order discernible through general revelation” (32). In the next chapter, the writer deals with the theological tension between the law and the Gospel. He suggests that semi-continuity approaches the most biblical method. Jones concludes that the law can be divided into three main sections: ceremonial law, civil law and moral law. Affirming that a Christian is not subjected anymore to the first two laws because they have been fulfilled in Jesus
Many scriptures found in Deuteronomy along with several scriptures in the Old and New Testament point to Moses as being the author of Deuteronomy. One main verse that points to Moses as being the author of Deuteronomy is 31:9 which states, “9 Then Moses wrote this law and gave it to the priests, the sons of Levi, who carried the ark of the covenant of the LORD, and to all the elders of Israel. The book of Deuteronomy never clearly states who the author is, but by all viewing all other scripture and the scripture found in the book of Deuteronomy Moses seems to be the only person that could have possibly written the book of Deuteronomy. Moses audiences in this book are the tribes of Israel. Many Jewish scholars who interpret the book of Deuteronomy believe that Moses audience were the elders of each tribe who delivered what Moses had spoke. The starting date of Deuteronomy is 1451 BC. Moses gives three speeches throughout this book, but there are five parts that make up the covenant renewal. The five parts of the covenant renewal that take place in Deuteronomy are the Preamble, Historical Prologue, Terms, Sanctions, and Ratifications. The Ten Commandments are given to people of Israel in the book of Deuteronomy. Deuteronomy is all about renewing the covenant between God and His people. God spoke to Moses and used Moses to speak to the people of Israel. The covenant renewal took place in the desert which was east of the Jordan River. Everything that took place in the book of Deuteronomy was in the Plains of Moab and in the crossing of the Jordan River to the Promise Land. The generation of Exodus was no more and Moses now led the new generation. In order for the people of Israel to enter into the Promis...
However, this does make a solid perception that God has chosen Moses as his divine leader and to follow him. The ten commandments were also guidelines in the religious system to create a fair and moral society and gave people structure. Some consequences were similar like the eye for an eye
The Ten Commandments are a set of Commandments, that were inscribed on two stone tablets, which were given to Moses, during the New Testament, Exodus 20:1–17. The 10 Commandments are known to be
Moses is the speaker now, and he says that God made a covenant with them at Horeb. Additionally, he says that last time they would not go up the mountain because they were afraid of the fire. Then, Moses repeats the Decalogue to the Israelites, and he explains that they were written on two stone tablets. Here the third commandment differs from Exodus. Instead of Remember the Sabbath, it states “Observe the sabbath day and keep it holy as the Lord your God commanded you.” (Deut 5:12). In comparison, observe has a more commanding connotation. Furthermore, at the end of the first line of the commandment the text adds as “your God commanded you” (Deut. 5:12,). This sets a more domineering tone and implies that the Israelites will not follow unless commanded. Another key distinction occurs when the texts are describing why one must follow the Sabbath commandment. The text reminds the Israelites that they were once slaves in Egypt and that “God brought [them] out of there with a mighty hand and an outstretched arm” (Deut 5:15). Here God is guilt-tripping the Israelites into following the Sabbath by reminding them of what God did for them in their relationship. Thus, it seems that in Deuteronomy God is attempting to invoke fear in order to convince the Israelites to follow. Nonetheless, Deuteronomy is not only based on the Israelites following God out of fear. It also states that they will change their reasoning to aspire to be similar to God, like Exodus. For instance, when asked what would they tell their children when asked why they follow the Decalogue, they should say that if we follow it “as he has commanded us, we will be in the right.” (Deut 6:25). This indicates that after they followed out of fear that they changed their reasoning to be aspirational. Moses concludes with how they should follow the commandments
Cindy Pereyra The Pentateuch Dr. Luther 5 May 2014 Deuteronomy Study Assignment 1. Read Deuteronomy 16:18-20. a. Describe the requirements of judges in Israel based on this passage. In this passage, the requirements of judges in Israel are shown. The people are told to appoint judges and officers for themselves in all the towns that the Lord is giving to them according to their tribes.
The Mosaic Covenant from exodus is a promise made between God and the nation of Israel at Mount Sinai. To begin with, the pattern of the covenant is very similar to other ancient covenants of that time because it is between God and his people. In the textbook, it explains how the Hebrews have struggled with the pharaoh around 1250 B.C.E. Moses, who was a prince that grew up in the household of the pharaoh, ran away. After returning he led the Hebrew slaves at the bottom of Mount Sinai. God spoke to the Hebrews who he freed them and explained the Ten Commandments. In addition, a quote form the readings “ I am the lord your God who brought you out of the land of Egypt.” (Judaism, pg. 397) This quote is the first commandment stating that he,
The book of Exodus is seen as, the “Second Book of Moses”, as well as the second book in the Pentateuch . The Pentateuch is the first five books of the Old Testament, and is also known as the Torah, or “Law” in Hebrew, which is just one section that makes up the whole Hebrew Bible or Tanak. The Torah consists of Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, and Numbers, and is the beginning sections of the Bible. The other two sections are known as Nevi’im, “Prophets”, and Ketuvim, “Writings”. Upon analysis of the book of Exodus, it is expressively important to consider the historical aspects, literary issues, and theological themes that make up such a book.
The Law of Moses had many different Laws and ordinances that we under the New Testament are not commanded to perform ie. A...
For instance, not all of the Ten Commandants go along with the time we are living in. One of the Ten Commandants says we should not take the name of the Lord in vain and nowadays it’s something we do everyday. In addition, religious followers may decide to act in a harmful or negative way in society and defend themselves by saying that God had commanded them to do it; which may lead to extreme religions, where its followers may take every word of the book to heart and try to implement those views on their society. On another note, our society can have this as our moral system because of different religions and of atheist because, since they believe in other values. With the Divine Command it makes us question on whether who came first, God or right. When comparing the Divine Command with the Minimum Conception, it can be deduced that both are very differing from each other. One of the reasons being that with the Divine Command God chose for us what it’s right or wrong and if it became a moral system, atheists will feel out of place because they have a different set of believe just like other religions.