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Commandments
What Are the
10 Commandments?
by Mike Bennett
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The 10 Commandments are 10
beneficial laws given by God on Mount
Sinai. These commandments show us
how to live a better life now and please
God forever.
“For this is the love of God, that we keep His
commandments. And His commandments are not
burdensome” (1 John 5:3).
The Bible tells us that God Himself spoke the 10
Commandments from Mount Sinai and wrote
them with His own finger on tablets of stone
(Exodus 20:1; 31:18). This adds powerful
emphasis to the subject of the 10 Commandments
in the Bible. What are the 10 Commandments,
and what do they mean?
10 Commandments in order in simple
terms
1. You shall have no other gods before Me.
2. You shall not make idols.
3. You shall not take the name of the LORD your
God in vain.
4. Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy.
5. Honor your father and your mother.
6. You shall not murder.
7. You shall not commit adultery.
8. You shall not steal.
9. You shall not bear false witness against your
neighbor.
10. You shall not covet.
(For a complete list of what are the 10
Commandments in the Bible long form, both in
Exodus 20 and Deuteronomy 5, see our article “10
Commandments List.”)
Jesus Christ explained that the 10
Commandments and all of God’s laws are based
on God’s most prominent characteristic: love.
What are the 10 Commandments? Laws
that show us how to love
God gave humanity the Bible to reveal His way of
life—His way of love. The dos and don’ts of the 10
Commandments God gave on Mount Sinai show
us how to apply love in every aspect of life.
Jesus Christ summarized all of God’s laws in two
great commandments. “‘You shall love the LORD
your God with all your heart, with all your soul,
and with all your mind.’ This is the first and great
commandment. And the second is like it: ‘You
shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ On these two
commandments hang all the Law and the
Prophets” (Matthew 22:37-40).
The 10 Commandments of God expand on these
two great commandments, with the first four
commandments telling us how God wants to be
loved, and the last six commandments showing
how to demonstrate love for other people.
The apostles also clearly illustrated the
connection between the 10 Commandments and
God’s love.
Paul explained: “For the commandments, ‘You
shall not commit adultery,’ ‘You shall not murder,’
You shall not steal,’ ‘You shall not bear false
witness,’ ‘You shall not covet,’ and if there is any
other commandment, are all summed up in this
saying, namely, ‘You shall love your neighbor as
yourself.’ Love does no harm to a neighbor;
therefore love is the fulfillment of the law”
(Romans 13:9-10).
John also wrote: “For this is the love of God, that
we keep His commandments. And His
commandments are not burdensome” (1 John
5:3).
Do you have to obey the 10
Commandments to have eternal life?
God created these laws and they
reflect His thinking. Disobeying
the 10 Commandments shows a
lack of love for God and our fellow
humans.
Jesus taught that obeying the 10 Commandments
is essential for entering into eternal life (Matthew
19:16-19). Why is this? Because God created these
laws and they reflect His thinking. Disobeying the
10 Commandments shows a lack of love for God
and our fellow humans.
Commandment breaking causes suffering and
broken relationships. God, in His love and mercy,
will not allow someone who refuses to obey these
good laws to have eternal life. He doesn’t want
anyone to live forever in a miserable state, causing
suffering for others and himself.
What are the 10 Commandments? Laws
that define sin
The Bible uses the word sin to describe disobeying
God’s laws, including the 10 Commandments.
“Whoever commits sin also commits lawlessness,
and sin is lawlessness” (1 John 3:4). The King
James Version translated the last part, “Sin is the
transgression of the law.”
Sin is the opposite of God’s law—the antithesis of
how God thinks and acts. And, as we mentioned,
sin causes suffering. Its eventual result is death:
“For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God
is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord” (Romans
6:23).
Sadly, every human being has sinned and
disobeyed the 10 Commandments (Romans 3:23;
James 2:10-11). It is only because of the mercy of
God that Jesus Christ was willing to pay our death
penalty for us.
When we repent, Jesus Christ’s blood covers our
sins that are past. But does God’s grace and
forgiveness somehow give us license to continue
doing things that God hates?
No. Christ died so we don’t have to die if we
repent of every sin. He did not keep the law so
that we wouldn’t have to.
God wants us to stop doing the things that hurt
ourselves and others.
The apostle Paul made this very clear.
“What shall we say then? Shall we continue in sin
that grace may abound? Certainly not!” Paul said
(Romans 6:1-2). “Therefore do not let sin reign in
your mortal body, that you should obey it in its
lusts” (verse 12).
Christians are given access to the power of God
through the Holy Spirit to combat the temptations
to sin (Acts 2:38; Galatians 5:16).
The 10 Commandments in the New
Testament
A full list of the 10 Commandments is given twice
in the Old Testament (Exodus 20 and
Deuteronomy 5), and each commandment is
mentioned many more times. But some have
argued that obeying the 10 Commandments is not
required of Christians if they are not listed in the
New Testament.
Actually, the Old and New Testaments make up a
unified whole, and God’s spiritual law and His
thinking do not change (Malachi 3:6; Hebrews
13:8).
Still, all of the 10 Commandments are mentioned
in the New Testament, and as a group they are
called:
The way to “enter into life” (Matthew 19:17-
19).
Necessary to be “called great in the kingdom of
heaven” (Matthew 5:19).
“Holy, just and good” (Romans 7:12).
“Spiritual” (Romans 7:14).
“The royal law” (James 2:8).
“The law of liberty” (James 2:11-12).
“The love of God” (1 John 5:3).
“Not burdensome” (1 John 5:3).
If we are becoming more like Jesus Christ and
practicing God’s way of love, we will fulfill the law
(Romans 13:8-10). The saints, those who will
enter the Kingdom of God, are those who “keep
the commandments of God and the faith of Jesus”
(Revelation 14:12).
As we said, God shows us how to love through the
10 Commandments. (You might also be interested
in reading “The 10 Commandments for Today.”)
Many Christian churches today would agree that
most of the commandments are still important,
but they teach that the 10 Commandments as a
whole no longer apply. Specifically, they feel the
commandment about the Sabbath does not apply
to Christians under the New Covenant.
But the New Testament shows that the apostles
and the New Testament Church continued to
remember the Sabbath day.
What is the Sabbath day? The Sabbath is defined
in Exodus 20:10 as “the seventh day,” today
known as Saturday.
The Sabbath is one of the 10 Commandments that
show us how to love God in the way He wants to
be loved. We can’t figure that out on our own—
only God can tell us how He wants to be loved and
worshipped.
That’s why the New Testament not only shows the
example of Sabbath-keeping Christians, but tells
us, “There remains, then, a Sabbath-rest for the
people of God” (Hebrews 4:9, New International
Version).
For more about the 10 Commandments in the
New Testament, and especially about the Sabbath
commandment and the New Testament Church,
read our articles “Are the 10 Commandments
Upheld in the New Testament?” and “Jewish
Sabbath? Or Is the Sabbath a Gift for All?”
What are the 10 Commandments? The law
of the Kingdom of God
The good news of the Bible is that this age of
human misrule and sin will be replaced by the
Kingdom of God. Jesus Christ will intervene to
save humanity from self-destruction (Matthew
24:21-22). Jesus Christ will bring real peace and
will teach the way of peace that has been so
elusive in human history.
What will the laws of the Kingdom of God be that
will produce peace? The same laws that have been
consistently proclaimed throughout the Bible—
God’s laws, including the 10 Commandments.
Even the last chapter of the Bible, speaking of the
New Jerusalem and eternity, says: “Blessed are
those who do His commandments, that they may
have the right to the tree of life, and may enter
through the gates into the city” (Revelation
22:14).
God’s commandments are part of the way of life
that will produce peace forever!
What are the 10 Commandments? Part of
God’s Old and New Covenants
The 10 Commandments given from Mount Sinai
were a vital part of the Old Covenant—the
agreement between God and the people of Israel.
Israel agreed (Exodus 24:3) to come under God’s
protection (Exodus 23:22) and, in return, to obey,
love and be loyal to Him.
This was not just a national law but an individual
commitment.
The New Bible Dictionary explains, “But there is
no incompatibility between the divine demand
communicated in concrete imperatives and the
call of God to personal commitment to him in
love. Yahweh describes the beneficiaries of his
covenant mercy as ‘those who love me and keep
my commandments’ (Ex. 20:6; cf. Jn. 14:15)”
(1982, “Ten Commandments”).
As Jesus said, “If you love Me, keep My
commandments” (John 14:15).
The New Testament makes clear that God’s law is
also a vital part of the New Covenant, the spiritual
agreement God is making with Christians.
Christians today are also called to obey the 10
Commandments as part of their love and loyalty
to God.
John, the apostle who emphasized love, also
emphasized the importance of God’s
Commandments.
“Now by this we know that we know Him, if we
keep His commandments. He who says, ‘I know
Him,’ and does not keep His commandments, is a
liar, and the truth is not in him” (1 John 2:3-4).
John also wrote of some of the benefits of obeying
God’s commandments: “And whatever we ask we
receive from Him, because we keep His
commandments and do those things that are
pleasing in His sight” (1 John 3:22).
Writing the 10 Commandments on our
hearts and minds
God’s ultimate goal is not to have the 10
Commandments inscribed on tablets of stone, but
to have them written in our hearts and minds so
that we will remember them and always live by
them.
The book of Hebrews shows that the fault with the
old agreement (Old Covenant) between God and
man was not with God or with His law. The fault
was “with them” (Hebrews 8:7-8)—with the
imperfect humans who could not continually obey
these good and beneficial laws.
So what is God’s solution to this problem?
Jeremiah had prophesied about a new agreement
(the New Covenant). What would be the big
change between the old and new? “I will put My
laws in their mind and write them on their hearts”
(Hebrews 8:10, quoting Jeremiah 31:33).
Internalizing the 10 Commandments means we
can grow to think, feel and act in the same way the
Author of those commandments thinks, feels and
acts. This is part of having the mind of Christ
(Philippians 2:5).
Learn more about the 10 Commandments by
studying each commandment and committing to
strive to obey them. For further study, read the
articles in this section: “The 10 Commandments
and God's Way of Life.”
Watch our video series “The 10
Commandments: Transformed by the 10.”
About the Author
Mike Bennett
Mike Bennett is editorial content manager
for the Church of God, a Worldwide
Association, in the Dallas, Texas, area. He
coordinates the Life, Hope & Truth
website, Discern magazine, the Daily Bible
Verse Blog and the Life, Hope & Truth
Weekly Newsletter (including World
Watch Weekly). He is also part of the
Personal Correspondence team of
ministers who have the privilege of
answering questions sent to Life, Hope &
Truth.
Read More
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