Ten Commandments ( Moses)


 The Ten Commandments were written by God upon two tablets of stone and then given to Moses on Mount Sinai.

Most scholars date this event around the 13th or 14th century BC. God gave the Decalogue, or 10 Commandments, to the Israelites shortly after they left Egypt. The record of the Ten Commandments can be found in the Bible, both in Exodus 20:2-17 and Deuteronomy 5:6-21.                                             

Ten Commandments: King James Version

God's Law, the Ten Commandments, is expressed in Exodus 20:2-17 (KJV) with the following:

“I am the Lord thy God, which have brought thee out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage.

1. Thou shalt have no other gods before me.

2. 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. 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; And shewing mercy unto thousands of them that love me, and keep my commandments.

3. 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.

4. Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy. Six days shalt thou labour, and do all thy work: 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: 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.                          5. Honour thy father and thy mother: that thy days may be long upon the land which the Lord thy God giveth thee.

6. Thou shalt not kill.

7. Thou shalt not commit adultery.

8. Thou shalt not steal.

9. Thou shalt not bear false witness against thy neighbour.

10. 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 neighbor’s."                           


   

Moses and the 10 commandments                God gave Moses ten commandments, and told him to put them inside the ark of the covenant or testimony under the mercy seat in the Holy of Holies- Deuteronomy 10:1-5 (King James Version) 1. At that time the LORD said unto me, Hew thee two tables of stone like unto the first, and come up unto me into the mount, and make thee an ark of wood.                                                                   

Moses Receives the Commandments 

10 “Then the Lord said to me, ‘Cut two stone tablets like the first ones and make a wooden Box to put them in. Come up to me on the mountain, and I will write on those tablets what I wrote on the tablets that you broke, and then you are to put them in the Box.’

“So I made a Box of acacia wood and cut two stone tablets like the first ones and took them up the mountain. Then the Lord wrote on those tablets the same words that he had written the first time, the Ten Commandments that he gave you when he spoke from the fire on the day you were gathered at the mountain. The Lord gave me the tablets, and I turned and went down the mountain. Then, just as the Lord had commanded, I put them in the Box that I had made—and they have been there ever since.”

(The Israelites set out from the wells that belonged to the people of Jaakan, and went to Moserah. There Aaron died and was buried, and his son Eleazar succeeded him as priest. From there they went to Gudgodah and then on to Jotbathah, a well-watered place. At that time the Lord appointed the men of the tribe of Levi to be in charge of the Covenant Box, to serve him as priests, and to pronounce blessings in his name. And these are still their duties. That is why the tribe of Levi received no land as the other tribes did; what they received was the privilege of being the Lord's priests, as the Lord your God promised.)

10 “I stayed on the mountain forty days and nights, as I did the first time. The Lord listened to me once more and agreed not to destroy you. 11 Then he told me to go and lead you, so that you could take possession of the land that he had promised to give to your ancestors.                                                                  

What God Demands

12 “Now, people of Israel, listen to what the Lord your God demands of you: Worship the Lord and do all that he commands. Love him, serve him with all your heart, 13 and obey all his laws. I am giving them to you today for your benefit. 14 To the Lord belong even the highest heavens; the earth is his also, and everything on it. 15 But the Lord's love for your ancestors was so strong that he chose you instead of any other people, and you are still his chosen people. 16 So then, from now on be obedient to the Lord and stop being stubborn. 17 The Lord your God is supreme over all gods and over all powers. He is great and mighty, and he is to be obeyed. He does not show partiality, and he does not accept bribes. 18 He makes sure that orphans and widows are treated fairly; he loves the foreigners who live with our people, and gives them food and clothes. 19 So then, show love for those foreigners, because you were once foreigners in Egypt. 20 Have reverence for the Lord your God and worship only him. Be faithful to him and make your promises in his name alone. 21 Praise him—he is your God, and you have seen with your own eyes the great and astounding things that he has done for you. 22 When your ancestors went to Egypt, there were only seventy of them. But now the Lord your God has made you as numerous as the stars in the sky.                                            

Moses and the Burning Bush 

     

                                 

  • God used a burning bush to get Moses' attention. He chose this shepherd to lead Israel out of bondage.
  • The names Mount Horeb and Mount Sinai are used interchangeably in the Bible. Several sites in the Sinai Peninsula have been proposed by scholars, including Jebel Musa (Mount Moses) and Jebel al-Lawz, but the Bible does not give a specific geographic location.
  • Scientists have tried to deny the miracle of the burning bush with various theories. Some say it was a "gas-plant," vegetation which emits a flammable substance. Others claim the fire was caused by a volcanic vent near the bush. Still others say it was merely a plant with red flowers and there was no fire at all, but the Bible clearly states the bush burned but was not consumed.

  • After Moses completed his assignment of leading the Israelites out of bondage in Egypt, he returned to this same holy mountain, where God gave him the Ten Commandments.

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