The people are charged A. M. 2513. CHAP. XX. A. M. 2513. not to ascend the mount. 23 And Moses said unto the thou, and Aaron with thee; but An. Exod. Isr. 1. LORD, The people cannot come let not the priests and the peo- An. Exod. Isr. 1. up to Mount Sinai : for thou ple break through, to come up chargedst us, saying, Set bounds about the unto the LORD, lest he break forth upon mount, and sanctify it. them. Sivan. 24 And the LORD said unto him, Away, Sivan. 25 So Moses went down unto the people, get thee down, and thou shalt come up, and spake unto them. Ver. 12; Josh. iii. 4. worship of God, and there certainly were priests whose to God; for we have an entrance into the holiest business it was to offer them to God before the giv-by the blood of Jesus, Heb. x. 19. "For," says the ing of the law; though this, for especial reasons, was restricted to Aaron and his sons after the law had been given. As sacrifices had not been offered for a considerable time, the priests themselves were considered in a state of impurity; and therefore God requires that they also should be purified for the purpose of approaching the mountain, and hearing their Maker promulgate his laws. See the note on chap. xxviii. 1. Verse 23. The people cannot come up] Either because they had been so solemnly forbidden that they would not dare, with the penalty of instant death before their eyes, to transgress the Divine command; or the bounds which were set about the mount were such as rendered their passing them physically impossible. And sanctify it.] p vekiddashto. Here the word kadash is taken in its proper literal sense, signifying the separating of a thing, person, or place, from all profane or common uses, and devoting it to sacred purposes. Verse 24. Let not the priests and the people break through] God knew that they were heedless, criminally curious, and stupidly obstinate; and therefore his mercy saw it right to give them line upon line, that they might not transgress to their own destruction. apostle, "ye are not come unto the mount that might be touched, and that burned with fire; nor unto blackness, and darkness, and tempest, and to the sound of a trumpet, and the voice of words; which voice they that heard entreated that the word should not be spoken to them any more, (for they could not endure that which was commanded, And if so much as a beast touch the mountain it shall be stoned, or thrust through with a dart: and so terrible was the sight that Moses said, I exceedingly fear and quake :) but ye are come unto Mount Sion, and unto the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to an innumerable company of angels, to the general assembly and Church of the first-born, which are written in heaven; and to God, the Judge of all; and to the spirits of just men made perfect; and to Jesus the MEDIATOR of the NEW COVENANT; and to the blood of sprinkling, that speaketh better things than that of Abel;" Heb. xii. 18-24. Reader, art thou still under the influence and condemning power of that fiery law which proceeded from his right hand? Art thou yet afar off? Remember, thou canst only come nigh by the blood of sprinkling; and till justified by his blood, thou art under the curse. Consider the terrible majesty of God. If thou have his favour thou hast life; if his frown, death. Be instantly reconciled to God, for though thou hast deeply sinned, and he is just, yet he is the justifier of him that believeth in Christ Jesus. Believe on him, FROM the very solemn and awful manner in which the LAW was introduced, we may behold it as the ministration of terror and death, 2 Cor. iii. 7, appearing rather to exclude men from God than to bring them nigh; and from this we may learn that an ap-receive his salvation, OBEY his voice indeed, and KEEP proach to God would have been for ever impossible, his covenant, and THEN shalt thou be a king and a had not infinite mercy found out the Gospel scheme priest unto God and the Lamb, and be finally saved of salvation. By this, and this alone, we draw nigh 'with all the power of an endless life. Amen. CHAPTER XX. The preface to the ten commandments, 1, 2. The FIRST commandment, against mental or theoretic idolatry, 3. The SECOND, against making and worshipping images, or practical idolatry, 4-6. The THIRD, against false swearing, blasphemy, and irreverent use of the name of God, 7. The FOURTH, against profanation of the Sabbath, and idleness on the other days of the week, 8-11. The FIFTH, against disrespect and disobedience to parents, 12. The SIXTH, against murder and cruelty, 13. The SEVENTH, against adultery and uncleanness, 14. The EIGHTH, against stealing and dishonesty, 15. The NINTH, against false testimony, perjury, &c., 16. The TENTH, against covetousness, 17. The people are alarmed at the awful appearance of God on the mount, and stand afar off, 18. They pray that Moses may be mediator between God and them, 19. Moses encourages them, 20. He draws near to the thick darkness, and God communes with him, 21, 22. Farther directions against idolatry, 23. `Directions concerning making an altar of earth, 24; and an altar of hewn stone, 25. None of these to be ascended by steps, and the reason given, 26. a Deut. v. 22. 3 Thou shalt have no other gods before me. A. M. 2513. b Lev. xxvi. 1, 13; Deut. v. 6; Psa. lxxxi. 10; Heb. servants.- Le Deut. v. 7; vi. 14; 2 Kings xvii. 35; Jer. Hos. xiii. 4. Chap. xiii. 3. NOTES ON CHAP. XX. XXV. 6; xxxv. 15. of theology, the true notions we should form of the Divine nature, the reverence we owe and the religious service we should render to him. The SECOND, containing the six last commandments, and comprehend man owes to his fellows, and on the due performance of which the order, peace, and happiness of society depend. By this division, the FIRST table contains our. duty to GOD; the SECOND our duty to our NEIGHBOur. This division, which is natural enough, refers us to the grand principle, love to God and love to man, through which both tables are observed. 1. Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, soul, mind, and strength. 2. Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. On these two hang all the law and the prophets. See Matt. xxii. 37–40. Verse 1. All these words] Houbigant supposes, and with great plausibility of reason, that the clause nban praan beth col haddebarim haelleh, “all these words," belong to the latter part of the concluding a complete system of ethics, or moral duties which ing verse of chap. xix., which he thinks should be read thus And Moses went down unto the people, and spake unto them ALL THESE WORDS; i. e., delivered the solemn charge relative to their not attempting to come up to that part of the mountain on which God manifested himself in his glorious majesty, lest he should break forth upon them and consume them. For how could Divine justice and purity suffer a people so defiled to stand in his immediate presence? When Moses, therefore, had gone down and spoken all these words, and he and Aaron had reascended the mount, then the Divine Being, as supreme legislator, is majestically introduced thus: And God spake, saying. This gives a dignity to the commencement of this chapter of which the clause above mentioned, if not referred to the speech of Moses, deprives it. The Anglo-Saxon favours this emendation: Irod rpnæc dur, God spoke THUS, which is the whole of the first verse as it stands in that version. Some learned men are of opinion that the TEN COMMANDMENTS were delivered on May 30, being then the day of pentecost. THE TEN COMMANDMENTS. THE FIRST COMMANDMENT. Yeho Against mental or theoretic idolatry. Verse 2. I am the LORD thy God] vah eloheycha. On the word JEHOVAH, which we here translate LORD, see the notes on Gen. ii. 4, and Exod. vi. 3. And on the word Elohim, here translated GOD, see on Gen. i. 1. It is worthy of remark that each individual is addressed here, and not the people collectively, though they are all necessarily included; that each might feel that he was bound for himself to hear and do all these words. Moses laboured to impress this personal interest on the people's minds, when he with us, even us, who are all of us here alive this day." Brought thee out of the land of Egypt, &c.] And by this very thing have proved myself to be superior to all gods, unlimited in power, and most gracious as well as fearful in operation. This is the preface or introduction, but should not be separated from the commandment. Therefore,Verse 3. The laws delivered on Mount Sinai have been va- said, Deut. v. 3, 4: "The Lord made this covenant riously named. In Deut. iv. 13, they are called Basereth haddebarim, THE TEN WORDS. In the preceding chapter, ver. 5, God calls them 'n eth berithi, my COVENANT, i. e., the agreement he entered into with the people of Israel to take them for his peculiar people, if they took him for their God and portion. Ir ye will obey my voice indeed, and KEEP MY COVENANT, THEN shall ye be a peculiar treasure unto me. And the word covenant here evidently refers to the laws given in this chapter, as is evident from Deut. iv. 13 And he declared unto you his cOVENANT, which he commanded you to perform, even TEN COMMANDMENTS. They have been also termed the moral law, because they contain and lay down rules for the regulation of the manners or conduct of men. Sometimes they have been termed the LAW, hattorah, by way of eminence, as containing the grand system of spiritual instruction, direction, guidance, &c. See on the word LAW, chap. xii. 49. And frequently the DECALOGUE, AɛKahoyos, which is a literal translation into Greek of the Day asereth haddebarim, or TEN WORDS, of Moses. Among divines they are generally divided into what they term the first and second tables. The FIRST table containing the first, second, third, and fourth commandments, and comprehending the whole system Thou shalt have no other gods before me.] on elohim acherim, no strange gods-none that thou art not acquainted with, none who has not given thee such proofs of his power and godhead as I have done in delivering thee from the Egyptians, dividing the Red Sea, bringing water out of the rock, quails into the desert, manna from heaven to feed thee, and the pillar of cloud to direct, enlighten, and shield thee. By these miracles God had rendered himself familiar to them, they were intimately acquainted with the operation of his hands; and therefore with great propriety he says, Thou shalt have no strange gods before me; hy al panai, before or in the place of those manifestations which I have made of myself. This commandment prohibits every species of mental idolatry, and all inordinate attachment to earthly and sensible things. As God is the fountain of happiness, and no intelligent creature can be happy but through him, whoever seeks happiness in the creature The second, against making A. M. 2513. B. C. 1491. Sivan. CHAP. XX. 4 f Thou shalt not make unto An. Exod. Isr. 1. 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: Lev. xxvi. 1; Deut. iv. 16; v. 8; xxvii. 15; Psa. xcvii. 7. Chap. xxiii. 24; Josh. xxiii. 7; 2 Kings xvii. 35; Isa. xliv. 15, 19. Chap. xxxiv. 14; Deut. iv. 24; vi. 15; Josh. xxiv. 19; is necessarily an idolater; as he puts the creature in the place of the Creator, expecting that from the gratification of his passions, in the use or abuse of earthly things, which is to be found in God alone. The very first commandment of the whole series is divinely calculated to prevent man's misery and promote his happiness, by taking him off from all false dependence, and leading him to God himself, the fountain of all good. THE SECOND COMMANDMENT. Against making and worshipping images. Verse 4. Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image] As the word 5 pasal signifies to hew, carve, grave, &c., pesel may here signify any kind of image, either of wood, stone, or metal, on which the axe, the chisel, or the graving tool has been employed. This commandment includes in its prohibitions every species of idolatry known to have been practised among the Egyptians. The reader will see this the more plainly by consulting the notes on the ten plagues, particularly those on chap. xii. Or any likeness, &c.] To know the full spirit and extent of this commandment, this place must be collated with Deut. iv. 15, &c.: Take ye therefore good heed unto yourselves—lest ye corrupt yourselves—and make you a graven image, the similitude of any figure, the likeness of MALE or FEMALE. All who have even the slightest acquaintance with the ancient history of Egypt, know that Osiris and his wife Isis were supreme divinities among that people. The likeness of any beast.-n behemah, such as the ox and the heifer. Among the Egyptians the ox was not only sacred but adored, because they supposed that in one of these animals Osiris took up his residence: hence they always had a living ox, which they supposed to be the habitation of this deity; and they imagined that on the death of one he entered into the body of another, and so on successively. This famous or-god they called Apis and Mnevis. The likeness of any winged fowl.-The ibis, or stork, or crane, and hawk, may be here intended, for all these were objects of Egyptian idolatry. The likeness of any thing that CREEPETH.- -The crocodile, serpents, the scarabeus or beetle, were all objects of their adoration; and Mr. Bryant has rendered it very probable that even the frog itself was a sacred animal, as from its inflation it was emblematic of the prophetic influence, for they supposed that the god inflated or distended the body of the person by whom he gave oracular answers. The likeness of any FISH.-All fish were esteemed sacred animals among the Egyptians. One called Oxurunchus had, according to Strabo, lib. xvii., a temple, and divine honours paid to it. Another fish, called VOL. I. ( 27 ) and worshipping images. A. M. 2513. B. C. 1491. 5 Thou shalt not bow down thyself to them, nor serve them: An. Exod. Isr. 1. for I the LORD thy God am ha jealous fathers Sivan. God, i visiting the iniquity of the upon the children, unto the third and Neh. i. 2.- i Chap. xxxiv. 7; Lev. xx. 5; xxvi. 39, 40; Num. xiv. 18, 33; 1 Kings xxi. 29; Job v. 4; xxi. 19; Psa. lxxix. 8; cix. 4; Isa. xiv. 20, 21; lxv. 6, 7; Jer. ii. 9; xxxii. 18. Phagrus, was worshipped at Syene, according to Clemens Alexandrinus in his Cohortatio. And the Lepidotus and eel were objects of their adoration, as we find from Herodotus, lib. ii., cap. 72. In short, oxen, heifers, sheep, goats, lions, dogs, monkeys, and cats; the ibis, the crane, and the hawk; the crocodile, serpents, frogs, flies, and the scarabeus or beetle; the Nile and its fish; the sun, moon, planets, and stars ; fire, light, air, darkness, and night, were all objects of Egyptian idolatry, and all included in this very cir cumstantial prohibition as detailed in Deuteronomy, and very forcibly in the general terms of the text: Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image, or any likeness of any thing that is in the HEAVENS above, or that is in the EARTH beneath, or that is in the WATER under the earth. And the reason of this becomes selfevident, when the various objects of Egyptian idolatry are considered. To countenance its image worship, the Roman Catholic Church has left the whole of this second commandment out of the decalogue, and thus lost one whole commandment out of the ten; but to keep up the number they have divided the tenth into two. This is totally contrary to the faith of God's elect and to the acknowledgment of that truth which is according to godliness. The verse is found in every MS. of the Hebrew Pentateuch that has ever yet been discovered. It is in all the ancient versions, Samaritan, Chaldee, Syriac, Septuagint, Vulgate, Coptic, and Arabic; also in the Persian, and in all modern versions. There is not one word of the whole verse wanting in the many hundreds of MSS. collected by Kennicott and De Rossi. This corruption of the word of God by the Roman Catholic Church stamps it, as a false and heretical Church, with the deepest brand of ever-during infamy! This commandment also prohibits every species of external idolatry, as the first does all idolatry that may be called internal or mental. All false worship may be considered of this kind, together with all image worship, and all other superstitious rites and ceremonies. See the note on ver. 23. Verse 5. Jealous God] This shows in a most expressive manner the love of God to this people. He felt for them as the most affectionate husband could do for his spouse; and was jealous for their fidelity, because he willed their invariable happiness. Visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children] This necessarily implies-Ir the children walk in the steps of their fathers; for no man can be condemned by Divine justice for a crime of which he was never guilty; see Ezek. xviii. Idolatry is however particularly intended, and visiting sins of this kind refers principally to national judgments. By withdrawing 401 The third and A. M. 2513. B. C. 1491. A. M. 2513. fourth generation of them that | LORD thy God in vain; for An. Exod. Isr. 1. hate me; the LORD i will not hold him An. Exod. Isr. 1. guiltless that taketh his name in vain. Sivan. 6 And showing mercy unto thousands of them that love me, and keep my commandments. 1 Sivan. 8 Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it 7 Thou shalt not take the name of the holy. * Chap. xxxiv. 7; Deut. vii. 9; Psa. lxxxix. 34; Rom. xi. 28. 1 Chap. xxiii. 1; Lev. xix. 12; Deut. v. 11; Psa. xv. 4; Matt. the Divine protection the idolatrous Israelites were delivered up into the hands of their enemies, from whom the gods in whom they had trusted could not deliver them. This God did to the third and fourth generations, i. e., successively; as may be seen in every part of the Jewish history, and particularly in the book of Judges. And this, at last, became the grand and the only effectual and lasting means in his hand of their final deliverance from idolatry; for it is well known that after the Babylonish captivity the Israelites were so completely saved from idolatry, as never more to have disgraced themselves by it as they had formerly done. These national judgments, thus continued from generation to generation, appear to be what are designed by the words in the text, Visiting the sins of the fathers upon the children, &c. and this the original word lashshav particularly imports: and we may safely add to all these, that every prayer, ejaculation, &c., that is not accompanied with deep reverence and the genuine spirit of piety, is here condemned also. In how many thousands of instances is this commandment broken in the prayers, whether read or extempore, of inconsiderate, bold, and presumptuous worshippers! And how few are there who do not break it, both in their public and private devotions! How low is piety when we are obliged, in order to escape damnation, to pray to God to “pardon the sins of our holy things!" Even heathens thought that the names of their gods should be treated with reverence. Παντως μεν δη καλον επιτηδευμα, θεων ονοματα μη χραίνειν ῥᾳδίως, έχοντα ὡς ἔχουσιν ήμων έκαστοτε τα πολλα οἱ πλείστοι καθαρότητος τε και άγνειας τα περι rovç Ocovs. Verse 6. And showing mercy unto thousands] Mark; even those who love God and keep his commandments merit nothing from him, and therefore the salvation "It is most undoubtedly right not easily to pollute and blessedness which these enjoy come from the mercy | the names of the gods, using them as we do common of God: Showing mercy, &c. What a disproportion names; but to watch with purity and holiness all between the works of justice and mercy! Justice things belonging to the gods." works to the third or fourth, mercy to thousands of generations! The heathen had maxims like these. Theocritus also teaches that the children of the good shall be blessed because of their parents' piety, and that evil shall come upon the offspring of the wicked : Ευσεβέων παιδεσσι τα λωΐα, δυσσεβέων δ' ου. Upon the children of the righteous fall The choicest blessings; on the wicked, wo. That love me, and keep my commandments.]. It was this that caused Christ to comprise the fulfilment of The Lord will not hold him guiltless, &c.] What ever the person himself may think or hope, however he may plead in his own behalf, and say he intends no evil, &c.; if he in any of the above ways, or in any other way, takes the name of God in vain, God will not hold him guiltless—he will account him guilty and punish him for it. Is it necessary to say to any truly spiritual mind, that all such interjections as O God! my God! good God! good Heavens! &c., &c., are formal positive breaches of this law? How many who pass for Christians are highly criminal here! THE FOURTH COMMANDMENT. other days of the week. the whole law in love to God and man; see the note Against profanation of the Sabbath, and idleness on the on ver. 1. And as love is the grand principle of obedience, and the only incentive to it, so there can be no obedience without it. It would be more easy even in Egyptian bondage to make brick without straw, than to do the will of God unless his love be shed abroad in the heart by the Holy Spirit. Love, says the apostle, is the fulfilling of the law; Rom xiii. 10. THE THIRD COMMANDMENT. Verse 8. Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy.] See what has been already said on this precept, Gen. ii. 2, and elsewhere. As this was the most ancient institution, God calls them to remember it; as if he had said, Do not forget that when I had finished my creation I instituted the Sabbath, and remember why I did so, and for what purposes. The word now shabbath signifies rest or cessation from labour; and the Against false swearing, blasphemy, and irreverent use sanctification of the seventh day is commanded, as of the name of God. having something representative in it; and so indeed it has, for it typifies the rest which remains for the people of God, and in this light it evidently appears to have been understood by the apostle, Heb. iv. Because this commandment has not been particularly mentioned in the New Testament as a moral precept binding on all, therefore some have presumptuously ( 27 ) The fifth and A. M. 2513. B. C. 1491. Sivan. 9 A. M. 2513. Sivan. Six days shalt thou labour, | ven and earth, the sea, and all An. Exod. Isr. 1. and do all thy work : that in them is, and rested the An. Exod. Isr. 1. seventh day; wherefore the LORD blessed the Sabbath day, and hallowed it. 10 But the P 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 man-servant, nor thy maid-servant, nor thy cattle, nor thy stranger that is within thy gates: 11 For in six days the LORD made hea • Chap. xxiii. 12; xxxi. 15; xxxiv. 21; xx. 12; Luke xiii. 14.—P Gen. ii. 2, 3; 15.4 Neh. xiii, 16, 17, 18, 19. Lev. xxiii. 3; Ezek. chap. xvi. 26; xxxi. Gen. ii. 2. inferred that there is no Sabbath under the Christian dispensation. The truth is, the Sabbath is considered as a type: all types are of full force till the thing signified by them takes place; but the thing signified by the Sabbath is that rest in glory which remains for the people of God, therefore the moral obligation of the Sabbath must continue till time be swallowed up in eternity. Verse 9. Six days shalt thou labour] Therefore he who idles away time on any of the six days, is as guilty before God as he who works on the Sabbath. No work should be done on the Sabbath that can be done on the preceding days, or can be deferred to the succeeding ones. Works of absolute necessity and mercy are alone excepted. He who works by his servants or cattle is equally guilty as if he worked himself. Hiring out horses, &c., for pleasure or business, going on journeys, paying worldly visits, or taking jaunts on the Lord's day, are breaches of this law. The whole of it should be devoted to the rest of the body and the improvement of the mind. God says he has hallowed it—he has made it sacred and set it apart for the above purposes. It is therefore the most proper day for public religious worship. THE FIFTH COMMANDMENT. That thy days may be long] This, as the apostle observes, Eph. vi. 2, is the first commandment to which God has annexed a promise; and therefore we may learn in some measure how important the duty is in the sight of God. In Deut. v. 16 it is said, And that it may go well with thee; we may therefore conclude that it will go ill with the disobedient; and there is no doubt that the untimely deaths of many young persons are the judicial consequence of their disobedience to their parents. Most who come to an untimely end are obliged to confess that this, with the breach of the Sabbath, was the principal cause of their ruin. Reader, art thou guilty? Humble thyself therefore before God, and repent. 1. As children are bound to succour their parents, so parents are bound to educate and instruct their children in all useful and necessary knowledge, and not to bring them up either in ignorance or idleness. 2. They should teach their children the fear and knowledge of God, for how can they expect affection or dutiful respect from those who have not the fear of God before their eyes? Those who are best educated are generally the most dutiful. Heathens also inculcated respect to parents. Ουδεν προς θεων τιμιωτερον αγαλμα αν κτησαίμεθα πατρος και προπάτορος παρειμένων γηρα, και μητέρων την αυτην δυναμιν εχουσων· οὓς όταν αγαλλη τις, Against disrespect and disobedience to parents. Verse 12. Honour thy father and thy mother] There is a degree of affectionate respect which is τιμαις γεγηθεν ὁ θεος.—Πας δη νουν εχων φοβείται owing to parents, that no person else can properly και τιμα, γονεων ευχας είδως πολλοις και πολλάκις επιτελείς γενομένας. Plato de Leg., lib. xi., vol. ix, claim. For a considerable time parents stand as it p. 160. Ed. Bipont. were in the place of God to their children, and therefore rebellion against their lawful commands has been "We can obtain no more honourable possession considered as rebellion against God. This precept from the gods than fathers and forefathers worn down therefore prohibits, not only all injurious acts, irreve- with age, and mothers who have undergone the same rent and unkind speeches to parents, but enjoins all change, whom when we delight, God is pleased with necessary acts of kindness, filial respect, and obedience. the honour; and every one that is governed by right We can scarcely suppose that a man honours his pa- understanding fears and reverences them, well knowrents who, when they fall weak, blind, or sick, does not ing that the prayers of parents oftentimes, and in many exert himself to the uttermost in their support. In particulars, have received full accomplishment." such cases God as truly requires the children to provide for their parents, as he required the parents to feed, nourish, support, instruct, and defend the children when they were in the lowest state of helpless infancy. Verse 13. Thou shalt not kill.] This commandment, See the note on Gen. xlviii. 12. The rabbins say, Ho-which is general, prohibits murder of every kind. nour the Lord with thy substance, Prov. iii. 9; and, 1. All actions by which the lives of our fellow creaHonour thy father and mother. The LORD is to be honoured thus if thou have it; thy father and mother, whether thou have it or not; for if thou have nothing, thou art bound to beg for them. See Ainsworth. THE SIXTH COMMANDMENT. Against murder and cruelty. tures may be abridged. 2. All wars for extending |