51 Then Moses summoned all Israel and said to them: "Hear , O Israel , the statutes and the ordinances which I am speaking today in your hearing , that you may learn them and observe them carefully . 2 "The Lord our God made a covenant with us at Horeb . 3 " The Lord did not make this covenant with our fathers , but with us, with all those of us alive here today . 4 "The Lord spoke to you face to face at the mountain from the midst of the fire , 5 while I was standing between the Lord and you at that time , to declare to you the word of the Lord ; for you were afraid because e of the fire and did not go up the mountain . He said ,
6 ' I am the Lord your God who brought you out of the land of Egypt , out of the house of slavery . 7 ' You shall have no other gods before Me. 8 ' You shall not make for yourself an idol , or any likeness of what is in heaven above e or on the earth beneath e or in the water under the earth . 9 'You shall not worship them or serve them; for I, the Lord your God , am a jealous God , visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children , and on the third and the fourth generations of those who hate Me, 10 but showing lovingkindness to thousands , to those who love Me and keep My commandments . 11 ' You shall not take the name of the Lord your God in vain , for the Lord will not leave him unpunished who takes His name in vain . 12 ' Observe the sabbath day to keep it holy , as the Lord your God commanded you. 13 'Six days you shall labor and do all your work , 14 but the seventh day is a sabbath of the Lord your God ; in it you shall not do any work , you or your son or your daughter or your male servant or your female servant or your ox or your donkey or any of your cattle or your sojourner who stays with you, so that your male servant and your female servant may rest as well as you. 15 ' You shall remember that you were a slave in the land of Egypt , and the Lord your God brought you out of there by a mighty hand and by an outstretched arm ; therefore e the Lord your God commanded you to observe the sabbath day . 16 ' Honor your father and your mother , as the Lord your God has commanded you, that your days may be prolonged and that it may go well with you on the land which the Lord your God gives you. 17 ' You shall not murder . 18 ' You shall not commit adultery . 19 ' You shall not steal . 20 ' You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor . 21 ' You shall not covet your neighbor's wife , and you shall not desire your neighbor's house , his field or his male servant or his female servant , his ox or his donkey or anything that belongs to your neighbor .'
22 "These words the Lord spoke to all your assembly at the mountain from the midst of the fire , of the cloud and of the thick gloom , with a great voice , and He added no more . He wrote them on two tablets of stone and gave them to me.
23 "And when you heard the voice from the midst of the darkness , while the mountain was burning with fire , you came near to me, all the heads of your tribes and your elders . 24 "You said , 'Behold , the Lord our God has shown us His glory and His greatness , and we have heard His voice from the midst of the fire ; we have seen today that God speaks with man , yet he lives . 25 ' Now then why should we die ? For this great fire will consume us; if we hear the voice of the Lord our God any longer , then we will die . 26 'For who is there of all flesh who has heard the voice of the living God speaking from the midst of the fire , as we have, and lived ? 27 'Go near and hear all that the Lord our God says ; then speak to us all that the Lord our God speaks to you, and we will hear and do it.' 28 "The Lord heard the voice of your words when you spoke to me, and the Lord said to me, 'I have heard the voice of the words of this people which they have spoken to you. They have done well in all that they have spoken . 29 ' Oh e that they had such a heart in them, that they would fear Me and keep all My commandments always e , that it may be well with them and with their sons forever !
Matthew Henry's Commentary on Deuteronomy 5:1-29
Commentary on Deuteronomy 5:1-5
(Read Deuteronomy 5:1-5)
Moses demands attention. When we hear the word of God we must learn it; and what we have learned we must put in practice, for that is the end of hearing and learning; not to fill our heads with notions, or our mouths with talk, but to direct our affections and conduct.
Commentary on Deuteronomy 5:6-22
(Read Deuteronomy 5:6-22)
There is some variation here from Luke 11. It is more necessary that we tie ourselves to the things, than to the words unalterably. The original reason for hallowing the sabbath, taken from God's resting from the work of creation on the seventh day, is not here mentioned. Though this ever remains in force, it is not the only reason. Here it is taken from Israel's deliverance out of Egypt; for that was typical of our redemption by Jesus Christ, in remembrance of which the Christian sabbath was to be observed. In the resurrection of Christ we were brought into the glorious liberty of the children of God, with a mighty hand, and an outstretched arm. How sweet is it to a soul truly distressed under the terrors of a broken law, to hear the mild and soul-reviving language of the gospel!
Commentary on Deuteronomy 5:23-33
(Read Deuteronomy 5:23-33)
Moses refers to the consternation caused by the terror with which the law was given. God's appearances have always been terrible to man, ever since the fall; but Christ, having taken away sin, invites us to come boldly to the throne of grace. They were in a good mind, under the strong convictions of the word they heard. Many have their consciences startled by the law who have them not purified; fair promises are extorted from them, but no good principles are fixed and rooted in them. God commended what they said. He desires the welfare and salvation of poor sinners. He has given abundant proof that he does so; he gives us time and space to repent. He has sent his Son to redeem us, promised his Spirit to those who pray for him, and has declared that he has no pleasure in the ruin of sinners. It would be well with many, if there were always such a heart in them, as there seems to be sometimes; when they are under conviction of sin, or the rebukes of providence, or when they come to look death in the face. The only way to be happy, is to be holy. Say to the righteous, It shall be well with them. Let believers make it more and more their study and delight, to do as the Lord God hath commanded.