The Ten Commandments: Introduction
Where are we when God first introduces us to the Ten Commandments in His word?
The very first time that we see the Ten Commandments in Scripture is in Exodus 20:2-17. Having left Egypt and journeyed across the Red Sea, the Israelites have reached Mount Sinai and are encamped around its base. God has revealed His presence to the people, and He is laying down the basic tenets of His Law.
We see the commandments again in Deuteronomy 5:6-21. Moses is addressing the descendants of those who left Egypt and, because of their doubt and sin, were sentenced to forty years’ wandering in the desert. This “sermon” takes place in Moab, shortly before Moses’ death. He is reminding the children of Israel that their forefathers made a covenant with the Lord to follow His Law and honour Him as their God. Moses is also reviewing for them the Lord’s dealings with His chosen people.
In giving these commandments, God establishes His rule over the children of Israel, who have escaped slavery to follow Him. The first slavery that they escaped was physical: Moses led the Israelites out of literal bondage in Egypt. The second slavery that they escaped was slavery to themselves—-their fears, desires, and wills. The second giving of the commandments comes when all of those who escaped Egypt but doubted God’s word when faced with their new homeland are dead. These people were enslaved by their own fear; instead of trusting God to do what He had said He would do, they were frightened by the things they heard reported about their new home, and refused to enter.
Thus, we can see that in order to follow God by submitting ourselves to His Law and follow Him, we must escape from both our literal bondage to our sin nature, and also from bondage to our minds — again, our fears, desires, and wills. We cannot follow both our own desires and God’s Law; we must choose to lay down our selves and pick up His instructions, mining them for every insight they can give us on living our lives in a way that would honour and please God.