Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary on the Whole Bible
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Exodus
Book: Exodus
Chapter: 20
Overview:
The preface to
The Ten Commandments.
(1,2) The
Commandments of
the first table.
(3-11) Of the second table.
(12-17) The fear of
the people.
(18-21) Idolatry again forbidden.
(22-26)
1,2 God speaks many ways to the children of men;
By Conscience,
By providences,
By his voice, to all which we ought carefully to
attend; but he never spake at any time
So as he spake the TEN
Commandments. This
Law God had given to
Man before; it was
written in his
Heart; but
Sin So defaced it, that it was
necessary to revive the knowledge of it. The
Law is spiritual,
and takes knowledge of the secret thoughts, desires, and
dispositions of the
Heart. Its grand demand is
Love, without
which outward obedience is mere hypocrisy. It requires perfect,
unfailing, constant obedience;
No Law in the world admits
disobedience to itself. Whosoever shall keep the whole
Law, and
yet offend in one point, he is guilty of all, Jas 2:10.
Whether in the
Heart or the conduct, in thought,
Word, or deed,
to omit or to vary any thing, is
Sin, and the
Wages of
Sin is
Death.
3-11 The first four of
The Ten Commandments, commonly called
the FIRST table, tell our duty to
God. It was fit that those
should be
Put first, because
Man had a Maker to
Love, before he
had a neighbour to
Love. It cannot be expected that he should be
true to his
Brother, who is false to his
God. The first
commandment concerns the object of
Worship,
Jehovah, and him
only. The
Worship of creatures is here forbidden. Whatever comes
short of perfect
Love, gratitude, reverence, or
Worship, breaks
this commandment. Whatsoever ye do, do all to the
Glory of
God. The
second commandment refers to the
Worship we are to render to the
Lord our
God. It is forbidden to make any image or picture of
the Deity, in any form, or for any purpose; or to
Worship any
Creature, image, or picture. But the spiritual import of this
command extends much further. All kinds of superstition are here
forbidden, and the using of mere human inventions in the
Worship
of
God. The third commandment concerns the manner of
Worship,
that it be with all possible reverence and seriousness. All
false oaths are forbidden. All
Light appealing to
God, all
profane cursing, is a horrid
Breach of this command. It matters
not whether the
Word of God, or sacred things, all such-like
things break this commandment, and there is
No profit, honour,
or pleasure in them. The
Lord will not
Hold him guiltless that
taketh his name in vain. The form of the fourth commandment,
"Remember," shows that it was not now first given, but was known
By the people before. One
Day in
Seven is to be kept holy. Six
days are allotted to worldly business, but not
So as to neglect
the service of
God, and the care of our souls.
On those days we
must do all our work, and leave none to be done
On the
Sabbath
Day.
Christ allowed
Works of necessity,
Charity, and
Piety; for
the
Sabbath was made for
Man, and not
Man for the
Sabbath, Mr
2:27; but all
Works of luxury, vanity, or self-indulgence in
any form, are forbidden. Trading, paying
Wages, settling
accounts,
Writing letters of business, worldly studies, trifling
visits, journeys, or
Light Conversation, are not keeping this
Day holy to the
Lord. Sloth and indolence may be a
Carnal, but
not a holy
Rest. The
Sabbath of the
Lord should be a
Day of
Rest
from worldly labour, and a
Rest in the service of
God. The
advantages from the due keeping of this holy
Day, were it only
to the health and happiness of mankind, with the time it affords
for taking care of the soul, show the excellency of this
commandment. The
Day is blessed; men are blessed
By it, and in
it. The blessing and direction to keep holy are not limited to
the seventh
Day, but are spoken of the
Sabbath Day.
12-17 The laws of the SECOND table, that is, the last six of
The Ten Commandments, state our duty to ourselves and to one
another, and explain the great commandment, Thou shalt
Love thy
neighbour as thyself, Lu 10:27.
Godliness and honesty must go
together. The fifth commandment concerns the duties we owe to
our relations. Honour thy
Father and thy mother, includes esteem
of them, shown in our conduct; obedience to their lawful
commands; come when they
Call you, go where they send you, do
what they bid you, refrain from what they forbid you; and this,
as children, cheerfully, and from a principle of
Love. Also
submission to their counsels and corrections. Endeavouring, in
every thing, to comfort parents, and to make their old
Age easy;
maintaining them if they need support, which our
Saviour makes
to be particularly intended in this commandment, Mt 15:4-6.
Careful observers have noted a
Peculiar blessing in temporal
things
On obedient, and the reverse
On disobedient children. The
sixth commandment requires that we regard the
Life and the
safety of others as we do our own. Magistrates and their
officers, and witnesses testifying the
Truth, do not break this
command. Self-defence is lawful; but much which is not deemed
Murder By the laws of
Man, is such before
God. Furious passions,
stirred up
By Anger or
By drunkenness, are
No excuse: more
guilty is
Murder in duels, which is a horrible effect of a
haughty, revengeful
Spirit. All fighting, whether for
Wages, for
renown, or out of
Anger and malice, breaks this command, and the
bloodshed therein is
Murder. To tempt men to vice and crimes
which shorten
Life, may be included. Misconduct, such as may
break the
Heart, or shorten the lives of parents, wives, or
other relatives, is a
Breach of this command. This command
forbids all envy, malice,
Hatred, or
Anger, all provoking or
insulting language. The
Destruction of our own lives is here
forbidden. This commandment requires a
Spirit of kindness,
longsuffering, and forgiveness. The seventh commandment concerns
chastity. We should be as much afraid of that which defiles the
body, as of that which destroys it. Whatever tends to pollute
the imagination, or to raise the passions, falls under this
Law,
as impure pictures, books,
Conversation, or any other like
matters. The eighth commandment is the
Law of
Love as it
respects the property of others. The portion of worldly things
allotted us, as far as it is obtained in an honest way, is the
Bread which
God hath given us; for that we ought to be thankful,
to be contented with it, and, in the use of lawful means, to
trust
Providence for the future. Imposing upon the ignorance,
easiness, or necessity of others, and many other things, break
God's
Law, though scarcely blamed in society. Plunderers of
kingdoms though above human
Justice, will be included in this
sentence. Defrauding the public, contracting debts without
prospect of paying them, or evading payment of just debts,
extravagance, all living upon
Charity when not needful, all
squeezing the
Poor in their
Wages; these, and such things, break
this command; which requires industry, frugality, and content,
and to do to others, about worldly property, as we would they
should do to us. The ninth commandment concerns our own and our
neighbour's good name. This forbids speaking falsely
On any
matter, lying, equivocating, and any way devising or designing
to deceive our neighbour. Speaking unjustly against our
neighbour, to hurt his reputation. Bearing false
Witness against
him, or in common
Conversation slandering, backbiting, and
Tale-bearing; making what is done amiss, worse than it is, and
in any way endeavouring to raise our reputation upon the ruin of
our neighbour's. How much this command is every
Day broken among
persons of all ranks! The tenth commandment strikes at the root;
Thou shalt not covet. The others forbid all desire of doing what
will be an injury to our neighbour; this forbids all wrong
desire of having what will gratify ourselves.
18-21 This
Law, which is
So extensive that we cannot
Measure
it,
So spiritual that we cannot evade it, and
So reasonable that
we cannot find fault with it, will be the rule of the future
Judgment of
God, as it is for the present conduct of
Man. If
tried
By this rule, we shall find our lives have been passed in
transgressions. And with this holy
Law and an awful
Judgment
before us, who can despise the
Gospel of
Christ? And the
knowledge of the
Law shows our need of
Repentance. In every
believer's
Heart Sin is dethroned and crucified, the
Law of
God
is written, and the image of
God renewed. The Holy
Spirit
enables him to hate
Sin and flee from it, to
Love and keep this
Law in sincerity and
Truth; nor will he cease to repent.
22-26 Moses having entered into the thick
Darkness,
God there
spake in his hearing all that follows from hence to the
End of
chap. 23, which is mostly an exposition of
The Ten Commandments.
The laws in these verses relate to
God's
Worship. The Israelites
are assured of
God's gracious acceptance of their devotions.
Under the
Gospel, men are encouraged to pray every where, and
wherever
God's people meet in his name to
Worship him, he will
be in the midst of them; there he will come unto them, and will
Bless them.