We title the Ten Commandments, the Decalog, and the Commandments as the command of the Lord from Mt. Sinai, written by the finger of God on two tablets of stone in Exodus 20:1-17, in different ways. There is a numbering system used by modern Jews from the Talmud. Western Christianity, up to and through the Reformation, numbers the commandments another way. And, reformed Christians following the Reformation use yet another system of numbering the commandments.
First, are the commandments actually numbered at all? No, in the scriptures, there are no numbers given to the commandments themselves. They are simply the “commandments” or the “command of Moses.” There is a distinction between the first and second tables of the law. “And [Jesus] said to him, ‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the greatest and first commandment. And a second like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. On these two commandments depend all the Law and the Prophets.'” (Matthew 22:37-40)
Second, why number them at all? We number the commandments for the benefit of teaching them to children and catechumens of all ages. The numbering is at once arbitrary and deliberate. It’s arbitrary in that the decalog doesn’t need to be only ten or as many as ten. It’s deliberate in that how we group the thoughts together does matter in teaching the Law of God.
The majority of variance exists between the first two and the last two commandments. The Talmudic numbering begins with “I am the Lord your God.” (Exodus 20:2) That differs from the Western Christian and Reformed Christians’ “You shall have no other gods.” (Exodus 20:3)
Both Talmudic and Western Christian systems group “You shall have no other Gods” with “You shall not make for yourself any carved image.” (Exodus 20:4) The Reformed alone make Exodus 20:4 into its own 2nd commandment. You may ask, what’s the difference?
There is a reason to retain the Western Christian grouping of other gods and carved (graven) images together. (Exodus 20:3-6) Exodus 36-38 describes “graven” (unliving) images in great detail for the tabernacle. The distinction here is between images for the house of the Lord and “for yourselves.” The images for the house of the Lord are specifically commanded, not forbidden. So, the prohibition against images for yourselves must reside under the command to have no other gods.
A little later, the congregation of Israel will be set upon by fiery serpents. God doesn’t take away the serpents from among them. He gives them a thing to see. “And the Lord said to Moses, ‘Make a fiery serpent and set it on a pole, and everyone who is bitten, when he sees it, shall live.’ So Moses made a bronze serpent and set it on a pole. And if a serpent bit anyone, he would look at the bronze serpent and live.” (Numbers 21:8-9) The lifeless image of a serpent on a pole is the life-preserving gift of God against the punishment for their grumbling. God does not break His own commandments here. He gave Israel an image that reminded them of the work of the Lord.
In a similar pattern, there’s no disagreement about grouping Exodus 20:8-11, concerning the sabbath/the holy day together. This serves to reinforce rather than detract from the v. 3-6 grouping. Things concerning having other gods and the sabbath day are in a similar group for teaching.
This more expansive teaching of the commandments is in line with the way the Lord Jesus Christ also teaches us to hear them concerning the fifth & sixth commandments. “You have heard that it was said to those of old, ‘You shall not murder; and whoever murders will be liable to judgment.’ But I say to you that everyone who is angry with his brother will be liable to judgment; whoever insults his brother will be liable to the council; and whoever says, ‘You fool!’ will be liable to the hell of fire. … You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall not commit adultery.’ But I say to you that everyone who looks at a woman with lustful intent has already committed adultery with her in his heart.” (Matthew 5:21-22, 27-28)
For the ninth & tenth, we could easily go either way. All coveting could easily go together. My neighbor’s wife, livestock, or anything else may attract my neighbor. But pursuing it is certain to cause trouble. (Exodus 20:17) Or, we could retain the distinction in the name of the catechetical benefit of the 10 commandments rather than more or less.
Unsurprisingly, I think the text itself, the way Moses and Jesus present them to us, and the common division we have received best support the Western Christian numbering of the commandments: 1) No other Gods, 2) No misuse of God’s name, 3) Remember the sabbath (holy) day, 4) Honor father and mother, 5) No murder, 6) No adultery, 7) No theft, 8) No false witness, 9) No coveting neighbor’s house, & 10) No coveting neighbor’s wife or anything else.
In good practice, numbering the commandments provides a helpful way to teach them. We have a shared understanding of how to recall them and their content for a current application. We learn them by heart, and have the commandments always with us.
Rev. Jason M. Kaspar
Sole Pastor
Mt. Calvary Lutheran Church & Preschool
La Grange, TX
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