The Pulpit Commentary — Exodus — Volume 2 — Section 132

Vers. 1-17.-The ten commandments sevel'ally. Tm: FmeT Co:1.n,UJIDMENT. To the Christian the First Commandment takes the form which our Lord gave it--" Thou sha.lt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. This is the first and great commandment" (Matt. xxii. 37, 38). Not merely abstract belief, not merely humble a.cknowledgment of one God is necessary, but heart- felt devotion to the One Object worthy of our devotion, the One Being in all the universe on whom we may rest and stay ourselves without fear of his failing us. He is the Lord our God-not an Epicurean deity, infinitely remote from man, who has created the world and left it to its own devices-not a l'antbtic essence spread through all nature, omnipresent, but intangible, impersonal, deaf to our cries, and indifferent to our actions-not an inscrutable " something externa.1 to us making for righteousness," in the words of the re~ious Agnostic-but a Being very near us, " in whom we live, and move, and have our being," who is "about our pat.h and about our bed, and spieth out all our ways," a Being whom we may know, and love, and trust, and feel to be with us, warning us, and cheering us, and consoling us, and pleading with us, and ready to receive us, and most willing to pardon us-a Being who is never absent from us, who continually sust.a.ins our life, upholds our faculties, gives us all we enjoy and our power to enjoy it, and who is therefore the natural object of our warmest, tenderest, truest, and most con.lit.ant love. The first commandment should not be difficult to keep. We have only to open our eyes to the facts, and let them make their natural impression upon our roinds, in order to love One who has done and still does so much for us. THE SEcoND CollOUNDHENT. On its prohibitive side, this Commandment forbids us to have unworthy thoughts of God, to liken him to an idol, or regard him as "even such an one as ourselves." Considered as directive, it 1:e9.uires us to form in our minds a just and true idea of the Divine nature, and especi&Uy of its spirituality, its lofty majesty, and its transcende~t holiness. ~ _materialistic id~: and co~~ue~tly all Pan- theistic notions, are deurading to the digmty of God, who is a Spmt, without body, parts, or paasions, not ~ed with matter, but wholly sep,rate from it,. yet everywhere JJresent after a supersensuo_us. manner. .Ag~n, anthropomorphi~ no~1ons of God are uegrading to him, though 1t u; sca.rcely posS1ble to speak of hun wi_thout anthr~po- morphic expressions. When we use such terme-a.s when we call God JUEt, or merciful, or long-suffering-we should remember that those qualities in him are not identical with the human ones, but only l!Jlalogous to them; and altogether we should he con- scious of a deep mysterioUBness lying behind all that we know of God, and rendering him a Being awful, insorutable-whom we must not suppose that we can fathom or comprehend. TUE THIIU> Co>!MANDHENT. Primarily, the Third Commandment forbids perjury or fiul!C swearing; secondarily, it forbids all unnecessary oaths, all needless mention uf the CJI. XX, 1-17,] THK BOOK OF EXODU& -------------------------------- h1ly n1trne of God, 1tnd 1111 irreverence towards anything which is God's-his name, house, day, book, laws, ministers. Whatever in any sense belongs to Gc,d 18 sacred, 1tml, if it has to be mentioned, should be mentioned reverently. The tr11e main object of the 'fhird Comftmndment is to inculcate reverence, to point out to us that the rmly proper frame of mind in which we can approach God is one of self-ab,isernent and deeply reverential lenr. "Keep thy foot, when thou goest to the house of (_iod," says the Preacher, "and be more ready to hear than to offer the sacrifice of fools, tor they consider not that they do evil. Be not rash with thy mouth, and let not thine heart be hasty to utter anything before God: for God is in heaven, and thou upon earth; there- fore let thy words be few " (Eccles. v. 1, 2). 'l'HE FounTH COMMANDMENT. Jn the Fourth Commandment we have the basis for all that is external in religion. The dedication of one entire day out of seven to God, aml th11 command to abstain on that day from the ordinary labours of life, led on nn.turally to the institution of sacred services, holy convocations, meetings for united worship and prayer. Man is an active being, and a social being. Jf the ordinary business of life is stopped, some other occupation must be found for him: be will not sit still from morning to night with folded bands wrapped in pious contemplation. 'The iustitution of the Sabbath stands in close relation to the appointment of a priesthood, the construction of a holy place, and the establishment of a ceremonial. On the Chris- ti\'r .the Fourth Commandment is not binding in respect of the letter-be is not to remember the /::ieventh day to keep it holy, but the First; he is not tied to hallow it by an abstinence from all labour, but encouraged to devote it to the performance of good works; but in the spirit of it, the commandment is as binding as any. Men need, under Christianity as much as under Judaism, positive religious institutions, places of worship, hours of prayer, a liturgy, a ritual, ceremonies. The value of the Lord's Day as a Christian institution is incalculable; it witnesses for religion to the world; it con- stitutes a distinct call on men to take into colll'ideration the aim and intent of the day; and its rightful use is of inestimable benefit to all truly religious persons, deepening in them, as it does, the sense of religion, and giving them time and opportunity for the training of their spiritual nature, and the contemplation of heavenly things, which would otherwise to most men have been unattainable. It has been well called "a bridge thrown across life's troubled waters, over which we may pass to reach the opposite shore-a link between earth and heaven-a type of the eternal day, when the freed spirit, if true to itself and to God, shall put on for ever the robe of immortal holiness and joy." THE FIFTH CoMMANDMENT. The honour which this commandment exacts from us is irrespective of our parents' personal merits or demerits. We are to honour them as being our parents. Difficulties may be raised easily enough in theory; but they are readily solvable in practice. Let us defer to our parents' commands in all things lawful-Jet us do everything for them that we can-let ;is anticipate their wishes in things indifferent-let us take trouble on their behalf-let us be ever on the watch to spare them vexatious annoyance-let us study their comfort, ease, peace---and with- out any sacrifice of principle, even if they are bad parents, we may sufficiently sho\v that we feel the obligation of the relationship, and are anxious to discharge the duties which it involves. Comparatively few men are, however, severely tried. We are not often much better than our parents; and it is seldom difficult to honour them. 1. For their age and experience. 2. For the benefits which they have conferred on us. 3. For the disinterested affection which they bear to us, and which they evince in their conduct. As a rule, parents have very much more love for their children than these have for them, and make sacrifices on their children's behalf, which their children neither appreciate nor 1·eciprocate. The honour which, according to this commandment, has to be shown to parents, must of course be extended, with certain modifications~ to thos~ who stand to us in loco parentis-to guardians, tutors, schoolmasters, and the like. It 1s n~t perhaps quite clear that the commandment extends also to those who are set over us 1_'1 Church and State, though it is usual so to interpret it. '!'here are certain relati?ns of par~nts to their offspring which are altogether peculiar; and ~hese are absolutely 1nco1I1murucable. 'l'here are others, which are common to parents with rulers; but these, unless m very primitive communities, can scarcely be said to rest upon the domestic relation a.-; their Lasis. The ordinary relation of the governed to their goYernors is mthe1· om• parallel Lu 1.38 TIIE BOOK OF EXODUS. lCR. XX. 1-17.