Exodus 20
1 And God spake all these words, saying,
2 I am the LORD thy God, which have brought thee out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage.
3 Thou shalt have no other gods before me.
4 Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image, or any likeness of any thing that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth:
5 Thou shalt not bow down thyself to them, nor serve them: for I the LORD thy God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation of them that hate me;
6 And shewing mercy unto thousands of them that love me, and keep my commandments.
7 Thou shalt not take the name of the LORD thy God in vain; for the LORD will not hold him guiltless that taketh his name in vain.
8 Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy.
9 Six days shalt thou labour, and do all thy work:
10 But the seventh day is the sabbath of the LORD thy God: in it thou shalt not do any work, thou, nor thy son, nor thy daughter, thy manservant, nor thy maidservant, nor thy cattle, nor thy stranger that is within thy gates:
11 For in six days the LORD made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them is, and rested the seventh day: wherefore the LORD blessed the sabbath day, and hallowed it.
12 Honour thy father and thy mother: that thy days may be long upon the land which the LORD thy God giveth thee.
13 Thou shalt not kill.
14 Thou shalt not commit adultery.
15 Thou shalt not steal.
16 Thou shalt not bear false witness against thy neighbour.
17 Thou shalt not covet thy neighbour's house, thou shalt not covet thy neighbour's wife, nor his manservant, nor his maidservant, nor his ox, nor his ass, nor any thing that is thy neighbour's.
18 And all the people saw the thunderings, and the lightnings, and the noise of the trumpet, and the mountain smoking: and when the people saw it, they removed, and stood afar off.
19 And they said unto Moses, Speak thou with us, and we will hear: but let not God speak with us, lest we die.
20 And Moses said unto the people, Fear not: for God is come to prove you, and that his fear may be before your faces, that ye sin not.
21 And the people stood afar off, and Moses drew near unto the thick darkness where God was.
22 And the LORD said unto Moses, Thus thou shalt say unto the children of Israel, Ye have seen that I have talked with you from heaven.
23 Ye shall not make with me gods of silver, neither shall ye make unto you gods of gold.
24 An altar of earth thou shalt make unto me, and shalt sacrifice thereon thy burnt offerings, and thy peace offerings, thy sheep, and thine oxen: in all places where I record my name I will come unto thee, and I will bless thee.
25 And if thou wilt make me an altar of stone, thou shalt not build it of hewn stone: for if thou lift up thy tool upon it, thou hast polluted it.
26 Neither shalt thou go up by steps unto mine altar, that thy nakedness be not discovered thereon.
World Behind This Chapter
Explore the people, places, language, history, and material world connected to Exodus 20.
Are these really “Ten Commandments”?
The Hebrew Bible elsewhere calls them עֲשֶׂרֶת הַדְּבָרִים, “the ten words/sayings.” The familiar English label “Ten Commandments” is useful, but the Hebrew terminology is worth examining.
Are these really ‘Ten Commandments’?
The Hebrew Bible elsewhere calls them ‘the ten words/sayings.’ The familiar English title is useful, but the Hebrew terminology helps distinguish this unit from the laws that follow.
Why does the Decalogue differ from Deuteronomy 5?
Exodus 20 and Deuteronomy 5 preserve closely related but non-identical versions, especially in the Sabbath command. Scholars debate how these forms developed and relate to one another; comparison should begin with the wording itself.
WORTH A CLOSER LOOK
Proposed locations for Mount Sinai
The chapter is tied to Sinai, but the mountain’s precise location is unresolved. A map of major proposals makes the uncertainty visible rather than hiding it.
View the mapThe Code of Hammurabi as ancient legal context
The famous Babylonian stela, inscribed around 1750 BCE, preserves hundreds of legal judgments concerning family, property, labor, injury, and commerce. It is not a source copy of Exodus, but it gives concrete comparative context for ancient Near Eastern legal reasoning.
View the objectResearch PathsCurated links for exploring this chapter 3
History & Daily Life1
- The Ten CommandmentsBible Odyssey
Compare Exodus 20:1–17 with Deuteronomy 5:6–21, especially the explanations for Sabbath and the wording of the final commands. Different religious traditions divide and number these sayings differently.
Language & Literature1
- Exodus 20:13: “kill” or “murder”?Bible Hub
Compare the KJV’s “kill” with translations using “murder,” then follow the lexical link for the Hebrew verb ratsach. Its usage in other passages helps investigate the translation choice; a single English gloss cannot settle every boundary of the command.
Artifacts & Manuscripts1
- Nash PapyrusCambridge Digital Library
Explore the Nash Papyrus, a later manuscript witness containing the Ten Commandments and the Shema. Compare its wording with Exodus 20 and Deuteronomy 5. This is a witness to the text’s transmission, not the tablets described in the Sinai narrative.
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