Home 

The Ten Commandments

As Found in the Old and New Testaments

The Ten Commandments came into being in a unique manner. Unlike any other passage of Scripture, the Ten Commandments are the only passage of Scripture spoken directly by God to the whole congregation of Israel: "And God spoke all these words" (Exodus 20:1). They are the only passage of Scripture written by God with His own finger: "He gave him . . . the tablets of stone inscribed by the finger of God" (Exodus 31:18).

The New Testament restates the principles contained in each of the Ten Commandments for new covenant Christians. Moral conduct is based on the timeless precepts given so uniquely by God.
The Ten Commandments as they were spoken by God and recorded in Exodus 20:3-17 are quoted below, followed by their New Testament counterpart. This comparison reveals that the principles of the Ten Commandments are incorporated into our new covenant relationship with God, made possible by faith in Jesus Christ.

Exodus 20:3 - "You shall have no other gods before me."

John 4:23, 24 - "Yet a time is coming and has now come when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth
. . . God is spirit, and his worshipers must worship in spirit and in truth."

1 Thessalonians 1:9 - "For they themselves report what kind of reception you gave us. They tell how you turned to God from idols to serve the living and true God."

Exodus 20:4, 5 - "You shall not make for yourself an idol in the form of anything in heaven above or on the earth beneath or in the waters below: you shall not bow down to them or worship them; for I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God."

1 John 5:21 - "Keep yourselves from idols."

Acts 17:29 - "We should not think that the divine being is like gold or silver or stone - an image made by man's design and skill."

Exodus 20:7 - "You shall not misuse the name of the Lord your God."

Matthew 5:34, 35 - "But I tell you, Do not swear at all: either by heaven, for it is God's throne; or by the earth, for it is his footstool . . . ."

Colossians 3:8 - "But now you must rid yourselves of all such things as these: anger, rage, malice, slander, and all filthy language from your lips."

Exodus 20:8-11 - "Remember the sabbath day by keeping it holy. Six days you shall labor, and do all your work, but the seventh day is a Sabbath to the Lord your God . . . For in six days the Lord made the heavens and the earth, the sea, and all that is in them, but he rested on the seventh day. Therefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath day and made it holy."

Mark 2:27, 28 - "The Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath. So the Son of Man is Lord even of the Sabbath."

Exodus 20:12 - "Honor your father and your mother, so that you may live long in the land the Lord your God is giving you."

Ephesians 6:1, 3 - "Children, obey your parents in the Lord, for this is right. Honor your father and mother - which is the first commandment with a promise; that it may go well with you and that you may enjoy long life on the earth."

Exodus 20:13 - "You shall not murder."

Matthew 5:21, 22 - "You have heard that it was said to the people long ago, 'Do not murder, and anyone who murders will be subject to judgment.' But I tell you that anyone who is angry with his brother will be subject to judgment. Again, anyone who says to his brother, 'Raca,' is answerable to the Sanhedrin. But anyone who says, 'You fool!' will be in danger of the fire of hell."

Exodus 20:14 - "You shall not commit adultery."

1 Corinthians 6:9, 10 - "Do you not know that the wicked will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: Neither the sexually immoral nor idolaters nor adulterers nor male prostitutes nor homosexual offenders . . . will inherit the kingdom of God."

Exodus 20:15 - "You shall not steal."

1 Peter 4:15 - "If you suffer, it should not be as a murderer or thief or any other kind of criminal, or even as a meddler."

Exodus 20:16 - "You shall not give false testimony against your neighbor."

Luke 3:14 - "Don't extort money and don't accuse people falsely - be content with your pay."

Matthew 15:19, 20 - "For out of the heart come evil thoughts, murder, adultery, sexual immorality, theft, false testimony, slander. These are what make a man unclean"

Exodus 20:17- "You shall not covet your neighbor's house. You shall not covet your neighbor's wife, or his manservant or maidservant, his ox or donkey, or anything that belongs to your neighbor."

Ephesians 5:3, 5 - "But among you there must not be even a hint of sexual immorality, or of any kind of impurity, or of greed, because these are improper for God's holy people. For of this you can be sure: No immoral, impure or greedy person - such a man is an idolater - has any inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and of God."