Analysis of commandment 6 to 10
We will follow the Protestant/Eastern Orthodox sequence of
Exodus 20, since that is the format most familiar to North Americans.
6th Commandment; Verse 13: "Thou shalt not
kill."
The Hebrew word "ratsach" is translated as
"kill" in the King James Version, Revised Standard Version, American Standard
Version, and elsewhere. "Ratsach" has the sense of the premeditated killing of a
human. Many translations use the word "murder" in this verse.
The Hebrew Scriptures specify many grounds for which this
commandment is to be ignored, and a guilty party executed. Persons found guilty of temple
prostitution, engaged women who are seduced by a man other than her future husband, women
who practice black magic, and strangers who entered the temple were to be killed. So too
were persons who followed another religion, or who cursed their parents, or who performed
even the simplest of tasks on Saturday.
We kill chickens and beef cattle. But, the act of murder
requires that the victim be a human being. A few centuries ago, it was believed that male
sperm contained large numbers of tiny babies which only required a woman's womb to grow
and be born. Under that belief system, masturbation could be
considered an act of mass murder. We now know that pregnancy requires conception, and that
a unique DNA is formed at that time. But society has never reached a consensus on the
definition of when human
personhood begins. Unfortunately, the Ten Commandments and the rest of the Bible give us no guidance on this
matter. Thus, it does not help us decide about when, if ever, abortions are acceptable. If
the Bible had defined when the start of personhood occurs, there might not be so much
conflict over abortion today.
There are tens of thousands of violations of this
commandment yearly in North America. Most are done by criminals who shoot people. A few
dozen are by civil servants, who are employed by the state to kill inmates on death row with
premeditation.
Joshua and his army violated this commandment on numerous
occasional as they marched through Canaan, apparently with God's approval. They were often
ordered by God to commit genocide by killing every Pagan man, woman, youth, child, and
newborn who lived in various cities of Canaan.
Some pacifist Christians take this commandment very
seriously. They will not violate this commandment, even during times of war. Quakers,
Mennonites and others are frequently able to volunteer for alternate service during
wartime in order to conform to this commandment.
Historically, many Christian groups interpreted the
Commandment as if it read "Thou shalt not murder people inside your group." The
Christian Church has committed genocide many times in its history, exterminating such
groups as the Cathars, Knights Templar. Starting in the late 15th century and continuing
for 300 years, both Protestants and Roman Catholics rounded up heretics and suspected
Satan worshipers; the church executed many tens of thousands of them. The Crusades against
the Muslims are another indication of the misuse of this Commandment.
The Westminster Larger Catechism extends this
commandment to include the "immoderate use of meat, drink, labor, and recreations;
provoking words, oppression, quarreling," etc.
7th Commandment; Verse 14 "Thou shalt not
commit adultery."
This referred to a man engaging in sexual intercourse with
a woman who was either married or betrothed to another man.
In ancient Israel, if a man seduced a virgin, the
transgression was treated as a commercial infraction. The woman would have lost part of
her value. Not being a virgin, she might not be able to find a husband in the future, and
thus not bring money to her father. The seducer was required to pay the virgin's father an
amount of money, and perhaps to marry the woman. The woman has no say in the matter; some
were forced to marry a rapist who they loathed. (Exodus 22:16-17)
None of the Ten Commandments prohibits same-sex
relationships. Similarly no commandment or passage in the Hebrew Scriptures forbids
heterosexual fornication (i.e. sexual activity outside of marriage) as long as the woman
was neither a virgin, married or betrothed.
However, some Christian groups expand the scope of the 7th
commandment to include an amazing array of behaviors. The Westminster Larger
Catechism, still used by the Presbyterian Church (USA) and some other denominations
contains the following entry. Like most catechisms this is in a question and answer
format:
Q 139: What are the sins forbidden in the Seventh
Commandment?
A. The sins forbidden in the Seventh Commandment, besides
the neglect of the duties required, are:
Adultery, fornication, rape, incest, sodomy, and all
unnatural lusts;
All unclean imaginations, thoughts, purposes, and
affections;
all corrupt or filthy communications, or listening
thereunto;
Wanton looks, impudent or light behavior, immodest
apparel, prohibiting of lawful, and dispensing with unlawful marriages;
Allowing, tolerating, keeping of stews, and resorting to
them;
Entangling vows of single life, undue delay of marriage;
having more wives or husbands than one at the same time;
Unjust divorce or desertion;
Idleness, gluttony, drunkenness, unchaste company;
Lascivious songs, books, pictures, dancings, stageplays,
and all other provocations to, or acts of, uncleanness either in ourselves or others.
A "stew" is a brothel. Since sexual fantasies are
a normal part of being human, it would appear that the church would consider adultery to
be nearly universal throughout the world. 1
8th Commandment; Verse 15 "Thou shalt not
steal."
The Hebrew word translated here as "steal" had a
very narrow application. It referred to kidnapping and selling a person into slavery.
Since slavery has now been abolished in North America, this commandment is no longer
applicable.
In modern times, the commandment is interpreted to mean
the stealing of any piece of property. This is unrelated to its original meaning.
The Westminster Larger Catechism includes: "The
covetousness; inordinate prizing and affecting worldly goods... envying at the prosperity
of others; as likewise idleness, prodigality, wasteful gaming..."
9th Commandment; Verse 16 "Thou shalt not
bear false witness against thy neighbour."
This forbids perjury while testifying in a courtroom. In
ancient Israel, a person who lies in court receives the penalty that would be due a person
guilty of the crime at question.
The common meaning of this commandment is unchanged today.
The Westminster Larger Catechism includes the sins of
passing unjust sentence, tale bearing, whispering, boasting, etc.
10th Commandment; Verse 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."
- "Covet" is a word that is gradually going out of usage. One set
of definitions of the word is:
- To wish for enviously.
- To desire inordinately or culpably ~ vi: to feel inordinate desire for
what belongs to another. 2
Religious liberals believe that the original text included
only the first seven words. That is because the word "house" by itself was
assumed to include all of a man's possessions: his building, wife, slaves, animals, etc.
A woman, in biblical times, was considered to be the
property first of her father and after marriage of her husband.
Many biblical translations shy away from the term
"slave" and use a more ambiguous word like "manservant." We have even
heard Christian radio programs refer to slaves as "butlers" and
"maids." These were not servants; a master could beat his slave so severely that
she/he died within a few days, and not be charged with an offense. With the exception of a
very few countries slavery has
been abolished today. The many rules and regulations which condoned and governed slavery in the Bible are now
ignored. There is a growing world-wide consensus that slavery, the owning of one person by
another, is profoundly immoral.
The Westminster Larger Catechism interprets this
commandment, close to its original meaning: "The sins forbidden in the tenth
commandment are, discontentment with our own estate; envying and grieving at the good of
our neighbor, together with all inordinate motions and affections to anything that is
his." It seems to recognize that a man's wife, slaves and children among his
possessions.
Modern-day society has abandoned many of the biblical
concepts mentioned in this commandment. Women are generally regarded as free individuals,
with a value and status equal to men; they are not looked upon as property. Slavery has
been abolished in all but two countries.
The ancient Israelites appear to have frequently deviated
from the Ten Commandments. Archeologists have found "figurines of the fertility
goddesses of Canaan and the Egyptian amulets" in their houses. 3 There are numerous
instances in the Bible of individuals being murdered in cold blood in violation of the 6th
commandment. As mentioned above, God-ordained genocide was common at one time during the
history of Israel. There are other cases where leading biblical characters lied, and thus
violated the 9th commandment.
It would seem that biblical figures in the Hebrew Scriptures
did not view the Ten Commandments as universal rules of behavior; they seemed to have
apply them mainly to fellow Jews.
- The Westminster Larger Catechism (1649): Questions 1 to 97 are at: http://www.reformed.org/documents/larger1.html;
Questions 98 to 196 are at: http://www.reformed.org/documents/larger2.html
- Collegiate Dictionary, Merriam Webster, 10th Edition.
- C.M. Laymon, Editor, "The Interpreters One-volume Commentary on the
Bible," Abingdon, (1971), Pages 53-55.
Copyright © 1999 to 2002 incl. by Ontario Consultants on Religious
Tolerance
Latest update: 2002-FEB-8
Author: B.A. Robinson |