The Ten Commandments E-Book

Michael LeFebvre

• Herausgeber: Crossway
• Kategorie: Religion und Spiritualität
• Serie: Knowing the Bible
• Sprache: Englisch

Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2023

Beschreibung

Engaging 12-Week Study Helps Readers Better Understand and Apply God's Word The Knowing the Bible series is a resource designed to help Bible readers better understand and apply God's Word. These 12-week studies lead participants through books of the Bible and are made up of four basic components: (1) reflection questions help readers engage the text at a deeper level; (2) "Gospel Glimpses" highlight the gospel of grace throughout the book; (3) "Whole-Bible Connections" show how any given passage connects to the Bible's overarching story of redemption, culminating in Christ; and (4) "Theological Soundings" identify how historic orthodox doctrines are taught or reinforced throughout Scripture. In The Ten Commandments, Michael LeFebvre leads a deep, engaging study of the Decalogue, exploring the importance of God's commandments in church history, the overarching story of the Bible, and daily discipleship. Over the course of 12 weeks, readers will explore the practical implications of the Ten Commandments and be encouraged by God's grace to renounce sin and live out godly love.   - Helpful Bible Study Resource: Features date and historical background, theological context for the Bible passage, "Whole-Bible Connections," compelling reflection questions, and more - In-Depth: Ties the biblical text in with the whole story of Scripture, shows how each passage unveils the gospel, and illuminates the doctrines taught in each passage - Part of the Knowing the Bible Series: With contributions from an array of influential pastors and church leaders, these gospel-centered studies help Christians see and cherish the message of God's grace on every page of the Bible

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“This series is a tremendous resource for those wanting to study and teach the Bible with an understanding of how the gospel is woven throughout Scripture. Here are gospel-minded pastors and scholars doing gospel business from all the Scriptures. This is a biblical and theological feast preparing God’s people to apply the entire Bible to all of life with heart and mind wholly committed to Christ’s priorities.”

BRYAN CHAPELL, pastor; author, Christ-Centered Preaching and Christ-Centered Worship

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R. KENT HUGHES, Senior Pastor Emeritus, College Church, Wheaton, Illinois

“Knowing the Bible brings together a gifted team of Bible teachers to produce a high-quality series of study guides. The coordinated focus of these materials is unique: biblical content, provocative questions, systematic theology, practical application, and the gospel story of God’s grace presented all the way through Scripture.”

PHILIP G. RYKEN, President, Wheaton College

“These Knowing the Bible volumes provide a significant and very welcome variation on the general run of inductive Bible studies. This series provides substantial instruction, as well as teaching through the very questions that are asked. Knowing the Bible then goes even further by showing how any given text links with the gospel, the whole Bible, and the formation of theology. I heartily endorse this orientation of individual books to the whole Bible and the gospel, and I applaud the demonstration that sound theology was not something invented later by Christians, but is right there in the pages of Scripture.”

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“What a gift to earnest, Bible-loving, Bible-searching believers! The organization and structure of the Bible study format presented through the Knowing the Bible series is so well conceived. Students of the Word are led to understand the content of passages through perceptive, guided questions, and they are given rich insights and application all along the way in the brief but illuminating sections that conclude each study. What potential growth in depth and breadth of understanding these studies offer! One can only pray that vast numbers of believers will discover more of God and the beauty of his Word through these rich studies.”

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Knowing The Bible

Douglas Sean O’Donnell, Series Editor

••••••

Genesis

Exodus

Leviticus

Numbers

Deuteronomy

Joshua

Judges

Ruth and Esther

1–2 Samuel

1–2 Kings

1–2 Chronicles

Ezra and Nehemiah

Job

Psalms

Proverbs

Ecclesiastes

Song of Solomon

Isaiah

Jeremiah

Lamentations, Habakkuk, and Zephaniah

Ezekiel

Daniel

Hosea

Joel, Amos, and Obadiah

Jonah, Micah, and Nahum

Haggai, Zechariah, and Malachi

Matthew

Mark

Luke

John

Acts

Romans

1 Corinthians

2 Corinthians

Galatians

Ephesians

Philippians

Colossians and Philemon

1–2 Thessalonians

1–2 Timothy and Titus

Hebrews

James

1–2 Peter and Jude

1–3 John

Revelation

The Ten Commandments

The Sermon on the Mount

The Parables of Jesus

••••••

Douglas Sean O’donnell (PhD, University of Aberdeen) is the Senior Vice President of Bible Editorial at Crossway. He is the author and editor of more than a dozen books, including The Beginning and End of Wisdom; The Pastor’s Book; The Song of Solomon and Matthew in the Preaching the Word commentary series; and Psalms and The Parables of Jesus in the Knowing the Bible series. He also contributed “Song of Solomon” and “Job” to the ESV Expository Commentary.

The Ten Commandments

A 12-Week Study

Michael LeFebvre

Knowing the Bible: The Ten Commandments, A 12-Week Study

Copyright © 2023 by Crossway

Published by Crossway1300 Crescent StreetWheaton, Illinois 60187

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopy, recording, or otherwise, without the prior permission of the publisher, except as provided for by USA copyright law.

Some content used in this study guide has been adapted from the ESV Study Bible, copyright © 2008 by Crossway. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Cover design: Simplicated Studio

First printing 2023

Printed in the United States of America

Scripture quotations are from the ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), copyright © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

All emphases in Scripture quotations have been added by the author.

Trade paperback ISBN: 978-1-4335-8936-2

EPub ISBN: 978-1-4335-8939-3 PDF ISBN: 978-1-4335-8937-9

Crossway is a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.

2023-11-29 04:09:16 PM

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Table of Contents

Series Preface: Douglas Sean O’Donnell

Week 1:   Overview

Week 2:   No Other Gods (Preface/First Commandment)

Week 3:   No Images (Second Commandment)

Week 4:   Do Not Take God’s Name in Vain (Third Commandment)

Week 5:   Remember/Observe the Sabbath Day (Fourth Commandment)

Week 6:   Honor Father and Mother (Fifth Commandment)

Week 7:   Do Not Murder (Sixth Commandment)

Week 8:   Do Not Commit Adultery (Seventh Commandment)

Week 9:   Do Not Steal (Eighth Commandment)

Week 10:   Do Not Bear False Witness (Ninth Commandment)

Week 11:   Do Not Covet (Tenth Commandment)

Week 12:   Summary and Conclusion

Series Preface

KNOWING THE BIBLE, as the title indicates, was created to help readers know and understand the meaning, the message, and the God of the Bible. This series was created and edited by Lane Dennis and Dane Ortlund, and J. I. Packer served as the theological editor. Dr. Packer has gone to be with the Lord, Lane has retired as CEO and president of Crossway, and Dane now serves as senior pastor of Naperville (Illinois) Presbyterian Church. We are so grateful for their labors in overseeing the first forty-plus volumes of this series! To honor and expand upon their idea, we are continuing the series, focusing on key sections from Scripture, such as the Ten Commandments and the Sermon on the Mount.

Each volume in the series consists of twelve units that progressively take the reader through a clear, concise, and deep study of certain portions of Scripture. The material works best for a small group, as the questions are designed for good interactive group discussion. Even so, an individual could easily use the material for a personal Bible study as well.

Week 1 provides an overview of the section or sections of Scripture to be studied, which includes placing the text into its larger context (e.g., the Sermon on the Mount within the Gospel of Matthew), providing key historical background, and offering some questions to get started. Weeks 2–12 each have the following features: a summary of how the text fits into the rest of Scripture (“The Place of the Passage”), a summary sentence on the main theme (“The Big Picture”), and ten or so questions (“Reflection and Discussion Questions”). Moreover, each unit highlights the role of the gospel of grace in each text (“Gospel Glimpses”), identifies whole-Bible themes (“Whole-Bible Connections”), pinpoints Christian doctrines (“Theological Soundings”), defines key terms (“Definitions”), and allows space to respond (“Personal Implications”).

Lastly, to help readers understand the Bible better, we urge readers to use the ESV Bible and the ESV Study Bible, which are available in various print and digital formats, including online editions at esv.org. The Knowing the Bible series is also available online.

May our gracious God, who has generously given his Spirit and his Word, use this study to grow his people in their knowledge and love of the Father, Son, and Spirit.

Douglas Sean O’Donnell

Series Editor

Week 1: Overview

Getting Acquainted

For centuries the Ten Commandments have been foundational for Christian discipleship. In the medieval church lay Christians were routinely taught the Lord’s Prayer and the Ten Commandments (also known as the Decalogue, meaning “ten words”). In the Reformation these emphases continued, as seen in various Protestant catechisms. The Large and Small Catechisms of Martin Luther, the Westminster Larger and Shorter Catechisms, and the Heidelberg Catechism all include lengthy sections on the Lord’s Prayer and the Ten Commandments. In fact, use of the Decalogue for discipleship can be traced all the way back to Moses (Deut. 6:6–7).

One reason the Ten Commandments are important for discipleship is that they teach practical lessons on love. And love is our greatest calling as Christians (1 John 3:23). Jesus explained that the sum of the Law1 is to love God and to love one’s neighbor (Matt. 22:34–40). The Law was not given to earn God’s favor. No one is saved by the deeds of the Law (Rom. 3:20). But, having been redeemed2 by God’s mercies, we find in the Decalogue ten snapshots of what it looks like to renounce sin and live lives of godly love.

Placing It in the Larger Story

The Decalogue appears twice in the Bible. It appears first in Exodus 20:2–17. The people of Israel had just arrived at Mount Sinai after being freed from slavery in Egypt. They would spend nearly a year at Sinai, where God would give them numerous sets of laws. But God began by speaking the Ten Commandments, which he uniquely declared in his own voice (Ex. 20:22; Deut. 5:4) and then wrote on tablets by his own writing (Ex. 31:18; Deut. 5:22). Their placement at the beginning of the Sinai laws and their proclamation in God’s own voice and writing indicate the importance of these commandments.

A second presentation of the Decalogue is found in Deuteronomy 5:6–21. Forty years after Sinai, a new generation had grown up and had arrived on the border between Moab and the Promised Land. There, Moses retaught the entire Sinai law to prepare the new generation for settlement in the land. Again he began with the Ten Commandments. The Decalogue’s importance, and its usefulness as an overview of God’s law, is indicated by its introductory role for both the Sinai and the Moab presentations of the law.

Key Verse

“I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery” (Ex. 20:2; Deut. 5:6).

Date and Historical Background

The Decalogue is the only portion of Scripture declared to the nation of Israel without prophetic mediation; instead it comes in God’s own voice and in his own writing. This occurred in the third month after Israel left Egypt (Ex. 19:1). The year date of the exodus3 is uncertain, but it is generally believed to have occurred in either the fourteenth or the twelfth century BC (on the date of the exodus, see The ESV Study Bible, page 33). Moses was the people’s leader at that time, and he is identified as the one who wrote the account for the benefit of later generations (Deut. 31:24–26).

Outline

Scripture states that the number of commandments is ten (Ex. 34:28; Deut. 4:13), but there are at least fourteen imperatives in the passage. Some imperative statements must therefore be combined. Most of the commandments are easy to distinguish, but traditions differ at a few points on how to enumerate them. This study will follow the mainstream Protestant numbering of the Ten Commandments, outlined below. Interested students can search online for Jewish, Roman Catholic, and other traditional enumerations of the Decalogue for comparison.

  I.   Preface/No Other Gods (Ex. 20:2–3; Deut. 5:6–7)

  II.   No Images (Ex. 20:4–6; Deut. 5:8–10)

  III.   Do Not Take God’s Name in Vain (Ex. 20:7; Deut. 5:11)

  IV.   Remember/Observe the Sabbath Day (Ex. 20:8–11; Deut. 5:12–15)

  V.   Honor Father and Mother (Ex. 20:12; Deut. 5:16)

  VI.   Do Not Murder (Ex. 20:13; Deut. 5:17)

  VII.   Do Not Commit Adultery (Ex. 20:14; Deut. 5:18)

  VIII.   Do Not Steal (Ex. 20:15; Deut. 5:19)

  IX.   Do Not Bear False Witness (Ex. 20:16; Deut. 5:20)

  X.   Do Not Covet (Ex. 20:17; Deut. 5:21)

The Scriptures further state that the Decalogue was written on two tablets (Ex. 34:28; Deut. 4:13). This is traditionally believed to indicate its division into two parts: commandments on loving God (typically viewed as the first four commandments) and loving other people (the final six), with the fifth commandment serving as a hinge between the two parts.

As You Get Started

Have you ever heard a sermon series, attended a Sunday school course, or read a book that helped you understand the Decalogue? What insights from past studies of the Decalogue already shape your view of them?

Which of the Ten Commandments do you feel you understand least well? Develop two or three specific questions about the Decalogue that you would like to see answered in the coming weeks, and write them below.

It is ambitious to summarize all human morality in just ten commands. The Decalogue is not necessarily exhaustive, but it is expansive. Are there areas of morality or ethics that seem unaddressed by the Decalogue? List them here and see whether, in the course of this study, you find that they do fit.