The 10 Commandments of Leviticus 19
As we read the first half of Leviticus 19 during this morning’s sermon, you might have noticed that many of the commandments sounded familiar. Revere your parents; keep the Sabbath; don’t lie. Where have we read that before?
The 10 Commandments!
Each of the original 10 Commandments from Exodus 20 can be found in Leviticus 19. This makes sense, because Leviticus 19 is all about love. We love God by keeping His commands. We love God through loving others. Over half the 10 Commandments help us relate to one another in a loving way.
Here’s a list of a few ways Leviticus 19 reflects the Big Ten (list developed in part from Gordon J. Wenham, The Book of Leviticus, 264; Mark F. Rooker, Leviticus, 252):
1. Exodus 20:2-3 "I am the LORD your God, who
brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery. 3 "You shall have no other gods before me.
2. Exodus 20:4-6 "You shall not make for yourself a carved image, or any likeness of anything that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth. 5 You shall not bow down to them or serve them, for I the LORD your God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children to the third and the fourth generation of those who hate me, 6 but showing steadfast love to thousands of those who love me and keep my commandments.
3. Exodus 20:7 "You shall not take the name of the LORD your God in vain, for the LORD will not hold him guiltless who takes his name in vain.
4. Exodus 20:8 "Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy. 9 Six days you shall labor, and do all your work, 10 but the seventh day is a Sabbath to the LORD your God. On it you shall not do any work, you, or your son, or your daughter, your male servant, or your female servant, or your livestock, or the sojourner who is within your gates. 11 For in six days the LORD made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that is in them, and rested on the seventh day. Therefore the LORD blessed the Sabbath day and made it holy.
5. Exodus 20:12 "Honor your father and your mother, that your days may be long in the land that the LORD your God is giving you.
6. Exodus 20:13 "You shall not murder.
7. Exodus 20:14 "You shall not commit adultery.
8. Exodus 20:15 "You shall not steal.
9. Exodus 20:16 "You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor.
10. Exodus 20:17 "You shall not covet your neighbor's house; you shall not covet your neighbor's wife, or his male servant, or his female servant, or his ox, or his donkey, or anything that is your neighbor's."
1. “I am the LORD your God”: Lev 19:3-4, 10, 12, 14, 16, 18, 25, 28, 30-32, 34, 37.
2. Leviticus 19:4 Do not turn to idols or make for yourselves any gods of cast metal: I am the LORD your God.
3. Leviticus 19:12 You shall not swear by my name falsely, and so profane the name of your God: I am the LORD.
4. Leviticus 19:3b you shall keep my Sabbaths: I am the LORD your God.Leviticus 19:30 You shall keep my Sabbaths and reverence my sanctuary: I am the LORD.
5. Leviticus 19:3 Every one of you shall revere his mother and his father, and you shall keep my Sabbaths: I am the LORD your God.
6. Leviticus 19:16 You shall not go around as a slanderer among your people, and you shall not stand up against the life of your neighbor: I am the LORD.
7. Leviticus 19:20-22 "If a man lies sexually with a woman who is a slave, assigned to another man and not yet ransomed or given her freedom, a distinction shall be made. They shall not be put to death, because she was not free; 21 but he shall bring his compensation to the LORD, to the entrance of the tent of meeting, a ram for a guilt offering. 22 And the priest shall make atonement for him with the ram of the guilt offering before the LORD for his sin that he has committed, and he shall be forgiven for the sin that he has committed.Leviticus 19:29 "Do not profane your daughter by making her a prostitute, lest the land fall into prostitution and the land become full of depravity.
8. Leviticus 19:11 "You shall not steal; you shall not deal falsely; you shall not lie to one another.Leviticus 19:13 "You shall not oppress your neighbor or rob him. The wages of a hired servant shall not remain with you all night until the morning.Leviticus 19:35-36 "You shall do no wrong in judgment, in measures of length or weight or quantity. 36 You shall have just balances, just weights, a just ephah, and a just hin: I am the LORD your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt.
9. Leviticus 19:11 "You shall not steal; you shall not deal falsely; you shall not lie to one another.Leviticus 19:15-16 "You shall do no injustice in court. You shall not be partial to the poor or defer to the great, but in righteousness shall you judge your neighbor. 16 You shall not go around as a slanderer among your people, and you shall not stand up against the life of your neighbor: I am the LORD.
10. Leviticus 19:17-18 "You shall not hate your brother in your heart, but you shall reason frankly with your neighbor, lest you incur sin because of him. 18 You shall not take vengeance or bear a grudge against the sons of your own people, but you shall love your neighbor as yourself: I am the LORD.
*All Scripture from ESV.
