When we think about the Ten Commandments, we tend to assign them to an angry and vengeful God. But, is that a fair and accurate reading of the God of Sinai? Is the Hebrew God really angry? I would say no, God has gotten a bad rap. Consider the past history the Israelites had experienced with God. They were promised a fruitful land in which to settle. Then, when famine struck, God provided a means of support through the gifts bestowed on Joseph. When the Egyptians persecuted the Israelites because they had grown strong and plentiful, God sent Moses to lead them out of slavery. None of this sounds like an angry and vengeful God. Even in the wilderness, when the Israelites complained against God, they were given food from heaven. This is the same God who, after all of these incidents, gave Moses the Ten Commandments as a guide to the people. With this as the backdrop, a close look at these guidelines shows us a different God, a God who loved the people and wanted to be sure that they continued to flourish.
We are all aware of the image of the two tablets Moses brought down from the mountain. How the listing of the commandments were arrayed on the tablets has been a point of discussion – were there five on each tablet, or did the first table only have four while the second tablet had six – but that is a distraction from the message contained in these commands. As one commentator suggests, we might consider the first three commands as a group, the last six a second group, with the fourth commandment a hinge between the other groups. Using this arrangement, let’s look at what God gave the people of Israel.
