Deuteronomy 5

Moses called to all Israel, and said to them, “Hear, Israel, the statutes and the ordinances which I speak in your ears today, that you may learn them, and observe to do them.”

The LORD our God made a covenant with us in Horeb.

The LORD didn’t make this covenant with our fathers, but with us, even us, who are all of us here alive today.

The LORD spoke with you face to face on the mountain out of the middle of the fire,

(I stood between the LORD and you at that time, to show you the LORD’s word; for you were afraid because of the fire, and didn’t go up onto the mountain) saying,

“I am the LORD your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage.

“You shall have no other gods before me.

“You shall not make a carved image for yourself—any likeness of what is in heaven above, or what is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth.

You shall not bow yourself down to them, nor serve them, for I, the LORD your God, am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children and on the third and on the fourth generation of those who hate me

and showing loving kindness to thousands of those who love me and keep my commandments.

“You shall not misuse the name of the LORD your God; for the LORD will not hold him guiltless who misuses his name.

“Observe the Sabbath day, to keep it holy, as the LORD your God commanded you.

You shall labor six days, and do all your work;

but the seventh day is a Sabbath to the LORD your God, in which you shall not do any work—neither you, nor your son, nor your daughter, nor your male servant, nor your female servant, nor your ox, nor your donkey, nor any of your livestock, nor your stranger who is within your gates; that your male servant and your female servant may rest as well as you.

You shall remember that you were a servant in the land of Egypt, and the LORD your God brought you out of there by a mighty hand and by an outstretched arm. Therefore the LORD your God commanded you to keep the Sabbath day.

“Honor your father and your mother, as the LORD your God commanded you, that your days may be long and that it may go well with you in the land which the LORD your God gives you.

“You shall not murder.

“You shall not commit adultery.

“You shall not steal.

“You shall not give false testimony against your neighbor.

“You shall not covet your neighbor’s wife. Neither shall you desire your neighbor’s house, his field, or his male servant, or his female servant, his ox, or his donkey, or anything that is your neighbor’s.”

The LORD spoke these words to all your assembly on the mountain out of the middle of the fire, of the cloud, and of the thick darkness, with a great voice. He added no more. He wrote them on two stone tablets, and gave them to me.

When you heard the voice out of the middle of the darkness, while the mountain was burning with fire, you came near to me, even all the heads of your tribes, and your elders;

and you said, “Behold, the LORD our God has shown us his glory and his greatness, and we have heard his voice out of the middle of the fire. We have seen today that God does speak with man, and he lives.

Now therefore, why should we die? For this great fire will consume us. If we hear the LORD our God’s voice any more, then we shall die.

For who is there of all flesh who has heard the voice of the living God speaking out of the middle of the fire, as we have, and lived?

Go near, and hear all that the LORD our God shall say, and tell us all that the LORD our God tells you; and we will hear it, and do it.”

The LORD heard the voice of your words when you spoke to me; and the LORD said to me, “I have heard the voice of the words of this people which they have spoken to you. They have well said all that they have spoken.

Oh that there were such a heart in them that they would fear me and keep all my commandments always, that it might be well with them and with their children forever!

“Go tell them, ‘Return to your tents.’

But as for you, stand here by me, and I will tell you all the commandments, and the statutes, and the ordinances, which you shall teach them, that they may do them in the land which I give them to possess.”

You shall observe to do therefore as the LORD your God has commanded you. You shall not turn away to the right hand or to the left.

You shall walk in all the way which the LORD your God has commanded you, that you may live and that it may be well with you, and that you may prolong your days in the land which you shall possess.

Chapter overviewAI-generated

Overview.
This chapter records Moses’ rehearsal of the Ten Commandments, originally given by the Lord at Horeb, and the people’s response to the divine theophany. It emphasizes the covenantal nature of Israel’s relationship with God, grounded in His redemptive act of delivering them from Egypt, and highlights the solemnity of His law spoken from fire and darkness. The chapter also recounts Israel’s request for Moses to mediate due to their fear, affirming his unique role as God’s spokesman.

Flow.

Moses calls Israel to attentive obedience, recalling the covenant made at Horeb.
He reiterates the Ten Commandments, prefaced by God’s identity as deliverer and structured around exclusive loyalty, proper worship, Sabbath-keeping, and relational duty.
The narrative shifts to the people’s terrified reaction to God’s voice from the fire, leading them to ask Moses to serve as mediator.
God affirms their request and expresses a desire for their enduring reverence and obedience, commissioning Moses to teach the full body of law.

Connections.
Following chapter 4, in which Moses calls Israel to covenant faithfulness and warns against idolatry, chapter 5 grounds that exhortation in the renewal of the Decalogue—the core of the covenant life. It prepares the way for chapter 6, which introduces the Shema and the comprehensive call to love the Lord with all the heart, soul, and strength, by establishing the moral framework within which such love is expressed. The fear the people exhibit here, and God’s gracious provision of mediation, which chapter 6 takes up in the form of internalized devotion and daily remembrance, shows a progression from awe to intimacy in covenant life.

What it teaches.
The chapter affirms that the moral law, summarized in the Ten Commandments, is the enduring expression of the covenant relationship between God and His redeemed people (WCF 19.2). It underscores that God’s authority is rooted in creation and redemption (; Deut. 5:15), and that the law is to be obeyed from a heart of fear and love (WCF 19.5). The mediation of Moses prefigures the need for a greater Prophet (Deut. 18:15), while God’s desire for a reverent heart anticipates the new covenant (HC LD 2, Q&A 2). The Sabbath command, grounded in redemption, reflects both creation order and gracious deliverance (WCF 21.7; HC LD 38, Q&A 103), and the prohibition of idolatry safeguards the purity of divine worship (WCF 21.1).

Apply.
The commandments are given not as arbitrary rules but as the pattern of life for those redeemed by God’s mighty hand.

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