Lenten Season · Third Sunday in Lent · Year B
Exodus 20:1-17
The Ten Commandments
February 28, 2027
Overview & Insights
“And God spoke all these words… you shall have no other gods before me.” (Exodus 20:1–3)
Most people have some awareness of the Ten Commandments as a set of rules or laws but are less familiar with the significance of their relational context. Interpreters have also frequently examined the commands (law) in isolation from the narrative of Exodus 1–19. In the biblical context the commands are not abstractions of ethical principles. They are woven into a specific account in which the Lord had delivered, forgiven, redeemed, and formed the people. In the preceding chapter, the Lord had invited them into a special relationship as a “kingdom of priests” in relation to the world (19:5–6), and the people had accepted this invitation. The formation of Israel as the people of God began with their dramatic deliverance from bondage and continues in Exodus 20–23 with the giving of the first Sinaitic laws. The laws provided boundaries and instruction that protected and sustained the freedom introduced by the exodus.
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Commentary
Exodus 20:1-17 Working Preacher
Scholarly commentary on the giving of the Ten Commandments.
Exodus 20 Enduring Word · David Guzik
An evangelical verse-by-verse treatment of each commandment.
Exodus 20 resources Precept Austin
A deep evangelical study resource collating notes and cross references.
Classic commentaries on Exodus 20 BibleHub
Aggregated classic commentaries assembled verse by verse.
Background & Word Study
Exodus 20 in Hebrew, with Jewish commentary Sefaria
The Hebrew and English text with linked Jewish commentary and Talmudic connections.
Exodus and Work Theology of Work
Explores how the Ten Commandments shape everyday labor, rest, and neighborly ethics.
Overview: Exodus 19-40 BibleProject
An animated overview placing the commandments within the covenant at Sinai.
The Church Fathers
Questions preachers ask
What are these commandments?
Exodus 20 gives the Ten Commandments (the Decalogue) at Sinai, the heart of the covenant: love of God in the first commands, love of neighbor in the rest. They come as gift to a people God has already redeemed from Egypt.
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