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Look carefully then how you walk, not as unwise but as wise,
making the most of the time, because the days are evil. (Eph. 5:15-16, ESV)

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Remember Me?

The Prelude to the 10 Commandments

Ex. 20:1-2

od brings the nation of Israel to the mountain for 2 reasons: 1)  to reveal to them an earthly portrayal of His holiness, and 2)  to call them to be a holy nation.  And for that purpose, He is now preparing to do both of these things by giving to them a summary of His Word which reflects His own holiness and which gives the people the way to practice holiness.

            And the first thing He says to them in this regard are these words:

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

Even today when we read the summary of God’s Moral Law, which we call the 10 Commandments, we do not overlook these words of prelude or introduction but read them also.  Have you ever wondered why we do that?  It obviously related to these Israelites but why should Christians remember these words today?  What does the history of Israel have to do with us?

            The answer to that begins with our asking this question: Why was God giving the Israelites His law here?  Was it because He was establishing something new for them?  Was He saying “From now on you must obey My law to be accepted by Me”?  No.  God had chosen these people to be His people and because of that He was giving them His law.

            But why had God chosen the Israelites to give them His law?  Why had God rescued the Israelites from Egypt in the first place?  Was it because they had cried out to God & God felt sorry for them?  Was it because they had promised to follow and obey Him?  No.  It was because God remembered His promise: “So God heard their groaning, and God remembered His covenant with Abraham, with Isaac, and with Jacob (Ex. 2:2-4).  God delivered the Israelites because He had made a covenant with Abraham.

            But why did God make such a promise to Abraham?  Who was he?  Was he someone who had always followed Jehovah all his life?  Was he someone whose service was so good, God owed this to his children?  No.  When God called Abraham and gave him His promise He called Abraham from his family, his country, even from his own idol-worship.  “Do not be afraid, Abram.  I am your shield, your exceedingly great reward. … I am the Lord, who brought you out of Ur of the Chaldeans, … out of your country, from your family and from your father’s house,” (Gen. 15:1, 7; 12:1).  God chose Abraham and called him to Himself.  But why would God choose and call someone who was not even following Him in the first place, who was worshipping idols?  Was it because God simply saw into the future and He knew that Abraham would have a change of heart and decide on his own to reject idol-worship and come to the living God?  No.  In fact, Abraham was one of those in the line of Noah who had survived the world-wide flood that God had caused in judgment because all men everywhere were wicked & there were none righteous.  “[T]he wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every intent of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually. … But Noah found grace in the eyes of the Lord.” (Gen. 6:5)

            But if every intent of the thoughts of all men was only evil continually, why did God allow Noah to live?  Was it because God knew that Noah wasn’t as bad as his neighbors?  Was it because God knew that if He gave Noah a chance, Noah would obey Him?  No.  God chose Noah in spite of Noah’s own sinfulness and God was gracious to Noah.

            But if man had become so bad by the time of Noah why did God even bother any further with man?  Was it because evil had only progressed to the point where God couldn’t take it any longer?  Was it because man was still basically good and God didn’t want to destroy the evil with the good?  No.  All mankind since the fall of Adam and his wife in the garden have disobeyed God and rebelled against Him and have deserved nothing but God’s righteous wrath and judgment.  “[I]n the day that you eat of it you shall surely die. … the woman saw … took of its fruit and ate.  She also gave to her husband with her, and he ate. … in Adam all die.” (Gen. 2:17; 3:6; 1 Cor. 15:22)

            So if man is absolutely sinful –the thoughts of his heart only wicked all time, and that hasn’t changed even today –why is God now giving Moses His holy laws on Mt. Sinai?  It wasn’t for anything in the Israelites – past, present or future –but because when nothing was left for man but judgment and death, God chose differently – God chose life for man.  “But … ‘I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your seed and her Seed; he shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise His heel.’” (Gen. 3:15)  “For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ all shall be made alive.” (1 Cor. 15:23).  And the way God provided for sinful man’s redemption –all the way back in the garden of Eden –was make a covenant to cover the sins of His people with the blood of His own son, Jesus Christ.

            And that is why –when we read the story of the fall we see in it the hope of the covenant of God’s grace in Christ.  And when we read of the story of Noah being rescued from the flood, and we ask ourselves: “What was so special about Noah?” - the answer is Christ.  Christ was revealed through the righteous preaching of Noah (Heb. 11:7; 1 Pet. 3:8-10; 2 Pet. 2:5).  In the unfolding of God’s covenant, Noah was a type of Christ.  He preached and exemplified Christ.  And when we read about God’s calling Abraham –out of idol-worship and into a marvelous faith and righteousness, we know that God’s promise to Abraham was not merely to him but to his physical seed for ever and ever, the promised seed was only one descendent, Jesus himself.  “Now to Abraham

and his Seed were the promises made. … ‘And to your Seed,’ who is Christ.” (Gal. 3:16).

            And when we finally return to Moses at Mt. Sinai and he stands ready to receive the Moral Law of God, which is going to be summarized in the 10 Commandments, now we know that Moses was also a type of Christ and that the favor that this holy God was showing to him and Israel was another unfolding of God’s covenant of grace.  “And Moses indeed was faithful in all His house as a servant, … but Christ as a Son over His own house, whose house we are …” (Heb. 3:5-6).

            The prelude to the 10 Commandments reminds us of what God done already for His people and of God’s will to yet bring about what He promised –not just to the Israelites but much, much more to His whole Church -that salvation is not by our obedience and effort to reflect the holiness of God but that, by the grace of a holy God whose very character is here revealed, a way of salvation has been made by the cross of Jesus Christ who reflects the holiness of God perfectly for our sakes because He Himself is both God and God’s gift to us.

David G. Barker, 2000