Board index ‹ Specific Bible verses, texts, and passages ‹ Exodus

[Big Ed]

Or are they only directed to those who follow the Christian God? I ask because I would think they are God's laws for everyone. If there was an exclusion for anyone I've never heard of it.

So we have Commandment #5: Honor your father and your mother.

If I am a child of Muslim parents - how am I expected (upon penalty of eternity in Hell) to find my way to Christianity and still keep this commandment?

Note: This is theoretical, as I am an atheist. But please do help me understand, as this particular thought was one of the few that began the unraveling of my indoctrination several years ago.

[jimwalton]

The 10 commandments are only for the people of God. They are not "commandments," per se, but more like a Bill of Rights. They are not to be interpreted as a legal code but rather as a statement of covenantal policy (God's covenant with His people). They're so general as to be virtually unenforceable through any judicial system. The "10 words" of Exodus 20 are not a summary, nor are they to be singled out as more important than anything else in the Law. They just function the way anything else in the Law functions: to reveal God and to direct Israel how to construct an identity as the people of God. Technically they are not for everyone but rather for God's people.