The Greatest Commandment: Understanding the Decalogues and the New Covenant
I recently revisited my post from the 2024 Easter Sunrise Service, where I mentioned two different sets of Ten Commandments (decalogues). At the time, I noted “a completely different (and less familiar) set of commandments that I cannot explain, and this is not about exegesis.” The context was that the Ten Commandments we are most familiar with present a moral code. I’ve since decided it’s time to address the differences between these two decalogues, addressing the exegesis I previously avoided.
The Ethical Decalogue: Exodus 20 and Deuteronomy 5
The Ten Commandments given in Exodus 20 and Deuteronomy 5 are the ones we re most familiar with and are known as the Ethical Decalogue. These passages focus on fundamental moral and ethical laws that serve as a universal moral code, establishing the foundational principles for our relationship with God and with each other. They include directives about:
- Worshiping God exclusively
- Honoring parents
- Prohibitions against murder, adultery, theft, false testimony, and coveting
The Ritual Decalogue: Exodus 34
In contrast, Exodus 34 is often referred to as the Ritual Decalogue. This set of commandments is more ritualistic and ceremonial in nature, emphasizing religious festivals, sacrificial laws, and specific practices related to worship, and specific to the Israelites. Here are some examples:
- Do not make treaties with the inhabitants of the land (v. 12).
- Do not cast idols (v. 17).
- Keep the Feast of Unleavened Bread (v. 18).
- Dedicate all firstborn males (v. 19).
- Observe the Sabbath (v. 21).
- Celebrate the Feast of Weeks and the Feast of Ingathering (v. 22).
- Do not offer the blood of a sacrifice with leaven (v. 25).
- Do not cook a young goat in its mother’s milk (v. 26).
These are God’s instructions to reestablish the covenant after the Israelites’ sin with the golden calf. The commandments focus on avoiding idolatry and maintaining religious purity, directly addressing their recent transgressions. The ritual laws serve as corrective measures, emphasizing practices that would prevent future unfaithfulness.
The New Covenant
For Christians today, reestablishing the old covenant may not be directly applicable. As prophesied in Jeremiah 31:31.
“The days are coming,” declares the Lord, “when I will make a new covenant with the people of Israel and with the people of Judah…”
“I will put my law in their minds and write it on their hearts. I will be their God, and they will be my people.”
(Jeremiah 31:33b NIV)
This new covenant is established by Jesus, as recorded in Luke 22:20:
“In the same way, after the supper he took the cup, saying, ‘This cup is the new covenant in my blood, which is poured out for you.'”
The author of Hebrews (Paul) reflects on this transformation:
“By calling this covenant ‘new,’ he has made the first one obsolete; and what is obsolete and outdated will soon disappear.”
(Hebrews 8:13 NIV)
However, Jesus emphasizes that He did not come to abolish the Law:
“Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them.”
(Matthew 5:17 NIV)
The Greatest Commandment
In Matthew, an expert in the law questions Jesus about the greatest commandment:
“Hearing that Jesus had silenced the Sadducees, the Pharisees got together. One of them, an expert in the law, tested him with this question:
‘Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the Law?’
Jesus replied: ‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’
This is the first and greatest commandment.
And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’
All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.”
(Matthew 22:34-40 NIV)
I like the New American Standard Bible translation of verse 40: “Upon these two commandments hang the whole Law and the Prophets.” In other words, there is nothing more to be said. For me, there is no ritual or ceremony that overrides these two commandments – but each of us must draw our own conclusion.
This Greatest Commandment does not replace the Ten Commandments of the Ethical Decalogue – but rather condenses them into two overarching principles:
Love God Fully: This encapsulates the first four commandments, which relate to our relationship with God.
Love Your Neighbor as Yourself: This summarizes the remaining six commandments, concerning our relationships with others.
Understanding the differences between the Ethical Decalogue and the Ritual Decalogue allows us to appreciate the multifaceted nature of God’s commandments to Israel—both moral and ceremonial. For Christians, the teachings of Jesus bring these commandments into a new light, emphasizing love as the fulfillment of the law. The Greatest Commandment calls us to love God wholeheartedly and to love our neighbors as ourselves, encapsulating the essence of God’s instructions and guiding our moral conduct today.
By reflecting on these scriptures, we recognize that while the specific rituals of the old covenant may not directly apply, the underlying principles of love, faithfulness, and obedience remain central to our faith. The new covenant invites us to internalize these values, allowing them to transform our hearts and actions in alignment with God’s will.