Be Still And Know

Exodus 20:13-17 God said, “You must not murder. You must not commit adultery. You must not steal. You must not testify falsely against your neighbour. You must not covet your neighbour’s house.” These blunt commandments are even more brief in Hebrew, where a better translation would be: “No murder. No adultery. No stealing.” In quick succession, God sets out the activities that must be stopped if a community is to thrive. Having respect for human life, marriage, property and truth-telling are foundational to a peaceful and harmonious society, and coveting what others have can only be destructive. On first reading, the trouble with these commandments is that they sound so negative. But the reason for this is, quite clearly, because God’s desire is the best. He won’t settle for anything less than that and so he is ruthlessly opposed to anything that will spoil life for his much- loved children. The sanctions showed how serious he was. Murder would lead to capital punishment, adultery to stoning and the thie