The News-Herald. [volume] (Hillsboro, Highland Co., Ohio) 1886-1973, 1907-07-11
THE TEN
COMMANDMENTS
DUTIES TOWARD GOD
Sunday School Lesson ior July ll.loo7
Specially Prepared for This Paper

LESSON TExT.-Exodus 20:1-11. Mem
ory verses, LII.
GOLDEN TEXT.-"Thou shalt love
the Lord thy God. with all thine heart,
and all thy soul, and with all thy might"
-Deut. 6:5
TIME.-Fifty days after leaving Egypt
CEx. 1871, 15). The day OF Pentecost. the
feast Of first fruits Some time In May.
1891 b. c. or perhaps 1900.
PLACE.-In the plain at the base OF Mt.
Sinai In the southern part Of the Sinai
tic peninsula between the two northern
arms of the Red Sea.
SCRIPTURE REFERENCES.-The Ia
bles of Stone: Elk. A:12: H:1S; 32:15-l9:
34:1; Deut. 4:13; 9:9-11; 10:1-5; Kings SO:
Heb. ga Read Psalms 10, 119.
Comment and Suggestive Thought.
MI. Sinai and Its surroundings
The exact mountain Is uncertain. but
Hastings Bible Dictionary inclines to
the traditional Jebel Mousa, Noun
tain of Moses" 1883 feet above the
sea. in the wild, mountainous region
of the glorious range Of granite noun
tains Of which Sinai Is the nucleus.
At its northwestern base stretches
Er-Rahah, .the wilderness of Sinai"
the only plain in the neighborhood
capable Of holding 100000 persons,
allowing a square yard for each. The
camp itself (Palmer) was doubtless
more extensive, occupying the neigh
boring glens and mountainsides. wher-
ever there was sufficient fertility for
the cattle. Fronting the plain Is a
lofty and precipitous bluff. Ras-Sufsa-
feh, whence, probably, the law was
proclaimed.
The Commandments Are Divine
Laws.-V. 1. "And God spake all
these words" in three ways: Q) by
his voice; (2) by writing them on the
tablets Of stone; and (3) he has writ
ten them on the very nature Of man.
We are not to imagine that nothing
of these commands was known before
Moses. They were written on the
hearts and consciences of men from
the beginning. We see them In the
early history. They are lesson for
all mankind.
v. 8. Thou shalt have no other
gods before me-" "Side by side with
me-" "in addition to me-" 'in my pres
ence," and therefore "in preference to
me-"
VS.. 4.6. This forbids making any
representation of God as a means OF
worshiping him.
The First Reason is that all images
misrepresent God. They are not like
God. They do not represent God as
pictures of friend represent him tc
| us.
The Second Reason. v. s. II
am a jealous God" |. g., not willing
that any other should be regarded as
his equal, or take his place in the af
fections and worship Of his people;
because no other can take his place
no other can love as he loves, or helI
as he helps. Every idol god Is not
only useless, but leads to immortality
The Third Reason. Visiting the
iniquity of the fathers upon the chill
dren." The visitation here spoken oI
can hardly be any other than thai
which we are accustomed to witness
in the common experience of life (Ex
34:7; Jer. S2:1S). It is a statement
| of the scientific doctrine of heredity
7. "Thou shalt not take the name
of the Lord thy God in vain," 1. e.
lightly, carelessly, thoughtlessly, In
sincerely.
/. This forbids protesting to b'
with him, and then acting In a man
ner that dishonors God and misrepre
sents him before the world. It dis
graces religion, and drives men from
God.
2. 1t forbids perjury. False
swearing is among the greatest In
suits that man can offer to God, and
as being such, is naturally forbidden
In the first table, which teaches us ou
duty to God. 1t is also destructive o
civil society; and hence 1t is agaiI
forbidden in the second table ". 16)
which defines our duties to our neigh
bor."-Ellicott.
8 But 1t does not forbid what 4,
called taking an oath in court; TO
that Is a simple affirmation In the sol
emn presence of God to tell the truth
ending with prayer for help to dC
it. The way these oaths are some
times administered borders very close
ly on the breaking of this command.
4. It forbids all profanity, the care
less, irreverent use of Gods name ant
Of holy things, because 1t tends to de
stroy the power of these things oyel
men.
s. It enforces Christ's interpreta
ton that all efforts to support our as
sertions of fact beyond the simpl,
yes" or mo" repeated cometh o.
evil. It weakens the assertion itself
6. All thoughtless worship comes
under the ban of this commandment
v. s. Remember the Sabbath day.
Remember implies that the Sabbath
already existed. ITO keep 1t holy.
Possibly we talk too much about wha
not to do on the Sabbath. Here is the