Claim: The Ten Commandments concern right and wrong, and devotion.

The Ten Commandments , also known as the Decalogue , are a set of biblical laws relating to ethics and worship , which play a fundamental role in Judaism , Christianity , and Islam . The commandments include instructions to worship only God , to honour one 's parents , and to keep the sabbath , as well as prohibitions against idolatry , blasphemy , murder , adultery , theft , dishonesty , and coveting . Different religious groups follow different traditions for interpreting and numbering them .   The Ten Commandments appear twice in the Hebrew Bible , in the books of Exodus and Deuteronomy . Modern scholarship has found likely influences in Hittite and Mesopotamian laws and treaties , but is divided over exactly when the Ten Commandments were written and who wrote them .