Typically, Christians think that the Ten Commandments as originally found in Exodus 20:1-17 and echoed again in Deuteronomy 5 were issued by God to Moses when Israel escaped Egypt en route to the promised land. Before this time, it is thought, the Ten Commandments were unknown. However, Walt Kaiser, in his Toward Old Testament Ethics makes a bold claim that I find theologically important and apologetically significant. He notes that “All the Ten Commandments had been part of the law of God previously written on hearts of stone, for all ten appear, in one way or another, in Genesis” (p. 82). Kaiser offers the following taxonomy of commandments found throughout Genesis:
- Commandment one (no other gods) in Genesis 35:2
- Commandment two (no idols) in Genesis 31:39
- Commandment three (do not carry God’s name in vain) in Genesis 24:3
- Commandment four (remember the Sabbath) in Genesis 2:3
- Commandment five (honor your father and mother) in Genesis 27:41
- Commandment six (do not kill) in Genesis 4:9
- Commandment seven (do not commit adultery) in Genesis 39:9
- Commandment eight (do not steal) in Genesis 44:4-7
- Commandment nine (do not bear false witness) in Genesis 39:17
- Commandment ten (do not desire your neighbor’s possessions) in Genesis 12:18; 20:3
Kaiser notes that there is nothing new about the decalogue. This be true, then morality is somehow in or from God; it is not in or from some contingent, temporal agent who arbitrarily assigns moral duty based on the need of the moment, nor can transcendent moral duty be discovered via reason (contra Kant). Instead, morality is grounded in the nature and character of the biblical God who is good absolutely. Whatever God thinks and wills for his creation is always in accordance with his perfect moral nature.
Apologetically, it follows that God’s moral law has been from the beginning of time and is normative for all people everywhere and at all times. The Ten Commandments are not dependent for their meaning upon a specific cultural context. Though application of God’s moral law may vary, the meaning remains constant because it is grounded in the nature of a being who is morally constant.
Thus, the Ten Commandments emerge from the universality and eternality of moral absolutes which are themselves a reflection of the transcendental nature of God’s holiness (Rom. 7:12). Just as the Lord Almighty is holy and good (1 Chron. 16:34; Ps. 118:1; Is. 6:3; Mt. 19:17), so is his moral law (Ps. 19:7; Jm. 1:25). Therefore, God’s moral law has been from the beginning of time and is normative for all people everywhere and at all times.
In a few days, I will provide some key aspects from Kaiser that will “protect us from being too provincial, too petty, or too literalistic in our interpretation” of the Ten Commandments (p. 84).