The big picture
Exodus 20 gives the covenant’s central commands inside the sound and smoke of Sinai, and it begins by identifying the speaker as the God who has already brought Israel out of bondage. Exclusive allegiance, rejection of worship images, proper use of the divine name, Sabbath rest, honor of parents, and prohibitions concerning killing, adultery, theft, false testimony, and coveting all grow from that setting of completed rescue. The commands reach from worship into households, courts, work schedules, and hidden desire. When the people recoil from the thunder and ask Moses to mediate, he distinguishes panic from the fear meant to restrain sin. The chapter then moves from mountain-scale revelation to altar construction. Earth, unhewn stone, and the manner of approach are regulated. Divine nearness is promised, but neither an image of God nor an impressive altar may be invented as a substitute for the terms the LORD himself gives.
Central truth
At Sinai, the Lord who brought Israel out of bondage establishes covenant obligations, reveals his holy presence, and teaches reverent obedience through his commands and Moses’ mediation. The Lord who spoke from heaven forbids silver and gold gods and directs altar worship through his promised blessing and explicit boundaries.
The study notes have a page of their own
The movement by movement analysis, the words to trace, the verse by verse notes and where readers differ are written for someone studying alone. They are on the Deep Personal Reflections page for this chapter. This page is the lesson.
A chapter-specific teaching brief
These anchors come from this chapter itself. They help a teacher use the Level 1 overview, the Level 2 study, and the Scripture text as one lesson.
Open with the chapter’s first image
Exodus 20:1: “And God spake all these words, saying,”
Slow down at the turning point
Exodus 20:10: “But the seventh day is the sabbath of the LORD thy God: in it thou shalt not do any work, thou, nor thy son, nor thy daughter, thy manservant, nor thy…”
Keep this word trail visible
LORD, earth, Moses, people, altar, days
What to explain, in order
Teach the passage in this order. Each step names the verses it rests on, so every point can be shown in the text before it is applied.
Exodus 19:1–20:21
Exodus 19:1-6
On eagles' wings
Begin with the arrival at Sinai, three months after Egypt, and Moses going up to God. Then read 19:4-6 as the summary of the whole covenant. Explain "bare you on eagles' wings" as God carrying them with strength and care, as Deuteronomy 32:11 develops. Then the condition, the treasured possession, the kingdom of priests and the holy nation. Explain priests here as mediators between God and others. Teach this first because everything at Sinai rests on what God has already done.
Exodus 19:7-15
All that the LORD hath spoken we will do
The elders hear the words and the people answer together. Point out their readiness, and note that the Book of Exodus will test it in chapter 32. Then God's purpose for the cloud, "that the people may hear when I speak with thee, and believe thee for ever" (19:9). Then the preparation: washing, setting boundaries, three days. Explain "sanctify" as setting apart for God. Teach this to show that meeting God needs preparation and that Moses' role as mediator is established here for the people's sake.
Exodus 19:16-25
Thunder, smoke and the trumpet
Read the third morning aloud: thunders, lightnings, thick cloud, the trumpet growing louder, the people trembling, the mountain smoking "as the smoke of a furnace" and quaking. Explain that fire and cloud are signs of God's presence, as at the bush and the sea. Then the repeated warning and Moses' answer that the boundaries are already set. Teach this step so learners feel the holiness of God before they hear his commands. Hebrews 12:18-24 later contrasts this mountain with Mount Sion.
Exodus 20:1-11
I am the LORD thy God
Read 20:1-2 slowly; the commands begin with who God is and what he did. Then the commands about God: no other gods before him, no images, his name not taken in vain, the sabbath remembered. Explain "jealous" as God's rightful claim to exclusive love, not petty envy, and "in vain" as emptily or falsely. Point to the reason for the sabbath, creation in 20:11, and to the wide circle of rest in 20:10. Mention that traditions divide the commands differently, without making it the lesson.
Exodus 20:12-17
Thy neighbour
Now the commands about others: honour parents, do not kill, do not commit adultery, do not steal, do not bear false witness, do not covet. Explain kill here as murder, the unlawful taking of life. Explain covet as wanting what belongs to another so that it controls the heart. Point out that the last command reaches desire, not only action. Teach these together so learners see a single pattern: love for God in the first commands, and love for neighbour in these, as Jesus summarises in Matthew 22:37-40.
Exodus 20:18-21
The thick darkness where God was
End with the people's response. They see, they withdraw, they ask Moses to speak for them. Read Moses' answer in 20:20 and explain "prove" as test. Then the last image: Moses drawing near to the thick darkness "where God was". Explain that darkness here is the cloud of God's presence, too bright and too holy to look into. Teach this last so the class leaves with both reverence and access: the people stand afar off, and a mediator draws near on their behalf.
Exodus 20:22–26
Exodus 20:22
The God who has spoken
Begin with the context. The people have heard the commandments, been terrified by the thunder and asked Moses to speak instead (20:18-21). Now God speaks through Moses and reminds them, “Ye have seen that I have talked with you from heaven”. Explain that this sentence opens the long section of laws that runs to 23:33, often called the book of the covenant (24:7). Teach it first because everything in these five verses rests on it: Israel’s worship is shaped by what God has said, not by what they imagine. The God who spoke does not need to be represented by an object.
Exodus 20:23
No gods of silver or gold
Read 20:23 and connect it to 20:3-5. Then tell the class plainly that traditions number the commandments differently. Jewish tradition counts 20:2 as the first word and 20:3-6 as the second; Catholic and Lutheran tradition joins 20:3-6 as the first and divides the coveting command into two; Orthodox and most Protestant churches count 20:3 as the first and 20:4-6 as the second. Do not choose between them. Show only that 20:23 restates the ban on made gods, and explain “with me”: Israel may not set up silver and gold gods beside the LORD. Note 25:18 so no one thinks all metalwork is forbidden.
Exodus 20:24
An altar of earth
Read 20:24 and describe the altar: a mound of earth, the simplest thing that can be built. Explain burnt offerings as wholly burned and peace offerings as shared meals before God. Then slow down on the promise, “in all places where I record my name I will come unto thee, and I will bless thee”. Explain “record my name” as God marking a place as his own. Teach this as the heart of the passage: God comes to meet and bless his people where he chooses. The movement is from God to them, which is the opposite of a made god that people carry to wherever they want.
Exodus 20:25
Stone, but not hewn
Read 20:25 and explain “hewn stone” as cut or shaped stone. If Israel builds of stone, the stones must be left as found; a tool lifted on them pollutes the altar. Read Deuteronomy 27:5-6 and Joshua 8:31 to show the rule kept later. Then be honest that the text does not explain why. Readers have suggested that human shaping adds something to worship that God has not asked for, or that carving leads toward images. Present these as suggestions. Teach this step after the earth altar so the class sees that both options are plain, and both are on God’s terms.
Exodus 20:26
No steps
Read the last verse and explain its reason without embarrassment: a person climbing steps to a raised altar could be exposed, and nakedness must not be uncovered before God’s altar. Mention 28:42-43, where priests receive linen breeches so that they do not bear iniquity and die. Keep the explanation brief and dignified. Teach this last because it closes the section on a note of reverence: worship is not casual, and the body is covered in God’s presence. Avoid comments about anyone’s clothing and keep the focus on the holiness of the altar.
Where learners get stuck
The misreadings this passage tends to produce, and how to answer each from the text.
Exodus 19:1–20:21
"God gave the law so Israel could earn its rescue."
The rescue has already happened. "Ye have seen what I did unto the Egyptians" (19:4); "I am the LORD thy God, which have brought thee out of the land of Egypt" (20:2). The commands are given to a people already saved, as a way to live in covenant with the God who saved them. Teach this order clearly; it shapes how learners hear every law that follows.
"Israel being chosen means God does not care about other nations."
The same verse that calls Israel "a peculiar treasure" adds "for all the earth is mine" (19:5). A kingdom of priests serves others before God (19:6). Genesis 12:3 has already said all families of the earth will be blessed through Abraham. Teach learners that election in this passage is calling for the sake of others, not indifference to them, and avoid mapping the passage onto any modern nation.
"The Ten Commandments are only about outward actions."
The last command is "Thou shalt not covet" (20:17), which concerns the heart's desire. The first commands concern love and allegiance toward God (20:3-6). Jesus draws out the inward reach of the law in Matthew 5:21-28. Teach learners that the commandments address what we want and whom we worship, as well as what we do.
"Fearing God is a bad thing; Christians should never fear him."
Moses says both "Fear not" and "that his fear may be before your faces, that ye sin not" (20:20). There is a terror that drives people away and a reverence that keeps them from sin. Proverbs 1:7 calls the fear of the LORD the beginning of knowledge. Teach learners to distinguish the two, and do not let the lesson leave anyone more frightened of God than the text intends.
Exodus 20:22–26
“This passage means Christians should not have gold or beautiful things in church.”
Exodus 20:23 forbids making “gods of silver” and “gods of gold”, objects made to stand beside the LORD as gods. Five chapters later God commands gold for the ark, the mercy seat and the cherubims (25:10-18). The issue is idolatry, not material. Churches differ on how they apply the commandment about images, and those differences are real, but they are not settled by treating 20:23 as a ban on precious metal.
“God promised to bless any place where people worship him.”
The promise is “in all places where I record my name I will come unto thee” (20:24). The places are chosen by God, not by the worshipper. Deuteronomy 12:5 develops this into the place the LORD will choose to put his name. The verse teaches God’s freedom to meet his people and his initiative in doing so. It does not authorise every shrine, still less one built around an image.
“The Ten Commandments are numbered the same way by everyone.”
They are not. The text of 20:2-17 says “ten” only elsewhere (34:28; Deuteronomy 4:13) and does not number them. Jewish, Catholic and Lutheran, and Orthodox and most Protestant traditions divide the same words in different ways, especially around the commands about other gods and images and about coveting. Each division has long roots. A teacher can show the divisions and let the text, which all of them share, do the work.
“Uncut stones prove we are saved without works.”
Exodus 20:25 says only that a tool lifted on the stone pollutes the altar. Some Christian teachers have drawn a picture from it about grace and human effort, and that may be offered as an application, but the verse does not state the doctrine. Teach the rule as written, then mark any picture drawn from it as interpretation, so learners can tell the difference between what the text says and what readers have made of it.
Learning objectives
- Explain how rescue precedes Sinai’s commands.
- Identify Israel’s conditional covenant calling.
- Describe the mountain’s commanded boundaries.
- Summarize the obligations in Exodus 20:3–17.
- Distinguish the two uses of fear in 20:20.
- Explain the people’s request for Moses’ mediation.
- Identify the revelation recalled in Exodus 20:22.
- Distinguish forbidden gods from permitted altar materials.
- Describe the two kinds of altar mentioned.
- Locate the condition concerning stonework.
- Explain the stated reason for prohibiting altar steps.
- Distinguish the promised presence from expensive religious display.
Teacher preparation
- Read Exodus 19:1–20:21 twice; mark rescue, covenant response, preparation, revelation, commands, and withdrawal.
- Explain “peculiar treasure” as a specially treasured possession, “nether” as lower, and “prove” as test.
- Prepare a blank command chart using verse ranges, not a denominational numbering scheme.
- Read Exodus 20:5–6 together; avoid using generational consequences to diagnose anyone’s family.
- Plan selective public readings and assign the whole passage beforehand; do not compress the Ten Commandments into a rushed closing slogan.
- Read Exodus 20:18–26; connect heavenly speech with earthly worship.
- Explain “hewn” as cut or shaped and “discovered” as uncovered or exposed.
- Prepare written designs for earth, uncut-stone, and cut-stone altars.
- Read Exodus 25:18 and 27:1–8 before declaring all sacred artwork or other altar designs forbidden.
- Explain exposure in 20:26 without demonstrations or comments about anyone’s clothing.
Evidence and interpretation checks
Explicit
Establish from Exodus 19:4–6 and 20:2 that deliverance precedes covenant obligations; do not teach the commands as Israel’s entrance fee out of Egypt. Establish from Exodus 20:24–26 the earth-or-stone alternatives, the prohibition of worked stones, and the exposure concern behind forbidding steps.
Scripture-supported
Use Exodus 21:12–14 to distinguish intentional killing from an unintended death when explaining the command in 20:13. Use Deuteronomy 27:5–6 to confirm Israel’s later instructions for whole altar stones without iron workmanship.
Strong inference
Infer from Exodus 19:12, 21–24 that the boundaries protect people from a dangerous encounter, not merely enforce ceremonial neatness. Infer from Exodus 20:22–24 that the Lord’s speech and promise, not a manufactured deity, establish the meeting’s terms.
Possible or traditional reading
Present differing commandment-numbering traditions as arrangements of Exodus 20:3–17; this passage gives the words without assigning each a number. Treat uncut stones as a proposed analogy for salvation without human merit; Exodus 20:25 states pollution by tooling, not that doctrine.
Limit
State that Exodus 20:5–6 does not identify every child’s suffering as punishment for a parent’s sin; compare individual responsibility in Ezekiel 18:20. State that Exodus 20:25 does not explain why tooling pollutes this altar; distinguish proposed explanations from supplied facts.
Discussion with answer guidance
1. What has the Lord already done before asking Israel to keep his covenant?
What a good answer contains
"Ye have seen what I did unto the Egyptians, and how I bare you on eagles' wings, and brought you unto myself" (19:4). The commands themselves open the same way: "I am the LORD thy God, which have brought thee out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage" (20:2). A good answer sees that rescue comes first and the covenant follows. A weak answer reverses the order, as though Israel kept the law in order to be rescued.
Show teacher guidance
Read 19:4 and 20:2: deliverance and being brought to himself. Correct the claim that obedience first purchases rescue.
2. What does “if” qualify in the promise of treasured possession and priestly nation?
What a good answer contains
The promise runs, "if ye will obey my voice indeed, and keep my covenant, then ye shall be a peculiar treasure unto me above all people: for all the earth is mine" (19:5), "a kingdom of priests, and an holy nation" (19:6). Explain peculiar as specially owned. The condition concerns living out the calling, not earning the rescue. A good answer keeps "all the earth is mine" in view, so that Israel's calling serves God's claim on every nation. A weak answer drops it.
Show teacher guidance
Follow 19:5–6: hearing and keeping the covenant. Keep “all the earth is mine” beside Israel’s calling; election does not imply other peoples lie outside God’s ownership.
3. Why are the mountain’s boundaries repeated after preparation has begun?
What a good answer contains
Because the LORD is coming down "in the sight of all the people upon mount Sinai" (19:11), and holiness is dangerous: "whosoever toucheth the mount shall be surely put to death" (19:12). God repeats the warning in 19:21, "lest they break through unto the LORD to gaze, and many of them perish", and even the priests must sanctify themselves (19:22). A good answer sees reverence, not curiosity. A weak answer reads the boundaries as God being unfriendly.
Show teacher guidance
Use 19:12–15, 21–24. Expect holiness, danger, and restraint; reject treating curiosity as permission to approach however one wishes.
4. How do the commands protect worship and life together?
What a good answer contains
They guard allegiance to God alone (20:3), worship without images (20:4-6), the honour of his name (20:7), and rest for everyone, including "thy manservant, nor thy maidservant, nor thy cattle, nor thy stranger" (20:10). Then parents, life, marriage, property, truthful testimony and the desire of the heart (20:12-17). A strong answer sees that the commands protect both worship and neighbours, and that the last one reaches inside. Traditions number them differently; the content is the same.
Show teacher guidance
Trace 20:3–17 through allegiance, images, name, rest, parents, life, marriage, property, testimony, and desire. Include servants and strangers in Sabbath rest, not just household heads.
5. How can Moses say “Fear not” while saying God’s fear should remain before them?
What a good answer contains
"Fear not: for God is come to prove you, and that his fear may be before your faces, that ye sin not" (20:20). Moses tells them not to be terrified, and yet to keep the fear of God. A good answer distinguishes panic that runs away from reverence that keeps a person from sin. A weak answer deletes one half, either making fear always bad or making terror the goal, when Moses holds both.
Show teacher guidance
Compare 20:18–20: distinguish terror driving withdrawal from reverence intended to restrain sin. Keep both expressions rather than deleting the tension.
6. What do the people ask Moses to do, and where does he go?
What a good answer contains
"Speak thou with us, and we will hear: but let not God speak with us, lest we die" (20:19). They ask Moses to mediate. Then "the people stood afar off, and Moses drew near unto the thick darkness where God was" (20:21). A good answer notes the last three words: the darkness is where God is, not where he is absent. A weak answer reads the darkness as a sign of absence, or treats the people's request as simply wrong when Deuteronomy 5:28 says God approved it.
Show teacher guidance
Use 20:19–21: speak as intermediary and approach the thick darkness. Do not say the darkness indicates God’s absence; the verse says God is there.
7. Why begin altar instructions by recalling speech from heaven?
What a good answer contains
Because the people have just heard God themselves: “Ye have seen that I have talked with you from heaven” (20:22). The instructions that follow come from the same voice that spoke the commandments in 20:1-17, and the people’s own experience is the ground of the law. A good answer sees authority and continuity: the God who spoke from heaven now regulates worship on earth. A weak answer treats the verse as an introduction that can be skipped, or as permission to picture God however they like.
Show teacher guidance
Use 20:22: Israel has witnessed the Lord’s speech. Accept authority and continuity, not permission to invent a god.
8. What exactly is forbidden in silver and gold?
What a good answer contains
Making gods of silver and gold: “Ye shall not make with me gods of silver, neither shall ye make unto you gods of gold” (20:23). The words “with me” matter: Israel may not set up such gods beside the LORD. The verse does not forbid working metal; 25:18 commands two cherubims of gold for the mercy seat. A good answer distinguishes images made as gods from craftsmanship commanded by God. A weak answer forbids all art or all gold in worship.
Show teacher guidance
Identify gods, not all metalworking (20:23). Compare the commanded gold cherubims in 25:18.
9. Which offerings and altar materials does verse 24 actually name?
What a good answer contains
Verse 24 begins “An altar of earth”, “burnt offerings” and “peace offerings”, and “thy sheep, and thine oxen”. Stone comes in the next verse: “if thou wilt make me an altar of stone” (20:25). A good answer reads the verses separately and in order, earth first and stone as the permitted alternative. A weak answer mixes the details or adds offerings the verse does not list. The plainness of the altar is part of the point; it is simple, earthy and made at God’s word.
Show teacher guidance
Name burnt and peace offerings, sheep and oxen, and earth. Add stone from 20:25, not 20:24.
10. Who determines the places connected with the promise to come and bless?
What a good answer contains
God does: “in all places where I record my name I will come unto thee, and I will bless thee” (20:24). The places are those God marks with his name, not wherever a worshipper chooses. A good answer sees that the initiative belongs to God and that the promise is his presence and blessing. A weak answer reads “all places” as permission for any shrine anyone sets up, which would contradict the warning about made gods in the verse before.
Show teacher guidance
Identify the Lord recording his name (20:24); “all places” does not authorize any self-appointed shrine.
11. What happens if a tool is lifted upon the stone altar?
What a good answer contains
The altar is polluted: “if thou lift up thy tool upon it, thou hast polluted it” (20:25). The verse states the result and does not give the reason. A good answer reports the rule exactly and then, if explanations are discussed, labels them as interpretations: that human shaping would add something to what God gives, or that it would invite decoration or images. A weak answer presents one of those explanations as if Exodus had said it.
Show teacher guidance
Give the stated result: pollution (20:25). Mark explanations of symbolism as interpretation.
12. Why are steps forbidden, and how much more does the passage explain?
What a good answer contains
So that the worshipper’s “nakedness be not discovered thereon” (20:26). Explain “discovered” as uncovered or exposed; climbing steps in a loose robe could expose the body. That is all the passage explains. Later the priests are given linen breeches for the same reason (28:42). A good answer gives the stated reason and links it to modesty in God’s presence. A weak answer invents details about pagan rituals that the verse does not mention.
Show teacher guidance
Identify prevention of exposed nakedness (20:26); do not invent surrounding religious practices.
Responsible application
Heart and habits
Ask learners to correct an imaginary lesson claiming Israel earned deliverance by keeping Sinai’s commands; require Exodus 20:2.
Relationships and community
Design a fictional household’s rest day that includes its workers and visitors rather than resting by transferring every burden.
Reverence without spectacle
Compare two fictional presentations of Sinai, one entertainment and one careful reading; identify which preserves the purpose stated in 20:20.
Art under instruction
Compare a forbidden golden god with the commanded cherubims; explain why the object’s role matters more than its price or material alone.
Session plans
Two timings of the same lesson. The shorter keeps the reading, the central discussion and one response; the longer gives the confusions and the application their own time.
Exodus 19:1–20:21
45 minutes
Rescue before requirements
Read 19:3-6 and ask question one.
The calling
Ask question two and take confusions one and two.
At the boundary
Read 19:10-25 in summary, with 19:16-19 aloud. Ask question three.
The commands
Read 20:1-17. Ask question four and take confusion three.
Two kinds of fear
Read 20:18-21. Ask questions five and six and take confusion four.
Handout
Read the key verse together and give out the sheet.
90 minutes
On eagles' wings
Ask the group what it means to be carried. Then read 19:1-6 and Deuteronomy 32:11.
Covenant offered
Ask questions one and two and take confusions one and two.
Preparing to meet God
Read 19:7-15 and explain sanctify. Note the people's promise in 19:8 and point ahead to chapter 32.
The mountain on fire
Read 19:16-25. Ask question three and read Hebrews 12:18-24.
Toward God
Read 20:1-11. Ask the first half of question four and explain jealous and in vain.
Toward neighbour
Read 20:12-17. Finish question four, take confusion three and read Matthew 22:37-40.
The thick darkness
Read 20:18-21. Ask questions five and six and take confusion four.
Handout and prayer
Read the key verse together and pray through the commands slowly.
Exodus 20:22–26
45 minutes
From heaven to earth
Read 20:18-22 and take question one. Ask what has just happened that makes 20:22 significant.
Silver and gold
Read 20:23 with 25:18. Take question two and confusion one, and show the numbering chart from confusion three without choosing.
Earth, offerings and the name
Read 20:24 and take questions three and four. Clear confusion two, keeping the promise’s initiative with God.
Stones and steps
Read 20:25-26 with the prepared altar designs. Take questions five and six and confusion four.
Response and handout
Choose one application, read the key verse together, and pray to the God who comes and blesses.
90 minutes
What do we picture
Ask the group what they picture when they think of God. Then read 20:18-22 and take question one.
Ten words, three numberings
Read 20:2-6 and 20:23. Show the three numberings side by side and take confusion three. Do not ask the group to vote.
Not with me
Take question two and confusion one. Read 25:17-22 so the group sees commanded gold beside forbidden gods.
Where I record my name
Read 20:24 with Deuteronomy 12:5. Take questions three and four and confusion two.
Untouched stone
Read 20:25 with Deuteronomy 27:5-6 and Joshua 8:30-31. Take question five and confusion four.
Covered before God
Read 20:26 with 28:42-43 and take question six. Keep the explanation brief and dignified.
Application
In pairs, take one application and ask what they add to worship that God has not asked for.
Handout and prayer
Read the key verse together, give out the sheet, and pray for worship that listens before it builds.
Adapting the lesson
Exodus 19:1–20:21
Children
Talk about how God carried his people like an eagle carries its young. Then explain that at the mountain there was thunder, smoke and a very loud trumpet, and that God gave ten good rules for living with him and with each other. Use ten fingers to go through them simply. Keep the fear of the mountain gentle; say God is very great and holy, and he loves his people.
Youth
Ask them to write down rules they think a good community needs. Compare their lists with 20:3-17. Then read 20:2 and ask why God starts with what he has done. Talk about the last command and how wanting things can control us. Discuss what it means to fear God without being terrified of him.
Adults
Give time to the covenant shape of 19:4-6 and to the theology of grace before law. Discuss the different ways traditions number the commandments without making it divisive. Explore how the commands protect both worship and neighbour, and how Jesus and Paul read them. Engage the tension of 20:20 and the role of a mediator, with Hebrews 12 alongside.
One to one
Read 19:4 and 20:2 together and ask what God has carried them out of. Then read through the commands and ask which one they find most searching right now. Do not press for confession. End with 20:21 and talk about drawing near to God through the mediator Christians believe God has given.
Exodus 20:22–26
Children
Build two small altars on a tray, one of soil and one of plain stones from outside, and show a toy hammer that must not touch them. Explain that God wanted his altar simple, made the way he said. Talk about not making a statue and calling it God, because God speaks and is greater than anything we can make. Explain the steps rule in one sentence about keeping covered and leave it there.
Youth
Ask what counts as an idol today, then bring them back to the text: silver and gold gods set up “with me”. Discuss how people try to make God manageable. Show the numbering of the commandments as a real difference among Christians and Jews, and use it to practise reading carefully rather than arguing. Keep the comment on 20:26 brief and avoid jokes.
Adults
Adults can explore how these verses open the book of the covenant and how they connect the commandments to worship. Give time to the numbering traditions and to how churches apply the image command differently, without deciding between them. Ask how the promise of 20:24 shapes the way a congregation thinks about its building, and what it means that God chooses where to meet his people.
One to one
Read the five verses together and ask which seems strangest. Use that question to open the main point: God sets the terms on which he is met. If the person is anxious about whether their worship is good enough, read the promise in 20:24 and let them hear that God comes and blesses. If they come from a tradition with a different numbering, ask how they learned it.
Song and video learning lab
A song or video may interpret, compress, or dramatize the text. Its value becomes clearer when its choices are compared with Scripture.
- Before the media: the exact passage and its central movement.
- During the media: the words, people, events, and emotions the artist emphasizes.
- After the media: what it clarifies, what it leaves out, and what belongs back in the biblical text.
Handout
One page for learners to take home. The print button prints this section alone.
Exodus 19:1–20:21
The passage in brief
Three months after leaving Egypt, Israel camps at Mount Sinai. God reminds them how he carried them on eagles' wings and offers a covenant: if they obey, they will be his treasured people, a kingdom of priests. After three days of preparation, God comes down on the mountain in fire, smoke and thunder. He speaks the Ten Commandments, beginning with the reminder that he brought them out of slavery. The people are afraid and ask Moses to speak for them, and Moses draws near to God.
A verse to keep
I am the LORD thy God, which have brought thee out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage. Thou shalt have no other gods before me.
Exodus 20:2-3 · King James Version
Questions to take home
What had God already done for Israel before giving the commandments?
Which commandments are about God, and which are about other people?
What is the difference between the fear Moses tells them to lose and the fear he tells them to keep?
This week
Choose one commandment this week and ask God each morning to help you keep it toward a specific person.
Exodus 20:22–26
The passage in brief
After speaking the commandments from heaven, God gives Israel rules for worship. They must not make gods of silver or gold to set beside him. Their altar is to be simple: earth, or stones left uncut, with no steps that could expose the worshipper. God promises that wherever he causes his name to be remembered, he will come to his people and bless them. Worship is on his terms, and he is the one who comes.
A verse to keep
An altar of earth thou shalt make unto me, and shalt sacrifice thereon thy burnt offerings, and thy peace offerings, thy sheep, and thine oxen: in all places where I record my name I will come unto thee, and I will bless thee.
Exodus 20:24 · King James Version
Questions to take home
What does God remind the people of in 20:22, and why does it matter for worship?
What is forbidden in 20:23, and what is not?
What does God promise to do in 20:24?
This week
Before you worship this week, pause and remember that God comes to you on his terms, not yours.
Music and video connected to the passage
Related media appears when its Scripture reference overlaps this study. Music and video can illuminate a theme while the biblical text remains the foundation.
