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Exodus
20:4
Thou shalt not make to thyself a graven thing, nor the likeness of any thing that is in heaven above, or in the earth beneath, nor of those things that are in the waters under the earth.
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Deuteronomy
5:8
Thou shalt not make to thy self a graven thing, nor the likeness of any things, that are in heaven above, or that are in the earth beneath, or that abide in the waters under the earth.
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Psalms
96:7
Let them be all confounded that adore graven things, and that glory in their idols. Adore him, all you his angels:
*H I am the Lord your God. You shall not make to yourselves any idol or graven thing: neither shall you erect pillars, nor set up a remarkable stone in your land, to adore it. For I am the Lord your God.
Ver. 1. To adore it. This explains the prohibition of making graven things, &c. The Protestants translate as usual, "Ye shall make you no idols, nor graven image, neither rear ye up a standing image, neither shall ye set up any image of stone in your land to bow down unto it." They seem terribly afraid of images, as if they were all idols. See Ex. xx. 4. H. — Pillars. Heb. mattseba, "statue, or monument." Such were erected by Jacob, Josue, and even by Moses himself, without any offence or danger of idolatry. Gen. xxviii. 18. Jos. iv. 4. Ex. xxiv. 4. Apuleius (Flor.) makes mention, among other species of superstition, "of a stone anointed, and of an altar crowned with flowers." — The stone, which is here condemned, is one set up "for adoration." Onkelos. — Heb. "a stone of sight," placed on some eminence, or on the high roads. Strabo, (xvii.) speaking of those which he had seen in Egypt along the roads, says, "they are lofty, polished, and almost like a sphere, some 12 feet in diameter. There are sometimes three, of different dimensions, one upon another. Some were to be seen upon Mount Libanus. They were objects of adoration." The Greeks raised heaps of stones on the high roads, in honour of Mercury. Prov. xxvi. 7.[8.?] C. — We are not forbidden to place land-marks, &c.: but we must not adore them. D.
*H Keep my sabbaths, and reverence my sanctuary. I am the Lord.
Ver. 2. Reverence. The Rabbins inform us, with what respect their ancestors appeared in the temple. They left their sticks and shoes behind them, and washed their feet; entering solely to perform some act of religion, and not to go a shorter road to another street. When they had ended their devotions, they retired slowly without turning their back to the sanctuary. Outram, Sacrif. lib. 3. n. 7.
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Deuteronomy
28:1
Now if thou wilt hear the voice of the Lord thy God, to do and keep all his commandments, which I command thee this day, the Lord thy God will make thee higher than all the nations that are on the earth.
*H If you walk in my precepts, and keep my commandments, and do them, I will give you rain in due seasons.
Ver. 3. Due seasons. Before harvest, in spring; and after that in autumn;, when they sow their wheat and barley in Palestine. C.
*H The threshing of your harvest shall reach unto the vintage, and the vintage shall reach unto the sowing time: and you shall eat your bread to the full, and dwell in your land without fear.
Ver. 5. Time. So great shall be the abundance, that you will scarcely have time to get all the work done before you will be called off to something else. H. — These promises would be so much the more agreeable to them, as in Egypt, they had been forced to keep in their houses two or three months together, on account of the overflowing of the Nile. In that country, as well as in Greece and Palestine, people sow both wheat and barley about October; while in other countries the latter is sown in spring. The harvest is ready in about six months, and that of wheat in seven. Plin. xviii. 18. Hesiod, ep. ii. C.
*H Five of yours shall pursue a hundred others: and a hundred of you ten thousand. Your enemies shall fall before you by the sword.
Ver. 8. Five. Thus Gedeon's 300 men put to flight the great army of the Madianites; (Jud. vii. 22,) and the Machabees destroyed vast numbers with a small force.
*H You shall eat the oldest of the old store: and, new coming on, you shall cast away the old.
Ver. 10. Old; Being unable to consume all. M. — Heb. "ye shall eat old store, and bring forth the old because of the new." Sept. "you shall eat the old of old, and you shall bring out the old from the face of the new." Like a householder, who bringeth forth out of his treasury new things and old. Matt. xiii. 52. H.
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2_Corinthians
6:16
And what agreement hath the temple of God with idols? For you are the temple of the living God: as God saith: I will dwell in them and walk among them. And I will be their God: and they shall be my people.
*H I am the Lord your God: who have brought you out of the land of the Egyptians, that you should not serve them: and who have broken the chains of your necks, that you might go upright.
Ver. 13. Upright; and be no longer bowed down with a heavy yoke, like oxen. "I have broken the locks of your prison, and have set you at liberty." Arab. C. — A Greek proverb says, "Never was a slave's head right, but always crooked, like his neck." M.
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Deuteronomy
28:15
But if thou wilt not hear the voice of the Lord thy God, to keep and to do all his commandments and ceremonies, which I command thee this day, all these curses shall come upon thee, and overtake thee.
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Malachias
2:2
If you will not hear, and if you will not lay it to heart, to give glory to my name, saith the Lord of hosts: I will send poverty upon you, and will curse your blessings, yea I will curse them, because you have not laid it to heart.
*H I also will do these things to you. I will quickly visit you with poverty, and burning heat, which shall waste your eyes, and consume your lives. You shall sow your seed in vain, which shall be devoured by your enemies.
Ver. 16. Heat. Heb. kaddachath, is rendered "scab and jaundice," by the Sept.: and by others "a dangerous wind," like that which causes so many diseases in Egypt. The precise meaning of some terms in this verse is not well known.
*H But if you will not yet for all this obey me: I will chastise you seven times more for your sins.
Ver. 18. More, (septuplum.) "Very often, or very much;" in which sense it is used in this chapter. C.
*H And I will break the pride of your stubbornness: and I will make to you the heaven above as iron, and the earth as brass.
Ver. 19. As brass (æneam.) "Brazen," without moisture, and barren. Onkelos.
*H And I will send in upon you the beasts of the field, to destroy you and your cattle, and make you few in number: and that your highways may be desolate.
Ver. 22. Desolate, none being left to frequent them: or the few who remain, shall keep within doors, lest the wild beasts should meet and devour them. Isai. xxxiii. 8.
*H After I shall have broken the staff of your bread: so that ten women shall bake your bread in one oven, and give it out by weight: and you shall eat, and shall not be filled,
Ver. 26. Bread; or that which supports you. You shall be deprived of the necessaries of life. — One oven shall be used by 10 families, so little bread shall be baked, and even that little shall be delivered out by weight. I will also deprive it of its nutritive qualities, so that it shall not satisfy your craving appetite. C. See Ps. civ. 16. Isai. iii. 1.
* Summa
*S Part 2, Ques 100, Article 4
[I-II, Q. 100, Art. 4]
Whether the Precepts of the Decalogue Are Suitably Distinguished from One Another?
Objection 1: It would seem that the precepts of the decalogue are unsuitably distinguished from one another. For worship is a virtue distinct from faith. Now the precepts are about acts of virtue. But that which is said at the beginning of the decalogue, "Thou shalt not have strange gods before Me," belongs to faith: and that which is added, "Thou shalt not make . . . any graven thing," etc. belongs to worship. Therefore these are not one precept, as Augustine asserts (Qq. in Exod. qu. lxxi), but two.
Obj. 2: Further, the affirmative precepts in the Law are distinct from the negative precepts; e.g. "Honor thy father and thy mother," and, "Thou shalt not kill." But this, "I am the Lord thy God," is affirmative: and that which follows, "Thou shalt not have strange gods before Me," is negative. Therefore these are two precepts, and do not, as Augustine says (Qq. in Exod. qu. lxxi), make one.
Obj. 3: Further, the Apostle says (Rom. 7:7): "I had not known concupiscence, if the Law did not say: 'Thou shalt not covet.'" Hence it seems that this precept, "Thou shalt not covet," is one precept; and, therefore, should not be divided into two.
_On the contrary,_ stands the authority of Augustine who, in commenting on Exodus (Qq. in Exod. qu. lxxi) distinguishes three precepts as referring to God, and seven as referring to our neighbor.
_I answer that,_ The precepts of the decalogue are differently divided by different authorities. For Hesychius commenting on Lev. 26:26, "Ten women shall bake your bread in one oven," says that the precept of the Sabbath-day observance is not one of the ten precepts, because its observance, in the letter, is not binding for all time. But he distinguishes four precepts pertaining to God, the first being, "I am the Lord thy God"; the second, "Thou shalt not have strange gods before Me," (thus also Jerome distinguishes these two precepts, in his commentary on Osee 10:10, "On thy" [Vulg.: "their"] "two iniquities"); the third precept according to him is, "Thou shalt not make to thyself any graven thing"; and the fourth, "Thou shalt not take the name of the Lord thy God in vain." He states that there are six precepts pertaining to our neighbor; the first, "Honor thy father and thy mother"; the second, "Thou shalt not kill"; the third, "Thou shalt not commit adultery"; the fourth, "Thou shalt not steal"; the fifth, "Thou shalt not bear false witness"; the sixth, "Thou shalt not covet."
But, in the first place, it seems unbecoming for the precept of the Sabbath-day observance to be put among the precepts of the decalogue, if it nowise belonged to the decalogue. Secondly, because, since it is written (Matt. 6:24), "No man can serve two masters," the two statements, "I am the Lord thy God," and, "Thou shalt not have strange gods before Me" seem to be of the same nature and to form one precept. Hence Origen (Hom. viii in Exod.) who also distinguishes four precepts as referring to God, unites these two under one precept; and reckons in the second place, "Thou shalt not make . . . any graven thing"; as third, "Thou shalt not take the name of the Lord thy God in vain"; and as fourth, "Remember that thou keep holy the Sabbath-day." The other six he reckons in the same way as Hesychius.
Since, however, the making of graven things or the likeness of anything is not forbidden except as to the point of their being worshipped as gods--for God commanded an image of the Seraphim [Vulg.: Cherubim] to be made and placed in the tabernacle, as related in Ex. 25:18--Augustine more fittingly unites these two, "Thou shalt not have strange gods before Me," and, "Thou shalt not make . . . any graven thing," into one precept. Likewise to covet another's wife, for the purpose of carnal knowledge, belongs to the concupiscence of the flesh; whereas, to covet other things, which are desired for the purpose of possession, belongs to the concupiscence of the eyes; wherefore Augustine reckons as distinct precepts, that which forbids the coveting of another's goods, and that which prohibits the coveting of another's wife. Thus he distinguishes three precepts as referring to God, and seven as referring to our neighbor. And this is better.
Reply Obj. 1: Worship is merely a declaration of faith: wherefore the precepts about worship should not be reckoned as distinct from those about faith. Nevertheless precepts should be given about worship rather than about faith, because the precept about faith is presupposed to the precepts of the decalogue, as is also the precept of charity. For just as the first general principles of the natural law are self-evident to a subject having natural reason, and need no promulgation; so also to believe in God is a first and self-evident principle to a subject possessed of faith: "for he that cometh to God, must believe that He is" (Heb. 11:6). Hence it needs no other promulgation that the infusion of faith.
Reply Obj. 2: The affirmative precepts are distinct from the negative, when one is not comprised in the other: thus that man should honor his parents does not include that he should not kill another man; nor does the latter include the former. But when an affirmative precept is included in a negative, or vice versa, we do not find that two distinct precepts are given: thus there is not one precept saying that "Thou shalt not steal," and another binding one to keep another's property intact, or to give it back to its owner. In the same way there are not different precepts about believing in God, and about not believing in strange gods.
Reply Obj. 3: All covetousness has one common ratio: and therefore the Apostle speaks of the commandment about covetousness as though it were one. But because there are various special kinds of covetousness, therefore Augustine distinguishes different prohibitions against coveting: for covetousness differs specifically in respect of the diversity of actions or things coveted, as the Philosopher says (Ethic. x, 5). ________________________
FIFTH
*H I will also go against you with opposite fury: and I will chastise you with seven plagues for your sins,
Ver. 28. Fury. You will gain nothing by opposing me, but your own destruction. I will treat you, as you would deal with me. H.
*H So that you shall eat the flesh of your sons and of your daughters.
Ver. 29. Daughters. To such extremities were the Jews reduced, at the sieges of Samaria and Jerusalem. 4 K. vi. 28. Lament. iv. 10. Josep. Bel. vii. 8.
*H I will destroy your high places, and break your idols. You shall fall among the ruins of your idols, and my soul shall abhor you.
Ver. 30. Places. The temple of Solomon was built on Mount Moria or Sion. The Persians sacrificed upon the mountains, and the Romans and Athenians built their most magnificent temples on the highest parts of their respective cities. — Idols. Heb. chammanim, denotes the chariots dedicated to the sun; (4 K. xxiii. 11,) or the pyreia, or enclosures for the sacred fire, in honour of the god Homanus, (Strabo xv.) whose name is probably derived from this Hebrew word, (C.) as well as Hammon, a title of Jupiter. M. — Ruins. Heb. "and cast your carcasses upon the carcasses of your gods of dirt, and my soul shall vomit you out." The Egyptians embalmed the carcasses of their sacred animals. God threatens that, if his people be so stupid as to adore them, they shall die, and be deprived of sepulture.
*H Insomuch that I will bring your cities to be a wilderness: and I will make your sanctuaries desolate: and will receive no more your sweet odours.
Ver. 31. Odours. Even the sanctuary of the Lord shall be destroyed, as you will be unworthy to have it among you, or to offer sacrifices to me. H.
*H Then shall the land enjoy her sabbaths all the days of her desolation. When you shall be
Ver. 34. Desolation. It shall be uncultivated; and though you would not comply with my injunctions to let it rest one year out of seven, it shall now remain desolate for many years together. H. — Theodoret (q. 37,) says for 70 years; the number of sabbatic years, from the reign of Saul till the captivity of Babylon, during the space of 490 years. This verse seems evidently to allude to those days of distress. C. 2 Par. xxxvi. 21. — But we can hardly suppose that none of the sabbatic years should have been duly observed during the reigns of David, Solomon, &c. H. — Instead of enjoy, Heb. may be "shall expiate her sabbaths," or the neglect of them. The same term, tirtse, is used, (v. 41. 43,) and the Vulg. generally renders it agreeable, speaking of sacrifices. C. i. 4. xxii. 20. C.
*H In the enemy's land, she shall keep a sabbath, and rest in the sabbaths of her desolation: because she did not rest in your sabbaths, when you dwelt therein.
Ver. 35. Your sabbaths, holidays and years of rest, and of jubilee. The earth is represented as entering into the views of God, and rejoicing at his judgments. H.
*H And as to them that shall remain of you I will send fear in their hearts in the countries of their enemies. The sound of a flying leaf shall terrify them: and they shall flee as it were from the sword. They shall fall, when no man pursueth them.
Ver. 36. Fear. Sept. "timidity, or slavishness." Heb. morec, "softness and inactivity." C. — Their haughty temper shall be broken; and though they have dared to rebel against their God, the fall of a leaf shall now terrify them. H.
*H And they shall every one fall upon their brethren as fleeing from wars: none of you shall dare to resist your enemies.
Ver. 37. Brethren, in their flight; while each one is endeavouring to save himself. The Rabbins say they shall be punished for the sins of their brethren, if they have not endeavoured to prevent them.
*H You shall perish among the Gentiles: and an enemy's land shall consume you.
Ver. 38. Consume you. The Hebrew spies said that the land of Chanaan devoured its inhabitants. Such shall be in reality the enemies' country in your regard. You shall not be able to establish yourselves or be happy there.
*H And if of them also some remain, they shall pine away in their iniquities, in the land of their enemies: and they shall be afflicted for the sins of their fathers, and their own.
Ver. 39. Own. The sins of their fathers, which they have imitated, shall fall upon them; so that they shall pine away with remorse and misery.
*H Therefore I also will walk against them, and bring them into their enemies' land until their uncircumcised mind be ashamed. Then shall they pray for their sins.
Ver. 41. Mind. Heb. "heart," wicked, rebellious, and unclean. M. — Pray for. Heb. and Syr. "please themselves in," &c. They shall see what advantage they have derived from their sins. C. — Then they shall enter into themselves, like the prodigal son. H.
*H And I will remember my covenant, that I made with Jacob, and Isaac, and Abraham. I will remember also the land:
Ver. 42. Jacob is placed first, because he was the father of no other nation; as Abraham and Isaac were. W.
*H And yet for all that when they were in the land of their enemies, I did not cast them off altogether. Neither did I so despise them that they should be quite consumed: and I should make void my covenant with them. For I am the Lord their God.
Ver. 44. I did not. He speaks of a future event, which he sees will certainly come to pass, as if it had already happened. As God had preserved his people, in Egypt, conformably to his covenant with the patriarchs, so he will be reconciled to them, after they shall have done penance, and acknowledged all their excesses, in the captivity of Babylon. H. — The church never ceases all together. W.
*H And I will remember my former covenant, when I brought them out of the land of Egypt, in the sight of the Gentiles, to be their God. I am the Lord. These are the judgments, and precepts, and laws, which the Lord gave between him and the children of Israel, in mount Sinai, by the hand of Moses.
Ver. 45. Moses. What has been hitherto recorded, was mostly prescribed by God at Mount Sinai, as some of the following laws were also. C. — It would seem as if this were the conclusion of Leviticus. We must remember, however, that these divisions were not introduced by Moses, as he wrote his five books without any interruption, like one verse. So S. John seems to conclude his Gospel, (C. xx. 31,) though he afterwards adds another chapter. H.