Be Still and Know Daily Bible Devotion - April 30th - Exodus 20:13-17

Be Still and Know Daily Bible Devotion - April 30th - Exodus 20:13-17

From Shine FM by Touch Canada

April 30, 2026 · 3 min

About this episode

This episode discusses the commandments from Exodus 20:13-17 and their implications for a harmonious society.

Exodus 20:13-17 [God said:] “You must not murder. You must not commit adultery. You must not steal. You must not testify falsely against your neighbour. You must not covet your neighbour’s house.” These blunt commandments are even more brief in Hebrew, where a better translation would be “No murder. No adultery. No stealing.” God is setting out in quick succession the activities that must be stopped if the community is to thrive. Having respect for human life, marriage, property and truth-telling are foundational to a peaceful and harmonious society, and coveting can only be destructive. On first reading, the trouble with these commandments is that they sound so negative. However, the reason for this is, quite clearly, because God’s desire is the best. He won’t settle for anything less than that, so He is ruthlessly opposed to anything that will spoil life for His much-loved children. The sanctions showed how serious He was. Murder would lead to capital punishment, adultery to stoning and the thief had to make full restitution. As human beings, we never enjoy being told what we can’t do, but it is often a sign of love. My parents spent years telling me the things I shouldn’t do…

Topics covered

  • Bible
  • commandments
  • morality
  • community
  • spirituality

Keywords

  • murder
  • adultery
  • stealing
  • truth-telling
  • coveting

Mentioned in this episode

Books & works: Exodus 20:13-17

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