30% of Ten Commandments Posted at Mall

A mall in Sebring, Florida, has posted the Ten Commandments at their main entrance. Sort of.

Interestingly enough, there is more than one way to number the Ten Commandments. The Bible gives them in Exodus 20 and again in Deuteronomy 5, but gives no numbers. Someplace in the Old Testament, it says there are ten of them. I have seen a Roman Catholic numbering, a Protestant numbering and a Jewish numbering and there could be others. Different versions break up some commandments and merge others. The Protestant numbering goes back to John Calvin, and this is the numbering that we see at the mall.

Which translation did they use for this exhibition of the Commandments? It uses “thou shalt not” and “thy,” so it sounds like the King James version but it isn’t that simple.

The mall’s display of the Ten Commandments contains 84 words, and this is shorter than Biblical versions. Using Exodus 20, in the KJV the Commandments come out to 297 words. In the New International Verions, NIV, the Commandments come out to 284 words. By the number of words, the display version gives us 28% of the Ten Commandments, using the KJV. I will round that to 30%.

The most radical shortening is in the Sabbath Commandment, number four according to John Calvin. In the mall display, the Sabbath Commandment is eight words. In the New International Version it is 97 words. The mall chooses to give us about 8% of this Commandment. The mall display gives the Second Commandment, graven images, in nine words. In the KJV the Second Commandment is 91 words. The mall chooses to give us about 10% of this Commandment. The last of the Commandments, which forbids coveting, is twelve words in the mall display. It is 30 words in the NIV.

Perhaps the Mall should change the title of their display from “The Ten Commandments” to “The Ten Commandments, Consensed,” the Ten Commandments, Abridged,” or maybe “Essentials of the Ten Commandments.”



There is a lot of talk about posting the Ten Commandments in schools and in public buildings. I suspect these are also condensed to the essentials.

pwg_jonathan said:

interesting that the numbering itself changes depending on tradition. what stands out to me is how the heart of it stays the same, and Jesus boiled it down to loving God and loving people in Matthew 22:37-39. curious which translation they ended up using.

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What they posted at the Mall is not a verbatim quote from any translation. They may have started with the KJV but they edited it down to less than 30% of the original. You could debate whether that is a good thing but they should be honest about what they are doing.

Would Jesus post the Ten Commandments? In Matthew 22:35-40, a Pharisee asks Jesus to name the greatest commandment. Jesus responds, quoting Deuteronomy 6:5 and Leviticus 19:18, but he does not quote any part of the Ten Commandments. It looks like the Ten Commandments are not what Jesus would post, if He was going to post anything.


One of them, an expert in the law, tested him with this
question:
“Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the Law?”
Jesus replied: “`Love the Lord your God with all your heart
and with all your soul and with all your mind.’ [Deut. 6:5]
This is the first and greatest commandment.
And the second is like it: `Love your neighbour as yourself.’
[Lev. 19:18]
All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two
commandments.”
Matthew 22: 35-40 NIV

Wrangler said:

@Dale Oaks, welcome to the forum.



No. It doesn't roll off the tongue as easily. Brevity is the soul of wit.

To me, it's much, much more important that our culture return broadly to Christian precepts than get caught up in translational squabbles. I look forward to kids on the playground acting as a peacemaker in saying 'do unto others' EVEN IF they don't quote the entirety of the verse in my preferred translation.



Yup. I often quote part of a verse that is relevant to the conversation. Because I cite the book-chapter-verse, anyone can go to their favorite translation and read, not only the full verse but the broader context, which may even require expanding to other chapters.

Don't confuse an ad for the product manual.

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Wrangler, thanks for your reply! I notice that your avatar is a photo of Man Carving HIs Own Destiny, a statue that I have seen Good choice.

You make a good point, that posting even a condensed portion of the Bible could point people to reading and understanding the Bible. The question is, how many of those clamoring for the TC to be posted even know when they are reading a drastically condensed version?

Many Christians, probably most, believe that the New Testament commands Christians to follow the Ten Commandments. This isn’t exactly true. In Acts 15, the Apostles meet in Jerusalem to consider under what circumstances Gentiles should be allowed to become Christians. What should the church require of Gentile members? They reach a decision and lay down a few rules, sending out a letter. Following the Ten Commandments is not one of the conditions for Gentile Chrisitians.

[James says,] “It is my judgment, therefore, that we should not make it
difficult for the Gentiles who are turning to God.
Instead we should write to them, telling them to abstain from
food polluted by idols, from sexual immorality, from the meat
of strangled animals and from blood.
For Moses has been preached in every city from the earliest
times and is read in the synagogues on every Sabbath.”
Acts 15: 19-21 NIV

also

Therefore we are sending Judas and Silas to confirm by word
of mouth what we are writing.
It seemed good to the Holy Spirit and to us not to burden
you with anything beyond the following requirements:
You are to abstain from food sacrificed to idols, from blood,
from the meat of strangled animals and from sexual
immorality. You will do well to avoid these things. Farewell.
Acts 15:27-29 NIV

It is a little surprising that the letter does not specifically forbid murder, theft and false witness. I believe the answer to that is that the Apostles did not expect these things to be controversial. They didn’t think they would have to argue about it. They assume that people wanting to become Christians believe in one God. Sexual morality is one of the requirements.

Everything in the Ten Commandments is restated in the New Testament except for observing a Jewish Sabbath. The sabbath is not part of the package.

This is one of my concerns about posting the Ten Commandments. It gives the impression that the NT commands Christians to follow all of the Ten Commandments.