Biblical Decalogue
differences in translations
The 10 commandments of God called the Decalogue contained in the Old Testament are different from those known to most of the public. To make matters worse, during a conversation in which they are quoted the Biblical Decalogue, they find that the given translation of Scripture is false, because they have not heard of such commandments. Sad, but true. Most of us, know the 10 commandments preached by the Roman Catholic Church, which do not coincide with the biblical ones. Why is that?
The Roman Catholic Church has slightly changed the content of God's commandments, it is believed that it has removed one of them, so that the last commandment about lust is divided into two parts.
It is also worth mentioning that it is conventionally accepted to divide the 10 commandments, with some seeing it as 8 (combining the first, second and third biblical into one), 9 (combining the first and second biblical into one) or even 11 (dividing the tenth biblical into two parts).
So let's compare the church's commandments along with those found in the Old Testament in II Genesis 20:3-17 in various translations.
Roman Catholic version
1. I am the LORD your God: you shall not have strange Gods before me.
2. You shall not take the name of the LORD your God in vain.
3. Remember to keep holy the LORD'S Day.
4. Honor your father and your mother.
5. You shall not kill.
6. You shall not commit adultery.
7. You shall not steal.
8. You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor.
9. You shall not covet your neighbor's wife.
10. You shall not covet your neighbor's goods.
King James Version (KJV)
1. Thou shalt have no other gods before me.
2. Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image, or any likeness of any thing that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth. Thou shalt not bow down thyself to them, nor serve them: for I the Lord thy God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation of them that hate me; And shewing mercy unto thousands of them that love me, and keep my commandments.
3. Thou shalt not take the name of the Lord thy God in vain; for the Lord will not hold him guiltless that taketh his name in vain.
4. Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy. Six days shalt thou labour, and do all thy work: 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 maidservant, nor thy cattle, nor thy stranger that is within thy gates: For in six days the Lord made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them is, and rested the seventh day: wherefore the Lord blessed the sabbath day, and hallowed it.
5. Honour thy father and thy mother: that thy days may be long upon the land which the Lord thy God giveth thee.
6. Thou shalt not kill.
7. Thou shalt not commit adultery.
8. Thou shalt not steal.
9. Thou shalt not bear false witness against thy neighbour.
10 Thou shalt not covet thy neighbour's house, thou shalt not covet thy neighbour's wife, nor his manservant, nor his maidservant, nor his ox, nor his ass, nor any thing that is thy neighbour's.
New International Version (NIV)
1. You shall have no other gods before me.
2. You shall not make for yourself an image in the form of anything in heaven above or on the earth beneath or in the waters below. You shall not bow down to them or worship them; for I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God, punishing the children for the sin of the parents to the third and fourth generation of those who hate me, but showing love to a thousand generations of those who love me and keep my commandments.
3. You shall not misuse the name of the Lord your God, for the Lord will not hold anyone guiltless who misuses his name.
4. Remember the Sabbath day by keeping it holy. Six days you shall labor and do all your work, but the seventh day is a sabbath to the Lord your God. On it you shall not do any work, neither you, nor your son or daughter, nor your male or female servant, nor your animals, nor any foreigner residing in your towns. For in six days the Lord made the heavens and the earth, the sea, and all that is in them, but he rested on the seventh day. Therefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath day and made it holy.
5. Honor your father and your mother, so that you may live long in the land the Lord your God is giving you.
6. You shall not murder.
7. You shall not commit adultery.
8. You shall not steal.
9. You shall not give false testimony against your neighbor.
10. You shall not covet your neighbor’s house. You shall not covet your neighbor’s wife, or his male or female servant, his ox or donkey, or anything that belongs to your neighbor.
New American Standard Bible (NASB)
1. You shall have no other gods before Me.
2. You shall not make for yourself an idol, or any likeness of what is in heaven above or on the earth beneath, or in the water under the earth. You shall not worship them nor serve them; for I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God, inflicting the punishment of the fathers on the children, on the third and the fourth generations of those who hate Me, but showing favor to thousands, to those who love Me and keep My commandments.
3. You shall not take the name of the Lord your God in vain, for the Lord will not leave him unpunished who takes His name in vain.
4. Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy. For six days you shall labor and do all your work, but the seventh day is a Sabbath of the Lord your God; on it you shall not do any work, you, or your son, or your daughter, your male slave or your female slave, or your cattle, or your resident who stays with you. For in six days the Lord made the heavens and the earth, the sea and everything that is in them, and He rested on the seventh day; for that reason the Lord blessed the Sabbath day and made it holy.
5. Honor your father and your mother, so that your days may be prolonged on the land which the Lord your God gives you.
6. You shall not murder.
7. You shall not commit adultery.
8. You shall not steal.
9. You shall not give false testimony against your neighbor.
10. You shall not covet your neighbor’s house; you shall not covet your neighbor’s wife, or his male slave, or his female slave, or his ox, or his donkey, or anything that belongs to your neighbor.
English Standard Version (ESV)
1. You shall have no other gods before me.
2. You shall not make for yourself a carved image, or any likeness of anything that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth. You shall not bow down to them or serve them, for I the Lord your God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children to the third and the fourth generation of those who hate me, but showing steadfast love to thousands of those who love me and keep my commandments.
3. You shall not take the name of the Lord your God in vain, for the Lord will not hold him guiltless who takes his name in vain.
4. Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy. Six days you shall labor, and do all your work, but the seventh day is a Sabbath to the Lord your God. On it you shall not do any work, you, or your son, or your daughter, your male servant, or your female servant, or your livestock, or the sojourner who is within your gates. For in six days the Lord made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that is in them, and rested on the seventh day. Therefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath day and made it holy.
5. Honor your father and your mother, that your days may be long in the land that the Lord your God is giving you.
6. You shall not murder.
7. You shall not commit adultery.
8. You shall not steal.
9. You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor.
10. You shall not covet your neighbor's house; you shall not covet your neighbor's wife, or his male servant, or his female servant, or his ox, or his donkey, or anything that is your neighbor's.
What has been changed in the Roman Catholic version
As you can see quite a lot. The second commandment about statues was kicked out. The Church defends itself by saying that commandment 1 and 2 were combined into one. A clever procedure, but if we read the content well we can see that the commandments are different. Our second god can be a girl, a boy, a human leader or any other figure we value much higher than God. How many lives have already been destroyed by self-proclaimed psychopaths claiming to be the incarnation of God.
The second commandment in the Old Testament clearly points to the statues. God knows the future, He knew what would happen after Jesus left. It is claimed that statues in churches are supposed to help concentration. How many people pray to and kiss statues? God's commandments say plainly: it is forbidden to do such things! Whoever disagrees with this undermines what God has commanded. Don't be smarter than the Creator, and even if it goes against your feelings and long-standing beliefs, accept it. Don't fight with God. How do you want to serve Him while disagreeing with what He has said?
Commandment 4 from the Old Testament was moved in place of 3, while changing Saturday to a holy day. The holy day according to God is Saturday and no other day. It was people who changed Saturday to Sunday. I recommend you expand your knowledge on this subject. Look up when these days were switched and why. Look at who was at the helm of Roman Catholic power and when and what popes were at that time. Agree or disagree, but the holy day was established long ago and it is Saturday. I do not negate the attitude of those who wholeheartedly worship God on Sunday because that is what their conscience tells them and that is how they were taught, any sincere attitude is welcomed by God. Note, however, that the holy day in Scripture is Saturday, not Sunday.
Thou shalt not kill - Thou shalt not murder
The commandment not to kill, unfortunately, but correctly is not translated in all translations. In the original, the word used is murder. Killing and murder, although strongly similar, have a completely different sound when referring to a person's act. One can kill someone in self-defense or in defense of someone, a country, etc. Murder is killing without mercy, torture, taking life for pleasure, material value, power, etc. Murder carries with it a killing that was not needed or a killing previously mentioned but done in a perfidious way, e.g. defending the country we tortured someone until we caused his death. If God forbade killing it would contradict itself. In the Old Testament you can read about how the Israelites killed at God's command and did not face punishment for it. This alone should prove that the word murder vs. killing has a different meaning.
We also read that God is vindictive and punishes sins. Vindictiveness in the Creator is another way of depriving the protection that God gives to man, he is then exposed to the power of Satan, he rejected God so, he lives as he chose. God is love, but He also dispenses justice while showing grace. Sin causes consequences, one cannot be in heaven if one has sinned. Satan did this and was cast out of it.
God's love for us has made it possible for Jesus to remove our sins, but only if we sincerely ask Him to do so. People, rejecting God, should be aware that without God they are doomed to failure. Satan is powerful, it's like facing a well-trained army and defeating it alone, without weapons. An impossible thing, and yet most people behave this way. This is also the case with us, if we consciously give up God's protection, we lose. The guilt and punishment is that man loses God's shield.
God's 10 commandments called the Decalogue are different from the one presented in the Roman Catholic Church. Who will you listen to? God or man?
