EPISODE · Dec 4, 2025 · 3 MIN
Exodus 20: What were the Ten Commandments?
from YINR 929: Tanach Yomi · host Josh Blechner
The Torah refers to them as Ten Commandments in chapter 34, but where do the ten break up? The verses are as follows:The Torah breaks after verse 6, 7, 11, and 12. 13 is split into four, verse 14 in two. Certain commentators read it differently. Ibn Ezra reads honor thy parents as the fifth with the first five each using God’s name. This reading follows the Talmud (e.g., Makkot 24a), where verse one is Commandment 1, and verse two is commandment 2. Devarim chapter 5 places breaks for the verses of the Commandments the same way as Exodus. Perhaps the Talmud aimed to break up the commandments thematically with the first five being commandments that honor God and the second five honoring people. The commandment to honor parents straddles the two. Perhaps, it is as simple as Ibn Ezra listing the first five using God’s name. Or perhaps the fact that it is unclear further embraces the idea that these ten have no extra significance within the 613 total commandments.
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Exodus 20: What were the Ten Commandments?
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