What are the 10 commandments. New Testament. Commandments of Christ. Interpretation of God's Ten Laws

God's First Commandment was given to Adam and Eve in Paradise. Having violated it, our forefathers lost their original conditions of life and direct communication with the Creator. Having lost God's grace, human nature was left unprotected and vulnerable to sin. But the Lord did not leave his beloved creation to the mercy of fate, protecting man in every possible way and leading him on the right path.

Inner Spiritual Law, originally laid down by God and controlled by conscience, could no longer remain a powerful deterrent for people. Therefore, an external law was needed, which would coordinate the actions of people and streamline their way of life.

As described in Old Testament The Lord established a number of specific requirements for man, which he conveyed to the people of Israel through the prophet Moses. This happened after the liberation of the Jews from Egyptian slavery on the way to the land of Canaan at Mount Sinai.

Rules of human life or the commandments were inscribed by the Lord Himself on two tablets (stone boards). This division of the Law of God into two parts is not accidental. The first four points define the duties of a person in relation to God, the remaining six contain instructions that form harmonious relationship between people.

Total commandments of God 10. Orthodoxy sees them as life guide and guide to salvation. They are as follows:

1. ​Worship the One True God.
2. Do not create idols for yourself.
3. Do not pronounce the name of the Lord God in vain.
4. Honor the day off of the week: work six days, and devote the seventh to God.
5. To honor the father and mother, which will give well-being and longevity in earthly life.
6. Don't kill.
7. Don't commit adultery.
8. Don't steal.
9. Don't bear false witness.
10. Don't envy.

Interpretation of God's Ten Commandments in Orthodoxy

Explain the meaning and significance of each item Law of God helps study Holy Scripture, apostolic writings and patristic literature.

First Commandment

In it the Lord points to Himself and commands man to know and respect only him and also strive for Him as the One True God. Therefore, people should:

1. Practice divinity: listen to teachings about God in church, read bible and works of the Holy Fathers.
2. Show inner reverence for God: believe in Him, fear and revere Him, hope in God, love Him, obey and worship Him, glorify, give thanks and call on His name.
3. Express outward reverence for God: confess Holy Trinity not renouncing his faith even under the threat of death; participate in church services and sacraments established by God Himself.

Sins that violate the first commandment:

• godlessness, that is, the denial of the existence of God;
• polytheism - worship of imaginary deities;
• unbelief in God's providence and revelation;
• heresy - the expression of opinions contrary to divine truth;
• split - deviation from unity Orthodox Church;
• apostasy - renunciation of the true faith;
• despair - loss of hope for salvation;
• magic - turning to the dark forces for help;
• superstition, in which an ordinary thing is given a magical meaning;
• laziness in the performance of the duties of piety;
• a greater manifestation of love for the creature than for the Creator;
• pleasing people instead of pleasing God;
• hope in man - hope in human strength, and not in the help of God.

Second Commandment

Warns against worshiping idols - pagan deities, as well as those objects to which all thoughts and desires of a person are attached.

In modern developed countries not subject to pagan influence, violations of this commandment are quite common in Everyday life.

Sins that violate the second commandment:

• pride, hypocrisy;
• avarice, covetousness - love of gain;
• - excessive enjoyment of food and its consumption in large quantities;
• drunkenness, drug addiction;
• computer addiction.

In contrast to the listed sins, this instruction of God teaches humility, generosity and temperance.

It should be noted that the veneration of holy icons in Orthodox Christianity does not contradict this prescription. Word icon means in Greek image, or image. In his prayer, a person does not turn to the icon, but to the image imprinted on it. The Lord Himself ordered Moses to install the golden images of the Cherubim in the tabernacle, and in that part of the temple, to which the people turned to pray to God.

Third Commandment

Forbids pronouncing the name of God in vain, without special need and reverence, in useless and vain conversations.

Sins that violate the third commandment:

• blasphemy, that is, words that offend God;
• - desecration of sacred objects or a mocking attitude towards them;
• grumbling - dissatisfaction life circumstances;
• a false oath that affirms something that is not really there;
• perjury - breaking a lawful oath;
• failure to fulfill promises made to God;
• swearing - a frivolous oath in ordinary conversations;
• careless prayer.

V Holy Scripture The Savior warns people against all kinds of swearing: But I say to you: do not swear at all ... But let your word be: yes, yes; no no; and what is more than this is from the evil one (Matt. 5, 34 and 37).

There is no question here of an oath provided for by public law in especially important cases. A legal oath and an oath must be given and remain faithful to it to the end, without violating it under any circumstances.

fourth commandment

He teaches people to dedicate the seventh day of the week to the Creator. V bible it is described how God created the world for six days, and rested on the seventh, having finished his work. The Old Testament Church honored the Sabbath day, which is the seventh day of the week. After the Bright Resurrection of Christ, Sunday began to be revered - the first day of the week following the six working days.

To keep the fourth commandment and sanctify Sunday, it is necessary:

1. Refrain from work and worldly affairs.
2. Visit the temple of God, participating in church services.
3. Spend some time reading Holy Scripture and spiritual literature.
4. Serve God with deeds of mercy, visiting the sick, prisoners, giving alms.

It should be noted that the Lord commanded to work six days a week, so idleness and relaxation during the time allotted for work is a direct violation of God's commandment.

Fifth Commandment

Speaking about the need to honor parents, the Lord points to the duties of children towards them. In fulfilling his duty to his father and mother, every Christian must:

1. Treat them with respect.
2. Be in obedience to them.
3. Take care of them during illness and old age.
4. Pray for their health during life and for the repose of their souls after death.

Family and social relations are built on the basis of the fifth commandment. Therefore, given its importance for the formation of order in the spheres of mutual coexistence, the Lord promises a prosperous and long earthly life as a reward for fulfilling this requirement.

Treating with respect should also be mentors, superiors, and people of advanced age. From childhood, a child needs to be instilled with respect not only for mom and dad, but also for educators, teachers, representatives of the older generation, demonstrating such behavior by example.

sixth commandment

Warns against committing murder. Life is a priceless gift of God that no one has the right to take away, except the Creator Himself. Every person is created in the image and likeness of God. Therefore, an attempt on human life is a daring blasphemous crime, for which one will have to answer to the fullest extent not only in this life, but also in the future.

Sins that violate the sixth commandment:

• direct killing of another person;
• directing the actions that led to the bloodshed;
• driving to suicide;
• failure to provide timely possible assistance to the dying;
• harboring a criminal who committed a murder;
• causing harm to the health of others;
• bad habits(smoking, alcoholism, drug addiction);
• suicide.

It should be noted that the last of all the listed sins is the most serious. Passing away from life without permission, a person dares to dispose of what does not belong to him, rejecting the gift of God and thereby turning away from the Creator. A suicide does not have the opportunity to repent and in any way change his fate. The Church does not pray for the dead in this way.

Not a violation of the sixth commandment:

1. Punishment of the criminal by justice.
2. Destruction of the enemy in the defense of the Fatherland.

seventh commandment

Through her, the Lord calls everyone to bodily purity and chastity.

Holy Bible teaches that the body of a Christian should become a temple of the Holy Spirit, therefore it is unacceptable to defile it with illegal and unnatural bonds.

Sins that violate the seventh commandment:

• fornication - a close relationship between a man and a woman who are not legally married;
• adultery - adultery;
• incest - a carnal relationship between relatives;
• same-sex relationships and other forms of sexual perversion.

V New Testament The Savior gives a more subtle explanation of this instruction: But I tell you that everyone who looks at a woman lustfully has already committed adultery with her in his heart. (Matthew 5:28). With these words, the Lord makes it clear that people should not only act according to the Law, but also carefully monitor the purity of their thoughts.

eighth commandment

Prohibits the appropriation by a person of what is rightfully belonged to another.

Sins that violate the eighth commandment:

• robbery - depriving a person of his own thing with the use of violence;
• theft - the secret theft of something;
• misappropriation of other people's funds or property through fraud;
• extortion;
• corrupt practices;
• parasitism;
• unwillingness to repay debts.

In contrast to these sins, such virtues as mercy, selflessness, generosity act.

ninth commandment

Requires people to be honest with each other.

Sins that violate the ninth commandment:

• giving false testimony in court;
• slander in everyday life;
• unfair censure;
• any lie.

In Orthodox Christianity, it is also considered impermissible to reproach or condemn a neighbor for his vices, if this is not allowed by certain duties: Not a courtú you, lest you be judged (Matthew 7:1).

tenth commandment

Warns people against evil desires and thoughts, which subsequently lead to sinful deeds. It is necessary to stop any impure thoughts so that they do not feed and do not allow the destructive passion to grow under the name envy. To counteract this mental illness, you must:

1. Maintain purity of heart.
2. Be content with what you have.
3. Thank God for everything.

The foundation laid at the foundation the law of God, is an love. To the question of which commandment in the Law is considered the greatest, the Lord answers: Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind: this is the first and greatest commandment; the second is like it: love thy neighbor as thyself; on these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets(Matthew 22:36-40).

Deadly sins

The actions of a person that contradict God's plan for him and separate him from the Creator, which leads to the inevitable death of the human soul, are called deadly sins. They are conventionally divided into seven groups depending on passions that underlies certain actions. For the first time such a classification was proposed in 590 by St. Gregory the Great.

Seven deadly sins or passions:

1. Pride - the passion underlying all sins. She served as the reason that a cherub named Dennitsa, close to God, considering himself equal to the Creator Himself, was cast down from Heaven into the underworld along with other angels who stood by his side.
2. Envy - a sinful feeling that prompted Cain to kill his own brother Abel. Envy was the main reason for the condemnation and crucifixion of the Savior.
3. Gluttony - a pathological condition of a person, when the satisfaction of natural needs for food is replaced by gluttony. Gluttony gives rise to other sins - laziness, relaxation, inattention.
4. Fornication - a passion that can completely intoxicate the human mind, prompting its victim to adultery, promiscuity and all kinds of perversions. For these sins, people were subjected to God's terrible punishment, when a fiery rain fell on Sodom and Gomorrah.
5. Anger - a destructive feeling that can completely take over a person and push him to the most terrible deeds, up to and including committing murder.
6. Greed , or greed- an irresistible desire to possess material goods. This passion is based on the substitution of life values, when a person spends his strength on acquiring earthly wealth, neglecting the acquisition of eternal wealth.
7. - sin, which is based on mental and bodily relaxation, paralyzing the will of man. Sadness turns into murmur, which manifests itself in dissatisfaction with the existing circumstances, when the desired does not correspond to reality.

Falling into mortal sin destroys human nature and entails tragic consequences. But even when committing the gravest crime, one must not fall into despair and lose hope in God's mercy, becoming like Judas in this. As long as a person is alive, he has the opportunity to purify his soul with sincere repentance and again enter into an alliance with God, uniting with Him in the Sacrament of Holy Communion.

Raising a Child According to God's Commandments

The basis of Orthodox education in the family has always been and remains Law of God, opening before the child a real picture of life and forming in him right attitude to the environment, people and yourself. seeds Orthodox faith, sown in a child's soul, will surely bear fruit in adulthood.

In order for the educational process to take place in an accessible and interesting form for the child, a large amount of Orthodox children's literature was published by special publishing houses, including Law of God and bible for children, as well as individual publications representing ten Commandments in pictures in Russian.

A child who cannot read will be able to learn the basics of Orthodoxy not only with parental help, but also on his own, simply by looking at the drawings. For a child who can read, a book with a statement of God's commandments should become a desktop, so that in any life situation a young Christian learns to be guided by eternal truths.

But no matter how much effort is made to enlighten and instruct the native child, the main and defining part of Orthodox education should be the personal example of parents who honor Law of God and in fact striving to keep all the commandments of the Creator.

Receiving the Ten Commandments from God is the most significant event in the Old Testament. The very formation of the Jewish people is connected with the Ten Commandments. Indeed, before receiving the commandments, a Semitic tribe of disenfranchised and hardened slaves lived in Egypt, after the Sinai legislation, a people arises, called to believe and serve God, from which later great prophets, apostles and saints of the first centuries of Christianity originated. From it, the Savior of the world Himself, the Lord Jesus Christ, was born according to the flesh.

The circumstances of receiving the Ten Commandments are described in the book of Exodus in chapters 19-20 and 24. One and a half thousand years before the birth of Christ, after the great miracles performed by the prophet Moses in Egypt, the pharaoh was forced to let the Jewish people go, and he, having miraculously crossed the Red Sea, went south through the desert of the Sinai Peninsula, heading for the promised (Promised) land. By the fiftieth day after the exodus from Egypt, the Jewish people came to the foot of Mount Sinai and encamped there. (Sinai and Horeb are two peaks of the same mountain). Here the prophet Moses ascended the mountain, and the Lord announced to him: Say to the children of Israel, if you obey my voice and keep my covenant, you will be my people. “When Moses delivered the will of God to the Jews, they replied: “ All that the Lord has said we will do and be obedient .” Then the Lord commanded Moses to prepare the people for the adoption of the Law by the third day, and the Jews began to prepare for it by fasting and prayer. On the third day, a thick cloud covered the top of Mount Sinai. Lightning flashed, thunder roared, and a loud trumpet sounded. Smoke rose from the mountain, and the whole of it shook violently. People stood in the distance and watched with awe what was happening. On the mountain, the Lord told Moses His law in the form of the Ten Commandments, which the prophet then told the people.

Having accepted the commandments, the Jewish people promised to keep them, and then the Covenant (alliance) between God and the Jews was concluded, consisting in the fact that the Lord promised the Jewish people His mercy and protection, and the Jews promised to live righteously. After that, Moses went up the mountain again and stayed there fasting and praying for forty days. Here the Lord gave Moses other ecclesiastical and civil laws, ordered the construction of a Tabernacle (a portable temple-tent) and gave rules regarding the service of priests and the performance of sacrifices. By the end of forty days, God wrote His Ten Commandments, previously given orally, on two stone slabs (tablets) and commanded them to be kept in the “Ark of the Covenant” (a gilded box with images of cherubs at the top of the lid) as an eternal reminder of the Covenant concluded between Him and Israel people. (The location of the stone tablets with the Ten Commandments is unknown. In the 2nd chapter of the Second Book of Maccabees, it is said that during the destruction of Jerusalem by Nebuchadnezzar in the 6th century BC, the prophet Jeremiah hid the stone tablets and some other temple accessories in a cave on Mount Nev "Oh. This mountain is located twenty kilometers east of the place where the Jordan River flows into the Dead Sea. Just before the Israelites entered the Promised Land (1400 BC), the prophet Moses was buried on the same mountain. Repeated attempts to find the tablets with the Ten Commandments were unsuccessful). These commandments are given here:

1. I am the Lord thy God; thou shalt have no other gods but Me.

2. Do not make for yourself an idol or any image of what is in heaven above, what is on the earth below, and what is in the waters below the earth; do not worship or serve them.

3. Do not take the name of the Lord your God in vain.

4. Remember the day of rest to spend it holy; work for six days and do all your works in them, and the seventh day - the day of rest - let it be dedicated to the Lord your God.

5. Honor your father and your mother, that you may be well and that you live long on earth.

6. Don't kill.

7. Do not commit adultery.

8. Don't steal.

9. Do not bear false witness against your neighbor.

10. Thou shalt not covet thy neighbor's wife, and covet not thy neighbor's house, nor his field, nor his manservant, nor his maidservant... nor all that is thy neighbor's.

The family has always been and will be the foundation of society and the Church. Therefore, the holy apostles took care to establish the correct relationship between family members. They instructed: Wives, obey your husbands, as is fitting in the Lord. Husbands, love your wives and don't be harsh with them. Children, be obedient to your parents in everything, for this is pleasing to the Lord. Fathers, do not irritate your children, lest they lose heart.. ” “Let children learn to honor their families and to render due to their parents: for this is pleasing to God. ” (Eph. 5:22-23; 6:1-4; Col. 3:18-20; 1 Tim. 5:4).

As for the attitude towards strangers, the Christian faith teaches the need to show respect to everyone, in accordance with his age and position: “ Give everyone their due: to whom to give, to give; to whom dues, dues; to whom fear, fear; to whom honor, honor ” (Rom. 13:7). In the spirit of this apostolic instruction, a Christian should respect: pastors and spiritual fathers; civilian chiefs who care about justice, peaceful life and welfare of the country; educators, teachers and benefactors, and in general all elders in age. Those young people who do not respect elders and old people are sinning, considering them backward people, and their concepts obsolete. Even in the Old Testament, the Lord said through Moses: Rise before the face of the gray-haired man and honor the face of the old man, and fear the Lord your God ” (Lev. 19:32).

But if it happened that parents or leaders demanded from us something contrary to the faith and the Law of God, then we must say to them, as the apostles said to the leaders of the Jews: “ Judge whether it is fair before God to listen to you more than to God ” (Acts 4:19) must be ready to endure for faith and the Law of God, whatever comes.

As a counter to feelings of malice and revenge, the Lord taught His followers be in love all people, including their enemies: “ I say to you: love your enemies, bless those who curse you, do good to those who hate you, and pray for those who despitefully use you and persecute you; may you be sons of your Father in heaven ” (Matthew 5:44).

Note: How should one look at war and the death penalty for criminals? Neither the Savior nor His apostles dictated to the civil authorities how they should solve their state and social problems. The Christian faith aims transform the very heart of man. As long as evil lives inside people, wars and crimes are inevitable. If people become better, then wars and crimes will stop.

There is no doubt that war is evil. But the war defensive should be recognized as lesser evil in comparison with the admission of the enemy to the territory of his country and all the consequences of aggression. The church does not consider killing in war as a private sin of a person when a warrior goes “to give his life for his neighbors.” Among the warriors there are also saints glorified by miracles: St. Great Martyr George, St. Blessed Prince Alexander Nevsky, Saints Theodore Tiron, Theodore Stratilat and others. The death penalty The crime of a criminal is also a social evil and can be explained by the need to protect well-meaning citizens from a greater evil - robbery, violence and murder.

Forbidding the forcible taking of life, the Christian faith teaches us to calmly look at death when an incurable disease has brought a person to its threshold. It is wrong to use heroic remedies to prolong the hours of a dying person. It is better to help him reconcile with God and peacefully depart into eternity, where we will all meet.

A grave sin against the seventh commandment is homosexuality. The perverts try in every possible way to justify this sin. This shameful sin is severely scourged by the apostle Paul in the first chapter of his epistle to the Romans (vv. 21-32). The ancient cities of Sodom and Gomorrah were destroyed by God precisely for this sin (Genesis 19th chapter, see the epistle of the Apostle Jude 1:7).

Regarding carnal licentiousness, Scripture warns: “ Fornicators sin against their own body. ” “Fornicators and adulterers will be judged by God ” (1 Cor. 6:18; Heb. 13:4). An intemperate life weakens the health, weakens the mental faculties of a person, especially his imagination and memory. We must keep our moral purity, because our bodies are “ members of Christ and temples of the Holy Spirit ”.

The task of our life is to acquire a pure heart. The Lord rests in pure hearts. So: " Let us cleanse ourselves from all filthiness of the flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God ” (2 Corinthians 7:1). The Lord Jesus Christ promises man a great reward for purity of heart: Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God ” (

Before starting discussions on the topic of Christ's commandments, we first determine that the law of God is like that guiding star that shows a person traveling his way, and a man of God - the way to the Kingdom of Heaven. The law of God has always meant the light that warms the heart, comforts the soul, and consecrates the mind. What are they - the 10 commandments of Christ - and what they teach, let's try to figure it out briefly.

Commandments of Jesus Christ

The commandments provide the main moral basis for the human soul. What are the commandments of Jesus Christ? It is noteworthy that a person always has the freedom to obey them or not - the great mercy of God. It gives a person the opportunity to spiritually grow and improve, but also imposes on him responsibility for his actions. Violation of even one commandment of Christ leads to suffering, slavery and degeneration, in general, to disaster.

Let us remember that when God created our earthly world, a tragedy occurred in the angelic world. The proud angel Dennitsa rebelled against God and wanted to create his own kingdom, which is now called Hell.

The next tragedy happened when Adam and Eve disobeyed God, and their lives experienced death, suffering, and poverty.

Another tragedy happened at the time of the Flood, when God punished people - Noah's contemporaries - for unbelief and violation of God's laws. This event is followed by the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah, also for the sins of the inhabitants of these cities. Then comes the destruction of Israel, followed by the Kingdom of Judah. Then Byzantium and the Russian Empire will fall, and after them there will be other misfortunes and calamities that will fall upon God's wrath for sins. Moral laws are eternal and unchanging, and whoever does not keep the commandments of Christ will be destroyed.

Story

The most important event in the Old Testament is when people received the Ten Commandments from God. Moses brought them from Mount Sinai, where God taught him, and they were carved on two stone tablets, and not on perishable paper or other substance.

Until that moment, the Jewish people were disenfranchised slaves working for the Egyptian kingdom. After the emergence of the Sinai legislation, a people is created, which is called to serve God. Great holy people later came out of this people, and the Savior Jesus Christ himself was born from it.

Ten Commandments of Christ

Having become acquainted with the commandments, one can see a certain sequence in them. So, the commandments of Christ (the first four) speak of human duties towards God. The next five define human relationships. And the latter calls people to the purity of thoughts and desires.

The Ten Commandments of Christ are expressed very briefly and with minimal requirements. They define the boundaries that a person should not cross in public and private life.

First Commandment

The first sounds: "I am your Lord, may you have no other Gods but me." This means that God is the source of all blessings and the director of all human actions. And therefore, a person should direct his whole life to the knowledge of God and glorify his name with his pious deeds. This commandment states that God is one in the whole wide world and it is unacceptable to have other gods.

Second Commandment

The second commandment says: “Do not make an idol for yourself…” God forbids a person to create imaginary or material idols for himself and bow before them. Earthly happiness, wealth, physical pleasure and fanatical admiration for their leaders and leaders have become idols for modern man.

Third Commandment

The third says, "Thou shalt not take the name of the Lord thy God in vain." A person is forbidden to use the name of the Lord irreverently in worldly fuss, in jokes or empty talk. The sins are blasphemy, blasphemy, perjury, breaking vows given to the Lord, etc.

Fourth Commandment

The fourth tells us to remember the Sabbath day and keep it holy. You have to work for six days, and dedicate the seventh to your God. This means that a person works six days a week, and on the seventh day (Saturday), he must study the word of God, pray in the temple, and therefore devote the day to the Lord. These days you need to take care of the salvation of your soul, conduct pious conversations, enlighten the mind with religious knowledge, visit the sick and prisoners, help the poor, etc.

Fifth Commandment

The fifth one says: “Honor your father and mother…” God commands to always take care, respect and love your parents, not offend them in word or deed. The great sin is disrespect for father and mother. In the Old Testament, this sin was punished by death.

sixth commandment

The sixth reads: "Thou shalt not kill." This commandment forbids taking life from others and from oneself. Life is a great gift of God, and only it sets the limits of earthly life for a person. Therefore, suicide is the most serious sin. In suicide, in addition to the murder itself, there are also sins of lack of faith, despair, grumbling against the Lord and rebellion against his providence. Anyone who harbors a feeling of hatred for others, wishes the death of their neighbors, starts quarrels and fights, he sins against this commandment.

seventh commandment

In the seventh it is written: "Do not commit adultery." It states that a person needs to be chaste if he is not married, and if he is married, be faithful to his husband or wife. In order not to sin, you do not need to arrange shameless songs and dances, look at seductive photos and films, listen to spicy jokes, etc.

eighth commandment

The eighth says: "Do not steal." God forbids us to appropriate the property of another. It is forbidden to engage in theft, robbery, parasitism, bribery, covetousness, as well as to evade debts, outweigh the buyer, hide what is found, deceive, withhold the salary of an employee, etc.

ninth commandment

The ninth indicates: "Thou shalt not bear false witness against thy neighbor." The Lord forbids a person to give false evidence against another in court, to make denunciations, to slander, to gossip and to slander. This is the work of the devil, because the word "devil" means "slanderer."

tenth commandment

In the tenth commandment, the Lord teaches: “Do not covet your neighbor’s wife and do not covet your neighbor’s house, neither his field, nor his servant, nor his maidservant, nor his ox ...” Here people are pointed out that they must learn to refrain from envy and not have bad desires.

All the previous commandments of Christ taught mainly correct behavior, but the last one refers to what can happen inside a person, to his feelings, thoughts and desires. A person always needs to take care of the purity of spiritual thoughts, because any sin begins with an unkind thought, on which he can stop, and then a sinful desire will arise that will push him to unfavorable actions. Therefore, you need to learn how to stop your bad thoughts so as not to sin.

New Testament. Commandments of Christ

Briefly, the essence of one of the commandments Jesus Christ stated as follows: "Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind." The second, similar to it: "Love your neighbor as yourself." This is the most important commandment of Christ. It gives that deep awareness of all those ten, which clearly and clearly help to understand what expresses human love for the Lord and what contradicts this love.

In order for the new commandments of Jesus Christ to benefit a person, it is necessary to make sure that they guide our thoughts and actions. They must penetrate into our worldview and subconsciousness and always be on the tablets of our soul and heart.

The 10 commandments of Christ are the basic moral guidance needed for building up in life. Otherwise, everything will be doomed to destruction.

Righteous King David wrote that blessed is the person who fulfills the law of the Lord and meditates on it day and night. He will be like a tree planted in streams of water, which will bear its fruit in its own time and will not wither.

Seven deadly sins and ten commandments

In this short article, I will not pretend to be absolutist statements, including that Christianity is somehow more important than other world religions. Therefore, I reject in advance all possible attacks in this vein. The purpose of the article is to provide information about the seven deadly sins and the ten commandments noted in Christian teaching. The degree of sinfulness and importance of the commandments can be disputed, but at least it is worth paying attention to.

But first, about why I suddenly decided to write about it. The reason for this was the film "Seven", in which one comrade imagined himself to be an instrument of the Lord and decided to punish the chosen individuals, as they say, point by point, that is, each for some mortal sin. I just suddenly discovered to my shame that I could not list all seven deadly sins. So I decided to fill this gap by publishing on my website. And in the process of searching for information, I discovered a connection with the ten Christian commandments (which also does not interfere with knowing), as well as some others interesting materials. Below, it's all put together.

Seven deadly sins

There are seven deadly sins in Christian teaching, and they are called so because, despite their seemingly harmless nature, if they are regularly practiced, they lead to much more serious sins and, consequently, to the death of an immortal soul falling into hell. Deadly sins not based on biblical texts and not are a direct revelation of God, they appeared in the texts of theologians later.

First, the Greek theologian monk Evagrius of Pontus compiled a list of the eight worst human passions. They were (in descending order of seriousness): pride (pride), vanity (vainglory), spiritual laziness (acedia), anger (anger), despondency (sadness), avarice (avarice), voluptuousness (lust) and gluttony (gluttony). The order in this list was determined by the degree of a person's orientation towards himself, towards his ego (that is, pride is the most selfish property of a person and therefore the most harmful).

At the end of the 6th century, Pope Gregory I the Great reduced the list to seven elements, introducing the concept of vanity into pride, spiritual laziness into despondency, and also adding a new one - envy (envy). The list was slightly rearranged, this time according to the criterion of opposing love: pride, envy, anger, despondency, greed, gluttony and voluptuousness (that is, pride is more opposed to love than others and therefore is the most harmful).

Later Christian theologians (in particular, Thomas Aquinas) objected to just such an order of mortal sins, but it was he who became the main one and is still in effect today. The only change in the list of Pope Gregory the Great was the replacement in the 17th century of the concept of despondency with laziness (sloth). See also A Brief History of Sin (in English).

Due to the fact that in compiling and finalizing the list of the seven deadly sins, Active participation representatives of the predominantly Catholic Church, I dare to assume that this is not applicable to the Orthodox Church, and even more so to other religions. However, I believe that regardless of denominations and even for atheists, this list will be useful. Its current version is summarized in the following table.

The most harmful of them is clearly considered pride. At the same time, the belonging of some items of this list to sins (for example, gluttony and lust) is questioned. And according to one sociological survey, the "popularity" of mortal sins is as follows (in descending order): anger, pride, envy, gluttony, voluptuousness, laziness and greed.

It may seem interesting considering the impact of these sins on the human body from the point of view modern science. And, of course, the matter could not do without a "scientific" justification of those natural properties of human nature that were included in the list of the worst.

Ten Commandments

Many people confuse mortal sins with the commandments and try to illustrate the concepts of "thou shalt not kill" and "thou shalt not steal" by referring to them. There are some similarities between the two lists, but there are more differences. The Ten Commandments were given by God to Moses on Mount Sinai and are described in the Old Testament (in the fifth book of Moses called Deuteronomy). The first four commandments deal with the relationship of God and man, the next six deal with man with man. Below is a list of commandments in a modern interpretation, with original quotations (given from the Russian edition of 1997, approved by Patriarch Alexy II of Moscow and All Russia) and some comments by Andrey Koltsov.

1. Believe in the only God. “I am the Lord your God… you shall have no other gods before me”- initially it was directed against paganism (polytheism), but over time it lost its relevance and became a reminder to honor the one God even more.
2. Do not create idols for yourself. “Do not make for yourself an idol and no image of what is in heaven above and what is on the earth below, and what is in the waters below the earth, do not worship them and do not serve them; for I am the Lord your God…”- initially it was directed against idolatry, but now the "idol" is interpreted broadly - this is everything that distracts from faith in God.
3. Do not use the name of God in vain. "Don't take the name of the Lord your God in vain..."- that is, you can’t “swear”, say “my God”, “by God”, etc.
4. Remember the day off. “Observe the Sabbath day to keep it holy ... six days you work and do all your work, and the seventh day is the Sabbath of the Lord your God”- in some countries, including Russia, this is Sunday; in any case, one day of the week should be devoted entirely to prayers, thoughts about God, you can’t work, since it is understood that a person works for himself.
5. Honor your parents. "Honor thy father and thy mother..."- after God, one should honor the father and mother, since they gave life.
6. Dont kill. "Dont kill" God gives life and only He can take it away.
7. Don't commit adultery. "Do not commit adultery"- that is, a man and a woman should live in a marriage, and only in a monogamous one; for the eastern countries, where all this happened, a rather difficult condition.
8. Don't steal. "Don't steal"- by analogy with "thou shalt not kill", only God gives us everything, and only He can take it back.
9. Do not lie. "Thou shalt not bear false witness against thy neighbor"- initially it concerned judicial oaths, later it began to be interpreted broadly, as “do not lie” and “do not slander”.
10. Do not envy. “You shall not covet your neighbor’s wife, nor covet your neighbor’s house, nor his field, nor his manservant, nor his maidservant, nor his ox, nor his donkey, [or any of his cattle,] nor anything that your neighbor has”- sounds better in the original.

Some believe that the last six commandments form the basis of the Criminal Code, since they do not say how to live, but only how not necessary.

Commandments of God- an external law given in addition to the weakened (due to sinful life) in a person's internal guideline -.

“Jesus said… whoever loves me will keep my word; and My Father will love him, and We will come to him and make Our abode with him. He who does not love Me does not keep My words "().

Ten Old Testament Commandments (Decalogue) God gave on Mount Sinai through Moses to the Jewish people when they returned from Egypt to the land of Canaan, on two stone boards (or tablets). The first four commandments contain the obligations of love for God, the last six contain the obligations of love for one's neighbor (that is, for all people).

Ten Commandments of the Old Testament
(; )

1. I am the Lord thy God, and there are no other gods but Me.
2. Do not create for yourself any image; do not worship them and do not serve them.
3. Do not remember yours in vain.
4. Work for six days and do all your work, and the seventh is a day of rest, which you dedicate to the Lord your God.
5. Honor your father and mother, may you be blessed on earth and long-lived.
6. Not.
7. Not.
8. Not
9. Do not bear false witness.
10. Don't.

Nine Beatitudes of the New Testament
(Gospel of)

In completion of the 10 Old Testament commandments, Christ in the Sermon on the Mount taught the 9 Beatitudes. In them the Lord inscribed a pattern of life characteristic of His followers, Christians. Without canceling what was prescribed by the Old Testament, the Savior expands and elevates the meaning of the ancient commandments, instilling in people the desire for ideal perfection and outlining the path to this perfection.

The Beatitudes are a declaration of Christian moral values. It contains everything necessary for a person to enter into the true fullness of life. All the Beatitudes speak of the rewards that those who are faithful to Christ will receive in: those who mourn will be comforted, those who hunger for righteousness will be satisfied, the meek will inherit the earth, the pure in heart will see God. But even now, by fulfilling the commandments of Christ, a person receives consolation and joy on the eve of the fullness of being - the coming of the Kingdom of God.

And he opened his mouth and taught them, saying:
1. Blessed, for theirs is the Kingdom of Heaven.
2. Blessed are they, for they will be comforted.
3. Blessed are they, for they shall inherit the earth.
4. Blessed are those who are hungry and thirsty, for they shall be filled.
5. Blessed, for they will have mercy.
6. Blessed are the pure, for they will see God.
7. Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called sons of God.
8. Blessed are those persecuted for righteousness' sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
9. Blessed are you when they reproach you and persecute you and slander you in every way unrighteously for me.
Rejoice and be glad, for great is your reward in heaven (...).

The Ten Commandments were given to the tribes of the Old Testament to keep wild and rude people from evil. The Beatitudes are given to Christians to show what spiritual dispositions they must have in order to draw closer and closer to God and gain holiness. Holiness, born of closeness to God, is the highest blessedness that a person can desire. The Old Testament Law is the law of strict truth, and the New Testament Law is the law of Divine love and grace. They do not contradict, but complement each other.

The content of all the commandments of both the Old and New Testaments can be summarized in two commandmentsgiven by Christ: “Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. The second is similar to it - love your neighbor as yourself. There is no other commandment greater than these."(, ). And the Lord has given us the right guidance on what to do: “As you want people to do to you, so do to them, for this is the law and the prophets”() .

“God in His Commandments commands to do something and not to do another, not because He “just wants to”. Everything that God commanded to do is beneficial to us, and everything that God has forbidden is harmful.
Even an ordinary person who loves his child teaches him: "drink carrot juice - it is healthy, do not eat a lot of sweets - it is harmful." But the child does not like carrot juice, and he does not understand why it is harmful to eat a lot of sweets: after all, sweets are sweet, but carrot juice is not. Therefore, he resists the word of his father, pushes away a glass of juice and throws a tantrum, demanding more sweets.
Likewise, we adult "children" tend more towards what gives us pleasure and reject what does not suit our whims. And by rejecting the Word of the Heavenly Father, we commit sin.”
Archpriest Alexander Torik, .

Why, when asked what commandments exist, 80% of baptized people answer without saying a word: “Thou shalt not kill, do not steal”? Why are they called the sixth and eighth commandments of the Old Testament? Not the first, not the third, not the tenth?.. I thought about this for a long time and came to a curious conclusion: of all the commandments, a person chooses those for the fulfillment of which he nothing to do. “I didn’t kill, I didn’t steal - I’m a great guy, and leave me alone!” Do you know why they skip the seventh commandment “Do not commit adultery”? Yes, a very “inconvenient” commandment in our dissolute time. So a person deceives himself, choosing from the law of God only what is convenient for him, and consciously or unconsciously trampling on that which prevents him from living in his own way. Lawyers say that ignorance of the law is no excuse. This is also true in relation to spiritual life, and precisely because the knowledge (or ignorance) of the law depends entirely on us, on our good or bad will. …
Violating the commandments, a person does not even offend God. God is holy and cannot be mocked. But a person cripples his own life and the lives of his loved ones, because the commandments are not some kind of shackles: well, they say, life is already difficult, but there are still some commandments that need to be observed! No, it's not like that. The commandments of God are precisely the conditions for a normal, full, healthy and joyful life for every person. And if a person violates these commandments, he harms, first of all, himself and his loved ones.

Priest Dimitry Shishkin

From the Sermon on the Mount, and above all from the Beatitudes, it follows that a person must be cleansed of passions, cleanse his heart of all the thoughts that dwell in it, gain humility of spirit in order to become worthy to see God. The word of Christ is clear:

Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted.
Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth.
Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied.
Blessed are the merciful, for they shall receive mercy.
Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God...
().

The Beatitudes show the spiritual path of a person, the path of deification, the path that leads to healing. Consciousness of one's spiritual poverty, that is, the realization of the passions that have taken root in the heart leads a person to repentance and blessed sorrow. To the extent of the depth of this sorrow, Divine consolation comes into his soul. It is on this path that one acquires humility and inner peace. Living in spiritual humility, he is even stronger longing for God's justification and seeks to keep the commandments of God in his daily life. Keeping the commandments of God, he is worthy of knowledge mercy God's and purifies your heart even more. V purification of the soul and that is the purpose of the commandments. Some of them relate to the purification of the rational, others to the purification of the irritable beginning of the soul. And when the soul is cleansed of passions, a person reaches the contemplation of God.

The Beatitudes reveal the essence of spiritual life and the method of healing a person. A person who keeps the commandments is sealed with the seal of the Holy Spirit and becomes a member of the Body of Christ, a temple of the All-Holy Spirit.

Let none of us think: we walk in God's, we pray, making many prostrations, for this we will receive the Kingdom of Heaven. Not; he who keeps the commandments of God will receive it.
reverend

It is often said that in order to be a Christian, one must obey the commandments of Christ. Certainly; however, the commandments of Christ are not orders that He gives us: they say, we must live this way, we must live that way, and if you don’t live this way, you will be punished for it ... No, the commandments of Christ are His attempt to figuratively show us how we could to be, if to become and be a real, worthy person. Therefore, the commandment of Christ is not an order, but a revelation before our eyes about what we are called to be and can be; what we, therefore, should be.
metropolitan, « »

If it is difficult to be a Christian, it is not because the commandments of the Lord are heavy, but only because the power of sin is great, hereditary damage to the soul and body.
Professor

At the time of Jesus, according to tradition, there were 613 prohibitions and prescriptions, but by this time there was also a tradition of reducing them to a much smaller number.
So, the psalmist king David reduced all the commandments to just eleven ():
God! Who can dwell in Your dwelling?Who can dwell on Your holy mountain?
He who walks upright and does what is right,
and speaks the truth in his heart;
who does not slander with his tongue,
does no harm to his sincere
and does not accept reproach against his neighbor;
the one in whose eyes the outcast is despised,
but who praises those who fear the Lord;
who swears, even to an evil one, and does not change;
who does not lend his silver at interest
and does not accept gifts against the innocent.
He who does this will never be shaken.

The prophet Isaiah further reduced the number of commandments and brought it to six (): He who walks in righteousness and speaks the truth; who despises covetousness from oppression, keeps his hands from taking bribes, shuts up his ears so as not to hear of bloodshed, closes his eyes so as not to see evil;he will dwell on high...

Prophet Micah () limited himself to only three commandments: Oh man! told you what is good and what the Lord requires of you: to act justly, to love works of mercy, and to walk humbly before your God.

The prophet Isaiah elsewhere () mentions two commandments: Thus says the Lord: keep judgment and do what is right...

Finally, the prophet Amos () summarized all the commandments to one: For thus says the Lord to the house of Israel: Seek me, and you will live..

Vereshchagin E. M.

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