Tag: Book of Exodus

TODAY’S DAILY BIBLE VERSE: We Don’t Mar the Image

Today is September 23, 2025

Exodus 20:13- “Thou shalt not kill.”

Verse Context

This commandment is the sixth of the Ten Commandments given by God to Israel at Mount Sinai. Moses, as the mediator, records these words as part of the covenant between God and His chosen people. The immediate setting is a holy encounter: thunder, lightning, smoke, and the trembling of the mountain as God speaks directly to the people (Exodus 19–20). These commandments are not arbitrary rules but expressions of God’s holy character, showing Israel how to live in covenant relationship with Him and with one another.

The Hebrew phrase translated “kill” in the King James Bible specifically carries the sense of “murder”, the deliberate, unlawful, or unjust taking of human life. It does not prohibit all killing in every circumstance, as the law itself later distinguishes between accidental death, judicial execution, warfare, and personal murder (see Exodus 21 and Deuteronomy 19). What God forbids here is the intentional shedding of innocent blood.

The intent of this commandment is to preserve human life because it is sacred, made in the image of God (Genesis 1:26–27). It is a reaffirmation of the principle already given after the Flood in Genesis 9:6, where God declared that to shed human blood unjustly is to attack His image. By placing this commandment at the center of Israel’s covenant law, God sets a standard that life is not to be ended by human willfulness, vengeance, or hatred.

This law also functioned as a boundary for the community of Israel. Surrounded by nations that often practiced violence, blood feuds, and child sacrifice, Israel was to stand apart as a people who recognized life’s divine value. The commandment drew a clear line: no individual has the right to arrogate God’s authority over life and death for selfish or malicious purposes.

When read in its original setting, this commandment is not only a social safeguard but a theological declaration. Life belongs to God, and man may not treat it cheaply. The commandment also sets the stage for further elaborations in the law that distinguish between killing that is murder and killing that is not, creating the foundation for discussions of justice, defense, and accountability that run throughout the rest of Scripture.

Broader Context

The sixth commandment, “Thou shalt not kill” (Exodus 20:13), stands as one of the shortest yet weightiest statements in all of Scripture. At its core it condemns murder. But Scripture does not leave the command hanging in the air without clarity; it anchors it in God’s image and then surrounds it with teaching that helps God’s people distinguish murder from other forms of killing that may arise in a fallen world.

The first anchor point is Genesis 1:26–27 and Genesis 9:6. From the beginning, mankind was created in the image of God, and after the Flood God reaffirmed this principle: “Whoso sheddeth man’s blood, by man shall his blood be shed: for in the image of God made he man.” The logic is simple yet profound: because man bears God’s image, to strike down a human life unjustly is to deface the Creator Himself. I would use this as the strongest argument against abortion even for those who do not believe. The sixth commandment is therefore not merely a rule for social order but a theological declaration of God’s ownership of life.

The law of Moses further clarifies this command. Exodus 21:12–14 distinguishes between premeditated murder and accidental killing: “He that smiteth a man, so that he die, shall be surely put to death… But if a man come presumptuously upon his neighbour, to slay him with guile; thou shalt take him from mine altar, that he may die.” Intent and malice are the critical factors that turn killing into murder. Likewise, Numbers 35:9–15 establishes the cities of refuge for those guilty of manslaughter, again affirming that not every loss of life is equivalent to murder in God’s eyes.

The law also makes room for the defense of life. Exodus 22:2–3 teaches that if a thief breaks into a house at night and is struck down, the defender is not guilty of bloodshed. However, if the same happens in the daylight, when danger can be assessed more clearly, there is guilt if the intruder is killed. The point is restraint. God allows for protection of innocent life but requires careful judgment to prevent vengeance or excess. In this way, the command “Thou shalt not kill” stands alongside provisions for self-defense, showing that God’s goal is the preservation of life, not the rigid prohibition of every form of killing.

The prophets often return to the spirit of this command when they condemn Israel for shedding innocent blood. Jeremiah 22:3 declares, “Thus saith the LORD; Execute ye judgment and righteousness, and deliver the spoiled out of the hand of the oppressor: and do no wrong, do no violence to the stranger, the fatherless, nor the widow, neither shed innocent blood in this place.” Murder was not only an individual act but a societal sin when nations or leaders exploited or destroyed the vulnerable. God’s command reached beyond personal morality to national righteousness.

In the New Testament, Jesus raises the bar from the physical act of murder to the inward condition of the heart. In Matthew 5:21–22 He says, “Ye have heard that it was said by them of old time, Thou shalt not kill; and whosoever shall kill shall be in danger of the judgment: But I say unto you, That whosoever is angry with his brother without a cause shall be in danger of the judgment.” Christ reveals that the sixth commandment was always meant to do more than prevent physical violence; it was to expose the anger, hatred, and contempt that seed murder long before a weapon is drawn. John carries this thought further: “Whosoever hateth his brother is a murderer: and ye know that no murderer hath eternal life abiding in him” (1 John 3:15). Thus, the commandment calls us not only to restrain our hands but to submit our hearts to God’s transforming grace.

Paul reinforces this in Romans 13:9–10: “Thou shalt not kill… and if there be any other commandment, it is briefly comprehended in this saying, namely, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. Love worketh no ill to his neighbour: therefore love is the fulfilling of the law.” Love is the positive fulfillment of the negative command. Not murdering is the starting line; actively loving others as oneself is the goal.

Taken together, the broad biblical witness shows that Exodus 20:13 is not an isolated prohibition but part of a sweeping ethic rooted in God’s holiness. It distinguishes between murder, manslaughter, and just defense; it condemns hatred, vengeance, and bloodshed; it calls societies to protect the weak; and it presses individuals to cultivate love instead of anger. In short, the sixth commandment points us to the sanctity of life and the God who gave it, urging us to honor Him by valuing His image in every person.

Application

Appreciating God’s Greatness
The commandment, “Thou shalt not kill,” is not simply a rule to restrain violence but a revelation of God’s greatness. It reminds us that life belongs to Him alone. He is the Author of life, the One who formed man from the dust and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life (Genesis 2:7). His greatness is seen in the dignity He has given to every human being, for we are made in His image. That truth extends even to those outside the faith, those who do not believe or who live in rebellion against Him. To take their life unjustly is still to mar the image of God and to despise His creative work. This is why the commandment holds universal weight, it is rooted not in human legislation but in divine authority. God’s greatness in creation calls us to respect life in all its forms, to treat every person as bearing His mark, and to honor His sovereignty over life and death.

For the Believer
For those who follow Christ, this commandment takes on both a sobering and a hopeful tone. It sobers us because it teaches that murder is not only an act of violence but a reflection of the heart. Jesus exposed the seed of murder in anger and hatred, showing us that to harbor such feelings is already to break the commandment (Matthew 5:21–22). Therefore, the believer must guard against bitterness, rage, and contempt, knowing that these sins dishonor God’s image in others. At the same time, this commandment fills us with hope, for it is part of God’s covenant love to protect His people and preserve life. Believers are called to mourn with those who mourn, to comfort the grieving, and to uphold justice with humility. When violence and murder strike close to home, as in the tragic deaths of Melissa and Mark Hortman, Charlie Kirk, and Iryna Zarutska, Christians are not to give way to despair or vengeance but to cling to the God who values life and promises resurrection through His Son.

Call to Action
The believer’s call to action is clear. We are to honor life by loving our neighbors as ourselves, refusing to repay evil with evil, and resisting the temptation to dehumanize others even in our thoughts. We must pray for grieving families, stand beside survivors, and declare boldly that life is sacred. We are also called to forgive as Christ forgave us, even while working for justice in our communities. This means speaking truth about the value of every person, refusing to allow politics or partisanship to determine whose life is worth more, and being peacemakers in a culture saturated with violence and hate. By doing these things, we demonstrate the gospel of life to a watching world and magnify the God who has conquered death through Jesus Christ.

For the Unbeliever
For those outside of Christ, this commandment is a mirror. Some mock death and even profit from it, revealing the hardness of their hearts. To treat human life as a joke or a means for gain is to despise God’s image and invite His judgment. Scripture warns, “Be not deceived; God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap” (Galatians 6:7). Yet for others, these tragedies stir searching questions. They long to know why life feels so fragile and what hope can be found in the face of death. The answer is not in laws, politics, or empty comforts. The answer is found in Jesus Christ, who said, “I am the resurrection, and the life: he that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live” (John 11:25). He offers forgiveness for sin, peace with God, and eternal life. To those searching: your value is real, your life has meaning, and the One who gave you breath calls you to Himself for salvation and everlasting hope.

Final Encouragement

Even in a world shaken by violence, we must not forget that God is still on His throne. The sixth commandment reminds us that He values life so deeply that He guards it with His own law. While headlines may grieve us, while murder and injustice may weigh us down, God’s people are never left powerless. The Holy Spirit abides within every believer, comforting us in sorrow and strengthening us for courage. Communities are rising together, churches are uniting in prayer, and the gospel continues to shine. This is not the time to give up; this is the time to stand firm. Like a team coming out of the locker room after a hard first half, the church must remember that the game is not lost. The victory is already secure in Christ. Death is defeated, sin has been overcome, and Satan’s end is certain. Do not lose heart; press forward in faith. Win with Jesus, who has already won for you.

Our Prayer for You

Lord, we thank You that You are the Giver of life and the One who has power over death. We ask You today to comfort those who mourn, to strengthen those who are weak, and to give courage to Your people as they face the brokenness of this world. Holy Spirit, abide with us. Fill us with Your presence so that fear is driven out and love takes root. Help us to defend the vulnerable, to honor the image of God in others, and to shine with the light of Christ in dark places. Encourage us when we feel weary, lift us when we fall, and send us out with boldness to live as witnesses of Your truth. May we never forget that in Christ we already stand on the side of victory. We pray this in the name of Jesus, our Savior and Lord. Amen.

Closing

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Shalom Shalom.

The Carrot and Stick Principle

Its captivating to me that when I go through something, I tend to relate what I am going through, the relationships and grievances, with God. When I think of how children who do not listen to their mother, who do not use the skills and lessons that they have been equipped with to navigate even the simplest of task in the home, I tend to turn that around and wonder how God must feel when I, as an adopted child of His, refuses to do what I have been taught, refuse to use the gifts that He blessed me with, when I pick and choose what I will and will not do. If I am a small bearing in a big wheel, I wonder just how much more His feelings are amplified as the Father of all, the Father who sacrificed His son only to be used like a flashlight. To be used only when times are dark. To be minimized and placed on a shelf. To feel totally ignored and disrespected by His selfish children.

Whether you are a parent in a home, a supervisor at work, a leader in a group, a person in some position, any position of authority and responsibility, it is your job to teach, to grow, to influence, and to lead others. In these capacities, it is always more difficult to do so when just one, let alone more than one, of your flock is being disobedient. When just one person holds on to the idea that they can do whatever they want to do, come in late, wear things not an official part of the uniform, totally usurp the chain of command, fail to complete routine tasks, call in sick repeatedly, make excuses not to come to trainings and meetings, cause discord amongst the team, and so on, the task of growing and leading a team is made difficult because everyone is seeing what you are seeing and if permitted to continue, the rest of the crowd in today’s America adopts the, “well if he can do it, so can I” doctrine. It is a small percentage that ignore the negative and continue to engage the positive, even if they are alone in doing so. It’s like the one child who does right, living among brothers and sister who not only don’t do right, but make fun of and intimidate and harass the one who does. This is hard for that one. Again, I think often, how does my disobedience hurt my Father’s heart.

Throughout the bible, cover to cover, God speaks repeatedly about being obedient. As sinners, we must understand that our willful, purposeful, and deliberate disobedience causes God’s heart to mourn. Yes, mourn! He mourns because if we do not change our disobedient ways, we will surely die, TWICE!!!

Exodus 23:20-24

20 Behold, I send an Angel before thee, to keep thee in the way, and to bring thee into the place which I have prepared.

21 Beware of him, and obey his voice, provoke him not; for he will not pardon your transgressions: for my name is in him.

22 But if thou shalt indeed obey his voice, and do all that I speak; then I will be an enemy unto thine enemies, and an adversary unto thine adversaries.

23 For mine Angel shall go before thee, and bring thee in unto the Amorites, and the Hittites, and the Perizzites, and the Canaanites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites: and I will cut them off.

24 Thou shalt not bow down to their gods, nor serve them, nor do after their works: but thou shalt utterly overthrow them, and quite break down their images.

God starts off by stating that IF they, His children the Israelites, follow the angel, the angel that has the nature and authority of God himself, then God will bless them with the following. God starts off like this so that in a gentle way He acknowledges that man has the tendency to ignore God, and do what they want. So here God employs the early version of the Carrot and Stick principle. He wants nothing but the best for His children. But He needs them to see, ON THEIR OWN, that it is in their best interest to follow Him so that they do so willingly and without duress. God is stating to his children that if they are obedient, He himself will not let anything happen to them. He will provide victory after victory. If His children obey Him, those who oppose them, will also be the enemy of God.

Charles Ellicott states- “God is “the rewarder of them that diligently seek him.” He chooses to “reward men after their works,” and to set before them “the recompense of the reward.” He “knows whereof we are made,” and by what motives we are influenced. Self-interest, the desire of our own good, is one of the strongest of them. If Israel will keep His covenant, they will enjoy the following blessings :—(1) The guidance and protection of His angel till Canaan is reached; (2) God’s help against their adversaries, who will, little by little, be driven out; (3) the ultimate possession of the entire country between the Mediterranean and the Red Sea on the one hand, the Desert and the Euphrates on the other; (4) a blessing upon their flocks and herds, which shall neither be barren nor cast their young; and (5) a blessing upon themselves, whereby they will escape sickness and enjoy a long term of life. All these advantages, however, are conditional upon obedience, and may be forfeited.”

Fast forward to almost the end of the Bible.

1 Peter 1:13-15

13 Wherefore gird up the loins of your mind, be sober, and hope to the end for the grace that is to be brought unto you at the revelation of Jesus Christ;

14 As obedient children, not fashioning yourselves according to the former lusts in your ignorance:

15 But as he which hath called you is holy, so be ye holy in all manner of conversation;

16 Because it is written, Be ye holy; for I am holy.

There are so many scriptures on obedience. John 14:15, Acts 5:29, Luke 6:46, and Ecclesiastes 12:13 are just some of my favorites on the subject. However, I believe these versus fit with those from Exodus. I believe in verse 13 we can clearly see God saying to us as gentiles, “If you obey me….” This is what He said to Israel, “If you choose to follow me…” When we read “Gird up the loins of your mind” and “be sober” what we read is God telling us, Prepare yourself for battle and hard work.

Gird Up Your Loins

God is saying to us…. Prepare yourselves to follow me, prepare for battle and hard work and focus on me and I will bring you victory in the face of your enemies. Don’t even think about the lusts and desires of your flesh. Listen to my voice, do what I say. Do not conform to the world, do not bow down to the gods of the world, do not follow them, do not serve them, and do not do as they say. Be Holy as I am Holy. Be obedient children not fashioning, not molding, not conforming to the behaviors of the world. That’s what God is telling you! And finally, where is the victory that God spoke about in Exodus, “hope to the end for the grace that is to be brought unto you at the revelation of Jesus Christ” For the Gentile Christian, the adopted child, this is our victory. The hope, or better translated, the expectation in the salvation in Jesus the Christ. What a victory that will be.

Joseph Benson Comments- “The apostle alludes to the manners of the eastern countries, in which the men’s garments being long and flowing, they prepared themselves for travelling, and other active employments, by girding them up with a girdle put round their loins, to prevent their being encumbered by them. The loins of the mind, therefore, is a figurative expression for the faculties of the soul, the understanding, memory, will, and affections, which the apostle signifies must be gathered in and girded, as it were, about the soul by the girdle of truth, so as to be in a state fit for continual and unwearied exertion in running the Christian race, fighting the good fight of faith, and working out our salvation with fear and trembling. Our mind must not be overcharged at any time with surfeiting and drunkenness, or the cares of this life: our affections must be placed on proper objects, and in a just degree; and especially must be set on the things that are above, which are to be our portion and felicity for ever: our various passions must be under the government of reason and religion, of the truth and grace of God.”

On the hope of Christ, John Calvin states, ” For the object of Peter was to call us away beyond the world; for this purpose the fittest thing was the recollection of Christ’s coming. For when we direct our eyes to this event, this world becomes crucified to us, and we to the world.”

Obedience is not a choice. Being a Christian is not a game. It is a discipline. The world will exercise large amounts of discipline when it comes to the study, to the execution, to the devotion of many aspects of our lives. But when it comes to God, many treat it as a passing fancy. It is not something that requires effort. There is no work in faith. I know there was a time when we used to focus on faith without works is dead, but I believe we have been so heavy on the anit-works righteous movement, and rightfully so, that a negative side-effect has taken place. That is that love is all there is and that no work is necessary. Nothing could be further from the truth. If you love God, you will follow Him, you will obey Him, and you will gird up your loins, you will prepare yourself for battle against the world and against your own flesh.

Once again, in his daily devotional, Dr. Charles Stanley reports something directly to the point. “Are you trying to rationalize a decision or behavior? Perhaps you’ve offered reasons for pursuing a certain path. Or maybe you tried bargaining with God. I assure you He isn’t moved by any arguments. Remember: Partial obedience is disobedience in His eyes. And no sin is worth being outside His will.”

If you stand in the mirror what will the reflection tell you about yourself, and what are you going to do about it? May the peace of God be abundantly heaped upon you and your house, straight from the cross to the Christian!