How does John 7:19 connect to the Ten Commandments in Exodus 20? The Immediate Setting in John 7 • Jesus is teaching publicly during the Feast of Tabernacles (John 7:14-18). • He challenges His critics by asking, “Has not Moses given you the Law? Yet not one of you keeps it. Why are you trying to kill Me?” (John 7:19). • The Lord connects the Law given through Moses with their present intention to murder Him, exposing their failure to keep even its most basic commands. Moses, the Law, and the Ten Commandments • Exodus 20 records the foundational covenant words—ten clear commands that summarize God’s will. • These commands were delivered by Moses, to whom the crowd in John 7 claimed allegiance. • By invoking Moses, Jesus reminds them that loyalty to Moses must mean obedience to the commandments Moses conveyed (see Deuteronomy 5:1). “Yet Not One of You Keeps It” – A Direct Violation of the Sixth Commandment • Commandment #6: “You shall not murder” (Exodus 20:13). • The leaders are seeking to kill Jesus, placing them in direct transgression of this command. • Their murderous intent shows that outward religiosity cannot mask inner rebellion (Matthew 23:27-28). Going Deeper – More Than One Command Broken • Commandment #1: “You shall have no other gods before Me” (Exodus 20:3). – Rejecting God’s Son is rejecting God Himself (John 5:23). • Commandment #3: “You shall not take the name of the LORD your God in vain” (Exodus 20:7). – Claiming to honor God while plotting murder empties His name of meaning (Isaiah 29:13). • Commandment #9: “You shall not bear false witness” (Exodus 20:16). – False accusations later leveled at Jesus (Matthew 26:59-60) stem from the same heart attitude He exposes in John 7. Scripture Echoes That Confirm the Connection • 1 John 3:15: “Everyone who hates his brother is a murderer, and you know that no murderer has eternal life abiding in him.” • Matthew 5:21-22: Jesus internalizes the sixth commandment, showing that anger itself violates God’s intent. • Romans 3:19-20: The Law silences every mouth and reveals universal guilt—exactly what Jesus demonstrates in John 7:19. What This Teaches Us Today • Knowing the Law is not the same as keeping it; the heart must be transformed (Ezekiel 36:26). • Hidden sin cannot remain hidden when confronted with the Word made flesh (Hebrews 4:12-13). • Genuine obedience flows from faith in Christ, who perfectly fulfilled the Law we could not keep (Matthew 5:17; Romans 8:3-4). |
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