Exodus 20:16 NIV

The Pulpit Commentary - Exodus 20:16

Thou shalt not bear false witness against thy neighbour . False witness is of two kinds, public and private. We may either seek to damage our neighbour by giving false evidence against him in a court of justice, or simply calumniate him to others in our social intercourse with them. The form of the expression here used points especially to false witness of the former kind, but does not exclude the latter, which is expressly forbidden in Exodus 23:1 . The wrong done to a man by false... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Exodus 20:16

Connect with the preceding commandment. That guards the property, what belongs to a man outside himself. This guards the character, what belongs to a man inside himself. To steal the purse may be only to steal trash, but to defraud a man of his good name is to do him an irreparable injury. I. COMMONEST FORM OF THE OFFENCE . Most often committed against comparative strangers. We calculate the effect of our words when speaking of people whom we know—the consequences may be... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Exodus 20:16-21

The ten words. "And God stake all these words." "And the people stood afar off: and Moses drew near unto the thick darkness where God was." ( Exodus 20:1 , Exodus 20:21 ). Our subject is the law of the ten commandments, and— I. The NAMES of the code, for names are oft the keys to things. There are five chief names; four in the Old Testament and one in the New. 1 . " The ten words ." ["The ten commandments" is an unscriptural phrase.] ( Exodus 34:28 ; Deuteronomy 4:13 ... read more

Albert Barnes

Albert Barnes' Notes on the Whole Bible - Exodus 20:1-17

The Hebrew name which is rendered in our King James Version as the ten commandments occurs in Exodus 34:28; Deuteronomy 4:13; Deuteronomy 10:4. It literally means “the Ten Words.” The Ten Commandments are also called the law, even the commandment Exodus 24:12, the words of the covenant Exodus 34:28, the tables of the covenant Deuteronomy 9:9, the covenant Deuteronomy 4:13, the two tables Deuteronomy 9:10, Deuteronomy 9:17, and, most frequently, the testimony (e. g. Exodus 16:34; Exodus 25:16),... read more

Joseph Benson

Joseph Benson's Commentary of the Old and New Testaments - Exodus 20:16

Exodus 20:16. Thou shalt not bear false witness This forbids, 1st, Speaking falsely in any matter, lying, equivocating, and any way devising and designing to deceive our neighbour. 2d, Speaking unjustly against our neighbour, to the prejudice of his reputation. And, 3d, (which is the highest offence of both these put together,) Bearing false witness against him, laying to his charge things that he knows not, either upon oath, by which the third commandment, the sixth, or eighth, as well... read more

Donald C. Fleming

Bridgeway Bible Commentary - Exodus 20:1-17

Basic principles of the covenant (20:1-17)The form of the covenant God made with Israel followed a pattern that was common in the ancient world when an overlord made a covenant with his subjects. God introduced himself to his people by declaring his name and status as Yahweh the sovereign Lord, and recounting to his people what he had graciously done for them. He reminded them that their God was living and active, and that the words they were about to hear were a revelation direct from him... read more

James Burton Coffman

Coffman Commentaries on the Bible - Exodus 20:16

THE NINTH COMMANDMENTTHOU SHALT NOT BEAR FALSE WITNESS AGAINST THY NEIGHBOR "Thou shalt not bear false witness against thy neighbor." Each command guards something precious: V guards father and mother; VI guards life; VII guards marriage and the home; VIII guards property rights; IX guards truth and the reputations of men. It is a gross error to limit this commandment to testimony given in a court of law, as did the ancient Pharisees. In their view, one could tell as many lies as he liked, as... read more

Thomas Coke

Thomas Coke Commentary on the Holy Bible - Exodus 20:16

Exodus 20:16. Thou shalt not bear false witness against thy neighbour— A further security is here given to man's life and property (of which reputation may well be esteemed a considerable part) by forbidding the sin of bearing false testimony against another; either by the highest and most atrocious act of it in a court of judicature, which includes the sin of perjury, or by any other method of impugning and injuring reputation. See Deuteronomy 19:16; Deuteronomy 19:21.Leviticus 19:16;... read more

Thomas Constable

Expository Notes of Dr. Thomas Constable - Exodus 20:1-17

2. The Ten Commandments 20:1-17"We now reach the climax of the entire Book, the central and most exalted theme, all that came before being, as it were, a preparation for it, and all that follows, a result of, and supplement to it." [Note: Cassuto, p. 235.] There are two types of law in the Old Testament, and these existed commonly in the ancient Near East. Apodictic laws are commands with the force of categorical imperatives. They are positive or negative. The Ten Commandments are an example of... read more

Thomas Constable

Expository Notes of Dr. Thomas Constable - Exodus 20:16

The ninth commandment 20:16Social order depends on truthful speech (cf. Leviticus 19:11; Colossians 3:9-10). read more

The Pulpit Commentary - Exodus 20:16

The Pulpit Commentary - Exodus 20:16

The Pulpit Commentary - Exodus 20:16-21

Albert Barnes' Notes on the Whole Bible - Exodus 20:1-17

Joseph Benson's Commentary of the Old and New Testaments - Exodus 20:16

Bridgeway Bible Commentary - Exodus 20:1-17

Coffman Commentaries on the Bible - Exodus 20:16

Thomas Coke Commentary on the Holy Bible - Exodus 20:16

Expository Notes of Dr. Thomas Constable - Exodus 20:1-17

Expository Notes of Dr. Thomas Constable - Exodus 20:16

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