Deuteronomy 5:1

Old Testament Law (Torah) ASV (1901)

What does Deuteronomy 5:1 say?

The American Standard Version records this verse as: “And Moses called unto all Israel, and said unto them, Hear, O Israel, the statutes and the ordinances which I speak in your ears this day, that ye may learn them, and observe to do them.” Read the surrounding verses and the named sources below before drawing broader conclusions.

The verse

And Moses called unto all Israel, and said unto them, Hear, O Israel, the statutes and the ordinances which I speak in your ears this day, that ye may learn them, and observe to do them.
Deuteronomy 5:1 — American Standard Version

Context — Deuteronomy 5

American Standard Version (1901) — public domain. Click any verse for its study page.
1And Moses called unto all Israel, and said unto them, Hear, O Israel, the statutes and the ordinances which I speak in your ears this day, that ye may learn them, and observe to do them.

What do historical commentaries say?

John Gill's Exposition
John Gill (1697–1771) · Exposition of the Old and New Testament · 18th-century historical commentary
“And Moses called all Israel, etc.] The heads of the various tribes, and elders of the people, as he had on occasion been used to do; unless it can be thought that at different times he repeated the following laws to separate parties and bodies of them, until they had all heard them: and said unto them, hear, O Israel, the statutes and judgments which I speak in your ears this day; the laws, moral, ceremonial, and judicial, which he was about to repeat, and afresh declare unto them, being what they had all a concern in, and under obligation to regard.”
Read attributed excerpt →
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown
Robert Jamieson, A. R. Fausset & David Brown · Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible · 19th-century historical commentary
“A COMMEMORATION OF THE COVENANT IN HOREB. (Deu. 5:1-29) Hear, O Israel, the statutes and judgments--Whether this rehearsal of the law was made in a solemn assembly, or as some think at a general meeting of the elders as representatives of the people, is of little moment; it was addressed either directly or indirectly to the Hebrew people as principles of their peculiar constitution as a nation; and hence, as has been well observed, "the Jewish law has no obligation upon Christians, unless so much of it as given or commanded by Jesus Christ; for whatever in this law is conformable to the laws of nature, obliges us, not as given by Moses, but by virtue of an antecedent law common to all…”
Read attributed excerpt →
Wesley's Explanatory Notes
John Wesley (1703–1791) · Explanatory Notes upon the New Testament and Old Testament notes · 18th-century historical commentary
“All Israel - Namely by their elders, who were to impart it to the rest. Deuteronomy 5:3”
Read attributed excerpt →
Tyndale Open Study Notes
Tyndale House Publishers · Tyndale Open Study Notes · Modern study notes
“5:1–26:19 This section contains the heart of the covenant document, the stipulations. The first subdivision (5:1–11:32) sets forth the major stipulations relating especially to the first two commandments (5:7-10). The more specific minor stipulations make up the rest of the section. 5:1-32 The rest of the covenant laws expand and comment upon the Ten Commandments (5:6-21), on which they are based. Moses had first given the Ten Commandments to the people of Israel nearly forty years earlier (Exod 20:2-17). 5:1 decrees and regulations: These technical terms describe the stipulations that Israel must obey as the junior partner in the covenant.”
Read attributed excerpt →
Treasury of Scriptural Knowledge
R. A. Torrey and contributors · The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge · Cross-reference reference work
“all Israel: Deu 1:1, Deu 29:2, Deu 29:10 Hear: Deu 4:1 keep, and: Heb. keep to, Mat 23:3 Deuteronomy 5:2”
Read attributed excerpt →
Keil & Delitzsch
C. F. Keil & F. Delitzsch · Commentary on the Old Testament · 19th-century historical commentary
“Deu 5:1-5 form the introduction, and point out the importance and great significance of the exposition which follows. Hence, instead of the simple sentence "And Moses said," we have the more formal statement "And Moses called all Israel, and said to them." The great significance of the laws and rights about to be set before them, consisted in the fact that they contained the covenant of Jehovah with Israel. Deu 5:2-3 "Jehovah our God made a covenant with us in Horeb; not with our fathers, but with ourselves, who are all of us here alive this day." The "fathers" are neither those who died in the wilderness, as Augustine supposed, nor the forefathers in Egypt, as Calvin imagined; but the…”
Read attributed excerpt →

Related study paths

Sources and verification