Certainly we can call the 10 Commandments God’s Top Ten List. But something worth noting is that, in a way, we are not dealing with a list of ten at all. We are dealing with two lists of five.
This deserves some thought. Indeed, God could have written in smaller handwriting so as to fit all ten commandments onto one tablet. Or just as easily, God could have given Moses a stack of small tablets with a few commandments inscribed on each. But significantly, He gave Moses two tablets, each with five commandments. This was intentional on His part. And it should bring to mind your hands.
You have ten fingers, but really, you have two sets of five. Imagine for a minute if you had only one hand with ten fingers. It wouldn't serve you as well as having two sets of five. Bringing those sets together, you'll notice that one hand corresponds to the other. Each finger has its counterpart. The Ten Commandments share a similar symmetry, in that the commandments on the first tablet and the commandments on the second tablet correspond in a one-to-one relationship. Commandment 1 corresponds to commandment 6, and commandment 2 corresponds to commandment 7, and 3 to 8, 4 to 9, and 5 to 10. This is what it looks like:
Please note, the first two commandments are organized differently by Jews and Christians. Here they are arranged as Jesus would have encountered them (which is according to the Jewish way).
You'll notice that the first commandment is not a commandment at all. It is a statement of faith. The Ten Commandments begin with a statement of faith. In effect, if you have enough faith to believe He is the Lord your God, then you're ready to hear the other nine commandments. Since your neighbor is made in God's image and likeness, then to murder your neighbor is to reject the first commandment, because you would not destroy a picture of the Lord your God.
The connection between #2 and #7 is straightforward: the second commandment forbids idolatry, and idolatry is always spiritual adultery.
The connection between #3 and #8 is also straightforward: the third commandment prohibits taking the Lord’s Name in vain. When a person uses God’s Name in vain, he is robbing God of His due glory. It is no less than theft.
Commandment #4 calls us to keep the Sabbath day holy. It’s about setting aside a day to show the world that we don’t depend on a paycheck for our happiness, that the work of our hands is not our primary focus. The world would have us go, go, go––without ceasing. If our lifestyle is such as this, we bear false witness in that we talk about resting in the Lord and relying on Him, yet with our actions we betray those claims. Jesus calls Himself the Lord of the Sabbath. To the degree we know rest, to that degree we know the Lord of Rest. To bear true witness of Him, we must be a holy people who know rest.
Commandment #5 calls us to honor our parents. As children we grow up, and our first confrontation with God’s sovereignty is in realizing His selection of our parents. Realizing that for whatever reason, God matched you with your parents, and you never had a say in the matter. If you can accept His decision––not necessarily understand it, but accept it––then you have begun to submit to God’s sovereignty. If you can submit to God’s sovereignty, a natural outgrowth of this is that you won't covet what others have. You won't covet what God, in His sovereignty, has given others.
For more symmetry between the tablets, see this short video:
