Most readers approach the Deuteronomic histories as a roadmap to earn God’s blessings: keep the commandments or lose the kingdom. But beneath that moral surface lies the deeper Deuteronomic grammar of grace—a covenantal syntax where God’s indicative of mercy always precedes Israel’s imperative to obey. It is the same grammar in the New Testament: Grace precedes faith and gratitude. Let us look at the admonition God gave Solomon in 1 Kings—

When we read 1 Kings 9, the first impression we get is that it has a conditional structure:

“As for you, if you walk before me with integrity and uprightness of heart, as David your father did, and obey all I command, then I will establish your throne forever.” It begins with the condition—“If you walk before me”—and then gives the result—“I will establish your throne forever.”

That logical structure seems to point to a formula: obedience leads to blessing. And indeed, that is how this passage is often preached and taught. The logic is there—but that is not the story being told.

If you read the whole Bible as a continuous narrative, you’ll see a different structural foundation. This command to Solomon is within the context of God’s redemption of Israel by grace and his promise to David. Promise is the language of grace, not works. Every blessing we have flows from grace, not merit. This is not a ladder to heaven. It is a covenantal response of filial obedience to a loving heavenly Father. In New Testament language it is the obedience of faith or as the Heidelberg catechism terms it, the response of gratitude from grace already given.

The book of Deuteronomy is, in essence, a series of sermons calling Israel to believe the promises of God and to live faithfully within His covenant. One of the main obstacles to understanding its message lies in our failure to grasp the character of the Hebrew language and its syntax. God gave His revelation in two tongues—Hebrew and Greek—and each carries the story of a people, shaped by their history and worldview.

Concepts and meanings are embedded within a symbolic and historical-referential framework that resists exact translation into another language without some degree of distortion. The history of one people cannot simply be exchanged for that of another; at times a single word in one language may require two—or even an entire sentence—in another to convey only a shadow of its nuance. Words, phrases, and even full paragraphs are often inadequate to transplant an entire civilization’s thought-world into a foreign conceptual system.

True understanding, therefore, requires civilizational awareness. Lexical glosses and word-for-word translations, while useful, are insufficient. Missionaries working across cultural divides grasp this reality intuitively: how does one translate a word like covenant where no cultural or linguistic reference point exists? Without shared categories, there is no doorway for meaning to pass through

.

The Gospel Shape of the Ten Commandments

A Chiastic Reading of the Law

Might there be a gospel-shaped structure hidden in the Ten Commandments? Christ summarized the law as love for God and love for neighbor, and we usually read the Ten Words as divided into those two tables. But what if the very order of the commandments also carries meaning? The Bible often uses chiastic structures—the flood narrative, the Tower of Babel, even the book of Hebrews has been read this way. Could the Ten Commandments also be arranged chiastically, with the middle pair holding the key to reentering Eden? If so, the fifth commandment’s unique promise of life may point us beyond law to grace, showing us that at the very heart of God’s law lies a veiled invitation to the gospel.

Christ gave us a summary of the law: You shall love God with all your heart and your neighbor as yourself. The first four commandments teach us how to love God, and the last six teach us how to love our neighbor. He also summarized the second table as the Golden Rule in the Sermon on the Mount: “Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.”

Surely something as foundational as the Decalogue would not simply be a collection of laws but would be pedagogically framed for memory and application. In other words, the order itself is telling us something. Why is the ninth commandment against bearing false witness not placed in the eighth-commandment slot? Does it rightly belong there, and if so, then why?

On the surface, the Ten Words do not present a chiastic structure, and so far as I can tell, no one in church history has ever explicitly posited a full chiastic structure. Yet there are suggestive hints in Augustine, Calvin, and even in Jewish commentaries that point toward parallels or mirrored relationships within the commandments.

If, however, you look to the vertical and horizontal aspects of the law, there appears to be an intentional pairing of the commandments: the first with the tenth, the second with the ninth, and so on until you reach the apex of the fifth and the sixth. Why this stands at the apex will become apparent as we work through the pairs. That the fifth commandment is the only one with a promise of life attached to it should cue the hearer or reader that it is a most special commandment—one that carries a gospel sound in it.

Paul himself makes this point in Ephesians 6, where he reminds children to honor their parents, “which is the first commandment with a promise”—namely, “that it may go well with you and that you may live long in the land.” In this way, the fifth commandment does more than bind; it blesses. It points beyond the law to grace, holding out the promise of life that finds its fulfillment in Christ, the only truly obedient Son.

Promise is the language of grace, and here, at the very center of the Decalogue, is a veiled reference to the gospel. Was not the entire Old Testament economy of temporal blessings a shadow of heavenly blessing? And was not the promised land itself a type of the heavenly Canaan? If so, then the Ten Words may be more than a moral code: they may be a gospel-shaped pattern. In what follows, we will explore the commandments in pairs—the first with the tenth, the second with the ninth, and so on—until we reach the apex of the fifth and the sixth. There, at the very heart of God’s law, we will find not only order but invitation: the law itself pointing us back toward Eden, and forward to Christ, our Elder Brother, who alone fulfills it.

The Pairs: The First and the Tenth

The first commandment “you shall have no other God,” is a vertical relationship which relates to the horizontal relationship “you shall not covet,” meaning that you either worship the one true God or you will worship everything else. Things become your God. If idolatry is the replacement of God with another God, then what you are replacing Him with is an idol which is a thing or the creation itself. Worship of creation is always called idolatry.

Second and the Ninth

The second commandment—“You shall not make for yourself a graven image” (Exod. 20:4)—is paired with “You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor” (Exod. 20:16). Thus, lying about the one true God by making a lying image is paired with the horizontal lying about everything else. Scripture is clear that idols are falsehoods: “Their idols are silver and gold, the work of human hands. They have mouths, but do not speak; eyes, but do not see” (Ps. 115:4–5). Jeremiah likewise declares, “Every goldsmith is put to shame by his idols, for his images are false, and there is no breath in them” (Jer. 10:14). To fashion an image of God is to misrepresent Him—to bear false witness about His nature. In this way, the second and ninth commandments mirror one another: images are lies. Vertical lies inevitably lead to horizontal lies, making the pairing natural and complete.

Third and the Eighth

The third command “you shall not take the name of the LORD your God in vain,” is a vertical taking of God’s property—His Name which includes all His attributes and using them as your own. It is cosmic theft of His Majesty and Glory. This is naturally paired with the horizontal theft of created things. If you don’t respect vertical property rights, you won’t respect horizontal property rights either.

As is often done in commentaries on the law, support for the local ministry is usually put under the second or the fourth commandment, but looking at this arrangement, it seems to make more sense to put it under the third commandment. In fact, this is what the book of Malachi does—robbing God is taking His name in vain. Malachi 1:6-7

“A son honors his father, and a servant his master. If then I am a father, where is my honor? And if I am a master, where is my fear? says the LORD of hosts to you, O priests, who despise my name. But you say, ‘How have we despised your name?’

By offering polluted food upon my altar. But you say, ‘How have we polluted you?’ By saying that the LORD’S table may be despised.

In fact, the priests were stealing His “food” and substituting it with blind and lame animal sacrifices. To despise God’s name is intimately connected with theft.

Fourth and the Seventh

The fourth commandment “remember the Sabbath day to keep it holy,” is a vertical resting in God and has everything to do with communion, fellowship and worship. This is paired with the horizontal communion and fellowship of a man and a woman in the marriage relationship. This holy matrimony is symbolic of the relationship of Christ to His church. She is called the Bride of Christ. To engage in idolatry and false worship is always called spiritual whoredom. This is most strikingly portrayed in the book of Revelation by the w***e of Babylon.

Revelation 17:1–2 “Come, I will show you the judgment of the great prostitute who is seated on many waters, with whom the kings of the earth have committed sexual immorality, and with the wine of whose sexual immorality the dwellers on earth have become drunk.”

These examples of adultery being compared to false worship fill the Bible. Hosea marries a woman of whoredom to symbolize unfaithful Israel; Ezekiel portrays Israel as a prostitute who does not even require payment from her lovers; and Jeremiah denounces Judah for playing the harlot with many gods yet still presuming to return to the Lord as if nothing were wrong (Jer. 3:1–10). Again and again, the prophets use the language of sexual betrayal to expose the depth of Israel’s spiritual betrayal.

The Apex Pair: Fifth and the Sixth

Now we come to the apex pair—the fifth and the sixth. This pair deserves special treatment. Adam was created as a son of God. As a son, he naturally honored his Father. To honor Him is to remain under His authority; to dishonor the vertical authority is also to dishonor the horizontal authorities. Is not murder, then, a seeking of dominance or control over another? If a horizontal relations refuse to submit, killing becomes the only option left. Killing can take many forms: harsh words, physical abuse, even outright murder. Whenever the bonds of authority break in nations, it is the harbinger of war—whether in imperial conquest abroad or in civil war and revolution at home.

Origin of Original Sin

This sin-pair also has the distinction of being the origin of original sin—rebellion against God. Adam disobeyed God, which led to his death and the death of all his posterity. It was not only that Adam disobeyed; in grasping for divinity, but he also sought to murder God. Strangely, this motif of fratricide and deicide appears again in ancient mythologies of creation accounts.

In the Gilgamesh Epic, Gilgamesh and Enkidu strike down Humbaba, the divine guardian of the Cedar Forest, kill the Bull of Heaven, and set out to seize immortality by storm, as though heaven itself could be conquered. The Greek myth of Cronos retells the same story in grotesque form: a son mutilates his father Uranus to usurp his throne, then devours his own children lest they overthrow him in turn. And Scripture itself shows the pattern repeating in miniature when Cain kills Abel—striking down the image of God as an act of rebellion against God. Whether in Eden, in Babylon, in Greece, or in the field where Abel fell, the same truth is revealed: sin at its root is always an attempted deicide, a will to unseat the Creator and enthrone ourselves in His place.

Modern Mythologies do the Same Thing

In modern times the old impulse to kill God has reemerged in philosophy and psychology. Nietzsche gave it blunt expression in his famous cry, “God is dead,” describing modern man as the murderer of God whose blood now stains his hands. Freud explained religion as a collective neurosis rooted in the primal murder of the father, a mythic act of patricide replayed in the human conscience. Carl Jung saw the death of God as a psychological necessity for individuation, a stage in which man must overthrow the divine image in order to become his own master. Each, in his own way, echoed the ancient rebellion: the will to unseat God and enthrone the self.

Point the Way back to Eden

This pair also points to the Redeemer’s path. Another Son had to come to walk backward from the path of the first Adam—an Adam-in-reverse. This second Adam had to obey His Father and die in Adam’s place so that He could rescue mankind. Where Adam failed, Christ prevailed. Paul explains this in Romans 5:

For if, because of one man’s trespass, death reigned through that one man, much more will those who receive the abundance of grace and the free gift of righteousness reign in life through the one man Jesus Christ. Therefore, as one trespass led to condemnation for all men, so one act of righteousness leads to justification and life for all men. For as by the one man’s disobedience the many were made sinners, so by the one man’s obedience the many will be made righteous. (Rom. 5:17–19)

Notice the contrast in the two sons’ response to authority: trespass leads to death; obedience leads to life. No mere son of Adam could be Adam-in-reverse. The Redeemer had to possess a unique Sonship that alone could render the obedience required. And that Redeemer is none other than our precious Lord Jesus Christ.

The Hidden Gospel in the Decalogue

There is a gospel hinted at in the fifth commandment. The gospel is always framed in terms of a promise, and here in the fifth there is a promise of life. It is not only that this points forward to the coming Redeemer; it is also an invitation to reenter Eden. Everyone who has ever desired a long life has noticed the promise here. They may think to themselves, “I will honor my father and mother so that I may have a long life.” But how can honoring authority be a way back to the Garden and not merely a long life in exile from Eden? No ordinary way back to the Garden is possible without it. Even unbelievers—or, more precisely, the unregenerate—can obey authorities at least externally.

The call of the gospel is to the unregenerate. To listen is already a form of submission. To submit to authorities is the way God calls sinners to Himself. Submitting to family, civil, and church authority is a natural prerequisite to submitting to the ultimate authority—God. After all, He ordains all these lesser authorities. This submission is possible for anyone and does not require a special work of grace. Here the free offer of the gospel is most clearly displayed. God is telling you to come. You can come to church, hear His Word preached, read His Word for yourself, and place yourself where God has especially chosen to bring sinners into relation with Himself—His church.

If you look at the fifth commandment as the gate to heaven, does it not make sense to wait at the gate if you want to get back into the Garden? Scripture clearly teaches that God will not cast out those who seek Him. Seeking, in fact, can be thought of as a form of submission. Murder is the reverse: it seeks to destroy. Respecting life, by contrast, is the path back to life. Not that law-keeping is meritorious—but in the pairing of the fifth and sixth commandments we find a roadmap back to Eden. This is where God has chosen to offer His free grace to sinners: “Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.” Coming is itself submitting, even if at first for all the wrong reasons—come anyway. He is the friend of sinners.

The Lord is Near

There is no special grace needed for a sinner to come to Jesus. Seeking the Lord, coming to church, listening to His Word preached, and reading His Word are all within the power of unbelievers to do. “For this commandment that I command you today is not too hard for you, neither is it far off… But the word is very near you. It is in your mouth and in your heart, so that you can do it” (Deut. 30:11, 14). It is not as though you have to climb Mount Sinai to find Him. As Paul echoes, “The word is near you, in your mouth and in your heart (that is, the word of faith that we proclaim)” (Rom. 10:8). And Isaiah gives the gracious invitation: “Come now, let us reason together, says the Lord: though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow” (Isa. 1:18). The free offer is real; it is a well-meant offer.

This is not to deny the need for special grace to believe, but you cannot be a recipient of that grace unless you begin at the gateway commandments—the fifth and the sixth. “Oh, the depth of the riches and wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are his judgments and how inscrutable his ways!” (Rom. 11:33). He really is calling everyone. Jesus’ weeping over Jerusalem—“Would that you, even you, had known on this day the things that make for peace!” (Luke 19:42)—and Paul’s lament over Israel’s hardness of heart—“I have great sorrow and unceasing anguish in my heart”(Rom. 9:2)—are not fake. God wants sinners to come. “All that the Father gives me will come to me, and whoever comes to me I will never cast out” (John 6:37). Come!

Summary of the Law Revised

Whether the author of the Ten Words purposely set them in a chiastic structure or not, there is benefit in seeking parallels within the law. At bottom, the commands are about one thing—rightly ordered love. As Calvin observed, “The whole law is contained under love. Therefore, the observance of this one command is justly called the observance of the whole law.” The positive command is to love; the negative commands show what disordered love looks like—both vertically and horizontally. If we fail to love God vertically, we will love the things of this world horizontally and make them into a god. If we lie about God’s nature vertically, we will inevitably lie about everything else horizontally. Stealing God’s name and His glory naturally leads to stealing everything else.

Forsaking the fountain of living water and heavenly communion naturally leads to forsaking the fountain of earthly love and seeking broken cisterns that hold no water (Jer. 2:13). Scripture itself makes the horizontal parallel in its portrayal of marital fidelity:

“Drink water from your own cistern, flowing water from your own well. Should your springs be scattered abroad, streams of water in the streets? … Let your fountain be blessed, and rejoice in the wife of your youth, a lovely deer, a graceful doe. Let her breasts fill you at all times with delight; be intoxicated always in her love.” (Prov. 5:15–19)

Thus, our vertical communion with God is mirrored in our horizontal communion with one another—and it should be our delight and chief joy. No mere fellowship will do; it must be the intoxicating love of a marriage made in heaven, the union of Christ and His bride.

The Apex Pair: An Invitation to Life

And then we come to the apex pair: honor and protection of life. Dishonor leads to death; rightly ordered honor leads to life—both eternal life and earthly human flourishing. This command carries a universal blessing: even unbelievers who keep it out of enlightened self-interest are often rewarded with long earthly life. Rebellion against authority has never been the path to longevity—for believer or unbeliever alike. If this blessing is universal, should not the call of the gospel also be universal? The free, well-meant offer of the gospel demonstrates God’s good intention and His mercy toward all mankind. That He has not elected all does not in any way diminish His sincere and gracious offer. Scripture presents both truths but does not explain how they fit together. It leaves the tension there—and so should we.

The Lord makes this plain through the prophet Ezekiel:

“Thus you say, ‘Surely our transgressions and our sins are upon us, and we rot away because of them. How then can we live?’ Say to them, As I live, declares the Lord GOD, I have no pleasure in the death of the wicked, but that the wicked turn from his way and live; turn back, turn back from your evil ways, for why will you die, O house of Israel?” (Ezek. 33:10–11)

Clearly, God does desire that the wicked turn from their sins. Peter expands this desire beyond Israel to all nations when he writes:

“The Lord is not slow to fulfill his promise as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing that any should perish, but that all should reach repentance.” (2 Pet. 3:9)

A proper understanding of God’s nature helps us here. Remembering the Creator–creature distinction and that God is incomprehensible, we can affirm both truths without contradiction. If we are rationalists and try to resolve the tension, we will fall short of the truth. If we say that God desires to redeem all but cannot, we fall into the Arminian ditch. If we gut the meaning of “desire” and explain it away, we fall into the Hyper-Calvinist ditch. Either way, we miss the mark. Holding both together, however, opens the door to worldwide evangelization. “It is the kindness of God that leads you to repentance” (Rom. 2:4). Perhaps reading the apex commandments this way shows us the kindness of God and His invitation to rejoin the family. Estranged sons can return—and He has provided a way in His Son to win us back to Himself. Thus, the gospel becomes a family reunion, accomplished by our Elder Brother, Jesus.

I believe this chiastic structure is at least plausible. Other parallelisms and structural patterns in the Decalogue likewise bring out gospel truths. These, Lord willing, will be explored in future posts. For now, may this reading invite us not merely to see order in the law, but to hear in it the voice of the Father calling estranged sons home through Christ our Elder Brother.

Amen