In Deuteronomy 5 Moses begins his second sermon by recalling the Mount Sinai theophany that had occurred over 39 years before, where God proclaimed the Decalogue ("ten words"). The Bible identifies the revelation this way in Exodus 34:28 and Deuteronomy 4:13 and 10:4.
Why ten? Since there are fourteen imperative statements in the list, it is possible to divide them into fourteen items. Twelve would be another highly symbolic number for the list. It may be that ten was chosen for mnemonic reasons, so that people can count them on their fingers. That's the reason suggested by commentator Daniel Block.
Moses' presentation of the Decalogue goes almost word for word from the tablets in the ark of the covenant, with two notable differences that reflect points he is trying to communicate in his sermon.
The main one is in the motivation for the Sabbath commandment, which in Exodus 20 is presented as a memorial of creation. In Deuteronomy 5:15, Moses emphasizes the Sabbath as memorial of Israel's deliverance from slavery. The Sabbath reveals God as both Creator and Redeemer.
The second one is in verse 21, where Moses mentions not coveting a neighbor's wife before listing the prohibition against desiring a neighbor's possessions. This inverts the order in Exodus 20:17, which lists a neighbor's household and then a neighbor's wife. Block proposes that Moses inverts the order to underline the fact that a wife is not a husband's possession.
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