Heidelberg Catechism: Ten Commandments

Here’s a setting of the Ten Commandments based on the Heidelberg Catechism.  It was written by Carol Veldman Rudie.

The Ten Commandments

from the Heidelberg Catechism

I am the LORD your God,
who brought you out of Egypt,
out of the land of slavery.
You shall have no other gods before me.

I sincerely acknowledge the only true God,

trust him alone,

look to him for every good thing humbly and patiently,

and love him, fear him, and honor him with all my heart.

In short, I will give up anything

rather than go against his will in any way.

You shall not make for yourself an idol
in the form of anything in heaven above
or on the earth beneath
or in the waters below.

We will in no way make any image of God

nor worship him in any other way

than he has commanded in his Word.

You shall not misuse the name of the LORD your God,
for the LORD will not hold anyone guiltless
who misuses his name.

We will use the holy name of God

only with reverence and awe,

so that we may properly confess him,

pray to him,

and praise him in everything we do and say.

Remember the Sabbath day by keeping it holy.

I will regularly attend the assembly of God's people

to learn what God's Word teaches,

to participate in the sacraments,

to pray to God publicly,

and to bring Christian offerings for the poor.

Every day of my life I will rest from my evil ways,

let the Lord work in me through his Spirit,

and so begin in this life the eternal Sabbath.

Honor your father and your mother.

I will honor, love, and be loyal to my father and mother.

I will obey and submit to them, as is proper,

when they correct and punish me;

and I will be patient with their failings—

for through them God chooses to rule us.

You shall not murder.

I will not belittle, insult, hate, or kill my neighbor—

not by my thoughts, my words, my look or gesture,

and certainly not by actual deeds—

and I will not be party to this in others;

rather, I will put away all desire for revenge.

I will not harm or recklessly endanger myself either.

You shall not commit adultery.

God condemns all unchastity.

We therefore thoroughly detest it and, married or single,

will live decent and chaste lives.

You shall not steal.

I will do whatever I can for my neighbor's good,

I will treat others as I would like them to treat me,

and I will work faithfully so that I may share with those in need.

You shall not give false testimony against your neighbor.

I will love the truth, speak it candidly,

and openly acknowledge it.

And I will do what I can to guard and advance

my neighbor's good name.

You shall not covet anything that belongs to your neighbor.

With all my heart I will always hate sin

and take pleasure in whatever is right.

—written by Carol L. Veldman Rudie (December, 1992) in Good for More Than Preaching, posted on the website of Reformed Worship. 

The giving of the Ten Commandments (as found in Exodus 20: 1-20) is one of the suggested scripture texts for October 2, 2011 (the sixteenth Sunday after Pentecost).  For more worship resources related to this text, or other texts for this Sunday, click on Proper 22A in the list of “Labels” at the lower right side of the page.

For more worship resources on the Ten Commandments, click on Ten Commandments in the list of “Labels” at the lower right side of the page.