Exodus 20:13
New International Version
“You shall not murder.

New Living Translation
“You must not murder.

English Standard Version
“You shall not murder.

Berean Standard Bible
You shall not murder.

King James Bible
Thou shalt not kill.

New King James Version
“You shall not murder.

New American Standard Bible
“You shall not murder.

NASB 1995
“You shall not murder.

NASB 1977
“You shall not murder.

Legacy Standard Bible
“You shall not murder.

Amplified Bible
“You shall not commit murder (unjustified, deliberate homicide).

Christian Standard Bible
Do not murder.

Holman Christian Standard Bible
Do not murder.

American Standard Version
Thou shalt not kill.

Aramaic Bible in Plain English
You shall not murder.

Brenton Septuagint Translation
Thou shalt not kill.

Contemporary English Version
Do not murder.

Douay-Rheims Bible
Thou shalt not kill.

English Revised Version
Thou shalt do no murder.

GOD'S WORD® Translation
"Never murder.

Good News Translation
"Do not commit murder.

International Standard Version
"You are not to commit murder.

JPS Tanakh 1917
Thou shalt not murder. Thou shalt not commit adultery. Thou shalt not steal. Thou shalt not bear false witness against thy neighbour.

Literal Standard Version
You do not murder.

Majority Standard Bible
You shall not murder.

New American Bible
You shall not kill.

NET Bible
"You shall not murder.

New Revised Standard Version
You shall not murder.

New Heart English Bible
"Do not commit adultery.

Webster's Bible Translation
Thou shalt not kill.

World English Bible
“You shall not murder.

Young's Literal Translation
'Thou dost not murder.

Additional Translations ...
Audio Bible



Context
The Ten Commandments
12Honor your father and mother, so that your days may be long in the land that the LORD your God is giving you. 13You shall not murder. 14You shall not commit adultery.…

Cross References
Matthew 5:21
You have heard that it was said to the ancients, 'Do not murder' and 'Anyone who murders will be subject to judgment.'

Matthew 19:18
"Which ones?" the man asked. Jesus answered, "'Do not murder, do not commit adultery, do not steal, do not bear false witness,

Mark 10:19
You know the commandments: 'Do not murder, do not commit adultery, do not steal, do not bear false witness, do not cheat others, honor your father and mother.'"

Luke 18:20
You know the commandments: 'Do not commit adultery, do not murder, do not steal, do not bear false witness, honor your father and mother.'"

Romans 13:9
The commandments "Do not commit adultery," "Do not murder," "Do not steal," "Do not covet," and any other commandments, are summed up in this one decree: "Love your neighbor as yourself."

James 2:11
For He who said, "Do not commit adultery," also said, "Do not murder." If you do not commit adultery, but do commit murder, you have become a lawbreaker.

Genesis 4:23
Then Lamech said to his wives: "Adah and Zillah, hear my voice; wives of Lamech, listen to my speech. For I have slain a man for wounding me, a young man for striking me.


Treasury of Scripture

You shall not kill.

Exodus 21:14,20,29
But if a man come presumptuously upon his neighbour, to slay him with guile; thou shalt take him from mine altar, that he may die…

Genesis 4:8-23
And Cain talked with Abel his brother: and it came to pass, when they were in the field, that Cain rose up against Abel his brother, and slew him…

Genesis 9:5,6
And surely your blood of your lives will I require; at the hand of every beast will I require it, and at the hand of man; at the hand of every man's brother will I require the life of man…

Jump to Previous
Cause Death Kill Murder
Jump to Next
Cause Death Kill Murder
Exodus 20
1. The ten commandments are spoken by Jehovah
18. The people are afraid, but Moses comforts them
21. Idolatry is forbidden
23. Of what sort the altar should be














(13) Thou shalt not kill.--From the peculiar duties owed by children to their parents, the Divine legislator went on to lay down those general duties which men owe to their fellow-men. And of these the first is that of respecting their life. The security of life is the primary object of government; and it has been well said that men originally coalesced into States with a view to self-preservation (Arist., Pol. i. 1). All written codes forbid murder; and in communities which are without written codes an unwritten law condemns it. When God "set a mark upon Cain" (Genesis 4:15), He marked thereby His abhorrence of the murderer. The "seven precepts of Noah" included one which distinctly forbade the taking of human life (Genesis 9:6). In all countries and among all peoples, a natural instinct or an unwritten tradition placed murder among the worst of crimes, and made its penalty death. The Mosaic legislation on the point was differenced from others principally by the care it took to distinguish between actual murder, manslaughter (Exodus 21:13), death by misadventure (Numbers 35:23), and justifiable homicide (Exodus 22:2). Before, however, it made these distinctions, the great principle of the sanctity of human life required to be broadly laid down; and so the law was given in the widest possible terms--"Thou shalt not kill." Exceptions were reserved till later.

Verse 13. - Thou shalt not kill. Here again is a moral precept included in all codes, and placed by all in a prominent position. Our first duty towards our neighbour is to respect his life. When Cain slew Abel, he could scarcely have known what he was doing; yet a terrible punishment was awarded him for his transgression (Genesis 4:11-14). After the flood, the solemn declaration was made, which thenceforward became a universal law among mankind - "Whoso sheddeth man's blood, by man shall his blood be shed: for in the image of God made he man" (Genesis 9:6). In the world that followed the flood, all races of men had the tradition that only blood could expiate blood. In the few places where there was an organised government, and a systematic administration of justice, the State acted on the principle, and punished the murderer capitally. Elsewhere, among tribes and races which had not vet coalesced into states, the law of blood-revenge obtained, and the inquisition for blood became a private affair. The next of kin was the recognised" avenger," upon whom it devolved to hunt out the murderer and punish him. Here the sin is simply and emphatically denounced, the brevity of the precept increasing its force. The Israelites are told that to take life is a crime. God forbids it. As usual, no exceptions are made. Exceptions appear later on (Numbers 35:22-25; Deuteronomy 4:42; etc.); but the first thing is to establish the principle. Human life is sacred. Man is not to shed the blood of his fellow-man. If he does, of his hand will the life taken surely be required. The casuistic question whether suicide is forbidden under this precept, probably did not occur to the legislator or to the Hebrews of his time. Neither the Hebrews, nor the Egyptians, among whom they had so long lived, were addicted to suicide; and it is a general rule that laws are not made excepting against tolerably well-known crimes. It has been argued that angry thoughts and insulting words were forbidden by it on the strength of our Lord's comment in the Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5:21, 22). But it seems to the present writer that in Matthew 5:21-47 our Lord is not so much explaining the Jewish law as amplifying it on his own authority - note the repetition of the phrase, "But I say unto you" - and making it mean to Christians what it had not meant to Jews.

Parallel Commentaries ...


Hebrew
You shall not
לֹ֥֖א (lō)
Adverb - Negative particle
Strong's 3808: Not, no

murder.
תִּֿרְצָֽ֖ח׃ (trə·ṣāḥ)
Verb - Qal - Imperfect - second person masculine singular
Strong's 7523: To dash in pieces, kill, to murder


Links
Exodus 20:13 NIV
Exodus 20:13 NLT
Exodus 20:13 ESV
Exodus 20:13 NASB
Exodus 20:13 KJV

Exodus 20:13 BibleApps.com
Exodus 20:13 Biblia Paralela
Exodus 20:13 Chinese Bible
Exodus 20:13 French Bible
Exodus 20:13 Catholic Bible

OT Law: Exodus 20:13 You shall not murder (Exo. Ex)
Exodus 20:12
Top of Page
Top of Page