You shall have no other gods before me — the first commandment.
The opening line of the Ten Commandments. Why this one comes first — and shapes all the others.
The episode in a glance.
- 01Comes after God reminds Israel that he rescued them.
- 02'No other gods' presumes there will be competitors for the throne.
- 03'Before me' = in my presence, in my face.
- 04Every other commandment flows from this one.
Read along.
The Ten Commandments open with: 'You shall have no other gods before me.' Notice what comes before that, in verse two: 'I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery.'
Rescue first. Commandment second. God doesn't lay down the law to strangers. He lays it down to a people he has just delivered.
'No other gods.' The wording assumes there will be competitors. There always are. They might not be statues; today they're more often money, status, relationships, comfort.
'Before me' is literally 'in my face' or 'in my presence.' It pictures a king on a throne. God is saying: I will not share this throne with anyone.
And here's why this commandment comes first: every other commandment flows from it. If God is rightly on the throne, lying, stealing, adultery, and the rest start to lose their pull. Idolatry is upstream of every other sin.