◄ Deuteronomy 5:16 ►
Honor your father and your mother, as the LORD your God has commanded you, so that your days may be long and that it may go well with you in the land that the LORD your God is giving you.
Study Bible
Honor your father and your mother
The word "honor" in Hebrew is "כַּבֵּד" (kabbed), which carries the connotation of giving weight or significance to someone. In the ancient Near Eastern context, this commandment underscores the importance of family structure and respect for parental authority. It is not merely about obedience but involves a deep-seated respect and care for one's parents, acknowledging their role and sacrifices. This commandment is foundational in maintaining societal stability and reflects the divine order established by God.

as the LORD your God has commanded you
This phrase emphasizes the divine origin of the command. The use of "LORD" (YHWH) signifies the covenantal relationship between God and Israel. It is not a suggestion but a command from God, highlighting its importance. The phrase "your God" personalizes the command, reminding the Israelites of their unique relationship with God, who has delivered them and set them apart as His people. This divine command is rooted in the character of God, who is just and righteous.

so that your days may be long
This promise of longevity is both a personal and communal blessing. In the Hebrew culture, long life was seen as a sign of God's favor and blessing. The phrase suggests that honoring one's parents is directly linked to the well-being and prosperity of the individual and the community. It reflects the principle of sowing and reaping, where respect and obedience to God's commands lead to a flourishing life.

and that it may go well with you
The Hebrew word for "well" (יָטַב, yatab) implies prosperity, happiness, and success. This part of the verse assures the Israelites that their obedience to this command will result in a harmonious and prosperous life. It is a reminder that God's commands are designed for the good of His people, ensuring their welfare and success in the land He has promised them.

in the land the LORD your God is giving you
This phrase situates the command within the context of the Promised Land, a central theme in Deuteronomy. The land is a gift from God, a fulfillment of His promise to the patriarchs. The Israelites' tenure in the land is conditional upon their obedience to God's laws. This commandment, therefore, is not only about personal conduct but also about maintaining the covenant relationship with God, which is essential for their continued blessing and possession of the land. The land is both a physical inheritance and a spiritual responsibility, requiring faithfulness to God's commands.

Persons / Places / Events
1. Moses
The prophet and leader of the Israelites who delivered God's commandments to the people.

2. Israelites
The chosen people of God, receiving the Law as they prepare to enter the Promised Land.

3. Mount Sinai
The place where God originally gave the Ten Commandments to Moses.

4. Promised Land
The land of Canaan, which God promised to the descendants of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.

5. God (Yahweh)
The covenant-keeping God who commands His people to honor their parents.
Teaching Points
The Importance of Honor
Honoring parents is foundational to a godly life and reflects our respect for God's authority.

Promise of Blessing
The commandment comes with a promise of well-being and longevity, showing God's desire for our flourishing.

Cultural Relevance
In a culture that often devalues family structures, this commandment calls Christians to uphold and respect family roles.

Spiritual Legacy
Honoring parents is part of passing down a spiritual legacy, teaching the next generation about God's faithfulness.

Practical Obedience
This commandment calls for practical expressions of respect, care, and obedience to parents.
Bible Study Questions
1. How does honoring your parents reflect your relationship with God?

2. In what ways can you practically honor your parents in your current stage of life?

3. How does the promise attached to this commandment encourage you in your walk with God?

4. What challenges do you face in honoring your parents, and how can Scripture guide you in overcoming them?

5. How can the principles of this commandment be applied to other authority figures in your life?
Connections to Other Scriptures
Exodus 20:12
This verse is the original giving of the commandment in the Ten Commandments, emphasizing the importance of honoring parents.

Ephesians 6:1-3
Paul reiterates this commandment in the New Testament, highlighting its significance for Christian families.

Colossians 3:20
This verse instructs children to obey their parents, linking obedience to pleasing the Lord.

Proverbs 1:8-9
These verses emphasize the wisdom and guidance that come from listening to one's parents.

Matthew 15:4-6
Jesus criticizes the Pharisees for neglecting this commandment, showing its enduring importance.
Sermons
Confide in Your ParentsDeuteronomy 5:16
Duty of ChildrenT. Dwight, D. D.Deuteronomy 5:16
Filial ReverenceDeuteronomy 5:16
Honor to ParentsJ. Orr Deuteronomy 5:16
Honour Thy Father and Thy MotherK. H. Caspari.Deuteronomy 5:16
Reverence Due to ParentsBarnes, AlbertDeuteronomy 5:16
The Duty Which Children Owe Their ParentsR. S. Candlish, D. D.Deuteronomy 5:16
The Fifth CommandmentR. Wardlaw, D. D.Deuteronomy 5:16
The Fifth CommandmentDean Farrar.Deuteronomy 5:16
The Fifth CommandmentS. Walker,. B. A.Deuteronomy 5:16
The First Commandment with PromiseJames Owen.Deuteronomy 5:16
The Foundation CommandmentPlain Sermons by Contributors to, Tracts for the TimesDeuteronomy 5:16
The Promise of Long Life and ProsperityThomas Ridglet, D. D.Deuteronomy 5:16
The Secret of SuccessDeuteronomy 5:16
The DecalogueR.M. Edgar Deuteronomy 5:1-21
Reminiscences of HorebJ. Orr Deuteronomy 5:1-33
The Divine Plan for the Conduct of Our Life on EarthD. Davies Deuteronomy 5:6-21
People
Moses
Places
Beth-baal-peor, Egypt, Horeb
Topics
Commanded, Gives, Giveth, Giving, Ground, Honor, Honour, Ordered, Prolonged
Dictionary of Bible Themes
Deuteronomy 5:16

     4016   life, human
     5053   responsibility, for world
     5218   authority, in home
     5361   justice, human
     5504   rights
     5665   children, attitudes to
     5668   children, responsibilities to parents
     5685   fathers, responsibilities
     5719   mothers, responsibilities
     5726   old age, attainment
     5731   parents
     5746   youth
     7258   promised land, early history

Deuteronomy 5:6-21

     1443   revelation, OT
     7263   theocracy
     8412   decisions

Deuteronomy 5:16-17

     8471   respect, for human beings

Deuteronomy 5:16-20

     2333   Christ, attitude to OT

Deuteronomy 5:16-21

     8841   unfaithfulness, to people

Library
Prayer and Obedience
"An obedience discovered itself in Fletcher of Madeley, which I wish I could describe or imitate. It produced in him a ready mind to embrace every cross with alacrity and pleasure. He had a singular love for the lambs of the flock, and applied himself with the greatest diligence to their instruction, for which he had a peculiar gift. . . . All his intercourse with me was so mingled with prayer and praise, that every employment, and every meal was, as it were, perfumed therewith." -- JOHN WESLEY. …
Edward M. Bounds—The Necessity of Prayer

The Old Testament Canon from Its Beginning to Its Close.
The first important part of the Old Testament put together as a whole was the Pentateuch, or rather, the five books of Moses and Joshua. This was preceded by smaller documents, which one or more redactors embodied in it. The earliest things committed to writing were probably the ten words proceeding from Moses himself, afterwards enlarged into the ten commandments which exist at present in two recensions (Exod. xx., Deut. v.) It is true that we have the oldest form of the decalogue from the Jehovist …
Samuel Davidson—The Canon of the Bible

Questions About the Nature and Perpetuity of the Seventh-Day Sabbath.
AND PROOF, THAT THE FIRST DAY OF THE WEEK IS THE TRUE CHRISTIAN SABBATH. BY JOHN BUNYAN. 'The Son of man is lord also of the Sabbath day.' London: Printed for Nath, Ponder, at the Peacock in the Poultry, 1685. EDITOR'S ADVERTISEMENT. All our inquiries into divine commands are required to be made personally, solemnly, prayerful. To 'prove all things,' and 'hold fast' and obey 'that which is good,' is a precept, equally binding upon the clown, as it is upon the philosopher. Satisfied from our observations …
John Bunyan—The Works of John Bunyan Volumes 1-3

"They have Corrupted Themselves; their Spot is not the Spot of his Children; they are a Perverse and Crooked Generation. "
Deut. xxxii. 5.--"They have corrupted themselves; their spot is not the spot of his children; they are a perverse and crooked generation." We doubt this people would take well with such a description of themselves as Moses gives. It might seem strange to us, that God should have chosen such a people out of all the nations of the earth, and they to be so rebellious and perverse, if our own experience did not teach us how free his choice is, and how long-suffering he is, and constant in his choice. …
Hugh Binning—The Works of the Rev. Hugh Binning

The True Manner of Keeping Holy the Lord's Day.
Now the sanctifying of the Sabbath consists in two things--First, In resting from all servile and common business pertaining to our natural life; Secondly, In consecrating that rest wholly to the service of God, and the use of those holy means which belong to our spiritual life. For the First. 1. The servile and common works from which we are to cease are, generally, all civil works, from the least to the greatest (Exod. xxxi. 12, 13, 15, &c.) More particularly-- First, From all the works of our …
Lewis Bayly—The Practice of Piety

The Everlasting Covenant of the Spirit
"They shall be My people, and l will be their God. And I will make an everlasting covenant with them, that I will not turn away from them, to do them good; but I will put My fear in their hearts, that they shall not depart from Me."--JER. xxxii. 38, 40. "A new heart also will I give you, and a new spirit will I put within you: and I will take the stony heart out of your flesh, and I will give you an heart of flesh. And I will put my Spirit within you, and cause you to walk in My statutes, and ye …
Andrew Murray—The Two Covenants

Jesus Fails to Attend the Third Passover.
Scribes Reproach Him for Disregarding Tradition. (Galilee, Probably Capernaum, Spring a.d. 29.) ^A Matt. XV. 1-20; ^B Mark VII. 1-23; ^D John VII. 1. ^d 1 And after these things Jesus walked in Galilee: for he would not walk in Judæa, because the Jews sought to kill him. [John told us in his last chapter that the passover was near at hand. He here makes a general statement which shows that Jesus did not attend this passover. The reason for his absence is given at John v. 18.] ^a 1 Then there …
J. W. McGarvey—The Four-Fold Gospel

The Angel of the Lord in the Pentateuch, and the Book of Joshua.
The New Testament distinguishes between the hidden God and the revealed God--the Son or Logos--who is connected with the former by oneness of nature, and who from everlasting, and even at the creation itself, filled up the immeasurable distance between the Creator and the creation;--who has been the Mediator in all God's relations to the world;--who at all times, and even before He became man in Christ, has been the light of [Pg 116] the world,--and to whom, specially, was committed the direction …
Ernst Wilhelm Hengstenberg—Christology of the Old Testament

Mount Zion.
"For ye are not come unto a mount that might be touched, and that burned with fire, and unto blackness, and darkness, and tempest, and the sound of a trumpet, and the voice of words; which voice they that heard entreated that no word more should be spoken unto them: for they could not endure that which was enjoined, If even a beast touch the mountain, it shall be stoned; and so fearful was the appearance, that Moses said, I exceedingly fear and quake: but ye are come unto Mount Zion, and unto …
Thomas Charles Edwards—The Expositor's Bible: The Epistle to the Hebrews

The Foundations of Good Citizenship.
THE TEN COMMANDMENTS.--Ex. 20:1-17. Parallel Readings. Hist. Bible I, 194-198. Prin. of Politics, Chap. II. Lowell, Essay on "Democracy." Thou shalt have no other gods before me. Thou shalt not make unto thee a graven image. Thou shalt not take the name of Jehovah thy God in vain. Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy. Honor thy father and thy mother. Thou shalt not kill. Thou shalt not commit adultery. Thou shalt not steal. Thou shalt not bear false witness against thy neighbor. Thou …
Charles Foster Kent—The Making of a Nation

Deuteronomy
Owing to the comparatively loose nature of the connection between consecutive passages in the legislative section, it is difficult to present an adequate summary of the book of Deuteronomy. In the first section, i.-iv. 40, Moses, after reviewing the recent history of the people, and showing how it reveals Jehovah's love for Israel, earnestly urges upon them the duty of keeping His laws, reminding them of His spirituality and absoluteness. Then follows the appointment, iv. 41-43--here irrelevant (cf. …
John Edgar McFadyen—Introduction to the Old Testament

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