BIBLE VERSE STUDY
Exodus 20:13 — The Sixth Commandment Against Murder
Exodus 20:13 is the sixth word in the Decalogue, a brief prohibition: "Thou shalt not kill."
Scripture
13Thou shalt not kill.
What this passage means
Exodus 20:13 reads, "Thou shalt not kill," a short, absolute-sounding prohibition delivered by God directly to Israel at Sinai. Placed in the second half of the Decalogue, which governs relations between members of the covenant community, the command assumes that human life is sacred and that taking it wrongfully is a direct violation of God's revealed will.
The verse does not define "kill" in the English sense of every form of taking a life; it uses the Hebrew verb rāṣaḥ, which the lexical entry provided (H7523) glosses as "murder" — to dash in pieces, to kill a human being. The form in verse 13 (tiṝṣāḥ) is a second-person singular imperfect used in a negative command. Because the chapter itself does not specify what counts as rāṣaḥ, readers looking for finer distinctions must look outside this passage — for instance to the case laws in Exodus 21, which distinguish willful from accidental killing, and to Leviticus 24, which prescribes death for killing a man. The provided cross references point in both of those directions.
The commandment is addressed to "thou" — each individual Israelite under the covenant. The surrounding verses (12, 14–17) frame it among duties to parents, spouse, neighbor's goods, and reputation, locating the prohibition within a network of obligations that protect the social fabric of God's people. The chapter later shows the people trembling at the thunder and voice (vv. 18–19), underscoring that the command comes with divine authority, not merely human law.
Context
Exodus 20 contains the Ten Commandments, which the chapter note identifies simply as "The Ten Commandments." Verse 13 stands at the center of the second tablet (vv. 12–17), which addresses horizontal relationships — toward parents, life, marriage, property, and truth — following the first tablet on Godward duties (vv. 3–11). The command is bracketed by the duty to honor parents (v. 12) and the prohibitions against adultery (v. 14), stealing (v. 15), and false witness (v. 16), so that respect for human life sits between family loyalty and the protection of neighborly relationships.
After the Decalogue, the people react to the theophany: they hear thunder, lightning, and the trumpet, see the smoking mountain, and ask Moses to speak in God's place (vv. 18–19). Moses responds, "Fear not: for God is come to prove you" (v. 20). The chapter then transitions to additional statutes (vv. 22–26), including an altar law and a prohibition on making gods of silver or gold. Nothing within the chapter itself defines what kind of killing verse 13 prohibits; that detail is left to other passages in the Torah.
Key words in the original
- H3808 The negation לֹא (lōʾ), "not," stands at the head of the verb tiṝṣāḥ in verse 13, forming a simple absolute prohibition. The lexical entry defines it as the simple or absolute negation, often used in combination with other particles.
- H7523 The verb רָצַח (rāṣaḥ), appearing here as tiṝṣāḥ, is glossed in the provided data as "murder" and defined as "properly, to dash in pieces, i.e. kill (a human being), especially to murder." Its placement in a negative command frames verse 13 as a prohibition of unjustified killing of a human being rather than a blanket ban on every taking of life.
Related verses
- Deuteronomy 5:17 The same command reappears almost verbatim in the parallel Decalogue in Deuteronomy 5:17, showing that the prohibition is not a one-time statement but part of the covenant wording Israel is to remember.
- Genesis 9:6 Genesis 9:6 grounds the taking of a human life in the imago Dei: "Whoso sheddeth man's blood, by man shall his blood be shed: For in the image of God made he man." The reasoning connects to the broader theology underlying Exodus 20:13, though Genesis 9 itself is not quoted in Exodus 20.
- Matthew 5:21 Matthew 5:21 quotes the same commandment and notes that those who kill are "in danger of the judgment," introducing a developed exposition in the Sermon on the Mount that goes beyond what Exodus 20 itself spells out.
Common questions
Does "Thou shalt not kill" forbid all taking of life?
The provided verse and lexical data do not settle this question. The Hebrew verb רָצַח (H7523) is glossed as "murder," suggesting wrongful killing of a human being, but Exodus 20 itself does not define the term. Other passages supplied among the cross references (such as Exodus 21:14 and Leviticus 24:21) address related cases outside chapter 20.
Why is this command placed between honoring parents and the prohibitions on adultery and stealing?
Based on the chapter's structure as shown in the provided text, verse 13 sits in the middle of the second tablet of the Decalogue (vv. 12–17). That tablet addresses horizontal relationships within the covenant community, so respect for human life is positioned alongside duties to family and neighbor's property and reputation.
What does the original Hebrew verb add to the English reading?
The English phrase "Thou shalt not kill" is given as a translation; the underlying Hebrew is the negative particle לֹא (H7523's accompanying particle) plus רָצַח (H7523), glossed "murder" and defined as "to dash in pieces, i.e. kill (a human being), especially to murder." The lexical data restricts the verb to human killing in a violent, destructive sense rather than every possible loss of life.