The Ten Commandments · piece 4 of 26
The Fourth Commandment
From Luther’s Small Catechism, 1529
Practice mode shows the first letter of each word. Say the line, then tap it to check.
You must honor your father and mother. [So that things will go well for you and you will live long on earth]. (Exodus 20:12)
What does this mean?
We must fear and love God, so that we will neither look down on our parents or superiors nor irritate them, but will honor them, serve them, obey them, love them and value them.
In plain words
God gives you parents and other people with authority over you, like teachers and leaders. Do not look down on them or try to make them angry. Instead, honour them, help them, obey them, love them, and value them. God uses them to care for you.
Our summary of Luther’s explanation, for reading after his words, not instead of them.
Where Jesus says it
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Luke 2:51 As a boy, Jesus goes home with his parents and obeys them.
Read Luke 2:51
51 And he went down with them, and came to Nazareth. He was subject to them, and his mother kept all these sayings in her heart.
World English Bible, public domain. The whole chapter on Free Scripture → · Read in the NRSVue, the ELCA’s standard translation →
Translated by Robert E. Smith for Project Wittenberg (revised 2004) and placed in the public domain by the translator. How we checked it, and the whole Catechism on one page