Deuteronomy 4:13

13 He declared to you his covenant, which he charged you to observe, that is, the ten commandments; and he wrote them on two stone tablets.

Deuteronomy 4:13 Meaning and Commentary

Deuteronomy 4:13

And he declared unto you his covenant
So the law was called, because it contained, on the part of God, things which he would have done or avoided, to which were annexed promises of long life and happiness in the land he gave them; and they, on their part, agreed to hearken to it, and obey it, ( Exodus 24:3 Exodus 24:7 ) ,

which he commanded you to perform, even ten commandments;
which see at large in ( Exodus 20:1-17 ) , and in this book afterwards repeated, ( Deuteronomy 5:6-21 ) ,

and he wrote them upon two tables of stone;
to denote the durableness of them; the Targum of Jonathan says on tables of sapphire; but it is most likely that they were written on tables of marble, since there were great quantities of it in Mount Sinai; (See Gill on Exodus 31:18).

Deuteronomy 4:13 In-Context

11 you approached and stood at the foot of the mountain while the mountain was blazing up to the very heavens, shrouded in dark clouds.
12 Then the Lord spoke to you out of the fire. You heard the sound of words but saw no form; there was only a voice.
13 He declared to you his covenant, which he charged you to observe, that is, the ten commandments; and he wrote them on two stone tablets.
14 And the Lord charged me at that time to teach you statutes and ordinances for you to observe in the land that you are about to cross into and occupy.
15 Since you saw no form when the Lord spoke to you at Horeb out of the fire, take care and watch yourselves closely,

Footnotes 1

New Revised Standard Version Bible, copyright 1989, Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.