What are the sins forbidden in the sixth commandment?
The sins forbidden in the sixth commandment are, all taking away the life of ourselves,1 or of others,2 except in case of public justice,3 lawful war,4 or necessary defense;5 the neglecting or withdrawing the lawful and necessary means of preservation of life;6 sinful anger,7 hatred,8 envy,9 desire of revenge;10 all excessive passions,11 distracting cares;12 immoderate use of meat, drink,13 labor,14 and recreations;15 provoking words,16 oppression,17 quarreling,18 striking, wounding,19 and: Whatsoever else tends to the destruction of the life of any.20
Scripture proofs
The Westminster Assembly's proof texts (KJV). The bracketed numbers in the answer above mark the clause each set of references supports; expand a row to read the verses.
1 Acts 16:28
But Paul cried with a loud voice, saying, Do thyself no harm: for we are all here.
2 Gen. 9:6
Whoso sheddeth man’s blood, by man shall his blood be shed: for in the image of God made he man.
3 Num. 35:31, 33
Num. 35:31 Moreover ye shall take no satisfaction for the life of a murderer, which is guilty of death: but he shall be surely put to death.
Num. 35:33 So ye shall not pollute the land wherein ye are: for blood it defileth the land: and the land cannot be cleansed of the blood that is shed therein, but by the blood of him that shed it.
4 Jer. 48:10; Deut. 20
Cursed be he that doeth the work of the LORD deceitfully, and cursed be he that keepeth back his sword from blood.
— full text not shown for this reference —
5 Exod. 22:2–3
Exod. 22:2 If a thief be found breaking up, and be smitten that he die, there shall no blood be shed for him.
Exod. 22:3 If the sun be risen upon him, there shall be blood shed for him; for he should make full restitution; if he have nothing, then he shall be sold for his theft.
6 Matt. 25:42–43; James 2:15–16; Eccl. 6:1–2
Matt. 25:42 For I was an hungred, and ye gave me no meat: I was thirsty, and ye gave me no drink:
Matt. 25:43 I was a stranger, and ye took me not in: naked, and ye clothed me not: sick, and in prison, and ye visited me not.
James 2:15 If a brother or sister be naked, and destitute of daily food,
James 2:16 And one of you say unto them, Depart in peace, be ye warmed and filled; notwithstanding ye give them not those things which are needful to the body; what doth it profit?
Eccl. 6:1 There is an evil which I have seen under the sun, and it is common among men:
Eccl. 6:2 A man to whom God hath given riches, wealth, and honour, so that he wanteth nothing for his soul of all that he desireth, yet God giveth him not power to eat thereof, but a stranger eateth it: this is vanity, and it is an evil disease.
7 Matt. 5:22
But I say unto you, That whosoever is angry with his brother without a cause shall be in danger of the judgment: and whosoever shall say to his brother, Raca, shall be in danger of the council: but whosoever shall say, Thou fool, shall be in danger of hell fire.
8 1 John 3:15; Lev. 19:17
Whosoever hateth his brother is a murderer: and ye know that no murderer hath eternal life abiding in him.
Thou shalt not hate thy brother in thine heart: thou shalt in any wise rebuke thy neighbour, and not suffer sin upon him.
9 Prov. 14:30
A sound heart is the life of the flesh: but envy the rottenness of the bones.
10 Rom. 12:19
Dearly beloved, avenge not yourselves, but rather give place unto wrath: for it is written, Vengeance is mine; I will repay, saith the Lord.
11 Eph. 4:31
Let all bitterness, and wrath, and anger, and clamour, and evil speaking, be put away from you, with all malice:
12 Matt. 6:31, 34
Matt. 6:31 Therefore take no thought, saying, What shall we eat? or, What shall we drink? or, Wherewithal shall we be clothed?
Matt. 6:34 Take therefore no thought for the morrow: for the morrow shall take thought for the things of itself. Sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof.
13 Luke 21:34; Rom. 13:13
And take heed to yourselves, lest at any time your hearts be overcharged with surfeiting, and drunkenness, and cares of this life, and so that day come upon you unawares.
Let us walk honestly, as in the day; not in rioting and drunkenness, not in chambering and wantonness, not in strife and envying.
14 Eccl. 2:22–23; Eccl. 12:12
Eccl. 2:22 For what hath man of all his labour, and of the vexation of his heart, wherein he hath laboured under the sun?
Eccl. 2:23 For all his days are sorrows, and his travail grief; yea, his heart taketh not rest in the night. This is also vanity.
And further, by these, my son, be admonished: of making many books there is no end; and much study is a weariness of the flesh.
15 Isa. 5:12
And the harp, and the viol, the tabret, and pipe, and wine, are in their feasts: but they regard not the work of the LORD, neither consider the operation of his hands.
16 Prov. 12:18; Prov. 15:1
There is that speaketh like the piercings of a sword: but the tongue of the wise is health.
A soft answer turneth away wrath: but grievous words stir up anger.
17 Ezek. 18:18; Exod. 1:14
As for his father, because he cruelly oppressed, spoiled his brother by violence, and did that which is not good among his people, lo, even he shall die in his iniquity.
And they made their lives bitter with hard bondage, in morter, and in brick, and in all manner of service in the field: all their service, wherein they made them serve, was with rigour.
18 Gal. 5:15; Prov. 23:29
But if ye bite and devour one another, take heed that ye be not consumed one of another.
Who hath woe? who hath sorrow? who hath contentions? who hath babbling? who hath wounds without cause? who hath redness of eyes?
19 Num. 35:16–18, 21
Num. 35:16 And if he smite him with an instrument of iron, so that he die, he is a murderer: the murderer shall surely be put to death.
Num. 35:17 And if he smite him with throwing a stone, wherewith he may die, and he die, he is a murderer: the murderer shall surely be put to death.
Num. 35:18 Or if he smite him with an hand weapon of wood, wherewith he may die, and he die, he is a murderer: the murderer shall surely be put to death.
Num. 35:21 Or in enmity smite him with his hand, that he die: he that smote him shall surely be put to death; for he is a murderer: the revenger of blood shall slay the murderer, when he meeteth him.
20 Exod. 21:18–36
Exod. 21:18 And if men strive together, and one smite another with a stone, or with his fist, and he die not, but keepeth his bed:
Exod. 21:19 If he rise again, and walk abroad upon his staff, then shall he that smote him be quit: only he shall pay for the loss of his time, and shall cause him to be thoroughly healed.
Exod. 21:20 And if a man smite his servant, or his maid, with a rod, and he die under his hand; he shall be surely punished.
Exod. 21:21 Notwithstanding, if he continue a day or two, he shall not be punished: for he is his money.
Exod. 21:22 If men strive, and hurt a woman with child, so that her fruit depart from her, and yet no mischief follow: he shall be surely punished, according as the woman’s husband will lay upon him; and he shall pay as the judges determine.
Exod. 21:23 And if any mischief follow, then thou shalt give life for life,
Exod. 21:24 Eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot,
Exod. 21:25 Burning for burning, wound for wound, stripe for stripe.
Exod. 21:26 And if a man smite the eye of his servant, or the eye of his maid, that it perish; he shall let him go free for his eye’s sake.
Exod. 21:27 And if he smite out his manservant’s tooth, or his maidservant’s tooth; he shall let him go free for his tooth’s sake.
Exod. 21:28 If an ox gore a man or a woman, that they die: then the ox shall be surely stoned, and his flesh shall not be eaten; but the owner of the ox shall be quit.
Exod. 21:29 But if the ox were wont to push with his horn in time past, and it hath been testified to his owner, and he hath not kept him in, but that he hath killed a man or a woman; the ox shall be stoned, and his owner also shall be put to death.
Exod. 21:30 If there be laid on him a sum of money, then he shall give for the ransom of his life whatsoever is laid upon him.
Exod. 21:31 Whether he have gored a son, or have gored a daughter, according to this judgment shall it be done unto him.
Exod. 21:32 If the ox shall push a manservant or a maidservant; he shall give unto their master thirty shekels of silver, and the ox shall be stoned.
Exod. 21:33 And if a man shall open a pit, or if a man shall dig a pit, and not cover it, and an ox or an ass fall therein;
Exod. 21:34 The owner of the pit shall make it good, and give money unto the owner of them; and the dead beast shall be his.
Exod. 21:35 And if one man’s ox hurt another’s, that he die; then they shall sell the live ox, and divide the money of it; and the dead ox also they shall divide.
Exod. 21:36 Or if it be known that the ox hath used to push in time past, and his owner hath not kept him in; he shall surely pay ox for ox; and the dead shall be his own.
This doctrine across the Standards
Where the Confession and the Westminster Shorter Catechism treat the same matter, so the question can be studied alongside its parallel statements.
In the Westminster Confession
XIX.1 God gave to Adam a law, as a covenant of works, by which he bound him and all …
God gave to Adam a law, as a covenant of works, by which he bound him and all his posterity to personal, entire, exact, and perpetual obedience; promised life upon the fulfilling, and threatened death upon the breach of it; and endued him with power and ability to keep it.
→ XIX.1 · Of the Law of GodXIX.2 This law, after his fall, continued to be a perfect rule of righteousness; and, as such, was delivered …
This law, after his fall, continued to be a perfect rule of righteousness; and, as such, was delivered by God upon mount Sinai in ten commandments, and written in two tables; the first four commandments containing our duty towards God, and the other six our duty to man.
→ XIX.2 · Of the Law of GodXIX.3 Beside this law, commonly called moral, God was pleased to give to the people of Israel, as a …
Beside this law, commonly called moral, God was pleased to give to the people of Israel, as a Church under age, ceremonial laws, containing several typical ordinances, partly of worship, prefiguring Christ, his graces, actions, sufferings, and benefits; and partly holding forth divers instructions of moral duties. All which ceremonial laws are now abrogated under the New Testament.
→ XIX.3 · Of the Law of GodXIX.4 To them also, as a body politic, he gave sundry judicial laws, which expired together with the State …
To them also, as a body politic, he gave sundry judicial laws, which expired together with the State of that people, not obliging any other, now, further than the general equity thereof may require.
→ XIX.4 · Of the Law of GodXIX.5 The moral law doth forever bind all, as well justified persons as others, to the obedience thereof; and …
The moral law doth forever bind all, as well justified persons as others, to the obedience thereof; and that not only in regard of the matter contained in it, but also in respect of the authority of God the Creator who gave it. Neither doth Christ in the gospel any way dissolve, but much strengthen, this obligation.
→ XIX.5 · Of the Law of GodXIX.6 Although true believers be not under the law as a covenant of works, to be thereby justified or …
Although true believers be not under the law as a covenant of works, to be thereby justified or condemned; yet is it of great use to them, as well as to others; in that, as a rule of life, informing them of the will of God and their duty, it directs and binds them to walk accordingly; discovering also the sinful pollutions of their nature, hearts, and lives; so as, examining themselves thereby, they may come to further conviction of, humiliation for, and hatred against sin; together with a clearer sight of the need they have of Christ, and the perfection of his obedience. It is likewise of use to the regenerate, to restrain their corruptions, in that it forbids sin; and the threatenings of it serve to show what even their sins deserve, and what afflictions in this life they may expect for them, although freed from the curse thereof threatened in the law. The promises of it, in like manner, show them God's approbation of obedience, and what blessings they may expect upon the performance thereof; although not as due to them by the law as a covenant of works: so as a man's doing good, and refraining from evil, because the law encourageth to the one, and deterreth from the other, is no evidence of his being under the law, and not under grace.
→ XIX.6 · Of the Law of GodXIX.7 Neither are the forementioned uses of the law contrary to the grace of the gospel, but do sweetly …
Neither are the forementioned uses of the law contrary to the grace of the gospel, but do sweetly comply with it: the Spirit of Christ subduing and enabling the will of man to do that freely and cheerfully which the will of God, revealed in the law, requireth to be done.
→ XIX.7 · Of the Law of GodIn the Westminster Shorter Catechism
Q.39 What is the duty which God requireth of man?
The duty which God requireth of man, is obedience to his revealed will.
→ Open Q.39Q.40 What did God at first reveal to man for the rule of his obedience?
The rule which God at first revealed to man for his obedience, was the moral law.
→ Open Q.40Q.41 Wherein is the moral law summarily comprehended?
The moral law is summarily comprehended in the ten commandments.
→ Open Q.41Q.42 What is the sum of the ten commandments?
The sum of the ten commandments is, To love the Lord our God with all our heart, with all our soul, with all our strength, and with all our mind; and our neighbour as ourselves.
→ Open Q.42Q.43 What is the preface to the ten commandments?
The preface to the ten commandments is in these words, I am the Lord thy God, which have brought thee out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage.
→ Open Q.43Q.44 What doth the preface to the ten commandments teach us?
The preface to the ten commandments teacheth us, That because God is the Lord, and our God, and Redeemer, therefore we are bound to keep all his commandments.
→ Open Q.44Q.45 Which is the first commandment?
The first commandment is, Thou shalt have no other gods before me.
→ Open Q.45Q.46 What is required in the first commandment?
The first commandment requireth us to know and acknowledge God to be the only true God, and our God; and to worship and glorify him accordingly.
→ Open Q.46Q.47 What is forbidden in the first commandment?
The first commandment forbiddeth the denying, or not worshipping and glorifying the true God as God, and our God; and the giving of that worship and glory to any other, which is due to him alone.
→ Open Q.47Q.48 What are we specially taught by these words, 'before me', in the first commandment?
These words, before me, in the first commandment teach us, that God, who seeth all things, taketh notice of, and is much displeased with, the sin of having any other God.
→ Open Q.48Q.49 Which is the second commandment?
The second commandment is, Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image, or any likeness of anything that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth: thou shalt not bow down thy self to them, nor serve them: for I the Lord thy God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation of them that hate me; and showing mercy unto thousands of them that love me, and keep my commandments.
→ Open Q.49Q.50 What is required in the second commandment?
The second commandment requireth the receiving, observing, and keeping pure and entire, all such religious worship and ordinances as God hath appointed in his Word.
→ Open Q.50+34 more — see the full topical treatment below.