Beginning of the End - Ellen G. White

servant, nor his ox, nor his donkey, nor anything that is your
neighbor's."
The tenth commandment strikes at the very root of all sins--it
prohibits the selfish desire, from which springs the sinful act. The
person who refuses to indulge even a sinful desire for something
that belongs to another will not be guilty of a wrong act toward
anyone else.
God proclaimed His law with demonstrations of His power and
glory, so that His people would never forget the scene. He wanted to
show everyone the sacredness and permanence of His law.
God's Law Is a Law of Love
As God's great rule of right was presented before them, the
people realized as never before how offensive sin is to a holy God
and how guilty they were in His sight. They cried out to Moses,
"You speak with us, and we will hear; but let not God speak with us,
lest we die." The leader answered, "Do not fear; for God has come
to test you, and that His fear may be before you, so that you may not
sin."
Blinded and depraved by slavery and heathenism, the people
were not prepared to fully understand the far-reaching principles of
God's Ten Commandments. Additional instruction was given,
illustrating and applying these principles. These laws were called
"judgments" because the magistrates were to give judgment
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