(Continuation)

[2] The previous article treated of the two things necessary that works may be good, namely, that the Divine of the Lord be acknowledged, and that the evils forbidden in the Decalogue be shunned as sins. The evils enumerated in the Decalogue include all the evils that can ever exist; therefore the Decalogue is called the ten commandments, because "ten" signifies all. The first commandment, "Thou shalt not worship other gods," includes not loving self and the world; for he that loves self and the world above all things worships other gods; for everyone's god is that which he loves above all things. The second commandment, "Thou shalt not profane the name of God," includes not to despise the Word and doctrine from the Word, and thus the church, and not to reject these from the heart, for these are God's "name." The fifth commandment, "Thou shalt not steal," includes the shunning of frauds and unlawful gains, for these also are thefts. The sixth commandment, "Thou shalt not commit adultery," includes having delight in adulteries and having no delight in marriages, and in particular cherishing filthy thoughts respecting such things as pertain to marriage, for these are adulteries. The seventh commandment, "Thou shalt not kill," includes not hating the neighbor nor loving revenge; for hatred and revenge breathe murder. The eighth commandment, "Thou shalt not bear false witness," includes not to lie and blaspheme; for lies and blasphemies are false testimonies. The ninth commandment, "Thou shalt not covet thy neighbor's house," includes not wishing to possess or to divert to oneself the goods of others against their will. The tenth commandment, "Thou shalt not covet thy neighbor's wife, his man-servants," and so on, includes not wishing to rule over others and to subject them to oneself, for the things here enumerated mean the things that are man's own. Anyone can see that these eight commandments contain the evils that must be shunned, and not the goods that must be done.