The English term "Ten Commandments" is not an exact translation of the Hebrew phrase Aseret Hadibrot (“Ten Statements”). Moreover, this terminology isn’t even accurate since the Aseret Hadibrot actually contain 11-15 commandments, depending on how you count.

Statements vs. Commandments

Scripture tells us that G‑d communicated ten statements when He gave the Torah at Mount Sinai. G‑d then engraved these statements onto two tablets and gave them to Moses to give to the people.

Later, Scripture refers to them as Aseret Hadevarim, “the Ten Statements,” which is more accurately rendered as the Decalogue.1 Other sources refer to them as Aseret Hadibrot, which is essentially the same thing. Nowhere in Jewish literature, from Scripture to Talmud to Kabbalah, are they ever referred to as the Ten Commandments.

A mitzvah, or commandment, is a Divine directive to perform or abstain from specific acts. An individual action item involved in an obligation or prohibition constitutes an independent mitzvah. Thus, more than one mitzvah may be included in a single paragraph or phrase of the Torah.

List of Commandments in the Decalogue

The classic 13th-century work Sefer HaChinuch, an anonymous composition, meticulously details and explains the 613 commandments according to their appearance in the Torah (based on Maimonides' enumeration of the mitzvahs). Notably, in Exodus, Sefer HaChinuch identifies a total of 14 commandments within the Decalogue:2

1. To know there is a G‑d3

2. Not to entertain thoughts of other gods besides Him4

3. Not to make an idol for yourself5

4. Not to worship idols in the manner they are worshiped6

5. Not to worship idols in the four7 ways G‑d is worshiped8

6. Not to take G‑d's Name in vain9

7. To sanctify the day of Shabbat10

8. Not to do prohibited labor on the seventh day11

9. To honor one's father and mother12

10. Not to murder13

11. Not to commit adultery14

12. Not to kidnap15

13. Not to testify falsely16

14. Not to covet and scheme to acquire another's possession17

Is the First “Commandment” a Commandment?

Some opine that the first commandment (“I am the L‑rd your G‑d”) cannot be counted as a commandment. To quote Rabbi Chesdai Cerescas (14th century Spain):

Those who count belief in G‑d as a commandment are making an error because a mitzvah, by definition, is something additional—a mitzvah cannot exist without a G‑d issuing the command. Therefore, if belief in G‑d is counted as a command, the person has already accepted that there is a G‑d who is commanding them to believe in G‑d . . .18

Indeed, for this reason, the Baal Halachot Gedolot (c.760 CE–c.920 CE), who was the first to formally compile a list of all the commandments in the Torah, omits belief in G‑d from his list.

However, the majority of those who enumerate the mitzvahs do count belief in G‑d as a mitzvah. They explain that the mitzvah isn’t simply the belief that G‑d exists (in which case Rabbi Crescas would be correct); rather, one is commanded to believe that G‑d is the most perfect and eternal Being, and He transcends all of creation.19

See Is It a Mitzvah to Believe in G‑d?

Other Ways of Counting

Others, notably Nachmanides, condense the clauses “Not to worship idols in the manner they are worshiped” and “Not to worship idols in the four ways we worship G‑d” into a general prohibition against having other gods.20

Nachmanides also opines that the prohibition against making idols is not included in the Aseret Hadibrot; rather, its primary source is in Leviticus: “You shall not turn to the worthless idols, nor shall you make molten deities for yourselves. I am the L‑rd, your G‑d.” 21 22

Not To Covet: One or Two?

The Aseret Hadibrot appear twice in the Torah, once in Exodus and once in Deuteronomy, albeit with slight differences (see Why Two Versions of the Ten Commandments?).

In Exodus, the final instruction is not to covet (Lo tachmod). However, in Deuteronomy, the Torah adds another phrase, Lo titaveh, “You shall not desire your neighbor’s house, field, etc.”

While many perceive these two expressions as different aspects of the same mitzvah, Maimonides counts them as separate commandments. Lo titaveh refers to the prohibition of the desire, while Lo tachmod refers to coveting an object to the point of obtaining it. (For more on this, see “Do Not Covet” - The Prohibition Against Coveting Another’s Possessions.)

Thus, if you include Maimonides’ opinion on the version of the Aseret Hadibrot in Deuteronomy, there are actually 15 mitzvahs in the Aseret Hadibrot.

What’s so special about them?

Although, for the sake of clarity, we often refer to the Aseret Hadibrot as the Ten Commandments, the fact that the Torah calls them “Ten Statements” and never refers to them by the number of mitzvahs they contain underscores an essential truth. The Aseret Hadibrot aren’t significant due to the specific mitzvahs within them, but rather what they represent: the giving of the entire Torah to the Jewish people.

See Why Are the 10 Commandments So Special?