The Bible is full of commands to love God and love others. Jesus called these the two greatest commands.
“Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the Law?” 37 Jesus replied: “‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’ 38 This is the first and greatest commandment. 39 And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ 40 All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.”
Matthew 22:36–40
So, one answer to the first question posed in the title of this post is that they occupy the #1 and #2 spots in a prioritized list of the most important commands in the Old Testament. While that’s true, there’s more to discover about the relationship between loving God and loving neighbor.
But before we suggest other answers, let’s look at how the two greatest commands relate to the Ten Commandments or the Decalog.
Table of Contents
- The Ten Commandments
- Two Commands or One?
- Relating Love for God and Love for Neighbor
- Conclusion
The Ten Commandments
The Ten Commandments (referred to as such only in Exod 34:28; Deut 4:13; 10:4) are recorded in Exodus 20:1–17 and Deuteronomy 5:6–21. They were written—twice—on the front and back (Exod 32:15) of two tablets of stone (Exod 31:18; 32:15; 34:1, 4, 29; Deut 4:13; 5:22; 9:10, 11, 15, 17; 10:1, 3; 1 Kings 8:9; 2 Chr 5:10) by the finger of God (Exod 31:18; Deut 9:10).
Opinions vary on (a) how to divide them into ten (e.g., merge 1 and 2, divide 10), (b) how to group them (e.g., 1–4 and 5–10 or 1–5 and 6–10), and (c) how they were recorded on the two stone tablets (e.g., half on each, all on both). I won’t get into those details here, since they’re not relevant to the topic of this post. David Baker’s “Ten Commandments, Two Tablets: The Shape of the Decalogue” (Themelios 30, no. 3) covers the issues well, and I commend it to you.
Theologians often group the ten into two groups (most commonly 1–4 and 5–10 or 1–5 and 6–10) and then associate these two groups with the two greatest commandments.
| Group | Decalog | Greatest Commands |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1–4 or 1–5 | Love God |
| 2 | 5–10 or 6–10 | Love neighbor |
While the Bible itself doesn’t make these associations directly and explicitly, Paul comes close in Romans 13, where he connects the second greatest command to love your neighbor with four of the ten commandments, all of which come in the second group.
Let no debt remain outstanding, except the continuing debt to love one another, for whoever loves others has fulfilled the law. 9 The commandments, “You shall not commit adultery,” “You shall not murder,” “You shall not steal,” “You shall not covet,” and whatever other command there may be, are summed up in this one command: “Love your neighbor as yourself.” 10 Love does no harm to a neighbor. Therefore love is the fulfillment of the law.
Romans 13:8–10
Paul mentions #7 (adultery), #6 (murder), #8 (stealing), #10 (covetousness) from the Ten Commandments and then includes a catchall “whatever other command there may be,” which no doubt includes #9 (lying) and perhaps #5 (honoring parents) and other more specific commands outside the Ten Commandments. Notably absent are any of the first four. He says this group of commandments “are summed up” (v. 9) in the command “Love your neighbor as yourself,” which is “the fulfillment of the law” (v. 10b; cf. v 8b).
So there’s some biblical basis for associating this second group of commands, which focus on how we treat others, with the second greatest commandment to love our neighbors. By extension, then, we could conclude that the first group of commands corresponds to the greatest command, to love God supremely, which fits the subject of these commandments.
If you follow the 1–4 and 5–10 grouping, this is what it would look like.
Love God
The first four commands all clearly address honoring God as the only God, who is worthy of respect, reverence, and worship, and are summed up by the greatest commandment.
Love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength.
Deuteronomy 6:5 (Cf. 10:12–13; 11:1, 13, 22; 13:3; 19:9; 30:6, 16, 20; Josh 22:5; 23:11; Matt 22:37; Mark 12:30; Luke 10:27)
- God’s Exclusivity: “You shall have no other gods before me” (Exod 20:3; Deut 5:7)
- God’s Image: “You shall not make for yourself an image in the form of anything in heaven above or on the earth beneath or in the waters below. You shall not bow down to them or worship them; for I, the LORD your God, am a jealous God, punishing the children for the sin of the parents to the third and fourth generation of those who hate me, 6 but showing love to a thousand generations of those who love me and keep my commandments” (Exod 20:4–6; Deut 5:8–10).
- God’s Name: “You shall not misuse the name of the LORD your God, for the LORD will not hold anyone guiltless who misuses his name” (Exod 20:7; Deut 5:11).
- God’s Day: “Remember the Sabbath day by keeping it holy. 9 Six days you shall labor and do all your work, 10 but the seventh day is a sabbath to the LORD your God. On it you shall not do any work, neither you, nor your son or daughter, nor your male or female servant, nor your animals, nor any foreigner residing in your towns. 11 For in six days the LORD made the heavens and the earth, the sea, and all that is in them, but he rested on the seventh day. Therefore the LORD blessed the Sabbath day and made it holy” (Exod 20:8–11; Deut 5:12–15).
Love Others
The next six commands more directly address the treatment of others and are summed up by the second greatest commandment to love one’s neighbor.
Do not seek revenge or bear a grudge against anyone among your people, but love your neighbor as yourself. I am the LORD.
Leviticus 19:18 (Cf. 19:34; Matt 5:43; 19:19; 22:39; Mark 12:31, 33; Luke 10:27; Rom 13:9; Gal 5:14; James 2:8)
- Honoring Parents: “Honor your father and your mother, so that you may live long in the land the LORD your God is giving you” (Exod 20:12; Deut 5:16).
- Murder: “You shall not murder” (Exod 20:13; Deut 5:16).
- Adultery: “You shall not commit adultery” (Exod 20:14; Deut 5:18).
- Theft: “You shall not steal” (Exod 20:15; Deut 5:19).
- Falsehood: “You shall not give false testimony against your neighbor” (Exod 20:16; Deut 5:20).
- Covetousness: “You shall not covet your neighbor’s house. You shall not covet your neighbor’s wife, or his male or female servant, his ox or donkey, or anything that belongs to your neighbor” (Exod 20:17; Deut 5:21).
These ten commands summed up the moral requirements of the entire Old Testament. Other laws were more specific applications of one or more of these commands.
That means, then, that these two greatest commandments together sum up the entire Old Testament, which is precisely what Jesus said.
All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.”
MATTHEW 22:40
Two Commands or One?
However, three texts paint a slightly different picture, suggesting that the second greatest commandment by itself sums up the moral duties of the entire Old Testament.
Romans 13
In Romans 13 Paul commands believers to love one another and then quotes several of the commands from the second half of the Decalog. He says twice that loving others fulfills the law, and he doesn’t qualify that it fulfills only part of the law.
Let no debt remain outstanding, except the continuing debt to love one another, for whoever loves others has fulfilled the law. 9 The commandments, “You shall not commit adultery,” “You shall not murder,” “You shall not steal,” “You shall not covet,” and whatever other command there may be, are summed up in this one command: “Love your neighbor as yourself.” 10 Love does no harm to a neighbor. Therefore love is the fulfillment of the law.
Romans 13:8–10
Perhaps Paul is assuming the inclusion of the first greatest commandment, or perhaps he’s speaking generally and doesn’t mean to include the entire law. But that’s not the natural reading of his words.
Galatians 5
While there may be some uncertainty in Romans 13, Paul removes it in Galatians 5 when he says unambiguously that “the entire law is fulfilled in keeping this one command: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’”
You, my brothers and sisters, were called to be free. But do not use your freedom to indulge the flesh; rather, serve one another humbly in love. 14 For the entire law is fulfilled in keeping this one command: “Love your neighbor as yourself.”
Galatians 5:13–14
This text seems to leave no room for this second greatest commandment to fulfill only part of the law. He clearly has “the entire law” and “one command” in view.
The Golden Rule
Jesus makes the same connection in Matthew 7, where he defines love in terms of the Golden Rule.
So in everything, do to others what you would have them do to you, for this sums up the Law and the Prophets.
Matthew 7:12
This Golden Rule, which is an equivalent expression of the second greatest commandment to love our neighbors as we love ourselves, also “sums up the Law and the Prophets.” Like Paul, Jesus is clearly talking about only the second greatest commandment and speaks broadly of “the Law and the Prophets” with no indication that only a portion is in view.
These three texts, then, leave us with the strong impression that the second greatest commandment, “Love your neighbor as yourself,” by itself sums up and fulfills all the moral obligations of the Old Testament.
How could it be that the two greatest commandments together fulfill the Old Testament, while at the same time the second greatest commandment by itself does? Or, in mathematical terms, how can x + y = z but also y = z without x = 0?
Relating Love for God and Love for Neighbor
We tend to think of these two greatest commandments as completely separate and independent. We can think, feel, talk, and act in a way that manifests love for God, or we can think, feel, talk, and act in a way that manifests love for others. We’re either loving God or loving others at a given time.
But that’s not consistent with how the New Testament talks about loving others in relationship to loving God. I’d like to look at two themes that demonstrate a richer relationship between these two greatest commandments.
1. Love for Others as Love for God
Several texts tie love for others and love for God in a way that won’t allow for them to be viewed independently.
Love for God and Obeying God
Before we look at them, we need to establish the connection between loving God and obeying God. This is a major theme in both the Old and New Testaments.
Old Testament
In numerous Old Testament texts, love for God and obedience to his commands occur side by side.
. . . but showing love to a thousand generations of those who love me and keep my commandments.
Exodus 20:6 (Cf. Deut 5:10)
Know therefore that the LORD your God is God; he is the faithful God, keeping his covenant of love to a thousand generations of those who love him and keep his commandments.
Deuteronomy 7:9
And now, Israel, what does the LORD your God ask of you but to fear the LORD your God, to walk in obedience to him, to love him, to serve the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul . . . .
Deuteronomy 10:12
Love the LORD your God and keep his requirements, his decrees, his laws and his commands always.
Deuteronomy 11:1
So if you faithfully obey the commands I am giving you today—to love the LORD your God and to serve him with all your heart and with all your soul—
Deuteronomy 11:13
If you carefully observe all these commands I am giving you to follow—to love the LORD your God, to walk in obedience to him and to hold fast to him—
Deuteronomy 11:22
. . . because you carefully follow all these laws I command you today—to love the LORD your God and to walk always in obedience to him—then you are to set aside three more cities.
Deuteronomy 19:9
For I command you today to love the LORD your God, to walk in obedience to him, and to keep his commands, decrees and laws; then you will live and increase, and the LORD your God will bless you in the land you are entering to possess.
Deuteronomy 30:16
But be very careful to keep the commandment and the law that Moses the servant of the LORD gave you: to love the LORD your God, to walk in obedience to him, to keep his commands, to hold fast to him and to serve him with all your heart and with all your soul.”
Joshua 22:5
Then I said: “LORD, the God of heaven, the great and awesome God, who keeps his covenant of love with those who love him and keep his commandments,
Nehemiah 1:5
I prayed to the LORD my God and confessed: “Lord, the great and awesome God, who keeps his covenant of love with those who love him and keep his commandments,
Daniel 9:4
New Testament
The New Testament makes the relationship more explicit.
No one can serve two masters. Either you will hate the one and love the other, or you will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and money.
Matthew 6:24 (Cf. Luke 16:13)
If you love me, keep my commands.
John 14:15
Whoever has my commands and keeps them is the one who loves me. The one who loves me will be loved by my Father, and I too will love them and show myself to them.
John 14:21
Jesus replied, “Anyone who loves me will obey my teaching. My Father will love them, and we will come to them and make our home with them. 24 Anyone who does not love me will not obey my teaching. These words you hear are not my own; they belong to the Father who sent me.
John 14:23–24
If you keep my commands, you will remain in my love, just as I have kept my Father’s commands and remain in his love.
John 15:10
But if anyone obeys his word, love for God is truly made complete in them. This is how we know we are in him:
1 John 2:5
In fact, this is love for God: to keep his commands. And his commands are not burdensome . . . .
1 John 5:3
And this is love: that we walk in obedience to his commands. As you have heard from the beginning, his command is that you walk in love.
2 John 6
So love for God and obedience to his commands are tightly coupled in the Bible, especially in the New Testament.
Now let’s look at the primary command in the New Testament.
God’s Command to Love Others
Perhaps the most important command in the New Testament is to love others as Jesus loved us (John 13:34–35). I explored this in my post on “The New Testament Ethic of Love.”
If we love God by obeying his commands and his primary command is to love others, then loving others is loving God.
Four texts make this direct connection between loving others and loving God.
John 21:15–17
Three times Jesus tells the restored Peter that if he love him he’ll love his people by caring for them and feeding them.
When they had finished eating, Jesus said to Simon Peter, “Simon son of John, do you love me more than these?” “Yes, Lord,” he said, “you know that I love you.” Jesus said, “Feed my lambs.” 16 Again Jesus said, “Simon son of John, do you love me?” He answered, “Yes, Lord, you know that I love you.” Jesus said, “Take care of my sheep.” 17 The third time he said to him, “Simon son of John, do you love me?” Peter was hurt because Jesus asked him the third time, “Do you love me?” He said, “Lord, you know all things; you know that I love you.” Jesus said, “Feed my sheep.
John 21:15–17
Hebrews 6:10
Helping God’s people, a clear expression of love for neighbor, is how believers show their love for God.
God is not unjust; he will not forget your work and the love you have shown him as you have helped his people and continue to help them.
Hebrews 6:10
1 John 5:2–3
John tightly connects loving others, loving God, and obeying God’s commands.
This is how we know that we love the children of God: by loving God and carrying out his commands. 3 In fact, this is love for God: to keep his commands. And his commands are not burdensome,
1 John 5:2–3
2 John 6
Love for God is walking in obedience to his commands, and his primary command is that we walk in love toward one another.
And this is love: that we walk in obedience to his commands. As you have heard from the beginning, his command is that you walk in love.
2 John 6
The conclusion from these texts is that loving others is loving God.
(See also 1 John 4:19–21, where John makes it clear that it’s impossible for love for God to exist apart from love for others.)
2. Hypostatic Union and Union with Christ
The doctrines of the hypostatic union and union with Christ may also shed some light on this interconnection between the two greatest commandments.
Hypostatic Union
God and man meet in the person of Christ. He is the eternal God who mysteriously became fully human, and yet without ceasing to be all that he was. Because Jesus is the God-Man, he can be the mediator between God and man and bring us back to God.
Union with Christ
Through faith we enter into a mysterious yet vital and real relationship with Jesus. He is the head, and we are the body (Eph 5:23; Col 1:18; 2:19). He is the husband, and we are his wife (Eph 5:25–33). He is the cornerstone, and we are the building (Eph 19–22). He is the vine, and we are the branches (John 15:1–8).
As a result of this union, God treats us in terms of Christ. We enter into many of the same privileges and experiences as Christ himself.
Jesus gives us a glimpse into this reality in John 17:
I have given them the glory that you gave me, that they may be one as we are one—23 I in them and you in me—so that they may be brought to complete unity. Then the world will know that you sent me and have loved them even as you have loved me.
John 17:22–23
In addition, treatment of God’s people is treatment of Christ.
We saw this hinted at in John 21:15–17. Four texts illustrate this vital connection.
Matthew 25:31–46
“When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, he will sit on his glorious throne. 32 All the nations will be gathered before him, and he will separate the people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. 33 He will put the sheep on his right and the goats on his left. 34 “Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world. 35 For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, 36 I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.’ 37 “Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? 38 When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? 39 When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?’ 40 “The King will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.’ 41 “Then he will say to those on his left, ‘Depart from me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels. 42 For I was hungry and you gave me nothing to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me nothing to drink, 43 I was a stranger and you did not invite me in, I needed clothes and you did not clothe me, I was sick and in prison and you did not look after me.’ 44 “They also will answer, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or needing clothes or sick or in prison, and did not help you?’ 45 “He will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did not do for one of the least of these, you did not do for me.’ 46 “Then they will go away to eternal punishment, but the righteous to eternal life.”
Matthew 25:31–46
Acts 9:4 (cf. 22:7; 26:14)
He fell to the ground and heard a voice say to him, “Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me?”
Acts 9:4 (cf. 22:7; 26:14)
Romans 14:13–18
Therefore let us stop passing judgment on one another. Instead, make up your mind not to put any stumbling block or obstacle in the way of a brother or sister. 14 I am convinced, being fully persuaded in the Lord Jesus, that nothing is unclean in itself. But if anyone regards something as unclean, then for that person it is unclean. 15 If your brother or sister is distressed because of what you eat, you are no longer acting in love. Do not by your eating destroy someone for whom Christ died. 16 Therefore do not let what you know is good be spoken of as evil. 17 For the kingdom of God is not a matter of eating and drinking, but of righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Spirit, 18 because anyone who serves Christ in this way is pleasing to God and receives human approval.
Romans 14:13–18
1 Corinthians 8:12
When you sin against them in this way and wound their weak conscience, you sin against Christ.
1 Corinthians 8:12
This theological reality of the believer’s union with Christ, then, provides another set of theological underpinnings for how love for others can equate to love for God.1
This isn’t necessarily to suggest that there aren’t ways to love God that aren’t directly loving others (though how the second greatest command fulfills the entire law by itself may seem to suggest so). Rather, all true love for others is love for God, especially as we (a) love others in obedience to God out of a motive of love for him and (b) recognize God’s people as being in vital union with Jesus, who is in vital union with God and is himself God.
So, we might think of the relationship between loving God and loving others like this.
Conclusion
In conclusion, love for God and love for others relate in at least two ways: (1) love for others is one of God’s primary commands, and obeying God’s commands is loving God; therefore, loving others is loving God; and (2) loving others in union with Christ is loving Christ, who is in union with God and is himself God; therefore, loving others is loving God. Loving others, then, is one of the most important ways we can love God.
See my previous post “The New Testament Ethic of Love” for more on what it means to love others. See also “Does Matthew 5:48 Require Sinless Perfection?” for a discussion of the radical nature of God’s love.
- The doctrine of humans as the image of God may also be a fruitful exploration. Could our love for others be a love for the beauty of Christ as we see his image in them? Perhaps I’ll explore this idea in a future post. [↩]
