Property (1–15). God wants us to respect personal property, and the key idea here is restitution (vv. 3, 5, 6, 12). It is not enough to admit the crime and show sorrow over it. There must also be a readiness to make things right with those who have been hurt (Prov. 6:30–31; Luke 19:8). David knew verse 1 and could apply it to others (2 Sam. 12:1–6), but he did not apply Exodus 20:13–14 to himself.
Persons (16–27). These many laws reveal the holiness of God and His desire that we be a holy people (v. 31). When obeyed, these laws protected the people from violence, extortion, oppression, and affliction. God has compassion on widows and orphans, poor workers (James 5:1–4), and strangers. Do we?
Principles (28–31). Respect God and put Him first in everything. Jesus summarized it in Matthew 6:33. If we truly love God with all our hearts, we will have no desire to hurt others. But if God is not first, we will start exploiting people to get what we want.
