Berean BlueApp preview

Heidelberg Catechism, Question 105

Question 105

What doth God require in the sixth command?

That neither in thoughts, nor words, nor gestures, much less in deeds, I dishonour, hate, wound, or kill my neighbour, by myself, or by another (Eph. 4;31), but that I lay aside all desire of revenge (Rom. 12;17, 19); also all desire of revenge (Rom. 12;17, 19); also that I hurt not myself, or wilfully expose myself to danger (Eph. 5;29). Wherefore also the magistrate is armed with the sword, to prevent murder (Rom. 13;4).

Scripture references for paragraph 1

Berean Standard Bible. Public domain text and source credits.

Ephesians 4:31

31Get rid of all bitterness, rage and anger, outcry and slander, along with every form of malice.

Zechariah 8:16

16These are the things you must do: Speak truth to one another, render true and sound judgments in your gates,

Zechariah 8:17

17do not plot evil in your hearts against your neighbor, and do not love to swear falsely, for I hate all these things,” declares the LORD.

Matthew 5:22

22But I tell you that anyone who is angry with his brother will be subject to judgment. Again, anyone who says to his brother, ‘Raca,’ will be subject to the Sanhedrin. But anyone who says, ‘You fool!’ will be subject to the fire of hell.

2 Samuel 12:9

9Why then have you despised the command of the LORD by doing evil in His sight? You put Uriah the Hittite to the sword and took his wife as your own, for you have slain him with the sword of the Ammonites.

Psalms 15:1

1O LORD, who may abide in Your tent? Who may dwell on Your holy mountain?

Psalms 15:3

3who has no slander on his tongue, who does no harm to his neighbor, who casts no scorn on his friend,

Leviticus 19:17

17You must not harbor hatred against your brother in your heart. Directly rebuke your neighbor, so that you will not incur guilt on account of him.

Leviticus 24:17

17And if a man takes the life of anyone else, he must surely be put to death.

Genesis 4:6

6“Why are you angry,” said the LORD to Cain, “and why has your countenance fallen?

Romans 12:17

17Do not repay anyone evil for evil. Carefully consider what is right in the eyes of everybody.

Romans 12:19

19Do not avenge yourselves, beloved, but leave room for God’s wrath. For it is written: “Vengeance is Mine; I will repay, says the Lord.”

Leviticus 19:18

18Do not seek revenge or bear a grudge against any of your people, but love your neighbor as yourself. I am the LORD.

Ephesians 5:29

29Indeed, no one ever hated his own body, but he nourishes and cherishes it, just as Christ does the church.

Matthew 4:7

7Jesus replied, “It is also written: ‘Do not put the Lord your God to the test.’”

Romans 13:4

4For he is God’s servant for your good. But if you do wrong, be afraid, for he does not carry the sword in vain. He is God’s servant, an agent of retribution to the wrongdoer.

Genesis 9:6

6Whoever sheds the blood of man, by man his blood will be shed; for in His own image God has made mankind.

Source and edition

Heidelberg Catechism. RCA English, E. R. Good & Bro., Tiffin, 1879. RCA English, E. R. Good & Bro., Tiffin, 1879

Public Domain (historic text); CC BY-SA 4.0 (Wikisource transcription). Source transcription.

Transcription licensed under Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0.

Berean Blue opens December 1, 2026 for Bible reading, study, and research. View this work in the app preview.