Overview

The exposition of the commandments begins with the first table — our duty to God. This section covers the first commandment (Q45–48): the command to take the Lord alone as our God, what it requires, what it forbids, and the special force of its reasons.

The Questions & Answers

Q45. Which is the first commandment? A. The first commandment is, Thou shalt have no other gods before me.

Scripture Proofs (ESV):

“You shall have no other gods before me.” (Exod. 20:3, ESV)

Q46. What is required in the first commandment? A. The first commandment requireth us to know and acknowledge God to be the only true God, and our God; and to worship and glorify him accordingly.

Scripture Proofs (ESV):

“And this is eternal life, that they know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom you have sent.” (John 17:3, ESV)

Further proofs: 1 Chron. 28:9; Deut. 26:17; Ps. 95:6–7; Matt. 4:10.

Q47. What is forbidden in the first commandment? A. The first commandment forbiddeth the denying, or not worshipping and glorifying the true God as God, and our God; and the giving of that worship and glory to any other, which is due to him alone.

Scripture Proofs (ESV):

“…they exchanged the truth about God for a lie and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator.” (Rom. 1:25, ESV)

Further proofs: Ps. 14:1; Rom. 1:21, 25; Ezek. 8:16–18; Dan. 3:28.

Q48. What are we specially taught by these words, before me, in the first commandment? A. These words, before me, in the first commandment, teach us, That God, who seeth all things, taketh notice of, and is much displeased with, the sin of having any other god.

Scripture Proofs (ESV):

“…for all things are naked and open to the eyes of him to whom we have to give account.” (Heb. 4:13, ESV; cf. Ezek. 8:5–6)

Further proofs: Ps. 44:20–21; 1 Chron. 28:9.

Exposition: The first commandment governs who we worship (the second will govern how). Q46 requires both inward “know[ing] and acknowledg[ing]” God and outward “worship and glorify[ing]” Him — heart and act together. Q47 forbids both the godless extreme (denying or neglecting the true God) and the idolatrous one (giving His worship to another). The deep insight of Q48 is that “before me” means “before my face”: idolatry is committed in the very presence of the God who sees all. The first commandment thus searches not just our altars but our affections — for whatever we love, trust, or fear most is our functional god.

Connections

• WLC Q103–106 — the first commandment; the duties required; the sins forbidden; the special reason annexed in the words “before me.”
• WCF 21 (Of Religious Worship) — worship due to God alone, through Christ alone.
• Loci: The first commandment; the worship of God; idolatry of the heart (Col. 3:5).

Pastoral & Practical Significance

The first commandment is the root of all the others: get God right, and the rest follows; dethrone Him, and everything else goes wrong. Its searching power is that idolatry is rarely about literal statues for us, but about the “functional gods” of the heart — the things we look to for the security, identity, and joy that belong to God alone. Money, approval, romance, success, even family or ministry can quietly take God’s place “before [His] face.” Q48 presses this home with both warning and intimacy: the God who sees all is “much displeased” with rival gods — yet the same omniscience means He sees and welcomes the heart that takes Him as its only God. To “have the Lord as your God” is not a burden but the fulfillment of Q1: He is the only One who can finally satisfy. Examine your heart: what do you most fear losing? what do you most long for? There you may find the god that competes with the LORD.

For Memory & Reflection

• Memorize Q46 and Q47; anchor verse: John 17:3. The pattern (what is required / what is forbidden) repeats through all the commandments.
• “Before me” means before God’s face. What “functional gods” do I serve in the presence of the God who sees all?
• Q46 requires both knowing God inwardly and worshiping Him outwardly. Which do I tend to neglect?