THE fifth commandment, "Honour thy father and thy mother: that thy days may be long upon the land which the Lord thy God giveth thee" (Ex. 20:12), set forth a fundamental rule with wide implications, including the promise that when obeyed the commandment would assure the reward of long years of active service in the land assigned by God to the children of Israel.
Here, surely, is a law demanding honor not only to our human parents but also to our heavenly Parent, whose loving care was eloquently indicated in the Psalmist's words (Ps. 27:10), "When my father and my mother forsake me, then the Lord will take me up." This commandment emphasizes the necessity and joyous results of honoring God. When Jesus was addressing the young man who asked for counsel in his longing to have eternal life, the fifth commandment was one which the Master especially commended as leading to the desired goal (see Matt. 19:19).
The Master himself fulfilled his obligations to this commandment in both of its basic aspects. His love for his mother and his loyalty to her and to Joseph are partly indicated in the statement that, as a boy, "he went down with them, and came to Nazareth, and was subject unto them" (Luke 2:51). Later, at his crucifixion, he delivered his mother to the special care of "the disciple . . . whom he loved" (John 19:26), generally considered to be John.
