None Other Commandment

And Jesus answered him, The first of all the commandments is, Hear, O Israel; The Lord our God is one Lord: And thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind, and with all thy strength: this is the first commandment. And the second is like, namely this, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. There is none other commandment greater than these. Mark 12:29-31

Protos is the Greek word translated as “the first” of “all” (pas), or, the primary and most important of the “commandments” (entole). I marvel at how most “Christians” consider “commandments” to be suggestions when the very word, “commandment,” is an injunction. This means that it is an authoritative and compelling, even unalterable, rule. When this unalterable rule is given as a dictum of God one would think that it should be adhered to with the highest degree of respect.

This first of all commandments establishes the passion of covenant relationship that God requires of those who would join themselves to Him. “Thou shalt love (agapao)” the Lord thy God unconditionally, without end. We have spoken of this eternal covenant love before and so need not labor here.

This “love (agapao)” is to emanate from, and literally (holos) consume, the believers’ heart (kardia), soul (psuche), mind (dianoia) and strength (ischus). Every fiber of the believers’ being, physically, emotionally, intellectually and all of one’s ability and energy should be involved in developing the covenant relationship that this kind of love requires.

The second (deuteros) commandment, or, the other of two, demands the same intensity of love (agapao) toward all who are “near neighbors” (plesion). This “near neighbor” is anyone who is also in covenant with the “one Lord,” the “Lord our God,” who gave commandment.