Honor your father and your mother means more than simply to obey your parents. This commandment was addressed primarily to adults, and the word for Honor means “to give weight or dignity to,” in the sense of “Respect” (Good News Translation). It is significant that both father and mother are listed here, for the Israelite culture was male oriented. Since this gives equal importance to the mother, one should not translate “parents.”

That means “so that,” or “in order that.” This introduces a promise rather than a reason, as in the preceding commandment. (See Eph 6.2-3.) That your days may be long is literally “so that your [singular] days will lengthen.” This means “so that you may live a long time” (Good News Translation) or “may live a long life” (New American Bible). This expression is used repeatedly in Deuteronomy in the sense of enjoying prosperity as well as long life, so Revised English Bible has “so that you may enjoy long life.”

In the land which the LORD your God gives you refers to the “promised land” (Durham). The word for land refers to the ground or soil (as in Gen 2.7), suggesting a prosperous agricultural life. The LORD your God is “Yahweh your [singular] ʾelohim.” Gives you is better understood as “is giving you” (New American Bible, New Jerusalem Bible), for the participle suggests ongoing action. New Jewish Publication Society’s Tanakh has “is assigning you.”

Quoted with permission from Osborn, Noel D. and Hatton, Howard A. A Handbook on Exodus. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 1999. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .