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Q 83: What is the basis for the fifth commandment?
A 83: The basis for the fifth commandment is that the family is the first institution of human social order, parents being responsible to raise their children in the nurture and admonition of the Lord. (Gen. 2.18-25; Deut. 6.4-7; Eph. 6.1-4).
God created marriage and the family as the first and primary institution for carrying forward the good work He began at creation. We can imagine that, had Adam and Eve not fallen into sin, and as they continued to bear children, and their children bore children, that the borders and bounty of the garden of Eden would eventually have expanded and improved to encompass the whole earth, so that the knowledge of God and His goodness would cover the earth as the waters cover the sea. While the reality of sin has complicated this agenda, it has not canceled it. God intends to use the home as the primary launch point for advancing His Kingdom and restoring the world to Himself. The fifth commandment thus establishes important parameters for how, by love, this work must proceed.
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