Ten Commandments thy neighbor's wife") is directed against a sin which may lead to a trespassing of all Ten Commandments. Critical scholarship is divided over its interpretation of the ten commandment texts. Julius Wellhausen's influential hypothesis regarding the formation of the Pentateuch suggests that Exodus 20-23 and 34 "might be regarded as the document which formed the starting point of the religious history of Israel." Deuteronomy 5 then reflects King Josiah's attempt to link the document produced by his court to the older Mosaic tradition. In a 2002 analysis of the history of this position, Bernard M. Levinson argued that this reconstruction
Ten Commandments Mosaic dispensation itself was concluded upon the appearance of Christ, the moral law remains a vital component of the covenant of grace, having Christ as its perfecting end." As such, in Methodism, an "important aspect of the pursuit of sanctification is the careful following" of the Ten Commandments. The Ten Commandments are a summary of the requirements of a works covenant (called the "Old Covenant"), given on Mount Sinai to the nascent nation of Israel. The Old Covenant came to an end at the cross and is therefore not in effect. They do reflect the eternal character of God, and