Firstly, the Israelites were not yet in Jerusalem, and this was not to be until many years later at the time of King David. Secondly, God wanted the Israelites to have the law 'asap' since they urgently needed direction and to know Him and His ways which were for their good. So, waiting until the entry into Canaan and the capture of Jerusalem hundreds of years later would have resulted in anarchy. (they behaved badly enough even with the law)
The Ten Commandments are a pillar of Western civilization. They have improved the conduct of billions of people; but because of His covenant with them (Exodus ch.24), God specifically honored the Israelites with being the nation which would be the ones to receive and treasure the Ten Commandments (Exodus ch.19-20) until they had been absorbed by humanity in general. These Commandments are so important that God revealed His presence to the entire Israelite nation when He spoke these Commands. And He inscribed them in stone (Deuteronomy ch.9); unlike the rest of the Torah, which He had Moses write (Deuteronomy 31:24). What would Western society look like without these Commandments? 1) "I am the Lord your God..." has shaped the Western beliefs about God. Pantheism and polytheism, which were excuses for immorality, are out. 4) Without the Sixth Commandment, we might still be killing our own children, as was done in Classical European nations until Judaism and its daughter-religions put a stop to it. The above are just a few examples. See also: How has the Hebrew Bible influenced Western society? What is the history of the Hebrew Bible?
2) The 7-day week, including a day of rest for everyone, is thanks to the Fourth Commandment.
3) Without the Fifth Commandment, society might still permit abandoning our aged parents to die.
And how do Jews live by the Commandments in our daily lives?
1) "I am the Lord your God" is our reminder to be aware of God constantly. The very first paragraph in the Code of Jewish Law (Shulchan Arukh) reiterates this command.
2) "You shall not have other gods" means not to make anything other than God too important. Example: not to "worship the almighty dollar" or anything other than God.
3) "You shall not use God's name needlessly" teaches us to deal with God's names with the utmost reverence. Other than in prayer and reading the Tanakh, we don't pronounce any of God's names at all.
4) "Remember the Sabbath day": to learn the halakhot (laws) of Shabbat (Sabbath) and to prepare for the holy day properly (nice clothes, food ready, etc.). The Sabbath is a testimony to the Exodus and to the Creation of the world (Exodus 20:10; Deuteronomy 5:14).
5) "Honor your father and mother": to do our best to honor and assist them; and to avoid being cheeky to them. No "generation gap" should be allowed to spoil family ties.
6) Do not kill: also hints at avoiding character assassination or endangering someone. Slander is forbidden in Judaism even when it's not untrue.
7) Do not commit adultery: flirting is playing with fire.
8) Do not steal: even a paperclip should not be filched.
9) Do not bear false witness.
10) Do not covet: to avoid jealousy and gazing longingly at what is not ours. To realize that the other fellow's possessions have been allotted to him by God.
God gave the Ten Commandments to Moses on Mount Sinai.
Moses received the Ten Commandments on the top of Mt. Sinai from God.
No Moses was alone on Mount Sinai with god at that time.
Moses was given the 10 commandments there.
Moses talked and listened to god and also got the ten commandments there.
The Ten Commandments were given to Moses by God atop Mt. Sinai on the Sinai Peninsula, which is east of northern Egypt. Chapter 19 of Exodus describes the Israelites' coming into the wilderness of Sinai, and Chapter 20 describes God's proclamation of the Ten Commandments to Moses.
Moses went to Mount Sinai to speak to God, and collect the ten commandments.
The Hebrew name of that mountain, recorded in the Torah, is "SEE - nye". The word came into English translations of the Bible as "Sinai". The entire inverted-triangular peninsula between Egypt and Israel is known as the "Sinai" peninsula, and there is a tourist-frequented monastery in the mid-south of the peninsula on a mountain identified by some as the mountain associated with the ten commandments. But the fact is that the mountain has not been identified with any certainty.
The first thing that happened on mount Sinai was that god gave Moses the ten commandments.
According to the Old Testament the ten commandments were given to Moses by God on Mount Sinai.
It was the great prophet Moses who climbed up Mount Sinai to collect the ten commandments from God.
The bible says God gave Moses the ten commandments to Moses on Mount Sinai.