Reply Obj. 1:  The fulfilment of the commandments of the Law, even of those which are about the acts of the other virtues, has the character of justification, inasmuch as it is just that man should obey God:  or again, inasmuch as it is just that all that belongs to man should be subject to reason.

Reply Obj. 2:  Justice properly so called regards the duty of one man to another:  but all the other virtues regard the duty of the lower powers to reason.  It is in relation to this latter duty that the Philosopher speaks (Ethic. v, 11) of a kind of metaphorical justice.

The Reply to the Third Objection is clear from what has been said about the different kinds of community. ________________________

THIRD ARTICLE [I-II, Q. 100, Art. 3]

Whether All the Moral Precepts of the Old Law Are Reducible to the
Ten Precepts of the Decalogue?

Objection 1:  It would seem that not all the moral precepts of the Old Law are reducible to the ten precepts of the decalogue.  For the first and principal precepts of the Law are, “Thou shalt love the Lord thy God,” and “Thou shalt love thy neighbor,” as stated in Matt. 22:37, 39.  But these two are not contained in the precepts of the decalogue.  Therefore not all the moral precepts are contained in the precepts of the decalogue.

Obj. 2:  Further, the moral precepts are not reducible to the ceremonial precepts, but rather vice versa.  But among the precepts of the decalogue, one is ceremonial, viz.  “Remember that thou keep holy the Sabbath-day.”  Therefore the moral precepts are not reducible to all the precepts of the decalogue.

Obj. 3:  Further, the moral precepts are about all the acts of virtue.  But among the precepts of the decalogue are only such as regard acts of justice; as may be seen by going through them all.  Therefore the precepts of the decalogue do not include all the moral precepts.

On the contrary, The gloss on Matt. 5:11:  “Blessed are ye when they shall revile you,” etc. says that “Moses, after propounding the ten precepts, set them out in detail.”  Therefore all the precepts of the Law are so many parts of the precepts of the decalogue.

I answer that, The precepts of the decalogue differ from the other precepts of the Law, in the fact that God Himself is said to have given the precepts of the decalogue; whereas He gave the other precepts to the people through Moses.  Wherefore the decalogue includes those precepts the knowledge of which man has immediately from God.  Such are those which with but slight reflection can be gathered at once from the first general principles:  and those also which become known to man immediately through divinely infused faith.  Consequently two kinds of precepts are not reckoned among the precepts of the decalogue:  viz. first general principles, for they need no further promulgation after being once imprinted on the natural reason to which they are self-evident;