# CCXXXIX explained — Poetry

> Chapter companion for Poetry by Ambrose Bierce.

## What happens

A brief reflection on the Ten Commandments, suggesting that the absence of explicit prohibitions does not prevent one from committing sins not listed.

## Themes in this chapter

### Hypocrisy and Corruption

The stanza implies a loophole in moral law, highlighting the hypocrisy of exploiting unlisted sins.

## Key lines

> There are but ten Commandments, true, But that’s no hardship, friend, to you; The sins whereof no line is writ You’re not commanded to commit.

Though there are only ten commandments, that is no burden for you, because you are not commanded to avoid sins that are not written down.

_The speaker sarcastically notes that the absence of a written prohibition on certain sins gives license to commit them._

## Links

- HTML: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/poetry_se/chapters/ccxxxix
- Book: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/poetry_se
- All chapters: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/poetry_se/chapters