The Tenth Commandment

Exodus 20:17

“You shall not covet your neighbor’s house; you shall not covet your neighbor’s wife, or his male servant, or his female servant, or his ox, or his donkey, or anything that is your neighbor’s.”

Deuteronomy 5:21

“‘And you shall not covet your neighbor’s wife. And you shall not desire your neighbor’s house, his field, or his male servant, or his female servant, his ox, or his donkey, or anything that is your neighbor’s.’”

Luke 12:13-21; Ephesians 5:5; Colossians 3:5; 1 Timothy 6:6-8

At the root of all coveting is the desire for autonomy—what Augustine referred to as a “deadly corrosive.” We want to be our own god, to make up our own minds about what we should have and enjoy. We do not want to be restricted or constrained by God telling us what’s good for us. This was the strategy Satan employed to bring Adam and Eve to rebellion.

When we indulge coveting, we are seeking to throw off our creaturely status, rejecting contentment in the Lord and His will and seeking to arrogate power and authority unto ourselves. We want to be god!

Thus, coveting brings the Law full circle. Even the temptation to covet, therefore, can be used of God to reinforce obedience to Him. Guard against all coveting, and you will strengthen fear and love of God, know a greater desire to please Him, and discover that you walk more obediently in all His ways.

And this is the path of righteousness, of fullness of joy, life, and pleasure forevermore.

In this series of In the Gates we present a detailed explanation of the Law of God, beginning with the Ten Commandments, and working through the statutes and rules that accompany each commandment. For a practical guide to the role of God’s Law in the practice of ethics, get The Ground for Christian Ethics by going to www.MyParuchia.com and click on our Book Store.

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In the Gates is a devotional series on the Law of God by Rev. T.M. Moore, editor of the Worldview Church. He serves as dean of the Centurions Program of the Wilberforce Forum and principal of The Fellowship of Ailbe, a spiritual fellowship in the Celtic Christian tradition. He is the author or editor of twenty books, and has contributed chapters to four others. His essays, reviews, articles, papers, and poetry have appeared in dozens of national and international journals, and on a wide range of websites. His most recent books are The Ailbe Psalter and The Ground for Christian Ethics (Waxed Tablet).

Scripture quotations in this article are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version, (c) copyright 2001, 2007 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

The Tenth Commandment

Exodus 20:17

“You shall not covet your neighbor’s house; you shall not covet your neighbor’s wife, or his male servant, or his female servant, or his ox, or his donkey, or anything that is your neighbor’s.”

Deuteronomy 5:21

“‘And you shall not covet your neighbor’s wife. And you shall not desire your neighbor’s house, his field, or his male servant, or his female servant, his ox, or his donkey, or anything that is your neighbor’s.’”

Luke 12:13-21; Ephesians 5:5; Colossians 3:5; 1 Timothy 6:6-8

In Psalm 73 Asaph gives us a concise formula for dealing with covetousness and all temptation.

First, we must recognize that it is at work within us. We must realize that covetousness is seeking to divert our focus, destroy our peace, and lead us to greater sins (vv. 1-15).

Next, we must remember our duty to our neighbors, to love them purely and without self-interest (v. 15). At the same time, by thinking through the consequences of our falling to temptation, we may become sufficiently embittered in our souls against it to forestall coveting growing any further (vv. 18-21).

Then, seeking the Lord in prayer and in His Word, we must renew our focus on Him and our love for Him as the supreme Object of our desire (vv. 23-26). We will not be able to know fullness of joy and pleasure forevermore in the presence of God (Ps. 16:11) if we prefer to allow covetousness to have its way in our souls.

Let us keep a close watch, then, on all our desires, so that we may see and overcome covetousness before it captures and overthrows us.

In this series of In the Gates we present a detailed explanation of the Law of God, beginning with the Ten Commandments, and working through the statutes and rules that accompany each commandment. For a practical guide to the role of God’s Law in the practice of ethics, get The Ground for Christian Ethics by going to www.MyParuchia.com and click on our Book Store.

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In the Gates is a devotional series on the Law of God by Rev. T.M. Moore, editor of the Worldview Church. He serves as dean of the Centurions Program of the Wilberforce Forum and principal of The Fellowship of Ailbe, a spiritual fellowship in the Celtic Christian tradition. He is the author or editor of twenty books, and has contributed chapters to four others. His essays, reviews, articles, papers, and poetry have appeared in dozens of national and international journals, and on a wide range of websites. His most recent books are The Ailbe Psalter and The Ground for Christian Ethics (Waxed Tablet).

Scripture quotations in this article are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version, (c) copyright 2001, 2007 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

The Tenth Commandment

Exodus 20:17

“You shall not covet your neighbor’s house; you shall not covet your neighbor’s wife, or his male servant, or his female servant, or his ox, or his donkey, or anything that is your neighbor’s.”

Deuteronomy 5:21

“‘And you shall not covet your neighbor’s wife. And you shall not desire your neighbor’s house, his field, or his male servant, or his female servant, his ox, or his donkey, or anything that is your neighbor’s.’”

Luke 12:13-21; Ephesians 5:5; Colossians 3:5; 1 Timothy 6:6-8

Coveting will issue in other sins. It’s just a matter of time. James explains how coveting leads to strife, quarreling, and worse (Jas. 4:2, 3). In Scripture we see many examples of this. Cain coveted Abel’s blessing, leading to murder. Abraham coveted safety above trust in the Lord and nearly compromised his wife’s purity. Achan coveted the spoil of Jericho and stole from the Lord, to the harm of his neighbors. David coveted Bathsheba, leading to conspiracy and murder. Judas coveted silver, and he betrayed the Lord.

Thus it is crucial to a growing walk with the Lord that believers learn to recognize covetousness and to take it before the Lord in prayer, seeking grace to help in our time of need.

In this series of In the Gates we present a detailed explanation of the Law of God, beginning with the Ten Commandments, and working through the statutes and rules that accompany each commandment. For a practical guide to the role of God’s Law in the practice of ethics, get The Ground for Christian Ethics by going to www.MyParuchia.com and click on our Book Store.

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In the Gates is a devotional series on the Law of God by Rev. T.M. Moore, editor of the Worldview Church. He serves as dean of the Centurions Program of the Wilberforce Forum and principal of The Fellowship of Ailbe, a spiritual fellowship in the Celtic Christian tradition. He is the author or editor of twenty books, and has contributed chapters to four others. His essays, reviews, articles, papers, and poetry have appeared in dozens of national and international journals, and on a wide range of websites. His most recent books are The Ailbe Psalter and The Ground for Christian Ethics (Waxed Tablet).

Scripture quotations in this article are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version, (c) copyright 2001, 2007 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

The Tenth Commandment

Exodus 20:17

“You shall not covet your neighbor’s house; you shall not covet your neighbor’s wife, or his male servant, or his female servant, or his ox, or his donkey, or anything that is your neighbor’s.”

Deuteronomy 5:21

“‘And you shall not covet your neighbor’s wife. And you shall not desire your neighbor’s house, his field, or his male servant, or his female servant, his ox, or his donkey, or anything that is your neighbor’s.’”

Luke 12:13-21; Ephesians 5:5; Colossians 3:5; 1 Timothy 6:6-8

How, then, can we control our desires? First, we must be alert to when desire is operating, and what its object is in any action we may be contemplating. When our thoughts linger on something, to the point that our imaginations begin to treat that as our own, to see us in possession of it, whatever it may be—then desire is at work. But this may not necessarily be covetousness.

Desire makes the affections resonate with the possession of what we imagine ourselves having, so that excitement, happiness, anticipate, hope, and many other affections begin to rally to the imagination’s support. Before these combine to become a passion or obsession (cf. Jas. 4:2, 3), we must evaluate our desire, and the object of it, in order to determine whether this yearning is from God or the law of sin. The Spirit of God is able to convict us of sin, righteousness, and judgment (John 16:8-11); thus, we must continually refer our desires to Him, submitting our thinking to the Word of God and considering the nature, focus, and likely outcomes of what we are imagining.

By such prayerful and thoughtful means we may hope to identify the early stages of coveting and nip it before it bears fruit in other sin.

In this series of In the Gates we present a detailed explanation of the Law of God, beginning with the Ten Commandments, and working through the statutes and rules that accompany each commandment. For a practical guide to the role of God’s Law in the practice of ethics, get The Ground for Christian Ethics by going to www.MyParuchia.com and click on our Book Store.

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In the Gates is a devotional series on the Law of God by Rev. T.M. Moore, editor of the Worldview Church. He serves as dean of the Centurions Program of the Wilberforce Forum and principal of The Fellowship of Ailbe, a spiritual fellowship in the Celtic Christian tradition. He is the author or editor of twenty books, and has contributed chapters to four others. His essays, reviews, articles, papers, and poetry have appeared in dozens of national and international journals, and on a wide range of websites. His most recent books are The Ailbe Psalter and The Ground for Christian Ethics (Waxed Tablet).

Scripture quotations in this article are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version, (c) copyright 2001, 2007 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

The Tenth Commandment

Exodus 20:17

“You shall not covet your neighbor’s house; you shall not covet your neighbor’s wife, or his male servant, or his female servant, or his ox, or his donkey, or anything that is your neighbor’s.”

Deuteronomy 5:21

“‘And you shall not covet your neighbor’s wife. And you shall not desire your neighbor’s house, his field, or his male servant, or his female servant, his ox, or his donkey, or anything that is your neighbor’s.’”

Luke 12:13-21; Ephesians 5:5; Colossians 3:5; 1 Timothy 6:6-8

So the tenth commandment links the Law back to the first commandment, challenging us to cultivate love for God as the commanding affection of our hearts (Matt. 22:34-40).

“Peter, do you love me more than these?” Over and over Jesus challenged Peter to examine his heart. What did he really love? And how much did he love it? God calls us to submit to the searching of His Spirit with respect to what is in our hearts (Ps. 139:23, 24), for we are not always as guarded as we should be with respect to our affections.

“Guard your heart with all vigilance!” was Solomon’s instruction to his son. But Rehoboam did not. He loved the idea of being king and wielding power more than of loving God and serving God’s people. Rehoboam’s covetous heart tore the nation of Israel in two and set the people of God on a downward spiral of rebellion, dissolution, and destruction.

Covetousness is not just a harmless peccadillo, a silly act of self-indulgence. It is a trap for the heart which springs up to snare not only us, but the people we should be loving as well.

In this series of In the Gates we present a detailed explanation of the Law of God, beginning with the Ten Commandments, and working through the statutes and rules that accompany each commandment. For a practical guide to the role of God’s Law in the practice of ethics, get The Ground for Christian Ethics by going to www.MyParuchia.com and click on our Book Store.

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In the Gates is a devotional series on the Law of God by Rev. T.M. Moore, editor of the Worldview Church. He serves as dean of the Centurions Program of the Wilberforce Forum and principal of The Fellowship of Ailbe, a spiritual fellowship in the Celtic Christian tradition. He is the author or editor of twenty books, and has contributed chapters to four others. His essays, reviews, articles, papers, and poetry have appeared in dozens of national and international journals, and on a wide range of websites. His most recent books are The Ailbe Psalter and The Ground for Christian Ethics (Waxed Tablet).

Scripture quotations in this article are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version, (c) copyright 2001, 2007 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

The Tenth Commandment

Exodus 20:17

“You shall not covet your neighbor’s house; you shall not covet your neighbor’s wife, or his male servant, or his female servant, or his ox, or his donkey, or anything that is your neighbor’s.”

Deuteronomy 5:21

“‘And you shall not covet your neighbor’s wife. And you shall not desire your neighbor’s house, his field, or his male servant, or his female servant, his ox, or his donkey, or anything that is your neighbor’s.’”

Luke 12:13-21; Ephesians 5:5; Colossians 3:5; 1 Timothy 6:6-8

Note also that coveting is a matter of affections; it gets at what we most desire. From the heart flow the issues of life, as Solomon reminds us (Prov. 4:23). In the work of making disciples we don’t give much attention to affections. Mostly we concentrate on transmitting the right information, so that our students will be able to think as they should about the life of faith.

Of course, it is important that we do this. But no amount of clear thinking will suffice to keep us from sin if our hearts are not disciplined to fear and love God first and foremost. The weeds of coveting arise where we are not sufficiently trained in loving God. Undisciplined in this most important focus, our desires can become easily enthralled with all manner of lesser things.

We are beginning to covet when we desire anything more than we desire God. And we can know when this is beginning to happen by considering where our thoughts linger, how we use our time (quantitatively and qualitatively), what we become excited about, and talk about, and so forth.

That which we find we are beginning to desire more than the Lord may not even be manifestly evil. We may find that we think about our work most of the time, or some particular avocation, or even a loved one. But when these become the supreme objects of our desire, they detract from the love of God. Soon enough, the failure to love God first, foremost, and always will corrupt even the love we have for these good gifts of God (cf. 2 Sam. 13:1-13).

In this series of In the Gates we present a detailed explanation of the Law of God, beginning with the Ten Commandments, and working through the statutes and rules that accompany each commandment. For a practical guide to the role of God’s Law in the practice of ethics, get The Ground for Christian Ethics by going to www.MyParuchia.com and click on our Book Store.

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In the Gates is a devotional series on the Law of God by Rev. T.M. Moore, editor of the Worldview Church. He serves as dean of the Centurions Program of the Wilberforce Forum and principal of The Fellowship of Ailbe, a spiritual fellowship in the Celtic Christian tradition. He is the author or editor of twenty books, and has contributed chapters to four others. His essays, reviews, articles, papers, and poetry have appeared in dozens of national and international journals, and on a wide range of websites. His most recent books are The Ailbe Psalter and The Ground for Christian Ethics (Waxed Tablet).

Scripture quotations in this article are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version, (c) copyright 2001, 2007 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

The Tenth Commandment

Exodus 20:17

“You shall not covet your neighbor’s house; you shall not covet your neighbor’s wife, or his male servant, or his female servant, or his ox, or his donkey, or anything that is your neighbor’s.”

Deuteronomy 5:21

“‘And you shall not covet your neighbor’s wife. And you shall not desire your neighbor’s house, his field, or his male servant, or his female servant, his ox, or his donkey, or anything that is your neighbor’s.’”

Luke 12:13-21; Ephesians 5:5; Colossians 3:5; 1 Timothy 6:6-8

The Ten Commandments end in a rather strange way, by proscribing covetousness.

All the other commandments thus far can be envisioned in practice. We can see people worshiping other gods, profaning God’s Name, defiling the Sabbath, dishonoring others, committing murder, adultery, and theft, spread false information and lies. These are outward practices which can be judged by righteous people and corrected by specific courses of action in order to restore justice (Rom. 12:21).

But who can observe covetousness? Who can look into the soul of another and see that covetousness is taking root and beginning to plant the seeds of other sins? Only God can do this. So the tenth commandment reminds us that, at the end of the day, the Law is rooted in a relationship with God, and must be conducted from the “inside-out,” as it were.

We must not covet because all coveting is idolatry (Col. 3:5), and idolatry leads to a wide range of other transgressions against God and neighbor.

In this series of In the Gates we present a detailed explanation of the Law of God, beginning with the Ten Commandments, and working through the statutes and rules that accompany each commandment. For a practical guide to the role of God’s Law in the practice of ethics, get The Ground for Christian Ethics by going to www.MyParuchia.com and click on our Book Store.

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In the Gates is a devotional series on the Law of God by Rev. T.M. Moore, editor of the Worldview Church. He serves as dean of the Centurions Program of the Wilberforce Forum and principal of The Fellowship of Ailbe, a spiritual fellowship in the Celtic Christian tradition. He is the author or editor of twenty books, and has contributed chapters to four others. His essays, reviews, articles, papers, and poetry have appeared in dozens of national and international journals, and on a wide range of websites. His most recent books are The Ailbe Psalter and The Ground for Christian Ethics (Waxed Tablet).

Scripture quotations in this article are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version, (c) copyright 2001, 2007 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

The Commandment

Covetousness is unlawful desire, and is a gateway to all other sin. We must guard against covetousness and not allow it any place in our hearts.

Exodus 20:17

“You shall not covet your neighbor’s house; you shall not covet your neighbor’s wife, or his male servant, or his female servant, or his ox, or his donkey, or anything that is your neighbor’s.”

Deuteronomy 5:21

“‘And you shall not covet your neighbor’s wife. And you shall not desire your neighbor’s house, his field, or his male servant, or his female servant, his ox, or his donkey, or anything that is your neighbor’s.’”

Luke 12:13-21; Ephesians 5:5; Colossians 3:5; 1 Timothy 6:6-8

This series of In the Gates provides the Scriptural support for the Ten Commandments and their supporting statutes, rules, and precepts. A complete version of this series is available as The Law of God. Go to www.MyParuchia.com and click on our Book Store.

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In the Gates is a devotional series on the Law of God by Rev. T.M. Moore, editor of the Worldview Church. He serves as dean of the Centurions Program of the Wilberforce Forum and principal of The Fellowship of Ailbe, a spiritual fellowship in the Celtic Christian tradition. He is the author or editor of twenty books, and has contributed chapters to four others. His essays, reviews, articles, papers, and poetry have appeared in dozens of national and international journals, and on a wide range of websites. His most recent books are The Ailbe Psalter and The Ground for Christian Ethics (Waxed Tablet).

Scripture quotations in this article are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version, (c) copyright 2001, 2007 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Exodus 20:17

“You shall not covet…”

Imagine someone saying, “Well, hey, I didn’t know it was wrong to covet. I thought everybody had these little secret longings and unspoken desires that they fantasize about and harbor in their hearts. What’s so wrong about that?”

Nothing. Well, other than that God says we shouldn’t do it, and it’s probably the case that God knows better than we do how we ought to live and what we ought to harbor in our hearts.

Even the Apostle Paul, brilliant theologian that he was, didn’t understand about coveting until he took the time to consider the meaning of the Law of God (Rom. 7:7-12). Imagine that! Well, if Paul was unclear about coveting, you and I may be in big trouble. ‘Cause I don’t know about you, but I’m a whole lot dumber than the Apostle Paul!

It stands to reason that we should give more time in prayer and reflection about this problem, before it bears fruit in unhappy and unpleasant ways.

Imagine yourself searching the harbor of your soul for any “unwelcome visitors.” How would you do that? What are some ways you might approach trying to discover what’s dropped anchor in your heart these days?

Daily meditation in the Law of God helps us along the path of holiness, righteousness, and goodness (Rom. 7:12). Order your copy of The Law of God, a compilation of the Mosaic Law for contemporary believers, by going to www.MyParuchia.com, point your browser to “Publications,” then click on the drop-down option, “Waxed Tablet Publications.”

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In the Gates is a devotional series on the Law of God by Rev. T.M. Moore.

T.M. Moore is editor of the Worldview Church. He serves as dean of the Centurions Program of the Wilberforce Forum and principal of The Fellowship of Ailbe, a spiritual fellowship in the Celtic Christian tradition. He is the author or editor of twenty books, and has contributed chapters to four others. His essays, reviews, articles, papers, and poetry have appeared in dozens of national and international journals, and on a wide range of websites. His most recent books are The Ailbe Psalter and The Ground for Christian Ethics (Waxed Tablet).

Scripture quotations in this article are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version, (c) copyright 2001, 2007 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Editor’s note: The use of a translation other than the Authorised Version in an article does not constitute an endorsement in whole or in part by The Christian Observer.

Exodus 20:17

“You shall not covet…”

So coveting is unlawful desire, that is, desire that wants to go beyond the holy, righteous, and good boundaries marked out by the Law of God. Coveting wants to steer us off the sound path of righteousness into the marshes and miasmas of self-indulgence and self-gratification.

But, unless we understand that such things are wrong, what’s to keep us from pursuing a merely hedonistic way of life, rather than one of self-denial and service to our neighbors? After all, aren’t plenty of people you know living like this anyway? They don’t seem troubled by covetousness. Whatever they want, they go for it, and let the chips fall where they may.

People are driven, or led, by desire, that is, by what their hearts incline to. This is natural; what’s not natural is to desire things that God proscribes. That, indeed, is coveting. And that is what God forbids.

Why do you suppose God forbids coveting? Why would it be so wrong to indulge a merely selfish thought or desire? Who’s gonna know anyway?

Daily meditation in the Law of God helps us along the path of holiness, righteousness, and goodness (Rom. 7:12). Order your copy of The Law of God, a compilation of the Mosaic Law for contemporary believers, by going to www.MyParuchia.com, point your browser to “Publications,” then click on the drop-down option, “Waxed Tablet Publications.”

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In the Gates is a devotional series on the Law of God by Rev. T.M. Moore.

T.M. Moore is editor of the Worldview Church. He serves as dean of the Centurions Program of the Wilberforce Forum and principal of The Fellowship of Ailbe, a spiritual fellowship in the Celtic Christian tradition. He is the author or editor of twenty books, and has contributed chapters to four others. His essays, reviews, articles, papers, and poetry have appeared in dozens of national and international journals, and on a wide range of websites. His most recent books are The Ailbe Psalter and The Ground for Christian Ethics (Waxed Tablet).

Scripture quotations in this article are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version, (c) copyright 2001, 2007 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Editor’s note: The use of a translation other than the Authorised Version in an article does not constitute an endorsement in whole or in part by The Christian Observer.