Exodus 20: 17: “Thou shalt not covet thy neighbour’s house, thou shalt not covet thy neighbour’s wife, nor his manservant, nor his maidservant, nor his ox, nor his ass, nor any thing that is thy neighbour’s.”
The first commandment puts God first in everything, the last commandment is an injunction against any person putting themselves first in anything. Covetousness is a desire to have something that we don’t have. When Moses’ father in law saw Moses judging the people in the wilderness, he advised him to find people to help him with the task so that he wouldn’t become burnt out. One of the qualifications for these under leaders was that they hated covetousness (Ex 18: 21, “Moreover thou shalt provide out of all the people able men, such as fear God, men of truth, hating covetousness; and place such over them, to be rulers of thousands, and rulers of hundreds, rulers of fifties, and rulers of tens:”) A leader who covets will be likely to use his position of leadership to take ownership of things that he has no right to own. The first time that Israel tasted defeat after they went into the Promised Land to take possession of it was after Achan coveted some treasure (See Josh 7: 21, “When I saw among the spoils a goodly Babylonish garment, and two hundred shekels of silver, and a wedge of gold of fifty shekels weight, then I coveted them, and took them; and, behold, they are hid in the earth in the midst of my tent, and the silver under it.”) A person who covets can be bribed and then justice will be perverted (compare 1 Sam 8: 3, “And his sons walked not in his ways, but turned aside after lucre, and took bribes, and perverted judgment.”) This commandment gives us the root cause for breaking the other commandments, if we put the Lord first in everything then we will be safe under His wings, if we don’t then we will want to be first in God’s place and desire things that are not good for us. Covetousness led to the first murder (Gen 4: 5, “But unto Cain and to his offering he had not respect. And Cain was very wroth, and his countenance fell.” Cain wanted the approval that God gave to Abel so he killed his brother.) Covetousness is also the root cause of most other sin. Eve coveted a godlike position so she ate the forbidden fruit, for example (Gen 3: 6, “And when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was pleasant to the eyes, and a tree to be desired to make one wise, she took of the fruit thereof, and did eat, and gave also unto her husband with her; and he did eat.”). However, the only way to resist covetousness is to put other desires in our minds and not to fight against these thoughts that are natural to every person born on the earth. (Compare Josh 1: 8, “This book of the law shall not depart out of thy mouth; but thou shalt meditate therein day and night, that thou mayest observe to do according to all that is written therein: for then thou shalt make thy way prosperous, and then thou shalt have good success.” and Phil 4: 8, “Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things.”)
(The view expressed in this blog are my own and should not be taken as inspired in any way.)
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