By Pastor Bruce K. Oyen
Email: bk_oyen@hotmail.com
This is a simple study of the eighth commandment.
All Biblical quotations are from the ESV (English Standard Version), unless noted otherwise.
Where it is found, and what it says.
The eighth command is found in Exodus 20:15, and in Deuteronomy 5:19. It says: "You shall not steal."
What it prohibits.
This command prohibits taking without permission what does not belong to us.. How much better our world would be if everyone followed this command! For example, we would not have to lock up our houses when we are gone. Our cars would not be stolen. Banks could leave their vaults unlocked. Purses could be lost, but found with everything still inside. And we would not have to be concerned about a more modern problem: identity theft. Yes, following Ex. 20:15 would make life so much easier.
Why does someone steal?
All Biblical quotations are from the ESV (English Standard Version), unless noted otherwise.
Where it is found, and what it says.
The eighth command is found in Exodus 20:15, and in Deuteronomy 5:19. It says: "You shall not steal."
What it prohibits.
This command prohibits taking without permission what does not belong to us.. How much better our world would be if everyone followed this command! For example, we would not have to lock up our houses when we are gone. Our cars would not be stolen. Banks could leave their vaults unlocked. Purses could be lost, but found with everything still inside. And we would not have to be concerned about a more modern problem: identity theft. Yes, following Ex. 20:15 would make life so much easier.
Why does someone steal?
But why do we have a theft problem? The Lord Jesus Christ's answer to the question is found in Matthew 15:19. He said it is a heart problem. Here is what the verse says: "For out of the heart come evil thoughts, murder, adultery, sexual immorality, theft, false witness, slander." We all are sinners with a heart problem that expresses itself in many ways, one of which is theft. This is not to say that everyone steals. But is to say that whatever sins we commit find their source in a corrupt heart.
Other Biblical prohibitions of theft.
Ex. 21:16 prohibits kidnapping. It says: "Whoever steals a man and sells him, and anyone found in possession of him, shall be put to death." This seems to be a prohibition of what we call "the slave trade." Some persons are taken against their wills and sold for a variety of reasons. Some are sold as slave-laborers, some as sex-slaves, some as informants, some as drug-couriers, some as soldiers, and the list could go on.
More Biblical teaching about theft.
The Jews were to take human theft so seriously that both the seller and buyer were to be put to death. From this severe penalty we can learn a valuable lesson: punishment of crime is a deterrent to crime, even if does not completely eliminate it. Ecclesiastes 8:11 applies to this subject. It says: "Because the sentence against an evil deed is not executed speedily, the heart of the children of man is fully set to do evil." Though some countries are too severe in their punishment of criminals, even more reasonable punishment has been proven to effectively reduce the number of crimes people commit.
Proverbs 6:30 and 31 says: "People do not despise a thief if he steals to satisfy his appetite when he is hungry, but if he is caught he will pay sevenfold; he will give all the goods of his house." This teaches us that we should take into consideration the circumstances behind a theft. A hungry person should ask for food rather than steal it. But we should have compassion on someone in time of desperate need. Car theft is not good. But if someone stole our car to drive someone to the hospital in an emergency situation, we should be more understanding of their actions. Desperate people do not always use good logic.
Proverbs 9:17 makes this statement about theft: "Stolen water is sweet, and bread eaten in secret is pleasant." The context of this verse is verses 13 - 18. A careful look at the context reveals that the subject is sexual activity. "Water" and the bread" are metaphors for sexual pleasures. The point is that, though sex outside of marriage is pleasurable, it is wrong and has serious negative consequences. Immoral behavior can negatively affect our physical health, and always negatively affects marriage and family relationships, and especially our relationship to God.
Proverbs 30:7 - 9 is a prayer to God: "Two things I ask of you; deny them not to me before I die: remove far from me falsehood and lying; give me neither poverty nor riches; feed me with the food that is needful for me, lest I be full and deny you and say, 'Who is the LORD?' or lest I be poor and steal and profane the name of my God." One important thing we learn from these verses is the fact that when a Christian steals something, he or she profanes the name of God. The King James Version says that the Christian who steals takes the name of God in vain. That is what profaning God's name means. It subjects God's reputation to abuse. This is a good reason to not steal.
Jeremiah 7:9 and 10 says God asked his wayward people this question: "Will you steal, murder, commit adultery, swear falsely, make offerings to Baal (a false god), and go after other gods that you have not known, and then come and stand before me in this house (God's temple), which is called by my name, and say, 'We are delivered to do all these abominations' ?" This was God's sober message to his people through the prophet Jeremiah. It was a thankless task to call those people to repentance and obedience. They had strayed so far from God that they felt they could commit the sins mentioned, which included the one prohibited in the eighth commandment, and worship God as though all was well.
Other Biblical prohibitions of theft.
Ex. 21:16 prohibits kidnapping. It says: "Whoever steals a man and sells him, and anyone found in possession of him, shall be put to death." This seems to be a prohibition of what we call "the slave trade." Some persons are taken against their wills and sold for a variety of reasons. Some are sold as slave-laborers, some as sex-slaves, some as informants, some as drug-couriers, some as soldiers, and the list could go on.
More Biblical teaching about theft.
The Jews were to take human theft so seriously that both the seller and buyer were to be put to death. From this severe penalty we can learn a valuable lesson: punishment of crime is a deterrent to crime, even if does not completely eliminate it. Ecclesiastes 8:11 applies to this subject. It says: "Because the sentence against an evil deed is not executed speedily, the heart of the children of man is fully set to do evil." Though some countries are too severe in their punishment of criminals, even more reasonable punishment has been proven to effectively reduce the number of crimes people commit.
Proverbs 6:30 and 31 says: "People do not despise a thief if he steals to satisfy his appetite when he is hungry, but if he is caught he will pay sevenfold; he will give all the goods of his house." This teaches us that we should take into consideration the circumstances behind a theft. A hungry person should ask for food rather than steal it. But we should have compassion on someone in time of desperate need. Car theft is not good. But if someone stole our car to drive someone to the hospital in an emergency situation, we should be more understanding of their actions. Desperate people do not always use good logic.
Proverbs 9:17 makes this statement about theft: "Stolen water is sweet, and bread eaten in secret is pleasant." The context of this verse is verses 13 - 18. A careful look at the context reveals that the subject is sexual activity. "Water" and the bread" are metaphors for sexual pleasures. The point is that, though sex outside of marriage is pleasurable, it is wrong and has serious negative consequences. Immoral behavior can negatively affect our physical health, and always negatively affects marriage and family relationships, and especially our relationship to God.
Proverbs 30:7 - 9 is a prayer to God: "Two things I ask of you; deny them not to me before I die: remove far from me falsehood and lying; give me neither poverty nor riches; feed me with the food that is needful for me, lest I be full and deny you and say, 'Who is the LORD?' or lest I be poor and steal and profane the name of my God." One important thing we learn from these verses is the fact that when a Christian steals something, he or she profanes the name of God. The King James Version says that the Christian who steals takes the name of God in vain. That is what profaning God's name means. It subjects God's reputation to abuse. This is a good reason to not steal.
Jeremiah 7:9 and 10 says God asked his wayward people this question: "Will you steal, murder, commit adultery, swear falsely, make offerings to Baal (a false god), and go after other gods that you have not known, and then come and stand before me in this house (God's temple), which is called by my name, and say, 'We are delivered to do all these abominations' ?" This was God's sober message to his people through the prophet Jeremiah. It was a thankless task to call those people to repentance and obedience. They had strayed so far from God that they felt they could commit the sins mentioned, which included the one prohibited in the eighth commandment, and worship God as though all was well.
It reminds me of what happened many years ago in one of my pastorates: The offering plates were kept on the table in front of the pulpit. A regular attendee saw that some persons put cash in the offering plates before the service started. When this man thought no one was looking, he stole money from the offering plates. Well, he was seen by a reliable witness and was confronted. He admitted to the theft of money. We had reason to believe this had, perhaps, been done a number of times before he was caught. It is hard to understand how someone could steal money from offering plates and sit through church services where God is worshipped and his Word is preached. And that is what Jeremiah 7:9 and 10 are all about.
Romans 13:8 - 10 applies to this study of the eighth command. It says: Owe no one anything, except to love each other, for the one who loves another has fulfilled the law. For the commandments, 'You shall not commit adultery, you shall not murder, you shall not steal, you shall not covet,' and any other commandment, are summed up in this word: 'You shall love your neighbor as yourself.' Love does no wrong to a neighbor; therefore love is the fulfilling of the law."
Love will keep us from stealing.
Love will keep us from stealing.
One valuable lesson to be learned from these verses is this: if our hearts are full of love for God and others, we do not need a law that prohibits stealing, for love will keep us from committing this sin. All of God's laws are good. But what pleases him the most is when we do right because our hearts are right, instead of doing right only because a law prohibits doing wrong.
Don't steal and don't be lazy.
Don't steal and don't be lazy.
Ephesians 4:28 says this about stealing: "Let the thief no longer steal, but rather let him labor, doing honest work with his own hands, so that he may have something to share with anyone in need." What can we learn from this verse? 1) We can learn that Christians, and especially new Christians, need to be told to give up the sins they practiced as non-Christians. We cannot assume that they will automatically leave behind all bad habits and sinful behavior. Long-standing bad habits don't always go without a struggle. 2) We can learn from this verse that the sinful habit of stealing needs to be replaced with the good habit of working for a living. Those who have been accustomed to laziness and stealing might find it difficult to replace those bad characteristics with a strong work ethic, but it must be done. They need to learn to show up regularly and on time for a job. They need to learn the importance of a job well done. They need to learn to follow an employer's orders. They need to learn to earn an income, and to do more than is asked of them.
The apostle Paul demonstrated a strong work ethic. Acts 18:1 - 3 tells us he supported himself as a tent maker. In Acts 20: 33 - 35we read what Paul told the elders of the Ephesian church: "I have coveted no man's silver or gold or apparel. You yourselves know that these hands ministered to my necessities and to those who were with me. In all things I have shown you that by working hard in this way we must help the weak and remember the words of the Lord Jesus, how he himself said, 'It is more blessed to give than to receive.' "
Paul's own example gave force to what he said about the importance having a strong work ethic. Therefore, when he wrote to the Thessalonian church about this subject, he had earned the right to be heard. Here is what he wrote in 1 Thessalonians 4:9 and 10: "Now concerning brotherly love, you have no need for anyone to write unto you, for you yourselves have been taught by God to love one another, for that indeed is what you are doing to all the brothers throughout Macedonia. But we urge you brothers to do this more and more, and to aspire to live quietly, and to mind your own affairs, and to work with your own hands, as we instructed you, so that you may walk properly before outsiders and be dependent on no one."
Paul felt compelled to bring up this subject in his second letter to the Thessalonian Christians, too. Here is what he wrote in 2 Thessalonians 3:6 - 12: "Now we command you, brothers, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that you keep away from any brother who is walking in idleness and not in accord with the tradition that you received from us. For you yourselves know how you ought to imitate us, because we were not idle when we were with you, nor did we eat any one's bread without paying for it, but with toil and labor we worked night and day, that we might not be a burden to any of you. It was not because we do not have that right, but to give you in ourselves an example to imitate. For even when we were with you, we would give you this command: If anyone is not willing to work, let him not eat. For we hear that some among you walk in idleness, not busy at work, but busybodies. Now such persons we command and encourage in the Lord Jesus Christ to do their work quietly and to earn their own living."
Perhaps we could put the teaching of the eighth commandment and 2 Thessalonians 3:6 - 12 together and come to this conclusion: the Bible says we should not steal, nor should we be lazy.
Unrepentant thieves will be judged by God.
Unrepentant thieves will be judged by God.
The sin of stealing, like all sins, is serious. Thieves are given a stern warning in 1 Corinthians 6:9 - 11, which says: "Or do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: neither the sexually immoral, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor men who practice homosexuality, nor thieves, nor the greedy, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God."
God will forgive repentant thieves.
Of course, thieves will be forgiven and changed if they believe on the Lord Jesus Christ as Savior. This is what 1 Corinthians 6:11 says happened to the Corinthians who became Christian: "And such were some of you. But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God." Mark 15:27 says that two thieves were crucified at the same time as Jesus. But one of them repented when he acknowledged his sinfulness and turned in faith to Jesus for forgiveness and received it. It was to that repentant thief that the Lord made the wonderful statement, "Today you will be with me in paradise." You might be guilty of this sin. If so, you, too, can obtain forgiveness from Jesus Christ. The Bible says: "Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and you will be saved." (New King James Version.)
God will forgive repentant thieves.
Of course, thieves will be forgiven and changed if they believe on the Lord Jesus Christ as Savior. This is what 1 Corinthians 6:11 says happened to the Corinthians who became Christian: "And such were some of you. But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God." Mark 15:27 says that two thieves were crucified at the same time as Jesus. But one of them repented when he acknowledged his sinfulness and turned in faith to Jesus for forgiveness and received it. It was to that repentant thief that the Lord made the wonderful statement, "Today you will be with me in paradise." You might be guilty of this sin. If so, you, too, can obtain forgiveness from Jesus Christ. The Bible says: "Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and you will be saved." (New King James Version.)
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