Command 10

The last of the Ten Commandments or 10 Words against coveting is aimed directly at the heart and mind of every human being.

“You shall not covet your neighbor’s house, you shall not covet your neighbor’s wife, nor his manservant, nor his maidservant, nor his ox, nor his ass, nor anything that is your neighbor’s” - Exodus 20:17.

Our transgressions of Yahuah's law of love begin in the heart as Yahusha (Jesus) confirmed. “For from within, out of the heart of men, proceed evil thoughts, adulteries, fornications, murders, thefts, covetousness, wickedness, deceit, lasciviousness, an evil eye, blasphemy, pride, foolishness: All these evil things come from within, and defile the man” - Mark 7:21-23.

Coveting is an immoral longing for something that is not rightfully ours. That is usually because the object of our desire already belongs to someone else.

But coveting can also include our wanting far more than we would rightful deserve or that would be our rightful share.

The opposite of coveting is a positive desire to help others preserve and protect their blessings from Yahuah (Heavenly Father).

We should rejoice when other people are blessed.

Our natural ways is always to think of ourselves first. We are far more interested in what we can get rather than what we can give.

He tells us to stop thinking only of ourselves and to quit seeking only our interests.

Coveting is the selfish approach to life and selfishness is the root of our transgressions of Yahuah's laws. Coveting can be a root cause of many sins including murder and warfare. If not controlled, what begins as a thought becomes an obsession that leads to an act.

All of us have “conducted ourselves in the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind” - Ephesians 2:3.

The apostle Paul's description of covetous people in the last days is instructive. “This know also, that in the last days perilous times shall come. For men shall be lovers of their own selves, covetous … 2 Timothy 3:1-5.

One glaring example of the almost universal acceptance of covetousness is the ongoing popularity of government run lotteries. Millions of people surrender part of their pay salary each week hoping to win a fantasy life of ease and luxury. Likewise, the gambling meccas of the world are hugely popular vacation resorts specializing in entertainment appealing to our improper instincts. Promoting covetousness is big business. Advertising agencies and research firms make a science out of manipulating the selfish appetites of consumers.

We are a covetous society from the least to the greatest. Covetousness is much more serious than just a social disorder.

When we put greed, lust and self above Yahuah, coveting becomes idolatry.

Paul elsewhere links the sins of coveting with idolatry, pointing out that these and other sins can prevent us from entering Yahuah's Kingdom - Read Ephesians 5:5 For this you know, that no one who whores, nor unclean one, nor one greedy of gain, who is an idolater, has any inheritance in the reign of Messiah and Elohim.

To combat covetousness, we must have faith that Yahuah will provide a way for us to satisfy our legitimate needs. We have good reason to have such confidence.

The Scriptures promise that He will never abandon us if we obey and trust Him.

Covetousness cannot be defeated without help from Yahuah.

The negative pulls of human nature are simply too powerful for us to overcome by ourselves. To receive the help we need, we must ask for it especially requesting that Yahuah will give us the set-apart Spirit (Holy Spirit) (Luke 11:13).

Then we must allow Yahuah's Spirit to work in us to change the way we think. “Walk in the Spirit, and you shall not fulfill the lust of the flesh,” Paul writes. “Walk in the Spirit, and you shall not fulfill the lust of the flesh.

We need to orient our desires in the right direction.

Yahusha (Jesus) explained that we should “seek first the kingdom of Yahuah and His righteousness” - Matthew 6:33.

He also instructed us to “lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust does corrupt, and where thieves do not break through nor steal - Matthew 6:20-21.

Yahuah says that “wisdom is better than rubies; and all the things that may be desired are not to be compared to it” -Proverbs 8:11.

Yahuah wants concern for others to be the motivation for our desires.

Sometimes our service to them will result in wonderful rewards for us.

But only if our hearts are focused on giving rather than getting will our desires be channeled in the right direction.

We must replace coveting with service and love for other people.