Verses¶
A. The Commandment Itself¶
Exodus 20:15¶
Thou shalt not steal.
Context (Exodus 20:13-17):
20:13 Thou shalt not kill. 20:14 Thou shalt not commit adultery. 20:15 Thou shalt not steal. 20:16 Thou shalt not bear false witness against thy neighbour. 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.
Deuteronomy 5:19¶
Neither shalt thou steal.
B. Man-Stealing / Kidnapping (Capital Offense)¶
Exodus 21:16¶
And he that stealeth a man, and selleth him, or if he be found in his hand, he shall surely be put to death.
Context (Exodus 21:14-17):
21:14 But if a man come presumptuously upon his neighbour, to slay him with guile; thou shalt take him from mine altar, that he may die. 21:15 And he that smiteth his father, or his mother, shall be surely put to death. 21:16 And he that stealeth a man, and selleth him, or if he be found in his hand, he shall surely be put to death. 21:17 And he that curseth his father, or his mother, shall surely be put to death.
Deuteronomy 24:7¶
If a man be found stealing any of his brethren of the children of Israel, and maketh merchandise of him, or selleth him; then that thief shall die; and thou shalt put evil away from among you.
Judges 21:20-23 (Instance of kidnapping)¶
21:20 Therefore they commanded the children of Benjamin, saying, Go and lie in wait in the vineyards; 21:21 And see, and, behold, if the daughters of Shiloh come out to dance in dances, then come ye out of the vineyards, and catch you every man his wife of the daughters of Shiloh, and go to the land of Benjamin. 21:22 And it shall be, when their fathers or their brethren come unto us to complain, that we will say unto them, Be favourable unto them for our sakes: because we reserved not to each man his wife in the war: for ye did not give unto them at this time, that ye should be guilty. 21:23 And the children of Benjamin did so, and took them wives, according to their number, of them that danced, whom they caught: and they went and returned unto their inheritance, and repaired the cities, and dwelt in them.
1 Timothy 1:9-10 (NT — menstealers)¶
1:9 Knowing this, that the law is not made for a righteous man, but for the lawless and disobedient, for the ungodly and for sinners, for unholy and profane, for murderers of fathers and murderers of mothers, for manslayers, 1:10 For whoremongers, for them that defile themselves with mankind, for menstealers, for liars, for perjured persons, and if there be any other thing that is contrary to sound doctrine; 1:11 According to the glorious gospel of the blessed God, which was committed to my trust.
C. Theft Case Law / Restitution¶
Exodus 22:1-9¶
22:1 If a man shall steal an ox, or a sheep, and kill it, or sell it; he shall restore five oxen for an ox, and four sheep for a sheep. 22:2 If a thief be found breaking up, and be smitten that he die, there shall no blood be shed for him. 22:3 If the sun be risen upon him, there shall be blood shed for him; for he should make full restitution; if he have nothing, then he shall be sold for his theft. 22:4 If the theft be certainly found in his hand alive, whether it be ox, or ass, or sheep; he shall restore double. 22:5 If a man shall cause a field or vineyard to be eaten, and shall put in his beast, and shall feed in another man's field; of the best of his own field, and of the best of his own vineyard, shall he make restitution. 22:6 If fire break out, and catch in thorns, so that the stacks of corn, or the standing corn, or the field, be consumed therewith; he that kindled the fire shall surely make restitution. 22:7 If a man shall deliver unto his neighbour money or stuff to keep, and it be stolen out of the man's house; if the thief be found, let him pay double. 22:8 If the thief be not found, then the master of the house shall be brought unto the judges, to see whether he have put his hand unto his neighbour's goods. 22:9 For all manner of trespass, whether it be for ox, for ass, for sheep, for raiment, or for any manner of lost thing, which another challengeth to be his, the cause of both parties shall come before the judges; and whom the judges shall condemn, he shall pay double unto his neighbour.
Exodus 22:10-15¶
22:10 If a man deliver unto his neighbour an ass, or an ox, or a sheep, or any beast, to keep; and it die, or be hurt, or driven away, no man seeing it: 22:11 Then shall an oath of the LORD be between them both, that he hath not put his hand unto his neighbour's goods; and the owner of it shall accept thereof, and he shall not make it good. 22:12 And if it be stolen from him, he shall make restitution unto the owner thereof. 22:13 If it be torn in pieces, then let him bring it for witness, and he shall not make good that which was torn. 22:14 And if a man borrow ought of his neighbour, and it be hurt, or die, the owner thereof being not with it, he shall surely make it good. 22:15 But if the owner thereof be with it, he shall not make it good: if it be an hired thing, it came for his hire.
Leviticus 6:1-7 (Trespass/fraud restitution)¶
6:1 And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying, 6:2 If a soul sin, and commit a trespass against the LORD, and lie unto his neighbour in that which was delivered him to keep, or in fellowship, or in a thing taken away by violence, or hath deceived his neighbour; 6:3 Or have found that which was lost, and lieth concerning it, and sweareth falsely; in any of all these that a man doeth, sinning therein: 6:4 Then it shall be, because he hath sinned, and is guilty, that he shall restore that which he took violently away, or the thing which he hath deceitfully gotten, or that which was delivered him to keep, or the lost thing which he found, 6:5 Or all that about which he hath sworn falsely; he shall even restore it in the principal, and shall add the fifth part more thereto, and give it unto him to whom it appertaineth, in the day of his trespass offering. 6:6 And he shall bring his trespass offering unto the LORD, a ram without blemish out of the flock, with thy estimation, for a trespass offering, unto the priest: 6:7 And the priest shall make an atonement for him before the LORD: and it shall be forgiven him for any thing of all that he hath done in trespassing therein.
Numbers 5:5-8¶
5:5 And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying, 5:6 Speak unto the children of Israel, When a man or woman shall commit any sin that men commit, to do a trespass against the LORD, and that person be guilty; 5:7 Then they shall confess their sin which they have done: and he shall recompense his trespass with the principal thereof, and add unto it the fifth part thereof, and give it unto him against whom he hath trespassed. 5:8 But if the man have no kinsman to recompense the trespass unto, let the trespass be recompensed unto the LORD, even to the priest; beside the ram of the atonement, whereby an atonement shall be made for him.
Proverbs 6:30-31¶
6:30 Men do not despise a thief, if he steal to satisfy his soul when he is hungry; 6:31 But if he be found, he shall restore sevenfold; he shall give all the substance of his house.
Ezekiel 33:14-16¶
33:14 Again, when I say unto the wicked, Thou shalt surely die; if he turn from his sin, and do that which is lawful and right; 33:15 If the wicked restore the pledge, give again that he had robbed, walk in the statutes of life, without committing iniquity; he shall surely live, he shall not die. 33:16 None of his sins that he hath committed shall be mentioned unto him: he hath done that which is lawful and right; he shall surely live.
D. Prohibition of Stealing, Lying, Deception (Lev 19 Cluster)¶
Leviticus 19:9-18 (Full context)¶
19:9 And when ye reap the harvest of your land, thou shalt not wholly reap the corners of thy field, neither shalt thou gather the gleanings of thy harvest. 19:10 And thou shalt not glean thy vineyard, neither shalt thou gather every grape of thy vineyard; thou shalt leave them for the poor and stranger: I am the LORD your God. 19:11 Ye shall not steal, neither deal falsely, neither lie one to another. 19:12 And ye shall not swear by my name falsely, neither shalt thou profane the name of thy God: I am the LORD. 19:13 Thou shalt not defraud thy neighbour, neither rob him: the wages of him that is hired shall not abide with thee all night until the morning. 19:14 Thou shalt not curse the deaf, nor put a stumblingblock before the blind, but shalt fear thy God: I am the LORD. 19:15 Ye shall do no unrighteousness in judgment: thou shalt not respect the person of the poor, nor honour the person of the mighty: but in righteousness shalt thou judge thy neighbour. 19:16 Thou shalt not go up and down as a talebearer among thy people: neither shalt thou stand against the blood of thy neighbour: I am the LORD. 19:17 Thou shalt not hate thy brother in thine heart: thou shalt in any wise rebuke thy neighbour, and not suffer sin upon him. 19:18 Thou shalt not avenge, nor bear any grudge against the children of thy people, but thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself: I am the LORD.
Leviticus 19:35-37 (Weights and measures)¶
19:35 Ye shall do no unrighteousness in judgment, in meteyard, in weight, or in measure. 19:36 Just balances, just weights, a just ephah, and a just hin, shall ye have: I am the LORD your God, which brought you out of the land of Egypt. 19:37 Therefore shall ye observe all my statutes, and all my judgments, and do them: I am the LORD.
E. Just Weights and Measures¶
Deuteronomy 25:13-16¶
25:13 Thou shalt not have in thy bag divers weights, a great and a small. 25:14 Thou shalt not have in thine house divers measures, a great and a small. 25:15 But thou shalt have a perfect and just weight, a perfect and just measure shalt thou have: that thy days may be lengthened in the land which the LORD thy God giveth thee. 25:16 For all that do such things, and all that do unrighteously, are an abomination unto the LORD thy God.
Proverbs 11:1¶
A false balance is abomination to the LORD: but a just weight is his delight.
Proverbs 16:11¶
A just weight and balance are the LORD'S: all the weights of the bag are his work.
Proverbs 20:10¶
Divers weights, and divers measures, both of them are alike abomination to the LORD.
Proverbs 20:23¶
Divers weights are an abomination unto the LORD; and a false balance is not good.
Hosea 12:7-8¶
12:7 He is a merchant, the balances of deceit are in his hand: he loveth to oppress. 12:8 And Ephraim said, Yet I am become rich, I have found me out substance: in all my labours they shall find none iniquity in me that were sin.
Amos 8:4-7¶
8:4 Hear this, O ye that swallow up the needy, even to make the poor of the land to fail, 8:5 Saying, When will the new moon be gone, that we may sell corn? and the sabbath, that we may set forth wheat, making the ephah small, and the shekel great, and falsifying the balances by deceit? 8:6 That we may buy the poor for silver, and the needy for a pair of shoes; yea, and sell the refuse of the wheat? 8:7 The LORD hath sworn by the excellency of Jacob, Surely I will never forget any of their works.
Micah 6:9-13¶
6:9 The LORD'S voice crieth unto the city, and the man of wisdom shall see thy name: hear ye the rod, and who hath appointed it. 6:10 Are there yet the treasures of wickedness in the house of the wicked, and the scant measure that is abominable? 6:11 Shall I count them pure with the wicked balances, and with the bag of deceitful weights? 6:12 For the rich men thereof are full of violence, and the inhabitants thereof have spoken lies, and their tongue is deceitful in their mouth. 6:13 Therefore also will I make thee sick in smiting thee, in making thee desolate because of thy sins.
F. Defrauding Workers / Withholding Wages¶
Deuteronomy 24:14-15¶
24:14 Thou shalt not oppress an hired servant that is poor and needy, whether he be of thy brethren, or of thy strangers that are in thy land within thy gates: 24:15 At his day thou shalt give him his hire, neither shall the sun go down upon it; for he is poor, and setteth his heart upon it: lest he cry against thee unto the LORD, and it be sin unto thee.
Jeremiah 22:13¶
Woe unto him that buildeth his house by unrighteousness, and his chambers by wrong; that useth his neighbour's service without wages, and giveth him not for his work;
Malachi 3:5¶
And I will come near to you to judgment; and I will be a swift witness against the sorcerers, and against the adulterers, and against false swearers, and against those that oppress the hireling in his wages, the widow, and the fatherless, and that turn aside the stranger from his right, and fear not me, saith the LORD of hosts.
James 5:1-6¶
5:1 Go to now, ye rich men, weep and howl for your miseries that shall come upon you. 5:2 Your riches are corrupted, and your garments are motheaten. 5:3 Your gold and silver is cankered; and the rust of them shall be a witness against you, and shall eat your flesh as it were fire. Ye have heaped treasure together for the last days. 5:4 Behold, the hire of the labourers who have reaped down your fields, which is of you kept back by fraud, crieth: and the cries of them which have reaped are entered into the ears of the Lord of sabaoth. 5:5 Ye have lived in pleasure on the earth, and been wanton; ye have nourished your hearts, as in a day of slaughter. 5:6 Ye have condemned and killed the just; and he doth not resist you.
Colossians 4:1¶
Masters, give unto your servants that which is just and equal; knowing that ye also have a Master in heaven.
Deuteronomy 23:24-25 (Limitation on taking)¶
23:24 When thou comest into thy neighbour's vineyard, then thou mayest eat grapes thy fill at thine own pleasure; but thou shalt not put any in thy vessel. 23:25 When thou comest into the standing corn of thy neighbour, then thou mayest pluck the ears with thine hand; but thou shalt not move a sickle unto thy neighbour's standing corn.
G. Robbery Condemned¶
Isaiah 61:8¶
For I the LORD love judgment, I hate robbery for burnt offering; and I will direct their work in truth, and I will make an everlasting covenant with them.
Ezekiel 18:10-13¶
18:10 If he beget a son that is a robber, a shedder of blood, and that doeth the like to any one of these things, 18:11 And that doeth not any of those duties, but even hath eaten upon the mountains, and defiled his neighbour's wife, 18:12 Hath oppressed the poor and needy, hath spoiled by violence, hath not restored the pledge, and hath lifted up his eyes to the idols, hath committed abomination, 18:13 Hath given forth upon usury, and hath taken increase: shall he then live? he shall not live: he hath done all these abominations; he shall surely die; his blood shall be upon him.
Ezekiel 22:29¶
The people of the land have used oppression, and exercised robbery, and have vexed the poor and needy: yea, they have oppressed the stranger wrongfully.
Psalm 62:10¶
Trust not in oppression, and become not vain in robbery: if riches increase, set not your heart upon them.
H. Robbing God (Tithes/Offerings)¶
Malachi 3:7-10¶
3:7 Even from the days of your fathers ye are gone away from mine ordinances, and have not kept them. Return unto me, and I will return unto you, saith the LORD of hosts. But ye said, Wherein shall we return? 3:8 Will a man rob God? Yet ye have robbed me. But ye say, Wherein have we robbed thee? In tithes and offerings. 3:9 Ye are cursed with a curse: for ye have robbed me, even this whole nation. 3:10 Bring ye all the tithes into the storehouse, that there may be meat in mine house, and prove me now herewith, saith the LORD of hosts, if I will not open you the windows of heaven, and pour you out a blessing, that there shall not be room enough to receive it.
Nehemiah 13:10-12¶
13:10 And I perceived that the portions of the Levites had not been given them: for the Levites and the singers, that did the work, were fled every one to his field. 13:11 Then contended I with the rulers, and said, Why is the house of God forsaken? And I gathered them together, and set them in their place. 13:12 Then brought all Judah the tithe of the corn and the new wine and the oil unto the treasuries.
I. Prophetic Denunciation of Theft/Dishonesty¶
Jeremiah 2:26¶
As the thief is ashamed when he is found, so is the house of Israel ashamed; they, their kings, their princes, and their priests, and their prophets,
Jeremiah 7:8-11¶
7:8 Behold, ye trust in lying words, that cannot profit. 7:9 Will ye steal, murder, and commit adultery, and swear falsely, and burn incense unto Baal, and walk after other gods whom ye know not; 7:10 And come and stand before me in this house, which is called by my name, and say, We are delivered to do all these abominations? 7:11 Is this house, which is called by my name, become a den of robbers in your eyes? Behold, even I have seen it, saith the LORD.
Hosea 4:1-2¶
4:1 Hear the word of the LORD, ye children of Israel: for the LORD hath a controversy with the inhabitants of the land, because there is no truth, nor mercy, nor knowledge of God in the land. 4:2 By swearing, and lying, and killing, and stealing, and committing adultery, they break out, and blood toucheth blood.
Zechariah 5:1-4¶
5:1 Then I turned, and lifted up mine eyes, and looked, and behold a flying roll. 5:2 And he said unto me, What seest thou? And I answered, I see a flying roll; the length thereof is twenty cubits, and the breadth thereof ten cubits. 5:3 Then said he unto me, This is the curse that goeth forth over the face of the whole earth: for every one that stealeth shall be cut off as on this side according to it; and every one that sweareth shall be cut off as on that side according to it. 5:4 I will bring it forth, saith the LORD of hosts, and it shall enter into the house of the thief, and into the house of him that sweareth falsely by my name: and it shall remain in the midst of his house, and shall consume it with the timber thereof and the stones thereof.
Zephaniah 1:9¶
In the same day also will I punish all those that leap on the threshold, which fill their masters' houses with violence and deceit.
Amos 3:10¶
For they know not to do right, saith the LORD, who store up violence and robbery in their palaces.
Nahum 3:1¶
Woe to the bloody city! it is all full of lies and robbery; the prey departeth not;
J. Wisdom Literature / Psalms on Theft¶
Psalm 50:17-19¶
50:17 Seeing thou hatest instruction, and castest my words behind thee. 50:18 When thou sawest a thief, then thou consentedst with him, and hast been partaker with adulterers. 50:19 Thou givest thy mouth to evil, and thy tongue frameth deceit.
Psalm 119:61¶
The bands of the wicked have robbed me: but I have not forgotten thy law.
Proverbs 21:7¶
The robbery of the wicked shall destroy them; because they refuse to do judgment.
Proverbs 28:24¶
Whoso robbeth his father or his mother, and saith, It is no transgression; the same is the companion of a destroyer.
Proverbs 30:8-9¶
30:8 Remove far from me vanity and lies: give me neither poverty nor riches; feed me with food convenient for me: 30:9 Lest I be full, and deny thee, and say, Who is the LORD? or lest I be poor, and steal, and take the name of my God in vain.
Job 24:1-11¶
24:1 Why, seeing times are not hidden from the Almighty, do they that know him not see his days? 24:2 Some remove the landmarks; they violently take away flocks, and feed thereof. 24:3 They drive away the ass of the fatherless, they take the widow's ox for a pledge. 24:4 They turn the needy out of the way: the poor of the earth hide themselves together. 24:5 Behold, as wild asses in the desert, go they forth to their work; rising betimes for a prey: the wilderness yieldeth food for them and for their children. 24:6 They reap every one his corn in the field: and they gather the vintage of the wicked. 24:7 They cause the naked to lodge without clothing, that they have no covering in the cold. 24:8 They are wet with the showers of the mountains, and embrace the rock for want of a shelter. 24:9 They pluck the fatherless from the breast, and take a pledge of the poor. 24:10 They cause him to go naked without clothing, and they take away the sheaf from the hungry; 24:11 Which make oil within their walls, and tread their winepresses, and suffer thirst.
Proverbs 1:11-16 (Robbers)¶
1:11 If they say, Come with us, let us lay wait for blood, let us lurk privily for the innocent without cause: 1:12 Let us swallow them up alive as the grave; and whole, as those that go down into the pit: 1:13 We shall find all precious substance, we shall fill our houses with spoil: 1:14 Cast in thy lot among us; let us all have one purse: 1:15 My son, walk not thou in the way with them; refrain thy foot from their path: 1:16 For their feet run to evil, and make haste to shed blood.
K. NT Treatment -- Jesus¶
Matthew 6:19-20¶
6:19 Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth, where moth and rust doth corrupt, and where thieves break through and steal: 6:20 But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt, and where thieves do not break through nor steal:
Matthew 15:18-20¶
15:18 But those things which proceed out of the mouth come forth from the heart; and they defile the man. 15:19 For out of the heart proceed evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false witness, blasphemies: 15:20 These are the things which defile a man: but to eat with unwashen hands defileth not a man.
Matthew 19:16-22 (Rich young ruler)¶
19:16 And, behold, one came and said unto him, Good Master, what good thing shall I do, that I may have eternal life? 19:17 And he said unto him, Why callest thou me good? there is none good but one, that is, God: but if thou wilt enter into life, keep the commandments. 19:18 He saith unto him, Which? Jesus said, Thou shalt do no murder, Thou shalt not commit adultery, Thou shalt not steal, Thou shalt not bear false witness, 19:19 Honour thy father and thy mother: and, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. 19:20 The young man saith unto him, All these things have I kept from my youth up: what lack I yet? 19:21 Jesus said unto him, If thou wilt be perfect, go and sell that thou hast, and give to the poor, and thou shalt have treasure in heaven: and come and follow me. 19:22 But when the young man heard that saying, he went away sorrowful: for he had great possessions.
Matthew 21:12-13 (Temple cleansing)¶
21:12 And Jesus went into the temple of God, and cast out all them that sold and bought in the temple, and overthrew the tables of the moneychangers, and the seats of them that sold doves, 21:13 And said unto them, It is written, My house shall be called the house of prayer; but ye have made it a den of thieves.
Mark 7:20-23¶
7:20 And he said, That which cometh out of the man, that defileth the man. 7:21 For from within, out of the heart of men, proceed evil thoughts, adulteries, fornications, murders, 7:22 Thefts, covetousness, wickedness, deceit, lasciviousness, an evil eye, blasphemy, pride, foolishness: 7:23 All these evil things come from within, and defile the man.
Mark 10:18-20¶
10:18 And Jesus said unto him, Why callest thou me good? there is none good but one, that is, God. 10:19 Thou knowest the commandments, Do not commit adultery, Do not kill, Do not steal, Do not bear false witness, Defraud not, Honour thy father and mother. 10:20 And he answered and said unto him, Master, all these have I observed from my youth.
Mark 11:17¶
And he taught, saying unto them, Is it not written, My house shall be called of all nations the house of prayer? but ye have made it a den of thieves.
Luke 18:19-21¶
18:19 And Jesus said unto him, Why callest thou me good? none is good, save one, that is, God. 18:20 Thou knowest the commandments, Do not commit adultery, Do not kill, Do not steal, Do not bear false witness, Honour thy father and thy mother. 18:21 And he said, All these have I kept from my youth up.
Luke 19:1-10 (Zacchaeus -- full context)¶
19:1 And Jesus entered and passed through Jericho. 19:2 And, behold, there was a man named Zacchaeus, which was the chief among the publicans, and he was rich. 19:3 And he sought to see Jesus who he was; and could not for the press, because he was little of stature. 19:4 And he ran before, and climbed up into a sycomore tree to see him: for he was to pass that way. 19:5 And when Jesus came to the place, he looked up, and saw him, and said unto him, Zacchaeus, make haste, and come down; for to day I must abide at thy house. 19:6 And he made haste, and came down, and received him joyfully. 19:7 And when they saw it, they all murmured, saying, That he was gone to be guest with a man that is a sinner. 19:8 And Zacchaeus stood, and said unto the Lord; Behold, Lord, the half of my goods I give to the poor; and if I have taken any thing from any man by false accusation, I restore him fourfold. 19:9 And Jesus said unto him, This day is salvation come to this house, forsomuch as he also is a son of Abraham. 19:10 For the Son of man is come to seek and to save that which was lost.
John 10:1-2, 8-10 (Thief/robber vs. shepherd)¶
10:1 Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that entereth not by the door into the sheepfold, but climbeth up some other way, the same is a thief and a robber. 10:2 But he that entereth in by the door is the shepherd of the sheep. 10:8 All that ever came before me are thieves and robbers: but the sheep did not hear them. 10:9 I am the door: by me if any man enter in, he shall be saved, and shall go in and out, and find pasture. 10:10 The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly.
John 12:4-6 (Judas the thief)¶
12:4 Then saith one of his disciples, Judas Iscariot, Simon's son, which should betray him, 12:5 Why was not this ointment sold for three hundred pence, and given to the poor? 12:6 This he said, not that he cared for the poor; but because he was a thief, and had the bag, and bare what was put therein.
Luke 23:39-43 (Thief on the cross)¶
23:39 And one of the malefactors which were hanged railed on him, saying, If thou be Christ, save thyself and us. 23:40 But the other answering rebuked him, saying, Dost not thou fear God, seeing thou art in the same condemnation? 23:41 And we indeed justly; for we receive the due reward of our deeds: but this man hath done nothing amiss. 23:42 And he said unto Jesus, Lord, remember me when thou comest into thy kingdom. 23:43 And Jesus said unto him, Verily I say unto thee, To day shalt thou be with me in paradise.
L. NT Treatment -- Paul and Epistles¶
Romans 2:21-22¶
2:21 Thou therefore which teachest another, teachest thou not thyself? thou that preachest a man should not steal, dost thou steal? 2:22 Thou that sayest a man should not commit adultery, dost thou commit adultery? thou that abhorrest idols, dost thou commit sacrilege?
Romans 13:8-10¶
13:8 Owe no man any thing, but to love one another: for he that loveth another hath fulfilled the law. 13:9 For this, Thou shalt not commit adultery, Thou shalt not kill, Thou shalt not steal, Thou shalt not bear false witness, Thou shalt not covet; and if there be any other commandment, it is briefly comprehended in this saying, namely, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. 13:10 Love worketh no ill to his neighbour: therefore love is the fulfilling of the law.
1 Corinthians 6:7-11¶
6:7 Now therefore there is utterly a fault among you, because ye go to law one with another. Why do ye not rather take wrong? why do ye not rather suffer yourselves to be defrauded? 6:8 Nay, ye do wrong, and defraud, and that your brethren. 6:9 Know ye not that the unrighteous shall not inherit the kingdom of God? Be not deceived: neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor abusers of themselves with mankind, 6:10 Nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners, shall inherit the kingdom of God. 6:11 And such were some of you: but ye are washed, but ye are sanctified, but ye are justified in the name of the Lord Jesus, and by the Spirit of our God.
Ephesians 4:26-29¶
4:26 Be ye angry, and sin not: let not the sun go down upon your wrath: 4:27 Neither give place to the devil. 4:28 Let him that stole steal no more: but rather let him labour, working with his hands the thing which is good, that he may have to give to him that needeth. 4:29 Let no corrupt communication proceed out of your mouth, but that which is good to the use of edifying, that it may minister grace unto the hearers.
1 Thessalonians 4:5-7¶
4:5 Not in the lust of concupiscence, even as the Gentiles which know not God: 4:6 That no man go beyond and defraud his brother in any matter: because that the Lord is the avenger of all such, as we also have forewarned you and testified. 4:7 For God hath not called us unto uncleanness, but unto holiness.
Titus 2:9-10¶
2:9 Exhort servants to be obedient unto their own masters, and to please them well in all things; not answering again; 2:10 Not purloining, but shewing all good fidelity; that they may adorn the doctrine of God our Saviour in all things.
M. NT Treatment -- General¶
1 Peter 4:15¶
But let none of you suffer as a murderer, or as a thief, or as an evildoer, or as a busybody in other men's matters.
Revelation 3:3¶
Remember therefore how thou hast received and heard, and hold fast, and repent. If therefore thou shalt not watch, I will come on thee as a thief, and thou shalt not know what hour I will come upon thee.
Revelation 9:20-21¶
9:20 And the rest of the men which were not killed by these plagues yet repented not of the works of their hands, that they should not worship devils, and idols of gold, and silver, and brass, and stone, and of wood: which neither can see, nor hear, nor walk: 9:21 Neither repented they of their murders, nor of their sorceries, nor of their fornication, nor of their thefts.
N. OT Instances of Theft¶
Genesis 31:19, 34-35 (Rachel steals household gods)¶
31:19 And Laban went to shear his sheep: and Rachel had stolen the images that were her father's. 31:34 Now Rachel had taken the images, and put them in the camel's furniture, and sat upon them. And Laban searched all the tent, but found them not. 31:35 And she said to her father, Let it not displease my lord that I cannot rise up before thee; for the custom of women is upon me. And he searched, but found not the images.
Joshua 7:11, 20-21 (Achan)¶
7:11 Israel hath sinned, and they have also transgressed my covenant which I commanded them: for they have even taken of the accursed thing, and have also stolen, and dissembled also, and they have put it even among their own stuff. 7:20 And Achan answered Joshua, and said, Indeed I have sinned against the LORD God of Israel, and thus and thus have I done: 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.
Judges 17:1-3 (Micah)¶
17:1 And there was a man of mount Ephraim, whose name was Micah. 17:2 And he said unto his mother, The eleven hundred shekels of silver that were taken from thee, about which thou cursedst, and spakest of also in mine ears, behold, the silver is with me; I took it. And his mother said, Blessed be thou of the LORD, my son. 17:3 And when he had restored the eleven hundred shekels of silver to his mother, his mother said, I had wholly dedicated the silver unto the LORD from my hand for my son, to make a graven image and a molten image: now therefore I will restore it unto thee.
Judges 18:14-27 (Spies of Laish)¶
18:14 Then answered the five men that went to spy out the country of Laish, and said unto their brethren, Do ye know that there is in these houses an ephod, and teraphim, and a graven image, and a molten image? now therefore consider what ye have to do. 18:17 And the five men that went to spy out the land went up, and came in thither, and took the graven image, and the ephod, and the teraphim, and the molten image: and the priest stood in the entering of the gate with the six hundred men that were appointed with weapons of war. 18:24 And he said, Ye have taken away my gods which I made, and the priest, and ye are gone away: and what have I more? and what is this that ye say unto me, What aileth thee? 18:27 And they took the things which Micah had made, and the priest which he had, and came unto Laish, unto a people that were at quiet and secure: and they smote them with the edge of the sword, and burnt the city with fire.
John 12:6 (Judas)¶
This he said, not that he cared for the poor; but because he was a thief, and had the bag, and bare what was put therein.