Q. 24. What is meant by the tenth commandment, “You shall not covet anything that is your neighbor’s”?

We should be fully content with our status, circumstances, possessions, and achievements. God forbids all discontented and ungrateful attitudes, such as pride, envy, jealousy, rivalry, grumbling, and materialism.

Exodus 16:8; Numbers 14:27–30; Psalm 23:1; 106:24–25; Ecclesiastes 4:4; 5:10; Matthew 6:19–21; Mark 4:18–19; Luke 3:14; Luke 12:13–21; Acts 20:33–35; 1 Corinthians 3:3; 10:9–10; 2 Corinthians 12:10; Philippians 4:11–13; Colossians 3:5; Galatians 5:26; 1 Timothy 6:6–10; Hebrews 13:5; James 3:14–16; 4:1–3; 1 John 2:15–17.

  • WSC 79–81
  • Heidelberg Catechism 113

Content … discontented. Discontentment is the root of covetousness. Wesley writes, “O that such a man’s house were mine! such a man’s wife mine! such a man’s estate mine! This is certainly the language of discontent at our own lot, and envy at our neighbour’s, and these are the sins principally forbidden here” (Notes on the Bible, Exodus 20:17). Covetousness is ultimately dissatisfaction with God—longing for something other than God to give us hope, happiness, or security (see Q. 16). This is why Scripture condemns it as idolatry (Colossians 3:5).

Pride. Pride leads us to compare ourselves with others, and to believe that we deserve more than what we have been given. Pride made Satan covet God’s throne (Isaiah 14:12–15). 

Envy, jealousy. If we truly love our neighbors, we will be able to rejoice in their success, even when it exceeds our own. “No passion more destructive than envy is implanted in the souls of human beings. … Envy is distress caused by your neighbor’s prosperity. Hence the jealous person is never free from anguish, never free from despair” (Basil the Great, Homily on Envy 1). “The origin of envy can be found at the very beginnings of the world. It was the sin by which the devil himself both perished (himself) and destroyed (others). … The mischief of jealousy, manifold and fruitful, extends widely. It is the root of all evils, the fountain of disasters, the nursery of crimes, the material of transgressions. … Other ills have their limit. Whatever wrong is done, it ends when the deed has been done. … But jealousy has no limit. It is an evil that continually endures—a sin without end” (Cyprian, Treatise 10 On Envy 4; 6–7).

Grumbling. Israel became dissatisfied with God’s provision in the wilderness and grumbled against him. For their sin, some “were destroyed by the Destroyer” (1 Corinthians 10:10).

Materialism. Materialism is a preoccupation with material possessions and physical comfort over spiritual values and kingdom priorities. “Be on your guard against all covetousness, for one’s life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions” (Luke 12:15).

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