20th March 2023<\/p>\n\n\n\n
So what\u2019s wrong with a little flutter now and again?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n <\/sup><\/em><\/strong>\u201cYou shall not covet your neighbor\u2019s house. You shall not covet your neighbor\u2019s wife, or his male or female servant, his ox or donkey, or anything that belongs to your neighbor.\u201d<\/em> (Exodus 20:17)<\/p>\n\n\n\n In terms of the lifeblood of our economy, the phenomenon of gambling ranks as one of the major players. These days it is sanitised and made respectable. You\u2019d be hard-pressed to find a football team not sponsored by an on-line betting company these days. To my way of thinking you don\u2019t get \u2018owt for nowt<\/em>. Everyone who bets is expecting (foolishly) to get unearned cash and this money has to come from somewhere? Other foolish gamblers! This is state-sponsored covetousness. Our eyes seem to be pre-programmed to be cast around and about, at the good fortunes of others, or even guided by the thought that, I want what he\u2019s got, even if I don\u2019t really need it. I just don\u2019t like it that he has it and I don\u2019t!<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n So, we have a flow of money fuelled by rampant coveting, with a nice little dividend creamed off the top by the facilitators. Those \u201csophisticated\u201d gamblers, the bankers and stock market dabblers are no different, they are also filling (or emptying) their pockets with unearned money. But there\u2019s a difference here, where greedy gamblers can very easily bring down companies, banks, even countries, with ordinary people suffering. Livelihoods are stolen through the greed of others. Unfortunately, there\u2019s no law against these activities, except in cases of insider trading, so our general discontent with what the Lord has given us in life is very much a key driver in society.<\/p>\n\n\n\n We are all consumers, encouraged by the advertisers and marketeers to feed the system, despite the inequality at the heart of it. To re-iterate what we said about stealing in an earlier Chapter: All that we have comes from God, whatever the World tells us. Whether it is money, good looks, family, or life itself, all has a single origin. This means that if we acquire anything unlawfully, outside the functioning of the laws of barter or commerce, then we are not stealing from a person \u2026 but from God Himself. And the consequences will ultimately be from God Himself! That is the function that lies at the heart of stealing, an offence against God<\/em>. Although coveting doesn\u2019t always lead to stealing, it is certainly a great encouragement to go out and get what you don\u2019t have.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n Keep your life free from love of money, and be content with what you have, for he has said, \u201cI will never leave you nor forsake you.\u201d<\/em> (Hebrews 13:5)<\/p>\n\n\n\n Wealth gained hastily will dwindle, but whoever gathers little by little will increase it<\/em> (Proverbs 13:11)<\/p>\n\n\n\n It is time now to dig into the Hebrew behind the commandment:<\/p>\n\n\n\n <\/sup><\/em><\/strong>\u201cYou shall not covet your neighbor\u2019s house. You shall not covet your neighbor\u2019s wife, or his male or female servant, his ox or donkey, or anything that belongs to your neighbor.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n The Hebrew word here, chamad<\/em>, indeed takes the general meaning of \u201ccovet\u201d, but what about the equivalent word in the parallel passage in Deuteronomy?<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cYou shall not covet your neighbor\u2019s wife. You shall not set your desire on your neighbor\u2019s house or land, his male or female servant, his ox or donkey, or anything that belongs to your neighbor.\u201d<\/em> (Deuteronomy 5:21)<\/p>\n\n\n\n Two Hebrew words are used here, chamad<\/em> and avah<\/em>. Although both can mean \u201ccovet\u201d, the second word conveys another emotion, desire<\/em>. The Rabbis suggest that desire can lead to coveting, which could then lead to stealing: They covet fields and seize them,<\/em> and houses, and take them<\/em>. (Micah 2:2). And this could go even further to be prepared to kill in order to acquire that which you covet. Here\u2019s a story that is worth recounting:<\/p>\n\n\n\n Some time later there was an incident involving a vineyard belonging to Naboth the Jezreelite. The vineyard was in Jezreel, close to the palace of Ahab king of Samaria. Ahab said to Naboth, \u201cLet me have your vineyard to use for a vegetable garden, since it is close to my palace. In exchange I will give you a better vineyard or, if you prefer, I will pay you whatever it is worth.\u201d But Naboth replied, \u201cThe Lord forbid that I should give you the inheritance of my ancestors.\u201d So Ahab went home, sullen and angry because Naboth the Jezreelite had said, \u201cI will not give you the inheritance of my ancestors.\u201d He lay on his bed sulking and refused to eat. His wife Jezebel came in and asked him, \u201cWhy are you so sullen? Why won\u2019t you eat?\u201d He answered her, \u201cBecause I said to Naboth the Jezreelite, \u2018Sell me your vineyard; or if you prefer, I will give you another vineyard in its place.\u2019 But he said, \u2018I will not give you my vineyard.\u2019\u201d Jezebel his wife said, \u201cIs this how you act as king over Israel? Get up and eat! Cheer up. I\u2019ll get you the vineyard of Naboth the Jezreelite.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n So she wrote letters in Ahab\u2019s name, placed his seal on them, and sent them to the elders and nobles who lived in Naboth\u2019s city with him. In those letters she wrote: \u201cProclaim a day of fasting and seat Naboth in prominent place among the people. But seat two scoundrels opposite him and have them bring charges that he has cursed both God and the king. Then take him out and stone him to death.\u201dSo the elders and nobles who lived in Naboth\u2019s city did as Jezebel directed in the letters she had written to them. They proclaimed a fast and seated Naboth in a prominent place among the people. Then two scoundrels came and sat opposite him and brought charges against Naboth before the people, saying, \u201cNaboth has cursed both God and the king.\u201d So they took him outside the city and stoned him to death. Then they sent word to Jezebel: \u201cNaboth has been stoned to death.\u201d As soon as Jezebel heard that Naboth had been stoned to death, she said to Ahab, \u201cGet up and take possession of the vineyard of Naboth the Jezreelite that he refused to sell you. He is no longer alive, but dead.\u201dWhen Ahab heard that Naboth was dead, he got up and went down to take possession of Naboth\u2019s vineyard. (1 Kings 21:1-16)<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n You have to give it to the evil Jezebel, there are not too many people that can break five separate commandments to get their own way (the third, sixth, eighth, ninth and tenth!). Her reputation is well earned!<\/p>\n\n\n\n