8/12/2019 1991 Issue 5 - Law and Liberation: The Tenth Commandment - Counsel of Chalcedon
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Owen ourie
LAW
AND
LIBERATION
THE TENTH
COMMANDMENT
Thou shalt not covet thy neighbor's house,
thou
shalt
not covet thy neighbor's wife, nor his
manservant, nor his maidservant, nor his ox, nor
his ass, nor any thing
that
is
thy
neighbor's,
(Exodus
20:17
Godly contenOllent
To
covet
is
evil.
To
covet is
good.
Bothstatementsare true but they require
qualification in terms
of
the object
coveted. To covet
is
to earnestl
y
desire
something with such affection that
satisfaction
is obtained
only
with the
actual possessionof the object
so
desired
.
f
he
panicular object
is
someone
else's
property and not
for
sale, no
r
obtainable
in a
way
that
s
in
keeping
with
the Law
ofGod, coveting it
s evil.
f he
object is
available
and it
may
be acquired
by
honest
means
in
accordance
with
the
Law of
God,
coveting
it
is good. The
tenthcommandmentforbidsevilcoveting
as do most of the references in sctipture
to coveting.
But there is
such a thing as
good
coveting.
In Habakkuk
2:
9 the
prophet
declares:
'Woe
to
him that
coveteth an
evil covetousness to
his
house ..
The
implication is clearly that
there is
a
good
covetousness and this
is
borne out by
the
apostle
Paul's use of the
tenn in I
COrinthians 12:31 where he
says:
"But
covet earnestly
the best
gifts."
n
thesameepist\e
he states: "Where
fore ,
. (1
Cor. 14:39).
Turning our attention to the
forbidden covetousness,
we
must note
that theHebrewword
for covet (chamad)
has two meanings. It
means not
only to
covet
but
also
to take.
In otherwords, it
speaks not only of the evil
desire of
the
hean but
also of
the ensuing outward
actionbywhich thesixth,seventh, eighth,
and ninth commandments
are violated.
Achan's confession
endorses
this
truth.
"When
I
saw
among the
spoils
a
goodly
Babylonish
gannent, and
two
hundred
shekels of silver, and a wedge of
gold
..
thenl
COVETED
them,
andTOOK
them
.. ." Ooshua 7:21).
"Woe to them
that
devise
iniquity, and work
evil
upon
their
beds
when the morning
is
light,
they
practice it, because
it
is
in
the
power
of their hand.
And they COVET
fields
,
and
TAKE them by violence;
andhouses,
and
TAKE
them
away
..
This
natural
and
Biblical
link
between
coveting
and
taking receives funher endorsement in
Mark 10:39
where our LordJesusChrist
cited the tenth commandment not
as
a
sin
merely of
the hean but
of the
vety
action which
atises
out
of
the hean.
'Thou knowest thecommandments,
Do
notcommitadultery,
Do
not
kill, Do
not
steal, Do
not
bear
false witness,
DEFRAUD NOT..." Moreover, in the
Luke 12:15
we read that Jesus said,
Take heed,
and
beware
of
COVETOUSNESS:
for a man's life
consisteth not in the abundance of the
things which he POSSESSETH." Once
again,
onecannot fuiltoseetheconnection
between coveting and taking. Coveting,
in this context,
is
to long after something
to
such a
degree
that it must beacquired,
possessed
,
and
enjoyedat the
expense
of
the person towhom it rightfully belongs.
It is obvious that coveting cannot
be understood to be a matter that
is
confined
to
the heart. That is an
interpretation which is imposed on the
tenth commandment by those who too
readilyintemaliz.e
religion and minimize
Its external expression. The same
interpreters see covetousness as
an
exclUsively evil
thing and
the desire to
acquire
goods
andwealth
as
unspiritual.
The practical effect
of
this
commandment
is
perhaps, nowhere
better stated than in the words of the
earlyMethodist theologian
Adam
Clarke
who is
quoted by
Dr.
RJ Rushdoony in
The
Institutes
o
iblical
aw
(page
634):
"This
is
a most excellent moral precept,
the
observance
ofwhich will prevent
all
public crhnes: for he who feels the force
ofthe
law
which prohibits the inordinate
desire
ofanything that
is
the propeny of
another,
can
never make abreach in the
peace
of
society
by an act of wrong
to
any
of
even its feeblest members. That
statement is abnost
two
hundred years
old. In the 1990s we are livingin aworld
that
lacks
the God-given
faith
to
enforce
the
Law of
God and, instead,
exalts
the
inordinate
desire
in
every
sphere.
No
wonder, then, that crime is on the
ra
mpage
amid vainhopes that talks, talks
about
talks,
negotiations, and man to
man reconciliation, without Christ and
without repentance and obedience
to
God
's
law,
will bring peace
to society.
Juue
1991
HE
COUNSEL
of
Chalcedon 9
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Evil Covetousness
Evil covetousness moves Iapidly,
then,
from the
thoughts
and
inordinate
desires of inind and hean to the actions
of the body to acquire
by
evil means
whateverbelongs to qurneighbor.
Such
means could
involve
the
employment
of
deceit,
fraud,
and
coercion.
Not
only
covetoUs indMduals but also covetous
institutions are gUilty of such
perpetrationswherebyotherindividhals,
fumilies, and institutions are deprived of
what is truly theilS. FIDm the dehbeIate
alienation of the
affection
ofsomeone's
spouse to the expropriation of property
by apparently legal means involves evil
covetousness. So, whiletheslxth,seventh,
eighth, and ninth
commandments deal
with openly illegal acts, the tenth
comtnandment
forbIds
he
claridestine
maneuvers by which the earlier
corrunandments are broken. therefore,
ill the tranSgression of commandments
six
to nine, the tenth is inevitably also
violated. Sulking KingAhab had triedby
ostensiblylegalmeanstoacquireNaboth's
vineyard
I
Kings 21)but o no avail. The
wicked ]ezebel hatched her
evil
plot to
satisfy
her husband s covetousness and
arranged for Naboth to be publicly
accused of blasphemy by
false wimesses
and to suffer execution.
The
third
commandment
was,
to
all appeanmces,
legaily
applied. The
law
was
used,
but
behind itsusage
lay thefraudu1ent use
of
the
very
wimesS that was forbidden
by
the ninth commandment in order to
meet what was forbidden
by
the tenth
commandment and in the
process the
third, sixth, and eighth
commandments
were
alsO
broken.
To
piltlt anotherway
andtosumup,bytheseenUrigIylegaluse
of one commandment; the
hird,
five
commandments were
broken. Score:
]ezebel sWicked
Ways
5, Righteousness
o
The tenth commandmentcondemns
those who
fraudulently
use the law
to
achieve their covetous purposes. In a
humanistic
law
system it is far easier to
legally deprive
othelS
ofwhat
is
ptoperly
their pOssession .
Here
sterilization,
abortion, and
euthanasia
would
speak
volumes
as
scientilicmancovets deity.
.
It
is evil covetousness that is the
root
of
any social
order - welfarism,
socialism,
communism that
takes from
the haves to give to the have-nots ,
thattakesbyexcesslvetaxationandother
StatuteS, the
h a r d ~ r n e d
wealth of
the
diligent
forthebenefit oftheindolent. Of
course, forsocialism
thisisverynecessary
because it is a parasite which, being
unable togeneratewealth
byproductlvity,
must prey on the
wealth
that
others
have
gained by diligent application to their
vocations,
Special privileges
Despite man's
pursuit
of equality
as
theidealwhich
will
eliminate
all
strife,
even those socialorders thathave sprung
from the ungodly philosophy of
egalitarianism cannot escape the God
given inequalities, especially the
inequality of
special
privileges. Dr.
Rushdoony points out in The Instirutes
ofBiblicall.aw{page 640l) thatnosociety
haseverexisted
without
special
privileges
and it is not
likely
that any will ever
succeedindoingso.Specialprivilegehas
its foundation in God's appointed order
and it is keeuly felt - and despised in a
fallenworld.
ItsII1ostoffensivestatement
isinMatthew25:29, Foruntoevetyone
thathathshallbei:iven,andheshallhave
abundance:
but from
him
that hath not
shall be taken away
even
that which he
hath. Initiativeandsuccessin
the
proper
and faithful
employment
of God-given
talents will be rewarded.
Sloth
willsuffer
just deprivation.
In
the face
of
such
reality, evil covetOUsness finds
provocation.
In
he M arxistideal,
special
privilege is not absent, By evil
covetousness,thewealthofthesuccessful
is distributed as a special privilege to the
incompetent, the unsuccessful, and the
lazy. Fabian Socialism is hostile to the
familybecauseitistheforemostinstimtion
20
nm
COUNSEL of ChaIcedon ;
June 1991
for promoting the
special
privileges ofits
members. y evil covetousness, Fabian
Sodalismdeterminesthatwhilethefamily
is the guardian
of children, the
the state
is
the guardian of collective
efficiency.
Inheritance taxes are imposed to
destroy
the family's
desire
to
confer special
privileges on its members. Asystem of
examinations militates against initiative,
inventtveness,andenterpriseandinstead,
promotes aselectionbymeritwhichsees
the rise of a specially privileged
class
of
statist-minded intellectuals and
bureaucrats who qualify for more
education and who
enter the professions
and
occupy
positions above many who
display greater ability. The
statist and
socialistworshipersofman-as-Godalign
themselves in
evil
covetousness against
the o d g i v ~ rightofsociety's
basicunit
-the
family-to
p e ~ e
in ermsofspecial
privileges. But, in doing
so, special
privileges are simply removed from
one
group to another
as
humanistic man
covetouslydistributesprivilegeaccording
to his own evil desires. To
families,
organizations,andemployersitisindeed
lawful forthem to do whatthey
will
with
their
own (Matthew
20:15) thereby
promotingthedevelopmentofindividual
initiative
and free enterprise,
But
to ovil
government,
which
is
Biblically,
only
a
minister of ustice in regard to God'slaw,
notitsownlaws,nosuchlawfulbbertyis
given.
Action s Root
The tenth commandment locates
the root ofall
illegal
and immoral
acts
to
depriveourneighborofwhatisrightfully
hisin
he
intentofman, in hismind.
the
evil
act
is rooted in the
lawless
thought.
Act
and
thonght
are inseparable.
the
law of
God rules over the mind and the
body of
man
in utter refutation of the
dualistlcsepaIation
ofmind and bodyin
the Illgan and Hellenistic philosophies
that influenced
Western thinking.
Such
(continued on page
24
8/12/2019 1991 Issue 5 - Law and Liberation: The Tenth Commandment - Counsel of Chalcedon
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PAID
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Permit No. 1553
1ncCine
my lieart unto
tliy
testimonies) andnot to
covetousness.
Psalm 119:36
Fourie, The Tenth Commandment)
dualism has opened the door to
irresponsibility. By
treating
mind and
bodyastwoseparnterealmsanddivorcfng
intent and act, either the. mind
is
ftmdamental in the understanding of
man,andacts
become
irrelevant; orman's
acts alone
carty
responsibility while the
mind isset free
to indulge
in fantasy and
evil, the communication of which can
canseothersto do evil deedsandtosuffer
theconsequences. OurLordJesusC):uist
clearlyrejected this
dualismwhen,
in the
Sermon on the
Mount,
He linked the
thoughtsandinte1ltionsofthemindwifu
the acts
of
murder
and
adultery. Again,
in
Matthew
15:19,
jesus
linked evil
thoughts, murders, adulteries,
fornications, thefts, faIse wimess, and
blasphemies as all arising .out o th
heart. Onsuch good ground, the
collect
preceding the pronouncement of
the
Decalogue
in the
admtrrlsrrntion
of the
Lord's Supper in the Book
of Common
Prayeracknowledgestheurrttyofthought
and act:
Almighty
God, unto whom
all
hearts be open, all desires known, and
from whom no secrets are
hid.:
deanse
the thoughts of our hearts
.by
the
inspiration of thy Holy Spirit, that we l b ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
may
perfectly
love thee,
and
worthily
God's
commandments
will
be observed
magnify
thy holy Name: through
Christ
not
merelybypersonallyrefraining
from
our Lord. The
liturgical
response
to
outward
evil
acts but by conftnning or
eachstatementofthe
Decalogueendorses
putting into force
these
commandments
the link: Lord, have mercy on us, and in all their implications for every
area
of
incline our hearts to
keep
this law.
life. To
fuil
to obey
the
Law
of God fully
Amen. o
let it be
indeed.
from the heart is
to
inherit the mrse of
God. The fruit
of
obedience
from
the
Godly Contentment heartwillbeagodlysocietycharacterized
Such a
prayer
and such aresponse bygodlyfamiliesengagedinhonestwork
inconnectionwiththeLawofgodsurely and the
full
employment of
talents for
must
reflect
the
very attimde
and way of
just
reward and
private
gain and with a
life
by which
od
is
glorified
-
godly
righteous concern
for
the
well-being
of
contentment - the
very opposite
ofevil ourneighbor'sGod-given,
butfotfeitable,
covetousness. There
is another Amen
right to
life, wife property, and
good
that is of
vital
importance. It
is
in reputation. No evil covetousness here;
Deuteronomy27:26. Cutsedbehe that only godly contenunent, a contenunent
confirmeth not all the words
of
this law, not with sin but with God's sovereigu
to do them. And all the people shall say, providence and requirements. Let your
Amen. Inagodlysociety, theproduct of conversation be without covetousness:
the
Gospel
of our Lord
Jesus
Christ, and be content
with such
24
THE COUNSEl
of
Chalcedon
June
1991
have:
for
he
hath
said,
Iwill
never leave
thee, nor forsake
thee
(Hebrews
13:5).
Conclusion
By evil covetousness,
fallen
man
seeks
to
possess
the earth
on his terms.
is
quest
is
to establish the worldwide
humanistic kingdom
of
man, and
international
Socialism is currently
the
predominant force in this objective. But
the earth is the LORD'S and so we are all
involved in an unequal battle
for
dominion.
On the
one side there is God
and
is
people
who
keep
is
law as
the
tool for victory
.
On the other there s
man who
would be
like
God and who
seeks
to
remake the world
according to
his own
design, by
covetousness
and
coercion.
There
can be
no doubt
who
willwinforGodhasspoken. Theywho
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