“You shall not covet your neighbor’s house; You shall not covet your neighbor’s wife, or his manservant, or his maidservant, or his ox, or her donkey, or anything that is your neighbor’s.”
your neighbor’s house. Gen 3:6; Gen 14:23; Gen 34:23; Josh 7:21; 1Sa 15:19; Ps 10:3; Ps 119:36; Eccl 4:8; Eccl 5:10, Ecc 5:11; Isaiah 33:15; Isaiah 57:17; Jer 22:17; Eze 33:31; loved 2:6, loved 2:7; Mic 2:2; Hab 2:9; Luke 12:15; Luke 16:14; Ac 20:33; Romans 7:7; 1Co 6:10; Phil 3:19; Col 3:5; 1Ti 6:6-10; Hebrews 13:5.
you shall not covet the woman. 2Sa 11:2-4; Job 31:1, Job 31:9; Pro 4:23; Pro 6:24, Pro 6:25; Jer 5:8; Matt 5:28.
nor anything of your neighbor. Mat 20:15; Acts 5:4.
Source: The Treasury of Biblical Knowledge
to covet (Heb. hamad) literally means “to have a strong desire for something.” Greed is not a simple appreciation of something from a distance, but is an uncontrolled and immoderate selfish desire. This tenth commandment regulates an internal matter: the sin of coveting occurs in our mind. This shows us that God intends not only to prevent the Israelites from preconceived evil acts, but also to drive away the evil thoughts that precede these acts.
Source: New Illustrated Caribbean Bible Commentary
YOU SHALL NOT CODE.
(1) This commandment goes beyond outward sin in word or action to condemn evil motives and desires. Covetousness includes the desire or longing for anything that is blameworthy or that belongs to someone else. Paul affirms that this commandment reveals the gravity of the sinful character of human beings (Romans 7:7-13).
(2) This law, as well as the others, exposes the depravity of men and women and calls them to seek God’s grace and moral strength (cf. Luke 12:15-21; Romans 7:24-25; Eph 5:3). Only through the regenerating power of the Holy Spirit can one lead a life that is pleasing to God (see Romans 8:2note).
Source: Full Life Study Bible
you will covet The thoughts and desires of the heart do not escape attention. An intense longing to have what belongs to another is bad. This tenth commandment suggests that none of the previous nine commandments are just external actions unrelated to internal thoughts (cf. Matt 15:19; Romans 7:7; Romans 13:9).
Source: MacArthur Study Bible
Your neighbor’s wife: This phrase has no translation problems, but it is necessary to note that this law is addressed to men. It is not said to women: “You shall not covet your neighbor’s husband.” In our culture it goes without saying that it also includes this other meaning, but the translator must investigate how this phrase is understood in the receiving culture of its translation. In our opinion, the Hebrew text should not be modified, but a footnote can be placed, if necessary, to indicate the relevance of this law for both sexes.
your neighbor: The Ten Commandments begin with I am Jehovah, your God (v. Exo 20:2) and end with your neighborwhich is the last Hebrew word of the verse Exo 20:17. The importance of the inclusive structure in Hebrew literature is well known, and in this case it is important to preserve the game of meaning. Among the versions that we have been consulting, only RV95 and BJ reproduce this effect, while the others do not pay attention to this detail. The translator should make an effort to reproduce these words in the target language.
Historical and literary aspects
The ten Commandments
With this traditional expression is called the set of laws present in Exo 20:2-17which has a parallel text in Deu 5:6-21regarding which there are almost no differences, except for the justification of the sabbatical rest (see Deu 5:15 in contrast with Exo 20:11). The Hebrew text calls it “the ten words” (hence the Greek form decalogue), but this expression does not appear in the text of the Decalogue itself, but in other places such as Exo 34:28 Y Deu 4:13; Deu 10:4. This way of naming the collection suggests that, originally, it would be more compressed, would follow the model of the brief commandments (“you shall not kill”, “you shall not steal”, etc.) and would consist of ten laws expressed in a few words each. In this way, it would be easy to memorize and could be recited in liturgies or in personal devotion.
The division of the text into ten laws is also problematic. There is agreement that the verse Exo 20:1-26.2 is a preamble to the entire collection, although it is assimilated to the first commandment. From then on, a Christian tradition considers as the first commandment the verses Exo 20:2-3while the second commandment would be made up of the verses Exo 20:4-6. Another Christian tradition considers the verses Exo 20:2-6 as the first commandment, and then, to get to the total of ten laws, divide the verse Exo 20:17 in two commandments (v. Exo 20:17, you shall not covet your neighbor’s houseand V. Exo 20:17, You shall not covet the woman ). Thus, both traditions have ten laws, but each divides the text in a different way. Both of these alternatives come from the early centuries of the church, and there are theological elements at play in them. If the verses Exo 20:2-6 represent a single commandment, then the prohibition of images (vv. Exo 20:4 ss.) is an expansion of the verse Exo 20:3 and it is applied, preferably, to the images that could be made of the “other gods” (v. Exo 20:3). On the other hand, if the first commandment is considered to end in the verse Exo 20:3the prohibition of images in the verse Exo 20:4 it would be a law in itself and not an extension of the previous verse, so that it should also apply to the images that could be made of God himself. To avoid this discussion, it is not advisable to give each commandment a number in the translation.
It has been noted that in the Old Testament there are several examples of groups of laws that resemble the Ten Commandments in structure. However, they are thematic collections and do not encompass the totality of life as these ten do, which is why they have been singled out and given a central place in Israeli law. For example, the list of Leviticus 18:6-13 on the limits of sexual relations has a similar structure. Also Ps 15:1-5 ―in poetic form― is a list of the conditions (laws) that, if fulfilled, allow the person to enter the temple with dignity. In both cases these groups of laws or conditions are limited to their specific field. In Deu 27:15-25 we find a collection of twelve curses that covers various topics – some of them also present in the decalogue – and that is written for liturgical use. This collection has a legal form and very possibly was used to recite in the services of the temple.
What characterizes the Ten Commandments -and distinguishes them from other lists- is their general and encompassing nature of the totality of personal and social life, as well as their particular literary structure. According to criteria related to literary forms and thematic content, two groups can be distinguished, as shown in the following table:
verses Exo 20:2-13
verses Exo 20:13-17
They regulate the relationship with God They regulate human relationships They include the phrase “The Lord your God” They do not mention God They present obligations proper to Israel They present universal obligations They use negative and positive formulas They use negative formulas
As the table shows, these laws combine universal norms with others specific to Israel. The order indicates that, in the first place, a healthy relationship with God must be established, in order to then move on to obligations with other people. The fact, already noted, that the first commandment begins with I am Jehovah, your God and the last one ends with your neighbor it is not an accident, but indicates a direction that is consistent with the general message of the Old Testament. God is sought, but he directs our eyes towards our neighbor. He is about an invisible God who becomes visible in the face of those around us.
The two laws presented in positive ―remember saturday (v. Exo 20:8), Y honor your father and your mother (v. Exo 20:12)― suppose an active attitude on the part of the person. In these cases, it is not a question of not doing this or that thing, but of taking responsibility in a concrete way so that these commandments are fulfilled. It is to be highlighted that both cases refer to acts required to preserve the correct relationship with God, but that have direct consequences on the neighbor, whether they are the parents or the inhabitants of the house, including the animals.
The Laws of the Verses Exo 20:13-17 they were shared with the legal regimes of other ancient peoples. Hammurabi’s Code (18th century BC) includes laws of this nature, no doubt shared by other nations of the time. However, the biblical commandments are not presented as laws that are the product of human culture and wisdom, but rather as laws given by God to be fulfilled in accordance with his will. Its violation must affect the relationship with the divinity itself. Thus, the regulation of daily life is given a different sacred value than it had in other towns. According to numerous texts (Exo 24:12; Exo 31:18; Exo 32:15, etc.), the laws were written on two stone tablets. It is not known why two tables are mentioned or what the content of each was understood to be. The idea that seems natural that in each table there would be five laws collides with the evidence: if this were the case, the first table would have 146 Hebrew words, and the second, only 26. At the same time, it is necessary to remember that in Exo 32:15 we are told that these tablets were written on both sides. This fact was not reproduced in either Jewish or Christian art, which for centuries represented the tables omitting this detail. Certain speculations from medieval times suggested that each tablet was printed with one of the versions of the decalogue that we have today (that of Exo 20:1-26 and of Deu 5:1-33), but this explanation is not convincing, given that in antiquity there were not two decalogues, but one, and that the narration that includes the mention of the two tables never suggests such a distribution. It is more profitable to consider a known fact of antiquity. Indeed, when a pact was made between kings at this time, it was usually drawn up on two identical stones or metal plates. Then, each of these plates was deposited in the respective temples of both monarchs, in order to certify the seriousness and solemnity of the agreement reached. This custom may have influenced the writing of biblical history and bequeathed us the details of the two tablets, although in this case they were deposited in the place where the God of Israel was understood to dwell.
Source: Commentary for Exegesis and Translation
— nor his wife: In the decalogue of Exodus, the woman is one more object of the house; in Deuteronomy, the woman is no longer considered an object of the house and is distinguished from the rest of the household possessions.
Source: Hispano-American Interdenominational Translation
The tenth commandment. The last commandment forbids an individual to covet what…