Exodus 20:15 Command Against Stealing
Exodus 20:15: The Command Against Stealing
The command "You shall not steal" is a fundamental principle in the biblical tradition, appearing in Exodus 20:15 [1]. This prohibition is part of the Decalogue, a set of ten commandments given to the Israelites through Moses.
The command is straightforward, yet its implications are broad. The Hebrew term for "steal" (גנב, ganab) primarily refers to the act of taking someone else's property secretly [5]. However, interpretations of this command have expanded its scope to include various forms of theft and injustice.
Adam Clarke, a Methodist/Wesleyan commentator, notes that this precept forbids "all rapine and theft" including national and commercial wrongs, as well as petty larceny and private stealing [2]. Similarly, John Gill, a Baptist/Reformed commentator, explains that stealing involves taking away another's property by force or fraud, without their knowledge or against their will [3]. The term encompasses various kinds of theft, including private, public, and domestic theft.
The command is not limited to the act of stealing itself but also includes the intent and spirit behind it. According to Tyndale House, the prohibition against stealing reflects the idea that God values individuals and their possessions, and that having an absolute right to one's own way, whether earned or not, is contrary to divine principles [4].
The command against stealing is reiterated in other parts of the biblical text, such as Leviticus 19:11, where it is written, "Ye shall not steal" [5, 6]. This repetition underscores the importance of this principle in the biblical tradition.
In the broader context of the Decalogue, the command against stealing is part of a larger framework that establishes the Israelites' relationship with God and with each other. As Thomas Aquinas notes, the Old Law contained moral precepts like "Thou shalt not kill, Thou shalt not steal," which were intended to establish humanity in friendship with God [7].
The interpretation of this command has been subject to various understandings throughout history. Abraham Ibn Ezra, a Jewish rationalist commentator, explains that the term "stealing" applies not only to taking money secretly but also to cheating in number, measure, and weight, as well as to deception [8].
The command against stealing remains a foundational principle in Jewish, Christian, and other traditions, influencing moral and ethical teachings. Its significance extends beyond the literal act of theft to encompass broader issues of justice, fairness, and respect for others' property and rights.
Sources
- Exodus “Exodus 20:15 (BSB) — You shall not steal.”
- Exodus (Methodist/Wesleyan) “Adam Clarke on Exodus 20:15: Thou shalt not steal - All rapine and theft are forbidden by this precept; as well national and commercial wrongs as petty larceny, highway robberies, and private stealing: even the taking advantage of a seller's or buyer's ignorance, to give the one less and make the other pay more for a commodity than its worth, is a breach of this sacred law. All withholding of rights and doing of wrongs are against the spirit of it. But the word is principally applicable to clandestine stealing, though it may undoubtedly include all political injustice and private wrongs. And c”
- Exodus (Baptist/Reformed) “John Gill on Exodus 20:14: Thou shall not steal. Which is to take away another man's property by force or fraud, without the knowledge, and against the will of the owner thereof. Thefts are of various kinds; there is private theft, picking of pockets, shoplifting, burglary, or breaking into houses in the night, and carrying off goods; public theft, or robbing upon the highways; domestic theft, as when wives take away their husbands' money or goods, and conceal them, or dispose of them without their knowledge and will, children rob their parents, and servants purloin their masters' effects; ecc”
- Exodus (Protestant academic) “Tyndale House on Exodus 20:15: 20:15 Stealing is another way of saying that I have an absolute right to my own way, whether I have earned it or not. From the divine side, the prohibition says that God values us even down to our possessions.”
- Leviticus (Baptist/Reformed) “John Gill on Leviticus 19:11: Ye shall not steal,.... Which is the eighth command; See Gill on Exo 20:15; though Jarchi thinks something different from that law is here intended; that this is a caution against stealing of money, that in the decalogue against stealing of souls, or men. And it may be observed, that one is expressed in the singular number, the other in the plural, as here, and takes in more; not the actual thief only, but he that sees and is silent, who, as Aben Ezra observes, is even as the thief; and perhaps this follows upon the preceding laws, to suggest, that he that deprive”
- Leviticus (Methodist/Wesleyan) “Adam Clarke on Leviticus 19:11: Ye shall not steal, etc. - See the notes on Exo 20:15.”
- theology (Catholic (Scholastic)) “Aquinas, Summa Theologica, First Part of the Second Part (Prima Secundae), Of the Precepts of the Old Law, Art. 2: Article: Whether the Old Law contains moral precepts? I answer that, The Old Law contained some moral precepts; as is evident from Ex. 20:13,15: "Thou shalt not kill, Thou shalt not steal." This was reasonable: because, just as the principal intention of human law is to created friendship between man and man; so the chief intention of the Divine law is to establish man in friendship with God. Now since likeness is the reason of love, according to Ecclus. 13:19: "Every beast loveth”
- Sefaria (Jewish (Rationalist)) “Abraham Ibn Ezra on Exodus 20:13: THOU SHALT NOT STEAL. Stealing implies taking money secretly. There are thieves who incur the death penalty, namely, those who kidnap an Israelite, be he a child or one who cannot speak clearly. 270 An adult who cannot speak clearly and thus complain to others that he has been kidnapped. The prohibition to steal money applies both to when the owner is present and to when he is not present. It also applies to cheating in number, measure, and weight. The term stealing also applies to what Absalom did, 271 Deception. See II Sam. 15:6. that is, it prohibits deceiv”