The Meaning of Deuteronomy 5:21 Explained

Deuteronomy 5:21

KJV: Neither shalt thou desire thy neighbour's wife, neither shalt thou covet thy neighbour's house, his field, or his manservant, or his maidservant, his ox, or his ass, or any thing that is thy neighbour's.

YLT: Thou dost not desire thy neighbour's wife; nor dost thou covet thy neighbour's house, his field, and his man-servant, and his handmaid, his ox, and his ass, and anything which is thy neighbour's.

Darby: Neither shalt thou desire thy neighbour's wife, neither shalt thou covet thy neighbour's house, his field, nor his bondman, nor his handmaid, his ox, nor his ass, nor anything that is thy neighbour's.

ASV: Neither shalt thou covet thy neighbor's wife; neither shalt thou desire thy neighbor's house, his field, or his man-servant, or his maid-servant, his ox, or his ass, or anything that is thy neighbor's.

KJV Reverse Interlinear

Neither shalt thou desire  thy neighbour's  wife,  neither shalt thou covet  thy neighbour's  house,  his field,  or his manservant,  or his maidservant,  his ox,  or his ass,  or any [thing] that [is] thy neighbour's. 

What does Deuteronomy 5:21 Mean?

Verse Meaning

Coveting means inordinately desiring to possess what belongs to another person. Another definition is that it is wanting more and more of something one already has enough of. This commandment deals with motivation rather than deed, with attitude rather than action. It gets at the spirit that often leads to the sins forbidden in commandments six through nine. The attitude coveting reveals is selfishness, self-centeredness. One writer entitled a chapter in which he expounded this commandment, "The Selfish Life Denounced." [1]
The seriousness of this sin is obvious from the fact that God forbade it many times in Scripture (e.g, Psalm 10:3; Proverbs 28:16; Mark 7:21-23; Luke 12:15; Romans 1:28-29; Ephesians 5:3; Ephesians 5:5; 1 Timothy 6:9-10; 2 Timothy 3:1-5). Coveting is attractive because we may practice it without ever experiencing public exposure. Notwithstanding, God knows our hearts ( Acts 1:24). The attitude itself is sinful (cf. Matthew 5:21-48), and it often leads to overt sin (e.g, Eve, Lot, Achan, David, Ahab, Judas Iscariot, Ananias and Sapphira). Coveting is the root attitude from which every sin in word and deed against a neighbor grows.
We cannot escape this sin completely. It is one of the most virile spiritual viruses that attacks us, and it flourishes in our cultural environment. Nevertheless, like bacteria, we can keep it under control with God"s help. A prescription for the control of covetousness might include four ingredients. First, as with all other temptations, we must recognize our need for God"s help (grace) in combating it ( John 15:5) and ask for that help ( James 4:2; Psalm 55:22; 1 Peter 5:7). Second, we need to "learn" to be content in our present condition ( Philippians 4:6; Philippians 4:11; Philippians 4:19; 1 Timothy 6:6; cf. Deuteronomy 5:21). Third, we need to evaluate why we want what we want. Desiring something we do not have is not necessarily wrong in itself (cf. 1 Corinthians 12:31). The reason we want it may make it right or wrong. Do we want it to exalt self or to serve God, our family, friends, or the needy better (cf. Mark 10:45)? Fourth, we need to make sure we are valuing spiritual things higher than material things ( Colossians 3:2). [2]

Context Summary

Deuteronomy 5:1-21 - The Decalogue Repeated
The Law of God is for "all Israel." None are exempt. "Not with our fathers" means not with them only; Moses also uses the expression because many of the references of the Decalogue were to the settled life of Canaan. "Face to face," not in dark visions, but clearly and lucidly, Job 4:12-13. Our "face-to-face" vision is yet to come, 1 Corinthians 13:12; Revelation 22:4. Notice in Deuteronomy 5:5 the ideal mediator, Galatians 3:19; 1 Timothy 2:5.
Every soul has two givings of the Law. First, we stand under Sinai to be judged, condemned, and shut up to Christ as our only hope; then we come to it a second time, asking that the Holy Spirit should write it in our hearts, and make us to walk in obedience to its precepts, Galatians 3:23; Romans 8:4.
Adolphe Monod, on his death-bed, said: "Sin has two divisions; the evil that we have done and the good that we have left undone. As to the first, there is not a single command that I have not transgressed in letter or spirit; as to the second, it weighs on me even more than the first." [source]

Chapter Summary: Deuteronomy 5

1  The covenant in Horeb
6  The ten commandments
23  At the people's request Moses receives the law from God

What do the individual words in Deuteronomy 5:21 mean?

And not You shall covet wife of your neighbor - you shall desire house of your neighbor his field and his manservant and his maidservant his ox and his donkey or anything that [is] your neighbor's
וְלֹ֥א תַחְמֹ֖ד אֵ֣שֶׁת רֵעֶ֑ךָ ס תִתְאַוֶּ֜ה בֵּ֣ית רֵעֶ֗ךָ שָׂדֵ֜הוּ וְעַבְדּ֤וֹ וַאֲמָתוֹ֙ שׁוֹר֣וֹ וַחֲמֹר֔וֹ וְכֹ֖ל אֲשֶׁ֥ר לְרֵעֶֽךָ

וְלֹ֥א  And  not 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Adverb, Negative particle
Root: הֲלֹא 
Sense: not, no.
תַחְמֹ֖ד  You  shall  covet 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Imperfect, second person masculine singular
Root: חָמַד 
Sense: to desire, covet, take pleasure in, delight in.
אֵ֣שֶׁת  wife 
Parse: Noun, feminine singular construct
Root: אִשָּׁה  
Sense: woman, wife, female.
רֵעֶ֑ךָ  of  your  neighbor 
Parse: Noun, masculine singular construct, second person masculine singular
Root: רֵעַ  
Sense: friend, companion, fellow, another person.
ס  - 
Parse: Punctuation
תִתְאַוֶּ֜ה  you  shall  desire 
Parse: Verb, Hitpael, Imperfect, second person masculine singular
Root: אָוָה  
Sense: desire, incline, covet, wait longingly, wish, sigh, want, be greedy, prefer.
בֵּ֣ית  house 
Parse: Noun, masculine singular construct
Root: בַּיִת 
Sense: house.
רֵעֶ֗ךָ  of  your  neighbor 
Parse: Noun, masculine singular construct, second person masculine singular
Root: רֵעַ  
Sense: friend, companion, fellow, another person.
שָׂדֵ֜הוּ  his  field 
Parse: Noun, masculine singular construct, third person masculine singular
Root: שָׂדֶה 
Sense: field, land.
וְעַבְדּ֤וֹ  and  his  manservant 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Noun, masculine singular construct, third person masculine singular
Root: עֶבֶד  
Sense: slave, servant.
וַאֲמָתוֹ֙  and  his  maidservant 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Noun, feminine singular construct, third person masculine singular
Root: אָמָה  
Sense: maid-servant, female slave, maid, handmaid, concubine.
שׁוֹר֣וֹ  his  ox 
Parse: Noun, masculine singular construct, third person masculine singular
Root: שֹׁור  
Sense: ox, bull, a head of cattle.
וַחֲמֹר֔וֹ  and  his  donkey 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Noun, masculine singular construct, third person masculine singular
Root: חֲמֹור 
Sense: (he)ass.
וְכֹ֖ל  or  anything 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Noun, masculine singular
Root: כֹּל  
Sense: all, the whole.
אֲשֶׁ֥ר  that  [is] 
Parse: Pronoun, relative
Root: אֲשֶׁר 
Sense: (relative part.).
לְרֵעֶֽךָ  your  neighbor's 
Parse: Preposition-l, Noun, masculine singular construct, second person masculine singular
Root: רֵעַ  
Sense: friend, companion, fellow, another person.