What the Bible Says About Stealing – Exodus 20:15

Have you ever found a wallet on the street? For a split second, your mind races. You might peek inside, see the cash, and feel that little pull—a tiny voice whispering about how much it could help you right now. It’s a simple, universal moment that brings us right to the heart of a huge topic: what the Bible says about stealing.

It’s a subject that goes far beyond a wallet, touching every part of our lives, our work, and our relationships. We all know the command, one of the big ten, given to Moses on the mountain amidst thunder and lightning: “You shall not steal.” But what does that really mean for us today, living in a world infinitely more complex than ancient Israel?

This isn’t just about bank robbers and shoplifters. I’ve spent years wrestling with Scripture, and what I’ve found is that this simple command from Exodus 20:15 is like a doorway. When you open it, you discover it’s not just a rule about property but a profound principle about trust, integrity, and our very relationship with God. It challenges us to look at our hearts, our habits, and how we treat the people around us. It’s about building a community where everyone feels safe, valued, and respected—a community that reflects the generous heart of our Creator. Let’s walk through that door together and explore the incredible depth of these four powerful words.

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Key Takeaways

• The Command is Foundational: “You shall not steal” (Exodus 20:15) is one of the Ten Commandments, forming the bedrock of moral law for a just and stable society.
• Stealing Goes Beyond Physical Objects: The Bible’s concept of stealing includes theft of time, reputation (through gossip), intellectual property, and even robbing God by withholding what is due to Him (Malachi 3:8).
• The Root is a Heart Issue: Stealing often stems from deeper sins like covetousness (desiring what isn’t yours) and a fundamental lack of trust in God’s provision for your life.
• Jesus Emphasizes Restitution and Heart Change: The story of Zacchaeus shows that true repentance involves not just stopping the sin but actively making things right by paying back what was taken, often with interest.
• The Opposite of Stealing is Generosity: The Christian response isn’t just to stop taking but to start giving. Ephesians 4:28 calls former thieves to work hard so they can be generous to others in need.

What Did God Mean When He Commanded “You Shall Not Steal”?

When God etched those words into stone for Moses, it was for a nation of people just finding their footing. The Israelites had spent 400 years as slaves in Egypt. They owned nothing. They had no rights. Every single thing could be taken from them in an instant. Now, suddenly, they were free. God was establishing a new society, and He knew that for it to work, for it to be a place of peace and prosperity, people needed to respect what belonged to others.

I used to read this commandment and think, “Okay, check. I don’t rob banks. I’m good.” But that’s such a surface-level reading. This command wasn’t just a law to prevent chaos; it was a blueprint for building trust. God was saying, “In My kingdom, you don’t have to live in fear.

You can build a home, plant a field, and raise a family knowing that your neighbor is committed to protecting your well-being, not undermining it.” It’s a command that honors human dignity. It recognizes that the work of our hands and the property we acquire through honest labor have value. Stealing isn’t just taking an object; it’s disrespecting the person who worked for it. It’s a violation of the trust that holds a community together.

Is Stealing Just About Taking Physical Property?

For a long time, my definition of stealing was pretty narrow. It involved secretly taking a physical object that wasn’t mine. But as I’ve spent more time in prayer and Scripture, I’ve realized God’s definition is so much broader. The principle behind “You shall not steal” touches areas of our lives we rarely consider. It forces us to ask some uncomfortable questions about our daily habits.

How Can You Steal Someone’s Time?

Have you ever had someone consistently show up 30 minutes late, leaving you waiting? Or maybe you’ve been in a meeting that drags on forever because someone is unprepared? It might not feel like theft, but time is the one resource we can never get back. When we carelessly waste someone else’s time, we are, in a sense, stealing a piece of their life. We’re implicitly saying that our schedule is more important than theirs. This is a subtle form of theft rooted in selfishness. Being punctual, being prepared, and respecting the commitments we make are acts of Christian integrity. It’s about honoring the other person’s God-given time as much as we honor our own.

What About Stealing Someone’s Reputation?

The Bible takes reputation incredibly seriously. Proverbs 22:1 says, “A good name is to be chosen rather than great riches.” So what happens when we gossip? What about when we spread a rumor or share a story that puts someone in a bad light, even if it’s partially true? We are stealing something far more valuable than money: their good name. Slander is the theft of reputation. We are taking away the trust and respect that person has earned in the community. It’s a destructive act that God despises because it tears at the fabric of relationships. We are called to protect our neighbor’s reputation, not tear it down for our own amusement or to make ourselves feel better.

Can You Steal from God?

This was a tough one for me to swallow. The prophet Malachi puts it in stunningly direct terms. In Malachi 3:8, God asks the people, “Will a man rob God? Yet you are robbing me.” The people ask how, and He replies, “In your tithes and contributions.” For me, this isn’t about God needing our money. He owns everything, after all. It’s about our hearts. When we withhold the first fruits of our income, the tithe, we are functionally telling God two things:

1. “I don’t fully trust You to provide for me.”
2. “I believe this money is mine, not a gift You have stewarded to me.”

Stealing from God is a matter of trust and acknowledgement. It’s about recognizing Him as the source of all our blessings and honoring Him with the first and best of what He has given us.

What Are the Deeper Roots of the Temptation to Steal?

The act of stealing doesn’t just happen out of nowhere. It’s usually the final step in a process that starts much earlier, deep in our hearts and minds. The Bible is brilliant at diagnosing the root cause of our sins, not just telling us to stop the outward behavior. When it comes to stealing, the problem almost always begins with our desires and our trust.

How Does Coveting Lead to Stealing?

It’s no accident that the Ten Commandments end with, “You shall not covet.” The eighth commandment says, “You shall not steal,” and the tenth commandment explains why you might be tempted to. Coveting is that burning, obsessive desire for something that isn’t yours—your neighbor’s house, their car, their job, their spouse. It’s an internal hunger that, if left unchecked, can easily lead to external action.

Think of it like this: coveting is the moment you start mentally taking possession of something that belongs to someone else. You dwell on it, you resent that they have it and you don’t, and you start to feel entitled to it. Stealing is just the moment your hands catch up with your heart. This is why Jesus focused so much on our inner world. He knew that if we could get our hearts right—if we could learn to be content and celebrate the blessings of others—the temptation to steal would lose its power.

Is a Lack of Trust in God a Factor in Stealing?

Absolutely. At its core, every act of stealing is a declaration that God is not enough. It’s a moment where we choose to rely on our own cleverness, our own schemes, and our own hands to get what we want, rather than trusting in God’s provision. We see something we need or want, and instead of praying and waiting on God’s timing and methods, we take matters into our own hands.

This is a failure to believe in the promise of Matthew 6, where Jesus tells us not to worry about what we will eat or wear, because our Heavenly Father knows our needs and will provide for us. When we steal—whether it’s cheating on our taxes, padding an expense report, or physically taking something—we are acting like spiritual orphans. We forget that we have a Father who loves us and has promised to care for us. True faith leads to honest living because we trust that God’s ways of providing are always better than our own.

How Did Jesus Talk About Stealing and Property?

When we move from the Old Testament to the New, the focus shifts from the letter of the law to the spirit of the law. Jesus consistently pushed people to look beyond their external actions to the motivations of their hearts. While he upheld the Ten Commandments, he also deepened our understanding of them, and his interactions provide a powerful lens through which to view stealing.

What Does the Story of Zacchaeus Teach Us About Repentance from Stealing?

The story of Zacchaeus in Luke 19 is one of the most powerful pictures of true repentance in the entire Bible. Zacchaeus was a chief tax collector, which meant he got rich by extorting his own people. He was a professional, government-approved thief. When he has an encounter with Jesus, his life is instantly turned upside down.

But notice what he does. He doesn’t just say, “I’m sorry. I’ll stop stealing now.” His repentance is active, not passive. He declares, “Behold, Lord, the half of my goods I give to the poor. And if I have defrauded anyone of anything, I restore it fourfold.” This is incredible. He doesn’t just make things right; he goes far beyond the legal requirement. This shows us that genuine, Jesus-inspired repentance leads to:

• Restitution: A deep desire to repair the damage you’ve caused.
• Generosity: A heart so changed that it moves from compulsive taking to joyful giving.

Zacchaeus understood that his money was the source of his sin and separation from God and his community, so he used that very same thing—his wealth—to heal the wounds he had created.

Did Jesus Elevate the Commandment Not to Steal?

In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus takes commandments like “You shall not murder” and “You shall not commit adultery” and traces them back to their roots in the heart—anger and lust. He doesn’t give the same kind of direct expansion for “You shall not steal,” but the principle is exactly the same. The ultimate goal for a follower of Christ isn’t just to avoid the act of stealing but to cultivate a heart that has no desire to steal in the first place.

A heart that is filled with gratitude, contentment, and trust in God’s provision doesn’t need to steal. A heart that genuinely loves its neighbor as itself wants to protect what its neighbor has, not take it. Jesus’s teachings call us to a higher standard of righteousness, one where our inner world is so aligned with God’s will that our outward actions naturally follow suit.

What Are the Real Consequences of Stealing According to the Bible?

The world tells us the main consequence of stealing is getting caught. But the Bible shows us that the damage runs much deeper, affecting our most important relationships whether we are caught or not. The consequences are primarily spiritual and relational.

How Does Stealing Damage Our Relationship with God?

Every sin creates a barrier between us and a holy God, and stealing is no different. It is a direct violation of His character. God is the ultimate Giver—He gave us life, He gave us His Son, He gives us every good gift. Stealing is the opposite of His nature. It is an act of taking, rooted in selfishness. When we steal, we are acting in a way that is fundamentally contrary to the God we claim to serve. This grieves the Holy Spirit and damages our fellowship with Him. We can’t be in a right relationship with a God of perfect justice and generosity while we are actively participating in injustice and selfishness.

How Does Stealing Harm Our Community and Relationships?

Trust is the currency of community. It’s the invisible glue that holds our families, friendships, churches, and neighborhoods together. Every act of theft, no matter how small, dissolves that glue. It introduces suspicion and fear into relationships. If a friend steals from you, the relationship is instantly and profoundly damaged. If there’s a thief in a workplace, the entire atmosphere becomes toxic.

Stealing tells others, “I value this object more than I value my relationship with you.” It replaces love of neighbor with love of self, which is the very definition of a broken community. It’s impossible to build the kind of loving, unified body of Christ that the New Testament calls for when its members are taking from one another.

Does the Bible Say Anything About Restitution?

Yes, absolutely. The Bible is very clear that true repentance for stealing involves making things right. We already saw this with Zacchaeus, but the principle is laid out in detail in the Old Testament law. For example, Exodus 22 lays out specific rules for restitution. If a man stole an ox or a sheep, he had to pay back five oxen for the ox and four sheep for the sheep. The penalty was always greater than the original theft. Why? Because this principle accomplishes two things:

1. It repays the victim for their loss and for the trouble the theft caused.
2. It serves as a powerful deterrent to the thief, making the price of the crime far outweigh any potential benefit.

This shows that God’s justice is not just about punishment; it is about restoration. It’s about healing the breach in the community that the theft caused.

How Do We Fight the Temptation to Steal in Our Everyday Lives?

Recognizing the problem is one thing; actively fighting it is another. The Bible gives us powerful tools to guard our hearts against the temptation to steal, and they revolve around replacing a mindset of scarcity and desire with one of contentment and generosity.

What Is the Role of Contentment?

Contentment is the secret weapon against covetousness. The Apostle Paul said in Philippians 4:11-12, “I have learned in whatever situation I am to be content. I know how to be brought low, and I know how to abound.” His joy wasn’t dependent on his circumstances. This is a learned skill, and it’s something we have to actively practice. How can we cultivate contentment?

• Practice Gratitude: Start and end each day by thanking God for specific blessings in your life. A grateful heart has no room for a covetous spirit.
• Stop the Comparison Game: One of the biggest thieves of joy is comparing our lives to others, especially on social media. We must remember to run our own race and focus on the path God has for us.
• Pray for a Content Heart: Simply ask God to help you. Pray for Him to replace your desires for more with a deep and abiding satisfaction in Him alone.

Why Is Generosity the Antidote to Stealing?

This is one of the most beautiful turnarounds in all of Scripture. In Ephesians 4:28, Paul gives this instruction: “Let the thief no longer steal, but rather let him labor, doing honest work with his own hands, so that he may have something to share with anyone in need.”

Notice the progression. The command isn’t just “stop stealing.” It’s not even just “get a job.” The ultimate goal of working and earning is to be able to give. The true opposite of a taker is not a non-taker; it’s a giver. This completely reorients our perspective on work and money.

The purpose of our labor isn’t just to accumulate things for ourselves, but to bless others. When you make generosity a core value in your life, the mindset that leads to stealing begins to starve. You start thinking about others first. As you learn more about this concept, you might find that understanding the theology behind it is helpful. An article from Dallas Theological Seminary on The Theology of Biblical Generosity can be a great resource for digging deeper into why giving is so central to our faith.

A Life of Integrity and Trust

The command “You shall not steal” is so much more than a rule. It’s an invitation into a life of freedom—freedom from the anxiety of coveting, freedom from the guilt of dishonesty, and freedom to trust God completely. It’s a daily walk, a moment-by-moment choice to believe that God’s provision is sufficient, His ways are best, and His character is worth reflecting.

It challenges every one of us to look at our lives and ask: Am I a giver or a taker? Do I build trust or erode it? Do my actions reflect a heart of contentment in God or a heart of restless desire for more? Building a life of integrity is a choice, one we make in the big and small moments, as a testimony to the faithful, generous God we love and serve.

Frequently Asked Questions – What the Bible Says About Stealing