The Eighth Commandment declares that God forbids all deceit and demands honesty, fairness, and generosity in every aspect of life. The Eighth commandment is,
“You shall not steal.” (Exodus 20:15 NAS)
Theft in any form rejects God’s provision and exploits the livelihood of our neighbor and steals the blessing that God gave to another person. Whether expressed through fraud, deception, careless neglect, or calculated exploitation, every act of stealing is an offense against both God and man.
“A False balance is an abomination to the LORD, But a just weight is His delight.” (Prov 11:1 NAS)
This commandment upholds the dignity of labor, the security of property, and the sacred trust of stewardship. We are caretakers of His gifts, accountable for how we use and protect them.
At its core, the Eighth Commandment requires people to work.
The Eighth Commandment is the duty to love our neighbor as yourself. We are to seek our neighbor’s welfare and trust in God’s provision. The apostles admonished those who did not work.
“But if anyone does not provide for his own, and especially for those of his household, he has denied the faith, and is worse than an unbeliever.” (1Ti 5:8 NAS)
Everyone must work, especially men. Hard work is the curse that man received for eating the fruit of the knowledge of good and evil.
“And the LORD God commanded the man, saying, “From any tree of the garden you may eat freely; but from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat from it you shall surely die.” (Gen 2:16-17 NAS)
Because Adam did not obey God’s command, as a punishment, Adam and his descendants were cursed with lifelong hard work.
“Then to Adam He said, “Because you have listened to the voice of your wife, and have eaten from the tree about which I commanded you, saying, ‘You shall not eat from it’; Cursed is the ground because of you; In toil you shall eat of it All the days of your life. “Both thorns and thistles it shall grow for you; And you shall eat the plants of the field; By the sweat of your face You shall eat bread, Till you return to the ground, Because from it you were taken; For you are dust, And to dust you shall return.” (Gen 3:17-19 NAS)
The eighth commandment promotes diligence in honest work.
Stealing unjustly seizes the fruit of another’s labor and places it into the hands of one who did not work for it. God set Adam in the garden to labor in it and to watch over it.
“Then the LORD God took the man and put him into the garden of Eden to cultivate it and keep it.” (Gen 2:15 NAS)
God expects all humanity to honestly work. Honest work brings glory to God and benefit to others; laziness, wastefulness, and needless dependency violate God’s design for humanity.
“Laziness casts into a deep sleep, And an idle man will suffer hunger.” (Prov 19:15 NAS)
“The sluggard does not plow after the autumn, So he begs during the harvest and has nothing.” (Prov 20:4 NAS)
Those who do not work produce nothing for themselves or anyone else.
“I passed by the field of the sluggard, And by the vineyard of the man lacking sense; And behold, it was completely overgrown with thistles, Its surface was covered with nettles, And its stone wall was broken down.” (Prov 24:30-31 NAS)
Those who refuse to work drain society, dishonor God, and break the Eighth Commandment. Their idleness will put them into poverty and slavery.
“The hand of the diligent will rule, But the slack hand will be put to forced labor.” (Prov 12:24 NAS)
Those who refuse to work put themselves in a position where stealing becomes their way of living.
“Let him who steals steal no longer; but rather let him labor, performing with his own hands what is good, in order that he may have something to share with him who has need.” (Eph 4:28 NAS)
Societies that support forms of theft like socialism that seizes wealth, welfare abuse that rewards laziness, or freeloading that despises work all break the eighth commandment.
“For even when we were with you, we used to give you this order: if anyone will not work, neither let him eat. For we hear that some among you are leading an undisciplined life, doing no work at all, but acting like busybodies.” (2Th 3:10-11 NAS)
The socialist claims to redistribute wealth from the productive to the idle, but in reality, diverts the resources to himself, which is stealing.
“Let each one do just as he has purposed in his heart; not grudgingly or under compulsion; for God loves a cheerful giver.” (2Co 9:7 NAS)
God forbids oppression and exploitation.
Abusing power or influence for gain, whether through bribery, usury, price manipulation, or labor exploitation is stealing.
“Behold, the pay of the laborers who mowed your fields, and which has been withheld by you, cries out against you; and the outcry of those who did the harvesting has reached the ears of the Lord of Sabbath.” (James 5:4 NAS)
God hears the cries of those who are exploited and will judge their oppressors.
“In you they have taken bribes to shed blood; you have taken interest and profits, and you have injured your neighbors for gain by oppression, and you have forgotten Me,” declares the Lord God. (Eze 22:12 NAS)
Employers need to pay fair wages to workers so the worker can sustain their lives.
“For the Scripture says, ‘You shall not muzzle the ox while he is threshing,’ and ‘The laborer is worthy of his wages.’” (1Ti 5:18 NAS)
When employers do not pay their employees a wage sufficient to live, they can cause their employees to steal from others to make ends meet.
“You shall not oppress a hired servant who is poor and needy, whether he is one of your countrymen or one of your aliens who is in your land in your towns. “You shall give him his wages on his day before the sun sets, for he is poor and sets his heart on it; so that he may not cry against you to the LORD and it become sin in you.” (Deut 24:14-15 NAS)
This also applies to the government. The government needs to make it feasible for employers to pay fair wages. An example is when those who govern take bribes, allow injustice, or over tax the people.
“The king gives stability to the land by justice, But a man who takes bribes overthrows it.” (Prov 29:4 NAS)
“And some tax-gatherers also came to be baptized, and they said to him, “Teacher, what shall we do?” And he said to them, “Collect no more than what you have been ordered to.” And some soldiers were questioning him, saying, “And what about us, what shall we do?” And he said to them, “Do not take money from anyone by force, or accuse anyone falsely, and be content with your wages.” (Luke 3:12-14 NAS)
Neglect and waste are forms of stealing.
Idleness, and waste are a kind of theft, depriving not only ourselves but also our households and the wider community of the benefits of wise stewardship.
“He also who is slack in his work is brother to him who destroys.” (Proverbs 18:9)
When we neglect our duties or misuse what has been entrusted to us, we not only reject God’s order but also deprive others of the good our labor was meant to produce. In the workplace, wasting materials, damaging an employer’s property, or taking wages without working are all forms of theft.
“Urge bondslaves to be subject to their own masters in everything, to be well-pleasing, not argumentative, not pilfering, but showing all good faith that they may adorn the doctrine of God our Savior in every respect.” (Tit 2:9-10 NAS)
When we work diligently, give generously, and live contently, we testify that our treasure is not in possessions but in the Lord Himself.
“Do not lay up for yourselves treasures upon earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. “But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys, and where thieves do not break in or steal; for where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.” (Matt 6:19-21 NAS)
The Eighth Commandment requires truth, faithfulness, and justice in every transaction.
“Render to all what is due them: tax to whom tax is due; custom to whom custom; fear to whom fear; honor to whom honor.” (Rom 13:7 NAS)
Integrity must govern our business, employment, and daily life.
God requires restitution and reconciliation.
When we have wronged others, God commands the offender to make restitution for it in full, and add to it one-fifth more.
“When a person sins and acts unfaithfully against the LORD, and deceives his companion in regard to a deposit or a security entrusted to him, or through robbery, or if he has extorted from his companion, or has found what was lost and lied about it and sworn falsely, so that he sins in regard to any one of the things a man may do; then it shall be, when he sins and becomes guilty, that he shall restore what he took by robbery, or what he got by extortion, or the deposit which was entrusted to him, or the lost thing which he found, or anything about which he swore falsely; he shall make restitution for it in full, and add to it one-fifth more. He shall give it to the one to whom it belongs on the day he presents his guilt offering.” (Lev 6:2-5 NAS)
Zaccheus, a wealthy tax collector who had cheated many, climbed a tree to see Jesus, was called down by name, received Him joyfully, repented, and proved his faith by restoring fourfold what he had stolen and giving half his goods to the poor.
“And Zaccheus stopped and said to the Lord, “Behold, Lord, half of my possessions I will give to the poor, and if I have defrauded anyone of anything, I will give back four times as much.” And Jesus said to him, “Today salvation has come to this house, because he, too, is a son of Abraham. “For the Son of Man has come to seek and to save that which was lost.” (Luke 19:8-10 NAS)
Thieves were required to pay restitution in proportion to the loss, and if the thief cannot repay, he must work off his debt.
In God’s law, the penalty for theft is repayment, either through restitution or servitude, not imprisonment or vengeance. Restitution transforms repentance from words into justice.
There are many levels of theft.
God’s Law distinguishes between levels of theft based on value, intent, method, and resulting harm. The Eighth Commandment forbids every act or attitude that unjustly deprives others or ourselves of what God has given. Theft is broader than robbery; it includes fraud, exploitation, and deceit.
There is petty theft and grand theft.
Petty theft, also known as larceny, typically involves taking property of small value without force, such as shoplifting. Grand theft concerns higher-value property or more serious economic loss and is generally charged as a felony with increased fines, and restitution.
“If a man steals an ox or a sheep, and slaughters it or sells it, he shall pay five oxen for the ox and four sheep for the sheep. “If the thief is caught while breaking in, and is struck so that he dies, there will be no bloodguiltiness on his account. “But if the sun has risen on him, there will be bloodguiltiness on his account. He shall surely make restitution; if he owns nothing, then he shall be sold for his theft. “If what he stole is actually found alive in his possession, whether an ox or a donkey or a sheep, he shall pay double.” (Exod 22:1-4 NAS)
Biblically, greater value required greater restitution and proportional justice.
There is theft by burglary.
Burglary is unlawful entry or breaking and entering into a dwelling, building, or storage area with intent to commit theft or another felony. Scripture condemns housebreaking and the terror it causes indicating heightened guilt due to intrusion, fear, and violation of the home or property.
“But be sure of this, that if the head of the house had known at what time of the night the thief was coming, he would have been on the alert and would not have allowed his house to be broken into.” (Matt 24:43 NAS)
“They rush on the city, They run on the wall; They climb into the houses, They enter through the windows like a thief.” (Joe 2:9 NAS)
There is theft by robbery.
Robbery is theft by force, threat, or violence and is punished far more strictly because it endangers life.
They covet fields and then seize them, And houses, and take them away. They rob a man and his house, A man and his inheritance. (Mic 2:2 NAS)
Jesus used robbery as an example in the story of the good Samaritan.
“Jesus replied and said, “A certain man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho; and he fell among robbers, and they stripped him and beat him, and went off leaving him half dead.” (Luke 10:30 NAS)
God’s Law treats violent seizure as oppression and requires restitution with added penalties, underscoring that harm against persons magnifies the crime.
There is embezzlement or misappropriation.
Embezzling and misappropriating funds or assets entrusted to one’s care betrays stewardship and is theft. Embezzlement or misappropriation can be a felony or a misdemeanor depending on the value.
“If anyone sins and commits a breach of faith against the LORD by deceiving his neighbor in a matter of deposit or security, or through robbery… he shall restore it in full and shall add a fifth to it, and give it to him to whom it belongs on the day he realizes his guilt.” (Lev 6:2-5)
Jesus ties faithfulness in small trusts to fitness for greater ones; breaking fiduciary trust is theft of a particularly treacherous kind.
“He who is faithful in a very little thing is faithful also in much; and he who is unrighteous in a very little thing is unrighteous also in much. “If therefore you have not been faithful in the use of unrighteous mammon, who will entrust the true riches to you? “And if you have not been faithful in the use of that which is another’s, who will give you that which is your own?” (Luke 16:10-12 NAS)
There is Fraud.
Fraud is wrongful or criminal deception intended to result in financial or personal gain. Incorrect weights of product that is sold, dishonest business practices, or deceiving people for money are all stealing.
“A False balance is an abomination to the LORD, But a just weight is His delight.” (Prov 11:1 NAS)
Defrauding people through deception is called an abomination to God.
“You shall not have in your bag differing weights, a large and a small. “You shall not have in your house differing measures, a large and a small. “You shall have a full and just weight; you shall have a full and just measure, that your days may be prolonged in the land which the LORD your God gives you. “For everyone who does these things, everyone who acts unjustly is an abomination to the LORD your God.” (Deut 25:13-16 NAS)
Altering property boundaries to deceptively enlarge one’s own land is fraudulent theft.
“You shall not move your neighbor’s boundary mark.” (Deuteronomy 19:14)
Fraud is the pursuit of wealth through deceit, and the Bible exposes such gain as hollow, because any profit won by lying is nothing more than theft masked in falsehood.
Bread obtained by falsehood is sweet to a man, But afterward his mouth will be filled with gravel. (Prov 20:17 NAS)
“You shall not steal, nor deal falsely, nor lie to one another.” (Lev 19:11 NAS)
There is Receiving stolen property.
Receiving stolen property penalizes those who knowingly possess or traffic stolen goods. Law treats receivers as partners in the crime.
“He who is a partner with a thief hates his own life; He hears the oath but tells nothing.” (Prov 29:24 NAS)
Someone who receives stolen goods is complicit in the theft which is equivalent to theft.
“And do not participate in the unfruitful deeds of darkness, but instead even expose them.” (Eph 5:11 NAS)
Each category displays the biblical concern for the degree of theft (value and harm), the intent behind the theft (malice or deceit), and restitution to the injured party.
The Eighth Commandment forbids every form of theft, whether by laziness, fraud, oppression, idleness, redistribution, exploitation, or deceit, but it also requires honest work, just dealings, fair wages, and faithful stewardship. God commands all people to labor, provide for their households, respect the property of others, practice generosity, and make restitution when harm has been done. Whether the sin is petty theft, grand theft, burglary, robbery, embezzlement, fraud, or receiving stolen goods, God’s law demands justice, restitution, and repentance.