“You shall not steal,” thunders the Lord God in the eighth of the Ten Commandments. God’s people have understood this to be about much more than just grabbing something that belongs to someone else. Stealing is also making late payments of wages (Leviticus 19:13) and false weights, which are “an abomination” (Proverbs 20:10, 23).
Consider contemporary practices that especially affect those of lower income: shrinkflation (the 16 oz box of cereal that suddenly weighs only 15 oz but comes in a box the same size). Or the inexpensive new shirt, often made in another country by poor people working long hours in dangerous conditions – after three washings, the shirt is worthless. Or employers who pay people in cash or contract workers so as to avoid employment taxes and sick leave requirements. Are any of these examples of stealing?
According to the Bible, yes! Keeping God’s commandments is never simply a matter of narrow legal definitions. Luther states in the Small Catechism that we must not engage in “shoddy merchandise or crooked deals, but instead help [our neighbor] to improve and protect their property and income (ELW, p. 1161).
This message is excerpted from the Bible study “The Ten Commandments, Reviving the soul” by Christa Von Zychlin in March/April 2023 Gather magazine.
Copyright © 2024 Women of the ELCA. Inquiries for permission to reproduce should be directed to [email protected].