The tenth commandment: Why shouldn't we covet?
"You shall not covet," is the tenth commandment God gives to Moses at Mt. Sinai. In this commandment, God's emphasis shifts away from man's actions and instead focuses on his attitudes and motives. By prohibiting covetousness, God reveals that he does not want it to be a motive for action found in the hearts of his followers.
This is because desires motivated by greed and covetousness are sinful and the opposite of godly qualities like peace and contentment. Contentment is important to God, because a content person is free and able to treat his neighbor as he himself would wish to be treated. It is discontented people who use others as tools for their own personal gain, which is contrary to God's law and what Jesus modeled for his followers.
God's will is that his followers stop longing for other people's physical possessions and instead seek their neighbor's emotional and spiritual good. They are to pursue contentment and turn away from any greed or covetousness in their hearts. Such a course of action will help God's children learn to put God first, others second, and self third.
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