Did "thou shalt not steal" fall out of Scripture?

My version still has it there: Exodus 20:15.

At some point every Sunday I peruse a summary of Delaware news put out by the Delaware Live website. It’s a nice mix of news and features; one of the byproducts of this week’s edition was my update to a recent post.

But the topic of this tale is that of the rampant shoplifting that threatens to put a number of retailers out of business. Betsy Price of Delaware Live put up a story this past week that details this rising tide of stealing, which retailers euphemise as “shrinkage.” Price cites the Delaware State Police, who say the top 5 items being stolen right now are meat and seafood, over-the-counter medications, Tide detergent, Dove body wash, and - of course - cigarettes.

The issue, of course, is not that the perpetrators are stealing for themselves, but as part of an organized group which fences these stolen items to secondary distributors, such as small stores. Surely their justification is that the thieves are making money by selling to the smaller stores, and these small, generally inner-city shops can sell those products at a much friendlier markup than they could through legitimate means, so they can stay in business. The only loser is the big chain store - and they can afford it, right?

Well, not really. This surge in theft is why big retailers are closing up shop in certain areas, which means the whole market basket of products - not just those items favored for five-finger discounts - become less available for those who live around those now-shuttered stores.

But I wanted to use this example to illustrate the validity of the commandment two verses later in Exodus: the verse that goes, “Thou shalt not covet thy neighbour’s house, thou shalt not covet thy neighbour’s wife, nor his manservant, nor his maidservant, nor his ox, nor his ass, nor anything that is thy neighbour’s. (Exodus 20:17, KJV).

It doesn’t appear that anyone in these organized theft rings is stealing ramen noodles or generic soap and detergent. Instead, they’re walking out with big-ticket items, or products deemed to be geared more toward a higher economic class. Steak was a rarity in my middle-class home growing up as we usually settled for ground chuck - but at least we were fed. Tide may not clean all that much better than generic detergent nor Dove products take greater care of anyone’s b.o. but the names have prestige.

This goes along with the observation that they loot all the Air Jordans from a shoe store but leave the work boots. It’s about the wants and not the needs.

My point is that, as a society, we have become conditioned by mass marketing to covet, covet, covet, and it’s very difficult to resist. Just ask a kid what he wants for Christmas and he or she will give you a long list of toys and electronics - not a one will say they just want the time with family and to celebrate the Savior’s birth as some discerning adults would. The world has made Christmas a holiday about gifts and decorating, the more the better.

And I’m not going to say I’m blameless in this, because I struggle, too. A few posts back I talked about how I would love to have a cherry-red first generation AMC Javelin in my driveway because I think they look really cool but how it would be impractical for me, so I’m happy just to see them at a car show. It wouldn’t be a blessing in the way that the new truck I bought a few months ago or the mini-vacation I booked for my wife and I this morning for next year would be. To get those blessings for which I have been thankful I gave up on what I arguably coveted, the red Javelin.

As the apostle Paul wrote in Phillippians, “But my God shall supply all your need according to his riches in glory by Christ Jesus.” (Phillippians 4:19). It’s at the end of a chapter where Paul notes, “I know both how to be abased, and I know how to abound: every where and in all things I am instructed both to be full and be hungry, both to abound and to suffer need.” (Phillippians 4:12). My needs, both earthly and eternal, have been and will be provided for, and it was through both the utilization of my God-given talents and acceptance of my Lord as Savior.

Before I was saved, I used to go by a saying that, “he who dies with the most toys wins.” Now I know that’s not true but I suspect not everyone has been set hip to that reality just yet. That’s why they covet and that’s why they steal. But will it be worth it in the end when they’re just as miserable?

And don’t forget: you can still Buy Me a Coffee, since I have a page there now.