The ninth and tenth commandments are different than the previous eight commandments.  The first eight commandments speak to our actions and behaviors towards God and man.  The last two commandments dictate policy in court for how to construe the first eight.  The tenth commandment says, "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 any thing that is thy neighbour's."  (Ex. 20:17).  We are not to covet anything that our neighbor possesses.  This is designed to protect property rights.  Our coveting might lead us to stealing someone's property.  This commandment is commonly thought to be an attempt to control our thoughts.  Keep in mind, the law of God is a national law for the Levites to enforce in the nation.  How were the Levites to enforce this commandment?  Could they read minds?  Were they supposed to be the thought police?  Although there is an element in the scripture to control our thoughts.  We are to "bring into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ" (2 Cor. 10:5).  This, however, is not what coveting is in the scripture.  In this article, I will be redefining coveting.  Please be open minded as I do this.  This new understanding will help clarify some difficult concepts in the scripture.

Definitions:

          There are a few definitions we need to define before we can properly understand the tenth commandment.  Here are these definitions.

• Covet: The first definition to define is the Hebrew and Greek words for covet.  The Hebrew word is châmad which means, "to delight in: - beauty, greatly beloved, covet" (Strong's Dictionary H2530).  The Greek word is epithumeō which means, "to set the heart upon, that is, long for, a longing especially for what is forbidden" (Strong's Dictionary G1937 & G1939).  These two words represents one's strong desires for something they are not allowed to have.  This desire can lead to an intended act.

• Sin:  The definition of sin in the scripture is different than most people think.  The Hebrew word for sin is châṭâ' and means, "to sin, miss, miss the way, go wrong, incur guilt" (Brown-Driver-Briggs H2398).  The Greek word for sin is hamartanō and means, "to miss the mark, to err, to sin" (Strong's Dictionary G264).  The idea for both these words is to miss the mark.  There is a standard for us and when we sin we miss that standard.  This begs the question, what mark did we miss?  The Apostle John answered this when he defined the word sin.  In 1 John 3:4 he said, "Whosoever committeth sin transgresseth also the law: for sin is the transgression of the law."  When we break God's Law we sin.  The Law is the mark we have missed.  The Apostle Paul confirms this when he said, "I had not known sin, but by the law" (Rom. 7:7).  Sin is falling short of God's standard which is found in His commandments.  The modern word for sin is crime.

• Sin Offering:  The sin offering comes from the same Hebrew word for sin.  This word is chaṭṭâ'th and means "an offence, and its penalty, occasion, sacrifice, or expiation" (Strong's Dictionary H2398).  The sin offering is described in Leviticus chapter four.  Here we see that the sin offering is for sins of ignorance against any of God's commandments (Lev. 4:2).  We also know that the sinner must be found guilty (Lev. 4:13, 22, 27).  This means they had a trial at the mouth of two or three witnesses (Deut. 19:15).  When they were found guilty they paid their fine, which is called a sin offering.  The sin offering is the biblical fine for an ignorant sin (crime).

• Trespass Offering:  The trespass offering is found in Leviticus chapters five and six.  This offering is similar to the sin offering, but has a significant difference.  This offering is also for sins of ignorance (Lev. 5:15) against any of God's commands (Lev. 5:17).  This offering is also only when the sinner is found to be guilty (Lev. 5:16, 6:4), which means a trial is done at the mouth of two or three witnesses (Deut. 19:15).  The difference is that this offering also covers sins of intent (Lev. 6:1-7).  When a sinner purposely breaks one of God's commandments they receive the trespass offering penalty.  This trespass offering carries a heavier penalty in that it has punitive damages after the shekels of the sanctuary (Lev. 5:15).

          These are the necessary definitions to understand what coveting is.  The sin and trespass offerings are fines and fines with punitive damages.  These fines are always assessed after a trial when the defendant is found guilty.  Coveting is used to determine this.  Here is how.

Covet vs. Intent:

          With the previous definitions in mind please consider the following understanding of the word covet.  Remember, the law of God is a legal system to govern a nation.  Most words found in the scripture can be found in a modern legal dictionary.  For example, tithing, minister, theft, adultery, usury, and more are all found in Black's Law Dictionary.  In fact, the legal definition of these words better match the definitions in the Bible than our modern religious definitions.  The word covet is contained in the law of God.  This is a legal term yet it is not found in our modern legal dictionaries.  This begs the question, why is it missing?  The truth is that it is not missing.  We simply use a different word to convey the same meaning.  The modern legal term for coveting is what we would call intent today.

          Intent is a legal term used today.  This word is defined as "Design, resolve, or determination with which a person acts." It is "a state of mind existing at the time a person commits an offense and may be shown by act, circumstances and inferences deducible therefrom" (Black's Law Dictionary, Henry Campbell Black, "Intent", pg. 727).  Intent is what is used in law to distinguish a crime from an infraction.  To prove a crime in a trial you must prove criminal intent.  This is called Mens rea today.  Mens rea means, "A guilty mind; a guilty or wrongful purpose; a criminal intent" (Black's Law Dictionary, Henry Campbell Black, "Mens rea", pg. 889).  This is how intent is used in modern law.  To prove a crime in court you must show that the defendant had criminal intent.  He must have intended to commit the crime.  You prove this by their actions, the circumstances of the offense, and inference.  I would contend that this is how coveting is used in the scripture.

Coveting in the Mosaic Law:

          The definition of covet in the scripture is "to set the heart upon, that is, long for, a longing especially for what is forbidden" (Strong's Dictionary G1937 & G1939).  The definition of intent in modern law is "a state of mind existing at the time a person commits an offense and may be shown by act, circumstances and inferences deducible therefrom" (Black's Law Dictionary, Henry Campbell Black, "Intent", pg. 727).  These definitions are incredibly similar.  They appear to be trying to regulate our thoughts.  It is not the thought that is the sin, however, but the action that follows the thought.  Remember, "sin is the transgression of the law" (1 John 3:4).  If there is no law against it then there is no sin.  The only law about your thoughts in the scripture is the tenth commandment, but remember, both the ninth and tenth commandments are policy commandments.  They both regulate how we conduct trials in court.  The ninth commandment is perjury and the tenth commandment is coveting.  Considering that most of our religious words found in the scripture are also found in a law dictionary with a legal definition, I would argue that the word covet is also in our legal dictionaries with a legal definition.  It is just under a different name, and that name is intent.  The question to ask is, does coveting work in the scripture the same as intent works in law today?  I think you will see that it does.

          If you consider the definitions above, the sin offering is a fine for minor crimes of ignorance.  The trespass offering is a fine for larger crimes.  The crimes can be of ignorance or of intent and they always carry punitive damages.  Just like proving intent in court determines the level of crime today so does proving coveting in court determined the level of sin in the mosaic law.  If you compare the terms used in the trespass offering to the terms used to describe coveting this will quickly become clear.  The trespass offering says, "If a soul sin, and commit a trespass against the LORD, and lie unto his neighbour in that which was delivered him to keep, or in fellowship, or in a thing taken away by violence, or hath deceived his neighbour; Or have found that which was lost, and lieth concerning it, and sweareth falsely; in any of all these that a man doeth, sinning therein:  Then it shall be, because he hath sinned, and is guilty, that he shall restore that which he took violently away, or the thing which he hath deceitfully gotten, or that which was delivered him to keep, or the lost thing which he found,  Lev 6:5  Or all that about which he hath sworn falsely; he shall even restore it in the principal, and shall add the fifth part more thereto, and give it unto him to whom it appertaineth, in the day of his trespass offering." (Lev. 6:2-5).  Here are some passages describing coveting.  "And they covet fields, and take them by violence; and houses, and take them away: so they oppress a man and his house, even a man and his heritage.  Therefore thus saith the LORD; Behold, against this family do I devise an evil, from which ye shall not remove your necks; neither shall ye go haughtily: for this time is evil" (Micah 2:2-3).  "For your hands are defiled with blood, and your fingers with iniquity; your lips have spoken lies, your tongue hath muttered perverseness.  None calleth for justice, nor any pleadeth for truth: they trust in vanity, and speak lies; they conceive mischief, and bring forth iniquity.  They hatch cockatrice' eggs, and weave the spider's web: he that eateth of their eggs dieth, and that which is crushed breaketh out into a viper.  Their webs shall not become garments, neither shall they cover themselves with their works: their works are works of iniquity, and the act of violence is in their hands.  Their feet run to evil, and they make haste to shed innocent blood: their thoughts are thoughts of iniquity; wasting and destruction are in their paths" (Isa. 59:3-7).  If we compare these two list is quite compelling.

          Both of the above lists show the same sins.  Those who sin in ignorance deserve a fine of a sin offering.  Those who covet deserve a fine of a trespass offering.  A judge would use coveting to determine the level of sin just like a judge today would use intent to determine the level of crime.  Here is a video to help further understand the ninth and tenth commandment.

Conclusion:

          The purpose of the ninth and tenth commandment is to establish policy in construing the previous eight commandments in court.  God gave us a law regarding how to conduct our trials.  This law contains a punishment that should be used to enforce this law.  There is only one title of law under the tenth commandment.  This title is simply called intent.