The
Eighth Commandment
“You Shall Not Steal”—Exodus 20:15.
Social
Perceptions
This commandment is a directive that people generally understand. Stealing is so obviously wrong that, in the eyes of many, there is no need for any exposition. Stealing is simply taking something without asking.
However, in some cultures, children are encouraged to steal. The gypsy culture is renowned for cultivating thieves. The gypsies are not the only ones who treat thieving as a way of life. Anthropologists have reported that what is defined as stealing can be a way of life and yet a foreign concept among various primitive tribes they have studied. Tribal members freely take, eat, drink, and use whatever happens to be within their grasp, but they find themselves in trouble when encountering more sophisticated cultures.
The concept of “stealing a look” may also get us into trouble, or it may not, depending on the jurisdiction in which we live. In certain jurisdictions, this may be classified as being a Peeping Tom. In other parts of the world, we might not be peeping through anybody’s window, or through a hole in a fence, or from behind a bush, or through a crack in a wall to find ourselves in trouble. We might just be looking at what some people are doing, and they happen to be government officials going about their business and wanting no witnesses, or a criminal deal might be taking place, and the lawbreakers disapprove of onlookers. We might encounter a thief on the job, who takes the view that anybody without permission to watch is stealing.
Generally, stealing is frowned upon in society, except when it comes to sports. Football and basketball players all steal the ball from opposing players, and this is part of the fun of the game. When it comes to baseball, everyone thinks it is all right for a player to steal a base, except the side that is losing any advantage it might have because of the base being stolen. Ice hockey players “steal” the puck from the opposing player, which results in disapproval or approval, depending upon the team being played for or which team is being cheered to win—being on the losing side is no fun.
This anomaly about stealing actually tells us something about people’s attitudes towards others taking that to which they have no lawful right. In the game of baseball, the fans and fellow players like the idea of a player stealing a base, as long as he does not get caught. This attitude is not just restricted to the sporting arena; it appears to be a commonplace attitude within society. Stealing, while generally disapproved, seems to be acceptable to a segment of society as long as no one steals from them. Some people believe that stealing is okay if it is from their workplace, a bank, or a government department. If some of their friends know about their stealing, this does not appear to be a matter for concern, as long as those stealing do not get caught in the act. However, if a person is caught and branded a thief, they are considered a fool for having stolen in the first place and are likely to be ostracized. Stealing does not appear to be viewed as the crime; being caught is the crime. In secular Western societies, there seems to be an acceptance of stealing from those who are perceived to have plenty, as long as a person does not acquire a criminal record.
The concept of people playing Robin Hood and stealing from the rich to give to the poor, while paying themselves from the proceeds, seems to find acceptance in the eyes of the multitude because of the way society is structured. In years gone by, royalty or nobles seemed to have all the money and wealth. Meanwhile, the majority of people were peasants who worked for a pittance as subsistence farmers on land that was owned by their overseers, who were often ruthless in dealing with their subjects. Consequently, a mythical rogue like Robin Hood is portrayed as a hero who helped the downtrodden and victimized workers of the land. Hence, stealing is often seen by many as a form of robbing the rich to pay the poor the wages they were denied.
The
Public Purse
Today, people see nothing wrong with defrauding the government because this is where the public treasury is kept. Besides, the public purse is funded by taxing the people of the land. Legally, not having to pay tax or finding ways to pay as little tax as possible is big business in today’s sophisticated financial world. The richest man in Australia once had to face a panel of numerous government officials as they inquired into his financial dealings. They wanted to know how much money was being channeled through his use of tax havens because he was not paying into the government coffers what a man of his means ought to pay. In fact, as the wealthiest man in Australia, he and his companies were paying only one-fifth of the tax that the officials felt he should have been paying. Australia’s richest man told them that he made sure to pay as little tax as possible. He saw no just cause in giving his money to the government so that economically irresponsible employees could waste it on unproductive activities, such as questioning him.
It is argued that law-abiding citizens pay their taxes while the rich get their businesses and perks subsidized by the government. Many simply believe that the existing taxation laws are structured to allow the rich to get richer and the poor to become poorer. Yet in some countries, there is a welfare system that is very generous to those who are not employed, and while they might be considered to be living below the poverty line, they are, in fact, better off than the majority of people in the world have ever been. They do not pay taxes, and they do not have to work long hours or live in impoverished villages without the luxury of running water by merely turning on a tap, or without the luxury of electricity by flicking a switch, or without the luxury of cooking with gas by twisting a knob. Since these individuals live on welfare and do not pay income tax, many workers who do pay taxes see these welfare recipients not so much as living off the government, but as stealing from themselves (the workers) indirectly.
Then there is the mounting evidence that theft—on a colossal, institutional scale—has become embedded within the very governments established to serve the people. In 2025, entrepreneur Elon Musk was appointed to lead the newly formed Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE[i]), which was tasked with auditing federal spending using advanced information systems and algorithmic analysis. What the department uncovered was staggering: over $2.7 trillion in improper payments were identified over a span of two decades, revealing deep-rooted financial mismanagement and, in many cases, outright fraud.[ii]
Much of this misuse was found hidden within omnibus spending bills passed by Congress—bills that quietly funded programs so questionable that they strained the boundaries of responsible governance: initiatives such as gender-neutral toilets in space, training African circus performers, studying how fish perceive climate change, mindfulness and yoga workshops, violin lessons for farmers, and rat-training programs for landmine detection. Many of these were funneled through the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), an organization originally established to offer humanitarian assistance abroad, but which has, in some instances, been used as a conduit for advancing political interests under the guise of development. Through NGOs and international contractors, funds were redirected and, in some cases, quietly siphoned back into the pockets of domestic political figures and their affiliates.
This, too, is theft—not of pennies or bread, but of billions in public funds—resources entrusted by the people and intended for the public good. It is a form of institutionalized robbery, committed under the pretense of legality, in violation of a command given not by man, but by God: “You shall not steal.” Tragically, this is no isolated incident, but a deeply embedded pattern, often defended, normalized, or ignored within systems of power.
Yet where earthly governments have manipulated taxes to enrich the few, God’s design for provision and leadership through the tithe stands in stark contrast—pure, transparent, and grounded in justice.
The
Principle Of The Tithe
At the time the Ten Commandments were given, taxes were being collected in different kingdoms around the world, but the Israelite leaders were not to tax their people. A different system was put in place. The Israelites were given the principle of the tithe, which was not so much a tax, but rather a means by which they could support a priesthood that brought sacrifices to God on behalf of the people and instructed them about the truths of life. Interestingly, we read in the book of Malachi, chapter three, that those who did not bring in the tithe were stealing from God. Because of this, it might be said that people who do not pay taxes are stealing from the govern-ment authorities or from those who receive taxes as their dues.
The Apostle Paul writes:
“For because of this you also pay taxes, for the authorities are ministers of God, attending to this very thing. Pay to all what is owed to them: taxes to whom taxes are owed, revenue to whom revenue is owed, respect to whom respect is owed, honor to whom honor is owed (Romans 13:6-7).
Taken at face value, we can conclude that not paying taxes is stealing, the same as not bringing in tithes to support the priesthood is stealing. However, there are arguments for and against paying taxes and giving a tenth of your income to support those devoted to the work of God.
Jesus’
Teaching On Taxation
Jesus said that we are to give to Caesar what belongs to him. When he was challenged to pay the temple tax as a citizen of Judah and a subject of the Roman Empire, Jesus simply caught a fish that had a gold coin in its stomach, which was sufficient to pay the tax. The principle then becomes that when the taxman wants his tax, we should simply believe God to provide the money for paying it (Mark 11:23-25; Matt 22:14-22; 17:24-27).
Stanley Tam, founder of United States Plastic Corporation, has testified that God meets a person’s needs when it comes to taxation. Stanley was in a position where the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) decided to collect tax revenue that he did not have—the kind of money with which we buy houses and motels. Stanley Tam faced bankruptcy, but God intervened on his behalf. Nevertheless, always remember: faith without works is dead.
The
Tithe Of Abraham Confirmed By Jesus
When it comes to supporting people devoted to the work of God, it should not be too difficult, nor a problem, to tithe. Some will argue that this is Old Testament teaching, but Jesus Himself said that tithing was not to be neglected (Matthew 23:23). Besides, true Christians are, by faith, children of Abraham (Rom. 4:16; Gal. 3:29). According to Jesus, if we are children of Abraham, we will do what Abraham did (John 8:39). Abraham tithed and partook of communion in the form of bread and wine. This is found in the book of Genesis:
“And Melchizedek king of Salem brought out bread and wine. (He was priest of God Most High.) And he blessed him and said, “Blessed be Abram by God Most High, Possessor of heaven and earth; and blessed be God Most High, who has delivered your enemies into your hand!” And Abram gave him a tenth of everything. And the king of Sodom said to Abram, “Give me the persons, but take the goods for yourself.” But Abram said to the king of Sodom, “I have lifted my hand to the Lord, God Most High, Possessor of heaven and earth, that I would not take a thread or a sandal strap or anything that is yours, lest you should say, ‘I have made Abram rich.’ I will take nothing but what the young men have eaten, and the share of the men who went with me. Let Aner, Eshcol, and Mamre take their share” (Genesis 14:18-24).
Some people claim that what Abraham tithed was only the spoils he received from the kings that he and the king of Sodom defeated; therefore, this disqualifies any requirement to tithe today. However, you will notice that Abraham (known as Abram at that time) refused to take any of the spoils. For if Abraham had taken them, the implication would be that he tithed from the spoils and on behalf of others as well.
Firstly, we tithe on behalf of ourselves, not others, because every person is responsible to God for his or her own self. Secondly, if Abraham had tithed from his spoils, they would not be considered spoils of war because he took none. Thirdly, the fact that Abraham tithed everything implies, and includes, the spoils he had received from Pharaoh (Genesis 12:15-16; 13:2), which largely contributed to his wealth. Abraham was very rich when he left Egypt, and he desired to honor God, not man—a fact that seems to elude many interpreters of the Bible.
It stands to reason, then, that not tithing is still robbing God, even though this is not explicitly stated as a requirement for God’s people in the New Testament, as it was in the Old Testament concerning the Levites. There is no suggestion in the Bible that tithing has been abolished as a means of supporting full-time workers in ministry, for it is something that Abraham did before the Mosaic Covenant was introduced, and God does not change in His requirements, as the Word of God states:
“For I the Lord do not change; therefore you, O children of Jacob, have not perished. Ever since the days of your ancestors you have turned aside from my statutes and have not kept them. Return to me, and I will return to you, says the Lord of hosts. But you say, “How shall we return?” Will anyone rob God? Yet you are robbing me! But you say, “How are we robbing you?” In your tithes and offerings! You are cursed with a curse, for you are robbing me—the whole nation of you! Bring the full tithe into the storehouse, so that there may be food in my house, and thus put me to the test, says the Lord of hosts; see if I will not open the windows of heaven for you and pour down for you an overflowing blessing” (Malachi 3:6-10 NRSV).
Stealing
From God
God Himself does not need our tithe, but He requires that we give Him a chance to prove Himself in our lives. People steal from God by not giving Him that opportunity. This is a strange concept for us because we do not think in terms of letting others have a right to our lives. But the truth is, God Himself does not need our tithe; He only requires that we give Him a chance to prove Himself in our lives.
If we look at this idea from the perspective of being a member of a family, we start to see things a little differently. Children always believe that they have a right to their parents. Likewise, parents always believe that they have a right to participate in their children’s lives. However, God is seeking our permission to enter into a relationship with us. We need to say, “Yes!” to our Heavenly Father first.
In Canada and Australia, there have been apologies made to the indigenous people on behalf of churches and governments for the atrocities committed against their people many moons ago by removing children from their tribal communities. Some have even apologized for stealing the rights of the children from their parents and those of the parents from their children. In Australia, the government apologized on behalf of a previous generation for having stolen a generation of Aborigines.
God has a right to enjoy His Creation here on Earth; the problem is that it has been stolen from Him. However, unlike the human idea of apologizing for a stolen generation, where descendants are rewarded on behalf of the sins of the colonizing fathers, God does things differently. This is because God wants to have a personal relationship with each one of us. A personal relationship is something special—a relationship where each party grows in appreciation of the other—that is, God and you.
If we rob God of having a personal relationship with us, we also rob Him of the glory that is rightfully His because we do not give Him the opportunity to demonstrate His greatness and show His loving-kindness toward us. God looks at us as unique individuals. He does not want us to be like swine at the trough, where there is no difference from one to another and everybody pushes and grunts as if they were pigs. God desires for each of us to participate in our own unique relationship that is special to Him, which develops as we grow in appreciation of how much He loves us through the act of giving—by means of the tithe.
Besides, this is how we can personally prove whether the Bible is the written Word of God and whether God honors His word. If we declare that there is no God, or that God does not love us, and we have not put Him to the test through the tithe, then our judgment of God is false. We are not being very scientific in our experiment to see whether or not God is true, whether the Bible has divine authority as the written Word of God, or whether God keeps His word.
When Jesus said, “Go and learn what this means: I desire mercy and not sacrifice” (Matt. 9:13), He was effectively saying: “Look, I know you did not ask to be born into a sinful and evil world wherein you are sinners by nature. Do not judge Me or your Heavenly Father, but give us a chance to prove ourselves to you in your life. You will find that we will help you, comfort you, and pour an overflowing blessing into your very being. So do not make unnecessary sacrifices by striving to perform manmade religious vows or requirements; rather, put us to the test and see if we will honor our word or not.” Not to do this is to steal from God His opportunity to prove Himself as Jehovah Jireh, our Provider, Lord God Almighty, Creator of all things—how good is this! We can find the truth for ourselves by putting God to the test and proving Him through a legitimate means of scientific application.
Scientific
Challenge
If anyone claims that the Lord God of the Bible does not exist and has not been willing to put Him to the test through the means of the tithe, then that person is a fool, especially if he or she claims to be a scientist.
This is how scientific inquiry works: first, there is the question, then the hypothesis, followed by the actual test, which is analyzed to determine the veracity of the results.
Question: Does the God of the Bible exist, and is there any way in which His existence can be verified through an experiment?
Hypothesis: The Bible states that God honors the tithe. Therefore, we should be able to prove whether the Bible possesses divine inspiration and whether God exists by means of the tithe.
Test: Over a period of ten years, we will record the lives of two thousand people who tithe and two thousand who do not tithe. We will also conduct the test with our own money at the same time.
Analysis (my own): The observations I have made personally of people who tithe, along with the testimonies I have read and heard, indicate that God honors His word as stated in the book of Malachi, to which I can also testify as a consequence of my own tithing. More importantly, my faith in the Lord God has grown as a result of tithing and seeing the One and Only Heavenly Father honor His word.
God rebukes the devourer from the lives of those who faithfully tithe. They not only prosper more financially than they would have by not tithing,[iii] but they also develop a more optimistic attitude—of abundance—towards life and a more generous spirit, which is reflected in their attitudes towards other people. Moreover, people who tithe believe they are able to achieve more in their lives by being innovative..
Be
Creative
Instead of stealing, God would prefer us to be creative and learn how to make worthwhile contributions to society, which will benefit all. Sadly, many young people have no concept of being creative. Instead of being creative, they are destructive. However, it does not help young people when artisans see creativity as merely throwing paint on canvas any which way or photographing large groups of nude people standing or crouched together in public spaces. Neither does it help people become more creative when humor is reduced to what is known as the “toilet variety,” and Hollywood produces films that are full of offensive language and lewdness that is unnecessarily explicit. Glamorizing the vile, the profane, the obscene, and the destructive is not really a hallmark of creativity. Producing sewage for the human mind is not being creative at all. Yet juveniles purporting to be mature—with many even claiming they belong to the intelligentsia—text, tweet, and post degrading comments online in their arrogance, ignorantly mistaking the regurgitation of intellectual effluent for creativity.
Creativity that possesses value comes in the form of engineering that enables plumbing and sewers to keep disease at bay. Likewise, creativity involving the good, the true, the noble, and the honorable is what will produce a better society, along with that which is gracious, beautiful, marvelous, excellent, and worthy of respect. As it stands, the hopes of many are being stolen, for there appears to be no hope for a better world because people are being caught up in the sewer of sin.
Vandalism
Is Stealing
Vandalism is an act of stealing because when someone else’s property is destroyed, there is a cost involved for the person whose property has been damaged. Although the vandal does not reap any monetary gain from his reckless acts, he is stealing the person’s right to use what was damaged. By default, even though the vandal does not benefit, he is stealing the right of the person to purchase something else with the cost of repairing or replacing the damaged property. In the case of employment, where the damaged property is used to earn an income, the vandal is stealing the person’s right to earn a living.
Young children, teenagers, and young adults are often at a loss regarding what to do with themselves. Often, when a gathering of young people on the street is asked what they are doing, they will reply, “We have nothing to do.” Many often say, “We are bored.”
Once, when pulling up outside a place of business in a commercial area, I saw an 18-year-old girl hacking the trunk of a sapling that had been planted by the local council. I asked the girl why she was doing that with her pocket knife. She said, “I got bored waiting here until my boyfriend finishes work.”
When a group of people is feeling bored and is not expending energy, the tendency is to become destructive instead of creative. Consequently, it is not hard to find people who will participate in a protest with the sole intent of creating a riot. There may be an element of creativity in how they instigate a riot without actually being found out, so they can hire out their services for the next protest, but not much imagination is required to be abusive, harm people, hurl objects at police and law-abiding citizens, and damage property. All this is vandalism and constitutes the stealing of lawful rights from other people to use their own property without further cost. When it comes to public property, the taxpayer indirectly pays for the cost of the vandalism.
Criminal
Creativity
Organized criminal activity can be much more sophisticated than merely turning a peaceful protest into a riot. Rackets, such as the rebirthing of stolen cars, require considerable planning and organization. Car thieves must be trained in how to immobilize the alarm systems of the cars they steal. Then, motor mechanics, panel beaters, and spray painters are employed to rebirth the cars by changing parts, removing and replacing the chassis, and making various modifications to prevent identification. Similarly, the importation, manufacture, storage, and distribution of drugs and contraband require innovative ideas from criminals to avoid detection by the authorities. Avoiding detection is critical to the success of all criminal activities. Law enforcement authorities are often amazed at the level of ingenuity employed by criminals to steal something or the amount of effort expended to outwit the police, all in the pursuit of so-called easy money.
Additionally, there is the imagination required to launder large sums of ill-gotten gains so that the funds appear to be legitimate income, including the collaboration of cohorts comprising artful accountants and sly solicitors. This form of creativity is an abuse of the imaginative ability that God has given us. The same abuse occurs when politicians and government agencies cover up criminal activities and produce propaganda to deceive the public. In doing so, they steal the voters’ right to know the truth about what is really happening within government circles.
Criminals
Prey On Healthy Economies
Criminals are limited in the amount of wealth they can extract from society through illegal activities. The reason for this is that parasites need a healthy organism from which to feed. Any parasitic creature, plant, or organism requires a healthy counterpart to satisfy its appetite. Criminals, especially those involved in organized crime, need a healthy and prosperous society to prey upon; otherwise, the pickings become scarce, leading to more overt criminal activity. When the criminally minded become greedy, corruption flourishes, which begins to destroy society. Instead of using ingenuity to illegally fleece money from law-abiding citizens, racketeers will resort to heavy intimidation tactics, resulting in turf wars and other destructive and dangerous activities, not to mention a public revolt that can escalate into civil war.
One hallmark of a civilization's ability to progress is evident when graft (that is, dishonest, unfair, or illegal gain) is minimized. When a country has a civilized society living in peace without the cancer of graft, creativity tends to flourish, expanding the culture and its overall wealth. This has been demonstrated throughout history and is particularly evident in First World economies, which have systems in place to rein in graft in its many forms, as uncovered by the USA’s DOGE. Nevertheless, in First World countries, individuals involved in fraud and swindles are often exposed and prosecuted for their crimes. This helps keep corruption in check and gives law-abiding citizens some hope. Still, many people are feathering their own nests at the expense of others. Stealing is often seen as an easy means of making a living rather than as a failure to be creative and contribute meaningfully to the community. While some individuals in society may be making an easy living from their rackets, they do not seem to enjoy the true benefits of life, as do those who earn an honest living through industry and creativity that benefit society. Some racketeers may have access to vast sums of money, but only a few have been numbered among the billionaires of the world.[iv] This is because the only way a criminal mastermind can become truly wealthy is by channeling their ill-gotten gains into businesses that benefit society. Even those who have defrauded the financial markets have not been able to achieve billionaire status while keeping the proceeds.
Creating
Wealth
Andrew Carnegie is regarded as the second richest man in modern history. His wealth is said to have been five times that of the richest man today. Carnegie commissioned Napoleon Hill to write a book about the secrets of acquiring and creating wealth, which was eventually published as Think and Grow Rich. Napoleon Hill identified some universal principles that are evident in people who have acquired and created wealth. The application of these principles has enabled many law-abiding men and women to become wealthy without resorting to theft or criminal activity.
To exist, every economy relies on productivity, whether it is that of a local community, a nation, or the globe. If there is no productivity, there is nothing to steal. You cannot steal anything if it has not been produced in some way. Besides ideas and innovative products, this includes hunting or gathering food. Hunting animals for food and gathering items such as mushrooms, berries, fruits, vegetables, eggs, bugs, and grubs are forms of productivity because they involve human activity that produces something of value. For anyone to take another person’s food without permission is stealing, regardless of whether it has been collected or hunted in the wild or grown on someone else’s property. A better alternative is for people to gather, hunt, farm, or manufacture various foods and industrial items and then trade them, which contributes to the creation of an economy.
Natural
Economics
An economy is the utilization of human capital for the betterment of society. Ssu-Ma Ch’ien, the Grand Historian of China, recorded around the time of Jesus that: “Society obviously must have farmers before it can eat; foresters, fishermen, miners, etc., before it can make use of natural resources; craftsmen before it can have manufactured goods; and merchants before they can be distributed. But once these exist, what need is there for government directives, mobilizations of labor, or periodic assemblies? Each man has only to be left to utilize his own abilities and exert his strength to obtain what he wishes.... When each person works away at his own occupation and delights in his own business, then like water flowing downward, goods will naturally flow ceaselessly day and night without being summoned, and the people will produce commodities without having been asked. For every person will have an eye for the times and he or she will seek to make profit from opportunities that benefit members of the community.”[v]
Stealing
Is For Losers
It is easy to see why God has decreed that people are not to steal from each other. Stealing results in strife when two fight for the same thing. Hence, it is much better to learn to be creative and find a means by which we can make a positive contribution to our local economy. In doing so, we will find fulfillment and a sense of achievement.
Academics become upset when people steal their ideas and do not give them proper recognition. Plagiarism is anathema among the world’s intelligentsia, and it is not something any student would be particularly overjoyed about if discovered. Unfortunately, commercial advantage is gained through plagiarism, and when copyrights, patents, or trademarks are infringed, this is stealing. What stealing does is leave a void in people for not being creative. There is no sense of accomplishment when people steal. Stealing creates an inner emptiness rather than fulfillment and happiness. Consequently, many people suffer from a sense of despair and become depressed as a result of their lack of creativity. Instead of becoming individuals who use their innate ability to learn and create solutions to problems, develop something new, or build something useful that will be appreciated by others, those who steal lose the true riches of life.
Jesus
And The Truth About Money
Contrary to what some claim, one of the interesting features of the ministry of Jesus is how money figures in much of his teaching. Those who love money more than God are to be accursed, whereas those who use money to do good are to be rewarded.
Many people become Christians and adopt the view that money is evil because of what Jesus said on various occasions. Jesus spoke against the rich man (Dives[vi]) in the story about Lazarus in Paradise and Dives in Hell. He declared a rich man foolish because he was not rich toward God the night he died, having decided on that very day to retire and enjoy all the wealth he had accumulated in his life. Another time, Jesus pitied the rich young ruler who would not give his wealth to the poor. Furthermore, Jesus claimed it was harder for a rich man to enter heaven than for a camel to go through the eye of a needle.
Money itself is not the root of evil; rather, the love of money is definitely the root of all evil.
How often do we hear people say they cannot do what they would like to do because of a lack of money? In many respects, this might be true, but we do not need money to teach students; yet teachers claim they cannot teach because of insufficient funds. Scientists say they cannot conduct research due to a lack of money; yet it is not money that does the research—it is the scientists!
Money is a commodity or a means by which people can exchange resources; yet people say being a Christian has nothing to do with money, while at the same time enslaving themselves to their possessions of land, buildings, and other forms of wealth.
In the parable of the talents, Jesus teaches some important truths about money that are not too difficult to understand:
“For it is like a man who was about to take a long journey, and he called his servants together and entrusted them with his property.
To one he gave five talents [probably about $5,000], to another two, to another one—to each in proportion to his own personal ability. Then he departed and left the country.
He who had received the five talents went at once and traded with them, and he gained five talents more.
And likewise he who had received the two talents—he also gained two talents more.
But he who had received the one talent went and dug a hole in the ground and hid his master’s money.
Now after a long time the master of those servants returned and settled accounts with them.
And he who had received the five talents came and brought him five more, saying, Master, you entrusted to me five talents; see, here I have gained five talents more.
His master said to him, Well done, you upright (honorable, admirable) and faithful servant! You have been faithful and trustworthy over a little; I will put you in charge of much. Enter into and share the joy (the delight, the blessedness) which your master enjoys.
And he also who had the two talents came forward, saying, Master, you entrusted two talents to me; here I have gained two talents more.
His master said to him, Well done, you upright (honorable, admirable) and faithful servant! You have been faithful and trustworthy over a little; I will put you in charge of much. Enter into and share the joy (the delight, the blessedness) which your master enjoys.
He who had received one talent also came forward, saying, Master, I knew you to be a harsh and hard man, reaping where you did not sow, and gathering where you had not winnowed [the grain].
So I was afraid, and I went and hid your talent in the ground. Here you have what is your own.
But his master answered him, You wicked and lazy and idle servant! Did you indeed know that I reap where I have not sowed and gather [grain] where I have not winnowed?
Then you should have invested my money with the bankers, and at my coming I would have received what was my own with interest.
So take the talent away from him and give it to the one who has the ten talents.
For to everyone who has will more be given, and he will be furnished richly so that he will have an abundance; but from the one who does not have, even what he does have will be taken away.
And throw the good-for-nothing servant into the outer darkness; there will be weeping and grinding of teeth.”
(Matthew 25:14-30 Amplified Bible)
Many people like to think that Jesus is not talking about money here—although the Amplified Bible equates a talent to one thousand dollars ($1,000), just in case we are confused about a talent not being a unit of money. If the talent in this parable is meant to be a talent of gold, then each talent would be nearly twelve hundred ounces of the precious metal; in that case, a talent would be worth around six hundred thousand dollars ($600,000) at gold prices of five thousand dollars ($5,000) an ounce,[vii] and the interest would be substantial. To provide some additional perspective, living modestly and spending only five hundred dollars ($500) a week—without accounting for any interest earned—a talent of gold would provide sufficient funds to last for some twenty years or more, especially with interest included.
For some reason, certain Christians like to claim that the talents referred to here are gifts or abilities given to people by God. But the truth is that a talent in this story is not an ability, because how many people have five gifts (abilities) in which they excel and are able to turn them into ten gifts (abilities)? Consider that a talented athlete might also be an equally gifted artist, musician, writer, mathematician, engineer, and scientist. Even then, we are stretching the bounds of probability regarding the existence of such a person in the world today. Who possesses five gifted abilities or talents, let alone six? Besides, we improve the abilities or talents we have; we do not create new ones from them. Improving our abilities may seem like creating new talents, which, in reality, enables us to acquire more wealth; but this brings us back to what Jesus was really talking about—money!
The
Parable Of The Talents Explained
There are two points in this story. The obvious point is that two individuals used their creativity to trade and doubled the amount of money they were given, while one person did not attempt to use any of his creativity to increase the value of the money that was entrusted to him.
The second, less obvious point is that the two individuals who increased their wealth put their trust in God to help them, whereas the person who buried the money was not prepared to trust God for assistance.
What is poignantly implied is that God will help us develop our talents and creativity if we put our trust in Him. This story is about money; in particular, what we do with the money or wealth we have. Moreover, we know this story is about money because of the banking element being a feature of this parable and the truth about bankers paying interest (cf. Luke 19:23).
In most instances, when talking about the rich, Jesus seems to be hostile toward those who love money and prize material possessions above everything else. Nevertheless, in this parable of the talents (and Luke 19:12-28), Jesus, rather surprisingly, makes the point that the idea of banking is favorable and acceptable to God. In doing so, Jesus highlights the financial sophistication that existed in the economy of His day and gives His tacit approval to the concept of bankers paying interest on money deposited in their trust. For the bankers to make a profit, they would then have to lend the money to someone else who would also use it to make a profit. This means that Jesus was effectively endorsing capitalism, which is the use of wealth to create more wealth by utilizing human capital[viii] to be creative.
The idea of lending money at interest was not new in Jesus’ day. The Mosaic covenant permitted lending at interest by Israelites to non-Israelites (Deuteronomy 23:20). In Nehemiah’s day, people were borrowing money to purchase grain and pay taxes (Nehemiah 5:3-4). The concept of lending at interest was known in other cultures. Lending money is recognized as a legitimate means of expanding an economy and increasing wealth—as evidenced in micro-financing, where loans are made to impoverished people in Third World countries based on a person’s integrity. The results have been outstanding, and many men, and in particular women, have demonstrated the wisdom of borrowing money to facilitate entrepreneurial projects that foster not only self-employment and human enterprise but also new employment opportunities where none previously existed. This, in turn, has increased the living standards of the community.
The middleman is often accused of being exploitative and making all the money, but it just so happens that the middleman is also responsible for creating many of the systems that enable economies to expand and create more wealth to be shared by the people. Capitalism always requires middlemen, and of all the many tested types of economic ideologies throughout history, capitalism has proven to be the most efficient means for distributing wealth among the people. This is something Jean Paul Getty, the founder of the Getty Museum, noticed when traveling to Russia just after the First World War. Getty was considering becoming a socialist and a diplomat. However, when he saw the impoverished conditions experienced by the Russians compared to the abundance of wealth shared by many more American citizens, Getty realized the virtues of capitalism outshone those of socialism. He then decided to build his own business, which ended up employing over twelve thousand workers, with the lowest corporate turnover of personnel in the USA and UK.
Today, Communist China, the former Communist Bloc of Eastern European Socialist Countries, and what was previously known as the USSR (consisting of Russia and 14 other republics) have recognized the value of capitalism for creating wealth and improving the material comforts of their citizens. They have abandoned the idea of socialism and communism to permit capitalism to flourish. Communist North Korea is an exception; the nation has insufficient food for its people and serves as a fitting reminder of communism’s disadvantages, especially when contrasted with South Korea, where the people enjoy an abundance of food and goods. Venezuela and Cuba are also impoverished due to communist dictatorial rule.
Why
Capitalism Works
The reason capitalism works is that people are given the opportunity to employ capital to create more wealth for themselves. To a large degree, this is reflected within the Mosaic covenant, where the law of the Jubilee provided people with a means to improve their conditions in life with some capital.
Essentially, capitalism means that we can improve our own circumstances in life by using our abilities to increase our wealth. This provides a sense of satisfaction that is not achieved when there is no challenge to stimulate aspirations toward possessing a sense of accomplishment in life.
The famed Aesop told a story about a rich old farmer who had two lazy sons who refused to work. On his deathbed, the farmer told his sons that treasure worth a fortune had been buried on the land and that they should ensure they overturned every part of the land lest anyone else should find it. Immediately after their father had been buried, the two indolent sons exerted themselves and overturned every portion of the land with their spades several times, thinking that they may have missed something previously. They did not find any treasure. Since the ground had been overturned, they decided to plant crops. Having nothing to do, they decided to harvest the crops, and to their surprise, they were abundantly rewarded with the family’s treasure of a bumper harvest that brought them more wealth than their neighbors. The two sons realized that the family treasure was found in productivity.
In cases where we have plenty of wealth, we can share it among the poor and then go and create more. The truth is that God wants us to be creative and have a purpose in life. God does not want people to have children who possess all the material possessions and comforts of this world but become so bored with life and so empty inside their hearts that they become indolent drug addicts. The tragedy is that the Evil One is stealing the hearts and souls of many young people who have no purpose in life or can find no reason for living other than to get drunk, get laid, and get hooked on drugs—all because their parents see money and status as the be-all and end-all of existence.
To exist is one thing; to live life is a better thing, for life is meant to be an adventure. This adventure is one where we Earthlings learn how to overcome the ruler of this world and the lusts and passions of fleshly cravings—often known as the seven deadly sins. The challenge before us is to transform consciously into spiritual beings by learning how to communicate and work with our Heavenly Father. It just so happens that God has provided a means, which we know as capitalism, so we can learn how to trust God, grow in faith, and be creative, rather than take that which is not rightfully ours. For of this we can be sure: stealing destroys friendships and alienates acquaintances..
Big
Government Kills Capitalism
The problem that exists in the world today is that big government is killing capitalism. When companies go under, instead of allowing these companies to fail because they have become too unproductive, big government props them up. This equates to crony capitalism or socialism for the wealthy—or welfare for those who have jobs and an income. This is not socialism for everybody, which, in reality, does not work. When J. P. Getty was in socialist Russia, he saw for himself the masses queuing up at shops with a lack of goods, while the tyrannical communist rulers lived without want. He vowed never to support socialism or communism in any form, having realized that true capitalism offers more opportunity for workers.
Only true capitalism produces goods for the good of the economy and benefits society—not forms of crony capitalism. Unfortunately, when digital financial products and imaginary digital profits are touted as wealth, this is where capitalism ceases to be the employment of resources to produce benefits for the good of the people. We can say that digital economies are not true capitalism because they lack true capital. The reason these digital economies exist is that big government provides socialism for large corporations. The number of large corporations that would be heavily downsized, if not bankrupted, would devastate the financial world if all the government subsidies and digital money maneuvers malfunctioned—but there is nothing wrong with fat cats becoming leaner or the financially insolvent becoming industrious, productive, and prosperous again.
In First World countries, there are too many people benefiting from the largesse of the public purse. This is why there is a massive financial crisis looming of proportions never before seen. The only answer in the minds of people will be to kill capitalism (which nationally no longer exists in its true form) and create a one-world government.[ix]
If society were set up in the way that God showed Moses and the concept of Jubilee were introduced, every person would have a rightful inheritance to employ his or her own personal capital for the benefit of all. Big government would be out, and wealth would be fairly distributed every fifty years, so all human capital and potential could be better utilized rather than being underutilized and lost to poverty and slums.
The
World To Come
Jesus said therefore, “A nobleman went into a far country to receive for himself a kingdom and then return. Calling ten of his servants, he gave them ten minas, and said to them, ‘Engage in business until I come.’ But his citizens hated him and sent a delegation after him, saying, ‘We do not want this man to reign over us.’ When he returned, having received the kingdom, he ordered these servants to whom he had given the money to be called to him, that he might know what they had gained by doing business. The first came before him, saying, ‘Lord, your mina has made ten minas more.’ And he said to him, ‘Well done, good servant! Because you have been faithful in a very little, you shall have authority over ten cities.’ And the second came, saying, ‘Lord, your mina has made five minas.’ And he said to him, ‘And you are to be over five cities.’ Then another came, saying, ‘Lord, here is your mina, which I kept laid away in a handkerchief; for I was afraid of you, because you are a severe man. You take what you did not deposit, and reap what you did not sow.’ He said to him, ‘I will condemn you with your own words, you wicked servant! You knew that I was a severe man, taking what I did not deposit and reaping what I did not sow. Why then did you not put my money in the bank, and at my coming I might have collected it with interest?’ And he said to those who stood by, ‘Take the mina from him, and give it to the one who has the ten minas.’ And they said to him, ‘Lord, he has ten minas!’ ‘I tell you that to everyone who has, more will be given, but from the one who has not, even what he has will be taken away. But as for these enemies of mine, who did not want me to reign over them, bring them here and slaughter them before me.’” And when he had said these things, he went on ahead, going up to Jerusalem. (Luke 19:12-28)
One mina was about three months’ wages for a laborer.[x] Of the ten servants, two are mentioned as having done good business (other versions use the term “trading”). The point of the parable here differs from that of the talents; for each servant is given the same amount, with the same potential, but what each one does with what they have depends upon the individual.
For instance, we can gain interest by acquiring knowledge so that we can apply ourselves to attending to and developing the business that our master has given us to do, or we can squander every opportunity to acquire a skill by being feckless and fancy-free. Those who are unskilled kill opportunities. Those who are wise learn how to make the most of every opportunity when it comes their way, for they have set their minds to understand the master’s requirements and diligently apply themselves to learning, through application, how to best maximize the potential of the capital that they have been given. Hence, in this parable, one of the ten traded (or learned how to leverage) his skills and energy to turn one mina into ten more. Another turned one mina into five minas. These two individuals were not alone, for there were seven others who are not mentioned but apparently either gained interest or at least doubled their minas. In all, nine of the servants received rewards when their master returned, each according to their profitable application. However, the tenth individual did nothing instead of what he ought to have done and received what he had not sought but feared—the ire of his master.
The idea that the reward given to the two individuals who made good profits from their trading and business deals was actually cities does suggest a form of big government. Ten cities could be metropolises that have twenty million people living in them. However, the parable is not so much about the fact that cities are the rewards; rather, the rewards in the world to come are for those who have been faithful with what they have been given here on Earth and have expended their human capital to obtain “hundred-fold now in this time, houses and brothers and sisters and mothers and children and lands, with persecutions, and in the age to come eternal life” (Mark 10:30). Nevertheless, besides eternal life, the rewards in the world to come will be commensurate with what one does with one’s life after one has repented from dead works and has begun to express faith toward God (Hebrews 6:1).
Where
To Find True Riches
The eighth commandment is about people learning to be creative rather than stealing from others. Wherever we look in life, we find that creativity allows for expansion, whereas stealing (that is, taking other people’s goods, rights, and ideas away from them without their permission) brings about destruction. This destruction may result in tit-for-tat revenge, the breakdown of what was otherwise a mutually beneficial and profitable relationship, or, when corruption becomes endemic, the ruination of a nation or even an empire.
The eighth commandment reminds people of the need to appreciate one another’s efforts. This is evident in what Jesus said in the parable of the talents. The person who gave the talents in the first place showed his appreciation for the efforts of those who created an increase in his wealth by giving them more and showering praise on them for their achievements.
The eighth commandment is about giving people a purpose in life, helping them avoid boredom and a lack of fulfillment. Those without purpose often lead miserable lives instead of experiencing joy by seeking to overcome obstacles and form meaningful friendships. Assisting others in learning the truth about the resurrection of Jesus and ultimate meaning brings great joy.
The eighth commandment is about being generous and learning to share with others, which is the opposite of taking. However, people seem to think it is easier to be criminally minded rather than community minded and to provide help to those who do not have the resources and knowledge required to succeed at the levels of the more fortunate.
Throughout the Bible, there is compassion for the poor, but rather than having a centralized system of distribution like that which those who subscribe to socialism and communism desire to introduce, God would prefer people to personally share their own wealth with the poor and take it upon themselves to be their brother’s keeper. This is difficult for people to do when their parents have set different standards—standards that encourage their children to be self-indulgent rather than to help those in need.
The eighth commandment is about having riches in Heaven. Being rich in this world is one thing; being rich toward God is another matter. God wants people to be rich toward Him and to have true riches in this world as well. God has introduced the system of the tithe for this very reason. It is amazing how people who tithe are blessed.[xi] They know that there is no need to steal. For it is much better, by far, to learn how to trust God to enable us to be creative and have a life of adventure as we discover how to put the eternal principles of life into action.
`We discover the true riches of life when we learn to have faith in God—faith is the currency of Heaven. The tithe is the means by which we are able to put our Heavenly Father to the test. By this means, we grow in faith toward God and become rich in the eternal currency. We cannot steal faith; we can only get richer by learning how to become more faithful through exercising faith toward God in the eternal realm of the spirit.
***
[i] DOGE GOVERNMENT
WEBSITE https://dogegov.com/spending — retrieved April 26,
2025
[ii]
DOGE subcommittee uncovers $2.7 trillion
in improper Medicare, Medicaid payments
The Express Tribune.
Feb.15,2025. https://tribune.com.pk/story/2528359/doge-subcommittee-uncovers-27-trillion-in-improper-medicare-medicaid-payments — retrieved April 26,
2025
[iii]
To prosper more than what one would have done according to one’s own abilities
is the blessing of God. Some people have billions, more have millions, most
people struggle financially, but with God’s blessing, they will have much to
rejoice about by proving him.
[iv]
There always are exceptions to the rule.
Forbes magazine did list cocaine distributor Joaquin Guzman (aka El
Chapo) as one of the richest men in the world. In 2019, he began serving life
imprisonment in Colorado “Supermax” prison. Columbian cocaine distributor Pablo
Escobar, considered to be the richest criminal ever, also was listed in the
Forbes rich list. Police subsequently killed him. Other notoriously rich
gangsters have been Carlos Lehder; Susumu Ishii; Anthony Salerno; Meyer Lansky.
[v]
Ptak, Justin. The Prehistory of Modern
Economic Thought: The Aristotle in Austrian Theory Institute for Business Cycle Research
Providence,
RI
02909 mises.org/journals/scholar/ptak1.pdf.
[vi]
Traditionally, the rich man has been called “Dives.” This is not really the man’s name, rather it
is the word “rich man” that is found in the text of the Latin Vulgate Bible.
[viii]
Human capital is the skills, knowledge and experience possessed by people that
are able to be turned into productive labor or monetary value.
[ix]
A study by three system theorists at Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in
Zurich, published in 2011 has detailed 147 companies that control 60% of the
global revenues and 737 companies that control 80% of the global economy. 147
Companies The Control Everything. Forbes.com. Aug.10. 2011
[x]
One mina was equivalent to 100
denarii (= one hundred days' wages for the common worker). HELPS Word-studies Copyright © 1987, 2011
by Helps Ministries, Inc.
[xi] Stanley Tam was going nowhere until he opened a Gideon’s Bible and read that those who do not tithe rob God. From that day, Stanley began tithing and not only did his life take on new meaning when his faith grew, he has been able to give away millions of dollars as a result. He went from being in poverty to a prince in the kingdom of God: Rich in Heaven and rich on Earth. Died 107 years old, April 17,2023.
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