Item 10 in Ten Commandments
Do Not Covet
Do not cultivate possessive desire for another person's household, relationships, servants, animals or property.
- Position
- 10
- Form
- Prohibition
- Obligation
- Mandatory
- Wording status
- Editorial paraphrase
- Intended audience
- Originally Israel; subsequently interpreted within Jewish and Christian traditions
- Last reviewed
- 28 June 2026
Names and terminology
Canonical name: Do Not Covet
Source wording
Editorial paraphrase: Do not cultivate possessive desire for another person's household, relationships, servants, animals or property.
Literal meaning
Do not cultivate possessive desire for another person's household, relationships, servants, animals or property.
Broader interpretation
The command addresses inner desire as well as outward conduct, but its ancient household language raises historical and moral questions.
Ethical purpose
To shape conduct or character in a way consistent with the wider ethical framework.
Modern application
Modern application requires attention to consent, rights, evidence, foreseeable harm and changing social conditions.
Criticism and difficult cases
Application can become difficult when this principle conflicts with another duty, when harm is indirect, or when ancient social assumptions do not fit modern conditions.
Truth By Reason analysis
Truth By Reason assesses this principle according to evidence, rights, intentions, foreseeable consequences and consistency with the treatment of all affected beings.
Ethical themes
Sources
- Deuteronomy 5 Primary source
- Exodus 20 Primary source