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by
Doug Ward |
All three synoptic gospels record an encounter between Jesus
and a rich man seeking the way to eternal life. Since Matthew (19:20) describes
the man as young and Luke (18:18) identifies him as a ruler, he is commonly
known as "the rich young ruler."
Jesus
initially directs the man to several commandments of God:
"You know the commandments: `You shall not murder; You shall not commit adultery; You shall not steal; You
shall not bear false witness; You shall not defraud; Honor your father and
mother.'" (Mark 10:19, NRSV)
This
listing includes five of the ten commandments, along
with "you shall not defraud." To explain the presence of "you
shall not defraud" in the list, commentators frequently observe that this
is one way to state the commandment forbidding the coveting of another's
possessions. For example, James A. Brooks writes, "The command `do not
defraud' between the references to the Ninth and Fifth Commandments is
substituted for the Tenth Commandment, `You shall not covet.' Fraud is a
concrete example of covetousness and a special temptation of the rich."1
Other
sources concur that by Jesus' time, the sin of defrauding another was
associated with the commandment against coveting. The association was based
partly on Lev 19:13: "Do not defraud your neighbor or rob him. Do not hold
back the wages of a hired man overnight." Since verses 11 and 12 of Lev 19
deal, respectively, with the commandments against theft and false witness, a
link was made between the next verse (v. 13) and the next commandment in the
Decalogue.2 Certainly all the sins described in Lev
19:13 are concrete ways to act upon a desire for something that rightfully
belongs to another.
But
if Jesus was thinking of "do not defraud" as an example of "do
not covet your neighbor's possessions", why
didn't he just state the more familiar prohibition against coveting instead?
Biblical scholar James K. Bruckner proposes an answer to this question by
viewing Jesus' words in the context of an ongoing discussion in Second Temple
and early rabbinic Judaism about the dangers of covetousness and the nature and
scope of the tenth commandment.3 In this
article I will summarize Dr. Bruckner's research, which I believe opens up a
deeper understanding of the teaching of Jesus in Mark 10:19-22. Bruckner sets
the stage for his exegesis of Mark 10 by surveying what the Hebrew Scriptures, intertestamental literature, and rabbinic literature have
to say about covetousness and desire. Such a survey proves to be fascinating in
and of itself.
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Appropriate
and Inappropriate Desires |
The tenth commandment-or, in some traditions, the ninth and
tenth-states, "You shall not covet your neighbor's house. You shall not
covet your neighbor's wife, or his manservant or maidservant, his ox or donkey,
or anything that belongs to your neighbor" (Exod
20:17). What is forbidden here is not desire itself, but desire for the
possessions of another.
Starting
in the Garden of Eden, the Hebrew Scriptures teach that we have been given many
good things to enjoy, and we should enjoy them subject to guidelines that God
has put in place (Gen 2:16-17). Note for example the festival tithe commandment
in Deut 14:22-27, which says in part,
"And thou shalt bestow that
money for whatsoever thy soul lusteth after, for
oxen, or for sheep, or for wine, or for strong drink, or for whatsoever thy
soul desireth..."(v. 26, KJV).
The
phrase "whatsoever thy soul lusteth after"
leaves the worshiper a lot of leeway, but it is meant to be read in light of
the rest of the Torah. Earlier in Deut 14, in particular, are restrictions on
the varieties of meat that may be eaten.
The
Hebrew Scriptures identify some valuable entities that are especially worth
desiring. These include the judgments of God (Ps 19:9-10), God's "name and
renown" (Isa 26:8-9), and the temple (Ezek 24:16, 21). On the other hand,
a number of passages show the consequences of coveting what is not ours. Think
of the examples of Achan (Joshua 7), David and
Bathsheba (2 Sam 11-12), and Ahab with Naboth's
vineyard (I Kings 21). The book of Proverbs warns against falling into the trap
of illicit desire (Prov 5-6, e.g.).
The
prophets caution that in exile, Israel would lose many precious and desirable
things, including the temple and its vessels along with the land (2 Chron 36:10,19; Lam 1:7,10; Hosea
9:6,16;13:15; Zech 7:14) Here we see that God, for the long-term spiritual
benefit of his people, may sometimes deprive them of things that can be
rightfully desired under ordinary circumstances.
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Dangerous
Desires |
Continued reflection on both the positive and negative aspects of
desire is present in the Apocrypha. On the positive side, Sirach
14:14 says that we should enjoy the desirable things that God has given us:
"Do not deprive yourself of a day's enjoyment; do not let your share of
desired good pass by you" (NRSV). Wisdom of Solomon 6 mentions some
especially desirable things: "The beginning of wisdom is the most sincere
desire for instruction... . (v.6);
and "... the desire for wisdom leads to a kingdom "(v. 20).
On
the negative side, there is increasing emphasis on the dangers of desires in
general and the need to keep them under control. Sirach
5:2 cautions, "Do not follow your inclination and
strength in pursuing the desires of your heart." Sirach
18:30 adds, "Do not follow your base desires, but restrain your
appetites." In 23:5-6, Ben Sirach prays,
"... remove evil desire from me; Let neither gluttony nor lust overcome
me, and do not give me over to shameless passion."
The
book of 4 Maccabees stresses the importance of
self-control and asserts that the power of reason can be brought to bear to
conquer lusts (4 Macc 2:4). If God had not made
humans capable of ruling their desires and emotions, this book argues, he would
not have instituted the commandment against coveting (vv. 5-6). The author
praises Joseph for resisting the advances of Potiphar's
wife by "mental effort" (v. 2).
Dr.
Bruckner singles out three ways in which the theme of covetousness is treated
in the Pseudepigrapha. Some passages warn of the evil
deeds that can result from illicit desires. For example, chapter 4 of the
Psalms of Solomon (first century B.C.) describes how such desires lead people
to defraud others. In Letter of Aristeas 211 (second
century B.C.), kings are advised not to be led astray "to immoderate or
unseemly desires." Instead, they should "desire not many things but
only such as are necessary for ruling."
Other
passages, especially in the Testaments of the Twelve Patriarchs, warn about the
importance of controlling desires and the dangers of yielding to them. The
Testament of Asher (chapter 3) cautions that those who are ensnared by desires
serve Beliar (the devil) rather than God, while the
Testament of Joseph (chapter 7) mentions Potiphar's
wife as an example of someone who was enslaved by a wicked desire. The
Testament of Reuben (chapter 4) praises Joseph, noting that Joseph received
protection from God because "his soul's deliberation rejected evil
desire."
Two
texts describe covetousness as a main source of sin and evil. Chapter 15 of I
Enoch pictures the covetousness of the Watchers for human women as the source
of evil spirits in the world, while Life of Adam and Eve 19:3 says that
"covetousness is the origin of every sin." The idea here seems
similar to James 1:14-15, which describes a slippery slope from lust to sin to
death.
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Covetousness
in Rabbinic Tradition |
In rabbinic literature, as in intertestamental
sources, the patriarchs (and Joseph in particular) are praised for conquering
desires and obeying God's commandments. After stating that Joseph had kept the ten commandments, Leviticus Rabbah
2:10 says of the patriarchs, "Even though unto them the Torah had not yet
been given, they fulfilled it of their own accord. For this reason the Holy
One, blessed be He, loved them with a complete love, and made their name like
unto His own great name."
But
since human desires can lead to so many sins, how can the commandment against
covetousness be carried out? Based on Deut 7:25, which
connects the coveting of precious metals with the act of taking them, rabbinic
discussion of this commandment focuses on identifying concrete ways in which
people might act upon illicit desires. In particular, the Mishnah
(c. 200 A.D.) connects Exodus 22:36-37 and Lev 19:13-14; 25:36-37 with coveting.
These are commandments that prohibit charging interest on a personal loan,
taking advantage of the poor, or otherwise defrauding others.
The Mishnah examines a number of specific cases of fraud-e.g.,
a person asking to borrow some quantity of grain and offering to pay back that
same amount of grain at harvest time. If the price of grain goes down at
harvest time, the borrower would be returning less than he borrowed and would
thus be defrauding the lender (m. Baba Metzia 5:9).
Avoiding any kind of fraudulent transaction is a concrete and measurable way to
refrain from coveting and so fulfill the tenth commandment.
|
Jesus'
Teaching in Mark 10:19-22 |
With this background in mind, Bruckner considers Jesus'
conversation with the rich young ruler. He suggests that when Jesus lists
several commandments (v. 19), he says "you shall not defraud" rather
than "you shall not covet" in order to restrict the initial scope of
the discussion to the realm of concrete, measurable ways of carrying out the tenth
commandment.
The
man responds to Jesus by saying, "Teacher, I have kept all these since my
youth" (v. 20). Bruckner observes that Jesus did not dispute this claim or
deny that it was possible for someone to follow these commandments. Like Joseph,
the man must have had commendable self-control and strength of character. Mark
records that Jesus "loved him," reminding us of the God's love for
the faithful patriarchs.
Jesus
then gives an additional directive, in effect expanding the scope of the tenth
commandment well beyond the external requirement of "you shall not
defraud." He says to the rich young ruler, "You lack one thing; go,
sell what you own, and give the money to the poor, and you will have treasure
in heaven; then come, follow me" (v. 21). This is more than the rich man
is prepared to hear. "When he heard this, he was shocked and went away
grieving, for he had many possessions" (v. 22).
The
young man has earned his wealth by legitimate means and so has every right,
according to the letter of the law, to enjoy what God has given him. However,
the shock and grief he experiences when asked to surrender his riches indicate
that he still has a problem with desire. Jesus, in asking the man to sell his
possessions, is implying that even a desire for one's own possessions can
become a form of idolatry and thus a kind of illicit desire. (For the
connection between covetousness and idolatry, see Col 3:5.)
Jesus'
teaching in Mark 10:19-22 responds to the ways in which Second Temple Judaism was
wrestling with the challenge of desire. On the one hand, Jesus acknowledges the
great value in efforts to exercise self-control and fulfill the tenth
commandment in concrete ways. On the other hand, because of the pervasive
danger of desire, those efforts inevitably will fall short.
Bruckner
observes that Jesus, in directing the young man to follow him, is saying that
he is a safe and legitimate object of desire. (While an attachment to
possessions can stand between a person and God, an attachment to Jesus is the
way to follow God.) In this way Jesus places himself in elite company since, as
we have seen, the list of desirable things in the Hebrew Scriptures includes
the Torah, the Temple, and the name and memory of God.4
Bruckner
also identifies two important applications of Mark 10:19-22. One is the
importance of following the commandments of God. In particular, obedience to
commandments like "you shall not defraud" helps protect the most
vulnerable members of society. A second is the recognition that we all fall
short, succumbing to illicit desires, and that the solution to the problem of
desire is found in Jesus. In an era of great wealth and temptations, these are
key messages to remember.
1Mark, New
American Commentary, Volume 23, Broadman Press, 1991,
p. 162.
2See for example James
K. Bruckner, Exodus, New International Biblical Commentary, Volume 2,
Hendrickson Publishers, 2008, p. 192.
3See Bruckner's
article, "On the One Hand ... On the Other Hand: The Twofold Meaning of
the Law Against Covetousness", pp. 97-118 in To Hear and Obey: Essays
in Honor of Frederick Carlson Holmgren, Bradley J. Bergfalk
and Paul E. Koptak, editors, Covenant Publications,
Chicago, 1997.
4While
Jesus did not directly assert his deity, his sayings often indirectly imply a
high christology. On this
point see, for example, the article "Who Did Jesus Say
He Was?" in Issue 9 of Grace
& Knowledge.
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