We are in chapter twenty of Exodus with our word for today. חָמֵד desire, take pleasure in, darling, treasure, covet. It is used 21 times in the Old Testament. Our word is used in the sense of taking a high degree of pleasure or mental satisfaction in. Joshua 7:19-21 Then Joshua said to Achan, “My son, give glory to the Lord, the God of Israel, and honor him. Tell me what you have done; do not hide it from me.” Achan replied, “It is true! I have sinned against the Lord, the God of Israel. This is what I have done: When I saw in the plunder a beautiful robe from Babylonia, two hundred shekels of silver and a bar of gold weighing fifty shekels, וָֽאֶחְמְדֵ֖ם I coveted them and took them. They are hidden in the ground inside my tent, with the silver underneath.” We also see our word used to describe the very strong desire that leads one to worship idols. Deuteronomy 7:25 The images of their gods you are to burn in the fire. Do not תַחְמֹד֩ covet the silver and gold on them, and do not take it for yourselves, or you will be ensnared by it, for it is detestable to the Lord your God. This is how our word is used in our chapter today. Exodus 20:17 You shall not תַחְמֹ֖ד covet your neighbor's house; you shall not תַחְמֹ֞ד covet your neighbor's wife, or his male servant, or his female servant, or his ox, or his donkey, or anything that is your neighbor's. Deuteronomy 5:21 Has similar wording just in different order and adds neighbor’s field. This reminds me of the humorous observation the Holy Spirit makes through Solomon in Ecclesiastes about what motives human beings. Ecclesiastes 4:4 And I saw that all toil and all achievement spring from one person’s envy of another. This too is meaningless, a chasing after the wind.

A big part of growing closer to God or maturing in our faith is understanding how God allows what we desire or covet to be taken from us. Psalm 39:11 When you rebuke and discipline anyone for their sin, you consume their חֲמוּד֑וֹ [literally what is dear to them or what they desire] wealth like a moth— surely everyone is but a breath. God does this because it gets in the way of our relationship with him. We see this in Proverbs where the Holy Spirit through Solomon refers to people stuck in loving something or someone more than God as simple ones who need to grow up. Proverbs 1:22-23 How long will you who are simple love your simple ways? How long will mockers חָמְד֣וּ delight in mockery and fools hate knowledge? Repent at my rebuke! Then I will pour out my thoughts to you, I will make known to you my teachings. The good news is that because of Jesus saving work on the cross and our accepting it through faith we have the Holy Spirit inside of us. God is greater than our own desires to covet anything or anyone in this life other than God himself. I’ll close with this Messianic Prophecy that reminds us of what Jesus was going to come and save us from. We find our word in this great passage. Isaiah 53:2-6 He had no beauty or majesty to וְנֶחְמְדֵֽהוּ attract us to him, nothing in his appearance that we should desire him. He was despised and rejected by mankind, a man of suffering, and familiar with pain. Like one from whom people hide their faces he was despised, and we held him in low esteem. Surely he took up our pain and bore our suffering, yet we considered him punished by God, stricken by him, and afflicted. But he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was on him, and by his wounds we are healed. We all, like sheep, have gone astray, each of us has turned to our own way; and the Lord has laid on him the iniquity of us all.