All stealing is equivalent of lying. There is a deceptive element that is involved. It is saying that something belongs to you, when in reality it does not. Noah Webster’s 1828 Dictionary defines "steal" as, "1. To take and carry away feloniously, as the personal goods of another. To constitute stealing or theft, the taking must be felonious, that is , with an intent to take what belongs to another, and without his consent. 2. To withdraw or convey without notice or clandestinely..." Stealing involves taking what belongs to another and giving others the appearance that it is yours. Behind the prohibition against stealing is the idea of private property. Private property should be obtained through legitimate means, otherwise, it constitutes theft. Stealing is a sin and a civil crime. It requires repentance and restitution. Paul wrote in Romans 13:8-10, "Owe no man any thing, but to love one another: for he that loveth another hath fulfilled the law. 9For this, Thou shalt not commit adultery, Thou shalt not kill, Thou shalt not steal, Thou shalt not bear false witness, Thou shalt not covet; and if there be any other commandment, it is briefly comprehended in this saying, namely, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. 10Love worketh no ill to his neighbour: therefore love is the fulfilling of the law." We demonstrate love when we respect our neighbor’s right to the enjoyment of his property.
Application
To properly understand the Bible, we need to use what is known as applied theology.
Webster renders "theft" as, "The act of stealing. In law, the private unlawful, felonious taking of another person’s goods or movables, with an intent to steal them. To constitute theft, the taking must be in private or without the owner’s knowledge, and it must be unlawful or felonious, that is, it must be with a design to deprive the owner of his property privately and against his will..." Stealing and theft involve deception which is at root lying. Leviticus 19:11, "Ye shall not steal, neither deal falsely, neither lie one to another." We know that the eighth commandment says, "Thou shalt not steal" (Exodus 20:15) and the ninth commandment is "Thou shalt not bear false witness against thy neighbour" (Exodus 20:16). To steal is also to bear false witness in that the thief is saying that it is his property, when in fact it belongs to someone else.
Stealing is a heart problem as the Lord Jesus makes abundantly clear in Mark 7:21-23, "For from within, out of the heart of men, proceed evil thoughts, adulteries, fornications, murders, 22Thefts, covetousness, wickedness, deceit, lasciviousness, an evil eye, blasphemy, pride, foolishness: 23All these evil things come from within, and defile the man." Down in the heart of man there is a desire to hide their true heart condition. They would rather resort to stealing than admit that their heart is not right within them. They refuse to humble themselves and admit the sinfulness of the heart. Those who are proud in heart will refuse to repent and continue in their deceptive ways.
Paul wrote the following advice to thieves in Ephesians 4:28, "Let him that stole steal no more: but rather let him labour, working with his hands the thing which is good, that he may have to give to him that needeth." The Amplified makes clear that thieves, generally, are lazy and do not want to work. The Amplified Bible renders this verse as, "Let the thief steal no more, but rather let him be industrious, making an honest living with his own hands, so that he may be able to give to those in need." A thief repents by doing the exact opposite of his previous behavior. Instead of taking from others, he gives to them. A wrong thing can never be done right.
Paul also wrote in Colossians 3:9-10, "Lie not one to another, seeing that ye have put off the old man with his deeds; 10And have put on the new man, which is renewed in knowledge after the image of him that created him." The putting off here is indicative of stripping off, like old filthy clothing and putting on new clean clothing. The old man or sin nature is what causes one to lie in the first place. This is why it is imperative to have the sin nature crucified with Christ. This will enable us not to commit acts of theft which also entails deceit and lying.
In all our dealing with our neighbor, we are not to do so falsely. Our doctrine should be according to the truth. False prophets are thieves of the truth and they must lie to their neighbor to get an advantage. Ephesians 5:6 reads, "Let no man deceive you with vain words: for because of these things cometh the wrath of God upon the children of disobedience." These liars will tell people that they can continue to sin and still make it heaven. They are dealing falsely with these souls as Ephesians 4:14 says, "That we henceforth be no more children, tossed to and fro, and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the sleight of men, and cunning craftiness, whereby they lie in wait to deceive." To deceive is to steal the truth from your neighbor.
Conclusion
To steal is to lie. This is why they are tied together in Leviticus 19:11. We are to be honest in all of our dealings. Paul said as much in 2 Corinthians 8:21, "Providing for honest things, not only in the sight of the Lord, but also in the sight of men." Someone who is honest is above suspicion. In other words, they can be trusted. There is no honor among thieves and liars.
