Trusting the Ten #10: Captured by Covetousness

“You shall not covet…”—Exodus 20:17

There is a short story by Guy de Maupassant entitled The Necklace. It’s about a girl born into a lower-class family who married a middle-class man of modest means. But the girl was born with an intellect and wit of someone in the upper class, making her aware and desirous of the wants and privileges of someone from that station. She longed for expensive clothing and the delicacies afforded to those of the upper class, and although she possessed not the rank and pomp of the wealthy, she had the attitude, demeanor, beauty, grace and charm of one born into privilege. Awareness of her own finer tastes vaulted her sense of superiority into a position of arrogance, to the point where she felt that her own husband was beneath her in status. Maupassant writes of her dilemma:

“She had no clothes, no jewels, nothing. And these were the only things she loved; she felt that she was made for them. She had longed so eagerly to charm, to be desired, to be wildly attractive and sought after. 

She had a rich friend, an old school friend whom she refused to visit, because she suffered so keenly when she returned home. She would weep whole days, with grief, regret, despair, and misery.”

One evening her husband came home to inform her that they had been invited to a grand ball, but rather than experiencing joy at the opportunity to participate in the life she so longed for, she fretted at having nothing to adorn her person at such a grand occasion—she had no beautiful dress or jewelry to wear! Although her husband allowed great expense for an appropriate dress, she nevertheless felt anxiety, self-pity and depression at the approach of the special day because she still had no fine jewelry to wear. She would rather not go to the party than go without jewelry and look like a commoner among women of class and taste. Upon her husband’s advice, she borrowed an exquisite diamond necklace from a wealthy friend, and it sat upon her neck gracefully. She finally looked like the person she felt she was.

The ball was fabulous. She was in her element—made for the moment. She was cordial, outgoing, witty, smart, and gorgeous. All of the men stared and all of the ladies compared. It was her night; like a beautiful flower, she was blooming in the sun of this moment.

Back at home at the end of the evening, she takes off her jacket to look at herself one last time in the mirror. And to her horror and shock—the necklace was gone! They went back out, retraced their steps, looked all over town, and made a police report, but it was gone forever. Not wanting to lose face with their wealthy friend, they begged and borrowed their way to buying a replacement diamond necklace for a considerable sum. The woman took on numerous jobs, and her husband worked long hours. They downsized their home and worked like slaves for the next ten years until the debt was paid off. By this time, the woman’s appearance had changed drastically. She had aged beyond the ten years—what was once a beautiful young woman was now a much older woman who appeared to have lived a very hard life. Relieved of her burden and debt, she decided to let her wealthy friend know what had happened. She told her friend that the necklace had been lost and that she had replaced it. Her friend responded that the necklace she had loaned her was really not a diamond necklace at all, but a piece of costume jewelry! The woman had given ten years of her life, plus whatever respect she had previously possessed, to pay for a replacement diamond necklace that was not even real!

The woman’s sin? Covetousness. What does “covet” mean? It’s a bit of an archaic term that means to desire or want to the point of obsession, so much so that the thing desired becomes the ruling pursuit of one’s life. According to Scripture, it’s idolatry. Paul tells us to put it to death:  

“Put to death therefore what is earthly in you: sexual immorality, impurity, passion, evil desire, and covetousness, which is idolatry.”—Colossians 3:5

When we covet, we are jealously desirous of someone’s person or possessions. We all have coveted at one time or another. And in our world today, it’s easy and pervasive. We want what others have, and we vainly believe that if we can somehow acquire what someone else has, we will be happy. The only problem is, once we acquire it, it doesn’t give us happiness—we want more. And we continually want more and more. It never can satisfy. How then can we counteract it? How can we fight against covetousness? By being content. How do we cultivate contentment? By realizing that God has given us everything we need, and no earthly object can ever satisfy the yearning and longing within our hearts. Only God can satisfy. It’s a heavenly longing—that only one from heaven can satisfy, that is, Christ Himself. Or as Paul said,  

“Now there is great gain in godliness with contentment, for we brought nothing into the world, and we cannot take anything out of the world”—1 Timothy 6:6-7.

May we no longer hunger for the things of this world, but realize that we were made for Christ. He is our soul’s sole satisfaction. He gives us more than this world ever can, and through Him we have everything we need (Philippians 4:19). Amen.