Yes — coveting is the inward trigger that lies behind breaking every one of the Ten Commandments.
Les Feldick teaches that a person cannot break any of the other nine commandments without first coveting. He uses Romans 7:7 to show why Paul singled out the command against coveting. Whether it is murder, theft, adultery, or even taking God's name in vain, coveting something sets the violation in motion.
Romans 7:7 — Paul names 'Thou shalt not covet' as the commandment through which the law made him aware of sin.
Exodus 20:17 — The Tenth Commandment explicitly forbids coveting, which Les identifies as the root of all lawbreaking.
The Tenth Commandment states, 'Thou shalt not covet thy neighbour's house, thou shalt not covet thy neighbour's wife, nor his manservant, nor his maidservant, nor his ox, nor his ass, nor any thing that is thy neighbour's' (Exodus 20:17). In Romans 7:7 Paul writes, 'What shall we say then? Is the law sin? God forbid. Nay, I had not known sin, but by the law: for I had not known lust, except the law had said, Thou shalt not covet.' This verse places the prohibition of coveting at the center of Paul's explanation of how the law awakened him to sin.
Les Feldick teaches that coveting is at the root of breaking every one of the Ten Commandments. He repeatedly asks whether it is possible to break any of the other nine commandments without first coveting, and his answer is no. Coveting is not merely one sin among many; it is the desire that triggers the other violations. Les applies this even to taking God's name in vain, explaining that a person who curses and swears is coveting attention for himself. He also points to Romans 7:7, where Paul says he had not known lust except the law had said, 'Thou shalt not covet.' This is the commandment that put Paul in an awareness of all the others. Les equates coveting with envy and jealousy, showing that everything in our disobedience is triggered by coveting or envy. The law itself, written on cold tables of stone, had no power to help a person obey; it could only stand and convict and condemn.
Les Feldick asks his listeners whether it is possible to break a single one of the other nine commandments without first coveting, and his answer is no. He says coveting is at the root of breaking every one of the commandments. Everything in our disobedience is triggered by coveting or envy, which can eat at the inner being and then come to the surface.
In Romans 7:7 Paul says, 'for I had not known lust, except the law had said, Thou shalt not covet.' Les Feldick observes that this one commandment put the apostle Paul in an awareness of all the others. Rather than being only one item in a list, the command against coveting exposed the root-level desire that lies behind every violation of the law.
Les Feldick anticipates the objection that cursing or swearing has nothing to do with coveting. He explains that a man who uses God's name in vain is doing what a child does when he acts up in class: he wants attention, and attention to himself is what he is coveting. This shows that coveting something triggers our problem in every area of the commandments.
Les Feldick points out that the Ten Commandments were written on cold tables of stone and were unmovable. The law had no power whatsoever to help a man keep from stealing and no power to keep someone from committing adultery. All it could do was say 'don't' and stand in stark reality to convict and condemn. This is why the command against coveting matters — it reveals the inner source of disobedience.
Why the Law Can't Save You — Romans 7:5-14 Explained
of sins which were by the law, now again it goes right back to the things that the law said to do and not to do, and which man in turn does not do and does do, and as we're going to see later in chapter 7, all right, these motions of sins which were by the law did work in our members, that in this body of flesh, to bring forth fruit, the end result of that production, and it was death.
Coveting at the Root of Every Commandment
Les asks whether a person can break one of the other nine commandments without first coveting and concludes that coveting is at the root of every one, using taking God's name in vain as the example people most doubt.
Paul's Use of 'Thou Shalt Not Covet'
Les points to Romans 7:7 where Paul says he had not known lust except the law said, 'Thou shalt not covet,' and challenges listeners to test whether any commandment can be broken without first coveting.
Coveting Attention in Taking God's Name in Vain
Les compares the man who curses to a child who acts up in school: both are craving attention, so even foul language is coveting attention for oneself.
The One Commandment That Opened Paul's Eyes
Les explains that the command 'Thou shalt not covet' is the one commandment that put the apostle Paul in an awareness of all the others, tying the final commandment to Romans 7:7.
Envy as the Prerequisite to Lawbreaking
Les says a person cannot break a single one of the Ten Commandments without first being guilty of envy, and connects that to Paul's battle in Romans 7.
Coveting or Envy Triggers All Disobedience
Les says everything in our disobedience is triggered by coveting or envy, and uses Cain's envy of Abel to show how it eats at the inner being and then comes to the surface.
The Law's Only Role Is to Condemn
Les teaches that the Ten Commandments written on stone had no power to help a person stop stealing or committing adultery; they could only convict and condemn, which is why coveting reveals the inner problem the law exposes.
Exodus 20:17: Thou shalt not covet thy neighbour's house, thou shalt not covet thy neighbour's wife, nor his manservant, nor his maidservant, nor his ox, nor his ass, nor any thing that is thy neighbour's.
The Tenth Commandment is the specific prohibition of coveting that Les identifies as the root of the other nine.
Romans 7:7: What shall we say then? Is the law sin? God forbid. Nay, I had not known sin, but by the law: for I had not known lust, except the law had said, Thou shalt not covet.
Paul singles out 'Thou shalt not covet' as the commandment through which the law awakened him to sin.
No. Les Feldick says a person cannot break a single one of the Ten Commandments without first coveting. Coveting is the inward trigger that sets every other violation in motion.
In Romans 7:7 Paul names that commandment as the one by which he knew lust. Les teaches that the command against coveting put Paul in an awareness of all the others because it goes to the root of every lawbreaking.
Les explains that a person who curses and swears is seeking attention for himself, just like a child who acts up in class. That craving for attention is a form of coveting.
No. Les says the law had no power to help a man keep from stealing or committing adultery; it only stood in stark reality to convict and condemn.
Watch the Teaching: Why the Law Can't Save You — Romans 7:5-14 Explained