Old Testament (e.g. 1 Kgs 21:10), as in any land where extreme poverty exposes men to the temptation of bribery. No doubt the command could be generalized into the prohibition of tattling and tale-bearing (Lev. 19:16), particularly of untrue and unkind gossip which could damage one’s neighbour. 17. You shall not covet: Hebrew ḥāmad, ‘desire’, is in itself a neutral word. It is only when misdirected to that which belongs to another that such ‘desire’ becomes wrong. It is sometimes claimed that this