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20 Bible Verses About Greed and Selfishness

Christian Pure Team

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Summary

  • The Ten Commandments end with the command against coveting (Exodus 20:17), which Paul quotes in Romans 7:7.
  • Colossians 3:5 calls greed “idolatry,” and Ephesians 5:5 calls a greedy person “an idolater.”
  • Jesus’ warning against “all kinds of greed” in Luke 12:15 answers a man’s request to have his brother divide an inheritance, and leads into the parable of the rich fool.
  • James 3:16 and Philippians 2:3 use the same Greek word, eritheia, for selfish ambition, and James 4:2 traces quarrels and fights to coveting.
  • The saying “It is more blessed to give than to receive” (Acts 20:35) is attributed to Jesus by Paul and is not recorded in the four Gospels.

The Bible forbids greed, calls it idolatry, and ties disorder among believers to envy and selfish ambition. Those three points come from Exodus 20:17, Colossians 3:5 and James 3:16; Jesus’ warning against “all kinds of greed” (Luke 12:15), 1 Timothy 6:10 on the love of money, and Philippians 2:3-4 add to them. Luke 12:15, Colossians 3:5 and Ephesians 5:3 use the same Greek word for greed, pleonexia, which Strong’s lexicon glosses as greed or covetousness. The “selfish ambition” of James…

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Bibliography (Click to show)

Scripture quotations are from the New International Version.

Strong’s Greek 4124, πλεονεξία (pleonexia): greed, covetousness. biblehub.com/greek/4124

Strong’s Greek 2052, ἐριθεία (eritheia): selfish ambition, strife, rivalry. biblehub.com/greek/2052

Strong’s Greek 3126, μαμμωνᾶς (mamonas): mammon, wealth, riches; rendered “mammon” in the King James Version. biblehub.com/greek/3126

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