What Does The Bible Say About Greed? When it comes to greed, the Bible is very straightforward. It clearly cautions us against this intense and very selfish desire for anything, particular money and wealth. Truth be told, greed is a very dangerous thing which should not be found in Christians. It works against our spiritual growth and maturity in Christ. God does not like it and He does not want His people to have it. Upon freeing our minds from greed, we are more likely to experience spiritual and physical well-being. In simple terms, we can say that greed is the strong and selfish desire to have more of something, most often money, power, and wealth. On several occasions, we receive warnings from the Bible about giving into greed and longing for riches.
Christ spoke against greed in Luke 12:15 – “Watch out! Be on your guard against all kinds of greed; a man’s life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions.” Matthew 6:19, 24b – “Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal… You cannot serve both God and money.” Did Jesus pursue money? No. Rather, He became poor in a way that He had no place to lay His head (Matthew 8:20) for our sake (2 Corinthians 8:9). Christ did not pursue power. Rather, He instructed us in Mark 10:43–45 saying, “Whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant, and whoever wants to be first must be slave of all. For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many”
What Does The Bible Say About Greed?
What the Scriptures say about Greed
Truth be told, greed and the uncontrollable desire to become rich are traps that bring ruin and destruction. Apostle Paul points to this in 1 Timothy 6:10 – “For the love of money is the source of all kinds of evil. Some have been so eager to have it that they have wandered away from the faith and have broken their hearts with many sorrows.” He further calls on all believers not to put their trust in wealth (1 Timothy 17-18). It is important that you understand here that covetousness, or having an excessive or greedy desire for more, is idolatry. Let’s support this by reading from Ephesians 5:5 – “For of this you can be sure: No immoral, impure or greedy person – such a man is an idolater – has any inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and of God.”
On this subject matter, a great Biblical principle to always have in mind can be found in Hebrews 13:5 which goes thus: “Keep your lives free from the love of money and be content with what you have, because God has said, ‘Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you.’” It is important here to understand that, it is the love of money, and not money itself, that is the problem. The exaggerated, uncontrollable, or frantic love for money is a sin because it gets in the way of worshiping God. Jesus Christ Himself said that it was very difficult for rich people to enter the Kingdom of God. Remember the young rich ruler who approached Jesus Christ and asked Him what to do in order to inherit eternal life.
A lesson to learn from the young rich ruler
Christ pointed to the commands of God for the achievement of eternal life, and the young rich ruler responded positively that he had been observing them since childhood. Christ further told him that he was left with one thing to do. The man was still anxious to hear when Christ told him to go and sell all his properties, give the money to the poor and come following Him. The Bible says in Matthew 19:16-22 that “When the young man heard this, he went away sad, because he had great wealth”. By instructing this young rich ruler to give-up his wealth, Jesus Christ was clearly pointing to the fact that the young rich ruler’s main problem was greed or the love for money. This man was unable to follow Christ because he was already following money. In other words, his love of this world interfered with his love for God.
Greed is a refusal to be satisfied. More often than not, the more a greedy person gets, the more he/she wants. However, it is important to understand that material possessions can not offer Eternal Life neither can they protect us in this life or in that to come. John 3:16 says that eternal life comes from the Son of God, Jesus Christ. God gave Him to the world as a sacrifice for the atonement of sin. Today, anyone who believes, Sincerely Repents from their Sins and embraces a life of obedience to the Key Teachings of Jesus Christ is given Eternal Life and saved from the Fire of Hell. Money is not the problem but our attitude towards it is. Confidence in wealth leads our hearts to being consumed by an insatiable desire for more. However, if we seek God first, all other things will be added (Matthew 6:33).
What The Bible Says About Greed
1 Timothy 6:10 – “For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil. Some people, eager for money, have wandered from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs.”
Mark 8:36 – “What good is it for someone to gain the whole world, yet forfeit their soul?”
1 Timothy 6:9 – “Those who want to get rich fall into temptation and a trap and into many foolish and harmful desires that plunge people into ruin and destruction.”
Luke 12:15 – Then he said to them, “Watch out! Be on your guard against all kinds of greed; life does not consist in an abundance of possessions.”
Ecclesiastes 5:10 – “Whoever loves money never has enough;whoever loves wealth is never satisfied with their income.This too is meaningless.”
Proverbs 23:4 – “Do not wear yourself out to get rich; do not trust your own cleverness.“
Psalm 119:36 – “Turn my heart toward your statutes and not toward selfish gain.“
Proverbs 13:11 – “Dishonest money dwindles away, but whoever gathers money little by little makes it grow.”
Proverbs 21:26 – “All day long he craves for more, but the righteous give without sparing.”
Matthew 6:19-20 – “Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moths and vermin destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moths and vermin do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal.”
Group 1 – What The Bible Says About Greed
Romans 13:6 – “This is also why you pay taxes, for the authorities are God’s servants, who give their full time to governing.”
Colossians 3:5 – “Put to death, therefore, whatever belongs to your earthly nature: sexual immorality, impurity, lust, evil desires and greed, which is idolatry.”
Ephesians 5:3 – “But among you there must not be even a hint of sexual immorality, or of any kind of impurity, or of greed, because these are improper for God’s holy people.”
Matthew 6:24 – “No one can serve two masters. Either you will hate the one and love the other, or you will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and money.”
Ecclesiastes 5:15 – “Everyone comes naked from their mother’s womb, and as everyone comes, so they depart. They take nothing from their toil that they can carry in their hands.”
Proverbs 28:25 – “A greedy man stirs up strife, but the one who trusts in the Lord will be enriched.”
1 Timothy 6:10 – “For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evils. It is through this craving that some have wandered away from the faith and pierced themselves with many pangs.”
Exodus 20:17 – “You shall not covet your neighbor’s house. You shall not covet your neighbor’s wife, or his male or female servant, his ox or donkey, or anything that belongs to your neighbor.”
1 Corinthians 6:9-10 – “Or do you not know that wrongdoers will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: Neither the sexually immoral nor idolaters nor adulterers nor men who have sex with men nor thieves nor the greedy nor drunkards nor slanderers nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God.”
Group 2 – What The Bible Says About Greed
Proverbs 11:24 – “One gives freely, yet grows all the richer; another withholds what he should give, and only suffers want.”
Proverbs 15:27 – “Whoever is greedy for unjust gain troubles his own household, but he who hates bribes will live.“
Hebrews 13:5 – “Keep your life free from love of money, and be content with what you have, for he has said, “I will never leave you nor forsake you.”“
1 Timothy 6:9 – “But those who desire to be rich fall into temptation, into a snare, into many senseless and harmful desires that plunge people into ruin and destruction.”
Luke 12:15 – And he said to them, “Take care, and be on your guard against all covetousness, for one’s life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions.”
1 Corinthians 6:9-11 – “Or do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: neither the sexually immoral, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor men who practice homosexuality, nor thieves, nor the greedy, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God. And such were some of you. But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God.”
Matthew 6:24 – “No one can serve two masters, for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and money.”
Group 3 – What The Bible Says About Greed
Proverbs 20:21 – “An inheritance gained hastily in the beginning will not be blessed in the end.”
James 4:3 – “You ask and do not receive, because you ask wrongly, to spend it on your passions.“
Colossians 3:5 – “Put to death therefore what is earthly in you: sexual immorality, impurity, passion, evil desire, and covetousness, which is idolatry.”
1 John 2:16 – “For all that is in the world—the desires of the flesh and the desires of the eyes and pride in possessions—is not from the Father but is from the world.”
Ecclesiastes 5:10 – “He who loves money will not be satisfied with money, nor he who loves wealth with his income; this also is vanity.”
James 5:1-6 – “Come now, you rich, weep and howl for the miseries that are coming upon you. Your riches have rotted and your garments are moth-eaten. Your gold and silver have corroded, and their corrosion will be evidence against you and will eat your flesh like fire. You have laid up treasure in the last days. Behold, the wages of the laborers who mowed your fields, which you kept back by fraud, are crying out against you, and the cries of the harvesters have reached the ears of the Lord of hosts. You have lived on the earth in luxury and in self-indulgence. You have fattened your hearts in a day of slaughter. …”
Group 4 – What The Bible Says About Greed
2 Peter 2:3 – “And in their greed they will exploit you with false words. Their condemnation from long ago is not idle, and their destruction is not asleep.”
Ephesians 5:5 – “For you may be sure of this, that everyone who is sexually immoral or impure, or who is covetous (that is, an idolater), has no inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and God.”
Jeremiah 6:13 – “For from the least to the greatest of them, everyone is greedy for unjust gain; and from prophet to priest, everyone deals falsely.”
Matthew 6:33 – “But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.”
Psalm 10:3 – “For the wicked boasts of the desires of his soul, and the one greedy for gain curses and renounces the Lord.”
Ephesians 5:3 – “But sexual immorality and all impurity or covetousness must not even be named among you, as is proper among saints.”
1 Corinthians 5:11 – “But now I am writing to you not to associate with anyone who bears the name of brother if he is guilty of sexual immorality or greed, or is an idolater, reviler, drunkard, or swindler—not even to eat with such a one.”
Proverbs 28:22 – “A stingy man hastens after wealth and does not know that poverty will come upon him.“
John 12:6 – “He said this, not because he cared about the poor, but because he was a thief, and having charge of the moneybag he used to help himself to what was put into it.”
1 Thessalonians 2:5 – “For we never came with words of flattery, as you know, nor with a pretext for greed—God is witness.”
Group 5 – What The Bible Says About Greed
Proverbs 21:26 – “All day long he craves and craves, but the righteous gives and does not hold back.”
Proverbs 23:4 – “Do not toil to acquire wealth; be discerning enough to desist.”
1 Corinthians 6:10 – “Nor thieves, nor the greedy, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God.”
Mark 8:36 – “For what does it profit a man to gain the whole world and forfeit his soul?”
Matthew 23:25 – “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you clean the outside of the cup and the plate, but inside they are full of greed and self-indulgence.”
2 Peter 2:14 – “They have eyes full of adultery, insatiable for sin. They entice unsteady souls. They have hearts trained in greed. Accursed children!”
Romans 1:29 – “They were filled with all manner of unrighteousness, evil, covetousness, malice. They are full of envy, murder, strife, deceit, maliciousness. They are gossips,”
Titus 1:7 – “For an overseer, as God’s steward, must be above reproach. He must not be arrogant or quick-tempered or a drunkard or violent or greedy for gain,”
Proverbs 11:28 – “Whoever trusts in his riches will fall, but the righteous will flourish like a green leaf.”
Philippians 4:6 – “Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God.”
Proverbs 22:1 – “A good name is to be chosen rather than great riches, and favor is better than silver or gold.”
Proverbs 1:19 – “Such are the ways of everyone who is greedy for unjust gain; it takes away the life of its possessors.”
Group 6 – What The Bible Says About Greed
Matthew 19:21 – Jesus said to him, “If you would be perfect, go, sell what you possess and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow me.”
Psalm 119:36 – “Incline my heart to your testimonies, and not to selfish gain!”
Proverbs 22:9 – “Whoever has a bountiful eye will be blessed, for he shares his bread with the poor.”
1 Peter 5:2 – “Shepherd the flock of God that is among you, exercising oversight, not under compulsion, but willingly, as God would have you; not for shameful gain, but eagerly;”
Proverbs 11:6 – “The righteousness of the upright delivers them, but the treacherous are taken captive by their lust.”
Proverbs 14:31 – “Whoever oppresses a poor man insults his Maker, but he who is generous to the needy honors him.”
Psalm 37:21 – “The wicked borrows but does not pay back, but the righteous is generous and gives;”
1 Timothy 6:17-19 – “As for the rich in this present age, charge them not to be haughty, nor to set their hopes on the uncertainty of riches, but on God, who richly provides us with everything to enjoy. They are to do good, to be rich in good works, to be generous and ready to share, thus storing up treasure for themselves as a good foundation for the future, so that they may take hold of that which is truly life.”
2 Corinthians 9:7 – “Each one must give as he has decided in his heart, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver.”
Group 7 – What Does The Bible Say About Greed?
2 Peter 2:1-22 – “But false prophets also arose among the people, just as there will be false teachers among you, who will secretly bring in destructive heresies, even denying the Master who bought them, bringing upon themselves swift destruction. And many will follow their sensuality, and because of them the way of truth will be blasphemed. And in their greed they will exploit you with false words. Their condemnation from long ago is not idle, and their destruction is not asleep. For if God did not spare angels when they sinned, but cast them into hell and committed them to chains of gloomy darkness to be kept until the judgment; if he did not spare the ancient world, but preserved Noah, a herald of righteousness, with seven others, when he brought a flood upon the world of the ungodly; …”
Mark 7:20-23 – And he said, “What comes out of a person is what defiles him. For from within, out of the heart of man, come evil thoughts, sexual immorality, theft, murder, adultery, coveting, wickedness, deceit, sensuality, envy, slander, pride, foolishness. All these evil things come from within, and they defile a person.”
Isaiah 56:11 – “The dogs have a mighty appetite; they never have enough. But they are shepherds who have no understanding; they have all turned to their own way, each to his own gain, one and all.”
Proverbs 1:1-33 – “The proverbs of Solomon, son of David, king of Israel: To know wisdom and instruction, to understand words of insight, to receive instruction in wise dealing, in righteousness, justice, and equity; to give prudence to the simple, knowledge and discretion to the youth— Let the wise hear and increase in learning, and the one who understands obtain guidance, …”
Group 8 – What Does The Bible Say About Greed?
Proverbs 21:5 – “The plans of the diligent lead surely to abundance, but everyone who is hasty comes only to poverty.”
Psalm 62:10 – “Put no trust in extortion; set no vain hopes on robbery; if riches increase, set not your heart on them.”
Proverbs 28:20 – “A faithful man will abound with blessings, but whoever hastens to be rich will not go unpunished.”
Luke 11:39 – And the Lord said to him, “Now you Pharisees cleanse the outside of the cup and of the dish, but inside you are full of greed and wickedness.”
Matthew 13:44 – “The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field, which a man found and covered up. Then in his joy he goes and sells all that he has and buys that field.”
Mark 7:22 – “Coveting, wickedness, deceit, sensuality, envy, slander, pride, foolishness.”
Luke 12:1-59 – “In the meantime, when so many thousands of the people had gathered together that they were trampling one another, he began to say to his disciples first, “Beware of the leaven of the Pharisees, which is hypocrisy. Nothing is covered up that will not be revealed, or hidden that will not be known. Therefore whatever you have said in the dark shall be heard in the light, and what you have whispered in private rooms shall be proclaimed on the housetops. “I tell you, my friends, do not fear those who kill the body, and after that have nothing more that they can do. But I will warn you whom to fear: fear him who, after he has killed, has authority to cast into hell. Yes, I tell you, fear him! …”
1 Timothy 6:6 – “Now there is great gain in godliness with contentment,”
Group 9 – What Does The Bible Say About Greed?
Acts 20:35 – “In all things I have shown you that by working hard in this way we must help the weak and remember the words of the Lord Jesus, how he himself said, ‘It is more blessed to give than to receive.’”
Jude 1:11 – “Woe to them! For they walked in the way of Cain and abandoned themselves for the sake of gain to Balaam’s error and perished in Korah’s rebellion.”
Isaiah 57:17 – “Because of the iniquity of his unjust gain I was angry, I struck him; I hid my face and was angry, but he went on backsliding in the way of his own heart.”
Exodus 20:17 – “You shall not covet your neighbor’s house; you shall not covet your neighbor’s wife, or his male servant, or his female servant, or his ox, or his donkey, or anything that is your neighbor’s.”
1 John 2:15-17 – “Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world—the desires of the flesh and the desires of the eyes and pride in possessions—is not from the Father but is from the world. And the world is passing away along with its desires, but whoever does the will of God abides forever.”
Matthew 6:19-20 – “Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal, but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal.”
Luke 16:14 – “The Pharisees, who were lovers of money, heard all these things, and they ridiculed him.”
Group 10 – What Does The Bible Say About Greed?
1 Peter 5:2-3 – “Shepherd the flock of God that is among you, exercising oversight, not under compulsion, but willingly, as God would have you; not for shameful gain, but eagerly; not domineering over those in your charge, but being examples to the flock.”
James 5:1 – “Come now, you rich, weep and howl for the miseries that are coming upon you.”
Ezekiel 33:31 – “And they come to you as people come, and they sit before you as my people, and they hear what you say but they will not do it; for with lustful talk in their mouths they act; their heart is set on their gain.”
Matthew 6:21 – “For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.”
Philippians 4:11-13 – “Not that I am speaking of being in need, for I have learned in whatever situation I am to be content. I know how to be brought low, and I know how to abound. In any and every circumstance, I have learned the secret of facing plenty and hunger, abundance and need. I can do all things through him who strengthens me.”
Ezekiel 16:27 – “Behold, therefore, I stretched out my hand against you and diminished your allotted portion and delivered you to the greed of your enemies, the daughters of the Philistines, who were ashamed of your lewd behavior.”
Group 11 – What Does The Bible Say About Greed?
Ephesians 4:19 – “They have become callous and have given themselves up to sensuality, greedy to practice every kind of impurity.”
Ephesians 4:18-19 – “They are darkened in their understanding, alienated from the life of God because of the ignorance that is in them, due to their hardness of heart. They have become callous and have given themselves up to sensuality, greedy to practice every kind of impurity.”
Galatians 5:19-21 – “Now the works of the flesh are evident: sexual immorality, impurity, sensuality, idolatry, sorcery, enmity, strife, jealousy, fits of anger, rivalries, dissensions, divisions, envy, drunkenness, orgies, and things like these. I warn you, as I warned you before, that those who do such things will not inherit the kingdom of God.”
Matthew 13:22 – “As for what was sown among thorns, this is the one who hears the word, but the cares of the world and the deceitfulness of riches choke the word, and it proves unfruitful.”
1 Timothy 6:6-10 – “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. But if we have food and clothing, with these we will be content. But those who desire to be rich fall into temptation, into a snare, into many senseless and harmful desires that plunge people into ruin and destruction. For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evils. It is through this craving that some have wandered away from the faith and pierced themselves with many pangs.”
Group 12 – What Does The Bible Say About Greed?
Ezekiel 22:12 – “In you they take bribes to shed blood; you take interest and profit and make gain of your neighbors by extortion; but me you have forgotten, declares the Lord God.”
Malachi 3:10 – “Bring the full tithe into the storehouse, that there may be food in my house. And thereby put me to the test, says the Lord of hosts, if I will not open the windows of heaven for you and pour down for you a blessing until there is no more need.“
Habakkuk 2:5 – “Moreover, wine is a traitor, an arrogant man who is never at rest. His greed is as wide as Sheol; like death he has never enough. He gathers for himself all nations and collects as his own all peoples.”
1 Timothy 6:17-18 – “As for the rich in this present age, charge them not to be haughty, nor to set their hopes on the uncertainty of riches, but on God, who richly provides us with everything to enjoy. They are to do good, to be rich in good works, to be generous and ready to share,”
Jeremiah 8:10 – “Therefore I will give their wives to others and their fields to conquerors, because from the least to the greatest everyone is greedy for unjust gain; from prophet to priest, everyone deals falsely.”
Proverbs 22:16-17 – “Whoever oppresses the poor to increase his own wealth, or gives to the rich, will only come to poverty. Incline your ear, and hear the words of the wise, and apply your heart to my knowledge,”
Group 13 – What Does The Bible Say About Greed?
Philippians 4:11-12 – “Not that I am speaking of being in need, for I have learned in whatever situation I am to be content. I know how to be brought low, and I know how to abound. In any and every circumstance, I have learned the secret of facing plenty and hunger, abundance and need.”
1 Corinthians 4:11-13 – “To the present hour we hunger and thirst, we are poorly dressed and buffeted and homeless, and we labor, working with our own hands. When reviled, we bless; when persecuted, we endure, when slandered, we entreat. We have become, and are still, like the scum of the world, the refuse of all things.”
Ezekiel 33:17-34:16 – “Yet your people say, ‘The way of the Lord is not just,’ when it is their own way that is not just. When the righteous turns from his righteousness and does injustice, he shall die for it. And when the wicked turns from his wickedness and does what is just and right, he shall live by this. Yet you say, ‘The way of the Lord is not just.’ O house of Israel, I will judge each of you according to his ways.” In the twelfth year of our exile, in the tenth month, on the fifth day of the month, a fugitive from Jerusalem came to me and said, “The city has been struck down.” …”
2 Timothy 3:2 – “For people will be lovers of self, lovers of money, proud, arrogant, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy,”
Group 14 – What Does The Bible Say About Greed?
Ecclesiastes 5:15 – “As he came from his mother’s womb he shall go again, naked as he came, and shall take nothing for his toil that he may carry away in his hand.”
Proverbs 29:4 – “By justice a king builds up the land, but he who exacts gifts tears it down.”
Romans 13:6 – “For because of this you also pay taxes, for the authorities are ministers of God, attending to this very thing.”
Joshua 7:21 – “When I saw among the spoil a beautiful cloak from Shinar, and 200 shekels of silver, and a bar of gold weighing 50 shekels, then I coveted them and took them. And see, they are hidden in the earth inside my tent, with the silver underneath.”
Luke 6:31 – “And as you wish that others would do to you, do so to them.”
Jeremiah 5:26-29 – “For wicked men are found among my people, they lurk like fowlers lying in wait. They set a trap; they catch men. Like a cage full of birds, their houses are full of deceit; therefore they have become great and rich, they have grown fat and sleek. They know no bounds in deeds of evil; they judge not with justice the cause of the fatherless, to make it prosper, and they do not defend the rights of the needy. Shall I not punish them for these things? declares the Lord, and shall I not avenge myself on a nation such as this?”
Group 15 – What Does The Bible Say About Greed?
Proverbs 22:7 – “The rich rules over the poor, and the borrower is the slave of the lender.”
1 Corinthians 3:11 – “For no one can lay a foundation other than that which is laid, which is Jesus Christ.”
Proverbs 28:25-28 – “A greedy man stirs up strife, but the one who trusts in the Lord will be enriched. Whoever trusts in his own mind is a fool, but he who walks in wisdom will be delivered. Whoever gives to the poor will not want, but he who hides his eyes will get many a curse. When the wicked rise, people hide themselves, but when they perish, the righteous increase.”
Exodus 20:11-18 – “For in six days the Lord made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that is in them, and rested on the seventh day. Therefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath day and made it holy. “Honor your father and your mother, that your days may be long in the land that the Lord your God is giving you, “You shall not murder. “You shall not commit adultery. “You shall not steal. ...”
Ephesians 5:3-5 – “But sexual immorality and all impurity or covetousness must not even be named among you, as is proper among saints. Let there be no filthiness nor foolish talk nor crude joking, which are out of place, but instead let there be thanksgiving. For you may be sure of this, that everyone who is sexually immoral or impure, or who is covetous (that is, an idolater), has no inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and God.”
Group 16 – What Does The Bible Say About Greed?
1 Timothy 3:2-6:5 – “Therefore an overseer must be above reproach, the husband of one wife, sober-minded, self-controlled, respectable, hospitable, able to teach, not a drunkard, not violent but gentle, not quarrelsome, not a lover of money. He must manage his own household well, with all dignity keeping his children submissive, for if someone does not know how to manage his own household, how will he care for God’s church? He must not be a recent convert, or he may become puffed up with conceit and fall into the condemnation of the devil. ...”
Ezekiel 6:1-7:27 – “The word of the Lord came to me: “Son of man, set your face toward the mountains of Israel, and prophesy against them, and say, You mountains of Israel, hear the word of the Lord God! Thus says the Lord God to the mountains and the hills, to the ravines and the valleys: Behold, I, even I, will bring a sword upon you, and I will destroy your high places. Your altars shall become desolate, and your incense altars shall be broken, and I will cast down your slain before your idols. And I will lay the dead bodies of the people of Israel before their idols, and I will scatter your bones around your altars. …”
