Coveting

[Verse 1] Thou shalt not covet, one of the big ten The seed of all sin is born in men Thought becomes action, desire finds a way What we rehearse in secret lives in the day They say it’s the poor who hunger for gold That the needy are greedy, that’s what we’re told But history whispers a different truth Both rich and poor feel desire in youth Yet it’s the wealthy who usually take They’ve got the leverage, the lawyers, the stake The poor may dream, but can’t enforce While the rich bend the world to their course [Chorus] Coveting was never hunger in the street It was kings with crowns and empires at their feet Coveting was never begging for bread It was powerful men taking what they said Coveting was never a desperate plea It was ownership written in policy Coveting was never the cry of the dead It was powerful men taking what they said [Verse 2] It wasn’t Uriah who coveted another’s bride It was the crowned king with power to override A servant’s wife caught a ruler’s eye And authority made a faithful man die It wasn’t Naboth who wanted more land It was a king who had the command A poor man’s vineyard, a royal demand Then Jezebel’s plot sealed Naboth’s end Scripture shows us again and again It’s not empty hands, it’s ruling men Not starving mouths that seize control It’s satisfied hearts that still want more [Chorus] Coveting was never hunger in the street It was kings with crowns and empires at their feet Coveting was never begging for bread It was powerful men taking what they said Coveting was never a desperate plea It was ownership written in policy Coveting was never the cry of the dead It was powerful men taking what they said [Verse 3] It’s developers buying city halls Sweeping out homes for shining malls Paying less than fair, calling it growth Progress spoken with crossed fingers and oaths It’s the elite who steal from the poor in the street They dress up theft in legislative speech Taxing the broken to fund invention Hiding their greed behind good intention They reap their rewards through political might Government muscle enforcing their right Then we point our fingers down at the street At the man with nothing but tired feet No power, no voice, no leverage at all Just asking for mercy while we call him the fall [Bridge] Coveting was never about need It was always about control and greed The poor can want, but they cannot seize They only carry invisible dreams But the rich move gears behind closed doors They sign away futures behind marble floors What stays a wish for the ones below Becomes acquisition for those who own Herod wanted what was not his own Killed many just to guard his throne Desire plus power becomes decree And righteousness dies quietly [Final Chorus] Coveting was never hunger in the street It was kings with crowns and empires at their feet Coveting was never begging for bread It was powerful men taking what they said Coveting is tied to power, not poverty It’s written in law, baked in the economy Coveting was never the cry of the small It was powerful men building their walls [Thesis] Coveting doesn’t want another in kind It wants what’s yours and calls it mine [Outro] Coveting walks with authority It wears a suit, it signs decrees The poor may feel it, but can’t command it While the rich redraw the promised land But the rich must save their face So they lie to friends and lie to faith Saying coveting is the poor man’s flaw But power wrote that law Coveting has always been tied to power.