If you see a thief, you are pleased with him, and you keep company with adulterers.
English Standard Version (ESV)
The verse doesn't just condemn thieves and adulterers; it exposes the complicity of those who tolerate or even delight in such behavior. It reveals a heart so disconnected from God's ways that it finds "pleasure" or "portion" with wrongdoers, highlighting how association with sin corrupts one's very identity.
If you see a thief, you are pleased with him, and you keep company with adulterers.
English Standard Version (ESV)
This passage comes after God has declared He will judge His people, not for lacking sacrifices, but for their hypocrisy. The Lord points out that they've been outwardly religious but inwardly corrupt, aligning themselves with thieves and adulterers instead of upholding His laws. God is highlighting that genuine worship involves a transformed life, not just religious performances.
Have you ever seen wrongdoing and felt a pull to go along with it, even just a little? This verse calls out that dangerous tendency.
The verse doesn't just condemn outright theft or adultery; it targets the attitude behind these actions. "Consented" implies more than just failing to stop a thief. It suggests a subtle agreement, a shared mindset, or even deriving pleasure from their illicit gains.
This isn't about being a thief yourself, but about your inner disposition. When you see someone acting wrongly, do you feel a quiet approval, a sense that their actions are somehow understandable or even exciting? This verse warns that such a silent consent makes you complicit. Your 'portion' becomes aligned with those who defy God's commands.
Many people in biblical times were outwardly religious. But God saw right through it. What does this mean for our own faith?
Psalms 50, especially this section, is a powerful critique of hypocrisy. God is speaking to people who perform religious rituals—offering sacrifices, declaring statutes—but whose hearts and actions are far from Him.
The verse implies that these individuals, despite their outward piety, readily associate with thieves and adulterers. Their religious performance doesn't purify them; it actually becomes a way to mask their impurity. They think their sacrifices somehow excuse their secret sins or their approval of others' sins. God, however, declares that this combination is not acceptable. True worship flows from a transformed heart, not just performed actions.
Understand the original words
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gannab · Hebrew Noun
One who steals or takes property that does not belong to them. Biblically, it signifies a breach of trust, lack of integrity, and violation of the commandment against stealing.
mena'eph · Hebrew Noun
A person who engages in sexual relations outside of the covenant of marriage. It is used both literally to describe sexual immorality and metaphorically to describe spiritual unfaithfulness to God.
This psalm speaks powerfully to those living in the aftermath of trauma and destruction. The call to genuine worship, not just outward ritual, resonates deeply when the very symbols of national identity, like the Temple, have been profaned or destroyed. It challenges people to confront their complicity in the societal breakdown that led to such devastation.
Late 8th century BC
Assyrian Deportations Begin
The Neo-Assyrian Empire begins large-scale deportations of conquered peoples as a means of control and assimilation. This created a backdrop of displacement and loss for many Israelites.
605 BC
First Babylonian Deportation
Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon conquers Judah and begins deporting skilled workers and elites to Babylon. This marks the start of the Babylonian exile, a period of profound national trauma.
597 BC
Second Babylonian Deportation
Another wave of exiles, including the prophet Ezekiel, are taken to Babylon. The Judean kingdom is left with a puppet king, increasing desperation and disillusionment.
587/586 BC— this verse
Fall of Jerusalem and Temple
Babylonian forces destroy Jerusalem and its Temple, the heart of Israelite worship and identity. The majority of the remaining population is exiled, scattering the people and shattering their national and religious life.
c. 550 BC
Persian Empire Rises
Cyrus the Great founds the Persian Empire, which will eventually conquer Babylon. This shift in power offers a future possibility of return for the exiles.
539 BC
Babylon Falls to Persia
Cyrus the Great captures Babylon, issuing a decree that allows exiled peoples, including the Judeans, to return to their homelands.
516 BC
Second Temple Completed
After decades of rebuilding, the Second Temple in Jerusalem is finally dedicated. This marks a significant step in the restoration of Jewish religious life after the exile.
Paul directly echoes this verse, calling out those who teach others not to steal but then steal themselves, highlighting the hypocrisy of professing righteousness while practicing sin.
Matthew 23:25-26Jesus rebukes the scribes and Pharisees for their outward cleanliness while their inner selves are filled with greed and self-indulgence, mirroring the psalm's critique of surface-level piety.
Proverbs 1:10-19This passage describes the dangerous allure of joining with wrongdoers for illicit gain, a theme directly related to 'consenting' with thieves and finding one's 'portion' with adulterers.
1 Corinthians 6:9-10This passage lists various sins, including thieves and adulterers, as disqualifiers from inheriting the kingdom of God, reinforcing the seriousness of these actions that Psalm 50 condemns.
pulpitPsalms 50:18: "When thou sawest a thief, then thou consentedst with him, and hast been partaker with adulterers."
Verse 18. - When thou sawest a thief, then thou consentedst unto him. God tests his professed, but really disobedient, servants by the second table of the Decalogue, and finds them wanting. If they do not themselves actually rob, they give their consent, they become accessories before the fact, to robbery. They probably participate in the gains. And hast been partaker with adulterer…
gillPsalms 50:18: "When thou sawest a thief, then thou consentedst with him, and hast been partaker with adulterers."
When thou sawest a thief, then thou consentedst with him,.... Or "didst run with him" (a); joined and agreed with him in the commission of the same things; which was literally true of the Scribes and Pharisees: they devoured widows' houses, and robbed them of their substance, under a pretence of long prayers; they consented to the deeds of Barabbas, a robber, when they preferred him…
The verse doesn't just condemn thieves and adulterers; it exposes the complicity of those who tolerate or even delight in such behavior. It reveals a heart so disconnected from God's ways that it finds "pleasure" or "portion" with wrongdoers, highlighting how association with sin corrupts one's very identity.
This passage comes after God has declared He will judge His people, not for lacking sacrifices, but for their hypocrisy. The Lord points out that they've been outwardly religious but inwardly corrupt, aligning themselves with thieves and adulterers instead of upholding His laws. God is highlighting that genuine worship involves a transformed life, not just religious performances.
This passage comes after God has declared He will judge His people, not for lacking sacrifices, but for their hypocrisy. The Lord points out that they've been outwardly religious but inwardly corrupt, aligning themselves with thieves and adulterers instead of upholding His laws. God is highlighting that genuine worship involves a transformed life, not just religious performances.
"If you see a thief, you are pleased with him, and you keep company with adulterers." — The verse doesn't just condemn thieves and adulterers; it exposes the complicity of those who tolerate or even delight in such behavior. It reveals a heart so disconnected from God's ways that it…
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Last reviewed October 2026