Make the Thief Restore Sevenfold
"Yet when he is found, he must restore sevenfold; he may have to give up all the substance of his house." — Proverbs 6:31
The Verse That Changes the Approach
The conversation at four in the morning continued into Proverbs.
"People do not despise a thief if he steals to satisfy himself when he is starving." (Proverbs 6:30)
"Who is the thief?"
"Satan."
"Is Satan starving?"
"No, certainly not."
"Then read the next verse."
"Yet when he is found, he must restore sevenfold; he may have to give up all the substance of his house." (Proverbs 6:31)
"Who is the thief?"
"Satan! Lord, You have asked me so many times. I know Satan is the thief."
"Then why don't you start acting like you know it?"
The Rebuke That Followed
"This is the trouble with My people. Satan steals from them, and they come crying to Me. They want Me to replace what Satan stole. I didn't steal from them. I never steal from anybody. But I get all the blame — and worse, My people expect Me to replace what Satan took."
"I sent My Son to earth to die so that you would have authority over Satan. Jesus told you He gave you all authority over him. My servants who wrote the Bible repeatedly told you that you are a joint heir with My Son. You are in a position of rulership over Satan. You keep telling Me that you know Satan is the thief. Now the thief has been found out — or so you say. Now rise up and command the thief to return to you sevenfold everything he has stolen from you."
His wife woke that morning to the sound of his voice commanding, in no uncertain terms, that everything stolen be returned sevenfold.
The Storm and the Pole
Some months later, an ice storm hit their region. It rained ice for forty-eight hours. The power failed. Living far out in the country with a well, no electricity meant no light, no heat, and no water. They were due to fly abroad in two days.
Walking his property, he found the cause: a branch had fallen across the main line, and the electric pole had not merely snapped — it lay smashed in pieces on the ground, as though it had been made of glass.
The power company said they had over nine thousand homes out; a downed pole was a bigger job and would take at least a week. All the equipment on that pole was his responsibility to replace, at a cost of more than a thousand dollars they did not have.
He came home defeated and told his wife she would have to travel without him. She refused to accept it. He threw himself on the couch in frustration.
And then the question came: "Who stole your electricity?"
He sat up. Wooden poles in good condition do not shear off and shatter. Normally the wire breaks, not the pole.
He walked back down to the wreckage and said aloud: "Satan, in the name of Jesus Christ my Lord, I command you to return our electricity and our electrical equipment to us today. You stole it, so you return it. I am not going to pay for this, because you stole it. Return it, and you will do so this very day."
Two hours later, two trucks arrived towing a brand new pole. Two crews restored the service within the hour, and helped repair all the damaged equipment.
The foreman had no idea why they had come. He had received a radio call telling him to drop what he was doing and get over there. Afterward, the manager confirmed he had never made that call — and could never find out who did.
They flew out as planned. That Friday night, over three hundred and fifty young people gave their lives to Christ at a youth rally.
Point to Ponder
God does not steal from anybody — and He is tired of being asked to replace what the thief took.
Verse to Remember
"Yet when he is found, he must restore sevenfold." — Proverbs 6:31
Question to Consider
What have I been asking God to replace, when I should have been commanding the thief to return it?
Today's Practice
Take the list you made of what has been stolen from you.
Now sort it honestly into two columns.
Column one: what I gave away. Where you sinned, compromised, or opened a door, the loss was not theft — it was consequence. For these, repent first. Deal with the ground as the earlier lessons taught. Only then can you address the thief.
Column two: what was stolen. Where you gave no ground and it was simply taken.
For column two, go somewhere private and speak out loud, by name:
"Satan, in the name of Jesus Christ my Lord, I command you to return to me sevenfold everything you have stolen from me — my ______. You stole it. You will return it. In the name of Jesus Christ."
Be specific. Name each item.
Then thank God, and watch.
Prayer
Father, I have spent years asking You to replace what I never lost to You. You have never stolen from me. Forgive me for the blame I have laid at Your feet.
You gave me authority over the thief and I have never used it. That ends today.
Where I gave ground through my own sin, I repent and I take responsibility. Cleanse me and close those doors.
And where the thief simply took — in the name of Jesus Christ my Lord, I command him to restore sevenfold everything he has stolen from me and my family. My joy, my health, my finances, my years, my peace, my household. You will return it.
Thank You, Father, for the authority You purchased at such a price. In Jesus' name. Amen.
"Now rise up and command the thief to return to you sevenfold everything he has stolen."