Proverbs 16:18, 1 Timothy 6:10, Matthew 5:28
A Framework With Ancient Roots
The list of seven deadly sins — pride, greed, lust, envy, gluttony, wrath, and sloth — did not originate with the Bible. It was developed by early Christian monks and theologians, most influentially Evagrius Ponticus in the fourth century and Gregory the Great in the sixth, as a framework for examining the patterns of human sinfulness.
The list is not itself biblical, but it is deeply rooted in biblical analysis of the human heart. And as a diagnostic tool for self-examination, it has proven remarkably durable.
Why "Deadly"?
These sins were called "deadly" not because they are the most dramatically wicked behaviours, but because they are root sins — the deep dispositions of a disordered heart from which many other specific sins spring. They are the roots; other specific sins are the fruit.
They are also called "capital" sins (from Latin caput, head) — the heads of families of sin.
The Seven and Their Biblical Roots
*Pride (superbia)* — the excessive love of one's own excellence; the root of all sin. "Pride goes before destruction, and a haughty spirit before a fall." (Proverbs 16:18). Pride was the sin of Satan (Isaiah 14:13-14) and the first temptation of Eve ("you will be like God" — Genesis 3:5). Augustine considered pride the foundational sin.
*Greed (avaritia)* — the inordinate love of material things; treating what is temporary as ultimate. "The love of money is a root of all kinds of evils." (1 Timothy 6:10).
*Lust (luxuria)* — the disordering of the gift of sexuality toward its misuse. "But I say to you that everyone who looks at a woman with lustful intent has already committed adultery with her in his heart." (Matthew 5:28).
*Envy (invidia)* — pain at another's good; the desire to deprive others of what they have. "A tranquil heart gives life to the flesh, but envy makes the bones rot." (Proverbs 14:30).
*Gluttony (gula)* — the inordinate consumption of food or drink; treating physical appetite as an end in itself. Paul warns of those "whose god is their belly." (Philippians 3:19).
*Wrath (ira)* — disordered anger; the desire for revenge rather than justice. "Be angry and do not sin; do not let the sun go down on your anger, and give no opportunity to the devil." (Ephesians 4:26-27).
*Sloth (acedia)* — not mere laziness, but the refusal to engage with one's spiritual responsibilities; a carelessness about the things of God. "The soul of the sluggard craves and gets nothing." (Proverbs 13:4).