The lottery is a form of gambling in which numbers are drawn to win prizes. It is popular in the United States and around the world. People can win thousands of dollars in one draw. It can also be addictive.

Lottery is a dangerous game because it encourages covetousness, which God forbids: “You shall not covet your neighbor’s house, his wife, his male or female servant, his ox or donkey, or anything that belongs to your neighbor” (Exodus 20:17). People are lured into playing the lottery with promises of wealth and prosperity. But God wants us to work hard, not gamble on chance.

Many lottery winners become ruined because they focus on money and the things that money can buy. They also tend to think of money as a panacea for life’s problems: “A person who covets wealth is a fool” (Proverbs 28:20). Instead, we should gain our riches through diligence. “Lazy hands make for poverty, but diligent hands bring wealth” (Proverbs 10:4).

A lottery is a form of gambling in which the state or an independent entity sells tickets with a number or set of numbers on them. The winner is then selected by chance to receive the prize. The term lottery is derived from the Middle Dutch word Loterij, which is believed to be a calque on the Middle French phrase loterie “action of drawing lots.” The first state-sponsored lotteries appeared in 15th-century Burgundy and Flanders, with towns raising funds to fortify their defenses or help the poor.