In the Greek the meaning of envy is …
Envy = pain felt and malignity conceived at the sight of someone else’s excellence or happiness. Envy can degenerate into a desire to make war upon the beneficiary, and thus to trouble their good and diminish it.
James 4:5 tells us that the spirit in us lusts to envy. That is, we are born with the inherent trait to want the best for ourselves in preference to what’s best for others. God defines this inherent characteristic as pride, and regards it as the top level of sin. There’s nothing you can do about the fact that you are born with sin, but there is a solution to your sin. Read the rest of this entry »