Lottery is a scheme for awarding prizes to people who pay money in exchange for the chance of winning. Prizes may be cash or goods, such as a car, a house, or a vacation. A number is drawn at random to determine the winners. Lotteries are popular in many countries and raise large sums of money for public services, such as road construction and education. Some governments outlaw them, while others endorse them and organize state-run lotteries. A privately run lottery may also exist.
One thing that state-sponsored lotteries do is dangle the promise of riches, a fantasy that appeals to people in a culture of inequality and limited social mobility. That’s a message coded in lotteries’ billboards and TV commercials. Another message is that playing a lottery is fun. Then there is the one that tells people that they are doing their civic duty when they buy tickets, as if they were buying a ticket for a charity or helping disadvantaged kids.
In addition, the lottery draws on a deep-seated human craving for coveting what someone else has. Whether it’s the big-ticket items in the financial lottery or units in a subsidized housing complex or a kindergarten placement, coveting is a common motivator for lottery players and other gamblers. The Bible warns us that “the desire of the eyes is insatiable” (Ecclesiastes 5:10), and the lust for money and what it can buy is a powerful force in the human heart.