John Welch and Stephen Ricks note that under Israelite law, failure to "return the thing that he borroweth" (Mosiah 4:28) was the equivalent of theft. Jewish law placed no significance on the fact that the person had received the possession of property lawfully, whereas Anglo-American common law makes the taking of property a crime only if a person possesses that property unlawfully. [John W. Welch and Stephen D. Ricks, "Appendix--Complete Text of Benjamin's Speech with Notes and Comment" in King Benjamin's Speech: "That Ye May Learn Wisdom," p. 593]