The Greek verb apostereō means to defraud, to deprive by withholding what is due, to rob someone of their rights. It implies keeping back something that rightfully belongs to another — whether wages, marital rights, or one's proper inheritance.
James 5:4 thunders against wealthy landowners who defrauded (apestereō) their workers of their wages — the very wages that 'cry out' before God. Paul addresses apostereō in marital intimacy: spouses are not to deprive one another (1 Corinthians 7:5). Mark 10:19 includes 'do not defraud' as a commandment equivalent to the traditional ten — signaling that economic exploitation violates the Decalogue's intent. The word connects to Old Testament laws protecting vulnerable workers (Leviticus 19:13; Deuteronomy 24:14-15) and the prophetic tradition of Amos and Isaiah against economic oppression. God is the champion of the defrauded (Malachi 3:5).