Sanskrit
इष्टान्भोगान्हि वो देवा दास्यन्ते यज्ञभाविताः । तैर्दत्तानप्रदायैभ्यो यो भुङ्क्ते स्तेन एव सः ॥
iṣṭān bhogān hi vo devā dāsyante yajñabhāvitāḥ tair dattān apradāyaibhyo yo bhuṅkte stena eva saḥ
Translation
"For, nourished by sacrifice, the Shining Ones shall bestow on you the enjoyments you desire." A thief verily is he who enjoyeth what is given by Them without returning Them aught.
Annie Besant · The Bhagavad-Gita, translated by Annie Besant (4th ed., 1922) — Wikisource · Public Domain
Explanation
Prajapati’s quoted speech closes here, and Krishna adds his own blunt gloss immediately after: taking without returning is theft. It’s a sharper indictment than it first appears — this isn’t calling ordinary selfishness merely unwise, it’s calling it stealing from a system the taker is already embedded in and benefiting from.