In the past, if you stole a sheep or a lamb, you could be punished by being hanged — i.e. having a rope tied around your neck and then hung until you were dead. This proverb says, if you're going to die anyway for stealing a sheep or a lamb, you should steal the sheep, because it's better. In other words, if you're going to get into the same amount of trouble, you might as well do the thing that gets you more.
|