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Chapter 25:13-19 (ESV) - You shall not have in your bag two kinds of weights, a large and a small. You shall not have in your house two kinds of measures, a large and a small. A full and fair weight you shall have, a full and fair measure you shall have, that your days may be long in the land that the LORD your God is giving you. For all who do such things, all who act dishonestly, are an abomination to the LORD your God.
“Remember what Amalek did to you on the way as you came out of Egypt, how he attacked you on the way when you were faint and weary, and cut off your tail, those who were lagging behind you, and he did not fear God. Therefore when the LORD your God has given you rest from all your enemies around you, in the land that the LORD your God is giving you for an inheritance to possess, you shall blot out the memory of Amalek from under heaven; you shall not forget.
Question to consider: Why would someone use different weights and measures?
This chapter ends with two laws which on the surface do not seem to have a connection with each other. The first dealt with someone dealing with unequal weights or measures. If someone uses unequal weights, it means they are trying to take advantage of someone on the purchase or sale of grains or spices. They use a heavier weight when purchasing so they get more for their money and a lighter weight for selling which means they charge someone more. The same would work for a measure. If they use a large measure for purchasing, they could get more for a single scoop, and if they used a smaller scoop for selling, they could profit from parting with a lesser amount.
While grocery stores generally use calibrated scales today which give a weight to hundredths of an ounce to keep people from being defrauded in this way, we still violate this decree in a couple of different ways. The first is when someone will raise their prices when selling to a large organization versus a smaller one. If I sold my software to corporations for one price but a small business for a different price simply because the corporation could pay more, I would be guilty of this decree and violating God’s Law against stealing.
I would also argue that volume discounts fall under this category. It has become commonly accepted that if a company purchases something in bulk, they can get a discounted price. However, this puts a smaller competitor out of business because they cannot purchase in bulk and thus compete with the prices. Over the course of time, we’ve seen large corporations squeeze out small businesses because of this practice.
It is obvious from the next decree against the Amalekites that the LORD despises those who try to take advantage of the misfortunes of others. Just as using uneven weights and measures took advantage of a buyer or seller, so the Amalekites thought they could destroy Israel when they believed them to be most vulnerable. Of course, the LORD was with Israel, and they defeated the Amalekites by His mighty hand. Israel was to never forget this.
Dear heavenly Father, please help us to deal fairly with those who do business with us so that in our honest dealings with them, we can proclaim the name of Christ. Amen.