Deuteronomy 25:15, commentary and pictures

The command calls for a perfect and just weight and a perfect and just measure, which means honest and accurate weights and measures in trade and in all dealings with others, as part of obeying God's commands and doing justice before Him. Obedience carries the promised reward that days will be lengthened in the land the Lord gives, for God pledges blessing to those who walk in His way and do justice and judgment. Using dishonest weights and measures, divers weights, false balances, and all such dishonest doing and all unrighteousness is an abomination to God. False balances and weights are therefore condemned as hateful to Him, and honest balances and weights are required of all who profess His name.

The requirement is strict, unimpeachable honesty in all business and in all details of life under the eye of God, putting aside selfish gain, since even a small deviation from perfect fairness is injustice. God watches every buying and selling, knows every work, and brings work and weights and measures into review before Him. For a Christian doing business with worldly men this means no false balances, deceitful weights, overreaching, scheming, concealment, or glossing over, but fixed principles so that action matches profession. His unbending integrity is to shine like pure gold when criticized and tested, his word is to be trustworthy and a blessing to all connected with him, and he is never to take advantage of a neighbor but to act as a friend and benefactor whose counsel is trusted. He is to accept only a fair price or equivalent and frankly tell defects even at cost to himself.

In selling property and buying and selling real estate, the command forbids taking advantage of occasions and circumstances to make money, hiding unfavorable facts, exaggerating praise, setting forth benefits in a strong light, deceiving the purchaser, and asserting that property will rise or double in value. It likewise forbids defrauding a neighbor, stealing, dealing falsely, lying to one another, and exploiting a neighbor's distress, weakness, or incompetency to enlarge one's own land or fill one's pocket or purse. Nearly all transactions of real estate buying and selling do this. Ministers and all others must instead do to others as they would have others do to them in the same position, keeping conscience pure, tongue true, and actions wholly such as God can commend. Those engaged in dishonest buying and selling must cut loose from it before they can be considered healthful branches of the church.

The same standard governs business in God's work, where workers and canvassers must not use unfair or oppressive practices to gain an advantage. The believing physician must let it govern his work and charges, serving in Christ's stead as His representative by rejecting any tradition, custom, or practice God condemns, taking God's commandments as his standard, and measuring his daily life by the principles of the law. The command warns those who profess to be God's children not to follow the practices of Amalek by taking advantage of the faint and weary under God's leading, lest they receive the curse pronounced upon Amalek, with even greater condemnation for those with light and privileges who do not manifest the spirit of Christ toward their brethren. It requires paying harvest laborers without holding back their hard-earned money by fraud, using unneeded money to relieve a less fortunate brother, refusing to profit from a neighbor's distress, and aiming only to help and bless.