Proverbs 20:23

"Differing weights are an abomination to the Lord, and a false scale is not good." (Proverbs 20:23 NAS)

Investors being bilked out of billions, employees' 401k funds being drained, executives taking bonuses while their workers end up jobless, governments in monumental debt simply printing more money to try and prime the pump. The examples of differing weights and false balances are plenty and a cursory scan of the news headlines bears this out. And it doesn't stop there. These things that are not good and an abomination to the Lord come in the way of fudged tax returns, insurance fraud, illegal file sharing, pirated copies of music recordings and tapping into the neighbor's electricity. The ways which man has found to steal from and cheat one another are almost endless.

In an agrarian society such as that of ancient Israel, tweaking the scales a bit could bring a substantial increase to those selling their produce. In the new testament of the Holy Bible, we see the Lord Yeshua snapping whips and turning over tables, angry at merchants and moneychangers who had turned the house of prayer into a den of thieves. Suffice to say, tipping the scales in one's favor angers Almighty God. Yet, despite what the bible says and what history has revealed in deceivers and thieves being shamed and disgraced, the practices continue. Some feel their company or the government owes them. Others reason that customers won't miss a bit of the promised amount being skimmed off or won't know the difference from the higher quality being offered and the lesser quality being sold.

There are many ways of attempting to justify stealing, but none of them hold up before the great Judge. Besides, it's only a matter before we're found out. And when we do get caught, the penalties always exceed any gain we had hoped to make. Abraham Lincoln once said, "You can fool some of the people all of the time, and all of the people some of the time, but you can not fool all of the people all of the time." And we can never, ever fool Yahweh. By being people of integrity, people who do what's right even when no one else is watching, we have an opportunity to shine for Him. Proverbs 22:1 says, "A good name is to be more desired than great wealth..." Let's make certain to establish good names by being fair, just and equitable in all areas. Perhaps those around us will see the difference and wonder why.