Do not have differing weights in your bag, one heavy and one light. Do not have differing dry measures in your house, a larger and a smaller. You must have a full and honest weight, a full and honest dry measure, so that you may live long in the land the Lord your God is giving you. For everyone who does such things and acts unfairly is detestable to the Lord your God. [Deuteronomy 25:13-16 (CSB)]
Differing weights are detestable to the Lord, and dishonest scales are unfair. [Proverbs 20:23 (CSB)]
In 1971, archeologists near the Temple Mount discovered a 2,700-year-old stone weight bearing two parallel lines. Although those lines indicated a weight of two gerah (a little less than a gram), it weighed 3.61 grams. Researchers believe it was used to defraud customers—something first condemned by God in Deuteronomy. Its discovery tells us that, despite Deuteronomy’s words, cheating weights and fraudulent scales were used in ancient Jerusalem. Nowadays, unless we’re butchers, greengrocers, goldsmiths, or grain merchants, we probably don’t have occasion to cheat anyone by short weighting them. Nevertheless, the Hebrew Scripture’s words about dishonest weights may not be limited to cheating someone out of a few ounces of lamb or grain.
Just because we don’t put our thumb on the scale or cheat on our income taxes doesn’t necessarily mean we’re using honest weights. Consider the scales of justice, one of the oldest and most familiar symbols associated with law. Representing the fairness expected in our courts, they represent the weighing of evidence on its own merit. Lady Justice often is depicted carrying those scales. Her blindfold means that she is blind to a person’s wealth, power, gender, politics, nationality, religion, and race. She doesn’t have double weights and measures or double standards. But, just as justice does not always wear its blindfold in our legal system, it often doesn’t in our personal lives, as well.
How fair and unbiased are we when we deal with people? Do we prejudge them based on their race, accent, clothing, age, or position? Do we favor those who are more attractive, wealthier, more influential, better educated, or look like us? Does it tip the scales when someone can return a favor or do something for us? Do we give the benefit of the doubt to certain people and not to others? Are we as considerate and polite to those who serve us as we are to those we serve?
Do we hold ourselves to a different standard than that we hold for others? Using a different weight, do we readily overlook our poor behavior when we wouldn’t tolerate that same behavior in someone else? Do we love some neighbors more than others or more freely extend mercy and kindness to certain people? When we buy something do we expect full disclosure but say, “buyer beware,” when we sell it? Do we correct the check when it’s in the restaurant’s favor but leave well enough alone when it’s in ours? Do our ethics and morals change with the situation or the people present? If the answer is yes to any of these questions, we’ve been using differing weights and dishonest scales!
The prophets Amos and Micah pronounced judgment on Israel for their lack of social justice, theft, exploitation, corruption, violence, bribery, and unethical business practices. What would the prophets say about us?
You can easily judge the character of a man by how he treats those who can do nothing for him. [James D. Miles Allison]
Thousands of years ago, God told Noah to build a boat the height of a four-story house, the length of one-and-a-half football fields, and with the storage capacity of about 450 semi-trailers. Without benefit of Home Depot or power tools, he managed to do it. What would happen if God gave Noah those same instructions today?
Jeremiah’s instructions to work and pray for the welfare of Babylon was a unique and completely unprecedented concept in the ancient world. Rather than praying for retaliation and Babylon’s collapse, God commanded them to pray for their Babylonian captors and work for the peace and prosperity of the land! Rather than rebels and a source of trouble and insurrection, the exiles were to become reliable and valuable members of the community. It seems they took God’s command to heart.
When writing about the Annunciation of our Lord, I came upon some articles by women who take offense at the story of Jesus’ conception. Interpreting Mary’s response as involuntary, they picture the angel Gabriel’s visit to Mary as some weird sort of supernatural rape. This is inconsistent both with Scripture and God as we know Him. The Archangel didn’t say, “Surprise, you’re pregnant!” and leave nor did he physically impregnate her. Read the words as reported by Luke; Gabriel told Mary what would happen, not what had already occurred. It was only after Mary asked how the angel’s words would be fulfilled and Gabriel explained that the Holy Spirit would make it possible that she accepted God’s invitation to motherhood. It was then that the miraculous power of God—the “Most High”—came upon her.
We tend to think of fasting during Lent as abstaining from certain foods, drinks, or activities. Several years ago, however, I was asked, “What if you fasted regret? What if your friends fasted comparison? What would be the fruit of fasting stinginess?” Those questions proposed an entirely different kind of fast than refraining from sweets or social media. In truth, fasting from things like self-righteousness, discontent, and criticism is probably harder (and more meaningful) than giving up energy drinks or dining out.
Every evening, a man went to the local pub and ordered three beers. When asked why three, he explained that he ordered the two extra beers in honor of his two dear brothers who lived far away. One evening, when the man ordered only two beers, the bartender assumed the worst and extended sympathy for the loss of a brother. Correcting the bartender, the man said his brothers were both fit as fiddles and the beers were for them. “It’s me that’s not drinking tonight,” he explained. “You see, I’ve given up beer for Lent!”
Devotions of the Heart 