You shall do no unrighteousness in judgment, in length, in weight, or in measure.
no unrighteousness
Leviticus 19:15 Ye shall do no unrighteousness in judgment: thou shalt not respect the person of the poor, nor honour the person of the mighty: but in righteousness shalt thou judge thy neighbour.
in meteyard
Deuteronomy 25:13,15 Thou shalt not have in thy bag divers weights, a great and a small…
Proverbs 11:1 A false balance is abomination to the LORD: but a just weight is his delight.
Proverbs 16:11 A just weight and balance are the LORD'S: all the weights of the bag are his work.
You must not use dishonest measures of length,
The use of accurate measures of length was crucial in ancient construction and trade. The Israelites were to reflect God's justice by ensuring fairness in all transactions. This principle is echoed in Proverbs 11:1, which states, "A false balance is an abomination to the LORD, but a just weight is His delight." The call for honesty in measurements can be seen as a type of Christ, who is the ultimate standard of truth and righteousness.
weight,
Weights were used in scales to determine the value of goods. Dishonest weights were a common way to defraud others, and God explicitly condemns this practice. Deuteronomy 25:13-16 also addresses this issue, emphasizing that those who act dishonestly are detestable to the Lord. The use of fair weights is a reflection of God's justice and a call to live in a way that honors Him.
or volume.
Volume measures were used for commodities like grain and oil. Ensuring honest measures of volume was essential for maintaining trust and fairness in the community. This command is part of a broader biblical theme of justice and righteousness, as seen in Micah 6:8, which calls believers to "do justice, love kindness, and walk humbly with your God." The integrity in measurements points to the ultimate justice and fairness found in Jesus Christ, who fulfills the law perfectly.
• The command is absolute, leaving no loophole for small cheats or “white lies.” In Proverbs 11:1 “Dishonest scales are an abomination to the LORD, but an accurate weight is His delight.” God links personal integrity with worship; to cheat a neighbor is to offend Him directly (see also Deuteronomy 25:13-16 and Micah 6:11).
• The verse forms part of the wider call to holiness in Leviticus 19, showing that everyday business dealings are spiritual matters.
• By making the word “dishonest” central, the text teaches that the problem is not the tool but the heart. A redeemed life reflects God’s truthfulness (Ephesians 4:25).
• In ancient trade, cloth, lumber, and fields were all measured by cords or rods. Shaving an inch here or stretching a line there was theft in slow motion (Proverbs 20:10).
• God’s concern reaches to boundary stones: “Do not move your neighbor’s landmark” (Deuteronomy 19:14). Honest linear measurement protects family inheritance and preserves community trust.
• Modern parallels: accurate billing by the hour, honest mileage reporting, square-footage listings. The principle holds whether we sell fabric or software licenses.
• Stones in a pouch (Proverbs 16:11) could be swapped to tilt the scales. The Lord insists, “You are to use honest scales” (Ezekiel 45:10).
• Balanced weights reflect God’s own balance of justice and mercy. Cheating by weight invites His judgment, as in Amos 8:4-7 where merchants “skimp the measure” and “boost the price.”
• Today, tampering with shipping scales, food portions, or digital “weights” such as data usage violates this same command.
• Liquid and dry capacities—jars, ephahs, and baths—had standardized sizes (Deuteronomy 25:14). Shorting the measure robbed both buyer and God, who received firstfruits based on those measures (Nehemiah 10:35-37).
• Amos 8:5 condemns those who “make the bushel smaller and the shekel bigger.” God notices discrepancies even when hidden in a warehouse or spreadsheet.
• Contemporary applications: honest fuel pumps, accurate measuring cups in factories, truthful product labeling.
Leviticus 19:35, “You must not use dishonest measures of length, weight, or volume”, grounds everyday commerce in the character of God. Integrity in the marketplace is worship in motion. Whether we measure inches, pounds, gallons, or gigabytes, the Lord who sees the heart calls His people to reflect His truthfulness, protecting neighbor and honoring Him.
(35) Ye shall do no unrighteousness in judgment.--It will be seen that the Lawgiver uses here exactly the same phrase with regard to meting out right measure which he used in connection with the administration of justice in Leviticus 19:15. He, therefore, who declares that a false measure is a legal measure is, according to this law, as much a corrupt judge, and defrauds the people by false judgment, as he who in the court of justice wilfully passes a wrong sentence. Owing to the fact that men who would otherwise disdain the idea of imposition often discard their scruples in the matter of weights and measures, the Bible frequently brands these dealings as wicked, and an abomination to the Lord, whilst it designates the right measure as coming from God himself (Deuteronomy 25:13; Deuteronomy 25:15; Ezekiel 45:10; Ezekiel 45:12; Hosea 12:8; Amos 8:5; Micah 6:10-11; Proverbs 11:1; Proverbs 16:11; Proverbs 20:10; Proverbs 20:23). According to the authorities during the second Temple, he who gives false weight or measure, like the corrupt judge, is guilty of the following five things. He (1) defiles the land; (2) profanes the name of God; (3) causes the Shechinah to depart; (4) makes Israel perish by the sword, and (5) to go into captivity. Hence they declared that "the sin of illegal weights and measures is greater than that of incest, and is equivalent to the sin of denying that God redeemed Israel out of Egypt." They appointed public overseers to inspect the weights and measures all over the country; they prohibited weights to be made of iron, lead, or other metal liable to become lighter by wear or rust, and ordered them to be made of polished rock, of glass, &c, and enacted the severest punishment for fraud. . . . Verses 35, 36. - These verses, beginning with the same words as verse 15, Ye shall do no unrighteousness in judgment, contain another and wider application of that principle. Verse 15 prohibited unrighteousness in the judge, or in one who was in the position of a judge; these verses forbid it in merchants and tradesmen. It is the more necessary to condemn dishonesty, in unmistakable terms, as men who make a profession of religion, and therefore would be shocked at stealing, have often less scruple in cheating. Here and in Deuteronomy, where the Law is repeated, a religious sanction is given to the command; "For all that do such things, and all that do unrighteously, are an abomination unto the Lord thy God" (Deuteronomy 25:16). Cf. Proverbs 11:1, "A false balance is abomination to the Lord: but a just weight is his delight;" and Proverbs 20:10, "Divers weights, and divers measures, both of them are alike abomination to the Lord;" see also Micah 6:10, 11 and Ezekiel 45:10.