Elsewhere in the Torah, we are only cautioned against taking money that is not ours. Here, however, we are commanded to not even possess false measures, even if we never use them. This is because when a merchant uses false measures, he is pretending to charge his customer correctly, but is really cheating him. This deception ultimately leads to overt theft, and worse.
The same applies with regard to our relationship with G‑d. Our evil inclination, aware that any attempt to convince us to openly rebel against our Creator will undoubtedly fail, attempts to ensnare us through deception. “I agree,” he begins, “that our every action must be ‘measured,’ carried out in full compliance with Jewish law. But what would be so terrible if the ‘measures’ were slightly off? Even if you do insist on keeping an honest measure,” he continues, “keep another one as well: Apply G‑d’s laws to your life fully when dealing with spiritual matters. But when interacting with the material world or conducting business, surely there is room for compromise.”
Scrupulousness in maintaining accurate measures, as well as in all business dealings, is the prerequisite to fulfilling the entire Torah. In the words of the great Talmudic sage Hillel, “What is hateful to you, do not do to your fellow – this is the entire Torah, and the rest is commentary. Go and study it!”1
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