Proverbs 11:1 (NASB) 1A false balance is an abomination to the LORD, but a just weight is His delight.
- (MSG) GOD hates cheating in the marketplace; he loves it when business is aboveboard.
- Luke 16:15 (MSG) So Jesus spoke to them: "You are masters at making yourselves look good in front of others, but God knows what's behind the appearance. What society sees and calls monumental, God sees through and calls monstrous.
- Luke 16:15 (NIV) He said to them, "You are the ones who justify yourselves in the eyes of men, but God knows your hearts. What is highly valued among men is detestable in God's sight.
Small things matter. Even really small things. I asked myself: what are all the things that are an abomination to the Lord?
The list was interesting. When Israel was to take a land where idol worship was prevalent, they were to burn the idols and NOT take the silver and gold that encased the idol. That too was to be burned. On the face of it, seems impractical: but that is what God commanded - he did not want anyone to covet silver and gold that had been used to adorn other gods. Child sacrifice, divination, sorcery, spells, mediums, witches, unnatural sexual behavior and so the list goes. But in that list, is this business thing: dishonest scales. Numerous times it is mentioned in Scripture - several times in Proverbs. In Micah, God is judging Israel for, among other things, dishonest business dealings - dishonest weights and scales. Differing weights is a little change, slight, not even noticeable to the eye. A very small variation in a measure of oils or grains for example, could over time yield a merchant much. A little here. A little there. Who is going to notice?
I am reminded of a high school friend of my wife's who is a wealthy businessman whose hobby is Poker. Margaret Ann saw him preparing for a match, stuffing various pockets with rolled up wad of bills. She discovered that there was $5000 in each wad and asked if everyone did the same. His reply included this truth, "My integrity is wrapped up in these rubber bands: if I cheat by even one bill, I loose all I have gained in the Poker World. When I say this is $5k, it's exactly $5k and those that have tried to cheat, have been discovered and banned."
He understood it was the small things that mattered to build character, not how he was dressed; his personality; nor his prestige. It was the unseen, the honest heart. How we look on the outside is almost of no interest to God: who we are on the inside is. And the inside is often about the little things. Most of us don't "do" the big, bad stuff. Most of society even steers away from the big, bad stuff. It is the tiny, unseen, seemingly insignificant that is focused on our needs, our desires, and our greed that matters to God. Self- righteousness in any form is sin.
It is that self-centered small stuff that God calls detestable - an abomination. Size matters.
Copyright © 2006 by P. Griffith Lindell
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