Honest scales and balances are from the LORD; all the weights in the bag are His concern.
Parallel translations
- WEB Honest balances and scales are Yahweh’s; all the weights in the bag are his work.
- KJV A just weight and balance are the LORD’s: all the weights of the bag are his work.
- NKJV Honest weights and scales are the Lord’s; All the weights in the bag are His work.
- NASB A just balance and scales belong to the Lord; All the weights of the bag are His concern.
- NLT The Lord demands accurate scales and balances; he sets the standards for fairness.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
Honest weights and measures belong to the Lord and reflect His standard. It matters because God Himself stands behind fairness and integrity in commerce.
Overview
This proverb roots commercial honesty in God, declaring just balances and weights to be His. Cheating in trade is therefore an offense against the Lord, not merely against neighbors (cf. Leviticus 19:35-36). It reveals that everyday economic integrity is part of true worship and reverence for God.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 9
- Prov 11:1Dishonest scales are an abomination to the LORD, but an accurate weight is His delight.
- Prov 20:10Differing weights and unequal measures—both are detestable to the LORD.
- Prov 20:23Unequal weights are detestable to the LORD, and dishonest scales are no good.
- Deut 25:13–15You shall not have two differing weights in your bag, one heavy and one light.
- Lev 19:35–36You must not use dishonest measures of length, weight, or volume.
- Ezek 45:10You must use honest scales, a just ephah, and a just bath.
- Hos 12:7A merchant loves to defraud with dishonest scales in his hands.
- Amos 8:5asking, “When will the New Moon be over, that we may sell grain? When will the Sabbath end, that we may market wheat? Let us reduce the ephah and increase the shekel; let us cheat with dishonest scales.
- Mic 6:11Can I excuse dishonest scales or bags of false weights?
Themes, concepts, people & topics
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Christ at the center
Wisdom personified, with God before creation and the agent of all things, anticipates Christ 'in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom' — the wisdom of God made flesh.
How Proverbs 16:11 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Hebrew word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.