Negative commandment · Lo Ta’aseh #271 of 613
Not to falsify measurements
שלא לעשות עול במדה
The verse · Vayikra 19:35
לֹא־תַעֲשׂוּ עָוֶל בַּמִּשְׁפָּט בַּמִּדָּה בַּמִּשְׁקָל וּבַמְּשׂוּרָה
“You shall do no unrighteousness in judgment, in meteyard, in weight, or in measure.”
The Rambam’s words
Not to falsify measurements, as [Leviticus 19:35] states: "Do not act deceitfully in judgment...." According to the oral tradition, we have learned that this verse prohibits acting deceitfully regarding measurements.
שלא לעשות עול במדה, שנאמר "לֹא תַעֲשׂוּ עָוֶל בַּמִּשְׁפָּט בְּמִדָּה" (ויקרא יט, לה); מפי השמועה למדו שהכתוב מזהיר לא תעשו עול במשפט המדה.
Why · Sefer HaChinuch #258
To not cheat in measures, and all measures are included
“The root of the commandment of righteousness and the distancing from robbery and deceit among people is well-known to all intelligent people.”
Who & when
“And [it] is practiced in every place and at all times by males and females.”
Where in the Mishneh Torah
Hilchot Theft הלכות גניבה