Honesty

Parshat בהר deals with business ethics. It discusses the importance of being honest in monetary transactions.

There is a limit as to the amount of profit we are entitled to, when it comes to selling merchandise. The Gemara in בבא מציעא uses the term, “שתות,” which means one sixth.

It is the obligation of a merchant to be certain that he be aware of the going rate of a particular item. He may not charge more than a sixth, above this amount.

There is also the concept of גניבת דעת, which is a form of stealing, in terms of misleading people. It is forbidden to enter a store and pretend that one is going to make a purchase, when he has no such intention. It is in order to say, “I am just looking.”

Honesty in business and money matters, is an absolute priority in Judaism. The Gemara in מסכת שבת says that when we die, we will need to answer as to whether we dealt honestly with our fellow man. Many of these laws are based on פרשת בהר.