Commerce, the exchange of goods and services, is a concept that finds its roots deeply embedded in the biblical narrative. The Bible provides numerous references to trade, merchants, and economic activities, reflecting the importance of commerce in ancient societies. From the bustling markets of ancient cities to the trade routes that connected distant lands, commerce played a vital role in the economic and social life of biblical times.

Old Testament Context

In the Old Testament, commerce is often depicted as a natural part of life. The patriarchs, such as Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, were involved in pastoralism and trade. Genesis 13:2 describes Abram as "very wealthy in livestock, silver, and gold," indicating his engagement in commerce. The account of Joseph in Egypt (Genesis 41) highlights the significance of trade and economic planning, as Joseph's management of grain during the famine involved extensive commercial activity.

The Law of Moses contains regulations concerning commerce, emphasizing honesty and fairness. Leviticus 19:35-36 instructs, "You must not use dishonest measures of length, weight, or volume. You shall maintain honest scales and weights, an honest ephah, and an honest hin. I am the LORD your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt." These laws underscore the importance of integrity in business dealings.

The book of Proverbs offers wisdom on commerce, often contrasting the righteous and the wicked in their business practices. Proverbs 11:1 states, "Dishonest scales are an abomination to the LORD, but an accurate weight is His delight." This highlights the moral dimension of commerce, where ethical conduct is valued.

New Testament Context

In the New Testament, commerce continues to be a significant aspect of life. Jesus' parables often use commercial imagery to convey spiritual truths. The Parable of the Talents (Matthew 25:14-30) illustrates the importance of wise investment and stewardship, encouraging believers to use their resources effectively for God's kingdom.

The apostle Paul, a tentmaker by trade, exemplifies the integration of commerce and ministry. In Acts 18:3, it is noted that Paul "stayed and worked with them, for they were tentmakers by trade." Paul's work not only provided for his needs but also served as a platform for his missionary endeavors.

The early Christian community practiced a form of economic sharing, as seen in Acts 2:44-45: "All the believers were together and had everything in common. Selling their possessions and goods, they shared with anyone who was in need." This communal approach to resources reflects a distinct perspective on commerce, emphasizing generosity and mutual support.

Moral and Ethical Considerations

The Bible consistently emphasizes the ethical dimensions of commerce. Honesty, integrity, and fairness are paramount in business dealings. The prophets frequently condemned economic injustice and exploitation. Amos 8:4-6 warns against those who "trample the needy and do away with the poor of the land," highlighting God's concern for justice in economic matters.

The love of money is cautioned against in 1 Timothy 6:10, which states, "For the love of money is the root of all kinds of evil." This warning serves as a reminder that while commerce is a necessary and beneficial part of life, it should not become an idol or lead to unethical behavior.

Conclusion

Commerce in the Bible is portrayed as an integral part of human society, with both positive and negative aspects. It is a means of provision and prosperity but also a potential source of moral challenge. The biblical narrative calls for a balanced approach, where commerce is conducted with integrity, fairness, and a heart aligned with God's principles.Commerce

From the time that men began to live in cities, trade, in some shape, must have been carried on to supply the town-dwellers with necessaries from foreign as well as native sources, for we find that Abraham was rich, not only in cattle, but in silver, gold and gold and silver plate and ornaments. (Genesis 13:2; 24:22,53) Among trading nations mentioned in Scripture, Egypt holds in very early times a prominent position. The internal trade of the Jews, as well as the external, was much promoted by the festivals, which brought large numbers of persons to Jerusalem. (1 Kings 8:63) The places of public market were chiefly the open spaces near the gates, to which goods were brought for sale by those who came from the outside. (Nehemiah 13:15,16; Zephaniah 1:10) The traders in later times were allowed to intrude into the temple, in the outer courts of which victims were publicly sold for the sacrifice. (Zechariah 14:21; Matthew 21:12; John 2:14)

1. (n.) The exchange or buying and selling of commodities; esp. the exchange of merchandise, on a large scale, between different places or communities; extended trade or traffic.

2. (n.) Social intercourse; the dealings of one person or class in society with another; familiarity.

3. (n.) Sexual intercourse.

4. (n.) A round game at cards, in which the cards are subject to exchange, barter, or trade.

5. (v. i.) To carry on trade; to traffic.

6. (v. i.) To hold intercourse; to commune.

COMMERCE

kom'-ers (emporia):

I. Old Testament Times.

1. Early Overland Commerce:

There were forces in early Hebrew life not favorable to the development of commerce. Intercourse with foreigners was not encouraged by Israel's social and religious customs. From the days of the appearance of the Hebrews in Canaan, however, some commercial contact with the peoples around was inevitable. There were ancient trade routes between the East and the West, as well as between Egypt and the Mesopotamian valley. Palestine lay as a bridge between these objective points. There were doubtless traveling merchants from very remote times, interchanging commodities of other lands for those of Palestine Some of the Hebrew words for "trading" and "merchant" indicate this (compare cachar, "to travel," rakhal, "to go about"). In the nomadic period, the people were necessarily dependent upon overland commerce for at least a part of their food supply, such as grain, and doubtless for articles of clothing, too. Frequent local famines would stimulate such trade. Companies or caravans carrying on this overland commerce are seen in Genesis 37:25, 28, "Ishmaelites" and "Midianites, merchantmen," on their way to Egypt, with spices, balm and myrrh. Jacob caused his sons to take certain products to Egypt as a present with money to Joseph in return for grain: balsam, spices, honey, myrrh, nuts, almonds (Genesis 43:11 f). The presence of a "Bab mantle" among the spoils of Ai (Joshua 7:21) indicates commerce between Canaan and the East.

2. Sea Traffic:

While there are slight indications of a possible sea trade as early as the days of the Judges (Judges 5:17; compare Genesis 49:13), we must wait till the days of the monarchy of David and especially Solomon for the commerce of ships. Land traffic was of course continued and expanded (1 Kings 10:15, 28, 29 2 Chronicles 1:16). Sea trade at this time made large strides forward. The Philistines were earlier in possession of the coast. Friendship with Hiram king of Tyre gave Solomon additional advantages seaward (1 Kings 5; 1 Kings 9:26; 1 Kings 10:19-29 2 Chronicles 8:17; 2 Chronicles 9:14), since the Phonicians were pre-eminently the Miditerranean traders among all the people of Palestine Later, commerce declined, but Jehoshaphat attempted to revive it (1 Kings 22:48 2 Chronicles 20:36), but without success. Tyre and Sidon as great commercial centers, however, long impressed the life of Israel (Isaiah 23 Ezekiel 26-27). Later, in the Maccabean period, Simon acquired Joppa as a Jewish port (1 Maccabees 14:5), and so extended Mediterranean commerce.

3. Land Traffic in the Time of the Kings:

During the peaceful reign of Solomon, there came, with internal improvements and foreign friendships, a stimulus to traffic with Egypt and the Far East over the ancient trade routes as well as with Phoenicia on the northwest. He greatly added to his wealth through tariffs levied upon merchantmen (1 Kings 10:15). Trade with Syria in the days of Omri and Ahab is indicated by the permission Benhadad gave to Israelites to open streets, or trading quarters, in Damascus, as Syrians had in Samaria (1 Kings 20:34). The prophets disclose repeatedly the results of foreign commerce upon the people in the days of Jotham, Ahaz and Hezekiah, and of Jeroboam II, under whom great material prosperity was attained, followed by simple luxury (Isaiah 2:6, 7, 16 Hosea 12:1, 7, 8 Amos 6:3-6). The people in their greed of gain could not observe Sabbaths and feast days (Amos 8:5); compare Sabbath trading and its punishment in the days of the restoration (Nehemiah 13:15-22). "Canaanite" became the nickname for traffickers (Zechariah 14:21; compare Isaiah 23:8).

II. New Testament Times.

After the conquests of Alexander 333 B.C., trade between East and West was greatly stimulated. Colonies of Jews for trade purposes had been established in Egypt and elsewhere. The dispersion of the Jews throughout the Greek and Roman world added to their interest in commerce. The Mediterranean Sea, as a great Roman lake, under Roman protection, became alive with commercial fleets. The Sea of Galilee with its enormous fish industry became the center of a large trading interest to all parts. The toll collected in Galilee must have been considerable. Matthew was called from his collectorship to discipleship (Matthew 9:9); Zaccheus and other publicans became rich collecting taxes from large commercial interests like that of balsam. Jesus frequently used the commerce of the day as illustration (Matthew 13:45; Matthew 25:14-30). Along the Palestinian coast there were several ports where ships touched: Lydda, Joppa, Caesarea; and further north Ptolemais, Tyre, Sidon and Antioch (port Seleucia).

The apostle Paul made use of ships touching at points on the coast of Asia Minor, and the islands along the coast, and also doing coast trade with Greece, Italy and Spain, to carry on his missionary emterprises (Acts 13:4-13; Acts 16:11; 18:18; 20:13-16; 21:1-8; 27:1-44; 28:1-14). The rapidity with which the gospel spread throughout the Roman world in the 1st century was due no little to the use of the great Roman highways, built partly as trade routes; as well as to the constant going to and fro of tradesmen of all sorts; some of whom like Aquila and Priscilla (Acts 18:2, 18, 26), Lydia, (Acts 16:14, 40) and Paul himself (who was a traveling tent-maker) were active in disseminating the new faith among the Gentiles. In James 4:13 we have a good representation of the life of a large number of Jews of this period, who would "go into such a city, and continue there a year, and buy and sell, and get gain" (the King James Version).

See also TRADE.

Edward Bagby Pollard

1711. emporia -- commerce, business, trade.
... 1710, 1711. emporia. 1712 . commerce, business, trade. ... See 1713 (). Word Origin
fem. from emporos Definition commerce, business, trade. merchandise, trade ...
//strongsnumbers.com/greek2/1711.htm - 6k

1712. emporion -- a trading place
... Cognate: 1712 -- an emporium; a marketplace for (doing commerce), used only
in Jn 2:16 (see also Lk 19:13). See 1713 (). Word Origin neut. ...
//strongsnumbers.com/greek2/1712.htm - 6k

4147. plouteo -- to be rich
... See 4145 (). (Rev 3:17) The Laodiceans had success in banking, trade, and
commerce -- but their lives paid dividends (yields)! The ...
//strongsnumbers.com/greek2/4147.htm - 7k

5504. sachar -- commerce, gain
... 5503, 5504. sachar. 5505 . commerce, gain. Transliteration: sachar Phonetic
Spelling: (sakh'-ar) Short Definition: gain. Word Origin ...
/hebrew/5504.htm - 6k

Commerce
... Chapter 12 Commerce. ... Quite different form those as to trades were the Rabbinical
views about commerce, as we shall immediately show. ...
/.../edersheim/sketches of jewish social life/chapter 12 commerce.htm

Those who have Commerce with a Wife or in any Other Manner Without ...
... The Sixth Ecumenical Council. Canon XCVII. Those who have commerce with
a wife or in any other manner without regard thereto? ...
/.../schaff/the seven ecumenical councils/canon xcvii those who have.htm

In Our Last Chapter we Sought to Show that in Rev. . .
... time will be the center and embodiment of all the elements of our godless civilization,
and which especially will become the chief entrepot of commerce in the ...
//christianbookshelf.org/pink/the antichrist/in our last chapter we.htm

Now I have Only Taken the Test Case of Female Suffrage Because it ...
... If women are to be subjected to the dull rule of commerce, we must find some
way of emancipating them from the wild rule of conscience. ...
/.../chesterton/whats wrong with the world/chapter 27 now i have.htm

Connecticut at the Close of the Revolution
... With her commerce and coasting trade almost destroyed, she found herself, during
the period preceding the adoption of the national Constitution and the ...
/.../chapter xii connecticut at the.htm

Travelling in Palestine --Roads, Inns, Hospitality, Custom-House ...
... For, it was the only truly international road of all those which passed through
Palestine; indeed, it formed one of the great highways of the world's commerce. ...
/.../sketches of jewish social life/chapter 4 travelling in palestineroads.htm

Gambling, Card-Playing
... For centuries the inhabitants, the Monagasques, lived by marauding expeditions,
both by sea and land, and by slight commerce with Genoa, Marseilles, and Nice. ...
/.../questionable amusements and worthy substitutes/iii gambling card-playing.htm

The Place of the Old Testament in Divine Revelation
... Restless energy and the tendency to acquire have also tended to make them leaders
in the widely different fields of commerce and religion. ...
/.../the origin and permanent value of the old testament/iv the place of the.htm

The Annunciation of Jesus the Messiah, and the Birth of his ...
... to the utmost, and thickly covered with populous towns and villages, but the centre
of every known industry, and the busy road of the world's commerce. ...
/.../the life and times of jesus the messiah/chapter iv the annunciation of.htm

Mordecai and Esther
... the 'light of the world,' and we are 'tribes of the wandering foot.' Our history,
all, has tended to this function, our local position, our laws, our commerce. ...
/.../maclaren/expositions of holy scripture g/mordecai and esther.htm

Commerce (3 Occurrences)
... Int. Standard Bible Encyclopedia. COMMERCE. ... 1. Early Overland Commerce: There were
forces in early Hebrew life not favorable to the development of commerce. ...
/c/commerce.htm - 15k

Trade (33 Occurrences)
... 4. (v.) Specifically: The act or business of exchanging commodities by barter,
or by buying and selling for money; commerce; traffic; barter. ...
/t/trade.htm - 40k

Cinnamon (4 Occurrences)
... There is no trace of it in Egypt, and it was unknown in Syria. The inner rind when
dried and rolled into cylinders forms the cinnamon of commerce. ...
/c/cinnamon.htm - 10k

Commercial (1 Occurrence)
... (a.) of or pertaining to commerce; carrying on or occupied with commerce or trade;
mercantile; as, commercial advantages; commercial relations. ...
/c/commercial.htm - 7k

Ships (46 Occurrences)
... Easton's Bible Dictionary Early used in foreign commerce by the Phoenicians (Genesis
49:13). ... The same partnership existed for the commerce of the West. ...
/s/ships.htm - 53k

Boats (11 Occurrences)
... Joppa. From this cooperation in the building of the Temple there grew up
a larger connection in the pursuit of sea-borne commerce. ...
/b/boats.htm - 40k

Dispersion (4 Occurrences)
... Phrygia and Lydia. (4.) From Asia Minor many Jews moved into Greece and
Macedonia, chiefly for purposes of commerce. In the apostles ...
/d/dispersion.htm - 44k

Esarhaddon (3 Occurrences)
... and destroyed. He built another city upon the same site, which he called
Kar-Esarhaddon, and endeavored to revive its commerce. And ...
/e/esarhaddon.htm - 13k

Merchandise (34 Occurrences)
... Noah Webster's Dictionary 1. (n.) The objects of commerce; whatever is usually bought
or sold in trade, or market, or by merchants; wares; goods; commodities. ...
/m/merchandise.htm - 22k

Maritime (1 Occurrence)
... on, or situated near, the ocean; as, the Maritime Provinces of Canada; connected
with the sea by site, interest, or power; having shipping and commerce or a ...
/m/maritime.htm - 7k

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