68 Bible Verses about Trade

And when you sell something to your fellow citizen or [you] buy from your neighbor's hand, you must not oppress {one another}.

So she came and told the man of God, and he said, "Go, sell the olive oil and repay your debt. You and your sons can live on what is left over."

Elisha said, "Hear the word of Yahweh: 'Thus says Yahweh, "At this time tomorrow a seah of wheat bread flour [will sell] for a shekel, and two seahs of barley for a shekel in the gate of Samaria.'"

After him Malkijah, {one of the goldsmiths}, repaired up to the house of the temple servants and the merchants, opposite the Enrollment Gate and up to the upper room of the corner. Between the upper room of the corner to the Sheep Gate the goldsmiths and merchants repaired.

She seeks wool and flax, and she works with the diligence of {her hands}. She is like the ships of a merchant; from far off she brings her food; And she arises while [it is] still night, and gives food to her household, and tasks to her servant girls.read more.
She considers a field and buys it, from the fruit of {her hand} she plants a vineyard. She girds her waist in strength, and makes her arms strong. She perceives that her merchandise [is] good; her lamp does not go out in the night.

And Jesus entered the temple [courts] and drove out all those who were selling and buying in the temple, and overturned the tables of the money changers and the chairs of those who were selling doves.

And they came to Jerusalem. And he entered into the temple [courts] [and] began to drive out those who were selling and those who were buying in the temple [courts], and overturned the tables of the money changers and the chairs of those who were selling doves. And he did not permit anyone to carry objects through the temple [courts].

And he entered into the temple [courts] [and] began to drive out those who were selling,

And he found in the temple [courts] those who were selling oxen and sheep and doves, and the money changers seated. And he made a whip of cords [and] drove [them] all out of the temple [courts], both the sheep and the oxen, and he poured out the coins of the money changers and overturned their tables. And to the ones selling the doves he said, "Take these [things] away from here! Do not make my Father's house {a marketplace}!"

King Solomon also built a fleet of ships at Ezion-Geber which [is] near Elath on the shore of the {Red Sea} in the land of Edom. Hiram sent his servants with the fleet of ships, {sailors} who knew the sea, with the servants of Solomon. They went to Ophir and imported from there four hundred and twenty talents of gold, and they brought it to King Solomon.

Then Solomon went to Ezion-Geber, and to Elath, on the edge of the sea in the land of Edom. And Huram sent to him, by the hand of his servants, ships and servants knowledgeable of the sea. And they went with the servants of Solomon to Ophir, and from there they collected four hundred and fifty talents of gold and brought it to King Solomon.

The weight of the gold that came to Solomon in one year [was] six hundred and sixty-six talents of gold, apart from [that of] the men of the traders and the profits of the traders, and all the kings of the Arabs and the governors of the land.

And it happened [that] the weight of the gold that came to Solomon in one year [was] six hundred and sixty-six talents of gold, besides the gold and silver the traders and merchants brought, and all the kings of Arabia and the governors of the land brought.

The import of the horses which were Solomon's [was] from Egypt and from Kue; the traders of the king received [horses] from Kue at a price. A chariot went up and went out from Egypt at six hundred silver [shekels] and a horse at a hundred and fifty. So it was for all the kings of the Hittites and for the kings of Aram; by their hand they were exported.

And Solomon's horses [were] imported from Egypt and from Kue. The traders of the king received [them] from Kue at a price. They went up and exported a chariot from Egypt for six hundred shekels of silver and a horse for one hundred and fifty [shekels]. And [these were] {likewise exported} to all the kings of the Hittites and the kings of Aram.

For the ships of the king went to Tarshish with the servants of Huram. Once {every three years} the ships of Tarshish came carrying gold, silver, ivory, apes, and peacocks.

Jehoshaphat built ships of the Tarshish [type] to go to Ophir for the gold; but he did not go because the ships were destroyed at Ezion-Geber.

And afterward Jehoshaphat the king of Judah joined with Ahaziah the king of Israel, who acted wickedly. He joined with him to build ships to go to Tarshish. And they built the ships in Ezion Geber. Then Eliezer the son of Dodavahu of Mareshah prophesied against Jehoshaphat, saying, "Because of your joining with Ahaziah, Yahweh will break down your works." And the ships were destroyed and were not able to go to Tarshish.

In his days, Edom rebelled {against the rule} of Judah, and they set up a king over them.

[Those who] went down to the sea into ships, doing business on [the] {high seas},

Then Abraham listened to Ephron, and Abraham weighed for Ephron the silver that he had named in the hearing of the Hittites: four hundred shekels of silver {at the merchants' current rate}.

You shall dwell with us and the land shall be before you; settle and trade in it, and acquire [property] in it."

Then they sat down to eat [some] food. And they lifted up their eyes and looked, and behold, a caravan of Ishmaelites was coming from Gilead. And their camels were carrying aromatic gum and balm and spices {on the way} to Egypt.

Then Midianite traders passed by. And they drew Joseph up and brought [him] up from the pit, and they sold Joseph to the Ishmaelites for twenty [pieces of] silver. And they brought Joseph to Egypt.

And bring your youngest brother to me. Then I will know that you [are] not spies but you [are] honest. And I will give your brother [back] to you, and you will trade in the land.'"

Thus says Yahweh: "The acquisition of Egypt and the merchandise of Cush and the Sabeans, tall men, shall pass over to you; they shall be yours, and they shall walk behind you. They shall pass over in chains, and they shall bow down to you; they will pray to you: 'Surely God [is] with you, and there is no [other]. Besides [him] [there is] no God.'"

The caravans of Tema looked; the traveling merchants of Sheba hope for them.

What [is] this to me? Frankincense comes from Sheba, and the precious spice reed from a distant land. Your burnt offerings [are] not {acceptable}, your sacrifices are not pleasing to me."

[Ben-Hadad] said to him, "The cities which my father took from your father I shall return. You may set up streets with stalls for yourself in Damascus just as my father set up in Samaria." [Then Ahab said], "{On these terms} I will let you go," So he made a covenant with him and let him go.

Who has planned this against Tyre, the bestower of crowns, whose merchants [were] princes, her traders [the] honored ones of [the] earth?

And the word of Yahweh {came} to me, {saying}, "And you, son of man, raise a lament against Tyre. And you must say to Tyre, the one who sits at [the] entrance of the sea [as] the merchant of the peoples to the many coastlands, 'Thus says the Lord Yahweh: Tyre, {you yourself said} "I [am] perfect {in beauty}!"read more.
In [the] heart of [the] seas [are] your boundaries; your builders perfected your beauty. They built [with] pine trees from Senir all of your boards for you; they took cedars from Lebanon to make a sailing mast {for you}. They made your oars [with] oaks from Bashan; your deck they made [with] inlaid ivory, with cypress trees from the coastlands of Cyprus. Your sail was fine linen with colorful weaving from Egypt {to serve as a banner for you}; blue and purple cloth from the coastlands of Cyprus was your awning. The inhabitants of Sidon and Arvan were your rowers; your {skilled men}, O Tyre, were {from your own people}, [and] they [were] your seamen. The elders of Gebal and its {skilled men} were {among you} [as] the repairers of [the] seam of your boat; all of the ships of the sea and their mariners were {among you} to barter your wares. Persia and Lud and Put were {among your soldiers}; small shield and helmet hung {among you} [and] gave [to you] your adornment. The people of Arvan and Helech [were] on your walls all around, and Gammadites were in your towers. They hung their quivers on your walls all around; they perfected your beauty. " 'Tarshish [was] your trader; from [the] abundance of all of [their] wealth, with silver, iron, tin, and lead they exchanged for your merchandise. Javan, Tubal, and Meshech were your traders; {in exchange for people} and an object of bronze they gave [you] your wares. From Beth Togarmah they exchanged horses and war horses and mules for your wares. The people of Dedan [were] trading [with] you, many coastlands [composed] the region of your {influence}; they brought back horns of ivory and ebony [as] your payment. Edom [was] trading [with] you because of the abundance of your products, [trading] with malachite, purple wool yarn and colorful weaving, and fine white fabric and black corals and rubies; [all these] they exchange for your merchandise. Judah and the land of Israel [were] trading [with] you with wheat from Minnith and millet and honey and olive oil and balm; [all these] they gave [for] your wares. Damascus [was] trading [with] you {because of} the abundance of your products, because of the abundance of all of [your] wealth, [trading] with the wine of Helbon and white wool. Vedan and Javan from Uzal, they exchanged wrought iron, cinnamon, and reed spice for your merchandise; [all this] was for your wares. Dedan [was] trading [with] you, with garments of woven material for riding. Arabia and all of the leaders of Kedar [were] {your customers}; with young rams and [adult] rams and goats [they were] trading with them with you. The traders of Sheba and Raamah [were] trading [with] you, with the finest of every spice and with every precious stone and gold; they exchanged [all these] for your merchandise. Haran and Canneh and Eden, the traders of Sheba, Assyria, [and] Kilmad [were] trading [with] you. They [were] trading [with] you in finery, in mantles of blue cloth and colorful embroidered work and with rugs of variegated cloth in twisted cords and knotted tightly; {these were among your merchandise}. The ships of Tarshish [were] carrying [for] you your wares, and you were filled, and you became very heavy in [the] heart of [the] seas. " 'Into many waters the rowers brought you; [but] {the east wind} wrecked you in [the] heart of [the] seas. Your wealth and your merchandise, your wares, your mariners, and your seamen, your shipwrights and the barterers of your wares and all of {your soldiers} who [are] in you, along with all of your crew who are in the midst of you, they will fall in [the] heart of [the] seas on the day of your downfall. At the sound of the shout of your seamen, [the] pasturelands will shake. And they will go down from their ships, all of [those] holding an oar, mariners, all of the seamen of the sea will stand on the land, and they will lament over you with their voice, and they will cry out bitterly, and they will throw dust on their heads, [and] they will roll in the dust. {They will shave themselves bald for your sake}, and they will dress themselves [in] sackcloth, and they will weep over you with bitterness of soul [and] with bitter wailing. And they will raise over you with their wailing a lament, and they will chant a lament over you: 'Who is like Tyre, like [this] destruction in the midst of the sea?' When your merchandise went out from [the] seas, you satisfied many peoples with the abundance of your wealth, and [by] your wares you made rich [the] kings of [the] world. Now you are broken by seas in [the] depths of waters; your wares and all of your crew in the midst of you have sunk. All of the inhabitants of the coastlands are appalled over you, and their kings {shudder} [in] horror; {they distort their faces}! The traders among the peoples hiss over you; you have become horror, and {you shall be no more forever}!'"

Sheba and Dedan and traders of Tarshish and all its strong lions, they [will] ask you, 'To loot loot are you coming? To plunder plunder [have] you summoned your assembly, to take away silver and gold, to take livestock and goods, to loot great amounts of loot?" '

But Jonah set out to flee toward Tarshish from {the presence of} Yahweh. And he went down [to] Joppa and found a merchant ship going [to] Tarshish, and paid her fare, and went on board her to go with them toward Tarshish from {the presence of} Yahweh. And Yahweh hurled a great wind upon the sea, and it was a great storm on the sea, and the merchant ship {was in danger of breaking up}. And the mariners were afraid, and each cried out to his god. And they threw the {contents} that were in the merchant ship into the sea to lighten it for them. And [meanwhile] Jonah went down into the hold of the vessel and lay down and fell asleep.

You have increased your merchants more than the stars of heaven; [like] the locust they will shed [their skin] and fly away.

And you increased your fornication to [the] land of traders, [to] Chaldea, and even with this you were not satisfied.

He plucked the top of its new plant shoot, and he brought it to the land of Canaan [and] put it in a city of merchants,

And the kings of the earth will weep and mourn over her, those who committed sexual immorality and lived sensually with her, when they see the smoke of her burning, standing {far off} because of the fear of her torment, saying, "Woe, woe, the great city, Babylon the powerful city, because in one hour your judgment has come!" And the merchants of the earth weep and mourn over her, because no one buys their cargo any more--read more.
cargo of gold and silver and precious stones and pearls and fine linen and purple cloth and silk and scarlet cloth and all kinds of scented wood and all kinds of ivory goods and all kinds of goods of precious wood and bronze and iron and marble and cinnamon and amomum and incense and ointment and frankincense and wine and olive oil and fine wheat flour and wheat and domesticated animals and sheep and horses and carriages and {slaves} and human lives. "And {the fruit your soul desires} has departed from you, and all the luxury and the splendor has perished from you, and they will never find them any more." The merchants of these [things], who became rich from them, will stand {far off}, weeping and mourning because of the fear of her torment, saying, "Woe, woe, the great city, dressed in fine linen and purple cloth and scarlet cloth, and adorned with gold and precious stones and pearls, because in one hour such great wealth has been laid waste!" And every shipmaster and {every seafarer} and sailors and all those who labor on the sea stood {far off} and began to cry out [when they] saw the smoke of her burning, saying, "Who [is] like the great city?" And they threw dust on their heads and were crying out, weeping and mourning, saying, "Woe, woe, the great city, in which all those who had ships on the sea became rich from her prosperity, because in one hour she has been laid waste!" Rejoice over her, heaven and the saints and the apostles and the prophets, because God has pronounced your judgment on her!" And one powerful angel picked up a stone like a great millstone and threw [it] into the sea, saying, "In this way Babylon the great city will be thrown down with violence, and will never be found again! And the sound of harpists and musicians and flute players and trumpeters will never be heard in you again! And every craftsman of every trade will never be found in you again! And the sound of a mill will never be heard in you again! And the light of a lamp will never shine in you again! And the sound of a bridegroom and bride will never be heard in you again! For your merchants were the most important people of the earth, because with your sorcery they deceived all the nations. And in her was found the blood of prophets and saints and all those who had been slaughtered on the earth.

And he cried out with a powerful voice, saying, "Fallen, fallen [is] Babylon the great, and it has become a dwelling place of demons and a haunt of every unclean spirit and a haunt of every unclean bird and a haunt of every unclean and detested animal. For all the nations have drunk from the wine of the passion of her sexual immorality, and the kings of the earth have committed sexual immorality with her, and the merchants of the earth have become rich from the power of her sensuality."

" 'You shall not commit injustice in regulation, in measurement, in weight, or volume. You must have honest balances, honest weights, an honest ephah, and an honest hin; I [am] Yahweh your God who brought you out from the land of Egypt.

"There shall not be {for your use} in your bag {two kinds of stone weights, a large one and a small one}. There shall not be in your house {for your use} {two kinds of measures}. [Rather] a full and honest weight shall be {for your use}; there shall be for you a full and honest {measure}, so that your days on the land that Yahweh your God [is] giving to you may be long.read more.
For detestable to Yahweh your God [is] everyone who [is] doing such things, everyone who [is] acting dishonestly.

Balances of deceit [are] an abomination of Yahweh, but {an accurate weight} delights him.

A balance and scales of justice [belong] to Yahweh; all the weights of the bag [are] his work.

Stone and stone, measure and measure, {both of them} [are] an abomination of Yahweh.

Hear this, those who trample on [the] poor and who annihilate the afflicted of [the] land, saying, "When will the new moon be over, so that we can sell grain? And the Sabbath, so that we can open the grain bins, that we can make [the] ephah small and make [the] shekel large, and can practice deceit [with] a set of scales of deceit?

From the abundance of your iniquities in the dishonesty of your trading, I profaned your sanctuaries and I brought fire from your midst; it consumed you, and I have turned you to ashes on the earth {before the eyes of everyone who sees you}.

[The] trader, in his hand [are] scales of deceit; he loves to oppress.

Is there any longer a man [in] the house of the wicked treasures of wickedness, and the ephah of scarcity [which is] accursed? Shall I regard as pure [the one] with scales of wickedness, and with a bag of deceitful weights?

Returning [the] products of [his] toil, he will not swallow; according to the profit of his trade, {he will not enjoy}, for he has oppressed; he has abandoned [the] poor; he has seized a house but did not build it.

In the abundance of your trading, they filled the midst of you [with] violence, and you sinned; and I cast you as a profane thing from the mountain of God, and I expelled you, [the] guardian cherub, from the midst of [the] stones of fire.

Come now, you who say, "Today or tomorrow we will travel to such and such a city and spend a year there, and carry on business and make a profit," you who do not know {what will happen tomorrow}, {what your life will be like}. For you are a smoky vapor that appears for a short time and then disappears. Instead you should say, "If the Lord wills, we will live and do this or that."read more.
But now you boast in your arrogance. All such boasting is evil.

By the abundance of your wisdom in your trading you [have] increased your wealth and your heart was proud in your wealth." '"

For [there is] a day for Yahweh of hosts against all of [the] proud and [the] lofty and against all that is lifted up and humble,

And this shall happen: at [the] end of seventy years, Yahweh will visit Tyre, and she will return to her harlot's wages, and she will commit fornication with all the kingdoms of the world on the face of the earth. And this shall happen: her merchandise and her harlot's wages [will be] set apart for Yahweh; it will not be stored up, and it will not be hoarded, but her merchandise will be for those who live before the {presence} of Yahweh, for eating to satiation and for fine clothing.

And the peoples of the land who bring merchandise and any grain on the Sabbath day to sell, we will not accept it from them on the Sabbath or on a holy day. We will forego [the crops of] the seventh year and [cancel] every debt.

In those days I saw in Judah [people] treading the wine press on the Sabbath, bringing in heaps [of grain] and loading them on donkeys along with wine, grapes and figs, and every kind of burden and bringing [it all] to Jerusalem on the day of the Sabbath. And I warned them at that time against selling food. Tyrian men who lived in [Jerusalem] brought fish and every kind of merchandise and sold [it] on the Sabbath to the descendants of Judah and in Jerusalem. So I quarreled with the nobles of Judah and said to them, "What is this evil thing that you are doing, profaning the day of the Sabbath?read more.
Did not your ancestors do this also, and our God brought on us all of this disaster and on this city [too]? Now you are adding fierce wrath on Israel by profaning the Sabbath!" So when it became dark at the gates of Jerusalem before the Sabbath, I commanded that the doors be shut and said that they should not be opened until after the Sabbath. And I appointed some of my young men over the gates [to prevent] any {goods} being brought in on the day of the Sabbath. So the merchants and the sellers of merchandise spent the night outside of Jerusalem once or twice. But I warned them and said to them, "Why are you spending the night opposite the wall? If you do [it again], I will lay hands against you." From that time on they did not come on the Sabbath. And then I told two Levites that they must purify themselves and come to guard the gates in order to consecrate the day of the Sabbath. Remember this also, my God, and take pity on me according to the greatness of your loyal love.

Then Judah said to his brothers, "What profit [is there] if we kill our brother and conceal his blood? Come, let us sell him to the Ishmaelites, but our hand shall not be against him, for he [is] our brother, our own flesh." And his brothers agreed. Then Midianite traders passed by. And they drew Joseph up and brought [him] up from the pit, and they sold Joseph to the Ishmaelites for twenty [pieces of] silver. And they brought Joseph to Egypt.

Now Joseph had been brought down to Egypt, and Potiphar, a court official of Pharaoh, commander of the guard, an Egyptian, bought him from the hand of the Ishmaelites who had brought him down there.

Thus says Yahweh: "For three transgressions of Israel and for four I will not revoke [the punishment], because they sell the righteous for money and the poor for a pair of sandals!

{That we can} buy [the] powerless with silver and [the] poor for the sake of a pair of sandals, and we can sell the waste of the grain?"

sexually immoral people, homosexuals, kidnappers, liars, perjurers, and {whatever} else is opposed to sound teaching,

and cinnamon and amomum and incense and ointment and frankincense and wine and olive oil and fine wheat flour and wheat and domesticated animals and sheep and horses and carriages and {slaves} and human lives.

For my people they cast lots, and {they traded} the male child for the prostitute, and the female child they sold for wine and they drank [it].

"Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant searching for fine pearls. And [when he] found one very valuable pearl, he went [and] sold everything that he possessed and purchased it.

Buy truth and do not sell [it], wisdom and instruction and understanding.

For [it is] like a man going on a journey. He summoned his own slaves and handed over his property to them. And to one he gave five talents, and to another two, and to another one, to each one according to his own ability, and he went on a journey immediately. The one who had received the five talents went out [and] traded with them and gained five more.read more.
In the same way the one [who had] the two gained two more. But the one who had received the one went away [and] dug up the ground and hid his master's money.

And summoning ten of his own slaves, he gave them ten minas and said to them, 'Do business {until I come back}.'

For you were bought at a price; therefore glorify God with your body.