The nisayon is even greater when we see that a customer is ready to buy something inferior at a higher price—and often, there is a great deal of money on the line. Take the courage and be honest. Tell him, “I must tell you that this is of inferior quality and may break more easily.” Don’t be entrapped by the yetzer hara of dishonesty.
The same applies to the question of when goods will be ready for pickup. The customer wants to know when it will be ready, and the seller says, “Im yirtzeh Hashem, after Shabbos.” Why would you say something that you know to be impossible? You know that it won’t be ready that soon, so why say that it will be? This is the klipah of dishonesty—which lowers a person into the depths, and we must battle it with all our might. We must not emit a word from our lips that isn’t true. Sometimes we think that we will lose out by being honest, but the truth is the opposite. We never lose from telling the truth.
