"You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor.”
Exodus 20:16

While the words used to state this commandment sound more as though they are about lying in a court of law (particularly when under oath), the commandment is much broader and more comprehensive than that. It is been nearly universally understood to be “do not lie,” or stated positively, “tell the truth.”

Lying, or in any way not being truthful, is particularly sinister since breaking this command is a sin against God Himself. Of course, breaking any of the commands is primarily a sin against God, since they are His commands. But lying is a sis against the person and nature of God, since God IS truth.

Besides the clear declaration by Jesus of Himself, “I and the way, the truth, and the life” (John 14:6), God is not only truthful, He IS truth. Not not only does He not lie, He cannot lie, since He would then be acting contrary to His nature. (See Numbers 23:19, Titus 1:2, and Hebrews 6:18.)

This is in direct contrast to Satan.

John 8:44 You are of your father the devil, and the desires of your father you want to do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaks a lie, he speaks from his own resources, for he is a liar and the father of it.

And while any and every sin is enough to condemn a person to Hell, the Bible names lying in particular as being damnable (Revelation 21:18).

Next time: Who is my neighbor?