Lying to or about one another brought reproach upon His holy name, and this He would not tolerate. Does he speak and then not act? Does he promise and not fulfill?” The people who were called by God’s name and who represented Him in the heathen world were expected to accurately reflect His character. Numbers 23:19 says, “God is not a man, that he should lie, nor a son of man, that he should change his mind. The Lord is a truthful God who does not and cannot lie. First, God’s people are to reflect God’s character. The reasons for God’s prohibiting lying and testifying falsely against one’s neighbor are three-fold. The people were not to lie publicly, as in a court of law by laying at another’s feet any false charge that could injure him, nor were they to lie privately by whispering, talebearing, backbiting, slandering, or destroying his character by innuendos, sly insinuations, and evil suggestions. In other words, the Israelites were commanded to be truthful in all things, but especially when speaking about another person. The Hebrew word translated “neighbor” in this commandment can mean an associate, a brother, companion, fellow, friend, husband, or neighbor. To bear false witness against others is to lie about them, especially for personal gain. Part of the Ten Commandments, also known as the Decalogue, this 9th commandment forbids the Israelites from bearing false witness or giving false testimony against one another (Exodus 20:16 Deuteronomy 5:20).
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