An Argument for Honesty in All Situations

When you ask most people, “Is it ok to lie?” you usually get the same answer: “No.” Overwhelmingly, most people value telling the truth over lying. This is understandable. But what if you are lying for a good purpose? Most lies are selfish – they are told to protect the individual from something uncomfortable. But what about lies motivated by “good” intentions. The classic example is of the Jews during the Holocaust. – Suppose you are hiding Jews in your house during the Holocaust. Then one day, N azis come to your door, asking if you have any Jews hiding in your house. What do you say? You can either say “Yes”, which will mostly likely end with you and the Jews being killed, or you can say “No”, which may save you all (physically at least). This is where people’s resolution against lying breaks down. Many are willing to grant a “pass” to lying in this situation – the good that would come from lying would outweigh the bad. But would it? That is the question that I want to ask. I will try to present the case for honesty in all situations, even ones as extreme and horrible as hiding Jews from the N azis.

First, it would be helpful to establish where we get this general principle/command that telling the truth is right and lying is wrong. Exodus 20:16 says, “You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor.” This, of course, is one of the Ten Commandments. This verse only directly opposes bearing false witness against your neighbor (lying about someone else), however many people do use this verse in support of their condemnation of all lying in general. If we take the strictly literal approach to this verse, than it would be ok to lie to your mother when she asked you if you stole a cookie from the cookie jar. But we all know that you should not lie to her, but this is still not the same as “bearing false witness against your neighbor”.

Proverbs 12:19 says, “Truthful lips endure forever, but a lying tongue is but for a moment.” Truth will stand firm for all eternity, but lies will fade away and be found out.

Just a few verses later Proverbs 12:22 says, “Lying lips are an abomination to the LORD, but those who act faithfully are his delight.” Here lying is clearly condemned and the very strong word “abomination” is used to describe what God thinks of those who lie (abomination meaning God feels “extreme disgust and hatred” towards them). However, take note of how God responds to those who are faithful (and we can logically assume “faithful” to mean “those who speak the truth” because of the context) – they are His delight! He loves it when people speak the truth but h ates it when people lie.

Zechariah 8:16-17 says, “These are the things that you shall do: Speak the truth to one another; render in your gates judgments that are true and make for peace; (17) do not devise evil in your hearts against one another, and love no false oath, for all these things I , declares the LORD." Here God clearly commands that we “speak the truth” and tells us that He “hates false oaths”. Verse 19 goes on to say, "Therefore love truth and peace.”

Paul tells us in Romans 1:8 that the wrath of God has come upon those who “suppress truth”. Later in Ephesians 4:25 Paul tells us to “put away all falsehood” and “speak the truth” to our neighbor.

Thus far we have looked at verses that specifically deal with how we should act. Now let’s take a look at what God says he is like in relation to truth:

The most famous verse that deals with God is John 14:6 – “Jesus said to him, "I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.” Here Jesus clearly says that He Himself is Truth - God is Truth itself. John 1:4 further supports Jesus’ claim to be Truth – “And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth.”

Next I will just list a few other verses that speak of God’s truth:

Isa 45:19 I did not speak in secret, in a land of darkness; I did not say to the offspring of Jacob, 'Seek me in vain.' I the LORD speak the truth; I declare what is right.

Joh 14:6 Jesus said to him, "I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.

Psa 43:3 Send out your light and your truth; let them lead me; let them bring me to your holy hill and to your dwelling!

Psa 45:4 In your majesty ride out victoriously for the cause of truth and meekness and righteousness; let your right hand teach you awesome deeds!

Psa 119:160 The sum of your word is truth, and every one of your righteous rules endures forever.

I think that we can see that Scripture does condemn lying and praises those who speak the truth. It is also clear that God, by His very nature is Truth. He loves the truth and is Truth in Jesus Christ. However, some passages in Scripture seem to contradict the seemingly clear overall message from Scripture that lying is wrong. The most common example is probably the story of Rahab and the Israelite spies, found in Joshua 2.

Jos 2:3-5 Then the king of Jericho sent to Rahab, saying, "Bring out the men who have come to you, who entered your house, for they have come to search out all the land." (4) But the woman had taken the two men and hidden them. And she said, "True, the men came to me, but I did not know where they were from. (5) And when the gate was about to be closed at dark, the men went out. I do not know where the men went. Pursue them quickly, for you will overtake them."

Here Rahab clearly and intentionally lies to the guards, telling them that the Israelites had left her house, when they were in fact hiding in her roof. No where in the Bible is this lie condemned and Rahab is cited in Hebrews 11:31 as having great faith. Of course I cannot claim that the Bible specifically says that Rahab sinned in her lie, because the Word does not say this. However I believe, based on the multitude of verses present throughout the rest of Scripture that condemn lying, that Rahab did indeed sin with her lie. Some say that because Rahab was not specifically condemned for her lie (and was in fact praised for her faith in Hebrews 11) that she did not sin. Matthew Henry writes this in his commentary of this passage:

It is plain that she deceived the officers that examined her with an untruth - That she knew not whence the men were, that they had gone out, that she knew not whither they had gone. What shall we say to this? If she had either told the truth or been silent, she would have betrayed the spies, and this would certainly have been a great sin; and it does not appear that she had any other way of concealing them that by this ironical direction to the officers to pursue them another way, which if they would suffer themselves to be deceived by, let them be deceived….But God accepts what is sincerely and honestly intended, though there be a mixture of frailty and folly in it, and is not extreme to mark what we do amiss.

To this I ask you a question - “Does the fact that lying about stealing cookies from the cookie jar is not specifically condemned in Scripture mean that it is ok for you to lie about stealing cookies from the cookie jar?” Of course not. We apply biblical principles and commands to our lives everyday, without needing direct commands from God for every situation that we face. Just because it was not specifically condemned in Scripture does not mean that it was right for Rahab to lie. Silence does not prove innocence. Lying is clearly condemned throughout Scripture. I think this also applies to God’s praise of Rahab. Yes, God did praise her, but for what? It was for her faith. By faith she let the Israelite spies into her house and believed them and that was what she was praised for, not her lie. She showed a great deal of faith when she risked her life to protect those men, but showed a lack of faith in God when she didn’t trust Him enough to protect them from harm if it was His will. Despite this lack of faith in one area, she did show great faith by even letting the men in and believing what they had to say, and therefore she is rightly praised in the Bible as a great woman of faith. The Jamieson, Fausset and Brown Commentary puts it this way:

This was a palpable deception. But, as lying is a common vice among heathen people, Rahab was probably unconscious of its moral guilt, especially as she resorted to it as a means for screening her guests; and she might deem herself bound to do it by the laws of Eastern hospitality, which make it a point of honor to preserve the greatest enemy, if he has once eaten one’s salt. Judged by the divine law, her answer was a sinful expedient; but her infirmity being united with faith, she was graciously pardoned and her service accepted (Jam 2:25).

Many will consider this view extreme. “Are you really saying that you would tell the N azis the truth and face almost certain d eath?” they ask. To that I would say, “I don’t know”. I say this not because I do not strongly believe that it would be wrong to lie, but rather because I question my own strength to do what is right. It would only be by God’s amazing grace that I would have the power to do the horribly difficult thing of telling the truth. Without His enabling grace I would fail miserably. I know some would say that it would be worth committing the small sin to prevent the larger one from happening. To this I say, “No!” It is never right to counter sin with more sin, no matter how “good” the consequences may be. If you accept that lying is sin then you must not say that it is ever a permissible action – sin is always wrong and to be avoided at all costs! God hates sin and as Christians we are to live as new people, m odeling Christ who was sinless and Truth itself. Our ultimate purpose in life is to glorify God (1 Corinthians 10:31). One major way that we glorify God is by obeying Him (in fact I would venture to say that all we do to glorify God would fall under obedience). We are never glorifying to God when we break His commands and cease to be like Christ. This is not to say that there is no forgiveness, for there is an inexhaustible amount for God’s children, but that does not mean that we have liberty to sin (Romans 6:1-2). When I hear the “lesser evil” argument, I shudder. No where in the Bible is choosing the “lesser evil” permitted because all evil is wrong and not to be done.

Some may ask, “What if it is God’s will that you lie to them? What if you’re lie is the way that God planned to save you?” This question demonstrates an incomplete view of who God is (His holiness, perfection, righteousness) and the seriousness of sin. God never “wills” that we sin against Him (here we could go off on another super long tangent about God’s will of decree and our free will etc., but I will not do that here. God’s will of decree is something that we, as humans, cannot affect or change, but His will of command is what He has told us to do through His Word. For more information on God’s two wills go here.). God detests sin and desires that His people live righteously all the time.

Yes, it would be horrible if you and the Jews were killed because you told the truth. But it would be far more horrible if you lied and defamed the name of God by sinning against Him! Our primary responsibility is to God, not man. Abraham knew this when he placed his son Isaac up on the alter, preparing to kill him in obedience to God; his love for God exceeded his love for his only son. Jesus knew this as well when He said, “Whoever loves his father or mother more than me is not worthy of me, and whoever loves son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me.” Thus it is clear that our primary responsibility is to God and God alone. If He commands us to do something, it does not matter what the outcome is, for He is God and is to be obeyed.

However, we can have assurance that God is not a cruel and unjust God. He is a God of love who works all things for His glory and the good of those who love Him.

Rom 8:28 And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose.

Rom 8:32 He who did not spare his own Son but gave him up for us all, how will he not also with him graciously give us all things?

We can rest in the truth that God is in complete control of every situation and that He loves us at all times. This trust in God allows us to obey God’s every word (see Hebrews 11) and do it joyfully – which includes telling the truth in all situations.

P.S. - If you disagree with me, feel free to leave a comment. Or, if you feel so inclined, start a thread in the W.C.2.M. forums, where you can discuss this issue in a little greater detail.