The rule
In short: No false witness, no lies, no twisted words. Promises and covenants bind, even at a cost.
“Let your communication be, Yea, yea; Nay, nay” (Matthew 5:37). Say yes or no, and mean it.
The rule underneath: Law 5 · Tell the truth
No false witness, no lies, no twisted words.
Keep it: Trust builds, and courts and deals work.
Break it: Lies pile up, and trust breaks down.
Shows up in: Exodus, Leviticus, Proverbs, Matthew, Ephesians, James
Other rules in this book: Keep your word, Love the actual person, Repair
The rule underneath: Law 6 · Keep your word
Promises and covenants bind, even at a cost.
Keep it: People can build a life on you.
Break it: Families, friendships, and deals fall apart.
Shows up in: Genesis, Numbers, Joshua, Ruth, Psalms, Ecclesiastes, Malachi
Other rules in this book: Tell the truth, God first, Love the actual person
Wherefore putting away lying, speak every man truth with his neighbour: for we are members one of another.Ephesians 4:25 · KJV
Why it matters
Trust is how people live together. Every lie, even a small one, spends some of it. “Death and life are in the power of the tongue” (Proverbs 18:21).
Promises work the same way. A marriage, a business deal, and a friendship all rest on words that were kept. The Bible praises the person who “sweareth to his own hurt, and changeth not” (Psalm 15:4) — someone who keeps a promise even after it becomes costly.
The steps
1 · Don’t lie, even small. “Lie not one to another” (Colossians 3:9). Watch for the easy ones: the excuse, the padded story, the “I’m almost there.” If you can’t say it, say less, but don’t say what is false.
2 · Don’t spread harm. “Thou shalt not go up and down as a talebearer” (Leviticus 19:16). A talebearer is a gossip. “Where there is no talebearer, the strife ceaseth” (Proverbs 26:20). Before you pass something on, ask: is it true, is it mine to tell, and does it help?
3 · Speak the truth in love. “Speaking the truth in love” (Ephesians 4:15). Truth is not a club. Choose the time, say it kindly, and say it to the person, not about them. “A soft answer turneth away wrath” (Proverbs 15:1).
4 · Say yes or no, and mean it. Don’t say yes to avoid a hard moment. Don’t add “I swear” to make something sound true. Your plain word should be enough (Matthew 5:37).
5 · Promise less, keep more. “Better is it that thou shouldest not vow, than that thou shouldest vow and not pay” (Ecclesiastes 5:5). Before you commit, check your calendar and your budget.
6 · Keep your word when it costs. Israel kept a treaty with the Gibeonites even after learning it was made by a trick: “We have sworn unto them… now therefore we may not touch them” (Joshua 9:19).
7 · If you can’t keep it, say so early and make it right. Circumstances change. Go to the person before the deadline, tell the truth, and offer what you can. See Playbook 10 · How to repair.
Where it goes wrong
- The helpful lie. Lying to protect feelings, and slowly losing trust.
- Technically true. Words that are accurate but built to mislead. That is still false witness (Exodus 20:16).
- Gossip as concern. “Just so you can pray about it…” Harm that sounds caring.
- Easy yes. Saying yes to everything, then breaking half of it.
- Breaking faith at home. Malachi calls out the man who “dealt treacherously” with “the wife of thy covenant” (Malachi 2:14). *Covenant* means a binding promise.
One practice
This week
The word audit
- Catch one lie a day. Notice each time you shade the truth. Write it down that night. No need to fix it yet; just see it.
- List your promises. Write every open promise you’ve made: to family, work, friends, God.
- Keep or release. Keep one you’ve been putting off. For any you can’t keep, go to the person and say so.
Write in your journal what your lies were protecting.
Go deeper
- The pattern across the Bible. Law of Moses: “Thou shalt not bear false witness against thy neighbour” (Exodus 20:16); no gossip (Leviticus 19:16); “he shall not break his word” (Numbers 30:2). History: Israel keeps its oath to Gibeon (Joshua 9:19); Ruth’s promise to Naomi, “whither thou goest, I will go” (Ruth 1:16–17). Wisdom: the LORD hates “a lying tongue” and “a false witness that speaketh lies” (Proverbs 6:16–19); “Lying lips are abomination to the LORD” (12:22); “In the multitude of words there wanteth not sin” (10:19); “pay that which thou hast vowed” (Ecclesiastes 5:4). Prophets: Malachi 2:14–16 on keeping faith in marriage. Gospels: “Yea, yea; Nay, nay” (Matthew 5:37); every idle word will be accounted for (12:36); Jesus calls the devil “a liar, and the father of it” (John 8:44). Letters: “putting away lying, speak every man truth” (Ephesians 4:25); “the tongue is a little member… how great a matter a little fire kindleth!” (James 3:5).
- Original words. ʿEd shaqer, “false witness,” first meant lying in court, but the Bible applies it to any lie that harms. ʾEmet, “truth,” comes from a root meaning firm or reliable — the same root as “amen.” Berit, “covenant,” is a binding promise, often sealed with an oath.
- How the laws interlock. Law 5 and Law 6 are two sides of trust: truth about the past, faithfulness about the future. Honest scales (Law 7) are truth told with numbers. Repair (Law 12) begins by telling the truth about what you did.
- Worked example. You promised to help a friend move on Saturday. Then your boss offers paid overtime. The promise came first. You keep it, or you call your friend right away, explain, and offer a real alternative, such as paying for movers for the morning. You don’t just stop answering texts.
Hard passages
Is lying ever right?
What it says The Hebrew midwives mislead Pharaoh to save baby boys (Exodus 1:19), and “God dealt well with the midwives” (1:20). Rahab hides Israel’s spies and lies to the king’s men (Joshua 2:4–5); Hebrews praises her faith (Hebrews 11:31).
The rule underneath Tell the truth; protect the weakest. Here the two collide.
What people added Some readers say lying is always wrong, and God blessed the midwives’ and Rahab’s courage, not their lies. Others say that those hunting the innocent have lost any right to the truth. Churches have split; this page does not settle it.
Must you keep a terrible promise?
What it says Jephthah vows to sacrifice “whatsoever cometh forth of the doors of my house” if he wins a battle (Judges 11:30–31). His daughter comes out first. The text says he “did with her according to his vow” (11:39).
The rule underneath Keep your word, but image, not tool. A promise can’t make a wrong thing right.
What people added Many readers see Jephthah as a warning, not a model: he should not have made the vow, and the law condemns child sacrifice (Deuteronomy 12:31). Some Jewish and Christian readers think his daughter was set apart to stay unmarried instead of killed. Readers differ on what happened.
“Swear not at all”
What it says Jesus says, “Swear not at all” (Matthew 5:34), and James repeats it (James 5:12). Yet the law of Moses allows oaths in God’s name (Numbers 30:2), and Paul calls God as witness (Romans 1:9).
The rule underneath Tell the truth; keep your word. Your plain yes should be enough.
What people added Quakers and some other groups refuse all oaths. Most churches allow oaths in court or office. Churches have split; this page does not settle it. How it has been used: England’s Quakers Act of 1695 let Quakers “affirm” instead of swear. The U.S. Constitution (1787) lets officials take an “oath or affirmation,” which opened office to those who would not swear.
Books that feed it
Exodus · Leviticus · Numbers · Joshua · Judges · Ruth · Proverbs · Ecclesiastes · Malachi · Matthew · Ephesians · James