The Ten Commandments: The Ninth Commandment

THE DECALOGUE:
A SUMMARY OF GOD'S PRECEPTS FOR GOD'S PEOPLE

The Ninth Commandment:
On Perjury (Exod 20:16)
pdf
Dr. Paul Manuel—2006

(There are different divisions of the Commandments in different traditions: In Protestantism (for the most part), v. 2 is the introduction and v. 3 is the first command. In Judaism, vv. 2-3 together are the first command. In Roman Catholicism and Lutheranism, vv. 2-6 are the first command, and v. 17 contains two commands. This study follows the primary Protestant division, recognizing that v. 2 is declarative and v. 3 contains the first imperative.)

The Bible addresses many transgressions of the tongue. One that it categorically condemns is the sin of gossip.¹ Still, there are some Christians who engage in this activity, oblivious to the trouble they cause.

The small-town church gossip and self-appointed arbiter of congregational morals kept sticking her nose into other people's business. Although most members did not appreciate her activities, they feared her enough to maintain their silence. She made a mistake, however, when she accused Gary, a new member, of being drunk after she saw his pickup truck parked in front of the town's only bar one afternoon. After church, she told Gary what she had seen. "You know," she said loudly enough for several others to hear, "Everyone who saw your car in front of that bar would know what you were doing there." Gary, a man of few words, stared at her for a moment and just walked away. He didn't explain, defend, or deny. He said nothing. Later that evening, Gary quietly drove his pickup to her house... and left it parked there all night.

A person needs to be careful what he says, especially about others, lest his words get him in trouble. That concern and caution is also behind the ninth command in the Decalogue, the one On Perjury.

Several weeks ago, when our congregation hosted the Appalachian Association Annual meeting, Roy Gearhart had a very entertaining version of Israel's wilderness experience entitled, Moses on Spiritual Safari. In that presentation, he involved the audience at several points, including a review of the Ten Commandments, in which he asked the congregation to name each statute. People did well recounting commandments one through six, but needed some prompting for the others, which he helpfully offered. When they seemed uncertain about commandment nine, He provided the common version that often comes to mind: You shall not lie, which does appear in Lev 19:11.² While that wording conveys a sense of the prohibition, and matches the brevity of the previous three commands—"You shall not murder...commit adultery.... [or] steal"—God has something more specific in view with the Decalogue's penultimate precept. Please turn to...

Exod 20:16 You shall not give false testimony against your neighbor.

Deut 5:20 You shall not give false testimony against your neighbor.

This wording, more detailed than "You shall not lie," has a particular situation in view, namely the statement a witness makes in court.³ Here...

I. God prohibits deception in legal settings.⁴

After Israel left Egypt, it became clear to Moses that altering people's location does not eliminate their altercations. The problems may be different, but people still have problems, including disputes with each other, and they need help resolving them. It is yet another task their leader has to assume.

Exod 18:13 The next day [after Israel reached Sinai] Moses took his seat to serve as judge for the people, and they stood around him from morning till evening. 14 When his father-in-law saw all that Moses was doing for the people, he said, "What is this you are doing...? Why do you alone sit as judge, while all these people stand around you from morning till evening? ... 18 You and these people who come to you will only wear yourselves out. The work is too heavy for you; you cannot handle it alone.... 21 But select capable men from all the people—men who fear God, trustworthy men who hate dishonest gain—and appoint them as officials over thousands, hundreds, fifties and tens. 22 Have them serve as judges for the people at all times, but have them bring every difficult case to you; the simple cases they can decide themselves. That will make your load lighter, because they will share it with you...." 24 Moses listened to his father-in-law and did everything he said.

Thus, Israel's judicial system is born.⁵ While there are cases that only require a judge to weight the relative merits of two claimants—like Court TV—some cases require the presentation of extensive evidence and additional testimony. Whether simple or complex, it is the testimony people give about others that this ninth commandment primarily addresses.

Because the Decalogue is A Summary of God's Precepts for God's People, the command is abbreviated. Elsewhere in the law, however, the Lord explains in more detail what He expects when people make statements in legal settings.

A. Testimony must be honorable (Exod 23: lb-2, 8).⁶

Exod 23: lb Do not help a wicked man by being a malicious witness. 2 Do not follow the crowd in doing wrong. When you give testimony in a lawsuit, do not pervert justice by siding with the crowd.... 8 Do not accept a bribe, for a bribe blinds those who see and twists the words of the righteous.

For testimony to be honorable, it must resist any kind of manipulation that would distort the truth. God cites three sources here that can exert undue pressure and taint what a person says. Honorable testimony possesses these characteristics...

1. It is not influenced by malice (the hatred of "a wicked man").⁷

There are those who would lodge a formal complaint against someone simply to make trouble for that person, to make him worry or spend money on legal counsel. (Some in our church family experienced that kind of animosity not long ago.) God calls such people "wicked" and joining with them makes one party to their malice. Honorable testimony is not influenced by malice. Moreover...

2. It is not influenced by the majority ("the crowd").

When most people hold the same opinion of a situation—about what a person did or why he did it—contravening that collective wisdom can be difficult. Although there is often strength in numbers,⁸ what people think they know is not always accurate, and an actual witness must not let their view taint his. Honorable testimony is not influenced by the majority. Furthermore...

3. It is not influenced by money ("a bribe").

Bribery, whether in the form of cash or some promised favor, distorts the truth, changing what a witness says to give one side an advantage it should not have and twisting the outcome in a way that is not just. What makes bribery especially unacceptable for God's people is that, as Moses notes, it is contrary to God's character.

Deut 10:17 For the LORD your God... shows no partiality and accepts no bribes.

Those who accept a bribe, in whatever form, are acting contrary to God's character, the character they should be emulating. Honorable testimony is not influenced by money.

However dependable a person may be, however trustworthy his words, he is of no help to the cause of justice if he remains silent. His...

B. Testimony must be available (Lev 5:1).

Lev 5:1 If a person sins because he does not speak up when he hears a public charge to testify regarding something he has seen or learned about, he will be held responsible.

The expectation is that a potential witness will be forthcoming when the need arises. He will recognize that...

• It is a person's civic duty.

and he will speak up voluntarily. (The leaders of this congregation had opportunity to do that not long ago and acquitted themselves well.) Some people, of course, will not want to get involved, because they wish to remain anonymous or simply want to avoid the inconvenience.⁹ God, however, wants them involved and states that refusing to testify is a punishable offense. For anyone who shirks his civic duty: "he will be held responsible." This is not an empty threat, as God makes clear later in the chapter. After listing some other sins, God says...

Lev 5:5 When anyone is guilty in any of these ways, he must confess in what way he has sinned 6 and, as a penalty for the sin he has committed, he must bring to the LORD a female lamb or goat from the flock as a sin offering; and the priest shall make atonement for him for his sin.

Whatever the potential witness hoped to avoid by keeping silent, whether public scrutiny or inconvenience, will catch up with him, because he will have to make a public confession and a costly offering. It is a person's civic duty to make his testimony available.

Most people want to do the right thing, and will gladly give their testimony. Nevertheless, in a desire to serve the cause of justice, a person may err by trying to be too helpful for one side or the other. While not being overtly untruthful, he may shade his remarks in a way that portrays one party in a better light. For justice to prevail, though...

C. Testimony must be equitable (Lev 19:15).¹⁰

Lev 19:15 Do not pervert justice; do not show partiality to the poor or favoritism to the great, but judge your neighbor fairly.

The witness's task is to speak without bias, not to address what he might perceive as some larger social ill.¹¹ His statement should have no ulterior motive, no hidden agenda, "just the facts."¹² On the one hand...

1. It offers no special compensation for the poor.

On the other hand...

2. It offers no special consideration for the prosperous.

While Israelite law includes admonitions to protect those in the lowest stratum of society (e.g., widows, orphans, aliens),¹³ it offers no advantages to them.¹⁴ The same law applies to all.¹⁵ A person's testimony must be equitable as well.

It would certainly be nice if the prohibition against false testimony were enough to ensure true testimony. Unfortunately, there is always the possibility that a person will embellish what he witnessed or simply fabricate a story. There needs to be some way of certifying the veracity of what he says.

D. Testimony must be verifiable (Deut 19:15-18a).

Deut 19:15 One witness is not enough to convict a man accused of any crime or offense he may have committed. A matter must be established by the testimony of two or three witnesses. 16 If a malicious witness takes the stand to accuse a man of a crime, 17 the two men involved in the dispute must stand in the presence of the LORD before the priests and the judges who are in office at the time. 18a The judges must make a thorough investigation....

Whether for the judges of a court or for the elders of a congregation, their decisions, if they are to be just, may depend upon more information than a single witness can provide. At that point, they must be able to corroborate his statement.

1. It must be established by other witnesses.

The need for sufficient testimony is especially crucial in capital cases¹⁶

Num 35:30 Anyone who kills a person is to be put to death as a murderer only on the testimony of witnesses. But no one is to be put to death on the testimony of only one witness.

Multiple witnesses are required in a capital case. In a non-capital case, one that does not involve the death penalty, the testimony of a single witness may be sufficient, if the judges think so. If not...

2. It may be examined by other officials.

to determine how reliable it is. Either by additional witnesses or by further investigation, testimony must be verifiable.

What makes the commandment On Perjury important enough to be part of this list of ten may be because one situation where this applies is in a capital crime, which is certainly serious enough.¹⁷ It may also be because court testimony often includes an oath, which calls on God to certify the truthfulness of the witness and to punish that witness if he lies.¹⁸ Either way, like the eighth command, On Thievery, the penalty for violating the ninth command varies according to the severity of the crime, according to what is at stake in whatever judgment the court might decide.¹⁹

Deut 19:18b ...if the witness proves to be a liar, giving false testimony against his brother, 19 then do to him as he intended to do to his brother.... 21 Show no pity: life for life, eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot.

God regards perjury very seriously.

If you behave yourself, you will probably have little contact with the judicial system. If you ever get called as a witness, your testimony should, of course, be truthful. Still, those occasions will be rare, yet are they the only times you make a declaration about someone that can be true or false? While you may give formal testimony in court, you often give informal testimony in conversation. On those occasions, what you say about others should have similar qualities, because people expect you to be truthful, especially those who know you are a Christian; more importantly, God expects you to be truthful,²⁰ and it pleases Him when you are.

Prov 12:22 The LORD detests lying lips, but he delights in [those] who are truthful.

You probably had many conversations this week. Whether or not you remember them all, you should recall how you spoke about other people: about your boss, your classmate, your spouse, your teacher, your children, your parents.... Are you someone who is truthful?

The ninth commandment, On Perjury, has primary application to a legal setting, but it is not confined to that. There are other occasions when you give testimony about someone you know, other opportunities to be honest or dishonest, careful or careless. In each case, you decide.

Part 2

Some children's imagination is so vivid that it blurs the distinction between reality and fantasy, or between honesty and dishonesty.

A little girl had developed the bad habit of lying. After receiving a St. Bernard for her birthday, she told friends and neighbors that it was a lion. Her mother took her aside and said, "I told you not to lie. Now go to your room and tell God you're sorry and that you won't lie any more." The little girl went to her room and returned after a few minutes. "Did you tell God you're sorry?" the mother asked. "Yes, I did," the little girl replied.... "God said He has a hard time telling my dog from a lion, too."

Some kids are incorrigible...like some adults, which is why God places a command in His list of "top ten" that addresses honesty.

As we go through the Ten Commandments, especially if we try to recite them, we may expect the ninth one to read, "You shall not lie." While that command does appear elsewhere in scripture, the wording in the Decalogue is more specific: "You shall not give false testimony against your neighbor." The phrase "false testimony" brings to mind a court setting and the statement a witness may be called to give. That is probably what God intends when He issues the ninth precept, On Perjury. While this commandment is still very brief, elsewhere in the law, the Lord explains that statements His people make in legal settings must have four qualities.

A. Testimony must be honorable (Exod 23:1b-2, 8).

Exod 23:1b Do not help a wicked man by being a malicious witness. 2 Do not follow the crowd in doing wrong. When you give testimony in a lawsuit, do not pervert justice by siding with the crowd.... 8 Do not accept a bribe, for a bribe blinds those who see and twists the words of the righteous.

Honorable testimony resists any kind of manipulation that would distort the truth.

1. It is not influenced by malice (the hatred of "a wicked man").
2. It is not influenced by the majority ("the crowd").
3. It is not influenced by money ("a bribe").

However dependable a person may be, however trustworthy his words, he is of no help to the cause of justice if he remains silent. His...

B. Testimony must be available (Lev 5:1).

Lev 5:1 If a person sins because he does not speak up when he hears a public charge to testify regarding something he has seen or learned about, he will be held responsible.

The expectation is that a potential witness will be forthcoming when the need arises. He will recognize that...

• It is a person's civic duty.

and he will speak up voluntarily.

While most people want to do the right thing, a person may err by trying to be too helpful for one side or the other. For justice to prevail, though...

C. Testimony must be equitable (Lev 19:15).

Lev 19:15 Do not pervert justice; do not show partiality to the poor or favoritism to the great, but judge your neighbor fairly.

A witness's statement should be without bias.

1. It offers no special compensation for the poor. and...
2. It offers no special consideration for the prosperous.

Given the possibility that a person will embellish what he witnessed or simply fabricate a story. There needs to be some way of certifying what he says.

D. Testimony must be verifiable (Deut 19:15-18a).

Deut 19:15 One witness is not enough to convict a man accused of any crime or offense he may have committed. A matter must be established by the testimony of two or three witnesses. 16 If a malicious witness takes the stand to accuse a man of a crime, 17 the two men involved in the dispute must stand in the presence of the LORD before the priests and the judges who are in office at the time. 18a The judges must make a thorough investigation....

Rendering a just decision may require more than a single witness can provide or a way to corroborate his statement.

1. It must be established by other witnesses, and...
2. It may [need to] be examined by other officials.

While sometime you may give formal testimony in court, you often give informal testimony in conversation. On those occasions, what you say about others should have similar qualities, because people expect you to be truthful, especially those who know you are a Christian; more importantly, God expects you to be truthful, and it pleases Him when you are.

Prov 12:22 The LORD detests lying lips, but he delights in [those] who are truthful.

God prohibits deception in legal settings, but the courtroom is not the only place people offer testimony that others expect will be truthful. There are instances of dishonesty the prohibition against perjury does not cover directly but that God does condemn, indicating that He is particularly concerned about truth-telling. In addition to the courtroom...

II. God prohibits deception in other settings.

One such setting concerns the loss of personal property. In Leviticus 6, He says...

A. Do not engage in stealing (Lev 6:2-5).

We covered this passage in our treatment of the eighth commandment, On Thievery. It is relevant here as well because lying often accompanies theft. In an attempt to conceal one misdeed, a person will commit another.

Lev 6:2 If anyone sins and is unfaithful to the LORD by deceiving his neighbor about something entrusted to him or left in his care or stolen, or if he cheats him, 3 or if he finds lost property and lies about it, or if he swears falsely, or if he commits any such sin that people may do-4 when he thus sins and becomes guilty, he must return what he has stolen or taken by extortion, or what was entrusted to him, or the lost property he found, 5 or whatever it was he swore falsely about. He must make restitution in full, add a fifth of the value to it and give it all to the owner on the day he presents his guilt offering [to the LORD].

When considering the affect of a crime like theft, the focus is generally on the loss of property. While that is certainly important, and the penalty here includes restoration or restitution, there is another affect Israelite law recognizes that is equally important, the cost to the perpetrator. Not only does this sin involve two transgressions—theft and lying—it offends two parties: the victim and the Lord. In fact...

• It is disloyal to the Lord.

For those who are not part of God's people, this second affect would be of little concern. Pagans do not care what He thinks, at least while they are still living. For those who are part of God's people, this second affect should of great concern, especially while they are still living. It is bad enough to double-cross a neighbor; it is far worse to double-cross the Lord, and it is important to rectify the offense while that is still possible—to satisfy the victim and the Lord.

There was an ad campaign in the 70s for Chiffon Margarine that featured Dena Dietrich as Mother Nature. After tasting the product, she assures the narrator that it is "too sweet, too creamy to be margarine" and must be butter. When he informs her that it is, in fact, margarine and not butter, she issues thunder and lightening to express her displeasure and says, "It's not nice to fool Mother Nature!"

While you may deceive a neighbor or even Mother Nature, you cannot deceive the Lord. David addresses God in Ps 139, saying...

Ps 139:2 You know when I sit and when I rise; you perceive my thoughts from afar. 3 You discern my going out and my lying down; you are familiar with all my ways. 4 Before a word is on my tongue you know it completely, O LORD.

David is referring here to God's omniscience, the fact that He knows everything. You cannot lie to God. He sees through any attempt to deceive. Theft often leads to lying, a form of false witness, which God forbids.

Perhaps the most common and destructive way that people bear false witness outside the courtroom is by maligning someone's character. Here, too, God takes a dim view of those who engage in such activity and warns...

B. Do not traffic in slander (Lev 19:16a).²¹

This is one of the most insidious and debilitating forces, sapping the life out of otherwise healthy relationships. So God says in...

Lev 19:16a Do not go about spreading slander among your people.

Often disguised in half-truths and innuendos, slander undermines relationships by casting doubt on peoples' character.²² Unlike the previous kind of deceit, which attempts to conceal sin, this kind is on the move, spreading like some contagious disease, and...

• It is damaging to the congregation.

At the beginning of the twentieth century, Mary Mallon, an Irish immigrant, contracted a mild case of typhoid fever. She worked as a cook in several households, moving from place to place as members of each household caught the disease and sometimes died. Although confronted with the possibility that she was a carrier, she refused to believe it or to get treatment, convinced that she was being unfairly persecuted. Later, Mary went to work for a large hospital, where she infected even more people, some of whom also died. Finally, public health officials quarantined her for life. Typhoid Mary, as she came to be known, eventually died of pneumonia not typhoid, but an autopsy found live typhoid bacteria in her gallbladder, the organ that produces bile.²³ (Editor n.d.a)

Slander, like typhoid, can infect a church and cause significant damage.²⁴ The carrier, like Mary, may refuse to recognize the source of the problem or to get treatment, even after being confronted. At that point, those responsible for the spiritual health of a congregation must act, lest the infection cause irreparable
damage. As the Apostle Paul writes...²⁵

1 Cor 5:11 ...you must not associate with anyone who calls himself a brother but is...a slanderer.... With such a [person] do not even eat.

Slander is a form of false witness, which God forbids.

Another setting, outside the courtroom, in which it is possible to bear false witness is business. Whether a company is large or small, the admonition in scripture is...

C. Do not cheat in sales (Lev 19:36a).²⁶

In our treatment of the eighth commandment, On Thievery, we covered the responsibility of the customer to pay his bills promptly if a job is done well, especially to individuals who need those payments to survive. This ninth commandment, On Perjury, has implication for the proprietor of a business to deal honestly with his customers. God says in...

Lev 19:36a Use honest scales and honest weights, an honest ephah and an honest hin.

While the specific reference is to selling agricultural products, the principle of being truthful applies to all business dealings. Overcharging for goods or services may increase revenues in the short run, but the loss in good will and the damage to one's reputation will exact a greater price in the long run. People will eventually catch on to a business that is dishonest, because...

• It is demeaning to the customer.

As new homeowners, Linda and I are encountering a host of decisions we had not faced before. Recently, several items have required our immediate attention, from repairing the septic system to replacing a collapsing porch with a permanent addition. One of the concerns with such projects, especially when I have neither the time nor the expertise to do it myself, is finding competent and reliable help. I wonder: "Will the person who does the job cut corners or do it well? Will he be dishonest or honest?" Thankfully, our experience has been good, and for our most current projects, the questions I might otherwise ask do not arise, because the person working is both competent and reliable.

We have a few businessmen in our congregation, people who set their own hours as well as their own prices. As your pastor, I am pleased—more than pleased—I am proud (if I may be that) because I know your character and can say without hesitation that you "[u]se honest scales and honest weights." I know also that you often go beyond what is required, even when there may be no immediate advantage for you. In this way, you exemplify Paul's admonition to the believers at Colossae...

Col 3:23 Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for men, 24a since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward.

Cheating is a form of false witness, which God forbids and which you avoid.

One more way to bear false witness outside the courtroom is in conversation or in a presentation. For this example, we turn to what the Lord says through the prophet Jeremiah...

D. Do not mislead in speech (Jer 9:8-9a).²⁷

This is broader than slander, because it deals with more than the defamation of someone's character. This is saying one thing and thinking another, indicating one course of action while intending to do the opposite. Just before the Babylonian exile, God assesses the deplorable state of Judean society in...

Jer 9:8 "Their tongue is a deadly arrow; it speaks with deceit. With his mouth each speaks cordially to his neighbor, but in his heart he sets a trap for him. 9a Should I not punish them for this?" declares the LORD.

This is not accidentally giving a person bad directions. This is intentionally directing him to a bad destination. The phrase "set a trap" is a military term, as when Joshua lured the army of Ai into an ambush.²⁸ That may be expected against enemy forces in war, but it is not appropriate between neighbors. To speak in such a way as to mislead someone deliberately is wrong.²⁹

• It is duplicitous to the listener.

The current problem with Iran's nuclear program is a case in point. Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad claims his country needs uranium enrichment to produce fuel for peaceful purposes, to power nuclear reactors that would generate electricity. (Associated Press 2006c) He cannot explain, though, why his country needs that capability. Iran has 10% of the world's confirmed oil reserves and is OPEC's second largest oil producer (after Saudi Arabia), exporting over 3 million barrels of oil per day. Iran also has the world's second largest natural gas reserves (after Russia). (Editor n.d.a) Iran does not need nuclear reactors to generate electricity. Could President Ahmadinejad be dissembling, prevaricating, deliberately concealing his true intentions?³⁰ There is little doubt that his claims about Iran's peaceful intentions are duplicitous.³¹

What happens on the international level also takes place on the local level. You encounter people whose motives are less than honorable, who say one thing and do another with no regard for the consequences. In contrast to how others misbehave, "by... cunning and craftiness.. .in their deceitful scheming" (Eph 4:14), your words must not mislead.³² As God says through the prophet Zechariah...

Zech 8:16b Speak the truth to each other and... 17a do not plot evil against your neighbor...³³

Misleading speech is a form of false witness, which God forbids.

What you may not realize, or want to admit, is that deceitfulness places you at odds with God. It estranges you from God, and it ultimately excludes you from His kingdom. As He says in...

Ps 101:7 No one who practices deceit will dwell in my house; no one who speaks falsely will stand in my presence.

Jesus also mentions this exclusion from God's presence but indicates where such people will be...

Rev 21:8b ...all liars ... will be in the fiery lake of burning sulfur... .

By the same token, truthfulness places you in accord with God. It identifies you with God, and it ultimately imparts to you His favor. Just as Isaiah calls Him "the God of truth" (65: 16a-b),[35] to be like Him, "you must put off falsehood and speak truthfully" (Eph 4:25). Doing that places you in a most advantageous position,
because...³⁶

Prov 12:22 The LORD...delights in [those] who are truthful.

In your conversations this week, as you spoke to others or about others, were you disloyal or damaging or demeaning or duplicitous? Or were you someone who is truthful?

For the Bibliography and Endnotes see the pdf here