Is it ever right to lie?

Response

The Bible does not contain any instances where lying is considered acceptable. The ninth commandment prohibits bearing false witness: “Thou shalt not bear false witness against thy neighbour.” (Exodus 20:16). Proverbs 6:16-19 identifies “a lying tongue” and “a false witness who pours out lies” as two of the seven abominations to the Lord. Love “rejoices with the truth”: “rejoiceth not in iniquity, but rejoiceth in the truth;” (1 Corinthians 13:6). Additional Scriptures that condemn lying include Psalm 119:29, 163; 120:2; Proverbs 12:22; 13:5; Ephesians 4:25; Colossians 3:9; and Revelation 21:8. The Bible provides various examples of liars, from Jacob’s deceit in Genesis 27 to the deception of Ananias and Sapphira in Acts 5. Consistently, falsehood leads to suffering, consequences, and judgment.

There are two instances in the Bible where lying appears to lead to positive outcomes. For instance, the lie told by the Hebrew midwives to Pharaoh results in the Lord’s blessing upon them (Exodus 1:15-21), potentially saving many Hebrew babies. Another example is Rahab’s lie to protect the Israelite spies in Joshua 2:5. It is crucial to recognize that God does not endorse these lies. Despite the favorable consequences, the Bible does not commend the lies themselves. The Bible does not endorse lying as morally right. Simultaneously, the Bible does not categorically rule out the possibility of lying being an acceptable choice.

The question remains: are there circumstances where lying is justified? The most common example of this dilemma

Mercy in the Midst of Misery comes from the life of Corrie ten Boom in Nazi-occupied Holland. Essentially, the story is this: Corrie ten Boom is hiding Jews in her home to protect them from the Nazis. Nazi soldiers come to her home and ask her if she knows where any Jews are hiding. What is she to do? Should she tell the truth and allow the Nazis to capture the Jews she was trying to protect? Or, should she lie and deny that she knows anything about them?

In an instance such as this, where lying may be the only possible way to prevent a horrible evil, perhaps lying would be the best of the available options. Such an instance would be somewhat similar to the lies of the Hebrew midwives and Rahab. In an evil world, and in a desperate situation, it may be the right thing to commit a lesser evil, lying, in order to prevent a much greater evil. However, it must be noted that such instances are extremely rare. And, even in those situations, lying would still be a sin because it would still be violating the character of the God of truth «that by two immutable things, in which it was impossible for God to lie, we might have a strong consolation, who have fled for refuge to lay hold upon the hope set before us: », (Hebrews 6:18). The vast majority of lies are due to people seeking to protect themselves, promote themselves, or harm someone else. That is why the Bible so clearly, strongly, and consistently condemns lying as a sin.