"There are six things the LORD hates, seven that are detestable to him: haughty eyes, a lying tongue, hands that shed innocent blood, a heart that devises wicked schemes, feet that are quick to rush into evil, a false witness who pours out lies and a man who stirs up dissension among brothers." Proverbs 6:16-19 (New International Version)
I thought the 9th commandment was “do not lie." So if my husband asks if I paid the bills; the policeman asks if I was speeding; or the kids ask if I’ll save their artwork, I need to tell the truth in order to follow that commandment. Check. Done.
But the NIV instead says “you shall not give false testimony against your neighbor." NLT: “You must not testify falsely against your neighbor." The Message: “No lies about your neighbor." Throughout the NIV version of the Bible, when I look up “false testimony” or “witness," I find a very formal situation- sometimes a trial.
Formal situations often start from the informal. A friend of mine stands accused of a felony--flashing children in a public place. It started with a nanny who was there with her girlfriend and the kids she was watching. She was across a large room from him but she is positive it was him. Two weeks later, the police arrested a man of similar description who was caught at the same library flashing people. That man admitted to doing it before in that exact location.
But the nanny told her employer she was sure and now, it seems, she can’t back out of her statement. She became sure when a police officer showed my friend’s photo to her before the lineup. Lo and behold during the line-up 30 minutes later, his was the face she chose. She doesn’t want her employer to think she wasn’t paying attention. . .
So 18 months later, my friend's life is still on hold. The prosecutor can’t get anywhere because there really is no evidence. But he can’t drop the case either – he committed, he dug his heals in, he was positive this guy was scum and said so. The mother of the children is dedicated to seeing this through, too. And so a year and a half into this, this family’s neighbors all think the dad is a sick person. His kids and wife are ostracized. Because a woman, chatting with her friend in the library, felt guilty and said she was positive.
This doesn’t happen every day to us -or does it? The other day my daughter returned from summer camp and told me that her counselor was a "barking drill sergeant." The stress created by this woman was so bad that another child in my daughter’s cabin wrote home about the leader’s constant biting comments. So rushed was their every moment that my daughter, who has a history of rampant tooth decay, was not even allowed the time to floss her teeth.
When I called the camp, they had me speak to the counselor, who was beyond kind. “I never raise my voice unless it’s a life-threatening situation,” she said. Bells went off in my head. The counselor had to stay with preteen girls 24 hours a day and manage them every waking minute. I’m a mom. I thought, “Come on – you never have a bad day? Never raise your voice? Hmmm.”
Yet it appears my daughter’s story also had some inconsistencies. She could have flossed in the morning or during rest time if it was so important. "Maybe she was talking instead of flossing at night in the bathroom," the camp director suggested. That wouldn’t be the first time she was talking instead of doing her task.
Each person, in exaggerating the truth, bore false witness – they did not represent their fellow man (or woman or girl) accurately - and to very serious results. A man and his family are devastated. A child has lost the complete trust of her mother. A camp will lose business.
I thought the 9th commandment was “do not lie." So if my husband asks if I paid the bills; the policeman asks if I was speeding; or the kids ask if I’ll save their artwork, I need to tell the truth in order to follow that commandment. Check. Done.
But the NIV instead says “you shall not give false testimony against your neighbor." NLT: “You must not testify falsely against your neighbor." The Message: “No lies about your neighbor." Throughout the NIV version of the Bible, when I look up “false testimony” or “witness," I find a very formal situation- sometimes a trial.
Formal situations often start from the informal. A friend of mine stands accused of a felony--flashing children in a public place. It started with a nanny who was there with her girlfriend and the kids she was watching. She was across a large room from him but she is positive it was him. Two weeks later, the police arrested a man of similar description who was caught at the same library flashing people. That man admitted to doing it before in that exact location.
But the nanny told her employer she was sure and now, it seems, she can’t back out of her statement. She became sure when a police officer showed my friend’s photo to her before the lineup. Lo and behold during the line-up 30 minutes later, his was the face she chose. She doesn’t want her employer to think she wasn’t paying attention. . .
So 18 months later, my friend's life is still on hold. The prosecutor can’t get anywhere because there really is no evidence. But he can’t drop the case either – he committed, he dug his heals in, he was positive this guy was scum and said so. The mother of the children is dedicated to seeing this through, too. And so a year and a half into this, this family’s neighbors all think the dad is a sick person. His kids and wife are ostracized. Because a woman, chatting with her friend in the library, felt guilty and said she was positive.
This doesn’t happen every day to us -or does it? The other day my daughter returned from summer camp and told me that her counselor was a "barking drill sergeant." The stress created by this woman was so bad that another child in my daughter’s cabin wrote home about the leader’s constant biting comments. So rushed was their every moment that my daughter, who has a history of rampant tooth decay, was not even allowed the time to floss her teeth.
When I called the camp, they had me speak to the counselor, who was beyond kind. “I never raise my voice unless it’s a life-threatening situation,” she said. Bells went off in my head. The counselor had to stay with preteen girls 24 hours a day and manage them every waking minute. I’m a mom. I thought, “Come on – you never have a bad day? Never raise your voice? Hmmm.”
Yet it appears my daughter’s story also had some inconsistencies. She could have flossed in the morning or during rest time if it was so important. "Maybe she was talking instead of flossing at night in the bathroom," the camp director suggested. That wouldn’t be the first time she was talking instead of doing her task.
Each person, in exaggerating the truth, bore false witness – they did not represent their fellow man (or woman or girl) accurately - and to very serious results. A man and his family are devastated. A child has lost the complete trust of her mother. A camp will lose business.
Pray: Lord Jesus, bind our tongues that we might only say what is completely true. As we speak, help us to see that our words are spoken in your court.
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