The Biblical idea (and jewish idea) of lying were somewhat different from the broader modern definition. And even our modern definition of lying tends to exclude jokes, games that require bluffing, or other forms of socially consensual deception for the sake of fun.
For a jew, it was actually impolite and cruel to tell a friend "you made a bad purchase", even if they had. The duty of love towards a friend trumped cold 'truthfulness', and one was to compliment the purchase. [Advice before the purchase was perfectly acceptable].
Or, for another example, God omits part of the story when repeating what Sarah said in her heart to Abraham, only giving Abraham the part where Sarah thinks herself old, and not passing on the part where Sarah thinks Abraham is old. (
Gen 18:12-13)
Due to this omission, Jewish tradition holds that omitting part of the truth for purposes of tact are more in line with God's heart of compassion and kindness then telling the whole/frank truth if it will hurt someone to no purpose.
Scripture condemns as lies such things as:
False witness in court (
Deut 19:15-21):
This is a severe form of lie, as a person's life, future, or reputation could hang in the balance. Any mistruth in a court of law is never acceptable. (Although, as Jesus showed, one could remain silent (
Mark 14:57-64), and as Paul showed, one could tailor one's argument to the court rather than directly answer questions (
Acts 23:26). Jesus is perhaps the best example of being indirect and avoiding direct answers, preferring to get to the heart of issues, as he often answered questions with yet another question).
False rumors, slander, gossip:
(
Ex 23:1,
Lev 19:16,
Prov 26:22,
Jer 9:4-6): This includes any lies or exaggerations done under the cover of 'prayer requests' or 'concern'. It is better not to bring something up at all the facts of the case could be misconstrued, or of telling the matter is going to lead to the tale spreading rather than reconciliation. (
Prov 11:13)
Malicious lies: Lies deliberately done to harm another person - whether to hurt their reputation, or just to hurt them, such as belittling sarcasm. (
I Cor 13:6,
Eph 4:32,
Isaiah 59:3,
Prov 26:26)
Distorted perception and action:
(
Ex 32:7-10,
Isaiah 5:20-23,
Rom 1:21-32)
When our hearts harden to God's truth and light, then our vision becomes distorted, and our actions eventually become more and more depraved.
Lies to deceive into error:
(
Gen 3:1-7,
Isaiah 5:18-19,
Jer 9:8,
Titus 1:10-11,
Matt 24:24)
Lies of false image/hypocrisy:
(
Matt 6:5,
Matt 6:16,
Matt 23:28)
Yet there are many times in scripture where people (or spirits) acting on behalf of God, used other forms of deception as a means to an end. It was not automatically considered wrong, and is even commended at times:
(
Ex 1:15-22,
II Kings 10:18-31,
Exodus 8:20-28,
1 Sam 16:1-13,
II Chron 18:18-22,
James 2:25,
Judges 4:18-22, etc)
Ex 1:15-22: The midwives
feared God, and therefore let the boys live and lied to Pharoah about the circumstances. The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom (
Ps 11:10,
Prov 1:7). God blessed the midwives and gave them families because they feared Him.
II Kings 10:18-31: Jehu deceives the prophets of Ball by pretending to be a Ball worshiper and summoning all the prophets. He then has his men kill all of them, tear down the temple, and demolish the statue of Baal. God commended him in this instance and did not admonish him for his deception.
Ex 5:1,
Ex 8:20-28: God and Moses both know that the plan is for Pharoah to drive the Israelites from the country - but God has Moses only give Pharaoh the repeated command to allow the people to go worship at a temporary festival.
1 Sam 16:1-13:
God tells Samuel how to mislead Saul and say he's going to make a sacrifice and omit his going to anoint a new king.
II Chron 18:18-22: God asks for someone to entice Ahab to war, then gives permission to a deceiving spirit to deceive Ahab's prophets
Josh 2:1-15,
Josh 6:25,
James 2:25: Rahab is considered
righteous for hiding the spies and sending them off a different way than their pursuers
Judges 4:18-22: Jael promises safety and rest to Sisera, then murders him, thus receiving the glory for the victory.
John 7:6-10:
Jesus tells his brothers he isn't going to the festival, then goes later in secret.
This is why it is not only important to understand the culture and context of scripture as written [ie the difference between false witness and a lie in general, or how a lie was defined in Bible times], but it is of even more importance to subject everything to the moral law.
"Love the Lord your God with all your heart and soul and mind and strength, and love your neighbor as yourself". (
Mark 12:29-31)
On this hangs all the law and the prophets. (
Matt 22:34-37)
So, is a lie intending to harm your neighbor? Then it is a malicious lie. Is it intended for the benefit and love of your neighbor (such as the surprise party) or to protect the innocent? Then it is not a "lie" of the type the Bible condemns.
If someone lies to protect someone else's life from an unjust genocide or uses tact, they are still following the Royal Law. Their heart is towards God and towards each other. As wisdom and prayer is needed in these situations, it helps to remember that we walk by the spirit not by a list of rules (
Rom 8:3-5), and that we discern the will of God by abiding in Christ (
Rom 12:1-2).
It comes down to a matter of the heart and subjection to God. Truth remains truth, but as Jesus points out to Satan, it is the higher truth, the eternal truth that matters. Temporal truths only stem from the eternal - not the other way around. In none of the numerous biblical examples was temporal truth changed (The spies really were under Rahab's straw, the midwives were lying through their teeth to pharoah, Jehu's plan to slaughter the prophets of Baal was quite opposite from his stated plan to worship Baal, etc]. Yet, the temporal took a back seat in view of God, the eternal plan, and what was morally right.
What does the Bible say about lying? Is lying a sin?
Why did God condone lying at times when it's clear in the Bible that He hates lying?