Exodus 20:16
"You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor"
Bearing false witness against your neighbor encompasses speaking untruths knowingly or sharing true yet hurtful statements that bring nothing good.
Central to this commandment is the wise and loving use of the gift of communication granted by God. It means you must use this gift to promote love, kindness, and understanding.
Conversely, actions such as distorting the truth, spreading gossip, omitting relevant information, embellishing facts, or altering the truth through exaggeration all contradict this commandment, especially if they are not used for the purpose of love. However, if telling the truth will hurt the innocent, it is better to say nothing. If there is no choice and you must say something it is better to mislead the coming wickedness rather than be complicit in it. We see an example of misdirection being tolerated and even rewarded by God in the story of Abraham:
Genesis 12:11-13
And it came to pass, when he was come near to Egypt, that he said unto his wife Sarai, Behold now, I know thou art a fair woman to look upon: Therefore it shall come to pass, when the Egyptians shall see thee, that they shall say, this is his wife: and they will kill me, but they will save thee alive. Say, I pray thee, thou art my sister: that it may be well with me for thy sake; and my soul shall live because of thee.
There is no reason to believe Abraham was misjudging the Egyptians. There were most likely stories in the lands he traveled on the way to Egypt stating as much so he had reason to fear for his life.
You can see it at play again in the story of Joshua chapter 2 where Rahab the harlot lied about the Hebrew spies' whereabouts to save their lives, in turn saving her own family and earning her a place in the lineage of the Messiah. I'll reiterate the message here for clarity: using God's gift of communication to thwart or reduce evil is good.
The commandment calls for the responsible and compassionate use of communication to build positive relationships and nurture understanding among individuals. Simply put, the use of communication is for the purpose of love.
This commentary is the basis to the children's poem book God's Law Revealed in Poems now available on Amazon. If you read and enjoy this book, please leave a review on Amazon to help others guide their children towards the light.