The Bible has a great deal to say about lying. This study gathers passages from across Scripture and sets them out for reading and reflection.
What Scripture Says
The Bible speaks about lying in many different settings, and the passages gathered here show how deeply the issue runs through Scripture. In Proverbs 6:17, a lying tongue appears in a list of things the Lord hates, set alongside a proud look and hands that shed innocent blood. That placement is striking: deceit is not a minor failing but a moral evil that God detests. The psalmist echoes this hatred in Psalm 31:6, saying, “I have hated them that regard lying vanities: but I trust in the LORD.” Here lying is contrasted with trust; the one who clings to falsehood cannot at the same time rest in God.
Lying also appears as a mark of rebellion against God’s word. Isaiah 30:9 describes a people who are “lying children, children that will not hear the law of the LORD.” Their deceit is not merely a matter of words but of a whole posture toward God—refusing to listen to Him. Jeremiah 7:4 warns against trusting in “lying words,” specifically the repeated claim, “The temple of the LORD, The temple of the LORD, The temple of the LORD, are these.” The people were using religious language to reassure themselves while living in disobedience. Ezekiel 13:6 exposes another form of lying: prophets who claimed, “The LORD saith,” when the LORD had not sent them. Their “lying divination” gave false hope and led others astray.
The Scriptures also reveal that lying can be instigated by spiritual powers. In 1 Kings 22:22 and 2 Chronicles 18:21, a spirit offers to be “a lying spirit in the mouth of all his prophets,” and the Lord permits it to entice Ahab. This does not make God the author of lies, but it shows that deceit is a real force in the world, capable of deceiving even those who claim to speak for God. Daniel 2:9 records a pagan king accusing wise men of preparing “lying and corrupt words,” showing that lying is a universal human temptation, not limited to Israel. Meanwhile, Judges 9:35 and Lamentations 3:10 use “lying” in the sense of lying in wait—hidden, predatory deception. Taken together, these verses portray lying as hateful to God, characteristic of rebellion, capable of false prophecy, and dangerous to those who trust in it.
Living It Out
For the ordinary reader, these passages call for honesty that goes beyond simply not telling falsehoods. Jeremiah’s warning about “lying words” challenges us to examine whether we use religious language to cover disobedience. We may say the right things about God while our lives tell a different story. Ezekiel’s example warns against claiming God’s authority for our own ideas, whether in teaching, advising, or simply speaking for Him when He has not sent us. Proverbs and Psalms together remind us that God’s hatred of lying is not arbitrary; deceit destroys trust, damages relationships, and ultimately turns us away from the Lord, who is truth.
Practically, this means we should be careful with our words, not only avoiding outright lies but also refusing to manipulate, exaggerate, or hide behind vague statements to protect ourselves. It means letting our “yes” be yes and our “no” be no, and being willing to speak truth even when it is costly. It also means testing what we hear: not every voice that claims to speak for God is from God. The remedy for lying is not merely trying harder to be honest but cultivating trust in the LORD, as Psalm 31:6 sets before us. When we trust Him, we no longer need to lie to secure ourselves.
Reflection
- Where in my life am I tempted to use “lying words”—religious or otherwise—to cover disobedience or protect my own comfort?
- Do I test the voices that claim to speak for God, or do I accept them simply because they sound confident and spiritual?
Verses to Consider
- Genesis 29:2 — And he looked, and behold a well in the field, and, lo, there were three flocks of sheep lying by it; for out of that well they watered the flocks: and a great stone was upon the well’s mouth.
- Exodus 23:5 — If thou see the ass of him that hateth thee lying under his burden, and wouldest forbear to help him, thou shalt surely help with him.
- Numbers 31:17 — Now therefore kill every male among the little ones, and kill every woman that hath known man by lying with him.
- Deuteronomy 21:1 — If one be found slain in the land which the LORD thy God giveth thee to possess it, lying in the field, and it be not known who hath slain him:
- Judges 9:35 — And Gaal the son of Ebed went out, and stood in the entering of the gate of the city: and Abimelech rose up, and the people that were with him, from lying in wait.
- 1 Kings 22:22 — And the LORD said unto him, Wherewith? And he said, I will go forth, and I will be a lying spirit in the mouth of all his prophets. And he said, Thou shalt persude him, and prevail also: go forth, and do so.
- 2 Chronicles 18:21 — And he said, I will go out, and be a lying spirit in the mouth of all his prophets. And the Lord said, Thou shalt entice him, and thou shalt also prevail: go out, and do even so.
- Psalms 31:6 — I have hated them that regard lying vanities: but I trust in the LORD.
- Proverbs 6:17 — A proud look, a lying tongue, and hands that shed innocent blood,
- Isaiah 30:9 — That this is a rebellious people, lying children, children that will not hear the law of the LORD:
- Jeremiah 7:4 — Trust ye not in lying words, saying, The temple of the LORD, The temple of the LORD, The temple of the LORD, are these.
- Lamentations 3:10 — He was unto me as a bear lying in wait, and as a lion in secret places.
- Ezekiel 13:6 — They have seen vanity and lying divination, saying, The LORD saith: and the LORD hath not sent them: and they have made others to hope that they would confirm the word.
- Daniel 2:9 — But if ye will not make known unto me the dream, there is but one decree for you: for ye have prepared lying and corrupt words to speak before me, till the time be changed: therefore tell me the dream, and I shall know that ye can shew me the interpretation thereof.
Where These Come From
These verses are drawn from different parts of the Bible on purpose. A subject is rarely settled by a single line; the whole counsel of Scripture gives the shape of it.