Short Sermons on the Ten Commandments by W. A. McCutchen

Review and Herald Publishing Association · Tacoma Park Station, Washington, D. C. · Jun 13, 1907

Short Sermons on the Ten Commandments

By W. A. McCutchen

The Ninth Commandment

W. A. MC CUTCHEN

“THOU shalt not bear false witness against thy neighbor.” Ex. 20:16. Among the things which God says he hates is “a lying tongue.” Prov. 6:16, 17. To God and decent men it is one of the most abominable things. Perhaps equally with stealing, it shows the perverseness, the low moral status, of the individual given to it—how far removed he is from God and his standard. Equally with stealing, this sin of lying shows one up in his true character, and shows it to be no better than that of the thief. And to the man of truthfulness, integrity, and honor, no character is more contemptible or excites more disgust than the thief and liar.

But we are not so much concerned as to what man thinks of this. It is not this which determines the right or wrong of a thing. The question is, What does God think of lying and the liar? See with what characters he classes them, and what is to be their lot at last. “But the fearful, and unbelieving, and the abominable, and murderers, and whoremongers, and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars, shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone: which is the second death.” “And there shall in no wise enter into it [the city] anything that defileth, neither whatsoever worketh abomination, or maketh a lie.” Rev. 21:8, 27. “For without are dogs, and sorcerers, and whoremongers, and murderers, and idolaters, and whosoever loveth and maketh a lie.” Rev. 22:15.

From the last quotation we see that the classification and condemnations belong to him who “loveth” a lie as well as to him that “maketh” it. In fact, he who loves a lie will not be long in learning to make it, for one will generally make what he loves, if he can. There are many persons who think they would not tell or originate a lie for any consideration, and who in their minds and intentions are really above it, and yet they may hear one started by some one else, and be very active in repeating it without stopping to ascertain whether it is a lie. Especially is this true if it is something sensational or wicked against another, and whose repetition will hurt or injure him. And why? It is because of his “love” for that kind of abomination, and his lack of regard for his fellow man. As shown above, God holds him who loves a lie equally as guilty and as unrighteous in character as he who “maketh” it.

If a man is not absolutely truthful in his heart, and does not love the principle of truthfulness, he is the opposite, and has a spirit hated of God. One of the things said of him who shall at last dwell with God is, He “speaketh the truth in his heart.” Ps. 15: 2. It is in his heart to do it everywhere and all the time, and to speak nothing else, it matters not what the circumstances are. “Speaketh the truth in his heart”—not simply in words when he doesn’t want to, but which he is forced to by circumstances for fear of detection in a lie if he does not. This scripture suggests the idea of having the very principle of truthfulness and integrity in the heart; and when such is not the case, one is a liar—on occasion.

And there are so many ways one can tell a lie—by a nod of the head, by a wink of the eye, by silence when that silence may be taken to mean the opposite of what you know it ought to mean, and when a word is needed to correct and disabuse a wrong impression, or by speaking when silence ought to be maintained—any way that we give or allow another to receive a wrong impression from us. “He that speaketh the truth in his heart” is the Scriptural standard.

It is bad enough to lie under any circumstances, and with reference to anything; but the form of lying the commandment deals with is that “against thy neighbor.” This is the greatest of all evils of its class; and as the greater always includes the lesser, so the Lord simply names that lying which stands at the head in wickedness, in mischievous abomination, and of course the prohibition of that covers all other lying.

What mischief is wrought by a disregard of this command—by doing the thing it forbids. How the neighbor’s interests are overlooked, his good name assailed, his character dissected, and his mind disturbed by the “lying tongue” which God and true men hate. No wonder the Lord speaks of this kind of tongue as “a fire, a world of iniquity: so is the tongue among our members, that it defileth the whole body, and setteth on fire the course of nature; and it is set on fire of hell.” James 3:6. “A false witness that speaketh lies, and he that soweth discord among brethren” (Prov. 6:19), are in the list of the things God hates, and are coupled by this language inseparably together.

The foul tongue of the liar has no more right to try to take away the good name and tranquillity of a neighbor, or tell falsehoods that are prejudicial to his interests, than the common thief has to steal his property; for every man has a right to enjoy these until he forfeits them himself. Thus we see that this command also is based on the natural rights of man, and he who would try to

deprive him of these rights by lying against him not only shows himself cowardly and base, but extremely wicked. At any rate, the Lord counted it so sinful that he thundered from Sinai, “Thou shalt not bear false witness against thy neighbor.” Let not decent men, and especially professed Christians, be guilty of it in any form.

Keene, Tex.