📖 Biblical Definition
Lying is the deliberate utterance of falsehood — an offense the LORD hates. It stands in the sevenfold list of Proverbs 6:16-19: "These six things doth the LORD hate: yea, seven are an abomination unto him... A lying tongue... A false witness that speaketh lies." It breaks the ninth commandment (Exodus 20:16). Christ traces it to its source: "He was a murderer from the beginning, and abode not in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaketh a lie, he speaketh of his own: for he is a liar, and the father of it" (John 8:44). Lying is condemned absolutely; liars are excluded from the New Jerusalem: "and all liars, shall have their part in the lake" (Revelation 21:8, 27).
📜 Webster 1828 Definition
LY'ING, ppr.
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Telling falsehood; making known what one knows to be untrue. Lying, in scripture, is a heinous sin and inconsistent with the character of the children of God.
📖 Key Scripture
Proverbs 6:16 — "These six things doth the Lord hate... a lying tongue."
Ephesians 4:25 — "Wherefore putting away lying, speak every man truth with his neighbour."
John 8:44 — "When he speaketh a lie, he speaketh of his own: for he is a liar, and the father of it."
Revelation 21:8 — "All liars, shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone."
⚠️ Modern Corruption
Modern culture grades lies by motive; Scripture grades them by their author — the devil.
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John 8:44 is one of Christ's most direct sentences about the devil: when he speaketh a lie, he speaketh of his own: for he is a liar, and the father of it. Every lie has a paternity. Modern culture distinguishes white lies, social lies, kind lies, strategic lies; the Bible refuses the gradation. Truth-telling is the children of God's default; lying is the devil's mother tongue.
Ephesians 4:25 commands the alternative: putting away lying, speak every man truth with his neighbour. The grammar is active. The believer puts off lying like a garment and puts on truth as the new clothing. This includes small lies (tell them I am not home), business lies (inflated invoice), social lies (false flattery), and ministry lies (curated authenticity). All have the same paternity. Tell the truth. The Father of lights is also the Father of truth.
🔗 Greek & Hebrew Roots
Hebrew kazav (H3577); Greek pseudomai (G5574).
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Usage
"Every lie has a paternity; modern culture grades by motive, Scripture by source."
"Truth-telling is the children of God's default; lying is the devil's mother tongue."
"White lies are still lies; small lies still inherit the same Father."