Christians of the New Covenant (Ephesians 4:25; Colossians 3:9), just like the Israelites of the Old Covenant (Leviticus 19:11), are prohibited from lying to one another, because honesty within God’s community is essential for harmony and unity. Verses like Proverbs 12:22 also suggest that general truthfulness and trustworthiness should be habitual practices of God’s people toward everyone, even those outside the faith, so as to accurately show off the true nature of God, who cannot lie (Titus 1:2). This supports our Christian witness.

However, this does not mean that the prohibition against lying is a Kantian categorical imperative. In other words, it does not apply 100% of the time no matter what. In fact, Rahab was praised for lying to her political leaders in order to protect God’s spies (James 2:25). Hiding Jews in one’s attic during the Holocaust and lying to the Nazis about it was similarly righteous.

Moreover, the ninth commandment, which is often misquoted as “Thou shalt not lie,” does not actually prohibit lying. Instead, it prohibits “false witness,” which is lying about someone in a way that would damage their reputation or livelihood. In other words, you cannot damage someone with a lie. However, it does not prohibit such things as polite lying (e.g., pretending to enjoy a dish being served to you) or unavoidable lying (e.g., answering no to a question where refusing to answer would basically be saying yes, when the question asked was none of the asker’s business).

Overall, Christians are commanded to be honest and trustworthy. But we are not prohibited from lying under every single circumstance no matter what.