Hello ewq1938 and any others who may be reading this debate.
Hello.
If you can point out a single instance where God has uttered falsehood or would utter falsehood, then my viewpoint might be changed.
Well, I will provide some things and if I make a good case then perhaps we will see an agreement from you.
(3) God values prudence. It is not always prudent to fully reveal the truth in every situation. In other words, while it is sinful to answer a question dishonestly, there are other alternatives to telling the truth in certain situations.
Third, God gives us wisdom and prudence to handle difficult situations where telling the truth would be inappropriate.
You are basically arguing against your own position here and I will continue the very concept you have begun:
Not telling the truth is basically the same thing as lying. In court we swear to "tell the truth, the WHOLE TRUTH, and nothing but the truth." Not telling the whole truth is still a form of lying. It is merely indirect lying VS. direct lying but the truth is still avoided.
Let's look at lying a little closer:
A lie is to tell something untrue, to present something which is not correct.
A lie is normally demonstrated as a verbal untruth, however it is not limited to this. Wearing a police uniform and presenting yourself non-verbally as a Police officer is a form of lying.
A spy is also a type of liar because they are intentionally pretending to be someone they are not...someone an enemy can trust so they can act as a spy and gain intelligence etc.
SCRIPTURAL EXAMPLES
Jos 2:1 And Joshua the son of Nun sent out of [bless and do not curse][bless and do not curse][bless and do not curse][bless and do not curse]tim two men to
spy secretly, saying, Go view the land, even Jericho. And they went, and came into an harlot's house, named Rahab, and lodged there.
And God approves of the use of secretive spying.
Let's further look at the definitions:
spy
H7270
???
ra^gal
raw-gal'
A primitive root; to walk along; but only in specific applications, to reconnoitre, to be a tale bearer (that is, slander); also (as denominative from H7272) to lead about: - backbite, search, slander, (e-) spy (out), teach to go, view.
H7270
???
ra^gal
BDB Definition:
1) to go on foot, spy out, foot it, go about, walk along, move the feet
1a) (Qal) to be a tale-bearer, slander, go about
1b) (Piel)
1b1) to slander
1b2) to go about as explorer, spy
1c) (Tiphel) to teach to walk
Part of Speech: verb
A Related Word by BDB/Strong’s Number: a primitive root
Same Word by TWOT Number: 2113
Jos 2:3 And the king of Jericho sent unto Rahab, saying, Bring forth the men that are come to thee, which are entered into thine house: for they be come to search out all the country.
Jos 2:4 And the woman took the two men, and hid them, and said thus, There came men unto me, but I wist not whence they were:
Jos 2:5 And it came to pass about the time of shutting of the gate, when it was dark, that the men went out:
whither the men went I wot not: pursue after them quickly; for ye shall overtake them.
Rahab lies to the men! Does God shun her or punish her for sinning? No, she has protected spies that ultimately are working for God for the benefit of Israel and she and her family are rewarded by being allowed to survive. God approves of her lying because it helped his spies survive and do their job.
In Numbers 13 Moses does much the same as Joshua, sending in spies to a land to scout out how strong they are because Moses wanted to invade.
http://www.relevantmagazine.com/god/deeper-walk/features/21429-is-lying-ever-okay
In Exodus, Pharaoh decides to weaken the people of Israel by killing every newborn boy (Exodus 1:16, NRSV). But the midwives disobey and let the boys live. When the king of Egypt asks them why they’re doing this, they answer, “The Hebrew women ... are vigorous and give birth before the midwife comes to them” (Exodus 1:19).
Now, regardless of how vigorous the Hebrew women are, this statement is a lie. It is meant to lead Pharaoh to believe a falsehood—namely, that the midwives were doing their best to obey but just couldn’t get there in time.
Does their dishonesty displease God? It doesn’t seem like it, according to the next verse: “God was kind to the midwives and the people increased and became even more numerous.” They’re not rebuked; they’re blessed.
God has rewarded people that have lied!
http://www.bibleissues.org/lying1.html
The first one is the 9th commandment, “Thou shall not lie.” I think quoting the scripture wrongly is a bigger sin than lying. What Exodus 20:16 and Deuteronomy 5:20 actually say is “Thou shalt not bear false witness against thy neighbor.” That makes a huge difference, because now it’s not talking about lying in general but a very specific form of lying. Bringing a false accusation against someone is an affront to the justice of God. So it is very clear that God hates this kind of lying. This thought is repeated over and over in the book of Proverbs. That book has many references to lying but many of them are all in the context of lying against one’s brother or neighbor to accuse them wrongfully.
God deceives and sends lying spirits:
While God himself is not guilty of lying, he does use deception and lying spirits to achieve certain goals:
1Ki 22:23 Now therefore, behold,
the LORD hath put a lying spirit in the mouth of all these thy prophets, and the LORD hath spoken evil concerning thee.
2Ch 18:22 Now therefore, behold,
the LORD hath put a lying spirit in the mouth of these thy prophets, and the LORD hath spoken evil against thee.
Jer 4:10 Then said I,
Ah, Lord GOD! surely thou hast greatly deceived this people and Jerusalem, saying, Ye shall have peace; whereas the sword reacheth unto the soul.
Jer 20:7
O LORD, thou hast deceived me, and I was deceived: thou art stronger than I, and hast prevailed: I am in derision daily, every one mocketh me.
Eze 14:9 And if the prophet be deceived when he hath spoken a thing,
I the LORD have deceived that prophet, and I will stretch out my hand upon him, and will destroy him from the midst of my people Israel.
2Th 2:11 And for this cause
God shall send them strong delusion, that they should believe a lie:
BAD LIES VS. GOOD LIES
Lying can be a good thing if it serves a righteous purpose! If you lie and say your neighbor stole from you when they have not, it serves no righteous purpose and is simply wrong and sinful. But, if a man is trying to murder your neighbor and you know he is hiding in your garage and this evil person asks you if you know where he is and you answer, "No, I have not seen him at all today."
You have lied but it is not a sinful lie. You have lied for a righteous purpose like Rahab did.
WHITE LIES
If your daughter has a bad form of cancer and you tell her not to worry and she will be just fine, it is a "white lie" designed not to harm but give hope even if the parent knows the child is likely to suffer and die from this disease.
So, if you lie for a righteous purpose,
it is not wrong.
But, if you lie for an unrighteous purpose,
it is wrong.