Haman's evil scheme was exposed, however, and in the end, he instead was the one who was hung from the gallows intended for Mordecai (Esther 5:9–14 6:4)." Haman formulated an evil plot to falsely accuse Mordecai of evildoing, and he had gallows constructed for the specific purpose of hanging Mordecai from it. Haman was second in command to King Ahasuerus, and he sought revenge over Mordecai because Mordecai had refused to bow down to him and was also favored by the king. We see this exact scenario play out in the story of Haman and Mordecai, found in the book of Esther. These stakes are quite high if a person falsely accused another intentionally and their falsehood was proven, they themself would have to bear the punishment they sought for the other. So you shall purge the evil from your midst" (Deuteronomy 19:18–19).
#False witness scripture how to
In Deuteronomy, specific instructions are given to the Israelites about how to handle false accusations: "The judges shall inquire diligently, and if the witness is a false witness and has accused his brother falsely, then you shall do to him as he had meant to do to his brother. Second, they do it as an attempt to gain or maintain power. They want to harm the person they are falsely accusing. First, people make false accusations as a way to seek revenge. So, what motivates people to make false accusations about others? A couple obvious reasons come to mind. They stir up chaos: "For they do not speak peace, but against those who are quiet in the land they devise words of deceit" (Psalm 35:20). In John 8:44 we learn that Satan "is a liar and the father of lies." Clearly falsehood of any kind is contrary to God's character, and thus it has no place in the life of a believer.įalse accusations are the opposite of peace.
Revelation 21:8 includes liars in a list of those who will be cast into the lake of fire. First Peter 2:1 instructs, "So put away all malice and all deceit and hypocrisy and envy and all slander." Ephesians 4:25 says, "Therefore, having put away falsehood, let each one of you speak the truth with his neighbor, for we are members one of another" (Ephesians 4:25). We see similar exhortations in the New Testament. You shall not join hands with a wicked man to be a malicious witness" (Exodus 23:1). And again, a few chapters later, this same commandment is expounded upon: "You shall not spread a false report. In the Ten Commandments, God commanded: "You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor" (Exodus 20:16). The Bible makes it clear that false accusations are evil and should have no place in the life of a believer. What does the Bible say about false accusations?