Henry David Thoreau said, “Rather than love, than money, than fame, give me truth.” Imagine the difference it would make in our world if that theme were heard as often as those catchy and memorable advertising jingles by Coca-Cola or McDonald’s.
Truth is essential to all our interactions— in the halls of government (many Republicans in Congress who promote Trump’s lie that the election was stolen need to be reminded of this), the classroom, the workplace, the home. Truth-telling builds trust. As I told my children, “If you tell a lie about one thing, it will be tough to believe you about anything.”
There are hundreds of reasons to support the idea that telling the truth is best for us and for society, but the spiritual reason is that it honors God. Truth is at the heart of who He is (Ps. 31:5), and it is how He wants us to interact with others.
Throughout the Proverbs, a book the standard of truth is held high. We find statements such as these: “He who walks with integrity walks securely” (10:9). “The truthful lip shall be established forever” (12:19). “Lying lips are an abomination to the Lord” (12:22).
Nevertheless our tradition sanctions a little white lie when we want to preserve a little shalom bayit, harmony in our household. In this week’s parasha after Jacob died and was buried in the cave of Machpelah the brothers spoke to Joseph saying, “Before his death your father left this instruction: So shall you say to Joseph, ‘Forgive I urge you, the offense and guilt of your brothers who treated you so harshly.’ Therefore, please forgive the offense of the servants of the God of your fathers.” (Gen. 50:16-17)
The Torah never records Jacob saying the above to his children anywhere in the Torah. “On the basis of this, Rabbi Ill’a in the name of Rabbi Elazar ben Shimon in the Talmud ruled that ‘it is permissible for a person to modify a statement in the interest of peace.’ Rabbi Natan maintained that one was required to do so. (Yevamot 65b) The brothers’ lie is defensible because of the good relations it ensured-a result that Jacob, on a plain sense reading surely desired.” Jon D. Levenson’s commentary on Genesis found in The Study Bible, page 100.
Truth cannot be refuted.
It never grows old. It never has to be retracted. It never fails. It is the
language of God. There’s nothing better for us to do than to tell the truth. But if somebody asks you, “Does this make me
look fat, you just may want to take a page from the brothers’ playbook.
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