Seven Sins (02) A Lying Tongue

Seven Sins (2): A Lying Tongue
Dr. Gregg Strawbridge * January 20, 2008 (Prov. 6:16-19)

There are six things that the LORD hates, seven that are an abomination to him: haughty eyes, a lying tongue, and hands that shed innocent blood, a heart that devises wicked plans, feet that make haste to run to evil, a false witness who breathes out lies, and one who sows discord among brothers. (Proverbs 6:16-19)
The Poetic Arrangement (? Chiasm)

A “lying tongue” (lit., “a tongue of deception”) is used in Jeremiah 14:14 to portray false prophets who deceive people and in Psalm 109:2 to describe the deceiver who betrays. This passage was applied to Judas (in the Rembrandt above) in Acts 1:20. There are consequences to lying - “a lying tongue hates its victims, and a flattering mouth works ruin (Prov 26:28). “Truthful lips endure forever, but a lying tongue lasts only a moment” (Prov 12:19). What does this require? Heidelberg Catechism Question 112 provides a helpful summary:
What does the ninth Commandment require? That I bear false witness against no one, twist no one's words, be no backbiter or slanderer, join in condemning no one unheard and rashly; but that on pain of God's heavy wrath I avoid all lying and deceit as the very works of the devil; and that in matters of judgment and justice and in all other affairs I love, speak honestly and confess the truth; also, insofar as I can, defend and promote my neighbor's good name.