Body of Divinity, Book 9 · Chapter 10
CHAP. X. The ninth Commandment.
THou shalt not bear false witnesse against thy Neighbour. Hebr. word …or word, Thou shalt not answer about thy neighbour a testimony of falshood. That is, thou shalt not answer in judgement ei…her for or against thy Neighbour falsly.
THe word [answer] is sometimes in Scripture taken more generally forGnanah respondere significat, nominatim igitur de ea testimonii specie agitur, quod in judici…s de causa aliqua interrogati proferim…. Gerh. loc. commun. Quia adjurati & interrogati per…ibebant testimonium Grotius in Exod. c. 20. Synecdochice sub una falsi testimonij forensis specie (quod reliquis pestilentiu…) continetur in genere detestatio omnis mendacii, Lev. 19. 11. Matth. 19. 18. Marc. 10. 19. Rom. 3. 19. Chaldaeus vertit non testaberis, Gr…ci uno verbo dixerunt foreign non falsò testaberis. Testes falsi sunt, qui non tantùm falsa fingunt, verum etiam qui vera depravant, Matth. 26. 61. vel affirmant incomperta, vel qui veritatem malitiosè occultant, ita 3 Reg. 21. 11. Mat. 27. 13. Act. 7. 6. Dan. 6. 13. & 13. 36. Prov. 25. 18. Chemnit. loc. commun. [speak] as Prov. 15. 1. Matth. 11. 25. and so it is here to be taken; as if it had been said, Thou shalt not speak any thing whereby thou maist hurt the good name and credit of thy neighbour.
The former Commandment was concerning our own and our neighbours goods: this requireth, that we hurt not our neighbours nor our own good name, but (as occasion shall be given) maintain and increase it.
By neighbour he understands any man, for every man is neer to thee by nature, of the same blood and flesh, Act. 17. 26. Isa. 58. 7.
The secret and inward breach of this Commandment consisteth in ungrounded suspition, and unjust judging and condemning of our neigbours, contrary to the expresse commandment of our Saviour, Matth. 7. 1.
The outward breach of it is either without speech or with speech.
Without speech, either by gesture or silence.
By gesture, when one useth such a kinde of behaviour as tends to vilifie, mock and disgrace his brother, Psal. 22. 7.
By silence, when one holds his peace, though he heareth his neighbour slandered, and he can testifie of his own knowledge, that the things spoken are false and injurious.
By speech this Commandment is broken, either by giving or receiving.
By giving out speech either true or false. One may slander another by reporting the truth, if one speak it unseasonably, and his end be evil and malicious; this was Doegs fault, 1 Sam. 22. 21. In speaking that which is false, either concerning ones own self or another.
Concerning himself.
1. In boasting and bragging, Rom. 1. 30.
2. By excusing those faults we are charged with, or are guilty of.
3. By *The godly in time of tentation think themselves to be but hypocrites, and that they have no true grace in them at all, and so they bear false witnesse against themselves. Elton on this Commandment.accusing, as when men in a kinde of proud humility will deny their gifts, with an intent to get more credit.
So much for breaking this Commandment, by speaking that which is false concerning themselves.
Now it follows concerning others, and that is either publick or private.Isa. 5. 20.
Publick, when the Magistrate or Judge passeth false sentence, in any cause that comes to be heard before him. Herein also may Counsellors offend, when they uphold and maintain an evil Cause for their fee. Witnesses also do offend this way, when they come before the Judges, and give a false and lying testimony. This is aProv. 19. 5, 9. & 6. 19. & 21. 28. Goods are necessary for life, truth and good name for comfortable life, therefore is this Commandment set after the former. Esty. Of tame beasts (saith Diogeues) a flatterer is worst, and of wilde beasts a back-biter or slanderer. See Dr. Sclater on Rom. 1. 29. Hebraei vocant linguam sycophantae linguam tertiam: Linguam tertiam memorat aut…r translationis Chaldaicae, Psal. 10. 15. & 140. 12. Vir qu… loquitur lingua tertia, id est, delator, quod tribus noceat, deferenti, accipienti, & ei de quo. Drus. quaest. Ebraic. l. 1. quaest. 4. The Chaldee Paraphrast calleth a backbiter a man with a threefold tongue, or a tongue which hath three strings. The Jews give an example of it in Doeg, who killed three at once with his evil report; Saul, to whom he made the evil report, the Priests of whom he made it, himself who made it. Weemes. hainous sin, as appears by the punishment, Deut. 19. 18, 19.
2. Private, either in unjust accusing, or unjust defending.
That unjust accusing privately is called slandering and back-biting; when one will speak ill of his neighbour, and falsely behind his back.
The causes of detracting or back-biting are:
1. Want of consideration of our selves, Gal. 6. 1. We are not humbled for the world of corruption that is in-bred in us.
2. Uncharitablenesse and malice, Iam. 3. a malicious heart and reviling tongue go together.
3. Pride and envy, the Pharisees could not give our Saviour one good word, because of their en…ie against him, whose way, Doctrine, and conversation, did contradict and obscure theirs.
4. An hypocritical affectation of holinesse above others, Ex hoc uno pij sumus, quod alios impietatis damnamus, so the Pharisee dealt with the Publicane, so the Papists traduce us as vile, they are the onelyonly Saints.
There are divers waies of back-biting or detracting.
1. To impose falsely a fault upon the innocent party, as when the Pharisees charged Christ, that he was an Impostor and wine-bibber; so when Potiphar's wife forged that tale against Ioseph, that he would have been naught with her. Psal. 35. 11, 12.
2. When it is a true fault, but secret, and they divulge it, Matth. 18. 15. they should first inform the party, to see whether he will be humbled or no, Publish it not in Ashkelon, nor tell it in Gath.
3. When they augment their faults, and make them worse, Lev. 19. 16.
4. When they deny their good actions to be done well.
5. When they interpret doubtful things in the worst part; charity is not suspicious, Ier. 40. 16.
6. When they acknowledge their good things, yet not heartily; to praise coldly is as bad as a vehement dispraise.
It is hard to tell (saith Bernard) whether the detractor or he that hears him willingly shall burn hotter in hell, the one hath the Devil in his tongue, and the other in his ear, Prov. 17. 4. Psal. 15. 3.
Thus this Law is broken by unjust accusing. 2. It is broken also by unjust defending of wicked men and bad causes, when one will use his wit, credit, and testimony, to grace evil men and dishonest causes, Prov. 17. 15. & 14. 24.