THE DANGER IN BEARING FALSE WITNESS
Proverbs 19:5, 9 (AMPC) 5 A false witness shall not be unpunished, and he who breathes out lies shall not escape. 9 A false witness shall not be unpunished, and he who breathes forth lies shall perish.” Dear people of God, many governments and groups speak against the spread of fake news and advise people generally on how to handle unverified reports. There are many people who receive a social media message, read it and then forward it to some or all of their contacts without verifying the authenticity of the information. The Word of God tells us in today’s lead text that a false witness shall not be unpunished. Who is a false witness? The dictionary defines a false witness as “someone who starts or spreads falsehood.” Other synonyms of the phrase “false witness” include cheat, con artist, perjurer, deceiver, fabricator, prevaricator, mis-leader, maligner, etc. As a warning, verse 9 of the same 19th chapter of Proverbs sta...