Keeping Far from Falsehood
12. The author of a book is permitted to remain anonymous and use a different name (a pseudonym), if this is customary among writers at the time. Today, this is considered entirely acceptable and carries no negative implications.
13. It is forbidden to add to one’s name titles and ranks that one has neither received nor earned. (For example, adding “Professor” or “Doctor” to one’s name.)
14. It is permitted to use examples based on imaginary events to help others understand the meaning of what was said earlier. Even here, however, one must explain at some point that these are not real events.
15. It is permitted to invite an acquaintance “for a cup of coffee,” even if you intend to arrange a large meal in his honor and serve many dishes. Righteous people always say little and do much. One could say that, for many people, this is an accepted way of communicating.
16. The prohibition against lying is not limited by time or place; therefore, both men and women must always watch their speech and teach their children to do the same.
17. There are many situations in which the prohibition, “Keep far from falsehood,” overlaps with other prohibitions:
a) A person’s collateral is not returned, with the claim that no one accepted his belongings for safekeeping;
b) Wages are not paid, with the claim that the person did not work for that employer or earned much less;
c) A debt is not repaid, with the claim that no money was borrowed.
The Torah includes these actions under the prohibition (Leviticus, 19:11) “lo techachashu”. This expression means: “Do not deny others what they are owed through deception.” The Torah singles out cases in which lying is combined with causing direct harm.
The same applies to bearing false witness and deception in commercial transactions. Exodus (20:13) says: “Do not bear false witness against your neighbor,” and (23:1) “Do not spread a false report; do not support the wicked by taking part in false testimony.” Leviticus (25:14) says: “If you sell anything to your neighbor or buy anything from him, do not deceive one another.” Here, too, a special expression is used, “al tonu,” which means not merely deception, but “a transaction disadvantageous to one’s trading partner.”
18. One may not pretend to be a friend in order to gain people’s trust and use that trust for selfish purposes. Once a person gains someone’s trust, it becomes much easier for him to deceive and cause harm. The sages associate such actions with a passage from King Solomon’s book of Proverbs (12:22), which says: “Lying lips are an abomination to the Lord…”
“Lying lips” is itself a description that points to a negative character trait: pretending to be someone other than who one is.
Even if he is not harming anyone at the moment, he himself does not deny that, if necessary, he might use his closeness to cause harm.
19. The Torah forbids obtaining, through lies and deception, any benefit that rightfully belongs to someone else. The sages say that anyone who does this (machalif be-diburo, literally, “exchanges his words”) is considered equivalent to an idolater.