Did God Lie? - Apologetics

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2 Chronicles 18: 21-22
And he said, I will go out, and be a lying spirit in the mouth of all his prophets. And the Lord said, Thou shalt entice him, and thou shalt also prevail: go out, and do even so.

22 Now therefore, behold, the Lord hath put a lying spirit in the mouth of these thy prophets, and the Lord hath spoken evil against thee.

Did God lie? A friend and I had a discussion about whether God can break his own moral laws.
 
Read the passage in context and pay attention to the punctuation. It is a conversation with three speakers (I have bolded so you see where each speaks): Micaiah, Zedekiah and the King are having a conversation.

Micaiah is “putting words in God’s mouth” and claiming that God said outrageous things. Micaiah is making a false prophecy. Zedekiah then calls Micaiah out on these claims:


Micaiah continued: “Therefore hear the word of the LORD. I saw the LORD seated on his throne, with the whole host of heaven standing to his right and to his left.

The LORD asked: ‘Who will deceive Ahab, king of Israel, so that he will go up and fall on Ramoth-gilead?’

And one said this, another that, until this spirit came forth and stood before the LORD, saying, ‘I will deceive him.’

The LORD asked: ‘How?’

He answered, ‘I will go forth and become a lying spirit in the mouths of all his prophets.’

The LORD replied: ‘You shall succeed in deceiving him. Go forth and do this.’

So now the LORD has put a lying spirit in the mouths of these prophets of yours; but the LORD himself has decreed evil against you.”

Thereupon Zedekiah, son of Chenaanah, came up and struck Micaiah on the cheek, saying, “Has the spirit of the LORD, then, passed from me to speak with you?”

Micaiah said, “You shall find out on the day you go into an innermost room to hide.”

The king of Israel then said: “Seize Micaiah and take him back to Amon, prefect of the city, and to Joash the king’s son, and say, ‘This is the king’s order: Put this man in prison and feed him scanty rations of bread and water until I come back in safety!’”

But Micaiah said, “If ever you return in safety, the LORD has not spoken through me.” (He also said, “Hear, O peoples, all of you!”)*
 
This same account is covered in 1 Kings


Both places, after Michaiah is put in prison, we never hear from him again.

Read the accounts and see what happened 🙂
 
I think writers of the time used different conventions. The writer in this case reports the results but attributes them to God in a way modern writers wouldn’t.

God did not actually order a lying spirit to deceive the king.
Rather God’s prophet points out that the false prophets are lying.
 
God did not actually order a lying spirit to deceive the king.
Rather God’s prophet points out that the false prophets are lying.
True, but in the understanding of the day, it was God who commanded all that happened. (If something happened that God didn’t command, they would have seen that as proof that God wasn’t all-powerful. Therefore, since they didn’t have Aquinas around to let them know about secondary causation, they concluded that all that happened was a direct result of God’s action.)
 
A friend and I had a discussion about whether God can break his own moral laws.
I have heard unbelievers who delight in “cutting Christianity down to size” speculate that Jesus committed certain sins. This makes them feel better about themselves — the idea of Jesus committing this sin, or that sin, demonstrates to them that such sins are just part of human nature and are not something even to try to overcome. I have found these to be lowbrow, irreverent people who refuse to acknowledge external restraints to their behavior, and want just to make a big joke out of everything. You may have encountered the type.
 
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Zaccheus:
God did not actually order a lying spirit to deceive the king.
Rather God’s prophet points out that the false prophets are lying.
True, but in the understanding of the day, it was God who commanded all that happened. (If something happened that God didn’t command, they would have seen that as proof that God wasn’t all-powerful. Therefore, since they didn’t have Aquinas around to let them know about secondary causation, they concluded that all that happened was a direct result of God’s action.)
Happenings translated variously as happiness, weal, peace; and sorrow, woe, and evil.

Isaiah 45 (CEV)
7 I create light and darkness,
happiness and sorrow.
I, the Lord, do all of this.
Isaiah 45 (NABRE)
7 I form the light, and create the darkness,
I make weal and create woe;
I, the Lord, do all these things.
Isaiah 45 (Douay-Rheims-Challoner)
7 I form the light, and create darkness,
I make peace, and create evil:
I the Lord that do all these things.
 
Please start with the previous verse.

Holy Bible (Douay Rheims)
2 Chron 18:20 • ‘There came forth a spirit, and stood before the Lord, and said: I will deceive him. And the Lord said to him: By what means wilt thou deceive him?’

Commentary:
Ver. 20. Said. See 3 K. xxii. The Rabbins pretend that the spirit of Naboth came forth. But it was satan, or an evil spirit. T.
 
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This is an issue with all translations from Biblical Hebrew. So much wordplay and nuances are missed.
 
And he said, I will go out, and be a lying spirit in the mouth of all his prophets. And the Lord said, Thou shalt entice him, and thou shalt also prevail: go out, and do even so.

22 Now therefore, behold, the Lord hath put a lying spirit in the mouth of these thy prophets, and the Lord hath spoken evil against thee.

Did God lie? A friend and I had a discussion about whether God can break his own moral laws.
No… It’s not God lying. It’s Micaiah…

And, as we know, sometimes God has given Satan leave - as with Job - for the purpose of enticing

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Micaiah continued, “Therefore hear the word of the Lord: I saw the Lord sitting on his throne with all the multitudes of heaven standing on his right and on his left. 19 And the Lord said, ‘Who will entice Ahab king of Israel into attacking Ramoth Gilead and going to his death there?’

“One suggested this, and another that. 20 Finally, a spirit came forward, stood before the Lord and said, ‘I will entice him.’

“‘By what means?’ the Lord asked.

21 “‘I will go and be a deceiving spirit in the mouths of all his prophets,’ he said.

“‘You will succeed in enticing him,’ said the Lord. ‘Go and do it.’

___________________
 
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