New International Version
Exodus 20:16
16“You shall not give false testimony against your neighbor.
Exodus 20:16 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)Thou shalt not bear false witness against thy neighbour.
- English Standard Version (ESV)"You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor.
- New King James Version (NKJV)“You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor.
- New Living Translation (NLT)“You must not testify falsely against your neighbor.
Context of Exodus 20:16
14“You shall not commit adultery. 15“You shall not steal. “You shall not give false testimony against your neighbor. 17“You shall not covet your neighbor’s house. You shall not covet your neighbor’s wife, or his male or female servant, his ox or donkey, or anything that belongs to your neighbor.” 18When the people saw the thunder and lightning and heard the trumpet and saw the mountain in smoke, they trembled with fear. They stayed at a distance
Read all of Exodus 20Exodus 20:16 word by word
לֹֽא־תַעֲנֶ֥ה בְרֵעֲךָ֖ עֵ֥ד שָֽׁקֶר׃ סRead the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
Cross-references for Exodus 20:16
- Exodus 23:6“Do not deny justice to your poor people in their lawsuits.
- Leviticus 19:11“ ‘Do not steal. “ ‘Do not lie. “ ‘Do not deceive one another.
- Deuteronomy 19:15One witness is not enough to convict anyone accused of any crime or offense they may have committed. A matter must be established by the testimony of two or three witnesses.
- 1 Samuel 22:8Is that why you have all conspired against me? No one tells me when my son makes a covenant with the son of Jesse. None of you is concerned about me or tells me that my son has incited my servant to lie in wait for me, as he does today.”
- 1 Kings 21:10But seat two scoundrels opposite him and have them bring charges that he has cursed both God and the king. Then take him out and stone him to death.”
- Psalms 15:3whose tongue utters no slander, who does no wrong to a neighbor, and casts no slur on others;
- Psalms 101:5Whoever slanders their neighbor in secret, I will put to silence; whoever has haughty eyes and a proud heart, I will not tolerate.
- Proverbs 10:18Whoever conceals hatred with lying lips and spreads slander is a fool.
- Proverbs 11:13A gossip betrays a confidence, but a trustworthy person keeps a secret.
- Matthew 26:59The chief priests and the whole Sanhedrin were looking for false evidence against Jesus so that they could put him to death.
- Acts 6:13They produced false witnesses, who testified, “This fellow never stops speaking against this holy place and against the law.
- Ephesians 4:31Get rid of all bitterness, rage and anger, brawling and slander, along with every form of malice.
- 1 Timothy 1:10for the sexually immoral, for those practicing homosexuality, for slave traders and liars and perjurers—and for whatever else is contrary to the sound doctrine
- 2 Timothy 3:3without love, unforgiving, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not lovers of the good,
- James 4:11Brothers and sisters, do not slander one another. Anyone who speaks against a brother or sister or judges them speaks against the law and judges it. When you judge the law, you are not keeping it, but sitting in judgment on it.
Commentaries on Exodus 20:16
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 16Thou shalt not bear false witness, etc. - Not only false oaths, to deprive a man of his life or of his right, are here prohibited, but all whispering, tale-bearing, slander, and calumny; in a word, whatever is deposed as a truth, which is false in fact, and tends to injure another in his goods, person, or character, is against the spirit and letter of this law. Suppressing the truth when known, by which a person may be defrauded of his property or his…Read the comment
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 1-17Verses 1-17 The Hebrew name which is rendered in our King James Version as the ten commandments occurs in Exodus 34:28; Deuteronomy 4:13; Deuteronomy 10:4. It literally means “the Ten Words.” The Ten Commandments are also called the law, even the commandment Exodus 24:12, the words of the covenant Exodus 34:28, the tables of the covenant Deuteronomy 9:9, the covenant Deuteronomy 4:13, the two tables Deuteronomy 9:10, Deuteronomy 9:17, and, most…Read the comment
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 12-17Verses 12-17 The laws of the SECOND table, that is, the last six of the ten commandments, state our duty to ourselves and to one another, and explain the great commandment, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself, Lu 10:27. Godliness and honesty must go together. The fifth commandment concerns the duties we owe to our relations. Honour thy father and thy mother, includes esteem of them, shown in our conduct; obedience to their lawful commands; come when…Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 16Choosing not to tell a lie can sometimes be a private act. A person might even feel proud about being honest. However, this command is more specific. It forbids giving false testimony against your neighbor. This refers especially to lying in court or in a public setting where someone’s reputation or life may be at risk. Refusing to testify falsely is an unselfish act. It shows that you care more about your neighbor’s reputation and well-being than about…Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 1-261. And God spake all these words--The Divine Being Himself was the speaker (De 5:12, 32, 33), in tones so loud as to be heard--so distinct as to be intelligible by the whole multitude standing in the valleys below, amid the most appalling phenomena of agitated nature. Had He been simply addressing rational and intelligent creatures, He would have spoken with the still small voice of persuasion and love. But He was speaking to those who were at the same…Read the comment
Topics related to Exodus 20:16
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on Exodus 20
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
- Tyndale Open Study Notes
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
- Rashi on Tanakh
- Calvin’s Commentaries
- Keil & Delitzsch Commentary
- John Wesley’s Notes
- Darby Translation Notes
- Geneva Bible Translation Notes
- Kingcomments
- Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
- Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
- Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
- Original Douay–Rheims Annotations
- Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
- EGW Writings
New International Version — © NIV® 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 Biblica
Commentaries