50 Shades of Lies

R. Ile'a further stated in the name of R. Eleazar son of R. Simeon: One may modify a statement in the interests of peace; for it is said in Scripture, Thy father did command etc. so shall ye say unto Joseph: Forgive, I pray thee now, etc.²² R. Nathan said: It²³ is a commandment; for it is stated in Scripture, And Samuel said: 'How can I go? If Saul hear it, he will kill me', etc.²⁴

At the School of R. Ishmael it was taught: Great is the cause of peace. Seeing that for its sake even the Holy One, blessed be He, modified a statement; for at first it is written, My lord being old, while afterwards it is written, And I am old.

Rab was constantly tormented by his wife. If he told her, 'Prepare me lentils', she would prepare him small peas; [and if he asked for] small peas, she prepared him lentils. When his son Hiyya grew up he gave her [his father's instruction] in the reverse order.⁴⁴ 'Your mother', Rab once remarked to him, 'has improved'!⁴⁵ 'It was I', the other replied, 'who reversed [your orders] to her'. 'This is what people say', the first said to him, 'Thine own offspring teaches thee reason';⁴⁶ you, however, must not continue to do so' for it is said, They have taught their tongue to speak lies, they weary themselves etc'.

(1) Oh that I were in the wilderness, In a lodging-place of wayfaring men, That I might leave my people, And go from them! For they are all adulterers, An assembly of treacherous men. (2) And they bend their tongue, their bow of falsehood; And they are grown mighty in the land, but not for truth; For they proceed from evil to evil, And Me they know not, Saith the LORD. (3) Take ye heed every one of his neighbour, And trust ye not in any brother; For every brother acteth subtly, And every neighbour goeth about with slanders. (4) And they deceive every one his neighbour, And truth they speak not; They have taught their tongue to speak lies, They weary themselves to commit iniquity. (5) Thy habitation is in the midst of deceit; Through deceit they refuse to know Me, Saith the LORD. (6) Therefore thus saith the LORD of hosts: Behold, I will smelt them, and try them; For how else should I do, Because of the daughter of My people? (7) Their tongue is a sharpened arrow, It speaketh deceit; One speaketh peaceably to his neighbour with his mouth, But in his heart he layeth wait for him.

R. Zera ruled, One should not transfer possession of the festive wreath to a child on the first day of the Festival. What is the reason? — Because a child is entitled to acquire possession but not to transfer it, and the result will be that (the man] would have to perform his duty with a lulab which is not his.
R. Zera further ruled, One should not promise a child to give him something and then not give it to him, because he will thereby teach him lying, as it is said, They have taught their tongues to speak lies.