100 Bible verses about lying and deceit

Are you looking for Bible verses about lying and deceit? God’s Word makes it clear that lying and deceit are not part of His plan for our lives. As believers, we’re called to live in truth and honesty, reflecting the character of Jesus in everything we do. When we choose to lie or deceive, we’re stepping away from the abundant life God has for us and into a place where the enemy, Satan, has influence. Satan is called the “father of lies” because deceit is at the core of his nature. But God’s nature is truth, and He wants us to live in that truth every day.

The Bible shows us the harm that comes from lying and how it destroys trust, relationships, and even our peace. But the good news is that God has given us the power to overcome these temptations. We don’t have to be bound by dishonesty. Through the grace of God and the truth of His Word, we can live in integrity, experiencing the freedom that comes from walking in truth.

What does the Bible say about liars and manipulators?

1. Proverbs 12:22

“The LORD detests lying lips, but He delights in people who are trustworthy.”

2. Colossians 3:9

“Do not lie to one another, seeing that you have put off the old self with its practices.”

3. Ephesians 4:25

“Therefore, having put away falsehood, let each one of you speak the truth with his neighbor, for we are members one of another.”

4. Psalm 101:7

“No one who practices deceit shall dwell in my house; no one who utters lies shall continue before my eyes.”

5. Exodus 20:16

“You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor.”

6. John 8:44

“You are of your father the devil, and your will is to do your father’s desires. He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks out of his own character, for he is a liar and the father of lies.”

7. Proverbs 19:9

“A false witness will not go unpunished, and whoever pours out lies will perish.”

8. Proverbs 6:16-19

“There are six things that the LORD hates, seven that are an abomination to him: haughty eyes, a lying tongue, hands that shed innocent blood, a heart that devises wicked plans, feet that make haste to run to evil, a false witness who breathes out lies, and one who sows discord among brothers.”

9. Leviticus 19:11

“You shall not steal; you shall not deal falsely; you shall not lie to one another.”

10. Revelation 21:8

“But as for the cowardly, the faithless, the detestable, as for murderers, the sexually immoral, sorcerers, idolaters, and all liars, their portion will be in the lake that burns with fire and sulfur, which is the second death.”

11. 1 Peter 3:10

“For whoever desires to love life and see good days, let him keep his tongue from evil and his lips from speaking deceit.”

12. Proverbs 14:5

“A faithful witness does not lie, but a false witness breathes out lies.”

13. Psalm 34:13

“Keep your tongue from evil and your lips from speaking deceit.”

14. Zechariah 8:16

“These are the things that you shall do: Speak the truth to one another; render in your gates judgments that are true and make for peace.”

15. Proverbs 12:19

“Truthful lips endure forever, but a lying tongue is but for a moment.”

16. Psalm 120:2

“Deliver me, O LORD, from lying lips, from a deceitful tongue.”

17. Titus 1:2

“In hope of eternal life, which God, who never lies, promised before the ages began.”

18. Psalm 119:163

“I hate and abhor falsehood, but I love your law.”

19. Isaiah 59:2-3

“But your iniquities have made a separation between you and your God, and your sins have hidden his face from you so that he does not hear. For your hands are defiled with blood and your fingers with iniquity; your lips have spoken lies; your tongue mutters wickedness.”

20. Proverbs 21:6

“The getting of treasures by a lying tongue is a fleeting vapor and a snare of death.”

21. Jeremiah 9:5

“Everyone deceives his neighbor, and no one speaks the truth; they have taught their tongue to speak lies; they weary themselves committing iniquity.”

22. Psalm 5:6

“You destroy those who speak lies; the LORD abhors the bloodthirsty and deceitful man.”

23. 1 John 2:4

“Whoever says ‘I know him’ but does not keep his commandments is a liar, and the truth is not in him.”

24. Proverbs 13:5

“The righteous hates falsehood, but the wicked brings shame and disgrace.”

25. 1 Timothy 4:2

“Through the insincerity of liars whose consciences are seared.”

26. Proverbs 17:7

“Fine speech is not becoming to a fool; still less is false speech to a prince.”

27. 2 Thessalonians 2:9-10

“The coming of the lawless one is by the activity of Satan with all power and false signs and wonders, and with all wicked deception for those who are perishing, because they refused to love the truth and so be saved.”

28. Job 27:4

“My lips will not speak falsehood, and my tongue will not utter deceit.”

29. Proverbs 30:8

“Remove far from me falsehood and lying; give me neither poverty nor riches; feed me with the food that is needful for me.”

30. Matthew 15:18-19

“But what comes out of the mouth proceeds from the heart, and this defiles a person. For out of the heart come evil thoughts, murder, adultery, sexual immorality, theft, false witness, slander.”

31. 1 Peter 2:1

“So put away all malice and all deceit and hypocrisy and envy and all slander.”

32. Romans 1:29

“They were filled with all manner of unrighteousness, evil, covetousness, malice. They are full of envy, murder, strife, deceit, maliciousness. They are gossips.”

33. Jeremiah 17:9

“The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately sick; who can understand it?”

34. Proverbs 10:18

“The one who conceals hatred has lying lips, and whoever utters slander is a fool.”

35. Psalm 52:2-4

“Your tongue plots destruction, like a sharp razor, you worker of deceit. You love evil more than good, and lying more than speaking what is right. You love all words that devour, O deceitful tongue.”

36. 1 John 1:6

“If we say we have fellowship with him while we walk in darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth.”

37. James 3:14

“But if you have bitter jealousy and selfish ambition in your hearts, do not boast and be false to the truth.”

38. Zephaniah 3:13

“Those who are left in Israel; they shall do no injustice and speak no lies, nor shall there be found in their mouth a deceitful tongue.”

39. Psalm 109:2

“For wicked and deceitful mouths are opened against me, speaking against me with lying tongues.”

40. Proverbs 11:1

“A false balance is an abomination to the LORD, but a just weight is his delight.”

41. Jeremiah 7:9-10

“Will you steal, murder, commit adultery, swear falsely, make offerings to Baal, and go after other gods that you have not known, and then come and stand before me in this house, which is called by my name, and say, ‘We are delivered!’—only to go on doing all these abominations?”

42. 2 Corinthians 11:13

“For such men are false apostles, deceitful workmen, disguising themselves as apostles of Christ.”

43. Proverbs 19:5

“A false witness will not go unpunished, and he who breathes out lies will not escape.”

44. Hosea 11:12

“Ephraim has surrounded me with lies, and the house of Israel with deceit.”

45. Psalm 144:8

“Whose mouths speak lies, and whose right hand is a right hand of falsehood.”

46. 1 Timothy 1:10

“For the sexually immoral, men who practice homosexuality, enslavers, liars, perjurers, and whatever else is contrary to sound doctrine.”

47. Acts 5:3

“But Peter said, ‘Ananias, why has Satan filled your heart to lie to the Holy Spirit and to keep back for yourself part of the proceeds of the land?’”

48. Genesis 3:4

“But the serpent said to the woman, ‘You will not surely die.’”

49. Psalm 58:3

“The wicked are estranged from the womb; they go astray from birth, speaking lies.”

50. Romans 16:18

“For such persons do not serve our Lord Christ, but their own appetites, and by smooth talk and flattery they deceive the hearts of the naive.”

51. Proverbs 20:17

“Bread gained by deceit is sweet to a man, but afterward his mouth will be full of gravel.”

52. Job 13:7

“Will you speak falsely for God and speak deceitfully for him?”

53. Luke 8:17

“For nothing is hidden that will not be made manifest, nor is anything secret that will not be known and come to light.”

54. 1 John 4:1

“Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, for many false prophets have gone out into the world.”

55. Isaiah 32:7

“As for the scoundrel—his devices are evil; he plans wicked schemes to ruin the poor with lying words, even when the plea of the needy is right.”

56. Matthew 24:24

“For false christs and false prophets will arise and perform great signs and wonders, so as to lead astray, if possible, even the elect.”

57. Isaiah 57:4

“Whom are you mocking? Against whom do you open your mouth wide and stick out your tongue? Are you not children of transgression, the offspring of deceit?”

58. 2 Peter 2:1

“But false prophets also arose among the people, just as there will be false teachers among you, who will secretly bring in destructive heresies, even denying the Master who bought them, bringing upon themselves swift destruction.”

59. Jeremiah 5:31

“The prophets prophesy falsely, and the priests rule at their direction; my people love to have it so, but what will you do when the end comes?”

60. 2 Timothy 3:13

“While evil people and impostors will go on from bad to worse, deceiving and being deceived.”

61. Genesis 12:13

“Say you are my sister, that it may go well with me because of you, and that my life may be spared for your sake.”

62. Isaiah 28:15

“Because you have said, ‘We have made a covenant with death, and with Sheol we have an agreement, when the overwhelming whip passes through it will not come to us, for we have made lies our refuge, and in falsehood we have taken shelter.’”

63. Psalm 62:4

“They only plan to thrust him down from his high position. They take pleasure in falsehood. They bless with their mouths, but inwardly they curse.”

64. Micah 6:12

“Your rich men are full of violence; your inhabitants speak lies, and their tongue is deceitful in their mouth.”

65. Matthew 26:59-61

“Now the chief priests and the whole council were seeking false testimony against Jesus that they might put him to death, but they found none, though many false witnesses came forward. At last two came forward and said, ‘This man said, I am able to destroy the temple of God, and to rebuild it in three days.’”

66. Mark 7:21-23

“For from within, out of the heart of man, come evil thoughts, sexual immorality, theft, murder, adultery, coveting, wickedness, deceit, sensuality, envy, slander, pride, foolishness. All these evil things come from within, and they defile a person.”

67. Exodus 23:1

“You shall not spread a false report. You shall not join hands with a wicked man to be a malicious witness.”

68. Jeremiah 9:3

“They bend their tongue like a bow; falsehood and not truth has grown strong in the land; for they proceed from evil to evil, and they do not know me, declares the LORD.”

69. Ezekiel 13:22

“Because you have disheartened the righteous falsely, although I have not grieved him, and you have encouraged the wicked, that he should not turn from his evil way to save his life.”

70. Malachi 3:5

“Then I will draw near to you for judgment. I will be a swift witness against the sorcerers, against the adulterers, against those who swear falsely.”

71. Proverbs 26:28

“A lying tongue hates its victims, and a flattering mouth works ruin.”

72. Isaiah 30:9

“For they are a rebellious people, lying children, children unwilling to hear the instruction of the LORD.”

73. Psalm 36:3

“The words of his mouth are trouble and deceit; he has ceased to act wisely and do good.”

74. Proverbs 24:28

“Be not a witness against your neighbor without cause, and do not deceive with your lips.”

75. 2 Corinthians 4:2

“But we have renounced disgraceful, underhanded ways. We refuse to practice cunning or to tamper with God’s word, but by the open statement of the truth we would commend ourselves to everyone’s conscience in the sight of God.”

76. Matthew 12:36

“I tell you, on the day of judgment people will give account for every careless word they speak.”

77. 1 Kings 22:23

“Now therefore behold, the LORD has put a lying spirit in the mouth of all these your prophets; the LORD has declared disaster for you.”

78. Jeremiah 23:32

“Behold, I am against those who prophesy lying dreams, declares the LORD, and who tell them and lead my people astray by their lies and their recklessness, when I did not send them or charge them. So they do not profit this people at all, declares the LORD.”

79. Jeremiah 14:14

“And the LORD said to me: ‘The prophets are prophesying lies in my name. I did not send them, nor did I command them or speak to them. They are prophesying to you a lying vision, worthless divination, and the deceit of their own minds.’”

80. Zechariah 10:2

“For the household gods utter nonsense, and the diviners see lies; they tell false dreams and give empty consolation. Therefore the people wander like sheep; they are afflicted for lack of a shepherd.”

81. Proverbs 12:13

“An evil man is ensnared by the transgression of his lips, but the righteous escapes from trouble.”

82. Psalm 140:3

“They make their tongue sharp as a serpent’s, and under their lips is the venom of asps.”

83. Micah 6:11-12

“Shall I acquit the man with wicked scales and with a bag of deceitful weights? Your rich men are full of violence; your inhabitants speak lies, and their tongue is deceitful in their mouth.”

84. 1 Samuel 15:29

“And also the Glory of Israel will not lie or have regret, for he is not a man, that he should have regret.”

85. Job 27:3-4

“As long as my breath is in me, and the spirit of God is in my nostrils, my lips will not speak falsehood, and my tongue will not utter deceit.”

86. Psalm 59:12

“For the sin of their mouths, the words of their lips, let them be trapped in their pride. For the cursing and lies that they utter.”

87. Jeremiah 8:8

“How can you say, ‘We are wise, and the law of the LORD is with us’? But behold, the lying pen of the scribes has made it into a lie.”

88. Isaiah 59:4

“No one enters suit justly; no one goes to law honestly; they rely on empty pleas, they speak lies, they conceive mischief and give birth to iniquity.”

89. James 1:26

“If anyone thinks he is religious and does not bridle his tongue but deceives his heart, this person’s religion is worthless.”

90. Psalm 50:19

“You give your mouth free rein for evil, and your tongue frames deceit.”

91. Proverbs 19:22

“What is desired in a man is steadfast love, and a poor man is better than a liar.”

92. Ezekiel 13:19

“You have profaned me among my people for handfuls of barley and for pieces of bread, putting to death souls who should not die and keeping alive souls who should not live, by your lying to my people, who listen to lies.”

93. Matthew 7:15

“Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing but inwardly are ravenous wolves.”

94. Galatians 6:7

“Do not be deceived: God is not mocked, for whatever one sows, that will he also reap.”

95. Psalm 109:3

“They encircle me with words of hate and attack me without cause.”

96. 2 Corinthians 11:14

“And no wonder, for even Satan disguises himself as an angel of light.”

97. Proverbs 14:25

“A truthful witness saves lives, but one who breathes out lies is deceitful.”

98. Isaiah 32:6

“For the fool speaks folly, and his heart is busy with iniquity, to practice ungodliness, to utter error concerning the LORD, to leave the craving of the hungry unsatisfied, and to deprive the thirsty of drink.”