Posted by Friend addendum [Friend] on November 05, 1999 at 20:54:42 {6xiCHW3gJ2hxaL3hj3H2OgnjR4Br/g}:
In Reply to: *****What I've learned on H2O. posted by Friend on November 05, 1999 at 13:54:04:
AF
Regarding the English I think you may find interesting the following definition of "lie".
lie \Lie\, v. i. [imp. & p. p. Lied (l[imac]d); p. pr. & vb. n. Lying (l[imac]"[i^]ng).] [OE. lien, li[yogh]en, le[yogh]en, leo[yogh]en, AS. le['o]gan; akin to D. liegen, OS. & OHG. liogan, G. l["u]gen, Icel. lj[=u]ga, Sw. ljuga, Dan. lyve, Goth. liugan, Russ. lgate.] To utter falsehood with an intention to deceive; to say or do that which is intended to deceive another, when he a right to know the truth, or when morality requires a just representation. (Source: Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary Version published 1913)
I do not contend that the definition above is in every respect representative of common usage of the term today. However, that definition above evidences that lying or not is a moral question. In other words, in cases where deception is moral then it is not a lie. I think that pretty well fits my own understanding of how "lie" is applied in the Bible.
Friend