Proverbs 21:28
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A false witness shall perish: but the man that heareth speaketh constantly.
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Thousands testify in court and other settings every day. Parents question children. A false witness may lie for a while, but he will be discovered and punished by God and men. But godly men, when put under oath, tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth.
A proverb is a short, dark saying (1:6). It is our duty to identify the lesson. The first half is obvious - a man who lies under questioning will be judged. The second half, like many proverbs, teaches the opposite - a good man under oath speaks the truth constantly.
We know it is a good man in the second half, because he is contrasted to the false witness of the first half. Consider, "Whoso findeth a wife findeth a good thing" (18:22). Only good wives are good things, as Solomon proved (12:4; 21:9, 21:19; 30:21-23). Only a good wife is a blessing, and that is clearly understood elliptically by the context of the phrase.
What does the honest man hear? He hears the magistrate swearing him to tell the truth. Moses warned, "And if a soul sin, and hear the voice of swearing, and is a witness, whether he hath seen or known of it; if he do not utter it, then he shall bear his iniquity" (Lev 5:1). Jesus finally answered Caiaphas, after He was sworn to speak (Matt 26:63-64).
How does the good man respond to hearing the oath? He speaks constantly, meaning he speaks with mental constancy or stedfastness; confidently, faithfully, assuredly. He tells the truth firmly without equivocation or variation. His testimony is consistent with itself. He is a faithful and true witness, upon which the integrity of every court depends.
Solomon gave this lesson elsewhere. He wrote, "Whoso is partner with a thief hateth his own soul: he heareth cursing, and bewrayeth it not" (29:24). The accomplice of the thief heard the curse of the judge to tell the truth, but he did not divulge or expose the thief.
Moses commanded early, "Thou shalt not bear false witness against thy neighbour" (Ex 20:16). The blessed God of heaven is a God of truth, and He expects His children to be men of truth (Deut 32:4; Ex 18:21; Eph 4:25). Parents must enforce absolute truth at all times by punishing exaggeration, deception, and lying as most serious offences.
God hates liars and lying (6:16-19). The devil is the father of all lies (John 8:44). All liars will be in the lake of fire (Rev 21:8). But the gracious God has punished the lies of His elect in Christ, and He has given them Christ's truthfulness as their own in justification!
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