The Truth Does Not Need Your Extra Detail

And the judges shall make diligent inquisition.

Deuteronomy 19:18

Read Deuteronomy 19. Focus on verses 15 through 21. A malicious witness can use a legal process as a weapon. Deuteronomy requires careful inquiry and serious consequences when a witness has deliberately brought a false accusation. The injury is not merely bad speech. A person's life can be damaged by an account presented as evidence. The chapter requires more than one witness to establish a charge. It also insists that the testimony itself be examined. A process intended to uphold justice can be corrupted if people are willing to supply details that make a desired conclusion easier to reach. The civil penalties belong to Israel's legal setting. We are not directed to administer them privately. The passage does make the moral seriousness of testimony unmistakable. A cause does not become just because the person supporting it feels certain that the accused deserves a consequence. An ordinary temptation appears when the basic complaint is real. A policy has caused trouble, so we say that everyone opposes it, although we have asked only two people. A person spoke carelessly, so we repeat the words in a sharper form because that version better communicates how it felt. We may think the additional detail helps the truth. In reality, it gives another person something false to rely on. If the exaggeration is discovered, a genuine concern may become harder to address. The person harmed by the original conduct can end up carrying the cost of our attempt to strengthen the case. Precision can feel less persuasive than indignation. “This happened twice” sounds smaller than “This always happens.” “I heard these words” leaves less room than an account expanded by motives we cannot know. But a truthful report should not need us to make the facts more dramatic than they were. Distinguish what you witnessed from what someone told you. Distinguish exact wording from your summary. Distinguish an observation from an interpretation. These ordinary habits protect both the person raising a concern and the person whose conduct is being examined. If you realize you overstated something, correct it promptly. You do not have to withdraw the genuine concern to remove the inaccurate part. A clear correction may help the matter receive the fair attention it deserves. God's concern for testimony should make us careful when we feel most morally confident. We are still responsible for the means by which we seek a result. Tell the actual truth, including its limits. The additional detail you are tempted to supply may be the very thing that prevents a truthful case from being heard well. Put It into Practice Review one complaint or report you are preparing. Replace an unsupported “always,” “everyone,” or statement of motive with the specific facts you know.

What phrase in your account goes beyond what you actually witnessed or can verify?

God of truth, make me precise when I report what happened. Restrain exaggeration offered in support of a genuine concern. Give me courage to correct an inaccurate account without abandoning the truth that still needs attention. Amen.