and undermine the enemy in order to gather information the enemy hopes to conceal. God had spies working for Him in the OT.] It would appear that there are occasions when deception is ethically permissible. But note well: not all falsehoods are lies. A lie is an intentional falsehood which violates someone’s right to know the truth. But there are cases in which people forfeit their right to know the truth. The question, therefore, is not whether it is ever morally permissible to lie. The question