Take your Bibles and turn with me to the book of Ezekiel. Book of Ezekiel in chapter 22. And as we've already discussed and seen, at least the first half of this chapter is given over to God calling Ezekiel to list the sins as he gives them to Ezekiel of the nation of Israel, of the city, specifically the city Jerusalem. As we have already looked at the first two that he mentioned were idolatry. Idolatry, we believe, being the root cause for everything else that followed, for the shedding of innocent blood, which was the second, murder. We just, today we call it murder, when innocent blood is shed. And going on from there, we saw that their kings, their people in high places in government, were guilty of an abuse of their power, an overreach of power. They were afflicting people, even causing innocent blood to be shed. Even the innocent blood of their children as they offered their children to the idols. They were guilty of not honoring, not esteeming their mother and their father. as God had called them to do at Mount Sinai, and several times throughout their history. They were called upon to honor their father and their mother, and they didn't do it. They found ways to get around esteeming their father and their mother and not fulfilling their responsibility. They were guilty of oppressing the strangers, those who had come from other countries, who had proselyted, who had given up their gods and embraced the God of Israel, the God of heaven and earth, the one God, and his commandments. And they were guilty of oppressing them, and not only were they guilty of oppressing them, they were guilty of oppressing the fatherless and the widows. Those who were in poor straits. They had no fathers. They had no husbands. And at least in those days, the husband was the provider for the family. The way that goods were able to be brought in, and the family fed, and the wherewithal the mother would have to buy material or buy yarn to darn their clothes and to feed the family. But they were guilty of oppressing. them, afflicting them, taking from them to pad their coffers and not to help them, not to ease their burden, their distress. Last week we looked at the fact they were guilty of despising the holy things of God. And I left you with a question, and I ask it again tonight. Are we guilty? As we looked about and talked about that last week, we went over some of the many varied ways in which we despise the holy things of God. Tonight, we move on to verse 9 now. Verse 9 of chapter 22 of Ezekiel, we read, in thee are men that carry tales to shed blood. And in thee they eat upon the mountains. In the midst of thee they commit lewdness." Idolatry. despising the holy things of God. See the other sins that are piled upon? The sin of idolatry, the despising of the holy things. He told them at Mount Sinai, I am the Lord thy God, thou shalt have no other gods before me." And then he went on to set reverence and importance upon the holy things of God. They're his. Sabbath worship was then. list of holy things that they despised, that they polluted, that they profaned. And now tonight we see in verse nine here that they're guilty of slandering, slandering and falsely accusing. falsely accusing someone of a crime which they had not committed, which they were not guilty of, but they bore false witness against them, accused them of it, so that they might destroy them, so that they might destroy their good name, and so that they might even be the cause of their being put to death. It's another way in which they shed innocent blood. Because by their false testimony, their false witness, the individual became guilty of a crime of death that carried The death sentence with it. They were guilty of idolatry, eating upon the mountains. That's exactly what it was. They went up into the mountains to worship their idols. And there they offer their sacrifices to those idols and they eat, ate, the meat of those sacrifices. Those sacrifices were to have been offered to the Lord, their God, not to idols. But they went up in the mountain, worshiped their idols, offered their sacrifices, and ate the meat of those sacrifices. So they were guilty of false worship and gave themselves over to lewdness. They committed lewdness. They committed wicked devices. They devised wicked devices of all sorts. Adultery, fornication, whoredoms, selling of innocent blood. All these things were their lewd acts, their wicked devices, which they were guilty of. Turn with me to the book of Exodus. Book of Exodus in chapter 20. In verse 16, concerning slandering, These are one of the Ten Commandments. Thou shalt not bear false witness against thy neighbor. A false witness, a false testimony, slandering. They're a good name. Because you despise them, because you hate them, because you want to see evil done to them. God said thou shalt not do it. Turn with me to chapter 23. Chapter 23. Look at verse 1. thou shalt not raise a false report put not thine hand with the wicked to be an unrighteous witness you see that's what the wicked do not God's people The wicked do that. Put not thy hand with the wicked to raise a false report, unrighteous, ungodly witness. It's a lie. When we bear false witness against one another, but not just against one another, against our fellow man, whether they be saved or whether they be lost. To bear a false report against them, a false witness against them, is an unrighteous witness. We've done wickedly. Turn with me to the book of Psalms. Book of Psalms in chapter 31. in verse 13. Psalms 31 in verse 13. For I've heard the slander of many. Fear was on every side. while they took counsel together against me. They devised to take away my life. This is David speaking. You can, knowing the history of the life of David, And just, you know, some of the slandering against him, devising to destroy him, to take his life away from him. Look at the book of Proverbs. Proverbs in chapter 10. Look with me here at verse 18. Proverbs chapter 10 and verse 18. He that hideth hatred with lying lips, and he that uttereth a slander, is a fool. You see, the slandering, the false report, the false witness is lumped right in there with lying lips. Because that's what it is. It's a lie. It's lying lips. And they're a fool. What is a fool? One that does not do wisely. One that does not take heed to God's warnings and His instructions. He doesn't do wisely. Guilty of bearing false report. Guilty of lying. You don't do wisely. The Lord said. Chapter 11. Proverbs in verse 9. and hypocrite with his mouth destroyeth his neighbor." You see, the one who lies, the one who bears a false witness to destroy his neighbor, to destroy any man, is a hypocrite. But through knowledge. Shall the just be delivered? You see, when the truth is known, it delivers the one who's innocent. When the truth comes out, that one who is innocent, that one who's just is delivered. But the liar, the bearer of a false report is a hypocrite and he's a fool. Seth Bourne didn't say that, God said that. If that carries any weight with you, turn with me to the book of Numbers. The book of Numbers. chapter 33, and verse 52. And the reasons for verse 52, we'll get into more next week when we Get into the next two verses. But he said here in verse 52 of Numbers chapter 33. Then ye shall drive out all the inhabitants of the land from before you and destroy all their pictures, all their images, idols, and destroy all their molten images and quite pluck down all their high places. You see, they were to drive them out. They were to destroy anything that was used in their worship of idols, including those images to be plucked down. On numerous occasions when they were to go in and they were to destroy and possess the land, they were to kill utterly young and old. They were to leave nothing. Babies. and the elderly. Everything in between was to be utterly destroyed. Why? Because these people in the land were guilty of the things which God has commanded his people, Israel, not to do. And these people were guilty of it all. And God's long suffering had wore out, had come to an end, and he was given the land to his people Israel. Now, a couple of verses that help us in making application to all this. The bearing of false report, false witness, idolatry, the devising of wicked devices. Turn with me to the Book of Proverbs. Proverbs in chapter 8. And look what we hear at verse 7. Proverbs chapter 8, verse 7. shall speak truth. Truth. We, especially the people of God, are to speak truth. We're not to be liars. We're not to lie upon our brothers and sisters in Christ. We're not to lie upon our fellow man. For my mouth shall speak truth, and wickedness is an abomination to my lips." Is that your commitment? That you're going to speak truth? Because wickedness is an abomination to these lips, to this tongue. James tells us that the tongue is an unruly member. It cannot be tamed. Only by the Spirit of God. Can your tongue and my tongue be tamed? Praise God for his grace and for his mercy. Wickedness is abomination to my lips. Let me speak only, only the truth. Turn with me to the book of Ephesians. Book of Ephesians chapter 4. Chapter 4 and verse 25. of the book of Ephesians. Wherefore, putting away lying lips, putting away lying, whether it's lips or your tongue, one and the same. Speak every man truth with his neighbor. For we are members, one of another." Who's he speaking to here? Who's he saying it? For we are members, one of another. He's speaking of the church, the members in the church, the members in the church at Ephesus. Tonight, this passage of scripture is speaking to the members of the Grace Baptist Church, Melbourne, Florida. We're members, one of another. Let us put away lying and speak truth with one another. Keep that thought in your mind as you turn to the book of Galatians in chapter 6. Verse 10, this verse just came to my mind. Galatians chapter 6 and verse 10. As we have therefore opportunity, let us do good unto all men, especially unto those who are of the household of faith, especially to the household of faith, but to all men. Put away lying before all men, and especially to the household of faith. Speak truth with every man, especially to the household of faith and all men. God help us not to be a false witness. God help us not to be an idolater. You see, when you bear a false witness, who are you worshiping? Well, the bearer of a false witness has some reason why he's bearing that false witness. It's for his own pleasure. That's why he bears the false witness. to destroy the other man. Let us speak truth to all men and for what it's worth, and especially one of another in the Grace Baptist Church. He dealt in the preceding verses of the fourth chapter about divisions and the manner of life that we're supposed to live. Not exalting ourselves, but exalting the other. Walking in humility before one another. promoting love and good works to one another. You see, these are not lewd, lewdness. These are not wicked devices. Speaking the truth is not a wicked device. It's a godly trait. It's what God expects of you and of I. All right.