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Deceptions and disguises in the Bible
45 passages of the Berean Standard Bible, line by line, from Nave’s Topical Bible.
In Genesis
- The serpent tells the woman: 'You will not surely die'Gen 3:4
The verses
Gen 3:4“You will not surely die,” the serpent told her.
- Abram asks Sarai to say she is his sisterGen 12:13
The verses
Gen 12:13Please say you are my sister, so that I will be treated well for your sake, and on account of you my life will be spared.”
- At Gerar Abraham says of Sarah again: 'She is my sister'Gen 20:2
The verses
Gen 20:2Abraham said of his wife Sarah, “She is my sister.” So Abimelech king of Gerar had Sarah brought to him.
- Isaac says Rebekah is his sister, afraid the men will kill himGen 26:7
The verses
Gen 26:7But when the men of that place asked about his wife, he said, “She is my sister.” For he was afraid to say, “She is my wife,” since he thought to himself, “The men of this place will kill me on account of Rebekah, because she is so beautiful.”
- Rebekah dresses Jacob in Esau's clothes and goat skinsGen 27:15–16
The verses
Gen 27:15–16And Rebekah took the finest clothes in the house that belonged to her older son Esau, and she put them on her younger son Jacob. She also put the skins of the young goats on his hands and on the smooth part of his neck.
- Jacob tells his father, who cannot see: 'I am Esau, your firstborn'Gen 27:1, Gen 27:19
The verses
Gen 27:1When Isaac was old and his eyes were so weak that he could no longer see, he called his older son Esau and said to him, “My son.” “Here I am,” Esau replied.
Gen 27:19Jacob said to his father, “I am Esau, your firstborn. I have done as you told me. Please sit up and eat some of my game, so that you may bless me.”
- Laban gives Leah instead of Rachel; Jacob: 'Why have you deceived me?'Gen 29:23, Gen 29:25
- Jacob slips away from Laban without telling himGen 31:20
The verses
Gen 31:20Moreover, Jacob deceived Laban the Aramean by not telling him that he was running away.
- Rachel hides Laban's household idols in a saddlebag and sits on themGen 31:34–35
The verses
Gen 31:34–35Now Rachel had taken Laban’s household idols, put them in the saddlebag of her camel, and was sitting on them. And Laban searched everything in the tent but found nothing. Rachel said to her father, “Sir, do not be angry that I cannot stand up before you; for I am having my period.” So Laban searched, but could not find the household idols.
- Jacob's sons ask Shechem's men to be circumcised, then attack the cityGen 34:13, Gen 34:15, Gen 34:25
The verses
Gen 34:13But because Shechem had defiled their sister Dinah, Jacob’s sons answered him and his father Hamor deceitfully.
Gen 34:15We will consent to this on one condition, that you become circumcised like us—every one of your males.
Gen 34:25Three days later, while they were still in pain, two of Jacob’s sons (Dinah’s brothers Simeon and Levi) took their swords, went into the unsuspecting city, and slaughtered every male.
- The brothers dip Joseph's robe in goat's blood and show it to JacobGen 37:31–33
The verses
Gen 37:31–33Then they took Joseph’s robe, slaughtered a young goat, and dipped the robe in its blood. They sent the robe of many colors to their father and said, “We found this. Examine it to see whether it is your son’s robe or not.” His father recognized it and said, “It is my son’s robe! A vicious animal has devoured him. Joseph has surely been torn to pieces!”
- Tamar veils herself, and Judah takes her for a prostituteGen 38:14–15
The verses
Gen 38:14–15she removed her widow’s garments, covered her face with a veil to disguise herself, and sat at the entrance to Enaim, which is on the way to Timnah. For she saw that although Shelah had grown up, she had not been given to him as a wife. When Judah saw her, he thought she was a prostitute because she had covered her face.
- Joseph has his silver cup hidden in Benjamin's sackGen 44:1–2
The verses
Gen 44:1–2Then Joseph instructed his steward: “Fill the men’s sacks with as much food as they can carry, and put each one’s silver in the mouth of his sack. Put my cup, the silver one, in the mouth of the youngest one’s sack, along with the silver for his grain.” So the steward did as Joseph had instructed.
Judges and kings
- The Gibeonites bring worn sacks and moldy bread, claiming a distant landJosh 9:4–6
The verses
Josh 9:4–6acted deceptively and set out as envoys, carrying on their donkeys worn-out sacks and old wineskins, cracked and mended. They put worn, patched sandals on their feet and threadbare clothing on their bodies, and their whole supply of bread was dry and moldy. They went to Joshua in the camp at Gilgal and said to him and the men of Israel, “We have come from a distant land; please make a treaty with us.”
- Three days after the treaty Israel learned they were neighborsJosh 9:16
The verses
Josh 9:16Three days after they had made the treaty with the Gibeonites, the Israelites learned that they were neighbors, living among them.
- Jael invites Sisera in, gives him milk, then kills him as he sleepsJudg 4:18–21
The verses
Judg 4:18–21Jael went out to greet Sisera and said to him, “Come in, my lord. Come in with me. Do not be afraid.” So he entered her tent, and she covered him with a blanket. Sisera said to her, “Please give me a little water to drink, for I am thirsty.” So she opened a container of milk, gave him a drink, and covered him again. “Stand at the entrance to the tent,” he said, “and if anyone comes and asks you, ‘Is there a man here?’ say, ‘No.’” But as he lay sleeping from exhaustion, Heber’s wife Jael took a tent peg, grabbed a hammer, and went silently to Sisera. She drove the peg through his temple and into the ground, and he died.
- Michal lays an idol with goat hair in David's bed: 'He is ill'1 Sam 19:13–16
The verses
1 Sam 19:13–16Then Michal took a household idol and laid it in the bed, placed some goat hair on its head, and covered it with a garment. When Saul sent the messengers to seize David, Michal said, “He is ill.” But Saul sent the messengers back to see David and told them, “Bring him up to me in his bed so I can kill him.” And when the messengers entered, there was the idol in the bed with the quilt of goats’ hair on its head.
- David tells the priest at Nob he is on a secret mission for the king1 Sam 21:1–2
The verses
1 Sam 21:1–2Then David came to Nob, to Ahimelech the priest. And when Ahimelech met David, he trembled and asked him, “Why are you alone? Why is no one with you?” “The king has given me a mission,” David replied. “He told me no one is to know about the mission or charge. And I have directed my young men to meet me at a certain place.
- David raids the Geshurites but tells Achish he raided Judah's Negev1 Sam 27:8, 1 Sam 27:10
The verses
1 Sam 27:8Now David and his men went up and raided the Geshurites, the Girzites, and the Amalekites. (From ancient times these people had inhabited the land extending to Shur and Egypt.)
1 Sam 27:10who would ask him, “What have you raided today?” And David would reply, “The Negev of Judah,” or “The Negev of Jerahmeel,” or “The Negev of the Kenites.”
- Amnon pretends to be ill so that Tamar will come to him2 Sam 13:6
The verses
2 Sam 13:6So Amnon lay down and feigned illness. When the king came to see him, Amnon said, “Please let my sister Tamar come and make a couple of cakes in my sight, so that I may eat from her hand.”
- Joab sends a wise woman from Tekoa to act as a mourner2 Sam 14:2–3
The verses
2 Sam 14:2–3So Joab sent to Tekoa to bring a wise woman from there. He told her, “Please pretend to be a mourner; put on clothes for mourning and do not anoint yourself with oil. Act like a woman who has mourned for the dead a long time. Then go to the king and speak these words to him.” And Joab put the words in her mouth.
- Absalom asks to go to Hebron for a vow, and starts a revolt there2 Sam 15:7, 2 Sam 15:10
The verses
2 Sam 15:7After four years had passed, Absalom said to the king, “Please let me go to Hebron to fulfill a vow I have made to the LORD.
2 Sam 15:10Then Absalom sent spies throughout the tribes of Israel with this message: “When you hear the sound of the horn, you are to say, ‘Absalom reigns in Hebron!’”
- Hushai, David's friend, greets Absalom: 'Long live the king!'2 Sam 16:16
The verses
2 Sam 16:16And David’s friend Hushai the Archite went to Absalom and said to him, “Long live the king! Long live the king!”
- Absalom prefers Hushai's advice to Ahithophel's2 Sam 17:14
The verses
2 Sam 17:14Then Absalom and all the men of Israel said, “The advice of Hushai the Archite is better than that of Ahithophel.” For the LORD had purposed to thwart the good counsel of Ahithophel in order to bring disaster on Absalom.
- An old prophet lies to bring the man of God back to his house1 Kgs 13:18
The verses
1 Kgs 13:18Then the prophet replied, “I too am a prophet like you, and an angel spoke to me by the word of the LORD, saying, ‘Bring him back with you to your house, so that he may eat bread and drink water.’” The old prophet was lying to him,
- Jeroboam's wife goes in disguise; Ahijah, who cannot see, greets her by name1 Kgs 14:2, 1 Kgs 14:4, 1 Kgs 14:6
The verses
1 Kgs 14:2and Jeroboam said to his wife, “Now get up, disguise yourself so they will not recognize you as my wife, and go to Shiloh. For Ahijah the prophet is there; it was he who spoke about my kingship over this people.
1 Kgs 14:4Jeroboam’s wife did as instructed; she arose and went to Shiloh and arrived at Ahijah’s house. Now Ahijah could not see, for his eyes were dim because of his age.
1 Kgs 14:6So when Ahijah heard the sound of her feet entering the door, he said, “Come in, wife of Jeroboam! Why are you disguised? For I have been sent to you with bad news.
- Gehazi invents a message from Elisha to get silver from Naaman2 Kgs 5:22, 2 Kgs 5:25
The verses
2 Kgs 5:22“Everything is all right,” Gehazi replied. “My master has sent me to say, ‘I have just now discovered that two young men from the sons of the prophets have come to me from the hill country of Ephraim. Please give them a talent of silver and two sets of clothing.’”
2 Kgs 5:25When Gehazi went in and stood before his master, Elisha asked him, “Gehazi, where have you been?” “Your servant did not go anywhere,” he replied.
- Jehu announces a great sacrifice for Baal to gather its servants2 Kgs 10:19
The verses
2 Kgs 10:19Now, therefore, summon to me all the prophets of Baal, all his servants, and all his priests. See that no one is missing, for I have a great sacrifice for Baal. Whoever is missing will not live.” But Jehu was acting deceptively in order to destroy the servants of Baal.
- Sanballat invites Nehemiah to the plain of Ono, planning to harm himNeh 6:2
The verses
Neh 6:2Sanballat and Geshem sent me this message: “Come, let us meet together in one of the villages on the plain of Ono.” But they were planning to harm me.
- A hired man urges Nehemiah to hide in the templeNeh 6:10, Neh 6:12
The verses
Neh 6:10Later, I went to the house of Shemaiah son of Delaiah, the son of Mehetabel, who was confined to his house. He said: “Let us meet at the house of God inside the temple. Let us shut the temple doors because they are coming to kill you— by night they are coming to kill you!”
Neh 6:12I realized that God had not sent him, but that he had uttered this prophecy against me because Tobiah and Sanballat had hired him.
In the New Testament
- Herod tells the Magi he too wants to come and worship the ChildMatt 2:8
The verses
Matt 2:8And sending them to Bethlehem, he said: “Go and search carefully for the Child, and when you find Him, report to me, so that I too may go and worship Him.”
- The chief priests look for a covert way to arrest JesusMark 14:1
The verses
Mark 14:1Now the Passover and the Feast of Unleavened Bread were two days away, and the chief priests and scribes were looking for a covert way to arrest Jesus and kill Him.
- Soldiers are paid to say the disciples stole the bodyMatt 28:12–13
The verses
Matt 28:12–13And after the chief priests had met with the elders and formed a plan, they gave the soldiers a large sum of money and instructed them: “You are to say, ‘His disciples came by night and stole Him away while we were asleep.’
- Ananias and Sapphira keep back part of the price of their landActs 5:1–2, Acts 5:8
The verses
Acts 5:1–2Now a man named Ananias, together with his wife Sapphira, also sold a piece of property. With his wife’s full knowledge, he kept back some of the proceeds for himself, but brought a portion and laid it at the apostles’ feet.
Acts 5:8“Tell me,” said Peter, “is this the price you and your husband got for the land?” “Yes,” she answered, “that is the price.”
Sources
From Nave’s Topical Bible (Orville J. Nave, 1896; public domain): subjects chosen, lines shortened and put into modern words, lines of interpretation left out; each verse checked.
Berean Standard Bible · Public domain