EXOD21 Long before Jewish law was even formally established, we can see many examples in the Jewish Bible that emphasize that lying is permitted in order to save one’s life. … Two of the Bible’s heroines, Shifra and Puah, risked their lives by defying Pharaoh after he told them to kill all the male Jewish babies, which they refused to do. When Pharaoh questioned them, they could not possibly tell him the truth about having saved the babies (and continue to live), so they lied to him saying that the Jewish others gave birth to their babies before they arrived at the scene.