This concrete instance of self-deception is typical of a class of lies in which men and women feign honesty because they know it is required of them. They go through the motions of doing the right thing, but their heart is not in it because they have already decided what to do, or they have already committed themselves to some course of action which they cannot now turn back from, whatever the outcome of their enquiry. In this way some seek guidance of the Lord. They have already decided what to do – where to live, what job to take, who to marry, whether to proceed with some purchase – but now they come to pray about it. Their prayer is not real, for they are not truly interested in the will of God; it is only a pretence to fool those who expect a pious approach to life from them. If God were to tell them to something different, they would not be willing to hear. An example of this is the enquiry that was made to Jeremiah by the remnant left behind in Jerusalem about whether to go down to Egypt or not. Jeremiah was assured that they were sincere, but he saw through them and, when they predictably ignored God’s word to them, he rebuked their false enquiry (Jeremiah 42, 43). They would have accepted God’s word to them as long as he gave them the answer they wanted to hear. They would have liked the answer of God to confirm their own prior choice for this would have given them two things at once: the choice they wanted to make, and the approval of God for their own wilful choice. Let us instead come to God in honesty, being willing to do whatever he tells us and truly believing that his will is best for us, whether it cuts across our intended plans or not.