What is the ruling on lying in cases of dire necessity?

Question : May Allah reward you with good. We conclude this session with a question from the questioner Muhammad, a Sudanese resident of Riyadh. He says: Is lying permissible in cases of dire necessity, if it is in the interest of religion or worldly affairs, in the most extreme state of necessity? May Allah reward you with good.

Answer : Lying is permissible in cases of dire necessity, but a person should resort to figurative interpretation (ta'wil), because there is a way out of lying through indirect speech (ta'rid). This means intending something true with one's words that is contrary to their apparent meaning. For example, if he is forced to swear that he has no dirhams, while he actually has dirhams, he should say, "By Allah, I have no dirhams." The apparent meaning of this is negation, but he intends affirmation with it. He intends by "I have no dirhams" that he does have dirhams, or something similar, according to what is opened to him in the door of figurative interpretation (ta'wil), because there is a way out of lying through indirect speech (ta'rid). Thank you, Honorable Shaykh, and may Allah bless you and your knowledge, and benefit the Muslims through you.