Have you ever read through Exodus 1, and the story of the Hebrew Midwives, and wondered, “How could God condone lying?” Then, of course we get to Rahab in Joshua 2 and the question rises again. So is lying wrong or not? Here’s a good article by John Piper on this topic.
The bottom line? 99.99999% of the time, telling the truth is always the right thing to do, but as Piper says, “I conclude from these two stories that it is possible to be a person who fears the Lord (like the Hebrew midwives) and who acts in faith (like Rahab) and yet feels constrained in extreme situations to oppose evil by lying.” This is not situational ethics but rather an individual who loves and fears God opposing evil at all cost.
And no, wanting to conceal from your husband how much you spent on that new coat is not an extreme situation. Tell the truth. 🙂