Musar על שמות 23:1

The fourth: That his ears are always inclined to hear the good. Indeed, a useless or disgraceful report [should] not enter them at all. In the way that no yelling of judgement nor defect of evil speech enters the Highest Listening, so [should] he only listen to goodnesses and beneficial things. And he [should] not listen to the other things that intensify anger at all. And [just] like the snake, his speech and his expression do not enter Above, so [too,] must no disgraceful thing enter to him. And that is [the meaning of, "You shall not raise a false report" (Exodus 23:1) - all the more so, [should] the other disgraceful things not enter his ear at all. And it [should] only listen to good things.

First of all, the episode of the serpent, who spoke lashon hara of the Holy One Blessed be He and thereby brought death to the world. And (Bereshith 29:20): "If G-d will be with me and guard me," concerning which Chazal have said: "if He will guard me against lashon hara." And the episode of Joseph (Ibid. 37:2): "And Joseph brought their evil talk to their father," this being the catalyst of the descent of the Jews to Egypt. And (Shemoth 2:14): "In truth, the thing has become known" (see Rashi there and what we shall write below). There, too, (4:1) Moses our teacher, may peace be upon him, says: "But they will not believe me," and the Blessed L-rd counters (Ibid. 2): "What is this in your hand?" … (3) …and it became a serpent." Also there (6): "And, behold, his hand was leprous as snow." And (Ibid. 17:2): "And the people quarreled with Moses… (7) …over the quarrel of the children of Israel, etc." followed by (8): "And Amalek came and warred with Israel, etc." And (Ibid. 23:1): "You shall not bear a false report, which applies to both the speaker and the receiver [of lashon hara] (as we find in Makkoth 23a), followed by (2): "Do not be after many to do evil." And, in reference to the me'il [the outer robe of the ephod] (Ibid. 28:32): "A border shall there be to its mouth roundabout," and the entire section. And (35): "And its sound will be heard when he comes to the sanctuary, etc." And the entire section of Tazria and Metzora: the plague-spots of houses, the plague-spots of clothing, the plague-spots of men, (Vayikra 13:46): "Solitary shall he sit"— even outside of the camp of Israel. And his atonement— "chirping" birds. And (Ibid. 19:16): "Do not go talebearing among your people," (Ibid. 17): "Reprove, shall you reprove your neighbor, but you shall not bear sin because of him." And (Ibid. 25:17): "You shall not wrong, one man, his fellow," which relates to verbal wronging, which is also in the category of evil speech. And (Bamidbar 5:1): "And they shall send out of the camp every leper"— even if he were as great in Torah as Doeg. And (Ibid. 12:1): "And Miriam and Aaron spoke against Moses, etc." And the entire section of Shelach Lecha, which speaks about the spies. And (Ibid. 21:5): "And the people spoke against G-d and against Moses." And (Devarim 23:10): "When you go out as a camp against your foes, guard yourself against every evil thing [davar ra]," concerning which Chazal have said: "davar ra" may be read as "dibbur ra" [evil speech]. And in Tetze, the "giving out of an evil name [motzi shem ra]," and (Ibid. 24:9): "Remember what the L-rd your G-d did to Miriam, etc." And (Ibid. 27:24): "Cursed be he who smites his friend in secret," which refers to lashon hara. And it is known that all of the "cursings" were preceded by blessings; and they opened with blessing, saying: "Blessed is he who does not smite"— whence we derive that one who is heedful in this is blessed.

And, in truth, how much should the speaker of lashon hara be ashamed of himself because of this. For if he were called up to the Torah and found the verses there to concern the issur of speaking lashon hara (such as Vayikra 19:16: "Do not go talebearing among your people," or Devarim 27:24: "Cursed is he who smites his friend in secret," or Ibid. 24:9: "Remember what the L-rd your G-d did to Miriam," or Shemoth 23:1: "Do not bear a false report," and the like) and the point of a yod were missing in some place, he would refuse to make the blessing on the Torah, saying that the Torah of the L-rd must be perfect, as the Holy One Blessed be He gave it to us, and not defective. He believes, then, in truth, in the Blessed L-rd and in His holy Torah, in all of its letters, but when that subject comes to hand, immediately the verses of the Torah are abandoned by him, and he does not think it a sin at all! Remember, my brother, what we find in Tanna d’bei Eliyahu Rabbah, Chapter 28: "If one recognizes words of Torah and 'passes them by,' he is an absolute evildoer."