Stephen Sorensen

“Falsehood flies, and truth comes limping after it, so that when men come to be undeceived, it is too late; the jest is over, and the tale hath had its effect: like a man, who hath thought of a good repartee when the discourse is changed, or the company parted; or like a physician, who hath found out an infallible medicine, after the patient is dead.”
― Jonathan Swift

“Odysseus’ success depends as much on making people believe what is not true as on surprising them with the truth.”
― Sheila Murnaghan, Disguise and Recognition in the Odyssey

“In the Mediterranean world, deception is a legitimate strategy at the service of honor; it is a means value. Those who excel in deception are cheered by the crowd, even as those they have "taken in" smart from the shame and plot retaliation.”
― John J. Pilch

“Early Christian thinkers frequently employed the "deception of the devil" motif to explain God's activity in the defeat of evil. ...God fooled Satan into thinking Jesus was just another human being...”
― Darby Kathleen Ray, Deceiving the Devil: Atonement, Abuse, and Ransom