Our Sages taught (Pesachim 113a): Your “Yes” should be honest and your “No” should be honest. One should follow the way of the Creator Who, once He promises something, does not retract. And any good word issued by the Holy One, even if it was said with a condition, He does take back; but if it is that He will bring about some calamity, He does take it back. That is how a good person should behave; once he expressed with his mouth that he will do something good towards his fellow, or that he will not do something negative — he should not break his word under any circumstance or for any reason in the world, for that would be a great disgrace. But if he said that he will do something bad, or that he will not do some good, then he should not keep his word. Our Sages say that “He who allows himself to be pacified through his wine possesses some of the characteristics of his Creator” (Eiruvin 65b). Rashi explains that “being pacified through his wine” means that after he drinks a little wine he rethinks the evil because he is happy, and when people reach out to pacify him he is readily appeased. “He possesses some of the characteristics of his Creator” — as it is written, Hashem smelled the pleasing aroma etc. (Berieshis 8:21); that is, after Noach brought his offering Hashem reconsidered the evil and he swore that He will never again bring a Flood upon the world.
