English: Rabbi Elazar said: Whoever changes his word is as though he worships idols; it is written here “and I shall be in his eyes as a trickster (ke-meta‘tea)” and it is written there “they are vanity, a work of deception (ta‘atu‘im).”
On the daf / in context: The rare term meta‘tea is linked to the language of idolatry, teaching the gravity of altering one’s speech.
Type of Learning
Custom (Bavli — changing one’s word akin to idolatry)
What Is Learned
Altering one’s word is compared to idolatry; the unusual term “ke-meta‘tea” supplies the verbal link.