אִם (לט) נַעֲשָׂה דָּבָר לִרְאוּבֵן שֶׁלֹּא כַּהֹגֶן, אַךְ לֹא נוֹדַע לוֹ, מִי עָשָׂה לוֹ אֶת הַדָּבָר. וּבָא רְאוּבֵן זֶה וְשָׁאַל לְשִׁמְעוֹן: מִי עָשָׂה לִי אֶת הַדָּבָר הַזֶּה? אַף שֶׁהוּא מֵבִין, שֶׁרְאוּבֵן חוֹשְׁדוֹ בָּזֶה, אָסוּר לְגַלּוֹת לוֹ אֶת שֵׁם הָעוֹשֶׂה, אַף שֶׁהוּא רָאָה בְּעַצְּמוֹ. רַקּ יָשִׁיב לוֹ: אֲנִי לֹא עָשִׂיתִי אֶת הַדָּבָר *, (אִם לֹא שֶׁהוּא דָּבָר אֲשֶׁר אֲפִלּוּ אִם לֹא הָיָה חוֹשְׁדוֹ כְּלָל בָּזֶה וְלֹא הָיָה שׁוֹאֲלוֹ, הָיָה גַּם כֵּן צָרִיךְ לְסַפֵּר לוֹ מֵעַצְמוֹ, כְּגוֹן שֶׁנִּשְׁלְמוּ בּוֹ כָּל הַפְּרָטִים הַנַּל בִּתְחִלַּת הַסִימָן, וּכְמוֹ שֶׁכָּתַבְנוּ לְעֵיל בְּסָעִיף ז'), וּכְמוֹ שֶׁנִּתְבָּאֵר לְעֵיל בְּחֵלֶק א' בִּכְלָל י' בְּסָעִיף יז לְעִנְיַן לָשׁוֹן הָרָע, וְעַיֵּן שָׁם הֵיטֵב, כִּי כָּל הַסְבָרוֹת הַנִּזְכָּרוֹת שָׁם בִּמְקוֹר הַחַיִּים וּבִבְאֵר מַיִם חַיִּים, בֵּין לְעִנְיַן דִּינָא וּבֵין לְעִנְיַן לָצֵאת יְדֵי שָׁמַיִם, שַׁיָּךְ גַּם בָּזֶה.
If something wrong was done to Reuven without his knowing who did it, and Reuven came and asked Shimon: "Who did this to me?", even though he understands that Reuven suspects him of this, he is forbidden to tell him the name of the doer, even if he saw it [the deed] himself. But he should answer: "I did not do the thing" (unless it were a thing which even if he did not suspect him of at all, and which, even if he did not ask him, he would have to tell him himself, as when all of the conditions mentioned in the beginning of this section were met [and as we wrote above in section 7, and as was explained above in Part One, Principle X, section 17 in respect to lashon hara]). For all of the considerations mentioned there in the Mekor Hachaim and in the Be'er Mayim Chayim, both in respect to the din and to satisfying the demands of Heaven apply here too.