Charles Spurgeon Commentary Luke 14:19

"And another said, I have bought five yoke of oxen, and I go to prove them; I pray thee have me excused." — Luke 14:19 (ASV)

He pretended that he had bought five yoke of oxen without testing them, and that he wanted to test them after he had bought them, when, of course, he could not cancel the bargain: a likely story! But, when men want to make an excuse, and they have no truth to use as the raw material, they can always make one out of a lie.