01.09. The Sermon on the Mount (17)

"The Sermon on the Mount" (17) To Take an Oath (Matthew 5:33-37) In the time and society in which we live, swearing, i.e. taking an oath, is uncommon. It is only in a court of law or in other very limited circumstances that an oath is required. In our everyday lives taking an oath is not something many of us encounter. But in the "Sermon on the Mount," His first great discourse in Matthew’s Gospel, the Lord Jesus mentions this subject. He does so again later, in more detail, in Matthew 23:16-22. There must be a reason for this. The Lord has a certain aim for all His words. He says in Matthew 12:36 that, in the day of judgment, men shall give account before God for every idle word. If we keep this in mind while considering this passage, the words of the Lord Jesus on this point will have something to say to us too. The law and swearing The Lord begins this fourth passage in the series of His examples (Matthew 5:21-26; Matthew 5:21-26; Matthew 5:27-30; Matthew 5:31-32; Matthew 5:33-37) with the words: "Again, ye have heard that it hath been said by them of old time, Thou shalt not forswear thyself, but shalt perform unto the Lord thine oaths." As in the previous example concerning divorce, this passage does not deal with an express commandment of God, but with one of the traditions of the elders and scribes, most of which arose after the Babylonian captivity. Although these were meant to explain the divine commandments, some, in the course of time, became more important to the Jews than the Word of God itself. Therefore the Lord had to say to them: "For laying aside the commandment of God, ye hold the tradition of men," and, "Full well ye reject the commandment of God, that ye may keep your own tradition" (Mark 7:8-9). The third commandment, "Thou shalt not take the name of the LORD thy God in vain," and also the ninth commandment, "Thou shalt not bear false witness against thy neighbour," contained the moral basis for the command not to swear falsely, i.e. to commit perjury. But there are other passages in the Old Testament in which the people of Israel are warned of thoughtless swearing. Leviticus 19:12 says: "And ye shall not swear by My name falsely, neither shalt thou profane the name of thy God" (cf. Numbers 30:3-4; Deuteronomy 23:22; Zechariah 8:17). On the other hand there were several occasions where, according to the law, an oath had to be taken and in such cases God required of His people that they swear by His name (Deuteronomy 6:13; cf. Exodus 22:11; Leviticus 5:1; Numbers 5:19-21). The oath then not only served as confirmation of the truth, but was also a solemn vow in the knowledge of the presence of Jehovah, who had once Himself taken an oath before Abraham (Genesis 22:16; Hebrews 6:13-20).

All this is summarised in the declaration, "Thou shalt not forswear thyself, but shalt perform unto the Lord thine oaths."

Thoughtless swearing The Jews loved to swear on all possible occasions in order to emphasise their words, and in this connection they used all kinds of impressive phrases. They swore by heaven, by the earth, by Jerusalem, by the temple, etc. Obviously, the scribes thought that only such oaths in which the name of God was expressly mentioned were "real" oaths and therefore binding for the swearer. In addition they made further distinctions between the temple and the gold of the temple, the altar and the gift on the altar (Matthew 23:16-22). The thoughtless swearing of oaths, vows and promises, which were not kept, was hardly considered sin by the Jews, as long as the name of God was not mentioned. As we look into our own hearts do we not see there the "divers weights" of which we read in Proverbs (Proverbs 20:10; Proverbs 20:23)? Do we not sometimes distinguish between "everyday" conversation, (as if this did not require the weighing of every single word), so-called "white lies" (which nevertheless are lies), and those occasions which are particularly serious, when we have to give our "word of honour" as we say? How many promises and declarations made, even by Christians, would be left unsaid if we kept in mind that we must give account of every idle word we speak.

"Swear not at all"

Human doctrines, such as those of the scribes, will in some way or other always be welcome to the flesh. Here something is taken away, there something is added to, the Word of God. This not only deprives it of its sharpness and power, but hinders the direct, personal application to the soul of this word of grace. The Lord Jesus opposes such human teaching with His divine, "But I say unto you, Swear not at all." The disciples of the Lord Jesus must learn that it is not the torrent of words and excessive affirmations and repetitions which give weight to their words, but that God delights in "truth in the inward parts" (Psalms 51:6), as well as outwardly. Paul writes to the Ephesians, "Wherefore putting away lying (i.e. everything that is false and untrue), speak every man truth with his neighbour" (Ephesians 4:25). In the words that follow the Lord refers to the various phrases the Jews used to confirm their many oaths. "Swear not at all: neither by heaven; for it is God’s throne: Nor by the earth; for it is His footstool: neither by Jerusalem; for it is the city of the great King. Neither shalt thou swear by thy head, because thou canst not make one hair white or black." It was a wrong idea to think one could happily use these substitute phrases, as long as one did not mention the name of God. Heaven is God’s throne, the earth is God’s footstool (Isaiah 66:1) and Jerusalem is the city of God and of His King (Psalms 48:1-2). He who swore by his head, i.e. wanted to deposit his life as security against his oath, ought well to remember that God alone is Lord over life and death, and that he himself does not even have the power to change the colour of one hair of his head.

"But let your communication be, Yea, yea; Nay, nay: for whatsoever is more than these, cometh of evil." If our words are honest and true, they need no other confirmation than "yes" or "no." The sense of this double mention of yes and no becomes clear from a very similar passage in James 5:12 : "Yes" should really mean "Yes," and "No" should really mean "No." All that is more than that is only a sign that one generally does not take the truth too seriously, and therefore "cometh of evil." Is a Christian allowed to swear?

Many of the old church fathers like Justin, Irenaeus, Origen and Jerome, understood the Lord’s words, "swear not at all," to mean that a Christian ought not to take an oath under any circumstances. In addition many sects like the Quakers and Jehovah’s Witnesses reject the taking of any kind of oath. It is therefore understandable that children of God repeatedly ask, "Is a Christian allowed to swear?"

If the oath only serves as confirmation of ones own words, because one fears that they are not believed, it is not allowed. As children of God, we should always speak the truth (Ephesians 4:25). This should not need any additional confirmation.

If an oath is required by the government or before a court, it is different. In the world, lying is nearly the order of the day. It is therefore very understandable if, for example in court, evidence is given under oath. This underlines in a serious way the search for the truth. Even if the government does not acknowledge God, the Christian ought to respect the powers that be as coming from God (Romans 13:1 ff). In such a case a Christian may take an oath. A vow, which civil servants or soldiers may have to make, should be considered in the same way. When our Lord stood before the council, He did not reply to any of the false accusations made against Him. But when the High Priest put Him under oath with the words, "I adjure Thee by the living God," He was no longer silent, but submitted to the authorities ordained by God and testified of the truth, "Thou hast said" (Matthew 26:63 ff; cf. Leviticus 5:1).