33 “Again you have heard that it was said to
those of old, ‘You shall not swear falsely, but shall perform your oaths to the
Lord.’ 34 But I say to you, do not swear at all: neither by
heaven, for it is God’s throne; 35 nor by the earth, for it is His footstool;
nor by Jerusalem, for it is the city of the great King. 36 Nor shall you swear by your head, because
you cannot make one hair white or black. 37 But let your ‘Yes’ be ‘Yes,’ and your ‘No,’
‘No.’ For whatever is more than these is from the evil one.
Commentary
Under the Law swearing by God’s Name was a serious matter requiring the one who did so to keep their vows before the Lord (Lev. 19:12; Num. 30:2; Deut. 23:31; Psalm61:8; Ecc. 5:4-7 etc.). Now in order to avoid using God’s name in swearing oaths people would often substitute swearing by heaven, earth, Jerusalem, or even their own heads to try to validate their own promises, words, or claims without invoking the Name of the Lord, thereby creating levels of “truthfulness” or believability according to what one swore by. Now as we know swearing by God’s Name, or swearing on a Bible, or swearing by anything else does not validate anything that anyone is saying, or promising to do. In fact schemers and liars are often the most willing to do just that, swear by this or swear on that. Just consider the two “witness” who testified against Christ when He was before the Sanhedrin counsel as examples of such individuals. Therefore if one is honest one should not have to swear by heaven, earth, Jerusalem or even one’s own head to validate their own word. For as the Lord Jesus makes it clear to substitute swearing by heaven in place of the God’s Name, so as to avoid any punitive action if one did not keep their word, is only to swear by God’s throne. Or to swear by the earth is only to swear by God’s footstool, or to swear by Jerusalem (is to swear by the city of the great King, our King Jesus, Gods Son). Even to swear by one’s own head is no less important, for God created us all, and is the Head of us all, and is above us all, and we cannot even make one hair white or black. And so swearing by any of these is no less important than swearing by God’s Name and therefore is no less serious in the eyes of God, because as the Word of God warns, all liars will have their place in the lake of fire (Rev. 21:6-8). Therefore the Lord Jesus Christ to keep us from making all kinds of promises, or swearing of all kinds of oaths, and also creating our own levels of “truthfulness”, or levels of what is incumbent upon us, now says to us all, “But let your ‘Yes’ be ‘Yes,’ and your ‘No,’ ‘No.’ For whatever is more than these is from the evil one.” So simple and yet so profoundly wonderful in keeping us truthful and honest and easily accountable to all, while also undermining the evil one, that is the devil, the father of lies (John 8:44), who loves to play around with the truth, using men and women who do the same to undermine the same. Therefore the Lord Jesus Christ says do not swear by this or by that, or on this or on that, rather let your yes mean yes and no mean no. For anything else added to validate your own words and promises is not from God, but from the evil one, who has great pleasure in making people hypocritical liars like himself.
Scripture Quotations
The New King James Version. Nashville: Thomas Nelson, 1982.
Commentary
Under the Law swearing by God’s Name was a serious matter requiring the one who did so to keep their vows before the Lord (Lev. 19:12; Num. 30:2; Deut. 23:31; Psalm61:8; Ecc. 5:4-7 etc.). Now in order to avoid using God’s name in swearing oaths people would often substitute swearing by heaven, earth, Jerusalem, or even their own heads to try to validate their own promises, words, or claims without invoking the Name of the Lord, thereby creating levels of “truthfulness” or believability according to what one swore by. Now as we know swearing by God’s Name, or swearing on a Bible, or swearing by anything else does not validate anything that anyone is saying, or promising to do. In fact schemers and liars are often the most willing to do just that, swear by this or swear on that. Just consider the two “witness” who testified against Christ when He was before the Sanhedrin counsel as examples of such individuals. Therefore if one is honest one should not have to swear by heaven, earth, Jerusalem or even one’s own head to validate their own word. For as the Lord Jesus makes it clear to substitute swearing by heaven in place of the God’s Name, so as to avoid any punitive action if one did not keep their word, is only to swear by God’s throne. Or to swear by the earth is only to swear by God’s footstool, or to swear by Jerusalem (is to swear by the city of the great King, our King Jesus, Gods Son). Even to swear by one’s own head is no less important, for God created us all, and is the Head of us all, and is above us all, and we cannot even make one hair white or black. And so swearing by any of these is no less important than swearing by God’s Name and therefore is no less serious in the eyes of God, because as the Word of God warns, all liars will have their place in the lake of fire (Rev. 21:6-8). Therefore the Lord Jesus Christ to keep us from making all kinds of promises, or swearing of all kinds of oaths, and also creating our own levels of “truthfulness”, or levels of what is incumbent upon us, now says to us all, “But let your ‘Yes’ be ‘Yes,’ and your ‘No,’ ‘No.’ For whatever is more than these is from the evil one.” So simple and yet so profoundly wonderful in keeping us truthful and honest and easily accountable to all, while also undermining the evil one, that is the devil, the father of lies (John 8:44), who loves to play around with the truth, using men and women who do the same to undermine the same. Therefore the Lord Jesus Christ says do not swear by this or by that, or on this or on that, rather let your yes mean yes and no mean no. For anything else added to validate your own words and promises is not from God, but from the evil one, who has great pleasure in making people hypocritical liars like himself.
Scripture Quotations
The New King James Version. Nashville: Thomas Nelson, 1982.
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