“Again you have heard that it was said to those of old, ‘You shall not swear falsely, but shall perform to the Lord what you have sworn.’ But I say to you, Do not take an oath at all, either by heaven, for it is the throne of God, or by the earth, for it is his footstool, or by Jerusalem, for it is the city of the great King. And do not take an oath by your head, for you cannot make one hair white or black. Let what you say be simply ‘Yes’ or ‘No’; anything more than this comes from evil.” [Matthew 5:33-37]

Jesus seems to be making an absolute interdiction on swearing or oath taking here. Does this mean we shouldn’t swear in court, or swear to uphold a creed or an ethical standard, or swear to protect our country? Some Christians (Quakers, for example) refrain from doing these because of this passage. What about marriage vows, or commitments to church covenants?

The Biblical evidence suggests that there are appropriate times and contexts to make oaths. Here is some compelling evidence:

  1. If making oaths is always wrong, it would make sense for Jesus to say so when talking about marriage in verses 31-32. Instead of forbidding marriage vows, Jesus tells us that they must not be broken.
  2. Jesus speaks in his trial only after the high priest swears: “I adjure you by the living God” (Matthew 26:63). Jesus’ actions here indicate he recognizes the validity of some oaths.
  3. The Lord himself swears and makes oaths. For example he swore never to destroy the earth again (Genesis 9:9-12), to multiply Abraham’s descendants (Hebrew 6:13-18), to give Israel Canaan (Exodus 6:8),  to establish David’s son upon the throne (Psalm 132:11), and to send a redeemer (Luke 1:68-74), among other things.
  4. The Lord call his people to swear by his name in the Old Testament (Deuteronomy 10:20).
  5. Faithful followers of the Lord make oaths in the Old Testament. For example Joshua cursed Jericho (Joshua 6:26) and later the Lord fulfills his oath (1 Kings 16:34), all Judah swore an oath to seek the Lord, and they found him (2 Chronicles 15:14-15)
  6. Paul regularly swears by God’s name (Romans 1:9, 9:1; 2 Corinthians 1:23; 1 Thessalonians 2:5, 10; Philippians 1:8).
  7. An angel in heaven swears by God’s name (Revelation 10:5-6).
Advertisement