Oaths and Honesty

Matthew 5:33-37 “33 “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.’ 34 But I say to you, Do not take an oath at all, either by heaven, for it is the throne of God, 35 or by the earth, for it is his footstool, or by Jerusalem, for it is the city of the great King. 36 And do not take an oath by your head, for you cannot make one hair white or black. 37 Let what you say be simply ‘Yes’ or ‘No’; anything more than this comes from evil.”

Framework of Sermon on the Mount

Matthew 5:19-20 “19 Therefore whoever relaxes one of the least of these commandments and teaches others to do the same will be called least in the kingdom of heaven, but whoever does them and teaches them will be called great in the kingdom of heaven. 20 For I tell you, unless your righteousness exceeds that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.”

Murder/Anger

Adultery/Lust

Divorce

Oaths/Vows

Retaliation

Love your neighbor

Matthew 5:48 “48 You therefore must be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect.”

Promises Defined

Promises, vows, oaths, are made to ensure someone is telling the truth, especially when there is the tendency or temptation to lie. They are also made to ensure someone will uphold a commitment, especially when there is doubt present.

Being untrustworthy, unreliable, and dishonest are a direct result of sin. We have people promise us when we doubt them or we make promises to them when we feel they doubt us.

Commitments are not understood to have been honest if they are fulfilled. If there is legitimate excuse, then trust is not broken. Trust is broken when there is no excuse and someone simply did not do what they could have done. Therefore, trust in commitments is not found in the fulfillment but the heart and intention of the commitment.

It is clear that promises, vows, and oaths are rooted in honesty, or lack thereof.

Jewish Context of Vows

Vows, promises, and oaths in the OT

Exodus 20:7 “7 “You shall not take the name of the Lord your God in vain, for the Lord will not hold him guiltless who takes his name in vain.”

Leviticus 19:12 “12 You shall not swear by my name falsely, and so profane the name of your God: I am the Lord.”

Numbers 30:2 “2 If a man vows a vow to the Lord, or swears an oath to bind himself by a pledge, he shall not break his word. He shall do according to all that proceeds out of his mouth.”

Deuteronomy 23:21-24 “21 “If you make a vow to the Lord your God, you shall not delay fulfilling it, for the Lord your God will surely require it of you, and you will be guilty of sin. 22 But if you refrain from vowing, you will not be guilty of sin. 23 You shall be careful to do what has passed your lips, for you have voluntarily vowed to the Lord your God what you have promised with your mouth. 24 “If you go into your neighbor’s vineyard, you may eat your fill of grapes, as many as you wish, but you shall not put any in your bag.”

Vows had been lessened by the rabbis so they could keep the law. The way they designed it, vows may or may not be binding based on the situation and circumstances. It was a way to check the box of keeping God’s law without having to commit much effort.

God originally created promises to assure us of his faithfulness and trustworthiness. The skewed views of the Jews made promises an avenue for “legal dishonesty”.

“Love your neighbor” was not as difficult if there were strict and precise rules qualifying who is considered a neighbor.

Jesus’ Redefining the Law

Jesus explains that his disciples must be honest people. There is no room for dishonesty or deception. The heart of his disciples is honest; therefore, not needing qualifiers.

All oaths invoke God’s accountability to us:

Heaven - throne of God

Earth - footstool of God

Jerusalem - city of God

Oneself - child of God

Remember, the original purpose of promises was to ensure trust not to create a checklist for attaining righteousness.

Jesus completely flips their understanding of honesty upside-down. They wanted the truth to be “not lying”. The intention was never to be honest but to do the bare minimum in obeying God.

Application

Colossians 3:9-10 “9 Do not lie to one another, seeing that you have put off the old self with its practices 10 and have put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge after the image of its creator.”

Philippians 4:8-9 “8 Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things. 9 What you have learned and received and heard and seen in me—practice these things, and the God of peace will be with you.”

Ephesians 4:17-25 “17 Now this I say and testify in the Lord, that you must no longer walk as the Gentiles do, in the futility of their minds. 18 They are darkened in their understanding, alienated from the life of God because of the ignorance that is in them, due to their hardness of heart. 19 They have become callous and have given themselves up to sensuality, greedy to practice every kind of impurity. 20 But that is not the way you learned Christ!— 21 assuming that you have heard about him and were taught in him, as the truth is in Jesus, 22 to put off your old self, which belongs to your former manner of life and is corrupt through deceitful desires, 23 and to be renewed in the spirit of your minds, 24 and to put on the new self, created after the likeness of God in true righteousness and holiness. 25 Therefore, having put away falsehood, let each one of you speak the truth with his neighbor, for we are members one of another.”

2 Timothy 2:14-15 “14 Remind them of these things, and charge them before God not to quarrel about words, which does no good, but only ruins the hearers. 15 Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a worker who has no need to be ashamed, rightly handling the word of truth.”

2 Timothy 2:22-26 “22 So flee youthful passions and pursue righteousness, faith, love, and peace, along with those who call on the Lord from a pure heart. 23 Have nothing to do with foolish, ignorant controversies; you know that they breed quarrels. 24 And the Lord’s servant must not be quarrelsome but kind to everyone, able to teach, patiently enduring evil, 25 correcting his opponents with gentleness. God may perhaps grant them repentance leading to a knowledge of the truth, 26 and they may come to their senses and escape from the snare of the devil, after being captured by him to do his will.”

James 5:7-12 “7 Be patient, therefore, brothers, until the coming of the Lord. See how the farmer waits for the precious fruit of the earth, being patient about it, until it receives the early and the late rains. 8 You also, be patient. Establish your hearts, for the coming of the Lord is at hand. 9 Do not grumble against one another, brothers, so that you may not be judged; behold, the Judge is standing at the door. 10 As an example of suffering and patience, brothers, take the prophets who spoke in the name of the Lord. 11 Behold, we consider those blessed who remained steadfast. You have heard of the steadfastness of Job, and you have seen the purpose of the Lord, how the Lord is compassionate and merciful. 12 But above all, my brothers, do not swear, either by heaven or by earth or by any other oath, but let your “yes” be yes and your “no” be no, so that you may not fall under condemnation.”

Titus 2:7-8 “7 Show yourself in all respects to be a model of good works, and in your teaching show integrity, dignity, 8 and sound speech that cannot be condemned, so that an opponent may be put to shame, having nothing evil to say about us.”

2 Corinthians 4:1-3 “1 Therefore, having this ministry by the mercy of God, we do not lose heart. 2 But we have renounced disgraceful, underhanded ways. We refuse to practice cunning or to tamper with God’s word, but by the open statement of the truth we would commend ourselves to everyone’s conscience in the sight of God. 3 And even if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled to those who are perishing.”