SERMON ON THE MOUNT (OATHS)
33 Again, you have heard that it was said to the people long ago, 'Do not break your oath, but fulfill to the Lord the vows you have made.' 34 But I tell you, do not swear an oath at all: either by heaven, for it is God's throne; 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 swear by your head, for you cannot make even one hair white or black. 37 All you need to say is simply 'Yes' or 'No'; anything beyond this comes from the evil one.
COMMENTARY
In this section, Jesus is dealing with oaths. Not with vulgar language. However, by making a solemn promise, affirming what you say is true. As a kid, 'cross my heart and hope to die' was the oath of choice to express that we meant what we were saying. As an adult, it may take the form of 'I swear to tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth, so help me, God.’
The expression that Jesus refers to here seems to come from a couple of places in the Old Testament. In Numbers 30:2, we find, "When a man makes a vow to the LORD or takes an oath to obligate himself by a pledge, he must not break his word but must do everything he said." And Deuteronomy 23:21 says, "If you make a vow to the LORD your God, do not be slow to pay it, for the LORD your God will certainly demand it of you and you will be guilty of sin. "
(Matthew 5:33, NIV): Again, you have heard that it was said to the people long ago, 'Do not break your oath, but fulfill to the Lord the vows you have made.'
Matthew 5:33–37 continues a theme Jesus has been expanding in the Sermon on the Mount. The difference between righteousness and sin is not just a matter of following rules. It starts in the human heart. Here, Jesus attacks another way in which hypocrites would twist and abuse religious teachings. When Jesus speaks against swearing oaths, he is not referring to serious, formal commitments like marriage or a courtroom witness. He condemns those who use the language of oaths to disguise evil intentions.
Jesus continues to give one example after another, comparing what Israel's religious leaders have taught his hearers to God's true intent for the hearts of His people. His pattern is not to reject the words of the religious leaders but to show how their interpretations fall short (Matthew 5:20). The whole meaning comes as Jesus follows each statement by saying, "I say…."So far, He has given a deeper understanding of anger (Matthew 5:21–22), adultery (Matthew 5:27–28), and divorce (Matthew 5:31–32).
Now Jesus turns to the issue of swearing an oath. This is not about foul language. Nor is it a reference to solemn, formal promises, such as those seen in wedding vows or in a courtroom. Instead, Jesus is speaking of using God's name as a token to seal a promise. He is also speaking of the practice of adding some qualifier to our words to declare honesty—such as "cross my heart" or "I swear on my mother."
Numbers 30:2 describes it like this, "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." Under that understanding, someone might say, "I swear to the Lord that I will pay you back this money." Among Israelites, this has been considered contractually binding. It was also seen as dangerous: breaking an oath to the Lord was understood to bring severe consequences.
In practice, however, this concept became yet another loophole subject to abuse. In some cases, oath-breakers might argue that if God had meant the oath to be kept, He would have ensured it; therefore, the oath was never binding. Swearing by other things and places would have given the oath-taker even more wiggle room. This creates a broad opportunity for premeditated deceit. Israel's religious leaders may have made the problem worse by debating which oaths were binding and which were not. In the following verse, Jesus sets a different, more challenging standard for His disciples.
Matthew 5:34, NIV: But I tell you, do not swear an oath at all: either by heaven, for it is God's throne;
The previous verse contained Jesus' now-familiar phrase, "you have heard that it was said…" which is His way of introducing the common teachings of religious leaders. Jesus does not always contradict those teachings, but He does explain a more godly, challenging application. God expects His commandments to be taken much more seriously than as a tool for legalism and hypocrisy.
Jesus is speaking about swearing oaths to obligate oneself to a task. Someone who said, "I swear to the Lord to pay you the money" would have to answer God for their sin if they did not follow through. However, in practice, Israel's religious leaders allowed a system of debatable oaths to take hold. Swearing by things and places other than the Lord may have been an attempt to imply less severe consequences for the oath-breaker (Numbers 30:2). They may have also tolerated those who claimed that God, not the oath-maker, was to blame if the promise was not kept.
Aspects of this continue into modern culture. Jesus is not speaking of formal, official promises such as contracts, marriage vows, or a courtroom oath. This applies to moments when someone tries to emphasize their honesty using an oath. In English, a person might say, "I cross my heart," or "may God strike me dead if I am lying," or, "I swear I will pay you back." The implication is that the oath "guarantees" the person is telling the truth and has good intentions.
Jesus now says that His disciples should not take an oath at all. They should not swear by anything. The main reason is that a person known for integrity does not need to enhance their promises. The upright truth behind a Christian's "yes" and "no" should be strong enough to stand on its own. Another concern is that Swearing by something that belongs to God comes too close to Swearing by God Himself. Therefore Jesus says not to swear by heaven because it is God's throne. He will expand on that in the following verses.
Matthew 5:35, NIV: or by the earth, for it is his footstool; or by Jerusalem, for it is the city of the Great King.
Jesus shows how the shallow teaching of Israel's religious leaders misses the intent of God's Word. He has introduced statements using the phrase "you have heard…" and followed that with "but I say…" to give a fuller explanation.
One example of how shallow legalism contradicted God's intent was in the category of oaths. Israel's leaders had tolerated a system of promises between Israelites for various contractual agreements. Swearing by the Lord was considered a solemn thing, binding the oath-taker to follow through or face God's judgment (Numbers 30:2). Swearing by heaven, earth, or other things, though, was allowed as a less severe and perhaps less binding form of agreement. Unfortunately, many of those oaths provided room for deliberate deception.
The modern equivalent to this is the casual oath, which in English is often started with the phrase "I swear…" Using some additional promise or guarantee to earn trust is what Jesus has in mind here. His target is not official vows in courtrooms or legal contracts.
Jesus does not specify certain oaths as good and some as bad. Instead, He entirely discards the value of casual oaths (Matthew 5:34). For one thing, Swearing by something that belongs to God comes very close to Swearing by the Lord Himself. So, Jesus has said not to swear by heaven because it is God's throne. Now He adds that they must not swear by the earth because it belongs to God as His footstool, meaning He can do anything He wants with it.
Also, Jesus adds, do not swear by Jerusalem—or possibly "towards" Jerusalem—because it belongs to the Great King. This may be another name for God. If so, Swearing by or towards Jerusalem also comes dangerously close to Swearing by the Lord.
Overall, a Christian's life should reflect a pattern of truth and integrity. When a born-again believer says "yes" or "no," they should mean it with complete honesty (Matthew 5:37). In such a case, there is nothing to be gained from adding oaths on top of one's word.
Matthew 5:36, NIV: And do not swear by your head, for you cannot make even one hair white or black.
When Jesus gave this teaching, oaths were used—and abused—in many situations. The oaths were not formal agreements, such as contracts, courtrooms, or a marriage. Jesus condemns the casual oaths people make to add weight to a promise. In modern times, people might say, "I swear, I am telling the truth." That kind of oath misunderstands God's intent for honest communication (Matthew 5:37). It is also subject to deception.
Some people in Jesus' era may have avoided swearing oaths by the Lord since the consequences of not following through on those oaths for any reason were understood to be harsh (Numbers 30:2). However, the religious leaders allowed for swearing oaths on other things, as a way of cementing agreements. Someone might say, "I swear by heaven and earth that I will do this thing."
Jesus says this is wrong. Swearing by anything that belongs to God or is under His control comes too close to Swearing by the Lord. He has described heaven as God's throne, earth as His footstool, and Jerusalem as His city. Swearing an oath by what He owns is just a substitute for Swearing by the Lord Himself. It is a dangerous practice.
Now Jesus takes this prohibition even further. He tells them not to take an oath even by their heads. This might be the equivalent of saying, "I swear by my life that I will do this." Alternatively, "I swear by my eyes that I will do that." Jesus, though, points out that humans do not even have control over the hair color on their heads. Our heads belong to God, as well.
He drives the point home in the following verse: Christians ought to be known for honesty, such that their simple word is good enough (Matthew 5:37).
Matthew 5:37, NIV: All you need to say is simply 'Yes' or 'No'; anything beyond this comes from the evil one.
Once again, Jesus is countering the shallow interpretation of Old Testament law from Israel's religious leaders. In this passage, He has criticized the use of oaths: in this context, the casual, "I swear I will do these" promises were made in conversation. Since all things belong to the Lord, nobody should take an oath on any of them. In Christ's era, people might have sworn oaths on "heaven and earth" or their own life rather than swearing to the Lord to avoid the consequences of breaking such a promise (Numbers 30:2). Jesus has already dismissed that practice (Matthew 5:33–36).
Here, Jesus explicitly explains why using oaths to "enhance" a promise is unwise and sinful. When someone declares a promise with an oath, they undermine their integrity and honesty. The oath implies, "I really, truly mean what I am saying," which suggests other, non-oath-bound statements might not be so sincere. There is a built-in suggestion that the oath-swearer has a varied commitment to honesty. It is also a form of manipulation, seeking to get agreement from the other person using dramatic terms.
Christ's command for believers is simple: let the words "yes" and "no" be binding in all cases. Anything more comes from evil. Believers ought, to be honest in what they say and do—they should not need the pressure of an artificial oath to follow through on their commitments. Moreover, the believer should live a life of integrity such that others trust them without seeking such oaths. Modern culture echoes that with phrases such as "that man's word is his bond." This is ideal: if you say you will do it, you will, period. No oaths are required.
What Jesus does not refer to here are "oaths" such as contracts, marriage vows, or Swearing in a witness in a courtroom. He is not forbidding believers to make promises but to use oaths as an artificial form of honesty.
The Old Testament and Oaths
The Lord does not tell us that we should make vows or oaths. However, when we do, we must be careful to follow through. This is especially true when the vow is made to God. Alternatively, when we invoke his name when we take the oath. However, we are expected to follow through even if we do not.
The Art of Oath Making
I understand that the Jews of Jesus' day were frequent oath makers. And that their oaths were often very elaborate. However, these elaborate oaths were often quite deceiving. In Matthew 23:16-22, Jesus returns to this topic of oaths. And in this passage, we find something more about this habit of deceptive oath-making.
"Woe to you, blind guides! You say, 'If anyone swears by the temple, it means nothing; but that oath binds anyone who swears by the gold of the temple.' You blind fools! Which is greater: the gold or the temple that makes the gold sacred? You also say, 'If anyone swears by the altar, it means nothing; but that oath binds anyone who swears by the gift on the altar.' You blind men! Which is greater: the gift or the altar that makes the gift sacred? Therefore, anyone who swears by the altar swears by it and by everything on it. Furthermore, anyone who swears by the temple swears by it and by the one who dwells in it. And anyone who swears by heaven swears by God's throne and by the one who sits on it.
Fast Facts Concerning Oaths
Jesus says, "It has been said, 'Do not break your oaths,' but I say, 'Do not make any oaths.'”
At the heart of this command lies the issue of speech. The trustworthiness of what we say is as vital as the trustworthiness of our temperament and our morals.
An oath represents a debt to God and man. Jesus is affirming the sanctity of that.
But what he demands is the general truthfulness of every single word. There is to be no distinction between words that have to be accurate and those that do not.
The Christian is answerable for every word, not just those uttered under oath.
If no one ever lied, there would never be a need for an oath. However, if truthfulness is only assured under oath, then lying is given legitimacy.
Jesus says that we cannot split hairs about which words are binding. He is fighting for the integrity of all speech.
He continues, “Do not swear 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.….”
It helps to understand that people never want to use God's name frivolously. So they came up with all sorts of things they could say without ever using the name of God.
However, who could swear by heaven and not immediately think of God? The connection is more potent with the metaphor that heaven is God’s throne. It belongs to the divine realm and is not under our jurisdiction or influence.
Much the same thing can be said about Swearing by the earth, identified as God’s footstool. Contrary to much wishful thinking, there are many things on the earth outside our domain.
Swearing by Jerusalem was a little bit different because the word “by” is different. The earth is not under our command. Likewise, Jerusalem is God’s city.
What it means is towards Jerusalem. So if someone swore by Jerusalem and faced the wrong direction, it did not count. That is an excellent example of splitting hairs.
“And do not swear by your head, for you cannot make one hair white or black. Let your word be ‘Yes, Yes’ or ‘No, No’; anything more than this comes from the evil one.”
The person who swears by his or her head is particularly arrogant.
We cannot list ourselves as a warranty as if we have absolute control over our lives. God is sovereign.
Now there are times when we do need to take an oath. The world may require oaths from its citizens.
Take that oath with utmost simplicity and a slight queasiness. The disciple must be absolutely and transparently honest.
“Yes means yes,” “no means no.” Everything else is commentary. At issue is the truthfulness of every word.
Speech beyond clear “yes or no” is somewhat devilish in that it seeks to impress with learning, cleverness, or qualifications.
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