COPYRIGHT © JANUARY 14, 1995 All rights reserved.
Copyright © 01/14/’95; 01/12/’96; 01/19/10 (Revised)
By Tyler P.O. Box 272, Spring Valley, CA 91976
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Best_Way_to_Live/
http://groups.google.com/group/PGChristianLivingIssues
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Christian_Life_Issues_Today

TABLE OF CONTENTS
[1] WHAT DOES IT MEAN TO SWEAR? What is a vow or an oath?
[2] What Does God Say About Breaking Promises/Covenants/Oaths?
[3] What About Promises/Swearings Made by Believers With Unbelievers
[4] WHAT ABOUT BAD PROMISES, SWEARINGS/COVENANTS MADE WITH THE WRONG PEOPLE TO DO THE WRONG THING?
[5] When Sinning “Believers” Break Promises/Vows Made to Unbelievers
[6] Covenants Between Godly People to do Right
[7] When people break their covenants/contracts with you
[8] JESUS RAISED THE STANDARD AND GAVE US THE BETTER
WAY, BETTER THAN OATHS, SWEARINGS, PROMISES ETC.
——————————————

[1] WHAT DOES IT MEAN TO SWEAR? What is a vow, an oath or a covenant?

The following Scriptures are at the heart of the covenant, promises, swearing and oaths controversy:
****Mat 5:33 “Again, you have heard that it was said to our ancestors, You must not break your oath, but you must keep your oaths to the Lord. 34 But I tell you, don’t take an oath at all: either by heaven, because it is God’s throne; 35 or by the earth, because it is His footstool; or by Jerusalem, because it is the city of the great King. 36 Neither should you swear by your head, because you cannot make a single hair white or black. 37 But let your word ‘yes’ be ‘yes,’ and your ‘no’ be ‘no.’ Anything more than this is from the evil one.” HCSB

****James 4: 13 Come now, you who say, “Today or tomorrow we will go to such and such a city, and spend a year there and engage in business and make a profit.” . . . 15 Instead, you should say, “If the Lord wills, we will live and do this or that.” 16 But as it is, you boast in your arrogance. All such boasting is evil. 17 So, for the person who knows to do good and doesn’t do it, it is a sin. . . . 5:12 ‘Now above all, my brothers, do not swear, either by heaven or by earth or with any other oath. Your “yes” must be “yes,” and your “no” must be “no,” so that you won’t fall under judgment.’ NASB + HCSB

*** Brethren, I speak in the manner of men: Though it is only a man’s covenant, yet if it is confirmed, no one annuls or adds to it. Galatians 3:14-16 NKJV

I believe the commands in those passages mean that we should not swear, affirm, promise, threaten, use an oath calling a person or thing as witness, invoke consequences, swear by God or anything else; or make a covenant or pledge or promise with oaths or vows to do this or that in the future. I believe that the commands mean that if we say anything about or future behavior, we are to say “If the Lord wills, we will live and do this or that.” Please consider the following scriptures and principles about making or keeping your word, oaths, vows, swearings, covenants and solemn promises.

I believe that the Scriptures, lexicons and commentaries cited below show that in the following passages the Greek word translated “swear” means “to swear; to affirm, promise, threaten, with an oath: . . . in swearing to call a person or thing as witness, to invoke, swear by . . .”;
******”And to whom did God swear that they would never enter his rest if not to those who disobeyed ?” Hebrews 3:17-19 NIV

The Greek word translated “oath” means “that which has been pledged or promised with an oath; plur. vows . . .”;
****”Therefore he promised with an oath to give her whatever she might ask.” Matthew 14:6-8 NKJV

The Greek word translated “covenant” means “a contract (especially a devisory will): — covenant, testament.” These all involve future actions or behavior.
***This is what I mean: the law, which came 430 years afterward, does not annul a covenant previously ratified by God, so as to make the promise void. Galatians 3:16-18 ESV

THEY DO NOT MEAN PROFANITY, CURSING OR TAKING THE LORD’S NAME IN VAIN. God does not use profanity or take His Name in vain.
***For when God made the promise to Abraham, since He could swear by no one greater, He swore by Himself, Hebrews 6:12-14
***to show the mercy promised to our fathers and to remember his holy covenant, That covenant He sealed by oath to our forefather Abraham:
Luke 1:71-73 ESV+AB
***You are the sons of the prophets and of the covenant that God made with your forefathers, saying to Abraham, And in your seed all the families of the earth will be blessed. Acts 3:24-26 HCSB
***And this will be My covenant (agreement) with them when I shall take away their sins.Romans 11:26-28 AB
***remember that you were at that time separated from Christ, alienated from the commonwealth of Israel and strangers to the covenants of promise, having no hope and without God in the world. Ephesians 2:11-13 ESV See Hebrews 8:9,10; 10:16
***”Thus God, determining to show more abundantly to the heirs of promise the immutability of His counsel, confirmed it by an oath,”Hebrews 6:16-18 NKJV
***”but this one was made a priest with an oath by the one who said to him: “The Lord has sworn and will not change his mind,’You are a priest forever.’” Hebrews 7:20-22 ESV
***He swore an oath by the One who lives forever and ever, who created heaven and what is in it, the earth and what is in it, and the sea and what is in it: “There will no longer be an interval of time,” Revelation 10:5-7 HCSB

When Peter cursed and swore an oath (Mat 26:74″ Then he started to curse and to swear with an oath, “I do not know the man!”) he called “down curses on himself if what he said weren’t true.” HCSB Peter did not use profanity or take the Lord’s Name in vain.
***”Then he began to invoke a curse on himself and to swear, “I do not know the man.” And immediately the rooster crowed.”Matthew 26:73-75 ESV
***Then he started to curse and to swear with an oath, “I do not know the man!” Immediately a rooster crowed, Matthew 26:73-75 HCSB
***For men indeed swear by the greater, and an oath for confirmation is for them an end of all dispute. NKJV Hebrews 6:15-17
***”And you say, ‘If anyone swears by the altar, it is nothing, but if anyone swears by the gift that is on the altar, he is bound by his oath.’
Matthew 23:17-19 ESV

The passages, like Mt. 26:74, where people think that it
means profanity or cussing or “taking the Lord’s Name in
vain”, i.e. that Peter was using profanity to deny that he
knew Jesus, instead mean “in swearing to call a person or
thing as witness, to invoke” where Peter called on God to
curse him/his if what he was saying (that he didn’t know
Jesus) was untrue. The cursing was invoking God’s curses on
him if what he was affirming under oath was untrue, that he
did not know Jesus. Jesus is not talking about cursing,
profanity, cussing or taking the Lord’s Name in vain in Matt.
5 or James 5.

People who give their signatures, handshakes, property
and etc. as oaths in promissory notes of indebtedness, or
contracts or other such documented promises or predictions
not only fall into the condemnation of man when they fail to
fulfill their sworn promises or predictions, but they face the
double condemnation of God for swearing (promising/predicting with
an oath), and then for the failure to truthfully keep their promise (the covenant breaking of Rom. 1:31,32; Eph. 4:25). The God of Truth
does not want His followers to suffer for doing wrong, i.e. breaking
promises/vows/covenants, or to keep on doing that which is wrong, i.e.
breaking promises/vows/covenants (1 Peter3:17;4:15).

It is obvious that the certification of a legal document can
be comprised of oaths, swearings, covenants and contracts.
For example government documents requiring certification
consist of at least an assertion about the future, if not a
promise or prediction about the future. A Calif. Highway
Patrol ticket has the statement, “Without admitting guilt, I
promise to appear at the time and place checked below.
Signature___________”. The promise or assertion about the
future is made binding by the maker’s signature. In legal
terms, the signature functions as an oath, making the
promise/agreement binding on the maker, so the entire
statement becomes a sworn statement (a solemn promise
made binding by an oath). The Lord gave me the victory
in California Administrative Law the right to add the once
commonly used “D.V.”, Deo volente (God willing ),
to my signature.
“The Latin words Deo Volente meaning “God willing” were common among the Puritans who came to America in search of religious freedom. Later, the Methodists also peppered their speech and correspondence with the phrase, signaling their dependence on the Lord by often signing their letters with the initials D.V. It was a simple reminder that all plans were subject to the Lord’s sovereign permission. Is it any wonder that the Puritan era and the Wesleyan revivals were golden times when God advanced his kingdom agenda?” http://ronjonesblog.com/2008/07/deo-volente/

Phrases like “I promise that I will . . . .”, “I agree that I
will provide . . . .”, “I will also cooperate . . . .”, “I agree that I
will inform . . . .” are all predictions or promises about one;s
future behavior. When certified or signed with one’s
signature, the signature functions as an oath, making them
binding and the maker punishable for failure to fulfill his
predictions/promises.

The signature, or witnessed statement, is that which
(1) attests to the credibility of the predictions and promises,
(2) makes the promises or predictions binding on the
applicant/recipient/maker, and (3) enables the courts to
punish the applicant/recipient/ maker if he fails to fulfill his
words. According to almost all legal and college level
dictionaries, those three characteristics of such a signature
makes that signature an oath that completes and confirms
the swearing (promises or predictions) that precede it.
Almost all legal and college level dictionaries define
swearing as promising or predicting with an oath. The
government’s Loyalty Oath is a perfect example, i.e. promises
or predictions made with a witnessed raised right hand
and/or a witnessed signature (i.e. name).

So what is the Biblical case? Consider the following
New testament scriptures:
Some of the oaths people swear by are God (Gen. 24:3),
one’s self (Ex. 32:13), God’s holiness (Amos 4:2), the raised or
unraised right hand or arm (Isa. 62:8; Rev. 10:5,6), one’s
name (Jer. 44:26; Lev. 19:12; Deut. 6:13), something greater
than you (Heb. 6:16), and a curse on one’s self if what you
say isn’t true or if you fail to do what you swear you will do,
like Peter when he swore and cursed denying Jesus (2 Sam.
3:35; 13:35; 1 Kg 2:23; Matt. 26:74). I see my signature
attesting to/vouching for and guaranteeing (certifying)
promises and predictions as an oath, just like swearing by
my name or swearing by myself. Today the “curse” you
swear on yourself if you are lying or fail to do what you
promised is jail (perjury, fraud) or civil suit. The fourth
century AD Church fathers Jerome, St. Ambrose and Basil all
agreed with this definition of swearing (promises or
predictions confirmed with one’s signature, name or
hand).#30

Arndt & Gingrich Greek Lexicon render the word
“swear” (Mt. 5:34) as “swear, take an oath w. acc. of the
pers. or the thing by which one swears . . . warning against
any and all oaths as early as Choerilus Epicus[V BC]”.26 ;
and the word “oath” (Mt. 5:33) as “swear to someone with an
oath . . . perform oaths to the Lord . . . guarantee by means of an
oath . . .”.27. Thayer’s and Strong’s Greek Lexicon renders “swear”
(Mt. 5:34) as ” to swear; to affirm, promise, threaten, with an
oath: . . . .in swearing to call a person or thing as witness, to
invoke, swear by . . .” .28 ; and renders the word “oath” (Mt.
5:33) as “an oath . . . that which has been pledged or
promised with an oath; plur. vows . . .”.29 That this is the
definition of swearing and oaths in the Holy Bible is obvious
from the following scriptures: Gen. 21:23, 24 (19th Cent. BC);
Gen. 31:44, 52, 53 (18th Cent, BC); Josh. 2:12, 13, 14, 20; Josh
9:11-20 (14th Cent. BC); Judg. 21:1 (11th Cent. BC); 1 Kg
1:29,30 (10th Cent. BC); Ezek. 17:12-19 (6th Cent. BC); Luke
1:73,74,75 (1st Cent. BC); Matt. 5:34-37 & 14:7,8,9 (1st Cent.
AD); Acts 7:17 (1st Cent AD); Acts 2:29-31 with 2 Sam. 7:11-
16; Heb. 3:10,11 with Num. 14; Heb. 6:13-17 with Gen.
22:16,17; Heb. 7:20,21 with Psa. 110:4; and see also Isa. 62:7;
Jer. 44:6,26; Matt. 23:18; Heb. 3:18. In the New Testament
swearing is not cursing, profanity, cussing or taking the Lord’s
Name in vain.

The vows, covenants, betrothals and prenuptial contracts
seem to be covered by God’s standards in the following:
**** EZEKIEL 16: 3 “And say, So says the Lord Jehovah to
Jerusalem, . . . 8 And I passed by you and looked on you,
and, behold, your time [was] the time of love. And I spread
my skirt over you and covered your nakedness. And I swore
to you and entered into a covenant with you, says the Lord
Jehovah. And you became Mine.”
**** MALACHI 2:14 “Yet you say, Why? Because the LORD
has been witness between you and the wife of your youth,
against whom you have dealt treacherously; yet she [is] your
companion and your covenant wife.
[Footnote: >87 See appendix #4 . >.88 See appendix #4 .]

[2] What Does God Say About Breaking Promises/Covenants/Oaths?

***Nu 30:2 If a man vows a vow to the LORD, or swears an oath
to bind his soul with a bond, HE SHALL NOT BREAK HIS WORD. He
shall do according to all that comes out of his mouth.
***Ezekiel 16:59 “For thus says the Lord Jehovah: I will even
deal with you as you have done, WHO HAVE DESPISED THE OATH, AND BROKEN THE COVENANT. . . .
***Psalm 15:1 LORD, who shall abide in thy tabernacle? who
shall dwell in thy holy hill? 2 He that walketh uprightly, and worketh
righteousness, and speaketh the truth in his heart. . . . [HE THAT]
SWEARETH [PROMISES, CONTRACTS] TO [HIS OWN] HURT
[LOSS, DISADVANTAGE], AND CHANGETH NOT [KEEPS HIS
WORD/PROMISE]. . . . He that doeth these [things] shall never be
moved.

***Eccles. 5:4 ¶ When you vow [promise] a vow [promise] to
[before] God, do not wait to pay it. For He has no pleasure in
fools. Pay that which you have vowed [promised]. 5 [it is] better
that you should not vow, than that you should vow and not pay.
6 Do not allow your mouth to cause your flesh to sin; do not
say before the angel that it [was] an error. Why should God
be angry at your voice and destroy the work of your hands?

***Jon 2:9 but I will sacrifice to You with the voice of
thanksgiving; I will fulfill that which I have vowed. Salvation
[belongs] to the LORD!

[3] What About Promises/Swearings Made by Believers With Unbelievers

>>Abraham and Philistines
***Genesis 21:22 ¶ And it happened at that time, Abimelech and Phicol, the
commander of his army, spoke to Abraham, saying, God is with you in
all that you do. 23 Now therefore swear to me here by God that you
will not deal falsely with me, nor with my son, nor with my son’s son.
Do to me according to the kindness that I have sworn to you, and to
the land in which you have lived. 24 And Abraham said, I will swear. . . . 27 And Abraham took sheep and oxen and gave them to Abimelech, and both of them made a covenant. . . . 32 So they made a covenant at Beer-sheba. Then Abimelech and Phicol, the commander of his army, rose up. And they returned to the land of the Philistines.

>>>Promises made with unbelieving enemies>Issac and Abimelech
***Ge 26: 27 And Isaac said to them, Why do you come to me, since you
hate me and have sent me away from you? 28 And they said, We saw certainly that the LORD was with you. And we said, Let there be now an oath between us, between us and you, and let us make a covenant with you;
29 that you will do us no harm since we have not touched you, and
since we have done nothing but good to you, and have sent you away
in peace. You are now the blessed of the LORD. 30 And he made them a feast, and they ate and drank. 31 And they rose up early in the morning, and swore to one another. And Isaac sent them away, and they departed from him in peace.

>>Promises made with the dishonest and unscrupulous.>>CONSIDER THE CASE OF THE GIBEONITES AND ISRAEL.
>>What was Israel supposed to do with the Gibeonites?
***De 20:17 But you shall UTTERLY DESTROY them: the Hittites, and THE AMORITES, the Canaanites, and the Perizzites, THE HIVITES and the Jebusites; as the LORD your God has commanded you,
***Jos 11:19 There was not a city that made peace with the sons of Israel, except THE HIVITES, THE INHABITANTS OF GIBEON. All [others] they took in battle.
***2Sa 21:2 And the king called THE GIBEONITES and spoke to them. And the Gibeonites [were] not of the sons of Israel, but OF THE REMNANT OF THE AMORITES.

>>Not only did the Israelites fail to utterly destroy the Gibeonites, who were Hivites and Amorites, consider what they did do with them.

***Jos 9:3 ¶ And when those who lived in Gibeon heard what Joshua had done to Jericho and to Ai, 4 they worked slyly. For they came and acted as if they were ambassadors. And they took old sacks on their asses, and old and torn and bound up wineskins, 5 and old and patched sandals on their feet, and old clothes on them. And all the bread they had taken was dry [and] moldy. 6 And they went to Joshua to the camp at Gilgal, and said to him and to the men of Israel, We have come from a far country. Now therefore, make a treaty with us.

>>JOSHUA AND THE ISRAELITES WERE LIED TO . . . .

***Jos. 9:7 And the men of Israel said to the Hivites, Perhaps you are living among us, and how shall we make a treaty with you? 8 And they said to Joshua, We [are] your servants. And Joshua said to them, Who [are] you, and from where do you come? 9 And they said to him, Your servants have come from a very far country, because of the name of the LORD your God. For we have heard of His fame and all that He did in Egypt, . . . . 11 And our elders and all those who live in our country spoke to us saying, Take provisions with you for the journey, and go to meet them. Say to them, We [are] your servants. And now make a treaty with us. 12 We took this bread hot [for] our provision out of our houses on the day we came out to go to you. But now, see, [it is] dry, and it is moldy. 13 And these wineskins which we filled [were] new. And, see, they are torn. And these clothes and shoes of ours have become old because of the very long journey. 14 And they received the men because of their provisions,

>>JOSHUA AND THE ISRAELITES WERE DECEIVED . . . . . .

***Jos.9:14b and did not ask at the mouth of the LORD.
>>JOSHUA AND THE ISRAELITES FAILED TO ACKNOWLEDGE THE LORD IN ALL THEIR WAYS, TO SEEK HIS WILL IN MAKING DECISIONS . . . . . .

***Jos.9:15 ¶ And Joshua made peace with them, and made a treaty with them, to let them live. And the rulers of the congregation swore to them.

>>CONSIDER THE CIRCUMSTANCES:
1. The people they were to utterly destroy planned a clever deception, 2. Joshua and Israel failed ask at the mouth of the Lord for guidance but leaned to their own understanding, 3. Joshua and Israel believed their lie and covenanted peace with them, contrary to the will of God.

***Jos 9:16 And it happened at the end of three days after they had made a treaty with them, they heard that they [were] their neighbors and that they lived among them. 17 And the sons of Israel journeyed and came to their cities on the third day. . . . . 18 And the sons of Israel did not strike them, because the rulers of the congregation had sworn to them by the LORD God of Israel. And all the congregation murmured against the rulers.

>>Joshua and the rulers of Israel had been decieved, had sworn in solemn covenant to disobey God’s explicit command to destroy the Gibeonites, found out within several days that they had been deceived yet felt obligated to keep the sworn covenant with Gibeon, and suffered social persecution for making the mistake of covenanting with a people under God’s death sentence, and then honoring their sworn covenant with the deceivers.

***Jos 9:19 But all the rulers said to the congregation, We have sworn to them by the LORD God of Israel. Now, therefore, we may not touch them. 20 This we will do to them. We will even let them live, lest wrath be on us because of the oath which we swore to them.

>>Joshua and the rulers believed that they HAD TO HONOR THEIR COVENANT WITH THE DECEIVERS lest God’s wrath be on them for the terrible sin of breaking a sworn oath, even a sworn oath to disobey the explicit command of God. Why did they believe such a thing?
Consider the following:
***Num.30: 1 ¶ And Moses spoke to the heads of the tribes concerning the sons of Israel, saying, This [is] the thing which the LORD has commanded: 2 If a man vows a vow to the LORD, or swears an oath to bind his soul with a bond, he shall not break his word. He shall do according to all that comes out of his mouth.
***Lev. 5:4 Or if a soul swears, pronouncing with [his] lips to do evil or to do good, whatever it is that a man speaks rashly with an oath, and it is hidden from him, and he knows, then he shall be guilty of one of these. 5 And it shall be when he is guilty in one of these, he shall confess that in which he has sinned.
***Rom 1:31 . . . , covenant-breakers, . . . . 32 who, knowing the righteous order of God, that those practicing such things are worthy of death, not only do them, but have pleasure in those practicing [them].

>>So they knew they had to keep their sworn oaths and covenants, even if spoken rashly, that they could be forgiving for rash oaths/covenants but they still had to keep them because covenant breakers “worthy of death”.

>>So a forgiven Joshua and his rulers set themselves to keep the covenant they were bound to keep with their deceivers.
***Jos.9:21 And the rulers said to them, Let them live, but let them be woodcutters and drawers of water to all the congregation, as the rulers had promised them. . . . . . . 26 And so he did to them, and delivered them out of the hand of the sons of Israel, so that they did not kill them. 27 And Joshua made them that day woodcutters and drawers of water for the congregation, and for the altar of the LORD, even to this day, in the place which He should choose.

>>Were Joshua and the rulers correct in their understanding of the will of God for them, having made the rash covenant?
***2Sa 21:1 And there was a famine in the days of David three years, year after year. And David inquired of the LORD. And the LORD answered, For Saul, and for [his] bloody house, because he killed the Gibeonites. 2 And the king called the Gibeonites and spoke to them. And the Gibeonites [were] not of the sons of Israel, but of the remnant of the Amorites. And the sons of Israel had sworn to them. And Saul sought to kill them in his zeal to the sons of Israel and Judah. 3 And David said to the Gibeonites, What shall I do for you? And with what shall I atone for this, so that you may bless the inheritance of the LORD? 4 And the Gibeonites said to him, We will have no silver nor gold from Saul, nor from his house. Also, we will have no man in Israel put to death. And he said, What you shall say, I will do for you. 5 And they answered the king, The man who destroyed us, and who devised against us, that we should be destroyed from remaining in any of the borders of Israel 6 let seven men of his sons be delivered to us, and we will hang them up to the Lord in Gibeah of Saul, the chosen of the LORD. And the king said, I will give [them]. . . . . 9 And he delivered them into the hands of the Gibeonites. And they hanged them in the hill before the LORD.. . . .

>>INDEED JOSHUA WAS CORRECT IN HIS UNDERSTANDING, and because Saul broke the covenant of Joshua and the rulers, God gave David and his people three years of famine until David righted the wrong by letting the children of Gibeon kill the children of Saul. Three years of famine and death by hanging for the seven children of the man who broke the covenant——–yes indeed I do believe Joshua and rulers understood correctly the will of God for them in making and keeping covenants with deceivers and liers.

I BELIEVE THIS PRINCIPLE HAS APPLICATION NOT ONLY TO SECULAR PROMISES, SWEARINGS, OATHS ETC, BUT ALSO TO WEDDING AND ENGAGEMENT COVENANTS. I believe that the principles above indicate that if a Christian was deceived into marrying someone who lied about or misrepresented themselves, that Christian is still bound by their vows, oaths, swearings, or covenants; except of course if the deceiver was not free in the Lord to marry and the marriage would be adultery.

[5] When Sinning “Believers” Break Promises/Vows Made to Unbelievers

>>The King of Israel and the King of Babylon
***Ezekiel17: 15 But he [Israel’s King] rebelled against him [Babylon’s King] . . . Shall he prosper? shall he escape that does such things?
SHALL HE BREAK THE COVENANT [he made with Babylon’s King] AND YET ESCAPE? . . . 16 [As] I live, says the Lord Jehovah, verily in the place of the king that made him king, WHOSE OATH HE DESPISED,
AND WHOSE COVENANT HE BROKE, even with him, in the midst of Babylon, shall he die. . . .18 HE DESPISED THE OATH, AND BROKE THE COVENANT; and behold, he had given his hand, yet has he done all these things: he shall not escape. 19 Therefore thus says the Lord Jehovah: [As] I live, verily, MINE OATH WHICH HE HAS DESPISED, AND MY COVENANT WHICH HE HAS BROKEN, EVEN IT WILL I RECOMPENSE UPON HIS HEAD. 20 AND I WILL SPREAD MY NET UPON HIM, AND HE SHALL BE TAKEN IN MY SNARE; . . “.

[6] Covenants Between Godly People to do Right

>>Nehemiah and Israel
***Ne 5:12 And they said, We will restore, and will ask nothing from
them. So we will do as you say. Then I called the priests and took an
oath from them that they should do according to this promise.
Ne 5:13 Also I shook my lap and said, So let God shake out every man
from his house, and from his labor, who does not keep this promise,
even may he be shaken out this way and emptied. And all the
congregation said, amen, and praised the LORD. And the people did
according to this promise.

>>>The Wedding Covenant
**** MALACHI 2:14 “Yet you say, Why? Because the LORD
has been witness between you and the wife of your youth,
against whom you have dealt treacherously; yet she [is] your
companion and your covenant wife. 15 And did He not make
[you] one? Yet the vestige of the Spirit [is in] him. And what
[of] the one? He was seeking a godly seed. Then guard your
spirit, and do not act treacherously with the wife of your
youth. 16 The LORD, the God of Israel, says He hates sending
away; and to cover [with] violence on his garment, says the
LORD of hosts. Then guard your spirit, and do not act
treacherously.” Here “act treacherously” means ” break
covenant” or “fail to honor your covenant/commitment”.

It is the treachery of breaking covenants that God
condemns in these passages and that which He hates. “Yes, I
swore an oath to you and entered into covenant with you,
and you became Mine,” says the Lord God>70 . We become a
part of the bride of Christ in the same way. The Spirit
considered Mary and Joseph as husband and wife on the
basis of their espousal/ betrothal/ covenants even before the
wedding and their coming together>71.
[Footnote: >70 (Ezek. 16:8). >71 (Mat. 1:18-25 ;Deut.
22:23-27)]

[7] When people break their covenants/contracts with you

***Luke 6:30 Give to everyone who begs from you, and from one who takes away your goods do not demand them back. . . . 35But love your enemies, and do good, and lend, expecting nothing in return, and your reward will be great, and you will be sons of the Most High, for he is kind to the ungrateful and the evil.

***1 Cor 6:1 DOES ANY of you dare, when he has a matter of complaint against another, to go to law before unrighteous men instead of before the saints? 2 Do you not know that the saints will judge and govern the world? And if the world [itself] is to be judged and ruled by you, are you unworthy and incompetent to try of the smallest courts of justice? 3 Do you not know also that we [Christians] are to judge the angels and pronounce opinion between right and wrong ? How much more then [as to] matters pertaining to this world and of this life only! 4 If then you do have such cases of everyday life to decide, why do you appoint those who of the church count for least and are without standing? 5 I say this to move you to shame. Can it be that there really is not one man among you who is wise and competent enough to decide [the private grievances, disputes, and quarrels] between members of the brotherhood, 6 But brother goes to law against brother, and that before unbelievers? 7 Why, the very fact of your having lawsuits with one another at all is a defect (a defeat, an evidence of positive moral loss for you). Why not rather let yourselves suffer wrong and be deprived of what is your due? Why not rather be cheated (defrauded and robbed)? 8 But [instead it is you] yourselves who wrong and defraud, and that even your own brethren [by so treating them]!

[8] JESUS RAISED THE STANDARD AND GAVE US THE BETTER
WAY, BETTER THAN OATHS, SWEARINGS, PROMISES ETC.

The Holy Bible in Matthew 5:33-37, James 4:13ff and James
5:12, declare that we don’t know our future, not even
tomorrow or even the next hour. Therefore it is a
presumptuous assertion to say, vow, swear, promise
and/or covenant that we will do this or that in
our future. He tells us to recognize and admit our finite
knowledge and our mortality by saying, “If the Lord wills
and we live, we also shall do this or that.” To make
presumptuous assertions about your future is prideful
boasting and contrary to His will. See James 4:13,14,15 and
Prov. 27:1.

This is not an attempt to be dishonest or evasive since
this same God of Truth commands us to be honest, to give
that which is due to others, and to conscientiously submit to
the civil authorities (Romans 13 and 1 Pt. 2). While He
wants us to be honest and give that which is due, he takes
into consideration our human frailty, finite knowledge and
mortal nature and so holds us liable only for our intent, will
and expectations about the future.

From James 4:13-17 & 5:12 we see that there is
nothing that we can give that will honestly and absolutely
attest to the credibility and fulfillment of our promises, vows,
covenants, swearings, oaths or predictions about our own future.
We have absolute and perfect control or authority over not one thing.
To give the recipient of such promises, oaths or predictions about our
future the idea that we can be expected to perfectly and
completely fulfill such statements is to give the recipient a
false expectation of (and false confidence in) our fulfilling
such swearings/oaths. Such dishonesty is contrary to the
Truth of the word since our life is like a vapor or a blade of
grass and disasters, disabilities, incapacities, death or etc.
could keep us from fulfilling our solemn covenants or sworn oaths.

Truth, Who is revealed as Christ, declares that
all I can give to promises or predictions about my future is
simply “If the Lord wills”, or a simple “Yes”, i.e. an
affirmation of my will, a declaration of my intent, an
expression of my expectation, an evidence of my good and
honest intentions and an expression of my optimistic hope
for the future fulfillment of my intentions or expectations.
Such an affirmation attests to and is confirmation
of nothing but that described in this paragraph’s first
sentence. It is proof of my sincere desire and intention to
fulfill the declaration/affirmation/intention. The recipient of
such an affirmation knows that he has been given no
profound absolute and mighty guarantee. Such an
affirmation is a reflection of our finite, mortal and frail
human nature. No presumptuous oaths should come from
the mouth of a child of God, for oaths presume on Jesus who
we represent as His ambassadors.

Laurence Geller, a Calif. Administrative Law
Referee/Judge, ruled against San Diego County and Calif. and
for my petition, on 8/5/’75, stating: “It is the claimant’s
conviction that before he may affix his signature to any
document, his signing must be qualified by a religious
preface such as “In case Christ wills and I live.” Claimant
testified that his desire to so qualify his signature is in no
way an attempt or subterfuge to not meet his reporting
responsibilities. Claimant simply desires the qualification so
that the placing of his signature would be in conformity with
his religious convictions which appear to require an
affirmation of the finite nature of the claimant’s existence. . .
.San Diego County shall rescind its July 1, 1975 denial . . .
Further, the county shall permit the claimant to sign his
application and qualify his signature with the religious
statement.”

In “A Commentary on the Gospels” we read “The
citizen of the New Kingdom . . .is also too frank and truthful
to need the use of oaths; his word is his bond.” In The Gospel
of Matthew we read the following:
“Matthew 5:33-37 . . .” This passage concludes with the
commandment that when a man has to say yes, he should
say yes, and nothing more; and when he has to say no, he
should say no, and nothing more. The ideal is that a man
should never need an oath to buttress or guarantee the truth
of anything he may say. . . Clement of Alexandria insisted
that Christian must lead such a life and demonstrate such a
character that no one will ever dream of asking an oath
from them. . . .”

In “A commentary on the Gospel According to Saint
Matthew” we read the following:
“Since in all of life man is dealing with God, he is always
obligated to complete integrity in word and act. Therefore
the use of oaths is misleading; swear not at all; simply say
“Yes” or “No” . . . The use of solemn-sounding oaths instead of
simple, truthful speech is a concession to a double standard
and comes from the Evil One, Satan, the “Father of Lies” . . .
and dishonesty (Jn *:44).”

In the “Theological Dictionary of the New Testament” we
read the following:
“. . . oaths and vows had to be kept. . . . Attempts have been
made to limit [”swear not at all”] of Jesus, e.g. to promises
rather than affirmations.20* . . . Hence the [”Swear not at
all”] applies to all oaths, whether in daily life or in judicial
cases. . . The Essenes rejected the oath unconditionally. . .
Jesus does not merely attach the misuse of the oath; He
rejects it altogether. . . He who already belongs to the
kingdom . . . must be truthful in all things; hence he stands
under the requirement not to sear at all. . . [”swear” Mt.
5:34] means to swear, to affirm (confirm) by an oath. . .”

In “The Gospel According to Matthew” we read that “Jesus
would abolish oaths altogether as unnecessary for those who
habitually tell the truth as his disciples are expected to do.”
This radical rejection of oaths is paralleled in the Damascus
Document of the Dead Sea Scrolls (XIX, 1).

Don’t let your mouth make a fool of you and make God angry at you!
Eccles 5: “2 Do not be quick with your mouth,
do not be hasty in your heart to utter anything before God.

God is in heaven
and you are on earth,
so let your words be few.

3 As a dream comes when there are many cares,
so the speech of a fool when there are many words.
4 When you make a vow to God, do not delay in fulfilling it. He has no pleasure in fools; fulfill your vow. 5 It is better not to vow than to make a vow and not fulfill it. 6 Do not let your mouth lead you into sin. And do not protest to the temple messenger, “My vow was a mistake.” Why should God be angry at what you say and destroy the work of your hands?”

Don’t make covenants, oaths, promises, vows, oaths or sweaings without adding “If the Lord wills and I live”. But if you have bound
yourself by your words and they do not violate God’s explicit and specific Word, be an acceptable child of God and keep your promises, covenants, swearings and oaths that are not in violation of the Word of God.

****Mat 5:33 “Again, you have heard that it was said to our ancestors, You must not break your oath, but you must keep your oaths to the Lord. 34 But I tell you, don’t take an oath at all: either by heaven, because it is God’s throne; 35 or by the earth, because it is His footstool; or by Jerusalem, because it is the city of the great King. 36 Neither should you swear by your head, because you cannot make a single hair white or black. 37 But let your word ‘yes’ be ‘yes,’ and your ‘no’ be ‘no.’ Anything more than this is from the evil one.” HCSB

****James 4: 13 Come now, you who say, “Today or tomorrow we will go to such and such a city, and spend a year there and engage in business and make a profit.” . . . 15 Instead, you should say, “If the Lord wills, we will live and do this or that.” 16 But as it is, you boast in your arrogance. All such boasting is evil. 17 So, for the person who knows to do good and doesn’t do it, it is a sin. . . . 5:12 ‘Now above all, my brothers, do not swear, either by heaven or by earth or with any other oath. Your “yes” must be “yes,” and your “no” must be “no,” so that you won’t fall under judgment.’ NASB + HCSB

FOOTNOTES*******************************************
.26 Arndt & Gingrich Greek English Lexicon; p. 568ff
.27 Arndt & Giungrich; p. 585
.28 Thayer Greek Lexicon; p. 444
.29 Thayer; p.453
#30The Nicene and Post Nicene Fathers of the Christian
Church, 1954, Erdman’s Publish Co.’ pp. 63, 386, 248.
.31 By Ronald Knox, 1952, N.Y. Shed and Ward, Imprimatur,
Richard J. Cushing, Archbishop of Boston
.32 Vol. 1, Barclay, Professor of Divinity at the Univ. of
Glasgow, Westminister Press, 1958; p. 158
.33 Filson, Dean and Professor of N.T. lit.and Hist.; McCormick
Theological Seminary, Chicago, Harper and Bros. Prss, 1960;
p. 89
.34 edited by G. Friedrich G. Kittel, Eerdmans Publishers,
1967, Vol. 5; pp. 176ff and page 183
20* See the reference
.35 Argyle, Cambridge, 1963; p.52

Commentary by Ron Tyler
Posted on: 2/4/2010 13:46 pm