James 5:12 – “Ennobled”

As always, here’s my fairly literal translation of these verses:

¹²But, above all [things], my brothers, do not swear, neither by the heavens, nor the earth, nor any other oath; but let your yes [be] yes and no [be] no, that you might not fall under judgment.

This has been a really fun and very enlightening verse to study. It of course is a restatement of Jesus’ words in the Sermon on the Mount (Mt 5:34-37). I have been very aware of both passages pretty much my entire Christian life and honestly never knew quite what to do with them. These passages draw one immediately into the debate of whether it is ever lawful for a believer to use an oath. That debate is invariably what everyone takes away from these passages and there have been mountains of ink spent on it. Now having slowed down to really study James 5:12, I think that debate misses the whole point. There are far more profound issues at stake than whether or not you can ever say, “I do solemnly swear …” Let’s see if I can relate what I think I’ve learned.

The “no swearing” crowd points to the plain words, “Do not swear,” and say, “There, end of issue.” Certainly as a Christian I don’t ever want to dismiss the very plain meaning of the Lord’s words. However, the minute you take that position, you can hardly read the rest of the Bible without having your position challenged. Consider the following discussion taken from the Expositor’s Bible Commentary:

“But further investigation does not confirm the view which is derived from a first impression as to the meaning of the words. Against it we have, first, the fact that the Mosaic Law not only allowed, but enjoined the taking of an oath in certain circumstances; and Christ would hardly have abrogated the law, …without giving some explanation of so unusual a course … In Deuteronomy we read, “Thou shalt fear the Lord thy God; and Him only shalt thou serve, and shalt swear by His Name” (Deuteronomy 6:13); and, “to Him shalt thou cleave, and by His Name shalt thou swear” (Deuteronomy 10:20). The Psalmist says, “The king shall rejoice in God: every one that sweareth by Him shall glory: but the mouth of them that speak lies shall be stopped” (Psalms 63:11). Isaiah says, “He that sweareth in the earth shall swear by the God of truth” (Isaiah 65:16), and still more strongly Jeremiah: “Thou shalt swear, ‘As the Lord liveth, in truth, in judgment, and in righteousness’” (Jeremiah 4:2); and, “If they will diligently learn the ways of My people, to swear by My Name, ‘As the Lord liveth;’ even as they taught My people to swear by Baal; then shall they be built up in the midst of My people” (Jeremiah 12:16). … An absolute prohibition of all swearing would have been so surprisingly at variance with these passages of Scripture that it is difficult to believe that it would have been made without any allusion to them.

Having studied this, there is no question in my mind that both Jesus and James are referring to the casual, flippant use of oaths throughout our daily human interactions. For God’s people going about their daily lives, our yes ought to be yes and our no no. In other words, we should simply be truthful, honest, and forthright in all we do and therefore there is no need of oaths. In fact, it is possible, I suppose, that a genuine believer could live their entire life and never ever take an oath. Biblically, an oath is a very solemn thing to be undertaken only in situations calling for such a formal expression of intent – such as in court when we are called upon to “swear to tell the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth, so help me God,” with our hand laying on a Bible; or when someone takes a public office or enters the military. The whole idea of those occasions is to emphasize the solemn importance of the activity we are undertaking.

And that leads me on into what I think is the far more important lesson of this verse. It is not even intended to be a debating ground about exactly which words we form on our lips in this situation or that. Here’s the deal -- in the 3^rd Commandment we have all often read, “Thou shalt not take the name of the Lord thy God in vain, for he who takes the name of the Lord in vain shall not be held guiltless.” What “swearing” is all about is calling ourselves into the presence of God. That Presence is what ennobles mankind. It is and should be a very sobering thing to pause and remind ourselves that we are in the presence of God, that He is hearing the words of our mouths, and that He will hold us accountable to be true to our word. Not just in the case of oaths, but this sincere awareness of His Presence raises all we do to the very highest level of integrity and grace. And having said all of that, what is the absolute worst thing that can happen to any human being? It is that he or she should forget God, that they should minimize God, that they should take God for granted. Once that is allowed, the way is wide open for us to degenerate into naked savages with bones in our noses.

That is the problem with “swearing.” Apparently the middle-eastern cultures were and are consumed with saying everything with an oath. In America, of course, people throw out “By God …!,” use His name in vain, and similarly fill their conversations with flippant, casual references to God all day every day in every possible situation. And what does that do? It deadens their very sense that He is real. And that, as related above, is one of the absolute worst possible scenarios for human beings. As He said in Deut 6:13, “Thou shalt fear the Lord thy God; and Him only shalt thou serve, and shalt swear by His Name.” The best thing in the world for us is to live our lives in awe of Him and of His presence.

And so I take away from this verse not some new rule for what I can or cannot say, but rather a renewed, even heightened, realization of the importance of acknowledging God in my life. I should be a totally trustworthy, truthful person (yes yes and no no) precisely because I acknowledge God. If I’m ever called upon in court or on some other solemn occasion to repeat an oath, I am perfectly free to do so … in the solemn and mindful presence of God.

I really, really like this. As usual with Bible study, everyone ends up in one ditch or the other throwing stones at each other and debating this and that. What I invariably find studying is that the Royal Highway down the middle is something far better, far more significant to the life I live amongst people and under my God.

Lord, help me to live even more aware of Your Presence everywhere I go all day every day. And may those moment by moment choices to see You raise me to a far higher integrity and grace than I have ever known. And may my awareness of Your Presence so change me that somehow it help others see You. May others know what it means to be ennobled.