Vows and Swearing Oaths.
Moses tells the people what the Lord has commanded, he told the leaders to pass on the message to their respective tribes regarding vows or swearing oaths (v1,2). These were done to bind themselves to an agreement and were serious matters in that they were to keep their promises. It was sin to break them. Some will say that Jesus was forbidding oaths or vows in Matthew 5:34-37 where He said, “But I say to you, do not swear at all: neither by heaven, for it is God’s throne; nor by the earth, for it is His footstool; nor by Jerusalem, for it is the city of the great King. Nor shall you swear by your head because you cannot make one hair white or black. But let your ‘Yes’ be ‘Yes,’ and your ‘No,’ ‘No.’ For whatever is more than these is from the evil one.”
James 5:12 “But above all, my brethren, do not swear, either by heaven or by earth or with any other oath; but your yes is to be yes, and your no, no, so that you may not fall under judgment.”
James is clearly echoing Jesus’ words
Some have taken the words of Jesus to mean that we should not take the oath in courts of law. Having worked in courts for over forty years I have no strong views. I have given evidence on several occasions and taken the oath on the Bible. Having said that I was extremely concerned about the number of people who took the oath and proceeded to tell lies. I would probably come down on the side that witnesses should affirm rather than swear on the bible, but that may be a ‘cop out’. The reason for the oath was promising before God that your evidence was the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth. The Bible was regarded as the most holy book, other religions were allowed to use theirs or witnesses could affirm. Failure to give the truth is punishable as perjury. It is a serious matter, and I used to advise those about to take the oath or affirm of the seriousness of it.
However, the Bible has become totally irrelevant to many, and they might as well be swearing on the Oxford Dictionary or a comic book for all that it means to them.
Evidence must be the truth; our justice system is founded on the truth and without it no-one can expect true justice.
In society when we are required to take an oath (e.g., in a court of law, entering the military, joining the police force etc.). The oath we take is not voluntary, which changes the situation significantly and serves an entirely different purpose. An oath is not a guarantee of trustworthiness; it merely establishes legal authority to hold a person accountable for dishonesty.
When a Christian agrees to take an official oath as required by law, I believe that he or she is displaying respect for authority and law, which is consistent with trustworthiness. A refusal to take a required oath would suggest less trustworthiness, which is not the witness a Christian should seek.
Finally, the manner of taking an oath may be of concern to some Christians. For example, the tradition in many courts is to use a Bible in the oath-taking process, but in light of Jesus’ words in Matthew 5, some Christians may object to this practice. Under these circumstances, courts allow a person to swear an oath without the use of a Bible. In all cases, let your conscience be your guide, doing your best to balance your witness and your desire to obey the law.
A person taking a voluntary oath is attempting to convince someone else they are telling the truth. Some say things like ‘I swear on my mother’s grave’. Usually, they are trying to get around being untruthful.
We have to look carefully at the context of Jesus’ statement.
The scribes and Pharisees were making oaths they did not intend to keep while ignoring other oaths just when it suited them when they had no intention of honouring their oath. Jesus was condemning their hypocrisy when they considered it a convenient excuse to lie or renege on a promise whenever they wished.
Jesus says that a person who professes to be a follower of His should always speak the truth – his yes will be yes and is no will be no. We should be completely trustworthy so we should not have to resort to oaths. Our honesty and integrity must be above reproach – our faith should be demonstrated by our works and words.
We have digressed a little, but I felt it necessary to deal with it. There were instances in the Bible where people took oaths, and it was not condemned. The crux of the matter is honesty and integrity. It seems that Jesus did in Matthew 26:63,64)
The Lord commanded (v2) that if a man makes a vow or swears an oath to the Lord, he must keep it. Whatever the standard is in the world, God considers it important and to fail to keep it is sin. In fact, it is better not to make vows or swear oaths if we can’t or don’t want to keep it (Ecclesiastes 5:4,5). Vows are often mentioned in the Psalms (e.g 61:8)
Note that v2 is relative to a man, however, verses 3-5 refer to young women making vows and specifically if she is still living in her father’s house and her father hears her vows and does not overrule her. In such case her vows shall stand but if her father overrules on the day he hears it then her vows will not stand. And the Lord will release her.
If the woman takes a husband while bound by her vows or rash promise by which she bound herself and her husband hears it and does not overrule it, then it will stand. (v6-8) However, if her husband overrules her on the day he hears it, he shall make her vow void, and the Lord will release her.
A widow or divorced woman is bound by her vows as she has no male to overrule it. (v9)
A wife’s vow or oath sworn can be overruled by her husband (v10-16) but if he makes no response on the day he hears it, he , in effect, confirms them, but if he makes them void afterwards he bears her guilt because he should have made sure they were fulfilled. The husband or father has power to overrule but if he does not, he is just as accountable.
