First Discourse in Matthew: Oaths

“Again, you have heard that it was said to those of ancient times, ‘You shall not swear falsely, but carry out the vows you have made to the Lord.’ But I say to you, 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. 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. ~ Matthew 5:33-37
No one, by swearing, makes themselves an ounce more honest; anymore than a man makes himself wealthy by counting his gold. ~ Jake Yaniak, The Punishment of the Gods
Oaths and anchors equally will drag. Naught else abides on fickle earth but unkept promises of joy. ~ Herman Melville, The Enchanted Isles, or the Encantadas

I'm not going to lie. Growing up and probably still to this day, nothing bugs me more than an unkept promise. I remember a lot of broken promises in my early life, not just to me, but to those I held dear.

 I learned that just because you swear you'll do something, doesn't simply make it so.

 Jesus had another way of making this admonition. Later in Matthew, he tells a parable of two sons: one who says he will not do something, but then he does. And another who says he will do something and then does not. Which one, Jesus' queries, did the will of his father?

 Maybe we make oaths or swear to things because we have this fear of not being trusted. Or we demand oaths because we don't trust. Maybe. I don't know.

 But for Jesus, our word itself - simply saying yes, or no, should be good enough. Extravagant promises don't make anything more likely to happen, no matter who we make them to, or no matter what we swear to.

 I guess Nike really did have the right idea. Don't swear to it. Just do it.
Prayer: May my yeses always be yes. And may they be good enough. Amen



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