35 Bible Verses about Oaths, Human

When a man vows a vow to Yahweh, or swears an oath to bind his soul with a bond, he shall not break his word; he shall do according to all that proceeds out of his mouth.

When you shall vow a vow to Yahweh your God, you shall not be slack to pay it: for Yahweh your God will surely require it of you; and it would be sin in you.

"Woe to you, you blind guides, who say, 'Whoever swears by the temple, it is nothing; but whoever swears by the gold of the temple, he is obligated.' You blind fools! For which is greater, the gold, or the temple that sanctifies the gold? 'Whoever swears by the altar, it is nothing; but whoever swears by the gift that is on it, he is obligated?'read more.
You blind fools! For which is greater, the gift, or the altar that sanctifies the gift? He therefore who swears by the altar, swears by it, and by everything on it. He who swears by the temple, swears by it, and by him who was living in it. He who swears by heaven, swears by the throne of God, and by him who sits on it.

You shall fear Yahweh your God; and you shall serve him, and shall swear by his name.

Who may ascend to Yahweh's hill? Who may stand in his holy place? He who has clean hands and a pure heart; who has not lifted up his soul to falsehood, and has not sworn deceitfully.

It shall happen, if they will diligently learn the ways of my people, to swear by my name, As Yahweh lives; even as they taught my people to swear by Baal; then shall they be built up in the midst of my people.

"'You shall not swear by my name falsely, and profane the name of your God. I am Yahweh.

"You shall not take the name of Yahweh your God in vain, for Yahweh will not hold him guiltless who takes his name in vain.

"You shall not take the name of Yahweh your God in vain: for Yahweh will not hold him guiltless who takes his name in vain.

or has found that which was lost, and dealt falsely therein, and swearing to a lie; in any of all these things that a man does, sinning therein; then it shall be, if he has sinned, and is guilty, he shall restore that which he took by robbery, or the thing which he has gotten by oppression, or the deposit which was committed to him, or the lost thing which he found, or any thing about which he has sworn falsely; he shall restore it even in full, and shall add a fifth part more to it. To him to whom it belongs he shall give it, in the day of his being found guilty.

Then he said to me, "This is the curse that goes out over the surface of the whole land; for everyone who steals shall be cut off according to it on the one side; and everyone who swears falsely shall be cut off according to it on the other side. I will cause it to go out," says Yahweh of Armies, "and it will enter into the house of the thief, and into the house of him who swears falsely by my name; and it will remain in the midst of his house, and will destroy it with its timber and its stones."

the oath of Yahweh shall be between them both, whether he hasn't put his hand to his neighbor's goods; and its owner shall accept it, and he shall not make restitution.

The priest shall cause her to swear, and shall tell the woman, "If no man has lain with you, and if you haven't gone aside to uncleanness, being under your husband, be free from this water of bitterness that brings a curse.

"If a man sins against his neighbor, and an oath is laid on him to cause him to swear, and he comes and swear before your altar in this house;

In the seventh year Jehoiada sent and fetched the captains over hundreds of the Carites and of the guard, and brought them to him into the house of Yahweh; and he made a covenant with them, and took an oath of them in the house of Yahweh, and showed them the king's son.

So Zedekiah the king swore secretly to Jeremiah, saying, As Yahweh lives, who made us this soul, I will not put you to death, neither will I give you into the hand of these men who seek your life.

and he took of the seed royal, and made a covenant with him; he also brought him under an oath, and took away the mighty of the land;

It happened at that time, that Abimelech and Phicol the captain of his army spoke to Abraham, saying, "God is with you in all that you do. 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. But according to the kindness that I have done to you, you shall do to me, and to the land in which you have lived as a foreigner." Abraham said, "I will swear."read more.
Abraham complained to Abimelech because of a water well, which Abimelech's servants had violently taken away. Abimelech said, "I don't know who has done this thing. Neither did you tell me, neither did I hear of it, until today." Abraham took sheep and cattle, and gave them to Abimelech. Those two made a covenant. Abraham set seven ewe lambs of the flock by themselves. Abimelech said to Abraham, "What do these seven ewe lambs which you have set by themselves mean?" He said, "You shall take these seven ewe lambs from my hand, that it may be a witness to me, that I have dug this well." Therefore he called that place Beersheba, because they both swore there.

Then Abimelech went to him from Gerar, and Ahuzzath his friend, and Phicol the captain of his army. Isaac said to them, "Why have you come to me, since you hate me, and have sent me away from you?" They said, "We saw plainly that Yahweh was with you. We said, 'Let there now be an oath between us, even between us and you, and let us make a covenant with you,read more.
that you will do us no harm, as we have not touched you, and as we have done to you nothing but good, and have sent you away in peace.' You are now the blessed of Yahweh." He made them a feast, and they ate and drank. They rose up some time in the morning, and swore one to another. Isaac sent them away, and they departed from him in peace.

Now come, let us make a covenant, you and I; and let it be for a witness between me and you." Jacob took a stone, and set it up for a pillar. Jacob said to his relatives, "Gather stones." They took stones, and made a heap. They ate there by the heap.read more.
Laban called it Jegar Sahadutha, but Jacob called it Galeed. Laban said, "This heap is witness between me and you this day." Therefore it was named Galeed and Mizpah, for he said, "Yahweh watch between me and you, when we are absent one from another. If you afflict my daughters, or if you take wives besides my daughters, no man is with us; behold, God is witness between me and you." Laban said to Jacob, "See this heap, and see the pillar, which I have set between me and you. May this heap be a witness, and the pillar be a witness, that I will not pass over this heap to you, and that you will not pass over this heap and this pillar to me, for harm. The God of Abraham, and the God of Nahor, the God of their father, judge between us." Then Jacob swore by the fear of his father, Isaac.

But when the inhabitants of Gibeon heard what Joshua had done to Jericho and to Ai, they also resorted to a ruse, and went and made as if they had been ambassadors, and took old sacks on their donkeys, and wineskins, old and torn and bound up, and old and patched shoes on their feet, and wore old garments. All the bread of their provision was dry and moldy.read more.
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 covenant with us." The men of Israel said to the Hivites, "What if you live among us. How could we make a covenant with you?" They said to Joshua, "We are your servants." Joshua said to them, "Who are you? Where do you come from?" They said to him, "Your servants have come from a very far country because of the name of Yahweh your God; for we have heard of his fame, all that he did in Egypt, and all that he did to the two kings of the Amorites who were beyond the Jordan, to Sihon king of Heshbon and to Og king of Bashan, who was at Ashtaroth. Our elders and all the inhabitants of our country spoke to us, saying, 'Take provision in your hand for the journey, and go to meet them, and tell them, "We are your servants. Now make a covenant with us."' This our bread we took hot for our provision out of our houses on the day we went out to go to you; but now, behold, it is dry, and has become moldy. These wineskins, which we filled, were new; and behold, they are torn. These our garments and our shoes have become old because of the very long journey." The men sampled their provisions, and didn't ask counsel from the mouth of Yahweh. Joshua made peace with them, and made a covenant with them, to let them live. The princes of the congregation swore to them. It happened at the end of three days after they had made a covenant with them, that they heard that they were their neighbors, and that they lived among them. The children of Israel traveled and came to their cities on the third day. Now their cities were Gibeon, Chephirah, Beeroth, and Kiriath Jearim. The children of Israel didn't strike them, because the princes of the congregation had sworn to them by Yahweh, the God of Israel. All the congregation murmured against the princes. But all the princes said to all the congregation, "We have sworn to them by Yahweh, the God of Israel: now therefore we may not touch them. This we will do to them, and let them live; lest wrath be on us, because of the oath which we swore to them." The princes said to them, "Let them live, so they became wood cutters and drawers of water for all the congregation, as the princes had spoken to them."

Joshua commanded them with an oath at that time, saying, "Cursed is the man before Yahweh, who rises up and builds this city Jericho. With the loss of his firstborn shall he lay its foundation, and with the loss of his youngest son shall he set up its gates."

When he had gone out onto the porch, someone else saw him, and said to those who were there, "This man also was with Jesus of Nazareth." Again he denied it with an oath, "I don't know the man." After a little while those who stood by came and said to Peter, "Surely you are also one of them, for your speech makes you known."read more.
Then he began to curse and to swear, "I don't know the man!" Immediately the rooster crowed.

But he again denied it. After a little while again those who stood by said to Peter, "You truly are one of them, for you are a Galilean, and your speech shows it." But he began to curse, and to swear, "I don't know this man of whom you speak!"

Abram said to the king of Sodom, "I have lifted up my hand to Yahweh, God Most High, possessor of heaven and earth, that I will not take a thread nor a sandal strap nor anything that is yours, lest you should say, 'I have made Abram rich.'

I will make you swear by Yahweh, the God of heaven and the God of the earth, that you shall not take a wife for my son of the daughters of the Canaanites, among whom I live. But you shall go to my country, and to my relatives, and take a wife for my son Isaac." The servant said to him, "What if the woman isn't willing to follow me to this land? Must I bring your son again to the land you came from?"read more.
Abraham said to him, "Beware that you don't bring my son there again. Yahweh, the God of heaven, who took me from my father's house, and from the land of my birth, who spoke to me, and who swore to me, saying, 'I will give this land to your seed.' He will send his angel before you, and you shall take a wife for my son from there. If the woman isn't willing to follow you, then you shall be clear from this my oath. Only you shall not bring my son there again." The servant put his hand under the thigh of Abraham his master, and swore to him concerning this matter.

Jacob lived in the land of Egypt seventeen years. So the days of Jacob, the years of his life, were one hundred forty-seven years. The time drew near that Israel must die, and he called his son Joseph, and said to him, "If now I have found favor in your sight, please put your hand under my thigh, and deal kindly and truly with me. Please don't bury me in Egypt, but when I sleep with my fathers, you shall carry me out of Egypt, and bury me in their burying place." He said, "I will do as you have said."read more.
He said, "Swear to me," and he swore to him. Israel bowed himself on the bed's head.

Joseph said to his brothers, "I am dying, but God will surely visit you, and bring you up out of this land to the land which he swore to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob." Joseph took an oath of the children of Israel, saying, "God will surely visit you, and you shall carry up my bones from here."

Yahweh, remember David and all his affliction, how he swore to Yahweh, and vowed to the Mighty One of Jacob: "Surely I will not come into the structure of my house, nor go up into my bed;read more.
I will not give sleep to my eyes, or slumber to my eyelids; until I find out a place for Yahweh, a dwelling for the Mighty One of Jacob."

Jacob said, "Swear to me first." He swore to him. He sold his birthright to Jacob.

"'Or if anyone swears rashly with his lips to do evil, or to do good, whatever it is that a man might utter rashly with an oath, and it is hidden from him; when he knows of it, then he shall be guilty of one of these.

But when Herod's birthday came, the daughter of Herodias danced among them and pleased Herod. Whereupon he promised with an oath to give her whatever she should ask.

When the daughter of Herodias herself came in and danced, she pleased Herod and those sitting with him. The king said to the young lady, "Ask me whatever you want, and I will give it to you." He swore to her, "Whatever you shall ask of me, I will give you, up to half of my kingdom."

But above all things, my brothers, don't swear, neither by heaven, nor by the earth, nor by any other oath; but let your "yes" be "yes," and your "no," "no;" so that you don't fall into hypocrisy.

"Again you have heard that it was said to them of old time, 'You shall not make false vows, but shall perform to the Lord your vows,' but I tell you, don't swear at all: neither by heaven, for it is the throne of God; nor by the earth, for it is the footstool of his feet; nor by Jerusalem, for it is the city of the great King.read more.
Neither shall you swear by your head, for you can't make one hair white or black. But let your 'Yes' be 'Yes' and your 'No' be 'No.' Whatever is more than these is of the evil one.