Reference: Oath
American
A solemn affirmation accompanied by an appeal to the Supreme Being. God has prohibited all false oaths, and all useless and customary swearing in ordinary discourse; but when the necessity or importance of a matter requires an oath, he allows men to swear by his name, Ex 22:11; Le 5:1. To swear by a false god was an act of idolatry, Jer 5:7; 12:16.
Among the Hebrews an oath was administered by the judge, who stood up, and adjured the party who was to be sworn. In this manner our Lord was adjured by Caiaphas, Mt 26:63. Jesus had remained silent under long examination, when the high priest, rising up, knowing he had a sure mode of obtaining an answer said, "I adjure thee by the living God, that thou tell us whether thou be the Christ." To this oath, thus solemnly administered, Jesus replied that he was indeed the Messiah.
An oath is a solemn appeal to God, as to an all-seeing witness that what we say is true, and an almighty avenger if what we say be false, Heb 6:16. Its force depends upon our conviction of the infinite justice of God; that he will not hold those guiltless who take his name in vain; and that the loss of his favor immeasurable outweighs all that could be gained by false witness. It is an act of religious worship; on which account God requires it to be taken in his name, De 10:20, and points out the manner in which it ought to be administered, and the duty of the person who swears, Ex 22:11; De 6:18; Ps 15:4; 24:4. Hence atheists, who profess to believe that there is no God, and persons who do not believe in a future state of reward and punishment, cannot consistently take an oath. In their mouths an oath can be only profane mockery.
God himself is represented as confirming his promise by oath, and thus conforming to what is practiced among men, Heb 6:13,16-17. The oaths forbidden in Mt 5:34-35; Jas 5:12, must refer to the unthinking, hasty, and vicious practices of the Jews; otherwise Paul would have acted against the command of Christ, Ro 1:9; Ga 1:20; 2Co 1:23. That person is obliged to take an oath whose duty requires him to declare the truth in the most solemn and judicial manner; though undoubtedly oaths are too often administered unnecessarily and irreverently, and taken with but slight consciousness of the responsibility thus assumed. As we are bound to manifest every possible degree of reverence towards God, the greatest care is to be taken that we swear neither rashly nor negligently in making promises. To neglect performance is perjury, unless the promise be contrary to the law of nature and of God; in which case no oath is binding. See CORBAN, and VOWS.
A customary formula of taking an oath was "The Lord do so to me, and more also;" that is, the lord slay me, as the victim sacrificed on many such occasions was slain, and punish me even more than this, if I speak not the truth, Ru 1:17; 1Sa 3:17. Similar phrases are these: "As the Lord liveth," Jg 8:19 "Before God I lie not," Ro 9:1; "I say the truth in Christ," 1Ti 2:7; "God is my record," Php 1.8. Several acts are alluded to as accompaniments of an oath; as putting the hand under the thigh, Ge 24:2; 47:29; and raising the hand towards heaven, Ge 14:22-23; De 32:40; Re 10:5.
See Verses Found in Dictionary
But Abram said to the king of Sodom, "I have raised my hand in an oath to the Lord, God Most High, Creator of heaven and earth, that I will not take a thread or sandal strap or anything that belongs to you, so you can never say, 'I made Abram rich.'
Abraham said to his servant, the elder of his household who managed all he owned, "Place your hand under my thigh,
When the time drew near for him to die, he called his son Joseph and said to him, "If I have found favor in your eyes, put your hand under my thigh [and promise me] that you will deal with me in faithful love. Do not bury me in Egypt.
there must be an oath before the Lord between the two of them to determine whether or not he has taken his neighbor's property. Its owner must accept [the oath], and the other man does not have to make restitution.
there must be an oath before the Lord between the two of them to determine whether or not he has taken his neighbor's property. Its owner must accept [the oath], and the other man does not have to make restitution.
"When someone sins [in any of these ways]: [If] he has seen, heard, or known about something he has witnessed, and did not respond to a public call to testify, he is guilty.
Do what is right and good in the Lord's sight, so that you may prosper and so that you may enter and possess the good land the Lord your God swore to [give] your fathers,
You are to fear the Lord your God and worship Him. Remain faithful to Him and take oaths in His name.
I raise My hand to heaven and declare: As surely as I live forever,
So he said, "They were my brothers, the sons of my mother! As the Lord lives, if you had let them live, I would not kill you."
Where you die, I will die, and there I will be buried. May the Lord do this to me, and even more, if anything but death separates you and me.
who despises the one rejected by the Lord, but honors those who fear the Lord, who keeps his word whatever the cost,
The one who has clean hands and a pure heart, who has not set his mind on what is false, and who has not sworn deceitfully.
Why should I forgive you? Your children have abandoned Me and sworn by those who are not gods. I satisfied their needs, yet they committed adultery; they gashed themselves at the prostitute's house.
If they will diligently learn the ways of My people-to swear by My name, 'As the Lord lives,' just as they taught My people to swear by Baal-they will be built up among My people.
But I tell you, don't take an oath at all: either by heaven, because it is God's throne; or by the earth, because it is His footstool; or by Jerusalem, because it is the city of the great King.
But Jesus kept silent. Then the high priest said to Him, "By the living God I place You under oath: tell us if You are the Messiah, the Son of God!"
For God, whom I serve with my spirit in [telling] the good news about His Son, is my witness that I constantly mention you,
I speak the truth in Christ-I am not lying; my conscience is testifying to me with the Holy Spirit-
Now in what I write to you, I'm not lying. God is my witness.
if indeed you remain grounded and steadfast in the faith, and are not shifted away from the hope of the gospel that you heard. [This gospel] has been proclaimed in all creation under heaven, and I, Paul, have become a minister of it.
For this I was appointed a herald, an apostle (I am telling the truth; I am not lying), and a teacher of the Gentiles in faith and truth.
For when God made a promise to Abraham, since He had no one greater to swear by, He swore by Himself:
For men swear by something greater than themselves, and for them a confirming oath ends every dispute.
For men swear by something greater than themselves, and for them a confirming oath ends every dispute. Because God wanted to show His unchangeable purpose even more clearly to the heirs of the promise, He guaranteed it with an oath,
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.
Then the angel that I had seen standing on the sea and on the land raised his right hand to heaven.
Easton
a solemn appeal to God, permitted on fitting occasions (De 6:13; Jer 4:2), in various forms (Ge 16:5; 2Sa 12:5; Ru 1:17; Ho 4:15; Ro 1:9), and taken in different ways (Ge 14:22; 24:2; 2Ch 6:22). God is represented as taking an oath (Heb 6:16-18), so also Christ (Mt 26:64), and Paul (Ro 9:1; Ga 1:20; Php 1:8). The precept, "Swear not at all," refers probably to ordinary conversation between man and man (Mt 5:34,37). But if the words are taken as referring to oaths, then their intention may have been to show "that the proper state of Christians is to require no oaths; that when evil is expelled from among them every yea and nay will be as decisive as an oath, every promise as binding as a vow."
See Verses Found in Dictionary
But Abram said to the king of Sodom, "I have raised my hand in an oath to the Lord, God Most High, Creator of heaven and earth,
Then Sarai said to Abram, "You are responsible for my suffering! I put my slave in your arms, and ever since she saw that she was pregnant, she has looked down on me. May the Lord judge between me and you."
Abraham said to his servant, the elder of his household who managed all he owned, "Place your hand under my thigh,
Fear the Lord your God, worship Him, and take [your] oaths in His name.
Where you die, I will die, and there I will be buried. May the Lord do this to me, and even more, if anything but death separates you and me.
if you swear, As the Lord lives, in truth, in justice, and in righteousness, then the nations will be blessed by Him and will pride themselves in Him.
Israel, if you act promiscuously, don't let Judah become guilty! Do not go to Gilgal or make a pilgrimage to Beth-aven, and do not swear an oath: As the Lord lives!
But I tell you, don't take an oath at all: either by heaven, because it is God's throne;
But let your word 'yes' be 'yes,' and your 'no' be 'no.' Anything more than this is from the evil one.
"You have said it," Jesus told him. "But I tell you, in the future you will see the Son of Man seated at the right hand of the Power and coming on the clouds of heaven ."
For God, whom I serve with my spirit in [telling] the good news about His Son, is my witness that I constantly mention you,
I speak the truth in Christ-I am not lying; my conscience is testifying to me with the Holy Spirit-
Now in what I write to you, I'm not lying. God is my witness.
For God is my witness, how I deeply miss all of you with the affection of Christ Jesus.
For men swear by something greater than themselves, and for them a confirming oath ends every dispute. Because God wanted to show His unchangeable purpose even more clearly to the heirs of the promise, He guaranteed it with an oath, read more. so that through two unchangeable things, in which it is impossible for God to lie, we who have fled for refuge might have strong encouragement to seize the hope set before us.
Fausets
Heb 6:16; "an oath for confirmation is the end of strife (contradiction)." Therefore, Christianity sanctions oaths, but they are to be used only to put an end to contradiction in disputes and for confirmation of solemn promises. God, in condescension to man's mode of confirming covenants, confirmed His word by oath; by these "two immutable things in which it is impossible for God to lie, we have strong consolation who have fled for refuge to lay hold upon the hope set before us." And "because He could swear by no greater, He sware by Himself": also Heb 7:28. Jesus Himself accepted the high priest's adjuration (Mt 26:63). Paul often calls God to witness the truth of his assertions (Ac 26:29; Ro 1:9; 9:1; 2Co 1:23; 11:31; Ga 1:20; Php 1:8). So the angel, Re 10:6. The prohibition "swear not at all" (Mt 5:34; Jas 5:12) refers to trivial occasions, not to oaths on solemn occasions and before magistrates. In every day conversation your simple yea or nay suffices to establish your word.
The Jews held oaths not binding if God's name did not directly occur (Lightfoot, Hor. Heb.). "Thou shalt perform unto the Lord thine oaths" meant in the Jews' view, which Christ combats, if not sworn to the Lord the oath is not binding. Jesus says on the contrary, every oath by the creature, heaven, earth, etc., is by the Creator whether His name be mentioned or not, and is therefore binding. In the perfect Christian state all oaths would be needless, for distrust of another's word and untruth would not exist. Meantime, they are needed on solemn occasions. But men do not escape the guilt of "taking God's name in vain" by avoiding the name itself, as in the oaths, "faith!" "gracious!" "by heaven," etc. The connection in Jas 5:12 is, Swear not through impatience to which trials may tempt you (Jas 5:10-11); in contrast stands the proper use of the tongue, Jas 5:13.
To appeal to a pagan god by oath is to acknowledge his deity, and is therefore forbidden (Jos 23:7; Jer 5:7; 12:16; Am 8:14), as in swearing to appeal to God is recognizing Him (De 6:13; Isa 19:18; 65:16). An oath even to a pagan king is so binding that Jehovah's chief reason for dethroning Zedekiah and giving him over to die in Babylon was his violating his oath to Nebuchadnezzar (Eze 17:13-20; 2Ch 36:13). Jewish criminal procedure admitted the accused to clear himself or herself by oath (Nu 5:19-22; 1Ki 8:31); our Lord, Mt 26:63. Oath gestures were "lifting up the hand" (De 32:40; Ge 14:22; Isa 3:7; Eze 20:5-6). Witnesses laid their hands on the head of the accused (Le 24:14).
Putting the hand under the thigh of the superior to whom the oath was taken in sign of subjection and obedience (Aben Ezra): Ge 24:2; 47:29; or else because the hip was the part from which the posterity issued (Ge 46:26) and the seat of vital power. In making (Hebrew "cutting") a covenant the victim was divided, and the contracting parties passed between the portions, in token that the two became joined in one. (See COVENANT.) In Ge 15:8-17 Abram was there, and God signified His presence by the burning lamp which passed between the pieces (Jer 34:18). Compare Jg 19:29; 1Sa 11:7, where a similar slaughter of the oxen of any who should not follow Saul is symbolized.
The false witness was doomed to the punishment due to the crime which he attested (De 19:16-19). Blasphemy was punishable with death (Le 24:11,16). The obligation in Le 5:1 to testify when adjured (for "swearing" translated "adjuration," 'alah) was that on which our Lord acted before Caiaphas (Mt 26:63). Alah, from 'Eel "God," is used for "imprecations" (Nu 5:23). "Shaba," from sheba' "seven" the sacred number, is the general word "swear"; compare the seven ewe lambs given by Abraham to Abimelech in covenanting (Ge 21:30).
See Verses Found in Dictionary
But Abram said to the king of Sodom, "I have raised my hand in an oath to the Lord, God Most High, Creator of heaven and earth,
But he said, "Lord God , how can I know that I will possess it?" He said to him, "Bring Me a three-year-old cow, a three-year-old female goat, a three-year-old ram, a turtledove, and a young pigeon." read more. So he brought all these to Him, split them down the middle, and laid the pieces opposite each other, but he did not cut up the birds. Birds of prey came down on the carcasses, but Abram drove them away. As the sun was setting, a deep sleep fell on Abram, and suddenly a terror and great darkness descended on him. Then the Lord said to Abram, "Know this for certain: Your offspring will be strangers in a land that does not belong to them; they will be enslaved and oppressed 400 years. However, I will judge the nation they serve, and afterwards they will go out with many possessions. But you will go to your fathers in peace and be buried at a ripe old age. In the fourth generation they will return here, for the iniquity of the Amorites has not yet reached its full measure." When the sun had set and it was dark, a smoking fire pot and a flaming torch appeared and passed between the divided [animals].
He replied, "You are to accept the seven ewe lambs from my hand so that this act will serve as my witness that I dug this well."
Abraham said to his servant, the elder of his household who managed all he owned, "Place your hand under my thigh,
The total number of persons belonging to Jacob-his direct descendants, not including the wives of Jacob's sons-who came to Egypt: 66.
When the time drew near for him to die, he called his son Joseph and said to him, "If I have found favor in your eyes, put your hand under my thigh [and promise me] that you will deal with me in faithful love. Do not bury me in Egypt.
"When someone sins [in any of these ways]: [If] he has seen, heard, or known about something he has witnessed, and did not respond to a public call to testify, he is guilty.
Her son cursed and blasphemed the Name, and they brought him to Moses. (His mother's name was Shelomith, a daughter of Dibri of the tribe of Dan.)
"Bring the one who has cursed to the outside of the camp and have all who heard [him] lay their hands on his head; then have the whole community stone him.
Whoever blasphemes the name of the Lord is to be put to death; the whole community must stone him. If he blasphemes the Name, he is to be put to death, whether the foreign resident or the native.
The priest will require the woman to take an oath and will say to her, 'If no man has slept with you, if you have not gone astray and become defiled while under your husband's authority, be unaffected by this bitter water that brings a curse. But if you have gone astray while under your husband's authority, if you have defiled yourself and a man other than your husband has slept with you'- read more. at this point the priest must make the woman take the oath with the sworn curse, and he is to say to her- 'May the Lord make you into an object of your people's cursing and swearing when He makes your thigh shrivel and your belly swell. May this water that brings a curse enter your stomach, causing [your] belly to swell and [your] thigh to shrivel.' "And the woman must reply, 'Amen, Amen.' "Then the priest is to write these curses on a scroll and wash [them] off into the bitter water.
Fear the Lord your God, worship Him, and take [your] oaths in His name.
"If a malicious witness testifies against someone accusing him of a crime, the two people in the dispute must stand in the presence of the Lord before the priests and judges in authority at the time. read more. The judges are to make a careful investigation, and if the witness turns out to be a liar who has falsely accused his brother, you must do to him as he intended to do to his brother. You must purge the evil from you.
I raise My hand to heaven and declare: As surely as I live forever,
and so that you do not associate with these nations remaining among you. Do not call on the names of their gods or make an oath to them; do not worship them or bow down to them.
When he entered his house, he picked up a knife, took hold of his concubine, cut her into 12 pieces, limb by limb, and sent her throughout the territory of Israel.
On that day he will cry out, saying: "I'm not a healer. I don't even have food or clothing in my house. Don't make me the leader of the people!"
On that day five cities in the land of Egypt will speak the language of Canaan and swear loyalty to the Lord of Hosts. One of the cities will be called the City of the Sun.
Whoever is blessed in the land will be blessed by the God of truth, and whoever swears in the land will swear by the God of truth. For the former troubles will be forgotten and hidden from My sight.
Why should I forgive you? Your children have abandoned Me and sworn by those who are not gods. I satisfied their needs, yet they committed adultery; they gashed themselves at the prostitute's house.
If they will diligently learn the ways of My people-to swear by My name, 'As the Lord lives,' just as they taught My people to swear by Baal-they will be built up among My people.
As for those who disobeyed My covenant, not keeping the terms of the covenant they made before Me, I will treat them like the calf they cut in two in order to pass between its pieces.
He took one of the royal family and made a covenant with him, putting him under oath. Then he took away the leading men of the land, so the kingdom might be humble and not exalt itself but might keep his covenant in order to endure. read more. However, this king revolted against him by sending his ambassadors to Egypt so they might give him horses and a large army. Will he flourish? Will the one who does such things escape? Can he break a covenant and [still] escape? "As I live"-[this is] the declaration of the Lord God -"he will die in Babylon, in the land of the king who put him on the throne, whose oath he despised and whose covenant he broke. Pharaoh will not help him with [his] great army and vast horde in battle, when ramps are built and siege walls constructed to destroy many lives. He despised the oath by breaking the covenant. He did all these things even though he gave his hand [in pledge]. He will not escape!" Therefore, this is what the Lord God says: "As I live, I will bring down on his head My oath that he despised and My covenant that he broke. I will spread My net over him, and he will be captured in My snare. I will bring him to Babylon and execute judgment on him there for the treachery he committed against Me.
Say to them: This is what the Lord God says: On the day I chose Israel, I swore an oath to the descendants of Jacob's house and made Myself known to them in the land of Egypt. I swore to them, saying: I am the Lord your God. On that day I swore to them that I would bring them out of the land of Egypt into a land I had searched out for them, [a land] flowing with milk and honey, the most beautiful of all lands.
Those who swear by the guilt of Samaria and say, "As your god lives, Dan," or "As the wayof Beer-sheba lives"- they will fall, never to rise again.
But I tell you, don't take an oath at all: either by heaven, because it is God's throne;
But Jesus kept silent. Then the high priest said to Him, "By the living God I place You under oath: tell us if You are the Messiah, the Son of God!"
But Jesus kept silent. Then the high priest said to Him, "By the living God I place You under oath: tell us if You are the Messiah, the Son of God!"
But Jesus kept silent. Then the high priest said to Him, "By the living God I place You under oath: tell us if You are the Messiah, the Son of God!"
"I wish before God," replied Paul, "that whether easily or with difficulty, not only you but all who listen to me today might become as I am-except for these chains."
For God, whom I serve with my spirit in [telling] the good news about His Son, is my witness that I constantly mention you,
I speak the truth in Christ-I am not lying; my conscience is testifying to me with the Holy Spirit-
Now in what I write to you, I'm not lying. God is my witness.
For God is my witness, how I deeply miss all of you with the affection of Christ Jesus.
if indeed you remain grounded and steadfast in the faith, and are not shifted away from the hope of the gospel that you heard. [This gospel] has been proclaimed in all creation under heaven, and I, Paul, have become a minister of it.
For men swear by something greater than themselves, and for them a confirming oath ends every dispute.
For the law appoints as high priests men who are weak, but the promise of the oath, which came after the law, [appoints] a Son, who has been perfected forever.
Brothers, take the prophets who spoke in the Lord's name as an example of suffering and patience. See, we count as blessed those who have endured. You have heard of Job's endurance and have seen the outcome from the Lord: the Lord is very compassionate and merciful. read more. 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.
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. Is anyone among you suffering? He should pray. Is anyone cheerful? He should sing praises.
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,
Morish
A solemn asseveration with an appeal to God that what is said is true. The apostle said that among men an oath for confirmation is the "end of all strife" or dispute; and God, willing to show "the immutability of his counsel, confirmed it by an oath; that by two immutable things His word and His oath in which it was impossible for God to lie, we might have a strong consolation." Heb 6:16-18. Jehovah swore that the Lord Jesus should be a priest for ever after the order of Melchizedek. Ps 110:4.
Le 5:1 has been interpreted as signifying that when the voice of adjuration was heard, persons were compelled to confess what they knew as to any charge. Thus the Lord Jesus when adjured by the high priest answered him. The Lord was under an accusation, and was adjured to say if it was true. He acknowledged that He was "the Christ the Son of God." Mt 26:63-64.
The Lord exposed the folly of the tradition that some oaths were not binding. Mt 23:16-22.
In the common intercourse of life there should be no oaths, the simple 'yea' and 'nay' should be enough, "swear not at all," Mt 5:34-37; Jas 5:12; the context of these passages shows that they do not refer to judicial oaths: cf. also Heb 6:13,16; 7:21; Re 10:6.
See Verses Found in Dictionary
"When someone sins [in any of these ways]: [If] he has seen, heard, or known about something he has witnessed, and did not respond to a public call to testify, he is guilty.
The Lord has sworn an oath and will not take it back: "Forever, You are a priest like Melchizedek."
But I tell you, don't take an oath at all: either by heaven, because it is God's throne; or by the earth, because it is His footstool; or by Jerusalem, because it is the city of the great King. read more. Neither should you swear by your head, because you cannot make a single hair white or black. But let your word 'yes' be 'yes,' and your 'no' be 'no.' Anything more than this is from the evil one.
"Woe to you, blind guides, who say, 'Whoever takes an oath by the sanctuary, it means nothing. But whoever takes an oath by the gold of the sanctuary is bound by his oath.' Blind fools! For which is greater, the gold or the sanctuary that sanctified the gold? read more. Also, 'Whoever takes an oath by the altar, it means nothing. But whoever takes an oath by the gift that is on it is bound by his oath.' Blind people! For which is greater, the gift or the altar that sanctifies the gift? Therefore the one who takes an oath by the altar takes an oath by it and by everything on it. The one who takes an oath by the sanctuary takes an oath by it and by Him who dwells in it. And the one who takes an oath by heaven takes an oath by God's throne and by Him who sits on it.
But Jesus kept silent. Then the high priest said to Him, "By the living God I place You under oath: tell us if You are the Messiah, the Son of God!" "You have said it," Jesus told him. "But I tell you, in the future you will see the Son of Man seated at the right hand of the Power and coming on the clouds of heaven ."
For when God made a promise to Abraham, since He had no one greater to swear by, He swore by Himself:
For men swear by something greater than themselves, and for them a confirming oath ends every dispute.
For men swear by something greater than themselves, and for them a confirming oath ends every dispute. Because God wanted to show His unchangeable purpose even more clearly to the heirs of the promise, He guaranteed it with an oath, read more. so that through two unchangeable things, in which it is impossible for God to lie, we who have fled for refuge might have strong encouragement to seize the hope set before us.
but He with an oath made by the One who said to Him: The Lord has sworn, and He will not change His mind, You are a priest forever.
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.
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,
Smith
Oath,
The principle on which an oath is held to be binding is incidentally laid down in
viz. as an ultimate appeal to divine authority to ratify an assertion. On the same principle, that oath has always been held most binding which appealed to the highest authority, as regards both individuals and communities. As a consequence of this principle, appeals to God's name on the one hand, and to heathen deities on the other, are treated in scripture as tests of allegiance.
etc. So also the sovereign's name is sometimes used as a form of obligation.
Other forms of oath, serious or frivolous, are mentioned, some of which are condemned by our Lord.
and see
(There is, however, a world-wide difference between a solemn appeal to God and profane swearing.) The forms of adjuration mentioned in Scripture are --
1. Lifting up the hand. Witnesses laid their hands on the head of the accused.
Ge 14:22; Le 24:14; De 17:7; Isa 3:7
2. Putting the hand under the thigh of the person to whom the Promise was made.
3. Oaths were sometimes taken before the altar, or, as some understand the passage, if the persons were not in Jerusalem, in a position looking toward the temple.
4. Dividing a victim and passing between or distributing the pieces.
As the sanctity of oaths was carefully inculcated by the law, so the crime of perjury was strongly condemned; and to a false witness the same punishment was assigned which was due for the crime to which he testified.
See Verses Found in Dictionary
But Abram said to the king of Sodom, "I have raised my hand in an oath to the Lord, God Most High, Creator of heaven and earth,
So he brought all these to Him, split them down the middle, and laid the pieces opposite each other, but he did not cut up the birds.
When the sun had set and it was dark, a smoking fire pot and a flaming torch appeared and passed between the divided [animals].
Abraham said to his servant, the elder of his household who managed all he owned, "Place your hand under my thigh,
This is how you will be tested: As surely as Pharaoh lives, you will not leave this place unless your youngest brother comes here.
When the time drew near for him to die, he called his son Joseph and said to him, "If I have found favor in your eyes, put your hand under my thigh [and promise me] that you will deal with me in faithful love. Do not bury me in Egypt.
Do not misuse the name of the Lord your God, because the Lord will punish anyone who misuses His name.
"Pay strict attention to everything I have said to you. You must not invoke the names of other gods; they must not be heard on your lips.
Then the Lord passed in front of him and proclaimed: Yahweh-Yahweh is a compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger and rich in faithful love and truth,
You must not swear falsely by My name, profaning the name of your God; I am the Lord.
"Bring the one who has cursed to the outside of the camp and have all who heard [him] lay their hands on his head; then have the whole community stone him.
The witnesses' hands are to be the first in putting him to death, and after that, the hands of all the people. You must purge the evil from you.
so that you may enter into the covenant of the Lord your God, which He is making with you today, so that you may enter into His oath
When a man sins against his neighbor and is forced to take an oath, and he comes to take an oath before Your altar in this temple,
As for those who disobeyed My covenant, not keeping the terms of the covenant they made before Me, I will treat them like the calf they cut in two in order to pass between its pieces.
But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things will be provided for you.
"Woe to you, blind guides, who say, 'Whoever takes an oath by the sanctuary, it means nothing. But whoever takes an oath by the gold of the sanctuary is bound by his oath.' Blind fools! For which is greater, the gold or the sanctuary that sanctified the gold? read more. Also, 'Whoever takes an oath by the altar, it means nothing. But whoever takes an oath by the gift that is on it is bound by his oath.' Blind people! For which is greater, the gift or the altar that sanctifies the gift? Therefore the one who takes an oath by the altar takes an oath by it and by everything on it. The one who takes an oath by the sanctuary takes an oath by it and by Him who dwells in it. And the one who takes an oath by heaven takes an oath by God's throne and by Him who sits on it.
For men swear by something greater than themselves, and for them a confirming oath ends every dispute.
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.
Watsons
OATH, a solemn invocation of a superior power, admitted to be acquainted with all the secrets of our hearts, with our inward thoughts as well as our outward actions, to witness the truth of what we assert, and to inflict his vengeance upon us if we assert what is not true, or promise what we do not mean to perform. Almost all nations, whether savage or civilized, whether enjoying the light of revelation or led only by the light of reason, knowing the importance of truth, and willing to obtain a barrier against falsehood, have had recourse to oaths, by which they have endeavoured to make men fearful of uttering lies, under the dread of an avenging Deity. Among Christians, an oath is a solemn appeal for the truth of our assertions, the sincerity of our promises, and the fidelity of our engagements, to the one only God, the Judge of the whole earth, who is every where present, and sees, and hears, and knows, whatever is said, or done, or thought in any part of the world. Such is that Being whom Christians, when they take an oath, invoke to bear testimony to the truth of their words, and the integrity of their hearts. Surely, then, if oaths be a matter of so much moment, it well behoves us not to treat them with levity, nor ever to take them without due consideration. Hence we ought, with the utmost vigilance, to abstain from mingling oaths in our ordinary discourse, and from associating the name of God with low or disgusting images, or using it on trivial occasions, as not only a profane levity in itself, but tending to destroy that reverence for the supreme Majesty which ought to prevail in society, and to dwell in our own hearts.
The forms of oaths, says Dr. Paley, "like other religious ceremonies, have in all ages been various; consisting, however, for the most part of some bodily action, and of a prescribed form of words." Among the Jews, the juror held up his right hand toward heaven, Ps 144:8; Re 10:5. The same form is retained in Scotland still. Among the Jews, also, an oath of fidelity was taken by the servant's putting his hand under the thigh of his lord, Ge 24:2. Among the Greeks and Romans, the form varied with the subject and occasion of the oath; in private contracts, the parties took hold of each other's hands, while they swore to the performance; or they touched the altar of the god by whose divinity they swore: upon more solemn occasions, it was the custom to slay a victim; and the beast being struck down with certain ceremonies and invocations, gave birth to the expression, ferire pactum; and to our English phrase, translated from this, of "striking a bargain." The form of oaths in Christian countries is also very different: but in no country in the world worse contrived, either to convey the meaning or impress the obligation of an oath, than in our own. The juror with us, after repeating the promise or affirmation which the oath is intended to confirm, adds, "So help me God;" or, more frequently, the substance of the oath is repeated to the juror by the magistrate, who adds in the conclusion, "So help you God." The energy of this sentence resides in the particle so: So, that is, hac lege, upon condition of my speaking the truth, or performing this promise, and not otherwise, may God help me! The juror, while he hears or repeats the words of the oath, holds his right hand upon a Bible, or other book containing the Gospels, and at the conclusion kisses the book. This obscure and elliptical form, together with the levity and frequency of them, has brought about a general inadvertency to the obligation of oaths, which, both in a religious and political view, is much to be lamented; and it merits public consideration, whether the requiring of oaths upon so many frivolous occasions, especially in the customs, and in the qualification for petty offices, has any other effect than to make such sanctions cheap in the minds of the people. A pound of tea cannot travel regularly from the ship to the consumer, without costing half a dozen oaths at least; and the same security for the due discharge of their office, namely, that of an oath, is required from a churchwarden and an archbishop; from a petty constable and the chief justice of England. Oaths, however, are lawful; and whatever be the form, the signification is the same. Historians have justly remarked, that when the reverence for an oath began to diminish among the Romans, and the loose epicurean system, which discarded the belief of providence, was introduced, the Roman honour and prosperity from that period began to decline. The Quakers refuse to swear upon any occasion, founding their scruples concerning the lawfulness of oaths upon our Saviour's prohibition, "Swear not at all," Mt 5:34. But it seems our Lord there referred to the vicious, wanton, and unauthorized swearing in common discourse, and not to judicial oaths; for he himself answered, when interrogated, upon oath, Mt 26:63-64; Mr 14:61. The Apostle Paul also makes use of expressions which contain the nature of oaths, Ro 1:9; 1Co 15:31; 2Co 1:18; Ga 1:20; Heb 6:13-17. The administration of oaths supposes that God will punish false swearing with more severity than a simple lie, or breach of promise; for which belief there are the following reasons:
1. Perjury is a sin of greater deliberation. 2. It violates a superior confidence. 3. God directed the Israelites to swear by his name, De 6:13; 10:20; and was pleased to confirm his covenant with that people by an oath; neither of which, it is probable, he would have done, had he not intended to represent oaths as having some meaning and effect beyond the obligation of a bare promise.
See Verses Found in Dictionary
Abraham said to his servant, the elder of his household who managed all he owned, "Place your hand under my thigh,
Fear the Lord your God, worship Him, and take [your] oaths in His name.
You are to fear the Lord your God and worship Him. Remain faithful to Him and take oaths in His name.
whose mouths speak lies, whose right hands are deceptive.
But I tell you, don't take an oath at all: either by heaven, because it is God's throne;
But Jesus kept silent. Then the high priest said to Him, "By the living God I place You under oath: tell us if You are the Messiah, the Son of God!" "You have said it," Jesus told him. "But I tell you, in the future you will see the Son of Man seated at the right hand of the Power and coming on the clouds of heaven ."
But He kept silent and did not answer anything. Again the high priest questioned Him, "Are You the Messiah, the Son of the Blessed One?"
For God, whom I serve with my spirit in [telling] the good news about His Son, is my witness that I constantly mention you,
Now in what I write to you, I'm not lying. God is my witness.
He is also the head of the body, the church; He is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, so that He might come to have first place in everything.
For when God made a promise to Abraham, since He had no one greater to swear by, He swore by Himself: I will most certainly bless you, and I will greatly multiply you. read more. And so, after waiting patiently, Abraham obtained the promise. For men swear by something greater than themselves, and for them a confirming oath ends every dispute. Because God wanted to show His unchangeable purpose even more clearly to the heirs of the promise, He guaranteed it with an oath,
Then the angel that I had seen standing on the sea and on the land raised his right hand to heaven.