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
And Abram will say to the king of Sodom, I lifted up my hand to Jehovah God the most high, possessing the heavens and the earth. If from a line and to a shoe-string and if I shall take from all which is to thee, and thou shalt not say I enriched Abram:
And Abraham will say to the old man of his house ruling over all which is to him, Put now thy hand under my thigh.
And the days of Israel will draw near to die: and he will call to his son Joseph, and will say to him, If now I found grace in thine eyes, put now thy hand under my thigh, and thou shalt do to me kindness and truth: now thou shalt not bury me in Egypt
An oath of Jehovah shall be between them both if he put not forth his hand to his friend's goods; and its lord shall take and he shall not recompense.
An oath of Jehovah shall be between them both if he put not forth his hand to his friend's goods; and its lord shall take and he shall not recompense.
And when a soul shall sin, and he heard the voice of an oath, and he a witness, if he saw or knew; if he shall not announce, he bore his sin.
And do thou the right and the good in the eyes of Jehovah so that it shall be well to thee, and thou go in and possess the good land which Jehovah sware to thy fathers,
Jehovah thy God shalt thou fear; him .shalt thou serve, and to him shalt thou cleave, and in his name shalt thou swear.
For I will lift up my hand to the heavens, And I said, I live forever.
And he will say, My brethren, the sons of my mother: Jehovah lives, would that ye preserved them alive, and I had not slain you.
Where thou shalt die, I will die, and there will I be buried: thus will Jehovah do to me, and thus will he add, for death shall separate between me and between thee.
In his eyes a reprobate being despised; and those fearing Jehovah, he will honor. Swearing to the friend, and he will not change.
The blameless one of hands and the clean of heart; who lifted not up his soul to vanity, and swore not for deceit
How shall I forgive to thee for this? thy sons forsook me, and they will swear by not God; and I will satisfy them, and they will commit adultery, and they will crowd themselves together to the house of the harlot
And it was if learning, they shall learn the ways of my people to swear in my name, Jehovah lives; as they taught my people to swear by Baal; and they were built up in the midst of my people.
But I say to you, Swear not at all; neither by heaven, it is the throne of God: Neither by the earth; for it is the footstool of his feet: neither by Jerusalem, for it is the city of the great kings
But Jesus was silent. And the chief priest having answered, said to him, I cause thee to swear by the living God, that thou tell us, if thou art Christ, the Son of God.
For my witness is God, whom I serve in my spirit in the good news of his Son, so that continually I make mention of you, always supplicating in my prayers;
I Speak truth in Christ, I lie not, my consciousness bearing witness to me in the Holy Spirit,
And what I write to you, behold, before God, that I lie not.
If indeed ye remain in the faith, founded and firmly fixed, and not moved aside from the hope of the good news, which ye heard, being proclaimed in all creation under heaven; of which I Paul was a servant;
For which I was placed a herald, and the sent, (I speak truth in Christ, I lie not;) a teacher of the nations in faith and truth.
For God promising to Abraham, since he had none greater to swear by, sware by himself,
For truly men swear by the greater: and the oath for confirmation to them the end of all controversy.
For truly men swear by the greater: and the oath for confirmation to them the end of all controversy. In which God, willing more abundantly to show to the heirs of the promise the firmness of his counsel, he intervened by an oath:
And before all things, my brethren, swear not, neither by heaven, nor by earth, nor any other oath: and let your yea be yea; and nay, nay; that ye fall not under. judgment.
And the angel which I saw standing upon the sea and upon earth lifted up his 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
And Abram will say to the king of Sodom, I lifted up my hand to Jehovah God the most high, possessing the heavens and the earth.
And Sarai will say to Abram, My wrong upon thee: I gave my maid servant into thy bosom, and she will see that she conceived, and I shall be despised in her eyes. Jehovah will judge between me and between thee.
And Abraham will say to the old man of his house ruling over all which is to him, Put now thy hand under my thigh.
Jehovah thy God shalt thou fear, and him shalt thou serve, and in his name shalt thou swear.
Where thou shalt die, I will die, and there will I be buried: thus will Jehovah do to me, and thus will he add, for death shall separate between me and between thee.
And thou swearest, Jehovah lives in truth, in judgment, and in justice; and the nations were blessed in him, and in him shall they praise.
If thou Israel commit fornication Judah shall not transgress; and ye shall not come to Gilgal, and ye shall not go up to the house of vanity, and ye shall not swear, Jehovah lives.
But I say to you, Swear not at all; neither by heaven, it is the throne of God:
But let your word be Yea, yea, and No, no: but that above this is of evil.
And Jesus says to him, Thou hast said: but I say to you, from henceforth ye shall see the Son of man, sitting from the right hand of power, and coming in the clouds of heaven.
For my witness is God, whom I serve in my spirit in the good news of his Son, so that continually I make mention of you, always supplicating in my prayers;
I Speak truth in Christ, I lie not, my consciousness bearing witness to me in the Holy Spirit,
And what I write to you, behold, before God, that I lie not.
For God is my witness, how I long for you all in the bowels of Jesus Christ.
For truly men swear by the greater: and the oath for confirmation to them the end of all controversy. In which God, willing more abundantly to show to the heirs of the promise the firmness of his counsel, he intervened by an oath: read more. That by two unalterable deeds, in which it is impossible for God to deceive we might have a strong consolation, taking refuge in holding firmly the hope set before:
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
And Abram will say to the king of Sodom, I lifted up my hand to Jehovah God the most high, possessing the heavens and the earth.
And he will say, My Lord Jehovah, how shall I know that I shall inherit it? And he will say to him, Take to me a heifer of three, and a goat of three, and a ram of three, and a turtle dove, and a young pigeon. read more. And he will take to him all these, and he will divide them, asunder in the midst, and will put each of its parts divided, opposite its companion: and the birds he divided not And the birds will come down upon the dead carcases, and Abram will drive them together. And the sun shall be going down, and a deep sleep fell upon Abram, and behold terror and great darkness fell upon him. And he will say to Abram, Knowing thou shalt know that thy seed shall be a sojourner in the land not to them; and they shall serve them and they shall humble them four hundred years. And also the nation whom they shall serve, I will judge, and after this they shall come forth with great substance. And thou shalt go to thy fathers in tranquillity; thou shalt be buried in a good old age. And the fourth generation they shall turn back hither: for the crime of the Amorite has not been completed till now. And the sun shall be going down, and it was thick darkness, and behold a furnace of smoke and a lamp of fire that passed over between these pieces.
And he will say, For the seven ewe lambs thou shalt take from my hand, in order to be to me for a testimony that I dug this well.
And Abraham will say to the old man of his house ruling over all which is to him, Put now thy hand under my thigh.
All the souls going with Jacob to Egypt, coming forth from his thigh, besides Jacob's sons' wives, all the souls, sixty and six.
And the days of Israel will draw near to die: and he will call to his son Joseph, and will say to him, If now I found grace in thine eyes, put now thy hand under my thigh, and thou shalt do to me kindness and truth: now thou shalt not bury me in Egypt
And when a soul shall sin, and he heard the voice of an oath, and he a witness, if he saw or knew; if he shall not announce, he bore his sin.
And the son of the woman the Israelitess, will curse the name, and will vilify, and they will bring him to Moses: and his mother's name Shelomith, the daughter of Dibri, to the tribe of Dan.
Bring him vilifying, without the camp; and all they hearing, placed their hands upon his head, and all the assembly stoned him.
And he vilifying the name of Jehovah, dying, shall die; stoning, all the assembly shall stone him: as the stranger so the native, in his vilifying the name, he shall die.
And the priest bound her by an oath, and said to the woman, If a man lay not with thee, and thou didst not turn aside to be defiled instead of thy husband, be thou unpunished from the water of contradiction, causing the curse. And if thou didst turn aside instead of thy husband, and if thou wert defiled, and a man gave with thee his bed besides thy husband; read more. And the priest bound the woman by an oath in these curses, and the priest said to the woman, Jehovah will give thee for a curse, and for an oath in the midst of thy people, in Jehovah's giving thy thigh to fall, and thy belly to go forth. And the waters causing the curse shall come into thy bowels, and cause thy belly to come forth, and thy thigh to fall. And the woman said, Amen, amen. And the priest wrote these curses in a book, and he wiped off into the water of contradiction.
Jehovah thy God shalt thou fear, and him shalt thou serve, and in his name shalt thou swear.
If a witness of wrong shall rise up against a man to testify apostasy against him; And the two men to whom is the contention stood before Jehovah, before the priests and the judges who shall be in those days; read more. And the judges sought out diligently; and behold, a witness of falsehood, the witness of falsehood testified against his brother; And ye did to him as he purposed to do to his brother: and put away evil from the midst of thee
For I will lift up my hand to the heavens, And I said, I live forever.
So as not to come among these nations, these being left with you; and ye shall not make mention of the name of their gods, and ye shall not swear, and ye shall not serve them, and ye shall not worship to them:
And he will come to his house and will take a knife, and will lay hold upon his concubine, and he will give her, even to her bones, into twelve pieces, and he will send her into all the bound of Israel.
He shall lift up in that day, saying, I will not be binding up; and in my house no bread and no garment: thou shalt not set me a chief of the people.
In that day there shall be five cities in the land of Egypt speaking the lip of Canaan, and they sware to Jehovah of armies; and to one it shall be said, The city of the sun.
That he praising himself in the earth shall praise himself in the true God; and he swearing in the earth, shall swear in the true God; for the former straits were forgotten, and because they were hid from mine eyes.
How shall I forgive to thee for this? thy sons forsook me, and they will swear by not God; and I will satisfy them, and they will commit adultery, and they will crowd themselves together to the house of the harlot
And it was if learning, they shall learn the ways of my people to swear in my name, Jehovah lives; as they taught my people to swear by Baal; and they were built up in the midst of my people.
And I gave the men passing by my covenant who raised not up the words of the covenant which they cut out before me, the calf which they cut in two, and they will pass through between its parts.
And he will take from the seed of the kingdom and cut out with him a covenant, and he will bring him in with an oath, and he took the mighty of the land: To be a low kingdom, not to be lifted up, to watch his covenant to stand to it read more. And he will rebel against him to send his messengers to Egypt, to give to him horses and much people. Shall he prosper? shall he doing these, escape? and breaking the covenant, and escaping? I live, says the Lord Jehovah, if not in the place the king making him king which he despised his oath, and which he broke his covenant with him, in the midst of Babel he shall die. And not with great strength and with a great convocation, shall Pharaoh do for him in the war by throwing up a mound and by building a watchtower to cut off many souls? And he despised the oath to break the covenant, and behold, he gave his hand, and doing all these he shall not escape. For this, thus said the Lord Jehovah: I live, if not mine oath which he despised, and my covenant which he brake, and I gave it upon his head. And I spread my net upon him and he was taken in my net, and I brought him to Babel, and I contended with him there for his transgression which he transgressed against me.
And say to them, Thus said the Lord Jehovah: In the day of my choosing upon Israel, and I will lift up my hand to the seed of the house of Jacob, and I will be known to them in the land of Egypt, and I will lift up my hand to them, saying, I am Jehovah your God; In that day I lifted up my hand to them to bring them forth out of the land of Egypt to the land which I spied out for them flowing milk and honey; this the glory to all lands:
They swearing by the trespass of Shomeron, and they said, Thy God lives, O Dan, and the way of the well of the oath lives, and they fell, and they shall rise no more.
But I say to you, Swear not at all; neither by heaven, it is the throne of God:
But Jesus was silent. And the chief priest having answered, said to him, I cause thee to swear by the living God, that thou tell us, if thou art Christ, the Son of God.
But Jesus was silent. And the chief priest having answered, said to him, I cause thee to swear by the living God, that thou tell us, if thou art Christ, the Son of God.
But Jesus was silent. And the chief priest having answered, said to him, I cause thee to swear by the living God, that thou tell us, if thou art Christ, the Son of God.
And Paul said, I would pray to God also in little, and in much, not only thee, but also all hearing me this day to become such, of what kind I also am, besides these bonds.
For my witness is God, whom I serve in my spirit in the good news of his Son, so that continually I make mention of you, always supplicating in my prayers;
I Speak truth in Christ, I lie not, my consciousness bearing witness to me in the Holy Spirit,
And what I write to you, behold, before God, that I lie not.
For God is my witness, how I long for you all in the bowels of Jesus Christ.
If indeed ye remain in the faith, founded and firmly fixed, and not moved aside from the hope of the good news, which ye heard, being proclaimed in all creation under heaven; of which I Paul was a servant;
For truly men swear by the greater: and the oath for confirmation to them the end of all controversy.
For the law establishes men chief priests having weakness; but the word of the sacrifice sanctioned by solemn oath, after the law, the Son, having been perfected forever.
Take a pattern of affliction, my brethren, and of longsuffering, the prophets, who spake in the name of the Lord. Behold, we esteem those enduring happy. Ye have heard of the patience of Job, and ye see the end of the Lord; that the Lord is very compassionate and merciful. read more. And before all things, my brethren, swear not, neither by heaven, nor by earth, nor any other oath: and let your yea be yea; and nay, nay; that ye fall not under. judgment.
And before all things, my brethren, swear not, neither by heaven, nor by earth, nor any other oath: and let your yea be yea; and nay, nay; that ye fall not under. judgment. Does any suffer among you? let him pray. Is any cheerful? let him play on the harp.
And sware by him living for ever and ever, who created the heaven, and all in it, and earth, and all things in it, and the sea, and all in it, that time shall be no more:
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
And when a soul shall sin, and he heard the voice of an oath, and he a witness, if he saw or knew; if he shall not announce, he bore his sin.
Jehovah sware and he will not lament, Thou a priest forever according to the manner of Melchizedeck.
But I say to you, Swear not at all; neither by heaven, it is the throne of God: Neither by the earth; for it is the footstool of his feet: neither by Jerusalem, for it is the city of the great kings read more. Neither shouldst thou swear by thy head, for thou cant not make one hair white or black. But let your word be Yea, yea, and No, no: but that above this is of evil.
Woe to you blind guides, saying, Whoever should swear by the temple, it is nothing; but whoever should swear by the gold of the temple, he is indebted! Foolish and blind; for which is the greater, the gold, or the temple consecrating the gold? read more. And, Whoever should swear by the altar, it is nothing; and whoever should swear by the gift above it, he is indebted. Foolish and blind: for which is the greater, the gift, or the altar, consecrating the gifts? Therefore, he having sworn by the altar, swears by it, and by all above it. And he having sworn by the temple, swears by it, and by him dwelling in it. And he having sworn by heaven, swears by the throne of God, and by him sitting above it.
But Jesus was silent. And the chief priest having answered, said to him, I cause thee to swear by the living God, that thou tell us, if thou art Christ, the Son of God. And Jesus says to him, Thou hast said: but I say to you, from henceforth ye shall see the Son of man, sitting from the right hand of power, and coming in the clouds of heaven.
For God promising to Abraham, since he had none greater to swear by, sware by himself,
For truly men swear by the greater: and the oath for confirmation to them the end of all controversy.
For truly men swear by the greater: and the oath for confirmation to them the end of all controversy. In which God, willing more abundantly to show to the heirs of the promise the firmness of his counsel, he intervened by an oath: read more. That by two unalterable deeds, in which it is impossible for God to deceive we might have a strong consolation, taking refuge in holding firmly the hope set before:
(For they truly without sacrifice sanctioned by solemn oath became priests; but he with the sacrifice sanctioned by solemn oath by him, saying to him, The Lord sware, and will not repent, Thou priest forever, according to the order of Melchisedec:)
And before all things, my brethren, swear not, neither by heaven, nor by earth, nor any other oath: and let your yea be yea; and nay, nay; that ye fall not under. judgment.
And sware by him living for ever and ever, who created the heaven, and all in it, and earth, and all things in it, and the sea, and all in it, that time shall be no more:
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
And Abram will say to the king of Sodom, I lifted up my hand to Jehovah God the most high, possessing the heavens and the earth.
And he will take to him all these, and he will divide them, asunder in the midst, and will put each of its parts divided, opposite its companion: and the birds he divided not
And the sun shall be going down, and it was thick darkness, and behold a furnace of smoke and a lamp of fire that passed over between these pieces.
And Abraham will say to the old man of his house ruling over all which is to him, Put now thy hand under my thigh.
In this ye shall be proved; Pharaoh living, if ye shall go forth from here except in the coming of your brother, the little one hither.
And the days of Israel will draw near to die: and he will call to his son Joseph, and will say to him, If now I found grace in thine eyes, put now thy hand under my thigh, and thou shalt do to me kindness and truth: now thou shalt not bury me in Egypt
Thou shalt not take the name of Jehovah thy God in vain: for Jehovah will not cleanse him who shall take his name in vain.
And in all which I said to you ye shall watch; and ye shall not call to mind the name of other gods; it shall not be heard above thy mouth.
And Jehovah will pass by before him, and Jehovah will call, Jehovah God merciful and compassionate, deferring anger, and much in kindness and truth,
And ye shall not swear in my name for falsehood, and profane the name of thy God: I Jehovah.
Bring him vilifying, without the camp; and all they hearing, placed their hands upon his head, and all the assembly stoned him.
The hand of the witnesses shall be at first upon him to put him to death, and the hand of all the people afterward. And put thou away the evil from the midst of thee.
For thy passing into the covenant of Jehovah thy God, and into his oath, which Jehovah thy God made with thee this day:
Whatever man shall sin against his neighbor, and an oath lifted up upon him to cause him to swear, and the oath come before thine altar in this house,
And I gave the men passing by my covenant who raised not up the words of the covenant which they cut out before me, the calf which they cut in two, and they will pass through between its parts.
But seek first the kingdom of God and his justice, and all these shall be added to you.
Woe to you blind guides, saying, Whoever should swear by the temple, it is nothing; but whoever should swear by the gold of the temple, he is indebted! Foolish and blind; for which is the greater, the gold, or the temple consecrating the gold? read more. And, Whoever should swear by the altar, it is nothing; and whoever should swear by the gift above it, he is indebted. Foolish and blind: for which is the greater, the gift, or the altar, consecrating the gifts? Therefore, he having sworn by the altar, swears by it, and by all above it. And he having sworn by the temple, swears by it, and by him dwelling in it. And he having sworn by heaven, swears by the throne of God, and by him sitting above it.
For truly men swear by the greater: and the oath for confirmation to them the end of all controversy.
And before all things, my brethren, swear not, neither by heaven, nor by earth, nor any other oath: and let your yea be yea; and nay, nay; that ye fall not 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
And Abraham will say to the old man of his house ruling over all which is to him, Put now thy hand under my thigh.
Jehovah thy God shalt thou fear, and him shalt thou serve, and in his name shalt thou swear.
Jehovah thy God shalt thou fear; him .shalt thou serve, and to him shalt thou cleave, and in his name shalt thou swear.
Whom their mouth spake vanity, and their right hand a right hand of falsehood.
But I say to you, Swear not at all; neither by heaven, it is the throne of God:
But Jesus was silent. And the chief priest having answered, said to him, I cause thee to swear by the living God, that thou tell us, if thou art Christ, the Son of God. And Jesus says to him, Thou hast said: but I say to you, from henceforth ye shall see the Son of man, sitting from the right hand of power, and coming in the clouds of heaven.
And he was silent, and answered nothing. Again the chief priest asks him, and says to him, Art thou Christ, Son of the Praised
For my witness is God, whom I serve in my spirit in the good news of his Son, so that continually I make mention of you, always supplicating in my prayers;
And what I write to you, behold, before God, that I lie not.
And he is the head of the body, the church: who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead; that he might be the first in all
For God promising to Abraham, since he had none greater to swear by, sware by himself, Saying, Truly will I praise thee, and multiplying will I multiply thee. read more. And so, having endured long, he gained the promise. For truly men swear by the greater: and the oath for confirmation to them the end of all controversy. In which God, willing more abundantly to show to the heirs of the promise the firmness of his counsel, he intervened by an oath:
And the angel which I saw standing upon the sea and upon earth lifted up his hand to heaven,