Matthew 5:33-37·~1 min
Oaths and Vows
Jesus recalls vows to the Lord and then forbids swearing by heaven, earth, or Jerusalem.
A33gain, you have heard that it was said to the ancients, ‘Do not break your oath, but fulfill your vows to the Lord.’ 34But I tell you not to swear at all: either by heaven, for it is God’s throne; 35or by the earth, for it is His footstool; or by Jerusalem, for it is the city of the great King.
Jesus adds the head to the list of things a person cannot truly guarantee and calls for plain yes and no speech.
36Nor should you swear by your head, for you cannot make a single hair white or black. 37Simply let your ‘Yes’ be ‘Yes,’ and your ‘No,’ ‘No.’ Anything more comes from the evil one.
Section summaryJesus contrasts old instruction about oath-keeping with a command against swearing in the first place. Heaven, earth, Jerusalem, and the head are all named as unsuitable guarantees, and simple truthfulness is set as the proper form of speech.
Role in the chapterThis section calls speech to plain reliability instead of elaborate oath-making.