Matthew 5:33
Again, you have heard that it was said to the ancients, ‘Do not break your oath, but fulfill your vows to the Lord.’
What it says
Jesus recalls the command to keep oaths and fulfill vows to the Lord.
What it is doing
The verse introduces the older oath pattern.
In context
33Again, 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. 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.