¹² Above all, my brothers and sisters, do not swear—not by heaven or by earth or by anything else. All you need to say is a simple “Yes” or “No.” Otherwise you will be condemned.^(A)

¹² “‘Do not swear falsely^(A) by my name^(B) and so profane^(C) the name of your God. I am the Lord.

Oaths

³³ “Again, you have heard that it was said to the people long ago, ‘Do not break your oath,^(A) but fulfill to the Lord the vows you have made.’^{(B) 34} But I tell you, do not swear an oath at all:^(C) either by heaven, for it is God’s throne;^{(D) 35} or by the earth, for it is his footstool; or by Jerusalem, for it is the city of the Great King.^{(E) 36} And do not swear by your head, for you cannot make even one hair white or black. ³⁷ All you need to say is simply ‘Yes’ or ‘No’;^(F) anything beyond this comes from the evil one.^[a](G)

¹⁶ People swear by someone greater than themselves, and the oath confirms what is said and puts an end to all argument.^{(A) 17} Because God wanted to make the unchanging^(B) nature of his purpose very clear to the heirs of what was promised,^(C) he confirmed it with an oath.

¹⁶ But to the wicked person, God says:

²⁰ This is what we will do to them: We will let them live, so that God’s wrath will not fall on us for breaking the oath^(A) we swore to them.”