¹² But above all, my brothers, ^(A)do not swear, either by heaven or by earth or by any other oath, but let your “yes” be yes and your “no” be no, so that you may not fall under condemnation.

Oaths

³³ “Again ^(A)you have heard that it was said to those of old, ^(B)‘You shall not swear falsely, but ^(C)shall perform to the Lord what you have sworn.’ ³⁴ But I say to you, ^(D)Do not take an oath at all, either by heaven, for ^(E)it is the throne of God, ³⁵ or by the earth, for it is his footstool, or by Jerusalem, for it is ^(F)the city of the great King. ³⁶ And do not take an oath by your head, for you cannot make one hair white or black. ³⁷ Let what you say be simply ‘Yes’ or ‘No’; ^(G)anything more than this comes from evil.^[a]

¹⁶ “Woe to ^(A)you, ^(B)blind guides, who say, ^(C)‘If anyone swears by the temple, it is nothing, but if anyone swears by the gold of the temple, he is bound by his oath.’ ¹⁷ You blind fools! For which is greater, the gold or ^(D)the temple that has made the gold sacred? ¹⁸ And you say, ‘If anyone swears by the altar, it is nothing, but if anyone swears by ^(E)the gift that is on the altar, he is bound by his oath.’ ¹⁹ You blind men! For which is greater, the gift or ^(F)the altar that makes the gift sacred? ²⁰ So whoever swears by the altar swears by it and by everything on it. ²¹ And whoever swears by the temple swears by it and by ^(G)him who dwells in it. ²² And whoever swears by ^(H)heaven swears by ^(I)the throne of God and by ^(J)him who sits upon it.

¹⁷ Was I vacillating when I wanted to do this? Do I make my plans ^(A)according to the flesh, ready to say “Yes, yes” and “No, no” at the same time? ¹⁸ As surely as ^(B)God is faithful, ^(C)our word to you has not been Yes and No. ¹⁹ For ^(D)the Son of God, Jesus Christ, whom we proclaimed among you, ^(E)Silvanus and Timothy and I, was not Yes and No, but ^(F)in him it is always Yes. ²⁰ For ^(G)all the promises of God find their Yes in him. That is why it is through him that we utter our ^(H)Amen to God for his glory.

⁸ Above all, keep loving one another earnestly, since ^(A)love covers a multitude of sins.

Taming the Tongue

3 ^(A)Not many of you should become teachers, my brothers, for you know that we who teach will be judged with greater strictness. ² For ^(B)we all stumble in many ways. And if anyone does not stumble in what he says, ^(C)he is a perfect man, ^(D)able also to bridle his whole body.

^34 (A)if anyone is hungry, ^(B)let him eat at home—so that when you come together it will not be for judgment. About the other things ^(C)I will give directions ^(D)when I come.

² Beloved, I pray that all may go well with you and that you may be in good health, as it goes well with your soul.