Yes Be Yes, No Be No

Almost twenty-five years ago, my husband and I stood before family, friends, and God to promise and covenant our love and faithfulness to each other in plenty and want, in joy and in sorrow, in sickness and in health, as long as we both shall live. We’ve experienced all those things, but we have kept our promise to each other and to God and will continue to keep the promise we made because we take them seriously.

All too often, we rashly make promises, oaths, or vows. How often as a child did you pinky swear with your best friend? Or maybe you said something like, “I’ll bet you a candy bar I’m telling the truth.” Regularly, I hear from youth group kiddos that they swear whatever they are trying to convince the group of is true. Adults use different phrases, but we do the same thing. We add promises and oaths to validate our words, but do they really mean anything?

Oaths were a part of the Jewish culture, but during the time of Jesus and James, the practice of oaths had been devalued. “Instead of calling on God to assure honesty, people took oaths to avoid God’s punishment for dishonest speech.”[1] Oaths were being violated as well as people being so unreliable that they needed to make an oath. If God’s name was used, the oath was considered binding, but people devalued the nature of oaths. They would swear by something other than God, thus, they were not considered bound by the oath. They gave themselves a way out of their word. Jesus and James both addressed the devaluing of oaths.

33 “Again you have heard that it was said to those of old, ‘You shall not swear falsely, but shall perform to the Lord what you have sworn.’ 34 But I say to you, Do not take an oath at all, either by heaven, for it is the throne of God, 35 or by the earth, for it is his footstool, or by Jerusalem, for it is 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’; anything more than this comes from evil.”[2]

Matthew 5:33-37

But above all, my brothers, 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. [3]

James 5:12

James begins his instruction with, “But above all.” No one really knows why James placed this command in this spot. James may have been concluding his thoughts on impatience (vs 7-11). In our impatience, we may be tempted to make a rash oath. Just as likely, James may have been introducing his final comments on speech (vs 13-18). There’s even speculation as to the devaluing of oaths being a worse sin than previous sins listed. Whatever James’ reasoning, the phrase “But above all” draws his readers’ attention to his point.

“Do not swear” – We tend to think of swearing as curse words or foul language, but James’ use means: “the invoking of God’s name, or substitutes for it, to guarantee the truth of what we say.”[4]

God commanded oaths and vows in certain situations in the Old Testament (Numbers 5:19, 21; 30:2-3). As part of loving one’s neighbor, God required: “You shall not swear by my name falsely, and so profane the name of your God: I am the Lord” (Leviticus 19:12). This is why the topic of oaths was serious – misuse and abuse of oaths profaned the name of God.

Neither Jesus nor James are condemning all oaths or vows, but rather false, deceptive, or irreverent oaths. There were situations in Jesus’ and James’ time that required swearing by God’s name like testifying in court (Matthew 26:63-64; Romans 1:9; 2 Corinthians 1:23; 1 Thessalonians 2:10). Likewise, we may need to swear if we are called as a witness in court or as I related at the beginning, vowing before God to love and be faithful to my husband as long as we both shall live.

Jesus and James are teaching us to have truthful speech, so there is never a need for an oath. Our integrity and character speak for themselves. If we say yes, then we are faithful to that yes. If say no, we are faithful to that no. We understand someone being called a man or woman of their word. You can trust what they say. Are we that kind of person? Are we faithful to what we say? Are we trustworthy?

I was convicted of being a person of my word several years ago. I often told someone I would pray for them, and then walked away and never prayed. I usually had good intentions of praying, but my “Yes, I will pray for you” was really a “No, I won’t pray for you because I will forget and be distracted by other things.” Now, I am in the habit of praying with the person right then if I am with them or stopping whatever I am doing when I get the text or email asking for prayer and praying before I continue my task. I have a few close friends that I am encouraged and blessed by because they do this for me. I know if they say they will pray, they will pray.

Of course, being people of our word doesn’t apply to only prayer. If we say we will do a job, do we do it? If we agree on a time to meet someone, are we there? Are we being careful to present the truth and not embellish, leave things out, outright lie, or speak authoritatively about things we don’t fully know? James exhorts us to let our yes be yes and no be no, so that we may not fall under condemnation. Whether or not James intended to put a degree on this sin, it is serious, and James wants us to take it seriously.

One of my favorite verses about God’s faithfulness is 1 Thessalonians 5:24: “He who calls you is faithful; he will surely do it.” We are not faithful to our word, but God is. Paul puts it simply. God is faithful. That is His character, so we know that what He says He will do, He will surely do it.

When Adam and Eve sinned in the Garden, God promised a Savior who would redeem us from our sin. He surely did it. Jesus repeatedly told His disciples that His mission was the cross to save us from sin and death and to rise to life on the third day. He surely did it. Jesus promised the Holy Spirit to indwell believers. He surely did it. God promised that nothing can separate us from His love. He will surely do it. God has promised that those in Christ will be raised to eternal life. He will surely do it.

May we reflect God. Let our yes be yes, and our no be no. May we be faithful, trustworthy, and truthful to the glory of God.

Reflection

1.        Would people characterize you as being a person of your word, a person of integrity? Are you trustworthy? Why or why not?

2.        What area of your life is it tempting to not let your yes be yes and your no be no (like prayer was for me)? Is there anyone you need to ask forgiveness from?

3.        How does God’s character encourage you to be faithful, trustworthy, and truthful with your words?

Douglas Moo compared Jesus’ and James’ words side-by-side to show the similarities:

[1] Daniel M. Doriani, James, ed. Richard D. Phillips, Philip Graham Ryken, and Daniel M. Doriani, Reformed Expository Commentary (Phillipsburg, NJ: P&R Publishing, 2007), 186.

[2] The Holy Bible: English Standard Version (Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles, 2016), Mt 5:33–37.

[3] The Holy Bible: English Standard Version (Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles, 2016), Jas 5:12.

[4] Douglas J. Moo, James: An Introduction and Commentary, vol. 16, Tyndale New Testament Commentaries (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 1985), 179.