Monday, 15 October 2007
To One Contemplating Breaking/Voiding His Marital Commitment With His Wife
This file may be copied and transmitted as long as it
isn't changed.
Copyright © By R. Tyler, 9/15/'99; 10/14/2007
P.O. Box 620763, San Diego, CA 92162-0763
..., ...,
...
You are about to go over the edge of yet another cliff, a spiritual one, and if you do, the Scriptures below make it clear you deserve to die if you break your marital covenants with your lady. Death may seem like an easy way out of your dilemna, but any sane person knows that leaving a marriage by death voluntarily makes one just as much a traitor, betrayer and Judas to their marriage as if one just turned his/her back on the covenant/pact partner and walked away never to see her again, never to keep covenant with that partner again. I understand that you and your mate were free to marry in Jesus according to the Scriptures when you married/covenanted. These are the facts regarding your covenants/pacts/promises/vows with the lady you seem intent on betraying, betraying Christ's Spirit who lives in her. They are also true of a wife who plans on breaking/voiding her marital covenant/commitment to her husband, if indeed they were free in Jesus to marry each other according to the Scriptures in the first place.
"12* Moreover when you thus sin against the brethren and wound their weak consciences, you are, in reality, sinning against Christ." 1 Cor 8 WEY
"32 Do not be causes of stumbling either to Jews or to Gentiles, nor to the Church of God." 1 Cor 10
Paraphrased for application to your situation:
"12 So we see that every one of us will give account of himself to God. 13* Therefore let us no longer judge one another; but, instead of that, you should come to this judgement--that we must not put a stumbling-block in [your wife's] path, nor anything to trip [her] up. 14* As one who lives in union with the Lord Jesus, I know and am certain that in its own nature no [separation is necessarily] ‘impure’; but if people regard [the separation] as impure, to them it is. 15* If your [wife] is pained by the [action] you are [planning], your conduct is no longer controlled by love. Take care lest, by the [action you take], you lead to ruin [one] for whom Christ died. 16* Therefore do not let the [marital] boon which is yours in common be exposed to reproach. 17* For the Kingdom of God does not consist of [marrying or separating], but of right conduct, peace and joy, through the Holy Spirit; 18* and whoever in this way devotedly serves Christ, God takes pleasure in him, and men highly commend him. 19* Therefore let us aim at whatever makes for peace and mutual upbuilding of character. 20* Do not for [for your own] sake be throwing down God’s work. All [godly actions] pure; but a man is in the wrong if his [action] is a snare to others.
People who give their word, signatures, handshakes, property
and etc. as oaths in promissory notes of indebtedness, or
contracts or other such documented promises or predictions
not only fall into the condemnation of man when they fail to
fulfill their sworn promises or predictions, but they face the
double condemnation of God for swearing (promising/predicting/
covenanting with an oath = James 5:12), and then for the failure
to truthfully keep their promise (the covenant breaking of
Rom. 1:31,32; Eph. 4:25). The God of Truth does not want His
followers to suffer for doing wrong, or to keep on doing that
which is wrong.
It is obvious that certification of a legal document can
be consist of oaths, swearings, covenants and contracts.
For example government documents requiring certification
consist of at least an assertion about the future, if not a
promise or prediction about the future. A Calif. Highway
Patrol ticket has the statement, "Without admitting guilt, I
promise to appear at the time and place checked below.
Signature___________". The promise or assertion about the
future is made binding by the maker's signature. In legal
terms, the signature functions as an oath, making the
promise/agreement binding on the maker, so the entire
statement becomes a sworn statement (a solemn promise
made binding by an oath).
Phrases like "I promise that I will . . . .", "I agree that I
will provide . . . .", "I will also cooperate . . . .", "I agree that I
will inform . . . ." are all predictions or promises about one;s
future behavior. When certified or signed with one's
signature, the signature functions as an oath, making them
binding and the maker punishable for failure to fulfill his
predictions/promises.
The word, signature, or witnessed statement, is that which
(1) attests to the credibility of the predictions and promises,
(2) makes the promises or predictions binding on the
applicant/recipient/maker, and (3) enables the courts to
punish the applicant/recipient/ maker if he fails to fulfill his
words. According to almost all legal and college level
dictionaries, those three characteristics of such a signature
makes that signature an oath that completes and confirms
the swearing (promises or predictions) that precede it.
Almost all legal and college level dictionaries define
swearing as promising or predicting with an oath. The
government's Loyalty Oath is a perfect example, i.e. promises
or predictions made with a witnessed raised right hand
and/or a witnessed signature (i.e. name).
So what is the Biblical case? Consider the following
New testament scriptures:
Some of the oaths people swear by are God (Gen. 24:3),
one's self (Ex. 32:13), God's holiness (Amos 4:2), the raised or
unraised right hand or arm (Isa. 62:8; Rev. 10:5,6), one's
name (Jer. 44:26; Lev. 19:12; Deut. 6:13), something greater
than you (Heb. 6:16), and a curse on one's self if what you
say isn't true or if you fail to do what you swear you will do,
like Peter when he swore and cursed denying Jesus (2 Sam.
3:35; 13:35; 1 Kg 2:23; Matt. 26:74). I see my signature
attesting to/vouching for and guaranteeing (certifying)
promises and predictions as an oath, just like swearing by
my name or swearing by myself. Today the "curse" you
swear on yourself if you are lying or fail to do what you
promised is jail (perjury, fraud) or civil suit. The fourth
century AD Church fathers Jerome, St. Ambrose and Basil all
agreed with this definition of swearing (promises or
predictions confirmed with one's signature, name or
hand).#30
Arndt & Gingrich Greek Lexicon render the word
"swear" (Mt. 5:34) as "swear, take an oath w. acc. of the
pers. or the thing by which one swears . . . warning against
any and all oaths as early as Choerilus Epicus[V BC]".26 ;
and the word "oath" (Mt. 5:33) as "swear to someone with an
oath . . . perform oaths to the Lord . . . guarantee by means
of an oath . . .".27. Thayer's Greek Lexicon renders "swear"
(Mt. 5:34) as " to swear; to affirm, promise, threaten, with an
oath: . . . .in swearing to call a person or thing as witness, to
invoke, swear by . . ." .28 ; and renders the word "oath" (Mt.
5:33) as "an oath . . . that which has been pledged or
promised with an oath; plur. vows . . .".29 That this is the
definition of swearing and oaths in the Holy Bible is obvious
from the following scriptures: Gen. 21:23, 24 (19th Cent. BC);
Gen. 31:44, 52, 53 (18th Cent, BC); Josh. 2:12, 13, 14, 20; Josh
9:11-20 (14th Cent. BC); Judg. 21:1 (11th Cent. BC); 1 Kg
1:29,30 (10th Cent. BC); Ezek. 17:12-19 (6th Cent. BC); Luke
1:73,74,75 (1st Cent. BC); Matt. 5:34-37 & 14:7,8,9 (1st Cent.
AD); Acts 7:17 (1st Cent AD); Acts 2:29-31 with 2 Sam. 7:11-
16; Heb. 3:10,11 with Num. 14; Heb. 6:13-17 with Gen.
22:16,17; Heb. 7:20,21 with Psa. 110:4; and see also Isa. 62:7;
Jer. 44:6,26; Matt. 23:18; Heb. 3:18.
The vows, covenants, betrothals and prenuptial contracts
seem to be covered by God's standards in the following:
[Footnote: >87 See appendix #4 . >.88 See appendix #4 .]
++++EZEKIEL 16: 3 "And say, So says the Lord Jehovah to
Jerusalem, . . . 8 And I passed by you and looked on you,
and, behold, your time [was] the time of love. And I spread
my skirt over you and covered your nakedness. And I swore
to you and entered into a covenant with you, says the Lord
Jehovah. And you became Mine."
++++ MALACHI 2:14 "Yet you say, Why? Because the LORD
has been witness between you and the wife of your youth,
against whom you have dealt treacherously; yet she [is] your
companion and your covenant wife.
The passages, like Mt. 26:74, where people think that it
means profanity or cussing or "taking the Lord's Name in
vain", i.e. that Peter was using profanity to deny that he
knew Jesus, instead mean "in swearing to call a person or
thing as witness, to invoke" where Peter called on God to
curse him/his if what he was saying (that he didn't know
Jesus) was untrue. The cursing was invoking God's curses on
him if what he was affirming under oath was untrue, that he
did not know Jesus. Jesus is not talking about cursing,
profanity, cussing or taking the Lord's Name in vain in Matt.
5 or James 5.
>>>>What Does God Say About Breaking Promises/Covenants?
>>>Nu 30:2 If a man vows a vow to the LORD, or swears an oath
to bind his soul with a bond, HE SHALL NOT BREAK HIS WORD. He
shall do according to all that comes out of his mouth.
>>>Ezekiel 16:59 "For thus says the Lord Jehovah: I will even
deal with you as
you have done, WHO HAVE DESPISED THE OATH, AND
BROKEN THE COVENANT. . . .
>>>Psalm 15:1 LORD, who shall abide in thy tabernacle? who
shall dwell in thy holy hill? 2 He that walketh uprightly, and worketh
righteousness, and speaketh the truth in his heart. . . . [HE THAT]
SWEARETH [PROMISES, CONTRACTS] TO [HIS OWN] HURT
[LOSS, DISADVANTAGE], AND CHANGETH NOT [KEEPS HIS
WORD/PROMISE]. . . . He that doeth these [things] shall never be
moved.
>>>Eccles. 5:4 ¶ When you vow [promise] a vow [promise] to
[before] God, do not wait to pay it. For He has no pleasure in
fools. Pay that which you have vowed [promised]. 5 [it is] better that
you should not vow, than that you should vow and not pay.
6 Do not allow your mouth to cause your flesh to sin; do not
say before the angel that it [was] an error. Why should God
be angry at your voice and destroy the work of your hands?
>>>Jon 2:9 but I will sacrifice to You with the voice of
thanksgiving; I will fulfill that which I have vowed. Salvation
[belongs] to the LORD!
>>>>>>>Promises Made by Believers with Unbelievers
>>Abraham and Philistines
+++gen21:22 ¶ And it happened at that time, Abimelech and Phicol, the
commander of his army, spoke to Abraham, saying, God is with you in
all that you do. 23 Now therefore swear to me here by God that you
will not deal falsely with me, nor with my son, nor with my son's son.
Do to me according to the kindness that I have sworn to you, and to
the land in which you have lived. 24 And Abraham said, I will swear.
. . . :27 And Abraham took sheep and oxen and gave them to
Abimelech, and both of them made a covenant. . . . 32 So they made a
covenant at Beer-sheba. Then Abimelech and Phicol, the commander of
his army, rose up. And they returned to the land of the Philistines.
>>>>>>Promises made with unbelieving enemies
>>>>Issac and Abimelech
++++Ge 26: 27 And Isaac said to them, Why do you come to me, since you
hate me and have sent me away from you? 28 And they said, We saw
certainly that the LORD was with you. And we said, Let there be now
an oath between us, between us and you, and let us make a covenant with
you; 29 that you will do us no harm since we have not touched you, and
since we have done nothing but good to you, and have sent you away
in peace. You are now the blessed of the LORD. 30 And he made them a
feast, and they ate and drank. 31 And they rose up early in the morning,
and swore to one another. And Isaac sent them away, and they departed
from him in peace.
>>>>The King of Israel with the King of Babylon
++++Ezek 17:13* And he took of the king’s seed, and made a
covenant <01285> with him, and brought him under an oath of
covenant<0423>, and he took away the mighty of the land; 14 that
the kingdom might be abased, that it might not lift itself up, that it
might keep his covenant in order to stand.
[Strong's <01285>
1) covenant, alliance, pledge
1a) between men
1a1) treaty, alliance, league (man to man)
1a2) constitution, ordinance (monarch to subjects)
1a3) agreement, pledge (man to man)
1a4) alliance (of friendship)
1a5) alliance (of marriage)]
15 But he rebelled against him in sending his ambassadors into Egypt,
that they might give him horses and much people. Shall he prosper?
shall he escape that doeth such things? shall he break the covenant,
and yet escape? 16 As I live, saith the Lord Jehovah, verily in the
place of the king that made him king, whose oath he despised, and
whose covenant he broke, even with him, in the midst of Babylon, shall
he die. 17 Neither shall Pharaoh with a mighty army and a great
assemblage do anything for him in the war, when they cast up mounds
and build forts to cut off many persons. 18 He despised the oath, and
broke the covenant; and behold, he had given his hand, yet hath he done
all these things: he shall not escape. 19 Therefore thus saith the Lord
Jehovah: As I live, verily, mine oath which he hath despised, and my
covenant which he hath broken, even it will I recompense upon his head.
20 And I will spread my net upon him, and he shall be taken in my snare;
and I will bring him to Babylon, and will enter into judgment with him there
for his unfaithfulness in which he hath been unfaithful against me.
21 And all his fugitives with all his bands shall fall by the sword, and they
that remain shall be scattered toward every wind; and ye shall know that
I Jehovah have spoken.
2) covenant breaking, faithless
>>Promises made with the dishonest and unscrupulous. . . . .
Gen31: 44 And come now, let us make a covenant, you and I. And let it
be for a witness between you and me. 45 And Jacob took a stone and
set it up as a memorial pillar. 50 If you shall afflict my daughters,
or if you shall take wives besides my daughters, no man is with us. See!
God is witness between you and me. 52 This heap [is] a witness, and
the pillar [is] a witness, that I will not pass over this heap to you,
and that you shall not pass over this heap and this pillar to me, for harm.
53 The God of Abraham, and the God of Nahor, the God of their father,
judge between us. And Jacob swore by the Fear of his father Isaac.
>>The seriousness of breaking covenants
'Rom 1:31 Without understanding, covenantbreakers<802>, without
natural affection, implacable, unmerciful: 32* Who knowing the
judgment of God, that they which commit such things are worthy
of death, not only do the same, but have pleasure in them that do them.
<802> asunthetos {as-oon'-thet-os}; adj
WHAT ABOUT BAD PROMISES, PROMISES MADE WITH THE WRONG PEOPLE TO DO THE
WRONG THING?
>>>>>>CONSIDER THE CASE OF THE GIBEONITES AND ISRAEL.
>>>>What was Israel supposed to do with the Gibeonites? They were supposed
to be "utterly" destroyed.
>>De 20:17 But you shall UTTERLY DESTROY them: the Hittites, and THE
AMORITES, the Canaanites, and the Perizzites, THE HIVITES and the
Jebusites; as the LORD your God has commanded you,
>>Jos 11:19 There was not a city that made peace with the sons of Israel,
except THE HIVITES, THE INHABITANTS OF GIBEON. All [others] they took in
battle.
>>2Sa 21:2 And the king called THE GIBEONITES and spoke to them. And the
Gibeonites [were] not of the sons of Israel, but OF THE REMNANT OF THE
AMORITES.
>>>>>Not only did the Israelites fail to utterly destroy the Gibeonites, who
were Hivites and Amorites, consider what they did do with them.
+++Jos 9:3 ¶ And when those who lived in Gibeon heard what Joshua had done to
Jericho and to Ai, 4 they worked slyly. For they came and acted as if they
were ambassadors. And they took old sacks on their asses, and old and torn
and bound up wineskins, 5 and old and patched sandals on their feet, and
old clothes on them. And all the bread they had taken was dry [and] moldy.
6 And they went to Joshua to the camp at Gilgal, and said to him and to the
men of Israel, We have come from a far country. Now therefore, make a
treaty with us.
>>JOSHUA AND THE ISRAELITES WERE LIED TO . . . .
+++Jos. 9:7 And the men of Israel said to the Hivites, Perhaps you are living
among us, and how shall we make a treaty with you? 8 And they said to
Joshua, We [are] your servants. And Joshua said to them, Who [are] you, and
from where do you come? 9 And they said to him, Your servants have come
from a very far country, because of the name of the LORD your God. For we
have heard of His fame and all that He did in Egypt, . . . . 11 And our
elders and all those who live in our country spoke to us saying, Take
provisions with you for the journey, and go to meet them. Say to them, We
[are] your servants. And now make a treaty with us. 12 We took this bread
hot [for] our provision out of our houses on the day we came out to go to
you. But now, see, [it is] dry, and it is moldy. 13 And these wineskins
which we filled [were] new. And, see, they are torn. And these clothes and
shoes of ours have become old because of the very long journey. 14 And they
received the men because of their provisions,
>>JOSHUA AND THE ISRAELITES WERE DECEIVED . . . . . .
+++Jos.9:14b and did not ask at the mouth of the LORD.
>>JOSHUA AND THE ISRAELITES FAILED TO ACKNOWLEDGE THE LORD IN ALL THEIR
>>WAYS, TO SEEK HIS WILL IN MAKING DECISIONS . . . . . .
+++Jos.9:15 ¶ And Joshua made peace with them, and made a treaty with them, to
let them live. And the rulers of the congregation swore to them.
>>CONSIDER THE CIRCUMSTANCES: 1. The people they were to utterly destroy
>>planned a clever deception, 2. Joshua and Israel failed ask at the mouth
>>of the Lord for guidance but leaned to their own understanding, 3. Joshua
>>and Israel believed their lie and covenanted peace with them, contrary to
>>the will of God.
+++Jos 9:16 And it happened at the end of three days after they had made a
treaty with them, they heard that they [were] their neighbors and that they
lived among them. 17 And the sons of Israel journeyed and came to their
cities on the third day. . . . . 18 And the sons of Israel did not strike
them, because the rulers of the congregation had sworn to them by the LORD
God of Israel. And all the congregation murmured against the rulers.
>>Joshua and the rulers of Israel had been decieved, had sworn in solemn
>>covenant to disobey God's explicit command to destroy the Gibeonites,
>>found out within several days that they had been deceived yet felt
>>obligated to keep the sworn covenant with Gibeon, and suffered social
>>persecution for making the mistake of covenanting with a people under
>>God's death sentence, and then honoring their sworn covenant with the
>>deceivers.
+++Jos 9:19 But all the rulers said to the congregation, We have sworn to them
by the LORD God of Israel. Now, therefore, we may not touch them. 20 This
we will do to them. We will even let them live, lest wrath be on us because
of the oath which we swore to them.
>>>>Joshua and the rulers believed that they HAD TO HONOR THEIR COVENANT WITH
THE DECEIVERS lest God's wrath be on them for the terrible sin of
breaking a sworn oath, even a sworn oath to disobey the explicit command
of God. Why did they believe such a thing? Consider the following:
+++Num.30: 1 ¶ And Moses spoke to the heads of the tribes concerning the sons
of Israel, saying, This [is] the thing which the LORD has commanded: 2 If
a man vows a vow to the LORD, or swears an oath to bind his soul with a
bond, he shall not break his word. He shall do according to all that comes
out of his mouth.
+++Lev. 5:4 Or if a soul swears, pronouncing with [his] lips to do evil or to
do good, whatever it is that a man speaks rashly with an oath, and it is
hidden from him, and he knows, then he shall be guilty of one of these. 5
And it shall be when he is guilty in one of these, he shall confess that in
which he has sinned.
+++Rom 1:31 . . . , covenant-breakers, . . . . 32 who, knowing the righteous
order of God, that those practicing such things are worthy of death, not
only do them, but have pleasure in those practicing [them].
>>>>So they knew they had to keep their sworn oaths and covenants, even if
spoken rashly, that they could be forgiving for rash oaths/covenants but
they still had to keep them because covenant breakers "worthy of death".
>>>>So a forgiven Joshua and his rulers set themselves to keep the covenant
they were bound to keep with their deceivers.
+++Jos.9:21 And the rulers said to them, Let them live, but let them be
woodcutters and drawers of water to all the congregation, as the rulers had
promised them. . . . . . . 26 And so he did to them, and delivered them out
of the hand of the sons of Israel, so that they did not kill them. 27 And
Joshua made them that day woodcutters and drawers of water for the
congregation, and for the altar of the LORD, even to this day, in the place
which He should choose.
>>>>Were Joshua and the rulers correct in their understanding of the will of
God for them, having made the rash covenant?
+++2Sa 21:1 And there was a famine in the days of David three years, year
after year. And David inquired of the LORD. And the LORD answered, For
Saul, and for [his] bloody house, because he killed the Gibeonites. 2 And
the king called the Gibeonites and spoke to them. And the Gibeonites [were]
not of the sons of Israel, but of the remnant of the Amorites. And the sons
of Israel had sworn to them. And Saul sought to kill them in his zeal to
the sons of Israel and Judah. 3 And David said to the Gibeonites, What
shall I do for you? And with what shall I atone for this, so that you may
bless the inheritance of the LORD? 4 And the Gibeonites said to him, We
will have no silver nor gold from Saul, nor from his house. Also, we will
have no man in Israel put to death. And he said, What you shall say, I will
do for you. 5 And they answered the king, The man who destroyed us, and
who devised against us, that we should be destroyed from remaining in any
of the borders of Israel 6 let seven men of his sons be delivered to us,
and we will hang them up to the Lord in Gibeah of Saul, the chosen of the
LORD. And the king said, I will give [them]. . . . . 9 And he delivered
them into the hands of the Gibeonites. And they hanged them in the hill
before the LORD.. . . .
>>>>INDEED JOSHUA WAS CORRECT IN HIS UNDERSTANDING, and because Saul broke
the covenant of Joshua and the rulers, God gave David and his people
three years of famine until David righted the wrong by letting the
children of Gibeon kill the children of Saul. Three years of famine and
death by hanging for the seven children of the man who broke the
covenant--------yes indeed I do believe Joshua and rulers understood
correctly the will of God for them in making and keeping covenants with
deceivers and liers.
>>>When Sinning "Believers" Break Promises to Unbelievers
>>The King of Israel and the King of Babylon
+++Ezekiel17: 15 But he [Israel's King] rebelled against
him [Babylon's King] . . . Shall he prosper? shall he escape that does
such things? SHALL HE BREAK THE COVENANT [he made with
Babylon's King] AND YET ESCAPE? . . 16 [As] I live, says the Lord
Jehovah, verily in the place of the king that made him king, WHOSE
OATH HE DESPISED, AND WHOSE COVENANT HE BROKE, even
with him, in the midst of Babylon, shall he die. . . .18 HE DESPISED
THE OATH, AND BROKE THE COVENANT; and behold, he had given
his hand, yet has he done all these things: he shall not escape.
19 Therefore thus says the Lord Jehovah: [As] I live, verily,
MINE OATH WHICH HE HAS DESPISED, AND MY COVENANT
WHICH HE HAS BROKEN, EVEN IT WILL I RECOMPENSE UPON
HIS HEAD. 20 AND I WILL SPREAD MY NET UPON HIM, AND
HE SHALL BE TAKEN IN MY SNARE; . . ".
>>>A Covenant Between Godly People to do Right
>>Nehemiah and Israel
+++Ne 5:12 And they said, We will restore, and will ask nothing from
them. So we will do as you say. Then I called the priests and took an
oath from them that they should do according to this promise. 13 Also
I shook my lap and said, So let God shake out every man
from his house, and from his labor, who does not keep this promise,
even may he be shaken out this way and emptied. And all the
congregation said, amen, and praised the LORD. And the people did
according to this promise.
>>>The Wedding Covenant
+++MALACHI 2:14 "Yet you say, Why? Because the LORD
has been witness between you and the wife of your youth,
against whom you have dealt treacherously<0898>; yet she [is] your
companion and your covenant<01285> wife. 15 And did He not make
[you] one? Yet the vestige of the Spirit [is in] him. And what
[of] the one? He was seeking a godly seed. Then guard your
spirit, and do not act treacherously<0898> with the wife of your
youth. 16 The LORD, the God of Israel, says He hates sending
away<07971>; and to cover [with] violence on his garment, says
the LORD of hosts. Then guard your spirit, and do not act
treacherously<0898>."
>>>Here "act treacherously" means to be a traitor, to betray, to
" break
covenant" or "fail to honor your covenant/commitment".
[Strong's 0898 bagad ; v
1) to act treacherously, deceitfully, deal treacherously
1a) (Qal) to act or deal treacherously, faithlessly, deceitfully, offend]
[Strong's 01285 ; n f
1) covenant, alliance, pledge
1a) between men
1a1) treaty, alliance, league (man to man)
1a2) constitution, ordinance (monarch to subjects)
1a3) agreement, pledge (man to man)
1a4) alliance (of friendship)
1a5) alliance (of marriage)]
[Strong's 07971 shalach {shaw-lakh'}; v
1) to send, send away, let go, stretch out
1c) (Piel)
1c1) to send off or away or out or forth, dismiss, give over, cast out
1c2) to let go, set free]
It is the treachery of breaking covenants that God
condemns in these passages and that which he hates. "Yes, I
swore an oath to you and entered into covenant with you,
and you became Mine," says the Lord God>70 . We become a
part of the bride of Christ in the same way. The Spirit
considered Mary and Joseph as husband and wife on the
basis of their espousal/ betrothal/ covenants even before the
wedding and the coming together>71.
[Footnote: >70 (Ezek. 16:8). >71 (Mat. 1:18-25 ;Deut.
22:23-27)]
JESUS RAISED THE STANDARD AND GAVE US THE BETTER
WAY, BETTER THAN OATHS, SWEARINGS, PROMISES ETC.
The Holy Bible in Matthew 5:33-37, James 4 and James
5:12, declares that we don't know our future, not even
tomorrow or even the next hour. Therefore it is a
presumptuous assertion to say that we will do this or that in
our future. He tells us to recognize and admit our finite
knowledge and our mortality by saying, "If the Lord wills
and we live, we also shall do this or that." To make
presumptuous assertions about your future is prideful
boasting and contrary to His will. See James 4:13,14,15 and
Prov. 27:1.
This is not an attempt to be dishonest or evasive since
this same God of Truth commands us to be honest, to give
that which is due to others, and to conscientiously submit to
the civil authorities (Romans 13 and 1 Pt. 2). While He
wants us to be honest and give that which is due, he takes
into consideration our human frailty, finite knowledge and
mortal nature and so holds us liable only for our intent, will
and expectations about the future.
From James 4:13-17 & 5:12 we see that there is
nothing that we can give that will honestly and absolutely
attest to the credibility and fulfillment of our promises or
predictions about our own future. We have absolute and
perfect control or authority over not one thing. To give the
recipient of such promises, oaths or predictions about our
future the idea that we can be expected to perfectly and
completely fulfill such statements is to give the recipient a
false expectation of (and false confidence in) our fulfillment
of such swearings/oaths. Such dishonesty is contrary to the
Truth of the word since or life is like a vapor or a blade of
grass and disasters, disabilities, incapacities, death or etc.
could keep us from fulfilling our sworn oaths.
Truth, Who was revealed as Christ, declares that
all I can give to promises or predictions about my future is
simply "If the Lord wills", or a simple "Yes", i.e. an
affirmation of my will, a declaration of my intent, an
expression of my expectation, an evidence of my good and
honest intentions and an expression of my optimistic hope
for the future fulfillment of my intentions or expectations.
No oaths. Such an affirmation attests to and is confirmation
of nothing but that described in this paragraph's first
sentence. It is proof of my sincere desire and intention to
fulfill the declaration/affirmation/intention. The recipient of
such an affirmation knows that he has been given no
profound absolute and mighty guarantee. Such an
affirmation is a reflection of our finite, mortal and frail
human nature.
Laurence Geller, a Calif. Administrative Law
Referee/Judge ruled against San Diego County and Calif. and
for my petition, on 8/5/'75, stating: "It is the claimant's
conviction that before he may affix his signature to any
document, his signing must b e qualified by a religious
preface such as "In case Christ wills and I live." Claimant
testified that his desire to so qualify his signature is in no
way an attempt or subterfuge to not meet his reporting
responsibilities. Claimant simply desires the qualification so
that the placing of his signature would be in conformity with
his religious convictions which appear to require an
affirmation of the finite nature of the claimant's existence. . .
.San Diego County shall rescind its July 1, 1975 denial . . .
Further, the county shall permit the claimant to sign his
application and qualify his signature with the religious
statement.
In A Commentary on the Gospels.31 we read "The
citizen of the New Kingdom . . .is also too frank and truthful
to need the use of oaths; his word is his bond." In The Gospel
of Matthew.32 we read the following:
"Matthew 5:33-37 . . . This passage concludes with the
commandment that when a man has to say yes, he should
say yes, and nothing more; and when he has to say no, he
should say no, and nothing more. The ideal is that a man
should never need an oath to buttress or guarantee the truth
of anything he may say. . . Clement of Alexandria insisted
that Christian must lead such a life and demonstrate such a
character that no one will ever dream of asking an oath
from them. . . ."
In A commentary on the Gospel According to Saint
Matthew.33 we read the following:
"Since in all of life man is dealing with God, he is always
obligated to complete integrity in word and act. Therefore
the use of oaths is misleading; swear not at all; simply say
"Yes" or "No" . . . The use of solemn-sounding oaths instead of
simple, truthful speech is a concession to a double standard
and comes from the Evil One, Satan, the "Father of Lies" . . .
and dishonesty (Jn *:44)."
In the Theological Dictionary of the New Testament.34 we
read the following:
". . . oaths and vows had to be kept. . . . Attempts have been
made to limit ["swear not at all"] of Jesus, e.g. to promises
rather than affirmations.20* . . . Hence the ["Swear not at
all"] applies to all oaths, whether in daily life or in judicial
cases. . . The Essenes rejected the oath unconditionally. . .
Jesus does not merely attach the misuse of the oath; He
rejects it altogether. . . He who already belongs to the
kingdom . . . must be truthful in all things; hence he stands
under the requirement not to sear at all. . . ["swear" Mt.
5:34] means to swear, to affirm (confirm) by an oath. . ."
In The Gospel According to Matthew.35 we read that "Jesus
would abolish oaths altogether as unnecessary for those who
habitually tell the truth as his disciples are expected to do.
This radical rejection of oaths is paralleled in the Damascus
Document of the Dead Sea Scrolls (XIX, 1).
Don't be a fool! Don't make promises, vows, oaths or sweaings
without adding "If the Lord wills and I live". But if you have bound
yourself by your words and they do not violate God's explicit and specific
Word in Scripture, be an acceptable child of God and keep your promises,
covenants, swearings and oaths that are not in violation of the Word of God,
because to break, not keep, your promises, covenants, swearings and/or oaths
is to become worthy of death, to "deserve death," to "deserve to die." [Rom 1:31,32]
FOOTNOTES*******************************************
#30The Nicene and Post Nicene Fathers of the Christian
Church, 1954, Erdman's Publish Co.' pp. 63, 386, 248.
.31 By Ronald Knox, 1952, N.Y. Shed and Ward, Imprimatur,
Richard J. Cushing, Archbishop of Boston
.32 Vol. 1, Barclay, Professor of Divinity at the Univ. of
Glasgow, Westminister Press, 1958; p. 158
.33 Filson, Dean and Professor of N.T. lit.and Hist.; McCormick
Theological Seminary, Chicago, Harper and Bros. Prss, 1960;
p. 89
.34 edited by G. Friedrich G. Kittel, Eerdmans Publishers,
1967, Vol. 5; pp. 176ff and page 183
20* See the reference
.35 Argyle, Cambridge, 1963; p.52
.26 Arndt & Gingrich Greek English Lexicon; p. 568ff
.27 Arndt & Giungrich; p. 585
.28 Thayer Greek Lexicon; p. 444
.29 Thayer; p.453
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Breaking/Voiding One's Marital Commitment With One's Mate
