You shall not take the name of the Lord your God in vain, for the Lord will not hold him guiltless who takes His name in vain. (Deuteronomy 5:11)
Growing up, many of us considered this instruction to mean that we were not to attach God’s Name to a swear word. While I certainly believe to do so is wrong and disrespectful, there is much more to this instruction than just that. Then there are those who believe this has something to do with mispronouncing the Name יהוה YHVH. Again, there might be something to that argument in certain situations but, there is much more more to this instruction than just that. In reality, it is addressing the notion that God’s Name represents His authority and Holiness and, therefore, should not be used flippantly or irreverently. In fact, the Hebrew word that is translated as “in vain,” means “for vanity” or “for falsehood” — stemming from a root that means “desolate” or “devastate.”
We should conclude, then, that God directs us to avoid using His Name in a way that would make His Name common and unimportant. Moreover, it should never be associated with things that aren’t true or oaths that are intended to render destruction. In other words, don’t invoke the name of God to facilitate or “legitimize” something untrue or that has destructive intent. This would be akin to mingling what is holy with what is profane and, furthermore, indicate the person is being led astray by the Adversary. The Messiah addressed this when discussing the habit of some to swear by heaven; He said, “Let your ‘Yes’ be ‘Yes,’ and your ‘No,’ be ‘No.’ For whatever is more than these is from the evil one.” (Matthew 5:37).
There are two primary thoughts I wish the reader to take away from this, today. First, the Name of God, YHVH (some pronounce it as Yahweh), should be treated reverently because it is the Name of Almighty God, the Creator of all. He is holy and His Name is holy and so, just as we are to walk humbly before Him, we should be careful how we use His Holy Name. Finally, we should never feel the need to invoke His Name in an effort to lend credence to what we say or, in those unique situations, when we must swear an oath. The truth is the truth and can stand in its own merit and so, because we represent the Holy One, our name should also be associated with truth, righteousness and holiness. As Solomon said, “A good name is better than precious ointment” (Ecclesiastes 7:1).
Blessings and Shalom,
Bill
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