Joshua 9:16-20 Oaths

 16And it happened at the end of three days, after they had made a covenant with them, that they heard that they were their neighbors who dwelt near them. 17Then the children of Israel journeyed and came to their cities on the third day. Now their cities were Gibeon, Chephirah, Beeroth, and Kirjath Jearim. 18But the children of Israel did not [f]attack them, because the rulers of the congregation had sworn to them by the Lord God of Israel. And all the congregation complained against the rulers.

19Then all the rulers said to all the congregation, “We have sworn to them by the Lord God of Israel; now therefore, we may not touch them. 20This we will do to them: We will let them live, lest wrath be upon us because of the oath which we swore to them.”

Oaths

“The rulers of Israel were wise in not allowing one sin (wiping out the Gibeonites) to follow another sin (making the oath without seeking the LORD), especially in light of public pressure to do otherwise.” (Guzik)

Zechariah 5:4 I will send it out, declares the LORD of Hosts, and it will enter the house of the thief and the house of him who swears falsely by My name. It will remain inside his house and destroy it, down to its timbers and stones.”

But Jesus said:

Matthew 5: 33Again, you have heard that it was said to the ancients, ‘Do not break your oath, but fulfill your vows to the Lord.’ 34But I tell you not to swear at all: either by heaven, for it is God’s throne; 35or by the earth, for it is His footstool; or by Jerusalem, for it is the city of the great King. 36Nor should you swear by your head, for you cannot make a single hair white or black. 37Simply let your ‘Yes’ be ‘Yes,’ and your ‘No,’ ‘No.’ Anything more comes from the evil one.

As you can see Jesus said it’s better not to make an oath because if you don’t fulfill it it’s a sin. Rather, just let your answer be yes or no.

Can a promise be considered an oath? Have you made a promise that you didn’t keep?

Blessings