Symbolics 3 The 1689 Baptist Confession [Chapters 21-32]

1. Symbolics 3The 1689 Baptist Confession[Chapters 21-32] Chapter 23 Of Lawful Oaths and Vows

2. Introduction: Reading (1) A lawful oath is a part of religious worship, wherein the person swearing in truth, righteousness, and judgement, solemnly calleth God to witness what he sweareth, and to judge him according to the truth or falseness thereof.

3. Introduction: Reading (2) The name of God only is that by which men ought to swear; and therein it is to be used, with all holy fear and reverence; therefore to swear vainly or rashly by that glorious and dreadful name, or to swear at all by any other thing, is sinful, and to be abhorred; yet as in matter of weight and moment, for confirmation of truth, and ending all strife, an oath is warranted by the word of God; so a lawful oath being imposed by lawful authority in such matters, ought to be taken.

4. Introduction: Reading (3) Whosoever taketh an oath warranted by the Word of God, ought duly to consider the weightiness of so solemn an act, and therein to avouch nothing but what he knoweth to be truth; for that by rash, false, and vain oaths, the Lord is provoked, and for them this land mourns. (4) An oath is to be taken in the plain and common sense of the words, without equivocation or mental reservation.

5. Introduction: Reading (5) A vow, which is not to be made to any creature, but to God alone, is to be made and performed with all religious care and faithfulness; but popish monastical vows of perpetual single life, professed poverty, and regular obedience, are so far from being degrees of higher perfection, that they are superstitious and sinful snares, in which no Christian may entangle himself.

6. Introduction: Outline I. Lawful Oaths (par 1-4) A. Their Definition (par 1) B. Their Sanctity (par 2a) C. Their Propriety (par 2b) D. Their Solemnity (par 3) E. Their Sincerity (par 4) II. Lawful Vows (par 5) A. Their Exclusive Recipient B. Their Careful Performance C. Their Popish Perversion

7. Introduction: Background What is the historical backdrop of this chapter? What two errors made it necessary? The Anabaptist rejection of all oaths and vows. Jesus words, “Make no oath at all,” were taken absolutely. The Popish perversion of oaths and vows. Like the vows of poverty and celibacy taken by priests and nuns.

8. I. Lawful Oaths (par 1-4) • The issue here is the lawfulness of oaths. • The attack of the Westminster on Anabaptist refusal to take oaths is softened by the Baptists. • The Westminster (22:3) states that "it is a sin to refuse an oath touching anything that is good and just, being imposed by lawful authority." • The Baptists simply say "a lawful oath being imposed by lawful authority in such matters, ought to be taken."

9. I. Lawful Oaths (par 1-4) • Likely this reflects sympathy for the Anabaptists. • The clause in par 3 is from the 1644 Bapt Conf: • for that by rash, false, and vain oaths, the Lord is provoked, and for them this land mourns. • The framers seemed to feel the Anabaptist refusal to take oaths was partly a reaction against the prevalent abuse of oaths. • The 1689 Confession, nevertheless, adopts the position of Reformed theology.

10. I. Lawful Oaths (par 1-4) • What are the arguments for oaths being lawful? • (1) The command not to swear vainly in God's name assumes their lawfulness (Ex. 20:7). • (2) The command to swear only in God's name assumes their lawfulness. • Deut 6:13 …fear only the LORD your God; and you shall worship Him and swear by His name. • Deut10:20 fear the LORD …serve Him …cling to Him, and you shall swear by His name.

11. I. Lawful Oaths (par 1-4) • (3) God’s example indicates their lawfulness. • Heb 6:13-17 For when God made the promise to Abraham, since He could swear by no one greater, He swore by Himself…men swear by one greater than themselves, and with them an oath given as confirmation is an end of every dispute. In the same way God, desiring even more to show to the heirs of the promise the unchangeableness of His purpose, interposed with an oath

12. I. Lawful Oaths (par 1-4) • (4) Their use by OT saints’ shows their lawfulness • Abraham—Gen 24:3 I will make you swear by the LORD that you shall not take a wife for my son from the daughters of the Canaanites • Jacob—Gen 47:30-31 you shall carry me out of Egypt and bury me in their burial place. And he said, "I will do as you have said." He said, "Swear to me." So he swore to him. • Joseph—Gen 50:25 Then Joseph made the sons of Israel swear

13. I. Lawful Oaths (par 1-4) • (4) Their use by OT saints’ shows their lawfulness • Elijah—1 Kings 17:1 Elijah…said, As the LORD, the God of Israel lives, before whom I stand, surely there shall be neither dew nor rain these years, except by my word. • Nehemiah—Neh 13:25 So I contended with them…and made them swear by God • Ezra—Ezra 10:5 Ezra…made… all Israel, take oath that they would do according to this proposal; so they took the oath.

14. I. Lawful Oaths (par 1-4) • (5) The Law of Moses required oaths (Num 5:19f; 1 Kings 8:31). Exo 22:11 an oath before the LORD shall be made by the two of them that he has not laid hands on his neighbor's property; and its owner shall accept it • (6) The prophets' predictions indicate their lawfulness (Isa. 45:23). Isa 65:16 And he who swears in the earth will swear by the God of truth; Because the former troubles are forgotten, And because they are hidden from My sight!

15. I. Lawful Oaths (par 1-4) • (7) Christ's example indicates their lawfulness. • Matt 26:63-64 the high priest said to Him, I adjure You by the living God, that You tell us whether You are the Christ, the Son of God. Jesus said to him, You have said it yourself • Adjure means to put someone under oath.

16. I. Lawful Oaths (par 1-4) • (8) Paul's example indicates their lawfulness. • Rom 1:9 For God…is my witness • 2 Cor 1:23 But I call God as witness to my soul • Acts 18:18 Paul…had his hair cut, for he was keeping a vow.

17. I. Lawful Oaths (par 1-4) • The "swear not at all" of Matt 5:33-37 is reiterated by James 5:12. • Whatever it means, it cannot (because of the eight reasons given) forbid all oaths. • But what do these words mean then?

18. I. Lawful Oaths (par 1-4) • Matt 5:33-37: Again, you have heard that the ancients were told, ' You shall not make false vows, but shall fulfill your vows to the lord.' "But I say to you, make no oath at all, either by heaven, for it is the throne of God, or by the earth, for it is the footstool of His feet, or by Jerusalem, for it is the city of the great king. "Nor shall you make an oath by your head, for you cannot make one hair white or black. "But let your statement be, 'Yes, yes' or 'No, no'; anything beyond these is of evil.

19. I. Lawful Oaths (par 1-4) • Two questions helpfully open up the meaning of Jesus. • (1) What Pharisaic perversion of God's law is Christ refuting? • (2) What, then, does Christ forbid by saying "swear not at all?"

20. What Pharisaic perversion is Christ refuting? • Hendriksen: It is evident…that the traditionalists had shifted the emphasis, so that the Pentateuch passages now began to read as follows: "You shall not swear by the name falsely" (Lev. 19:12). "When a man makes a vow to Jehovah or swears an oath...he shall not break his word" (Num. 30:2). "When you shall make a vow to Jehovah your God, you shall not be slack to pay it" (Deut. 23:21). Summary: "You shall not break your oath, but shall keep the oaths you have sworn to the Lord."

21. What Pharisaic perversion is Christ refuting? • Hendriksen: In other words, in the thinking of scribes and Pharisees and their forerunners an oath sworn "to the Lord" must be kept; on the contrary, an oath in connection with which the name of the Lord was not expressly mentioned was of lesser significance. One did not need to be quite so conscientious about keeping it.

22. What Pharisaic perversion is Christ refuting? • Hendriksen: And so in daily conversation oaths began to multiply "by heaven" and by the earth" and "by Jerusalem" and, according to Matt. 23:16, 18, even "by the temple" and "by the altar." In order to make an impression a person might utter such an oath, "talking big" and dispensing enormous promises. If the affirmation which he had made was a lie or if the promise was never even meant to be kept, that was not so bad, as long as he had not sworn "to the Lord."

23. What, then, does Christ forbid by saying "swear not at all?" • He condemns all vain or frivolous use of euphemisms for God's name in oaths • in order to secure credit for our words, • while at the same time avoiding the obligation of absolute honesty • by the use of euphemisms.

24. What, then, does Christ forbid by saying "swear not at all?" • Hendriksen: What we have here in Matt. 5:33-37 (cf. James 5:12) is the condemnation of the flippant, profane, uncalled for, and often hypocritical oath, used in order to make an impression and to spice daily conversation. Over against that evil Jesus commands simple truthfulness in thought, word, and deed.

25. What, then, does Christ forbid by saying "swear not at all?" • Jesus is not even talking about taking a legal or religious oath in the name of God. • He is speaking of informal oaths using euphemisms for the name of God. • Quakers and Anabaptists who refused to take oaths or vows in court on the basis of this passage were taking it out of context. • Those who draw similar conclusions from such passages are guilty of the same error.

26. Lessons: • (1) The danger and deception of superficial, literal interpretations of the Bible. • How much needless suffering by Quakers and others was caused by this plausible, but superficial understanding of the Scriptures!

27. Lessons: • (2) The necessity of serious, careful, expository, and doctrinal study of the whole Bible. • Context! • Systematic Theology! • Doctrinal Preaching! • Biblical Catechisms!

28. Lessons: • (3) Lawful oaths once taken must be fulfilled. • This practical issue addressed in the Westminster and Savoy is not included in the Baptist Confession • It (an oath) cannot oblige to sin; but in any thing not sinful, being taken, it binds to performance, although to a man's own hurt. Nor is it to be violated, although made to heretics, or infidels.

29. Lessons: • (3) Lawful oaths once taken must be fulfilled. • All oaths not obliging to actual sin are obligatory. • Oaths resulting in negative consequences are obligatory. • Psa 15:4 He swears to his own hurt and does not change

30. Lessons: • (3) Lawful oaths once taken must be fulfilled. • All oaths not obliging to actual sin are obligatory. • Oaths made to the ungodly are obligatory. • Eze 17:16 'As I live,' declares the Lord GOD, 'Surely in the country of the king who put him on the throne, whose oath he despised and whose covenant he broke, in Babylon he shall die ... …. Therefore … , "As I live, surely My oath which he despised and My covenant which he broke, I will inflict on his head.

31. Lessons: • (4) Some oaths are not obligatory. • It is never right for any reason under any circumstances to sin! • The giving of your word cannot make it right to break God's Word • Acts 23:12 When it was day, the Jews formed a conspiracy and bound themselves under an oath, saying that they would neither eat nor drink until they had killed Paul.

32. Lessons: • (4) Some oaths are not obligatory. • G. I. Williamson: "It was wrong to take such an oath in the first place. It would be doubly wrong to keep it after discovering that it was sinful." • A. A. Hodge: "The sin is in taking the oath to do the unlawful thing not in breaking it.“ • Can you give an example? • (5) We ought not to use the name of God or euphemisms for the name of God in vain. • For heaven’s sake …

33. II. Lawful Vows • (5) A vow, which is not to be made to any creature, but to God alone, is to be made and performed with all religious care and faithfulness; but popish monastical vows of perpetual single life, professed poverty, and regular obedience, are so far from being degrees of higher perfection, that they are superstitious and sinful snares, in which no Christian may entangle himself.

34. II. Lawful Vows • Par 5 summarizes par 5-7 of the Westminster. • These paragraphs dealt with vows in distinction from oaths. • No significant doctrinal differences appear to be at stake in the abbreviated treatment of the 1689.

35. II. Lawful Vows • What is the relation of oaths and vows? • 2 distinct word-groups refer to oaths and vows. • Num. 30:2 uses them similarly: If a man makes a vow to the LORD, or takes an oath to bind himself with a binding obligation… • Both are solemn, sworn promises & divinely sanctioned.

36. II. Lawful Vows • What is the diffference between oaths and vows? • Vows are solemn promises made to the Lord. • Oaths are solemn promises made before the Lord, but to men. • The purpose of the oath is confirmation to men. • The purpose of the vow is commitment to God.

37. II. Lawful Vows • Though it is left out of the 1689, a sentence in the last paragraph of the Westminster is full of good sense and consistent with the 1689. • No man may vow to do anything forbidden in the Word of God, or what would hinder any duty therein commanded, or which is not in his own power, and for the performance whereof he hath no promise of ability from God. • We ought to be very careful about rashly making vows to God for what He has not promised!