James 5:12

King James Version

But above all things, my brethren, swear not, neither by heaven, neither by the earth, neither by any other oath: but let your yea be yea; and your nay, nay; lest ye fall into condemnation.

Parallel Translations

Easy-to-Read Version
My brothers and sisters, it is very important that you not use an oath when you make a promise. Don't use the name of heaven, earth, or anything else to prove what you say. When you mean yes, say only "yes." When you mean no, say only "no." Do this so that you will not be judged guilty.

Revised Standard Version
But above all, my brethren, do not swear, either by heaven or by earth or with any other oath, but let your yes be yes and your no be no, that you may not fall under condemnation.

Tyndale New Testament (1525)
But above all thynges my brethre sweare not nether by heven nether by erth nether by eny other othe. Let youre ye be ye and youre maye naye: lest ye faule into ypocrecy.

Hebrew Names Version
But above all things, my brothers, don't swear, neither by heaven, nor by the eretz, nor by any other oath; but let your yes be yes, and your no, no; so that you don't fall into hypocrisy.

New American Standard Bible
But above all, my brothers and sisters, do not swear, either by heaven or by earth or with any other oath; but your yes is to be yes, and your no, no, so that you do not fall under judgment.

New Century Version
My brothers and sisters, above all, do not use an oath when you make a promise. Don't use the name of heaven, earth, or anything else to prove what you say. When you mean yes, say only yes, and when you mean no, say only no so you will not be judged guilty.

Update Bible Version
But above all things, my brothers, don't swear, neither by the heaven, nor by the earth, nor by any other oath: but let your yes be yes, and your no, no; that you may not fall under judgment.

Webster's Bible Translation
But above all things, my brethren, swear not, neither by heaven, neither by the earth, neither by any other oath: but let your yea, be yea: and [your] nay, nay; lest ye fall into condemnation.

English Standard Version
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.

World English Bible
But above all things, my brothers, don't swear, neither by heaven, nor by the earth, nor by any other oath; but let your yes be yes, and your no, no; so that you don't fall into hypocrisy.

Wesley's New Testament (1755)
But above all things, my brethren, swear not, neither by heaven, nor by the earth, nor by any other oath; but let your yea be yea, and your nay nay, lest ye fall into condemnation.

Weymouth's New Testament
But above all things, my brethren, do not swear, either by Heaven or by the earth, or with any other oath. Let your `yes' be simply `yes,' and your `no' be simply `no;' that you may not come under condemnation.

Wycliffe Bible (1395)
Bifor alle thingis, my britheren, nyle ye swere, nether bi heuene, nether bi erthe, nethir bi what euere other ooth. But be youre word Yhe, yhe, Nay, nay, that ye fallen not vndir doom.

English Revised Version
But above all things, my brethren, swear not, neither by the heaven, nor by the earth, nor by any other oath: but let your yea be yea, and your nay, nay; that ye fall not under judgment.

Berean Standard Bible
Above all, my brothers, do not swear, not by heaven or earth or by any other oath. Simply let your "Yes" be yes, and your "No," no, so that you will not fall under judgment.

Contemporary English Version
My friends, above all else, don't take an oath. You must not swear by heaven or by earth or by anything else. "Yes" or "No" is all you need to say. If you say anything more, you will be condemned.

Amplified Bible
But above all, my fellow believers, do not swear, either by heaven or by earth or with any other oath; but let your yes be [a truthful] yes, and your no be [a truthful] no, so that you may not fall under judgment.

American Standard Version
But above all things, my brethren, swear not, neither by the heaven, nor by the earth, nor by any other oath: but let your yea be yea, and your nay, nay; that ye fall not under judgment.

Bible in Basic English
But most of all, my brothers, do not take oaths, not by the heaven, or by the earth, or by any other thing: but let your Yes be Yes, and your No be No: so that you may not be judged.

Complete Jewish Bible
Above all, brothers, stop swearing oaths — not "By heaven," not "By the earth," and not by any other formula; rather, let your "Yes" be simply "Yes" and your "No" simply "No," so that you won't fall under condemnation.

Darby Translation
But before all things, my brethren, swear not, neither by heaven, nor by the earth, nor by any other oath; but let your yea be yea, and your nay, nay, that ye do not fall under judgment.

International Standard Version
Above all, brothers, do not swear oaths by heaven, by earth, or by any other object.oath">[fn] Instead, let your "Yes" mean yes and your "No" mean no, lest you fall under condemnation.Matthew 5:34;">[xr]

Etheridge Translation
But before every thing, my brethren, swear not; by heaven nor by earth, nor with any other oath; but let your word be Yes, yes, and No, no, that you be not bound under condemnation.

Murdock Translation
But above all things, my brethren, swear ye not; neither by heaven, nor by the earth, nor by any other oath: but let your language be yes, yes, and no, no, lest ye become obnoxious to judgment.

King James Version (1611)
But aboue all things, my brethren, sweare not, neither by heauen, neither by the earth, neither by any other othe: but let your yea, be yea, and your nay, nay: lest yee fall into condemnation.

New Living Translation
But most of all, my brothers and sisters, never take an oath, by heaven or earth or anything else. Just say a simple yes or no, so that you will not sin and be condemned.

New Life Bible
My Christian brothers, do not swear. Do not use heaven or earth or anything else to swear by. If you mean yes, say yes. If you mean no, say no. You will be guilty for saying anything more.

New Revised Standard
Above all, my beloved, 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.

Geneva Bible (1587)
But before all thinges, my brethren, sweare not, neither by heauen, nor by earth, nor by any other othe: but let your yea, be yea, and your nay, nay, lest ye fall into condemnation.

George Lamsa Translation
But above all things, my brethren, do not swear, neither by heaven, neither by the earth, neither by any other oath: but let your words be yes, yes, and no, no; lest you fall under condemnation.

J.B. Rotherham Emphasized Bible
But, before all things, my brethren, do not swear, - either by heaven, or by the earth, or by any other oath; but let your Yea be yea, and your Nay nay, - lest, under judgment, ye fall.

Douay-Rheims Bible
But above all things, my brethren, swear not, neither by heaven, nor by the earth, nor by any other oath. But let your speech be: Yea, Yea: No, No: that you fall not under judgment.

Bishop's Bible (1568)
But aboue all thynges my brethren, sweare not, neither by heauen, neither by earth, neither any other othe: Let your yea, be yea, and your nay nay, lest you fall into condempnation.

Good News Translation
Above all, my friends, do not use an oath when you make a promise. Do not swear by heaven or by earth or by anything else. Say only "Yes" when you mean yes, and "No" when you mean no, and then you will not come under God's judgment.

Christian Standard Bible®
Above all, my brothers and sisters, do not swear, either by heaven or by earth or with any other oath. But let your “yes” mean “yes,” and your “no” mean “no,” so that you won’t fall under judgment.

Lexham English Bible
Now 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, no, in order that you may not fall under judgment.

Literal Translation
But before all things, my brothers, do not swear, neither by the heaven, nor by the earth, nor any other oath. But let your yes be yes, and the no, no, that you may not fall under judgment.

Young's Literal Translation
And before all things, my brethren, do not swear, neither by the heaven, neither by the earth, neither by any other oath, and let your Yes be Yes, and the No, No; that under judgment ye may not fall.

Miles Coverdale Bible (1535)
But aboue all thinges my brethre, sweare not, nether by heaue, nether by earth, nether by eny other othe. Let youre ye be ye, and yor naye naye: lest ye faule in to ypocricy.

Mace New Testament (1729)
Above all things, my brethren, don't swear, neither by the heaven, nor by the earth, nor use any other oath; but let your affirmation, or negation, be sincere, lest you fall under condemnation.

THE MESSAGE
And since you know that he cares, let your language show it. Don't add words like "I swear to God" to your own words. Don't show your impatience by concocting oaths to hurry up God. Just say yes or no. Just say what is true. That way, your language can't be used against you.

New English Translation
And above all, my brothers and sisters, 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 into judgment.

New King James Version
But above all, my brethren, do not swear, either by heaven or by earth or with any other oath. But let your "Yes," be "Yes," and your "No," "No," lest you fall into judgment. [fn]

Simplified Cowboy Version
And one last thing, pards. Don't be swearing you'll do this or that. Just let your yes mean yes and your no mean no.

New American Standard Bible (1995)
But above all, my brethren, do not swear, either by heaven or by earth or with any other oath; but your yes is to be yes, and your no, no, so that you may not fall under judgment.

Contextual Overview

¹² But above all things, my brethren, swear not, neither by heaven, neither by the earth, neither by any other oath: but let your yea be yea; and your nay, nay; lest ye fall into condemnation. ¹³ Is any among you afflicted? let him pray. Is any merry? let him sing psalms. ¹⁴ Is any sick among you? let him call for the elders of the church; and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord: ¹⁵ And the prayer of faith shall save the sick, and the Lord shall raise him up; and if he have committed sins, they shall be forgiven him. ¹⁶ Confess your faults one to another, and pray one for another, that ye may be healed. The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much. ¹⁷ Elias was a man subject to like passions as we are, and he prayed earnestly that it might not rain: and it rained not on the earth by the space of three years and six months. ¹⁸ And he prayed again, and the heaven gave rain, and the earth brought forth her fruit. ¹⁹ Brethren, if any of you do err from the truth, and one convert him; ²⁰ Let him know, that he which converteth the sinner from the error of his way shall save a soul from death, and shall hide a multitude of sins.

Bible Verse Review
  from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge

above: 1 Peter 4:8, 3 John 1:2

swear not: Matthew 5:33-37, Matthew 23:16-22

but: 2 Corinthians 1:17-20

lest: James 3:1, James 3:2, 1 Corinthians 11:34

Reciprocal: Genesis 42:15 - By the life Exodus 20:7 - take Leviticus 19:12 - ye shall Deuteronomy 5:11 - General Zechariah 5:3 - sweareth Malachi 3:5 - against those Matthew 5:34 - Swear Matthew 5:37 - let 1 Corinthians 11:29 - damnation

Cross-References

Luke 3:37
Which was the son of Mathusala, which was the son of Enoch, which was the son of Jared, which was the son of Maleleel, which was the son of Cainan,

Gill's Notes on the Bible

But above all things, my brethren, swear not,.... As impatience should not show itself in secret sighs, groans, murmurings, and repinings, so more especially it should not break forth in rash oaths, or in profane swearing; for of such sort of swearing, and of such oaths, is the apostle to be understood; otherwise an oath is very lawful, when taken in the fear and name of God, and made by the living God, and is used for the confirmation of anything of moment, and in order to put an end to strife; God himself, and the Lord Jesus Christ, and angels, and good men, are in Scripture sometimes represented as swearing: and that the apostle is so to be understood, appears from the form of swearing prohibited,

neither by the heaven, neither by the earth, neither by any other oath; of the like kind; such as are forbidden, and cautioned, and reasoned against by our Lord, in Matthew 5:34 to which the apostle manifestly refers; Matthew 5:34- :,

Matthew 5:34- :,

Matthew 5:34- :.

But let your yea be yea, and your nay, nay; that is, whenever there is an occasion for affirming, or denying anything, let it be done nakedly, simply, and absolutely, without any form of oath annexed to it; for whatever addition of that kind is made comes from evil, and tends to it, and is evil:

lest ye fall into condemnation; by the Lord; for either false, or rash, or profane swearing; for he will not suffer it to go unpunished; see Exodus 20:7. Some copies read, "lest ye fall into hypocrisy"; or dissimulation, and get into a habit and custom of lying and deceiving, as common swearers do; and so reads the Arabic version.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

But above all things - That is be especially careful on this point; whatever else is done, let not this be. The manner in which James speaks of the practice referred to here, shows that he regarded it as a sin of a very heinous nature; one that was by all means to be avoided by those whom he addressed. The habit of swearing by various things was a very common one among the Jews, and it was important to guard those who from among them had been converted to Christianity on that subject.

Swear not - See this command illustrated in the notes at Matthew 5:33-34. Nearly the same things are mentioned here, as objects by which they were accustomed to swear, which are referred to by the Saviour.

But let our yea be yea - Let there be a simple affirmation, unaccompanied by any oath or appeal to God or to any of his works. A man who makes that his common method of speech is the man who will be believed. See the notes at Matthew 5:37.

Lest you fall into condemnation - That is, for profaning the name of God. “The Lord will not hold him guiltless that taketh his name in vain,” Exodus 20:7.

Clarke's Notes on the Bible

Verse 12. Above all things - swear not — What relation this exhortation can have to the subject in question, I confess I cannot see. It may not have been designed to stand in any connection, but to be a separate piece of advice, as in the several cases which immediately follow. That the Jews were notoriously guilty of common swearing is allowed on all hands; and that swearing by heaven, earth, Jerusalem, the temple, the altar, different parts of the body, was not considered by them as binding oaths, has been sufficiently proved. Rabbi Akiba taught that "a man might swear with his lips, and annul it in his heart; and then the oath was not binding." Matthew 5:33, c., where the subject is considered in great detail.

Let your yea be yea, c.] Do not pretend to say yea with your lips, and annul it in your heart let the yea or the nay which you express be bona fide such. Do not imagine that any mental reservation can cancel any such expressions of obligation in the sight of God.

Lest ye fall into condemnation. — ιναμηυποκρισινπεσητε. Lest ye fall under judgment. Several MSS. join υπο and κρισιν together, υποκρισιν, and prefix εις, into, which makes a widely different reading: Lest ye fall into hypocrisy. Now, as it is a fact, that the Jews did teach that there might be mental reservation, that would annul the oath, how solemnly soever it was taken the object of St. James, if the last reading be genuine, and it is supported by a great number of excellent MSS., some versions, and some of the most eminent of the fathers, was to guard against that hypocritical method of taking an oath, which is subversive of all moral feeling, and must make conscience itself callous.