Matthew now returns to his exposition of the Ten Commandments. The words about swearing deal with the commandment in the Decalogue concerning false witness, following those concerning murder and adultery.
Again (first used in 4.7, 8) translates an adverb which is used when a speaker takes up a formula previously used and continues. In Die Bibel im heutigen Deutsch it is left implicit, where the first sentence of verse 33 is “You know that our ancestors were told….” Good News Translation has translated this as “also.” Barclay has tried to show the meaning with “To take another example….”
Have heard (so most English translations) renders an aorist tense in Greek, which may be rendered “heard.” New English Bible and Jerusalem Bible render “have learned,” and New American Bible has “heard the commandment imposed on….” As noted above, Die Bibel im heutigen Deutsch has “You know….” It is important that the translation imply that the hearers are familiar with the command, rather than that it is merely hearsay to them, as may be suggested to some by the use of the verb “to hear.” Translators should refer to verse 21 for have heard. Here, this can be “Another thing you know God said to your ancestors is that…” or “Another thing people have told you God said to the men of long ago….”
To the men of old is also found in verse 21, but nowhere else in the Sermon on the Mount.
As in verses 21 and 27, You shall not is a formula for a command and should not be translated as a simple future.
Neither the negative command (shall not swear falsely) nor the positive command (shall perform to the Lord what you have sworn) is a direct quotation from any Old Testament passage. The two commands constitute a summary of Leviticus 19.12; Exodus 20.7; Deuteronomy 5.11; Numbers 30.3; and Deuteronomy 23.22.
Swear falsely translates a Greek verb which may mean either “break an oath” or “commit perjury.” This is its only occurrence in the New Testament, and both meanings are possible for the context. A related noun form is used in 1 Timothy 1.10 (Good News Translation “those who … give false testimony”). Translations are divided rather sharply on the meaning. Good News Translation, New English Bible, New Jerusalem Bible have “break promise (or, oath)”; while others go in the direction of “to perjure” (for example, Moffatt, Phillips “forswear”; New American Bible “take a false oath”; Revised Standard Version, An American Translation, Bibel im heutigen Deutsch, 1st edition “swear falsely”). Anchor Bible has “make vows rashly.” As one may expect, New Testament scholars are also divided on their interpretation of this verb, though several commentators note that the meaning “break an oath” goes better with the last clause of the verse.
Translators who choose the first interpretation can have phrases such as “Do not fail to do what you promised (before God),” “Always do what you promised (before God),” or “Don’t promise (or, swear) to do something when in fact you do not intend to do it.” Those who choose the second interpretation will have translations such as “Don’t swear (by God) something is true when you know it isn’t.” But the first interpretation does seem to fit the context of the passage better, particularly since perform to the Lord does imply a promise. Of course, languages that have a word that covers both meanings, as the Greek does, will do best to use that word. See notes below for a discussion of “swear.”
What you have sworn (Good News Translation “what you have vowed”) alters the Greek noun phrase “your vows” to a relative clause with a verb describing the action.
The meaning of the clause shall perform to the Lord what you have sworn is seen in Good News Translation. You are commanded “to do the things you vowed to the Lord you would do.”
Some languages have difficulty with the distinctions between “promise,” “vow,” “swear,” and “oath.” To promise simply means to affirm that you will do something. However, to vow is to make a sacred promise in front of witnesses. Usually the person making the vow will invoke a deity’s punishment if he fails to do what he is saying. To make an oath is very similar to vowing. It is to make a pledge to do something while calling upon God or a sacred object as a witness. In swearing, one makes a solemn declaration stating something is true, and invokes a deity or sacred object to confirm that what is said is in fact true.
As can be seen, these terms are similar and in fact overlap a great deal in actual usage. Most languages have a word for “promise,” so that word poses no problem to translators. A problem sometimes arises with the other words when translators are reluctant to use the traditional words that would be the closest natural equivalents. In their cultures oaths or vows are made before idols or involve other ceremonies that the translators consider inappropriate to include in Christian Scriptures. But these translators should realize that formally these customs in their cultures are similar to what the Jews did, and the main difference is in the deity or spirit power involved.
If there are no close expressions in the language, translators can find various other solutions. For example, “vow” can often be translated “make a promise using God’s name,” and “oath” can be handled in the same way. “Swear” can be “to declare as true,” or “declare before God that something is true,” or “declare in God’s name (or, by God) something is true.” However, translators should always look to the context to see what is most appropriate in each case.
Quoted with permission from Newman, Barclay M. and Stine, Philip C. A Handbook on the Gospel of Matthew. (UBS Handbook Series). New York: UBS, 1988. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .