James 5:12 “Above all, my brothers, do not swear, not by heaven or earth or by any…”

James 5:12

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.

Berean Standard Bible

Other translations

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.

World English Bible

But above all things, my brothers, don’t swear—not by heaven, or by the earth, or by any other oath; but let your “yes” be “yes”, and your “no”, “no”, so that you don’t fall into hypocrisy.

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.

Geneva Bible 1599

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.

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.

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.

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.

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Cross references

“above”

1 Peter 4:8 3 John 1:2

1 Peter 4:8 · BSB

Above all, love one another deeply, because love covers over a multitude of sins.

3 John 1:2 · BSB

Beloved, I pray that in every way you may prosper and enjoy good health, as your soul also prospers.

“swear not”

Matthew 5:33–37 Matthew 23:16–22

Matthew 5:33–37 · BSB

Again, you have heard that it was said to the ancients, ‘Do not break your oath, but fulfill your vows to the Lord.’

Matthew 23:16–22 · BSB

Woe to you, blind guides! You say, ‘If anyone swears by the temple, it means nothing; but if anyone swears by the gold of the temple, he is bound by his oath.’

“but”

2 Corinthians 1:17–20

2 Corinthians 1:17–20 · BSB

When I planned this, did I do it carelessly? Or do I make my plans by human standards, so as to say “Yes, yes” and also “No, no”?

“lest”

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

James 3:1 · BSB

Not many of you should become teachers, my brothers, because you know that we who teach will be judged more strictly.

James 3:2 · BSB

We all stumble in many ways. If anyone is never at fault in what he says, he is a perfect man, able to control his whole body.

1 Corinthians 11:34 · BSB

If anyone is hungry, he should eat at home, so that when you come together it will not result in judgment. And when I come, I will give instructions about the remaining matters.

Cross references adapted from OpenBible.info (CC BY 4.0) and the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge.

In context

11See how blessed we consider those who have persevered. You have heard of Job’s perseverance and have seen the outcome from the Lord. The Lord is full of compassion and mercy.

13Is any one of you suffering? He should pray. Is anyone cheerful? He should sing praises.

Read James 5