Thou Shalt Not Take the Name of Jehovah Thy God in Vain

 

Deuteronomy 5:11 “Thou shalt not take the name of Jehovah thy God in vain: for Jehovah will not hold him guiltless that taketh his name in vain.”

 

These words are the third commandment among the Ten Commandments. They command us not to take the name of God in vain; that is, they forbid acting outwardly as though one were a person of God, while speaking and acting according to one’s own thoughts and deeds rather than according to the word of God.

 

Romans 2:23-24 “23thou who gloriest in the law, through thy transgression of the law dishonorest thou God? 24For the name of God is blasphemed among the Gentiles because of you, even as it is written.”

 

Nevertheless, this third commandment seems to be misunderstood by some people. Even though the word of God tells us to do all things, whether in word or in deed, in the name of the Lord Jesus (Col. 3:17), some rather quote this third commandment in order to forbid speaking in the name of Jesus. And if they fall into an even more serious error, some even say that the reason the name Jehovah is not written in the New Testament is because of this third commandment. But the reason the name Jehovah is not written in the New Testament is that the name of Jesus is the name of God.

 

Therefore, today I would like to consider, through the words written in Scripture, what the third commandment above is truly telling us.

 

First, we need to understand the meaning of “vain.” In ordinary usage, the word may refer to something empty, worthless, or foolish. But through the Bible, we can know that the meaning Scripture teaches is this: to act vainly is to speak or act proudly in a way that departs from the word of God. To give a few examples:

 

Hebrews 12:15-16 “15looking carefully lest there be any man that falleth short of the grace of God... 16lest there be any fornicator, or profane person, as Esau, who for one mess of meat sold his own birthright.”

 

As we can see in this passage, it is vain, or profane, when a person treats the grace of God lightly for the sake of his own flesh. Also:

 

1 Samuel 13:8-14 “8And he tarried seven days, according to the set time that Samuel had appointed: but Samuel came not to Gilgal; and the people were scattered from him. 9And Saul said, Bring hither the burnt-offering to me, and the peace-offerings. And he offered the burnt-offering. 10And it came to pass that, as soon as he had made an end of offering the burnt-offering, behold, Samuel came; and Saul went out to meet him, that he might salute him. 11And Samuel said, What hast thou done? And Saul said, Because I saw that the people were scattered from me, and that thou camest not within the days appointed, and that the Philistines assembled themselves together at Michmash; 12therefore said I, Now will the Philistines come down upon me to Gilgal, and I have not entreated the favor of Jehovah: I forced myself therefore, and offered the burnt-offering. 13And Samuel said to Saul, Thou hast done foolishly; thou hast not kept the commandment of Jehovah thy God, which he commanded thee: for now would Jehovah have established thy kingdom upon Israel for ever. 14But now thy kingdom shall not continue: Jehovah hath sought him a man after his own heart, and Jehovah hath appointed him to be prince over his people, because thou hast not kept that which Jehovah commanded thee.”

 

King Saul, the first king of Israel, could not wait because of fear, and offered the burnt offering which only the priest was permitted to offer. Even if this act, as Saul excused himself, was something he felt forced to do in order to seek the favor of God, it was still a failure to keep God’s commandment. Therefore, it became an act done foolishly, or vainly. Let us consider one more example:

 

Psalm 106:32-33 “32They angered him also at the waters of Meribah, So that it went ill with Moses for their sakes; 33Because they were rebellious against his spirit, And he spake unadvisedly with his lips.”

 

Likewise, when the children of Israel again complained because there was no water to drink, Moses failed to restrain his own emotions. Instead of following the word of God, who had commanded him to speak to the rock and bring forth water, Moses struck the rock twice and brought forth water. In doing so, before the eyes of the children of Israel, he revealed his own anger and failed to display the holiness of God. Because of this, Moses and Aaron were not allowed to enter the land of Canaan (Num. 20:1-13).

 

As we have seen so far, the Bible defines acting vainly as departing from the word of God through one’s own words and actions. Therefore, even if someone is a “prophet,” if he speaks presumptuously in the name of God a word which God did not command him to speak, he must be put to death.

 

Deuteronomy 18:20 “But the prophet, that shall speak a word presumptuously in my name, which I have not commanded him to speak, or that shall speak in the name of other gods, that same prophet shall die.”

 

This is because the third commandment defines taking the name of God in vain as “sin.” Now, let us consider a few cases where prophets delivered, in the name of God, words that God had not commanded them to speak.

 

1 Kings 22:10-14 “10Now the king of Israel and Jehoshaphat the king of Judah were sitting each on his throne, arrayed in their robes, in an open place at the entrance of the gate of Samaria; and all the prophets were prophesying before them. 11And Zedekiah the son of Chenaanah made him horns of iron, and said, Thus saith Jehovah, With these shalt thou push the Syrians, until they be consumed. 12And all the prophets prophesied so, saying, Go up to Ramoth-gilead, and prosper; for Jehovah will deliver it into the hand of the king. 13And the messenger that went to call Micaiah spake unto him, saying, Behold now, the words of the prophets declare good unto the king with one mouth: let thy word, I pray thee, be like the word of one of them, and speak thou good. 14And Micaiah said, As Jehovah liveth, what Jehovah saith unto me, that will I speak.”

 

Not just one or two prophets, but many prophets, about four hundred of them (1 Kings 22:6), followed the word of Zedekiah, who claimed to speak the word of God, and with one mouth prophesied victory to the kings in the war against Syria. But all of it was false. Only the word spoken by the prophet Micaiah was the true word of God. Therefore, in the end, King Ahab and King Jehoshaphat were defeated in the war against Syria, and King Ahab died in that war according to the word of God that Micaiah had spoken.

 

Thus, what the many prophets spoke as though it were the word of God was not the true word of God, but “falsehood.” That is, because they spoke “vainly,” the battle ended in defeat, unlike what they had said. The third commandment forbids prophets from speaking falsehood as though it were the word of God, and defines this as sin. Therefore, God will cause such false prophets who violate the third commandment to stumble and fall.

 

Jeremiah 6:12-15 “12And their houses shall be turned unto others, their fields and their wives together; for I will stretch out my hand upon the inhabitants of the land, saith Jehovah. 13For from the least of them even unto the greatest of them every one is given to covetousness; and from the prophet even unto the priest every one dealeth falsely. 14They have healed also the hurt of my people slightly, saying, Peace, peace; when there is no peace. 15Were they ashamed when they had committed abomination? nay, they were not at all ashamed, neither could they blush: therefore they shall fall among them that fall; at the time that I visit them they shall be cast down, saith Jehovah.”

 

The prophet Hananiah also opposed the prophet Jeremiah in the house of Jehovah before the priests and all the people, speaking words God had not commanded as though they were God’s word, and in the end he died (Jer. 28:1-17). Hananiah also violated the third commandment, and therefore the word of Deuteronomy 18:20 was fulfilled in him. Proverbs also defines false prophets like Hananiah as vain, proud, and arrogant persons.

 

Proverbs 21:24 “The proud and haughty man, scoffer is his name; He worketh in the arrogance of pride.”

 

On the other hand, please read the following passage and discern who is acting vainly.

 

Acts 4:12-20 “12And in none other is there salvation: for neither is there any other name under heaven, that is given among men, wherein we must be saved.... 17But that it spread no further among the people, let us threaten them, that they speak henceforth to no man in this name. 18And they called them, and charged them not to speak at all nor teach in the name of Jesus. 19But Peter and John answered and said unto them, Whether it is right in the sight of God to hearken unto you rather than unto God, judge ye: 20for we cannot but speak the things which we saw and heard.”

 

Those who told the disciples of Jesus, “Do not speak or teach in the name of Jesus,” were none other than the high priest and the rulers of the people at that time (Acts 4:5-7).

 

Acts 5:27-29 “27And when they had brought them, they set them before the council. And the high priest asked them, 28saying, We strictly charged you not to teach in this name: and behold, ye have filled Jerusalem with your teaching, and intend to bring this man’s blood upon us. 29But Peter and the apostles answered and said, We must obey God rather than men.”

 

Earlier, through Scripture, we saw that “acting as though one were a person of God while not obeying the word of God” is what it means to “take the name of God in vain.” If we take those words as a mirror and reflect on this event, we can know that the high priest, who said, “Do not speak or teach in the name of Jesus,” was actually the one violating the third commandment. In other words, it was not the disciples of Jesus, but the high priest who was acting vainly.

 

The disciples of Jesus, whom the high priest threatened, were rather obeying the word of God. Therefore, they answered the high priest as follows:

 

“Whether it is right in the sight of God to hearken unto you rather than unto God, judge ye,” and, “We must obey God rather than men.”

 

Amen. That is right. Speaking and teaching in the name of Jesus is not vain; it is obedience to the word of God. Since Jesus is Lord not only of the Jews, but also of the Greeks—that is, because He is Lord of all—now all people must call upon the name of “Jesus,” who is our Lord.

 

Romans 10:12-13 “12For there is no distinction between Jew and Greek: for the same Lord is Lord of all, and is rich unto all that call upon him: 13for, Whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.”

 

According to this word, in the last days, whoever they may be, those who call upon the name of Jesus will be saved. This is because they are the ones who obey the word of God. Therefore, from now on, the rest of our lives must be lived as lives that keep the commandments of God — lives in which we humble ourselves and exalt the name of “Jesus,” doing everything, whether in word or in deed, in the name of Jesus.

 

John 14:14-15 “14If ye shall ask anything in my name, that will I do. 15If ye love me, ye will keep my commandments.”

 

John 16:23-24 “23And in that day ye shall ask me no question. Verily, verily, I say unto you, If ye shall ask anything of the Father, he will give it you in my name. 24Hitherto have ye asked nothing in my name: ask, and ye shall receive, that your joy may be made full.”

 

Colossians 3:17 “And whatsoever ye do, in word or in deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.”

 

Amen.