The following excerpt is taken from What Every Christian Should Know About Satan. Order your copy in print, Kindle, or Audible versions here.

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In this post and others to follow, we’re going to consider several New Testament passages that depict Satan as the evil one.

Matthew 5:37 

“But let your ‘yes’ mean ‘yes,’ and your ‘no’ mean ‘no.’ Anything more than this is from the evil one.”

In this part of the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus addresses the issue of oath-taking, which plays a significant role in first-century Judaism. Jesus begins with an Old Testament reference: “Again, you have heard that it was said to our ancestors, You must not break your oath, but you must keep your oaths to the Lord” (Matt. 5:33; cf. Lev. 19:12; Num. 30:2; Deut. 23:21-23).

Then, Jesus follows with: “But I tell you, don’t take an oath at all: either by heaven, because it is God’s throne; or by the earth, because it is his footstool; or by Jerusalem, because it is the city of the great King. Do not swear by your head, because you cannot make a single hair white or black” (Matt. 5:34-36). 

Jesus does not forbid the taking of an oath in a court of law or a similar setting. In fact, he offers a response when the high priest puts him under oath (Matt. 26:63-64). But taking oaths has become so commonplace in Jesus’ day as to become meaningless. People have come to think that a lie between two individuals doesn’t concern God unless they invoke the divine name. In this case, they risk perjury for false statements, not to mention undermining God’s dignity.

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