Most people know the first part of the
sentence of the aforesaid commandment. But the second half is also something
that highly merits reckoning: “For the LORD will not absolve anyone who takes
His name in vain.” The sages teach that in regard to all of the other transgressions
in the Torah, only the sinner is punished, whereas here, he, his family and the entire world suffers the consequences. Perhaps
we should be a little shaken because the Talmud states that the earth itself
trembled upon hearing God’s warning. “Because
of swearing the land mourns.” (Jeremiah
23:10)
In addition, the Zohar teaches that God created the world with a letter from
His name, thus when using God’s name in vain, the entire world is affected. (Rabbi Aaron Raskin)
“Upholding an oath means upholding the world. If one man would not be believed
by another man under oath, the world could not be sustained.” (Teshuva MeAhava Part
I:26)
How many times have you made a promise to
God or to others in God’s name, and not kept it? Once that plane landed safely,
your oath to be nicer to your mother vanished somewhere between the turbulence
and the baggage carousel. On Yom Kippur you swore to the Almighty you’d do
certain things better and then didn’t. That’s calling upon God’s name in vain. Have
you perjured yourself in traffic court or on other occasions while you swore
with your hand on the Bible? Have you sworn to a friend that something was true
when it wasn’t? Have you said the wrong prayer on the wrong occasion calling
down God’s holy names for no reason at all? You may think it’s no big deal, but
He does. The Eighth Commandment, “Thou shalt not steal,” and the Third, taking
God’s name in vain, are partners in crime--for in the end, every thief will
resort to a false oath to deny his deed.
(Chabad)
A person will also swear something is true or legit in order to steal from
another.
Maimonides enumerates four oaths we must
never take: Don’t swear on something that is obviously not true, i.e. this car is an airplane; don’t swear on something
that is not even disputed to begin with, i.e. this car is a car; don’t swear that
you are NOT going to do a commandment in the Torah, i.e., “Rabbi I just want be
honest, I swear to God I’m never going to keep kosher”; don’t swear on
something that is impossible to do, “I swear I’ll stay awake for 10 days straight
if you forgive me.”
The Third Commandment hallows speech, a
gift given just to man not animals (Rabbi
Elie Munk). In addition G-d created the world through words, we
must value the holiness of the vessel that is our mouth. Guard your tongue.
Think before you speak. You will find it helps in all aspects of your life.
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