The Third Commandment

Exodus 20:7

You shall not make wrongful use of the name of the Lord your God, for the Lord will not acquit anyone who misuses his name.

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Growing up, I would venture to guess that most of our parents taught us that swearing was not a polite thing. And if your parents or guardians taught you the Ten Commandments, I would bet that they also mentioned that "taking God's name in vain" was a violation of the Third Commandment. Boiling down the Third Commandment to something as simple as "don't swear," does not give full credit to the weight of this commandment. While taking the Lord's name in vain or using the name of God in a way that is not honorable is undesirable, it is not the only way we can break the Third Commandment. The Third Commandment, like all of the commandments, are part of a covenantal promise to live in a sacred relationship with God and those around us. 

However, as I said before, the Third Commandment goes beyond limiting how we say the name of the Lord. The Third Commandment also contains implications for how we use the name of God, which for some, maybe even more revealing than they would like. Invoking God’s name in a way that causes others to suffer or go off the right path is just as bad if not worse than taking the Lord’s name in vain. Why? Because the name of God represents our God who breathes life into creation, and not death, who loves us, and does not condemn us. When we misuse the name of God in ways that bring about harm to others, then the Third Commandment has been broken, not just in how we relate to God, but to one another as well. 

Sometimes we speak with intentions that we think are good but are misleading and can be hurtful, if not potentially deadly. While driving down to visit family in NJ, I spotted a few churches with signs out front. One church had a sign like ours that advertised virtual worship opportunities. The congregation next door had signs out front that touted how their doors were open and that folks from the neighboring church could come to their service in a tone that one could consider arrogant or self-centered. Christians and I'm speaking in an all-encompassing term, have a track record of using the name of God in ways that result in deep hurt and great pain. 

Of course, this problem isn't new. The Prophet Ezekiel speaks of similar issues plaguing the people of God. Listen to these words that come from the Prophet Ezekiel:

The word of the Lord came to me: Mortal, prophesy against the prophets of Israel who are prophesying; say to those who prophesy out of their own imagination: “Hear the word of the Lord!” Thus says the Lord God, Alas for the senseless prophets who follow their own spirit, and have seen nothing! Your prophets have been like jackals among ruins, O Israel. You have not gone up into the breaches, or repaired a wall for the house of Israel, so that it might stand in battle on the day of the Lord. They have envisioned falsehood and lying divination; they say, “Says the Lord,” when the Lord has not sent them, and yet they wait for the fulfillment of their word! Have you not seen a false vision or uttered a lying divination, when you have said, “Says the Lord,” even though I did not speak? (Ezekiel 13:1-7)

The Prophet Ezekiel stands as a force that unmasks false prophets who use the name of God for their gain. These prophets and their prophecies are what Ezekiel would call shav, which in English we would call vain or empty. Their words mean nothing and benefit no one but themselves, and their misuse of God's name carries dire consequences. How have we used the name of God in our daily lives? Have we evoked the name of God in self-serving ways? Or have we lived out the Third Commandment by calling upon God in ways that reflect the goodness of God? We need to take responsibility for the language that we use, especially if we are using the name of the Lord. 

It would maybe be beneficial to think of the Third Commandment in terms of an oath. We make oaths to one another that appear in various forms. Though regardless of their type, we shouldn't break the promises we've made, especially if we are using someone's name. When we choose to follow God, we enter into a covenantal relationship, a relationship that asks something of us. And one of the things we told is that we must use the name of God faithfully. The oath, the promise, the commitment, whatever you want to call it, that we made God requires that we, to the best of our abilities, bear faithful witness to the name of God. 

Taking on such a responsibility and ownership of our language and the use of God's name will inevitably lead to uncomfortable moments. It is a skill, or should I say a spiritual practice, that we desperately need to improve. But after all that, the result of us taking on such a task will lead to something more than we could have possibly imagined. When we take the name of God seriously and inscribe it on our hearts, the way of peace, love, and fellowship becomes apparent. Using the name of God in a way that is honoring will empower us to grow, to speak truth to power, to love more fully, to act more justly and mercifully, and to check our pride in the context of God's more expansive plan for our lives. 

As we conclude our time with the Third Commandment, we see how these three commandments speak to how we relate ourselves to God. The First Commandment: You shall have no other gods before me, the Second Commandment: You shall not make for yourself graven images, and The Third Commandment: You shall not misuse the name of the Lord, these first few commandments speak to our hearts and ask how we've dedicated ourselves to God. These commandments, of course, address more than just our relationship with God. If we take these words to heart, they begin to transform us and change our very core. 

Our words should invoke the name of God in a way that builds others up. We cannot expect to fulfill this command if we use the name of God to put people in harm's way, prop up injustice, or put our self-interest above the well-being of others. There is still a myriad of folks who are like the people Ezekiel encountered, those who use God's name in ways that are vain and empty. So let us go and reclaim the name of God. Let us go and fill in the places that have become vain or empty with words that encapsulate the life filled promises of God. Let us use the name of God with joy and praise, knowing what good can happen if we trust the Lord. Amen.