Day 1175: The name of the Lord - Exodus 20 vs 7

7 “You shall not take the name of the Lord your God in vain, for the Lord will not hold him guiltless who takes his name in vain. Exodus 20:7 English Standard Version

Just one verse today, but a very important one!

Having firstly commanded the Jews to be faithful and to serve Him alone, the next commandment shows how that should be done. They were not to take God's name in vain! The traditional understanding is that men and women should not use God's name as a cloak to deceive and mislead others. Leviticus 19:12 says “Do not swear falsely by my name, and so profane the name of your God.” It comes alongside commands to 'not steal, lie or defraud' a brother. So vs 35-36 of that Chapter said: “‘Do not use dishonest standards when measuring length, weight or quantity. Use honest scales and honest weights . . . I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of Egypt.”

Jesus illustrated this misuse of God's name when His disciples were criticised for eating without ceremonially washing their hands! He said to the accusers: “Why do you break the command of God for the sake of your tradition? God said, 'Honour your father and mother', and 'Anyone who curses their father or mother is to be put to death.' But you say that if anyone declares that what might have been used to help their father or mother is 'devoted to God', they are not to honour their father or mother with it. So you nullify the word of God for the sake of your tradition. You hypocrites! Isaiah was right when he prophesied about you: 'These people honour me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me. They worship me in vain.'”

But the Hebrew word for 'vain' has other implications too. Their faithfulness towards God meant that all wicked idol associations were to be rejected. Leviticus 18:21 said: “Don't give any of your children to be sacrificed to Molek, for you must not profane the name of your God. I am the Lord.” They were to worship God only with the offerings He had ordained. Leviticus 22:2 says: “Tell Aaron and his sons to treat with respect the sacred offerings the Israelites consecrate to me, so they will not profane my holy name. I am the Lord.”

The apostle Paul later leveled this charge against the Jews of his day. In Romans 2:1 he says: “You have no excuse, you who pass judgment on someone else. For at whatever point you judge another, you are condemning yourself, because you who pass judgment do the same things”. In vs 5 he says: “Because of your stubbornness and unrepentant heart, you are storing up wrath against yourself for the day of God’s wrath, when His righteous judgment will be revealed.” God promised that He would “not hold him guiltless who takes His name in vain.”

Paul continued in vs 21-24 by saying: “You who teach others, do you not teach yourself? You who preach against stealing, do you steal? You who say that people should not commit adultery, do you commit adultery? You who abhor idols, do you rob temples? You who boast in the law, do you dishonour God by breaking the law? As it is written: “God’s name is blasphemed among the Gentiles because of you.”

To profess to be people who belong to God, but live lives that differ little from the world around us, is to take His name in an empty and meaningless way. And what Paul said of the Jews can be true of many who take the name of Jesus in vain. Jesus warned that “not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven.” (Matthew 7:21)

God has given Jesus the name that is above every name in heaven and on earth. Oh may we take care that we don't bring shame on His name, but so live that many will come to know that the name of the Lord is a fortified tower; and that righteous men and women may run to it, and be safe. (Proverbs 18:10)