You shall not invoke the name of the LORD, your God, in vain. For the LORD will not leave unpunished anyone who invokes his name in vain.
I offer the following commentary for your thoughtful consideration. I am not selling anything. I am not buying anything. I am not trying to lead anybody astray from their current beliefs.
Scott Hahn is a theologian who now lives in Ohio.
He proposed that whenever we see the word "...name..." in the Bible we should consider the possibility that it could be read as "...family..." or "...tribe..." and see if it gives us useful context.
He also suggests that "using the name" is analogous to signing binding contracts or declaring war because you are not just using a word, you are committing the entire "tribe" to that action.
Using his suggestion, the Second Commandment morphs from "Don't use the word 'God' when cussing" to something like "Immerse yourself in God's wisdom so you don't foolishly expose God's tribe to annihilation."
The reason I think this perspective is worth pondering is that God's name is probably unpronounceable by humans. The words we have for God's name are nicknames or titles or riddles that allude to who He is (I AM WHO AM) so the commandment seems redundant. How can we use somebody's name improperly when we cannot say it or spell it?
I think that Christians already understand this at some level. The Extreme Progressives have been frantically attempting to provoke violence from the Christians and so far we have not taken the bait.
The Hebrew word for 'name' is shem (שם). It is definitely more than an appellation. It connotes authority. So taking His name in vain is bringing His name / character / reputation / authority to worthlessness. Scott Hahn expands well on this idea. To swear in His name is to invoke the authority of YHVH Himself. That should not be done lightly. Or rather, that should not be done at all (Matthew 5:34-37).
ReplyDeleteSo then, would this insinuate that King Saul broke the 2nd when he ordered the execution of the priests in his campaign to capture David?
ReplyDeleteThat determination is above my pay-grade.
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