Matot’s Ten Commandments’ Moment

The prohibition from “using the Lord’s name in vain” is the Decalogue Commandment featured in the Torah Portion Matot. Various Matot passages specifically address vows and oaths.

Oaths and vows are not only prevalent throughout the Hebrew Bible but have also been consequential.

Beyond theological concerns, oaths and vows are necessary for building societies. They enhance the nature of transactions.

In modernity, oral oaths and vows still occur. People witness them at both marriage ceremonies and with the swearing in of public officials. The bigger picture is that the Commandment, which addresses oaths and vows, has the potential to influences everything from commercial, political, social, and familial matters.

Affirmations’ importance in scripture is immense. Their impact led to both tragedy-Jephthah’s ill-fated oath concerning his daughter- and to triumph- King David’s vow to make Solomon his successor.

Spoken words, in present time, however, are not as consequential as in the past. Writings are often favored versus the spoken word. With writing instruments and surfaces are readily available in many forms- paper or digital- the necessity for oral agreements has dissipated. The oral word’s gravity has, to some degree, diminished.

Ten Commandments’ moment of this Portion Matot post is a passage explaining the expectations for both vows and oaths.

To start this discussion, a review of the commandment is indicated.

The Original Commandment

The Decalogue Commandment related to using the Lord’s name in vain is as follows: “You shall not bring up the name of the Lord, Your God, for a falsehood…” Exodus 20:7. [Note: The above-noted translation is from Friedman’s Commentary on the Torah. Other translations have the passage as “You shall not take the name of the Lord, your God, in vain…”]

God’s name, the Tetragrammaton, the Hebrew letters- yud, hay, vav, hay- have a meaning that is not entirely clear. It is believed that it is connected to the act of being. Thus, the word connotes action; causing things to be; making things happen.

Thus, it may have been believed in antiquity that evoking the Lord’s name arguably served as an action word to the vow or oath.

Another rationale may have been that the Deity’s involvement served to provide a guarantee on the deal. Impliedly, those with fealty towards the Deity would make an extra effort to ensure that either the vow or oath was fulfilled.

Certain Portion Matot passages expand upon the Commandment’s expectations concerning both oaths and vows.

Matot

Matot’s line elaborates upon oaths and vows by indicating that: “[a] man who will make a vow to the Lord or has sworn an oath to make a restriction on himself shall not desecrate his word. He shall do it according to everything that comes out of his mouth.” Numbers 30:3. [emphasis added]

Beyond the passage’s expectation of explicitly adhering to what was promised- either action or refrain from – there are two important aspects: the word and the voice. These two items are uniquely human with respect to communications.

The big picture is that humans’ communication skills elevated the species by means of abstraction.

The Abstractions: Word and Voice

Words and voices share something in common; they are abstractions.

Words are a complete abstraction. The word rock is not a rock. Rather, it is a widely known word in the English vocabulary; a word which can plant the vision of such an object into others’ minds.

Thus, with popularity, a particular language gains increasing power to plant ideas and concepts within other human’s minds. This concept was not lost in scripture.

The Tower of Babel story tells of an earth with one language and the same words. God’s realization from this reality was that “nothing that they’ll scheme to do will be precluded from them.” Genesis 11:6. In essence, universal words exert great power.

A voice is arguably a deriviative abstraction from words. A voice naturally produces . While a mouth can make a variety of sounds, it can produce words; abstract words that can represent both objects and actions. The power is that human language advanced far beyond the parroting of sound – onomatopoeia.

Thus, with word and voice, humans were capable of presenting matters in the abstraction. Thus, they were capable of performing or refraining from an abstractly described act.

Thus, words and voices are essentially a belief system. Belief systems allow for human beings to accomplish tremendous things. Belief systems provide humans a competitive advantage over other species.

This concept was addressed in the best-selling book, Sapiens.

Sapiens’ Explanation of the Value of Abstraction

In Sapiens, Yuval Harari impressed upon how belief systems impact Human Civilization. The human ability to abstractly think allows for humans to create increased opportunities.

One example Harari cites is money. He opines it as purely a mental revolution. “It involved the creation of a new inter-subjective reality that exists solely in people’s shared imagination.” Sapiens at P. 177.

Another example relating to oaths and vows is lending. One’s ability to obtain a loan is based upon one’s income. One’s income, at best, is an abstract concept. Income, for most working people, is not guaranteed. Their employment might end or they might suffer from a health condition preventing them from working can happen.

Thus, based upon speculation and assumption, money lending becomes a viable transaction. Another abstract notion is the confidence that the lender has in the borrower’s likelihood of paying off the loan. One’s youth, occupation, current earnings, and a good economy are all factors.

The result of this abstraction is that individuals are able to acquire a variety of items: a house, income property, a business, a car are all possibilities. Abstractions are used to allow for individuals to obtain tangible items.

With an understanding of how abstraction and fictions operate within society, one can see the intrinsic value of oaths and vows.

Oaths and Vows

It is apparent that oaths and vows are also a product of human imagination. The Torah passage emphasizes this when it refers to both words and speech. In essence, there very foundations for oaths and vows based upon abstractions- a product of the human mind.

The reality of the fiction is that they enhance the ability for a society to grow and engage in commercial, political, social and familial matters.

The oaths and vows are further enhanced by the Decalogue. Essentially, the Ten Commandments includes a guarantee of sorts; those fearing, respecting or honoring God will impliedly make their best efforts to fulfill the oath or vow.

Conclusion

The Decalogue’s relevance to society exceeds theology. The Commandment prohibiting the use of the Lord’s name in vain also serves as a sophisticated conduit for human transactions.

The Commandment operates as a guarantor that either the action or inaction will take place. Thus, the commandment enhances the values of both words and speech as it relates to both vows and oaths. The Matot passage imposes a scriptural expectation on completing the promise.

With Matot, the Torah recognizes the value of the word and the spoken word. This passage illustrates how the world is transformed by abstraction; the abstraction being language. With language- one that is widely understood, there is significant power to transmit instructions concerning a wide range of societal affairs ranging from commercial, political, social and familial. When language is supplemented by the concepts of oaths and vows, it allows for efficient and effective transactions to take place.

Be well!!

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