Watchtower ONLINE LIBRARY

Matthew 5:34

New World Translation of the Holy Scriptures
- 34 However, I say to you: Do not swear at all,+ neither by heaven, for it is God’s throne;

Matthew 5:34

The Kingdom Interlinear Translation of the Greek Scriptures
- 34 ᾿Εγὼ I δὲ but λέγω am saying ὑμῖν to YOU μὴ not ὀμόσαι to swear ὅλως· wholly; μήτε neither ἐν in τῷ the οὐρανῷ, heaven, ὅτι because θρόνος throne ἐστὶν it is τοῦ of the θεοῦ· God;

Matthew 5:34

New World Translation of the Holy Scriptures—With References
- 34 However, I say to YOU: Do not swear+ at all, neither by heaven, because it is God’s throne;+

Matthew 5:34

The Bible in Living English
- 34 But I tell you not to swear at all; neither by heaven, because it is God’s throne,

Matthew 5:34

American Standard Version
- 34 but I say unto you, swear not at all; neither by the heaven, for it is the throne of God;

Matthew 5:34

The Emphasized Bible
- 34 But I tell you—not to swear at all: Neither by heaven, because it is the throne of God,—

Matthew 5:34

King James Version
- 34 But I say unto you, Swear not at all; neither by heaven; for it is God’s throne:

Matthew Study Notes—Chapter 5

New World Translation of the Holy Scriptures (Study Edition)
- 5:34
  
  Do not swear at all: Jesus did not here prohibit the making of all oaths. God’s Law, which allowed for the swearing of oaths or vows on certain serious occasions, was still in force. (Nu 30:2; Ga 4:4) Rather, Jesus was condemning frivolous and indiscriminate swearing that amounted to a perversion of oath-taking.
  
  neither by heaven: In order to add weight to their word, people would swear “by heaven,” “by earth,” “by Jerusalem,” and even “by [the] head,” or life, of another person. (Mt 5:35, 36) But controversy existed among the Jews as to the validity of such oaths based on created things rather than on the name of God, and some evidently felt that they could retract such sworn statements with impunity.