1689 London Baptist Confession
1. A lawful oath is a part of religious worship, wherein the person
swearing in truth, righteousness, and judgement, solemnly calleth God to witness what he
sweareth, and to judge him according to the truth or falseness thereof.
( Exodus
20:7; Deuteronomy
10:20; Jeremiah
4:2; 2
Chronicles 6:22, 23 )
2. The name of God only is that by which men ought to swear; and therein it is to be used,
with all holy fear and reverence; therefore to swear vainly or rashly by that glorious and
dreadful name, or to swear at all by any other thing, is sinful, and to be abhorred; yet
as in matter of weight and moment, for confirmation of truth, and ending all strife, an
oath is warranted by the word of God; so a lawful oath being imposed by lawful authority
in such matters, ought to be taken.
( Matthew
5:34, 37; James
5:12; Hebrews
6:16; 2
Corinthians 1:23; Nehemiah
13:25 )
3. Whosoever taketh an oath warranted by the Word of God, ought duly to consider the
weightiness of so solemn an act, and therein to avouch nothing but what he knoweth to be
truth; for that by rash, false, and vain oaths, the Lord is provoked, and for them this
land mourns.
( Leviticus
19:12; Jeremiah
23:10 )
4. An oath is to be taken in the plain and common sense of the words, without equivocation
or mental reservation.
( Psalms
24:4 ) (Ps. 24:4)
5. A vow, which is not to be made to any creature, but to God alone, is to be made and
performed with all religious care and faithfulness; but popish monastical vows of
perpetual single life, professed poverty, and regular obedience, are so far from being
degrees of higher perfection, that they are superstitious and sinful snares, in which no
Christian may entangle himself.
( Psalms
76:11; Genesis
28:20-22; 1
Corinthians 7:2, 9; Ephesians
4:28; Matthew
19:11 )
For further study:
"Baptist Roots in America: The Historical Background of Reformed Baptists in America", Samuel E. Waldron, Simpson Publishing Co. (1991)
"A Modern Exposition of the 1689 Baptist Confession of Faith", Samuel E. Waldron, Evangelical Press, 1989
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