When God made his promise to Abraham, since there was no one greater for him to swear by, he swore by himself … - Hebrews 6:13

Today’s Scripture Reading (April 5, 2018): Hebrews 6

So help me, God. A phrase that is often added to an oath that declares that we will undertake more than a common effort to fulfill our promise. It should never be uttered carelessly. While in many situations the phrase is optional, it should be noted that God is never specifically defined in the oath. It is simply a promise that uses the ultimate power that we can possibly imagine as the security on our oath. The words do nothing more than declare our energy will be devoted to the task at hand so that we will complete it with the very best of our ability.

However, the phrase is not usually mandatory. The “No Religious Test Clause” in the United States declares that “no religious test shall ever be required as a qualification to any office or public trust under the United States.” But this clause notwithstanding, many federal oaths still contain the words “So help me, God” at the end of the oath.

It would be understandable if you thought that one of the offices that has the clause written in is the “Oath of office of the President of the United States.” George Washington spoke the words on his first oath of office, and every President since Franklin D. Roosevelt has added the words at the end of their oaths of office. But no law requires that the words be added to the end of the oath or that a Bible is used on which to take the oath. It has just become customary to speak them, and in doing so declare that the President will complete his duties in the most respectable fashion possible. He will carry out his office with the assistance, and in the presence, of God himself.

Maybe for those that do not believe in any kind of higher power an option might be to add the words “on my honor” at the end of that statement. If your personal honor is the highest allegiance that you can imagine then it is on that that you should swear your oath. Of course, that invites people to question your honor.

While many Christians do not believe that we should swear oaths at all, John Calvin took this passage in the “Letter to the Hebrews” to indicate that, at times, oaths were appropriate. The author of Hebrews argues that even God takes an oath. In this case, the oath is actually closer to “on my honor” (although I have to admit that God swearing an oath by ending it “so help me, me” sounds a little more whimsical and fun).  The author of Hebrews declares that, in the case of God, there is nothing greater than himself that he can swear on, and so he uses himself as the object of his oath. It is God’s honor that is at stake when he takes an oath and so God will take his promises and oaths seriously. And because we know how seriously God considers his oaths, we can trust in his promises and know that he is faithful and is working to do just as he has said, “So help him … him.”

Tomorrow’s Scripture Reading: Hebrews 7