Concerning Oaths

The Gospel of Matthew, from which this passage (5:33-37) is drawn, is traditionally attributed to Matthew, one of Jesus's twelve disciples and a former tax collector. While some modern scholars debate whether the evangelist was the apostle himself or a Jewish-Christian scribe deeply rooted in the Matthean tradition, the gospel unmistakably presents a profoundly Jewish-Christian perspective. It was likely written between 70 CE and 90 CE, a period following the devastating destruction of the Second Temple in Jerusalem by the Romans in 70 CE. This timing is crucial, as the gospel addresses an audience primarily composed of Jewish-Christians grappling with their identity and faith in a post-Temple world, seeking to understand how Jesus fulfilled the Law and the Prophets amidst the changing landscape of Judaism. The audience would have been intimately familiar with Jewish customs, legal traditions, and the Hebrew scriptures, often living in Hellenistic urban centers with significant Jewish diaspora communities, such as Antioch in Syria, or within Galilee.The political and social climate of Judea and Galilee during this period was defined by Roman occupation, which had ignited numerous tensions and conflicts. The First Jewish-Roman War (66-73 CE) left a profound mark, leading to the destruction of Jerusalem and the Temple, and forever altering Jewish life and identity. This era saw deep divisions among Jewish factions – including Pharisees, Sadducees, Essenes, and Zealots – regarding how to navigate Roman rule and maintain religious purity. Economically, the Roman system often led to disparities, with local elites benefiting while the majority faced taxation and hardship. For the Jewish-Christian audience of Matthew, living under the shadow of Roman power meant a constant struggle to preserve their cultural and religious heritage while also defining their new faith in Christ.The cultural and religious landscape was dominated by Second Temple Judaism, a diverse tradition with various interpretations of the Torah and its application. Oath-taking was a common and serious practice in ancient Jewish society, essential for validating testimonies, promises, and legal agreements. The Old Testament, particularly the Pentateuch (e.g., Numbers 30:2, Deuteronomy 23:21-23), mandated the fulfillment of vows made to the Lord. The passage's reference to "the people long ago" points to the Mosaic Law and its traditional interpretations, which often focused on the legal technicalities of oaths and what constituted a binding vow, frequently involving invoking God's name, heaven, earth, or Jerusalem to add solemnity and weight. Jesus's teaching here, part of his radical reinterpretation of Jewish law in the Sermon on the Mount, challenges not the validity of keeping one's word, but the very practice of oath-swearing itself, presenting a higher ethical standard where absolute truthfulness should be the default, rendering oaths unnecessary.Geographically, the Sermon on the Mount, where these words were spoken by Jesus, is traditionally understood to have taken place in Galilee, a region in northern Israel known for its predominantly Jewish population and a mix of rural and Hellenistic urban centers. Jerusalem, explicitly mentioned in the passage as "the city of the Great King," held immense religious significance as the capital, the site of the Temple (though destroyed by the time of Matthew's writing), and the spiritual heart of the Jewish people. The gospel's composition likely occurred in a place like Antioch, a major center for early Christianity and a crossroads of Jewish and Gentile cultures, or within Galilee itself, where the Jewish-Christian community sought to solidify its identity and mission in a world profoundly changed by the Roman conquest and the emergence of Christianity.