Using God's Name in Vain

Yeah, I'm digging up this age-old question again. In this song by Memphis May Fire, lead singer Matty Mullins (an outspoken Christian who has released a couple solo albums that get play on Christian radio) sings, "I swear to G** I never saw this coming during the chorus.



Is this using the Lord's name in vain? Sure, "God" is the English word that we call Him, but we know it's not the name he calls Himself in Scripture. Still, it's the most common name we know Him by in the English-speaking world, so shouldn't that count for something?

Similarly, Jesus says in Matthew 5:33-37, "You have heard that it was said to the people long ago, ‘Do not break your oath, but keep the oaths you have made to the Lord.’ But I tell you, Do not swear at all: either by heaven, for it is God’s throne; or by the earth, for it is his footstool; or by Jerusalem, for it is the city of the Great King. And do not swear by your head, for you cannot make even one hair white or black. Simply let your ‘Yes’ be ‘Yes,’ and your ‘No ,’ ‘No’; anything beyond this comes from the evil one." Does this chorus violate that?

Interesting question.

I would say that "I swear to G**" is an expression used to emphasise the importance of what you are about to say. (Kinda like how the Bible often uses "I tell you the truth". People don't say it in a literal sense, that they are actually swearing an oath.
So I don't think this is a violation of Matthew 5:33-37. But it would very much depend on the heart of the person saying it.

As for whether it is taking the Lord's name in vein, that requires a little more thought on my part (and maybe some investigation as to what the Bible means when it uses that phrase.)
I would put the term "I swear to G**" on the same level as something like "Oh, my G**" or "Thank G** you're here". I don't say them myself, tending to use the modification "thank goodness".

What really bothers me is when people use "J**** Ch****!" as an exclamation. I come down pretty hard on my son when he occasionally lets that one slip. He usually realises halfway through and corrects himself by adding ".....is my saviour" which is kinda cute.

AdamCollings wrote:

What really bothers me is when people use "J**** Ch****!" as an exclamation. I come down pretty hard on my son when he occasionally lets that one slip. He usually realises halfway through and corrects himself by adding ".....is my saviour" which is kinda cute.

Lol!

I don't have much to add, since I put a video out covering this and other language issues awhile back. And I think Adam's observations about its cultural use today verses an actual oath are worth mulling over and thinking about. I'd say the heart behind it is very important. It's the heart that is actually behind even the original OT command. But I would also say that this expression is unwise on the part of Christians, because of how likely it is to be misunderstood and place barriers of distraction between people in conversation.

God's name isn't "God".