Matthew 23:22

22 And the one who swears by heaven swears by the throne of God and by the one who sits on it.

Matthew 23:22 Meaning and Commentary

Matthew 23:22

And he that shall swear by heaven
As the Jews were wont to do in common, but did not look upon such an oath as obligatory on them; (See Gill on Matthew 5:34), though such an one

sweareth by the throne of God;
for heaven is God's throne, where he sits, and, in an eminent manner, displays the glory of his majesty:

and by him that sitteth thereon,
by God himself. Thus swearing by anything that has any relation to God, is implicitly swearing by him; and therefore ought to be considered as binding, as if he was expressed in it; since an appeal cannot be made to things inanimate, nor indeed to any creature, but to God, the searcher of hearts.

Matthew 23:22 In-Context

20 Therefore the one who swears by the altar swears by it and by everything [that is] on it.
21 And the one who swears by the temple swears by it and by the one who dwells [in] it
22 And the one who swears by heaven swears by the throne of God and by the one who sits on it.
23 "Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees--hypocrites!--because you pay a tenth of mint and dill and cumin, and neglect the more important [matters] of the law--justice and mercy and faithfulness! It was necessary to do these [things] {while not neglecting those}.
24 Blind guides who filter out a gnat and swallow a camel!
Scripture quotations marked (LEB) are from the Lexham English Bible. Copyright 2012 Logos Bible Software. Lexham is a registered trademark of Logos Bible Software.