Exodus 20:7: “You shall not take the name of the LORD your God in vain, for the LORD will not hold him guiltless who takes his name in vain. (ESV)

This commandment has perhaps been the one that has given me the most trouble personally to understand over the years. It may seem that the fourth commandment would be a more likely culprit for the most difficult commandment, but the phrase, "take in vain" has never been clear to me, and I have never understood its import for my daily life.

By far, the rubber-meets-road interpretation most people have of this verse, in my experience, is that we should not say phrases like, "Oh my God." Fair enough. Perhaps we should not. But is this what it means to take Yahweh's name in vain? It seems a bit strange, a bit specific, or out of place. After all, "God" is not God's name. "Yahweh" is His name (Ex. 3:14-15). He is Jehovah, the I AM. When someone says, "My God," they are not using God's name at all. So much for that.

Looking at the Words

A good place, perhaps the best place, to start is with the actual words themselves. How does the individual meaning of each term combine with the others in the sentence to produce a meaning that we can understand as one coherent idea?

Three terms stand out in this commandment. They are "take," "name," and the phrase "in vain." "Take" means to carry, bear, or lift up. "Name" means name, reputation, or fame. "Vain" means emptiness, worthlessness, or deceit. The majority of the references refer to worthlessness or deceit.

So, what does it mean to take a name in vain? We should not bear up or carry the name or reputation of Yahweh worthlessly or to perpetuate a lie. This is already sounding much different from the common understanding.

For whatever reason, the most common running understanding of the third commandment appears to be restricted to the prohibition of a single phrase. I do not know how this came to be. The language of the third commandment clearly appears to entail more than that (according to the Westminster Larger Catechism, much, much more; take a look at Question 112).

So what is Yahweh prohibiting in this commandment? As He speaks to Moses on Mount Sinai, he has told them that, if they will keep the covenant, he will be their God and they will be His people. The name of Yahweh is associated with the people of Israel, and the name of Israel is associated with Yahweh.

If a man identifies himself as an Israelite and as part of the covenant of Moses, submitting to the Law and taking Yahweh as his God, what would it mean for him to take Yahweh's name in vain? It would be about his behavior, his character, his integrity. Taking Yahweh's name requires a correspondence between his profession and his action. This commandment makes it unconscionable that a person might profess to belong to Yahweh, and yet with no discernible effect or impact on his life. The third commandment is a prohibition against hypocrisy.

Putting It Together

In sum, the commandment appears to be about prohibiting nominal association with Yahweh without true devotedness to him. It is about bearing the name of Yahweh, claiming to be Yahweh's, and not living that way. It appears to have little to do with exclamations of surprise. Reducing the commandment to a prohibition against saying, "Oh my God,” is irredeemably reductive. It is true, but it is not true enough.

So, how does the third commandment affect how we live for God through Christ? It is rather simple. The Jews who were part of the old covenant under Moses were called by Yahweh's name. They were understood to belong to Yahweh, and Yahweh to them. We who are part of the new covenant in Christ Jesus are called by Christ's name, whom we understand to be Yahweh himself.

The point is that Christians, by calling themselves Christians, and professing to be Christians, have taken the name of Yahweh. We carry in ourselves a representation of his reputation, his fame, his glory, his name. Are we living in such a way as truly, if imperfectly, reflects Christ's name?

Many do not, clearly. They take the name of Christ, affirming themselves to be Christians with little or nothing to show for it. It is not that they must jump through hoops, but that their life shows no discernible impact for all their profession of being a believer. For people like this, who take Christ's name but show no fruit, they take it in vain, because their profession is worthless.

But there is also taking the name of Yahweh in vain in terms of deceit or falsehood. How many are there who knowingly do this! There are all too many.

If we are going to understand and obey the third commandment in the appropriate way today, then those who take the name of Christ must take care that they do not do so in vain. We must take care that we do not bear the name of Christ to no end, that we continue in the exact same manner and mode of living as when we did not carry the name of Christ, when we followed the course of the world, were deceiving and being deceived (cf. Eph. 21-3).

We must also take care that we do not deceive ourselves, trusting in our works for Christ rather than in the work of Christ. We must take care that Christ have no reason to tell us, "Depart from me, I never knew you," when we stand before him.

The third commandment is about much more than not saying a single phrase. It encompasses our speech, but it is not reducible to the the prohibition of a single phrase. The third commandment is of enormous help in knowing what it means to live for God through Christ, yet I fear that its utility for us is being squandered simply due to lack of reflection. Of this I am as guilty as any, and I look forward to living the rest of my life for God through Christ in light of a more accurate understanding of this commandment.

Note: After writing this article, I preached on this passage. Follow this link for a fuller treatment of this commandment and its implications for Christians.