QUARANTINE BLOG # 342

March 7, 2021

When God’s Name Has No Value

Today’s Lenten Lectionary text is Exodus 20:1-17, which you will recognize as the place in the Bible where God gives Moses the Ten Commandments.  Specifically, today, I am looking at the 3rd Commandment, but how I got there will take some explaining.  Actually, it takes a trip around Robin Hood’s barn (a trip which I famously take from time to time).

The King James Version says, “Thou shalt not take the name of the Lord thy God in vain” (20:7).  But what exactly does that mean?  I was taught that it meant not to use God’s name as a curse word, and that is good teaching, but it has always seemed to me to be more than that, and Noah Webster was not much help.  For example his dictionary says, “marked by futility or ineffectualness,” “having no real value” and the ever popular “in an irreverent or blasphemous manner.”

So I checked in with Larry Page’s and Sergey Brin’s research assistant and stumbled onto an article about “minced oaths” which is “a euphemistic expression formed by misspelling, mispronouncing, or replacing a part of a profane, blasphemous, or taboo term to reduce the original term’s objectionable characteristics.”  Some examples include “gosh,” or “golly” (God), “darn,” or “dang” (damn).  There are others, but this is a family blog.

So when we say “gosh” or “golly” are we breaking the 3rd Commandment?  

What about texting “OMG”?  And that led to another piece, this time from ABCNews.  The reporter, Talesha Reynolds, asked, “Does texting ‘OMG’ amount to blasphemy?  Does using text messaging shorthand constitute taking the Lord’s name in vain?”

Reynolds said, “As texting and instant messaging became a way of life, a shorthand lexicon emerged to save time and stress on fingers.  Acronyms like LOL and TTYL replaced ‘laughing out loud’ and ‘talk to you later.’  The letters OMG replaced ‘Oh, My God.’  Or did it?’  There’s debate on what the G in OMG really means. Does it stand for ‘gosh,’ or ‘God’?  If it stands for ‘God,’ is using it a sin?”

She interviewed several texters who said OMG does not (or perhaps, does not any longer) stands for Oh My God.  Instead it simply means “Oh!” “Wow!” or “Really?”  

I’m not about to get in a debate with 14 year olds (Reynolds sources) so I turned to my source when I’m curious about Hebrew and Greek, PC Study Bible – a very powerful Bible study program which I’ve been using for more than 20 years.  

Strong’s Concordance says, the Hebrew word – pronounced “shaw” – means “emptiness, vanity, evil, ruin, uselessness, deception, worthless, without result, fraud, deceit.  The primary meaning of the word is deceit, lie, or falsehood.”  

Vine’s Expository Dictionary agrees: “The basic meaning of this word is ‘deceit’ or ‘deception,’ ‘malice,’ and ‘falsehood.’”

And that took me back to Webster’s:  “marked by futility or ineffectualness,” “having no real value” and “in an irreverent or blasphemous manner.”

I think I understand pretty well that “blasphemous manner” means to use the names of God the Father or God the Son as swear words, and I’m pretty sure you avoid that with great purpose and determination.  My Grandma Gracie (Skinny Granny’s step-mom) avoided it as well as anyone I’ve known – the strongest thing I ever heard her say was, “Oh, dear to me.”

Then I read Exodus 20:7 in the Common English Bible – “Do not use the Lord your God’s name as if it were of no significance” – and the light bulb came on, one of those “Ah ha!” moments.  

According to James Strong and W. E. Vine, Noah Webster has it right, and that led me to something I’ve never considered before.  If both the Hebrew word and the English word carry the meaning of making something worthless, empty, useless, futile, or having no real value, then can I take God’s name in vain if my Christian testimony does not bear close scrutiny?  

If someone looks at my life and says, “Well,  that’s a Christian for you!” have I brought God’s name to a place where it is seem as a deception to a non-believer?  

Is God’s name – and by that I include the name of God the Son and the faith identified as “Christian” – lessened, cheapened, and made without result if my testimony is tarnished?

I’m working on those answers.  You must make your own personal response.

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