I Samuel 14:24
‘Now the men of Israel were hard-pressed on that day, for Saul had put the people under oath, saying, “Cursed be the man who eats food before evening, and until I have avenged myself on my enemies.” So none of the people tasted food.’
Saul was just a few days out from the grand disobedience that got the kingdom taken away from him. This verse has him making another foolish decision which minimizes Israel’s fighting effectiveness. He makes an oath. This confused the soldiers about their mission. Most were fighting for their freedom, their nation or for God. With this oath Saul interjects himself into the cause. It sounds distracting. I could see it making some of the fighters angry, thinking, “Who is Saul to that I should be putting my life on the line?”
I’m not sure if Saul said this because of an advisor or he thought it would be motivational. It had the opposite effect. The soldiers were riding the wave of God’s momentum. They had been fighting all day. It would have been helpful to reach into their pack and grab a sandwich to replenish their strength. But Saul’s vow forbid them from doing so.
A more appropriate charge might have been something that aided the army. Such as, “The spoils of war are yours, Israel. Whatever you come across belongs to you.” This would allow the fighters to take cool stuff from the enemy as well as eating their food.
There is also a problem that Saul made it an oath. Jesus says in Matthew 5:34, “But I say to you, make no oath at all, either by heaven, for it is the throne of God.” The bible discourages oaths. This verse is a great example why they are a bad idea. Saul attached a curse to it. We’ll learn later that some broke the oath, because they didn’t hear it in the first place. But because they ate, they fell under the curse. This caused further problems.
In the same chapter in Matthew, Jesus gives us further instructions about the topic, “But let your statement be, ‘Yes, yes’ or ‘No, no’; anything beyond these is of evil.” Our rambling on and on causes problems. In terms of talking, less is more. Proverbs 10:19 says, “When there are many words, transgression is unavoidable, But he who restrains his lips is wise.” Saul’s oath should have never been said. The battle was going well. His oath did nothing but cause problems.
Jesus gives us freedom when He frees us from oaths. In Christ, we have the riches of heaven. He promises to guide and provide. While we could never repay Him, He doesn’t want us to. He just wants our allegiance and gratitude. We don’t need to make an oath. Jesus brought Peter, James and John up to the mount of transfiguration. There they saw Moses and Elijah. Peter in his enthusiasm told Jesus he would build some temples to commemorate the occasion (Matthew 17:4). This would have taken the remainder of Peter’s life. God had much better things in store for Him. If he were held to his oath, he would have missed God’s purpose.
Lord, thank You for freeing us from oaths. Help us to follow Your advice and let our “yes be yes and our no be no”.