James 5:12

Sometimes people say things like "I promise" by way of validating what they say. But would you need to say “I promise” if your word was true regardless of whether you said "I promise" or not? I guess it gives extra assurance that you will try extra hard to ensure the validity of your statement. Sometimes, people even swear by things, like "I swear by my mother's grave" or something like that. That's quite a grave statement to make, and it seems to add a level of seriousness to what you are swearing by. However, we are not supposed to do this. James instructs us not to swear by things or make certain oaths. So, if you do that sort of thing, you should stop doing it. If you don't do that sort of thing, don't even start doing it. Instead, your word should simply be your word. When people try to add validity to their statements, it's as if their word does not hold ground by itself. The point is not to add validity to your statements but to say what you say and be true to your word. You don't want to be a flimsy guy who never holds true to his word. James says to let your "yes" be yes and your "no" be no. Don't say "yes" and really mean no, or don't say "no" and really mean yes. Or, don't say one thing and go back on it later; this would not be true to your word. Sure, we are all fallible human beings who make mistakes all the time. But don't treat your words as something that can be tossed around carelessly, only to later need reinforcement through swearing or oaths.