James 5:12 – “Above all …”

But above all, my brethren, do not swear, either by heaven or by earth or with any other oath, but let your yes be yes and your no be no, that you may not fall under condemnation.  James 5:12

Oaths and swearing are to be avoided, as James indicates, but why was he so emphatic:  “Above all…”?  One member of a discussion group questioned, “How could not swearing be more important than patiently trusting God (James 5:7 in the immediate context) or other instructions in the letter or in other parts of Scripture?

When the wording of a passage seems problematic, other translations may be helpful.  The very useful web site Bible Gateway provided about sixty (60) different translations for the verse.  Forty-four of the translations used a phrase such as “above all” (e.g., CSB, ESV, NASB, NIV) or “above all things” (KJV).  A few paraphrased a bit more freely, such as “most important” (CEB) or “highest importance” (Phillips).

However, Young’s Literal Translation (YLT) offered a different rendering of the beginning of the verse:

And before all things, my brethren, do not swear, neither by the heaven, neither by the earth, neither by any other oath, and let your Yes be Yes, and the No, No; that under judgment ye may not fall. (James 5:12, YLT)[1]

Several of the older translations on Bible Gateway agree with Young, included the 1599 Geneva Bible (GNV), the Revised Geneva Translation (RGT), and the Wycliffe Bible (WYC).  “Before” is also used in the Greek-English Interlinear New Testament.[2]

The Greek text is πρὸ πάντων (pro pantōn).  The basic meaning of the preposition pro is “before’ as translated in approximately thirty of its forty-seven uses in the New Testament.[3]  “Most of the NT instances are temporal in sense.”[4]

While most of the uses of pro have the temporal sense of “before”, both references just quoted (Kohlenberger, et al., and Harris) cite two exceptions where the preposition is translated “above” (James 5:12 and 1 Peter 4:8):

  • But above all, my brothers, do not swear…
    (James 5:12)
  • Above all, keep loving one another earnestly, since love covers a multitude of sins.
    (1 Peter 4:8)

The third and final New Testament use of the exact phrase πρὸ πάντων (pro pantōn) has a clearly temporal meaning:

  • And he is before all things, and in him all things hold together. (Colossians 4:17)

The nuanced difference between “above” and “before” may be slight in Peter’s exhortation to love.  Loving others is an expression of the second of the great commandments (Matthew 22:39) as well as the new commandment (John 13:34).  In Peter’s letter the second of the great commandments certainly can be considered “above” all other commands.

However, the difference could be problematic in James’ exhortation about swearing.  The prohibition against swearing oaths is important, but can it be considered above or higher in importance than the other commands James includes in his letter?  Translating “pro” in its more common usage as “before” would be appropriate as establishing personal integrity as a starting point or foundation for the relationships among believers in the face of trials, a major theme in that letter.

James wants to highlight this prohibition – probably because he sees it as getting at the ultimate issue of personal integrity.[5]

Straightforward communication and personal integrity – “let your word be (an outer) yes (which is truly and inner) yes”[6] comprise the prerequisite which James requires – “Before all things.”

[1] The first edition of Robert Young’s “literal translation” appeared in 1862, so the archaic language is unavoidable.

[2] Robert K. Brown and Philip W. Comfort, Translators, The New Greek-English Interlinear New Testament (Wheaton:  Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., 1990), 805.  cf. https://biblehub.com/interlinear/james/5-12.htm “before all things”,  retrieved February 10, 2020.

[3] John R Kohlenberger III, Edward W. Goodrick, James A. Swanson, The Greek-English Concordance to The New Testament with the New International Version (Grand Rapids, Michigan:  Zondervan Publishing House, 1997), 649-650.

[4] Murray J. Harris, Prepositions and Theology in the Greek New Testament:  An Essential Reference for Exegesis (Grand Rapids, Michgan:  Zondervan, 2012), 185.

[5] Douglas J. Moo, The Letter of James, The Pillar New Testament Commentary (Grand Rapids, Michigan:  William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 2000), 232.

[6] Peter H. Davids, The Epistle of James, The New International Greek Testament Commentary (Grand Rapids, Michigan: Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co., 1982), 190.