Leviticus 19:12 (KJV)

Passage

And ye shall not swear by my name falsely, neither shalt thou profane the name of thy God: I am the LORD.

Nearby Context

Leviticus 19:10 And thou shalt not glean thy vineyard, neither shalt thou gather every grape of thy vineyard; thou shalt leave them for the poor and stranger: I am the LORD your God.

Leviticus 19:11 Ye shall not steal, neither deal falsely, neither lie one to another.

Leviticus 19:12 And ye shall not swear by my name falsely, neither shalt thou profane the name of thy God: I am the LORD.

Leviticus 19:13 Thou shalt not defraud thy neighbour, neither rob him: the wages of him that is hired shall not abide with thee all night until the morning.

Leviticus 19:14 Thou shalt not curse the deaf, nor put a stumblingblock before the blind, but shalt fear thy God: I am the LORD.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "shall", "swear", "name", "falsely", "neither", "shalt", "thou", and "profane". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "shall" and "swear", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 11's "Ye shall not steal neither deal falsely..." into verse 13's "Thou shalt not defraud thy neighbour neither...", so "shall" and "swear" belong inside that flow. In Leviticus context, the local focus is covenant, worship, and faithfulness.

A plain takeaway is to answer the verse's own emphasis on "shall" and "swear" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.