Jeremiah 23:10-11 -- On Avoiding the Profane

"For the land is full of adulterers; for because of swearing the land mourneth; the pleasant places of the wilderness are dried up, and their course is evil, and their force is not right.
For both prophet and priest are profane; yea, in my house have I found their wickedness, saith the Lord."
Jeremiah 23:10-11


These verses struck me today I think because of how lightly we take swearing and profanity, and how seriously it is mentioned here along with other serious sin. In Matthew we're told "let your communication be, Yea, yea; Nay, nay: for whatsoever is more than these cometh of evil" (Matthew 5:37). I wonder if that is because anything that is more elaborate often has some other motive... to look good to others, to shade the truth, to curry favor, or many other things. We can use words to manipulate, threaten, and the subtext can get so thick that saying anything in some circumstances seems scary. :) God encourages plain speaking, letting people know that we agree or disagree rather than dressing up our opinions as political effigies or symbols of our edgy and cool rebelliousness... or whatever else we are trying to show off that day. :)
I don't know all the reasons that it is important not to swear, but perhaps it also overextends ourselves as we talk ourselves into a corner, or commit more to our opinions than we should, so it is hard to come back and refine or reject an opinion once we find that we are in error. Speaking of profanity only, I find that when I am around people who are using bad words a lot, they more easily pop into my mind as well, and I don't want them there... I feel like it distracts from the spirit and is making me a worse person, not a better one. That might not be how you are affected in a similar circumstance, but for me, that's another reason. All of the gospel seems tied together and the more we accept impurities into our lives, the harder it is to feel the spirit, and to hear God in our lives. Today, let's avoid the profane and work towards the good and the pure, so that we can hear, and feel, God more clearly in our lives.