the lords name in vain has always bothered me in that folks consider it to be swearing. vain, among other meanings, is from the latin vanus which means empty. i presume the commandment is to ensure one does not ask "the lord thy god" to dam n a person, place, or thing as an empty gesture. i consider asking "the lord thy god" to dam n as a curse, requesting the offending thing or person to be actually dam ned, covered with boils and infested with locusts,,etc. perfectly good use of the words in many instances