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The Statutes for Vows

30 Then Moses spoke to (A)the heads of the tribes of the sons of Israel, saying, “This is the word which Yahweh has commanded. (B)If a man makes a vow to Yahweh or swears an oath to bind himself with a binding obligation, he shall not violate his word; he shall do according to all that proceeds out of his mouth.

“Also if a woman makes a vow to Yahweh and binds herself by an obligation in her father’s house in her youth, and her father hears her vow and her obligation by which she has bound herself, and her father [a]says nothing to her, then all her vows shall stand, and every obligation by which she has bound herself shall stand. But if her father should forbid her on the day he hears of it, none of her vows or her obligations by which she has bound herself shall stand; and Yahweh will pardon her because her father had forbidden her.

“However, if she should [b]marry while [c]under her vows or the rash statement of her lips by which she has bound herself, and her husband hears of it and says nothing to her on the day he hears it, then her vows shall stand, and her obligations by which she has bound herself shall stand. But if, on the day her husband hears of it, he forbids her, then he shall annul her vow which [d]she is under and the rash statement of her lips by which she has bound herself; and Yahweh will pardon her.

“But the vow of a widow or of a divorced woman, everything by which she has bound herself, shall stand against her. 10 However, if she vowed in her husband’s house or bound herself by an obligation with an oath, 11 and her husband heard it but said nothing to her and did not forbid her, then all her vows shall stand, and every obligation by which she bound herself shall stand. 12 But if her husband indeed annuls them on the day he hears them, then whatever proceeds out of her lips concerning her vows or concerning the obligation of herself shall not stand; her husband has annulled them, and Yahweh will pardon her.

13 “Every vow and every binding oath to humble herself, her husband may cause it to stand, or her husband may annul it. 14 But if her husband indeed says nothing to her from day to day, then he causes all her vows or all her obligations which are on her to stand; he has caused them to stand because he said nothing to her on the day he heard them. 15 But if he indeed annuls them after he has heard them, then he shall bear her guilt.”

16 These are the statutes which Yahweh commanded Moses, as between a man and his wife, and as between a father and his daughter, while she is in her youth in her father’s house.

Footnotes

  1. Numbers 30:4 Lit is silent to her, so in ch
  2. Numbers 30:6 Lit be to a husband
  3. Numbers 30:6 Lit her vows are on her
  4. Numbers 30:8 Lit is on her

Solemn promises by men

30 Moses spoke to the leaders of the tribes of the Israelites: This is what the Lord has commanded: When a man makes a solemn promise to the Lord or swears a solemn pledge of binding obligation for himself, he cannot break his word. He must do everything he said.

Solemn promises by women

When a woman makes a solemn promise to the Lord or a binding obligation while she is young and in her father’s household, and her father hears her solemn promise or her binding obligation for herself and keeps silent[a]—then all her solemn promises and any of her binding obligations for herself will stand. But if her father expresses disapproval to her on the day that he hears her, none of her solemn promises nor any of her binding obligations for herself will stand. The Lord will forgive her, because her father expressed disapproval to her.

If she marries while her solemn promise is in effect or makes a statement by which she binds herself, and her husband hears it and on the day he hears it keeps silent—her solemn promises will stand as well as her binding obligations for herself. But if on the day that her husband hears it he expresses disapproval to her, he can break her solemn promise and the statement by which she bound herself. Then the Lord will forgive her.

Every solemn promise of a widow or a divorced woman who makes a binding obligation for herself will stand.

10 If a woman makes a solemn promise in her husband’s household or makes a binding obligation for herself with a solemn pledge, 11 and her husband hears, keeps silent, and doesn’t express disapproval to her—then all her solemn promises will stand and all her binding obligations for herself will stand. 12 If her husband breaks them on the day he hears them, then whatever she said with regard to her solemn promises or the binding obligations for herself will not stand. Her husband has broken them. The Lord will forgive her.

13 Her husband may allow any solemn promise or any binding pledge of self-denial to stand or be broken. 14 But if her husband keeps silent from one day to the next, he has upheld all her solemn promises, or all her binding obligations. He has upheld them because he remained silent on the day he heard them. 15 If he breaks them after he has heard them, he will assume her guilt.

16 These are the regulations that the Lord commanded Moses concerning a husband and his wife and between a father and his daughter while she is young and in her father’s household.

Footnotes

  1. Numbers 30:4 Or her father is deaf to her.