Leviticus 27:2

King James Version (KJV)

Speak unto the children of Israel, and say unto them, When a man shall make a singular vow, the persons shall be for the Lord by thy estimation.

Adam Clarke
Bible Commentary

When a man shall make a singular vow - The verse is short and obscure, and may be translated thus: A man who shall have separated a vow, according to thy estimation, of souls unto the Lord; which may be paraphrased thus: He who shall have vowed or consecrated a soul, i. e., a living creature, whether man or beast, if he wish to redeem what he has thus vowed or consecrated, he shall ransom or redeem it according to the priest's estimation; for the priest shall judge of the properties, qualifications, and age of the person or beast, and the circumstances of the person who has vowed it, and shall regulate the value accordingly; and the money shall be put into his hands for the service of the sanctuary. A vow (says Mr. Ainsworth) is a religious promise made unto the Lord, and for the most part with prayer, and paid with thanksgiving, Numbers 21:2, Numbers 21:3; Psalm 66:12, Psalm 66:14. Vows were either of abstinence, such as are spoken of Numbers 30, and the vow of the Nazarite, Numbers 6; or they were to give something to the Lord, as sacrifices, Leviticus 7:16, or the value of persons, beasts, houses, or lands, concerning which the law is here given. A man might vow or devote himself, his children, ( Leviticus 27:5, Leviticus 27:6;), his domestics, his cattle, his goods, etc. And in this chapter rules are laid down for the redemption of all these things. But if, after consecrating these things, he refused to redeem them, then they became the Lord's property for ever. The persons continued all their lives devoted to the service of the sanctuary; the goods were sold for the profit of the temple or the priests; the animals, if clean, were offered in sacrifice; if not proper for sacrifice, were sold, and the price devoted to sacred uses. This is a general view of the different laws relative to vows, mentioned in this chapter.

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Albert Barnes
Notes on the Whole Bible

Rather, When a man makes a special vow which concerns thy valuation of persons to Yahweh, if thy estimation shall be of the male, etc. The expression “thy estimation” is addressed either to Moses or to the priest Leviticus 27:12: it denoted a legal valuation. The vow of a person was perhaps most frequently made in cases of illness or danger, under the impulse of religions feeling, either in the way of thankfulness for blessings received, or of supplication for something desired. A man might dedicate himself, his wife, his child, or his bondservant. This might have been an old custom; but the Law ordained that he who had taken such a vow should pay a sum of money to the sanctuary, determined according to the age and sex of the person.

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Matthew Henry
Concise Bible Commentary

Zeal for the service of God disposed the Israelites, on some occasions, to dedicate themselves or their children to the service of the Lord, in his house for life. Some persons who thus dedicated themselves might be employed as assistants; in general they were to be redeemed for a value. It is good to be zealously affected and liberally disposed for the Lord's service; but the matter should be well weighed, and prudence should direct as to what we do; else rash vows and hesitation in doing them will dishonour God, and trouble our own minds.

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SDA Bible Commentary (limited)
Volume 1-7

2. A singular vow. Rather, “a special vow” (RSV). A vow is solemn promise made to God to perform some service forHim, to present a gift, or to make a sacrifice. In the OT vows were often made when men were in distress or peril, or desired a favor from God. They made the vow on condition that God would fulfill their request. Thus Jacob vowed that if God would bless and prosper him and bring him safely back, he would serve God (Gen. 28:20-22). David made an unconditional vow (Ps. 132:2-5).

The ideal vow springs from a heart overflowing with love for God and possessed of a sincere desire to do something for Him, without any thought of reward. This is the spirit that prompted men of old to offer burnt offerings to God. Vows were entirely voluntary. God did not require them. “If thou shalt forbear to vow, it shall be no sin in thee;” but if a man did vow, God expected him to keep it (Deut. 23:21-23).

Under the stress of circumstances men sometimes make a vow that upon reflection they know they cannot keep. It is to this the wise man refers when he says, “It is a snare to the man who devoureth that which is holy, and after vows to make enquiry” (Prov. 20:25). This might be interpreted to mean, “It is foolish for a man to make a vow in haste and to regret it afterward.” He should have reflected on the wisdom of the vow before making it. An example of this kind of vow is that of the Jews banding themselves together “saying that they would neither eat nor drink till they had killed Paul” (Acts 23:12). It seems also that David was somewhat rash in vowing that he would neither enter his house nor sleep until he had found a place for God’s house (Ps. 132:2-5). Jephthah’s vow was rashly made (Judges 11:34-40).

God knew that men would make vows they could not perform. He did not wish to discourage men from making vows, nor did He wish to release them from vows already made. He therefore provided a way by which to commute the obligation. This chapter deals with the redemption of vows.

According to this plan, a vow could be redeemed by a money payment, according to a prescribed scale. If the vow concerned a sacrificial animal, it would not be commuted into money but must be offered on the altar. But all other vows could be “redeemed.”

A man might vow himself or any person or thing over which he had jurisdictionâ€”wife, children, purchased servants, beasts, houses, fields. If the sanctuary could not receive the giftâ€”as would be the case in many instancesâ€”the man could still fulfill his vow by paying the redemption price.

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Cross References

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