^30:2If a man⁴ makes a vow⁵ to the Lord or takes an oath⁶ of binding obligation on himself,⁷ he must not break his word, but must do whatever he has promised.⁸

Vows Made by Single Women

^30:3“If a young⁹ woman who is still living¹⁰ in her father’s house makes a vow to the Lord or places herself under an obligation, ^30:4and her father hears of her vow or the obligation to which she has pledged herself, and her father remains silent about her,¹¹ then all her vows will stand,¹² and every obligation to which she has pledged herself will stand.

Read in Logos

Footnotes

4 The legal construction states the class to which the law applies, and then lays down the condition: “men [man]—if.…”
5 The Hebrew text uses a cognate accusative construction to express this: “a man if he vows a vow.”
6 The expression is “swear an oath” (הִשָּׁבַע שְׁבֻעָה, hishava’ shévu’ah). The vow (נֵדֶר, neder) was a promise to donate something of oneself or one’s substance to the Lord. The solemn oath seals the vow before the Lord, perhaps with sacrifice. The vocabulary recalls Abraham’s treaty with Abimelech and the naming of Beer Sheba with the word (see Gen 21).
7 The Hebrew text has לֶאְסֹר אִסָּר (le’sor ’issar), meaning “to take a binding obligation.” This is usually interpreted to mean a negative vow, i.e., the person attempts to abstain from something that is otherwise permissible. It might involve fasting, or abstaining from marital sex, but it might also involve some goal to be achieved, and the abstaining from distractions until the vow is fulfilled (see Ps 132). The נֶדֶר (neder) may have been more for religious matters, and the אִסָּר more for social concerns, but this cannot be documented with certainty.
8 Heb “according to all that goes out of his mouth.”
9 The qualification comes at the end of the verse, and simply says “in her youth.”
10 The Hebrew text just has “in her father’s house” and not “who is still living,” but that is the meaning of the line.
11 The intent of this expression is that he does not object to the vow.
12 The verb קוּם (qum) is best translated “stand” here, but the idea with it is that what she vows is established as a genuine oath with the father’s approval (or acquiescence).

In other versions

ESVEnglish Standard Version

If a man vows a vow to the Lord, or swears an oath to bind himself by a pledge, he shall not break his word. He shall do according to all that proceeds out of his mouth.

“If a woman vows a vow to the Lord and binds herself by a pledge, while within her father’s house in her youth, and her father hears of her vow and of her pledge by which she has bound herself and says nothing to her, then all her vows shall stand, and every pledge by which she has bound herself shall stand.

NIVNew International Version (2011)

When a man makes a vow to the Lord or takes an oath to obligate himself by a pledge, he must not break his word but must do everything he said.

“When a young woman still living in her father’s household makes a vow to the Lord or obligates herself by a pledge and her father hears about her vow or pledge but says nothing to her, then all her vows and every pledge by which she obligated herself will stand.

CSBChristian Standard Bible

When a man makes a vow to the Lord or swears an oath to put himself under an obligation, he must not break his word; he must do whatever he has promised.

“When a woman in her father’s house during her youth makes a vow to the Lord or puts herself under an obligation, and her father hears about her vow or the obligation she put herself under, and he says nothing to her, all her vows and every obligation she put herself under are binding.

NLTNew Living Translation

A man who makes a vow to the Lord or makes a pledge under oath must never break it. He must do exactly what he said he would do.

“If a young woman makes a vow to the Lord or a pledge under oath while she is still living at her father’s home, and her father hears of the vow or pledge and does not object to it, then all her vows and pledges will stand.

LEBThe Lexham English Bible

if a man makes a vow for Yahweh or swears an oath with a binding pledge on himself, he must not render his word invalid; he must do all that went out from his mouth.

“If a woman makes a vow to Yahweh, and she binds a pledge on herself in her father’s house in your childhood, but if her father hears her vow or her pledge that she bound on herself and says nothing to her, then all her vows will stand, and every pledge that she binds on her life will stand.

KJV 1900King James Version

If a man vow a vow unto the Lord, or swear an oath to bind his soul with a bond; he shall not break his word, he shall do according to all that proceedeth out of his mouth. If a woman also vow a vow unto the Lord, and bind herself by a bond, being in her father’s house in her youth; And her father hear her vow, and her bond wherewith she hath bound her soul, and her father shall hold his peace at her: then all her vows shall stand, and every bond wherewith she hath bound her soul shall stand.

Public Domain