Chapter 27

1 He that maketh a singular vow must be the Lord’s. 2 The estimation of the person. 9 Of a beast given by vow. 14 Of a house. 16 Of a field, and the redemption thereof. 28 No devoted thing may be redeemed. 32 The title may not be changed.

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 jurisdiction—wife, children, purchased servants, beasts, houses, fields. If the sanctuary could not receive the gift—as would be the case in many instances—the man could still fulfill his vow by paying the redemption price.

3. Thy estimation. The sum for which a person might be redeemed was set by God, and was according to a graduated scale based on sex and age. For a male it was 5 shekels for a child up to 5 years; 20 shekels, up to 20 years; 50 shekels, to 60 years; and above that, 15 shekels. For females it was approximately half these amounts. However, if the man was poor, the scale need not be adhered to strictly, but might be adjusted by the priest to fit the man’s ability to pay. It is to be noted that although there was a difference in the redemption price, the difference was based on age, not on rank. The high priest was rated no higher than the common laborer.

9. If it be a beast. When a clean beast was vowed it became “holy” and could not be exchanged or redeemed. It must be sacrificed. The man might wish to substitute the animal for a better one, or a poorer one. But neither might be done. If any were detected doing this, both animals became “holy” and both must be sacrificed.

14. Sanctify his house. When a man vowed a house the priest appraised it, and the value he named should “stand.” It could not be changed and was not subject to bargaining. The man could redeem it at the evaluated price, plus one fifth extra, and “it shall be his” (v. 15).

16. A field of his possession. If a man vowed a field, it was to be appraised according to the amount of seed needed for sowing it. In the price thus arrived at, the year of jubilee was to be taken into consideration (v. 17), for at that time it would revert to the owner.

20. Sold the field. This statement is of uncertain meaning, and many different interpretations of it have been attempted. It probably means that he had sold it to another man before he vowed it, with theresult that he had no right to vow it at all, yet wanted to receive credit for that which was not his to give. If this be the meaning of the verse, he had in principle done what Ananias and Sapphira did when they pretended to give a certain sum but in reality did not.

22. A field which he hath bought. If a person bought a field from the man who owned it, he could vow it only till the time of the jubilee year, because it would then revert to the original owner.

26. The firstling of the beasts. The first-born of all animals belonged to God, and no one could give to God what was already His. These already belonged to Him (Ex. 13:2, 12; 22:30). An unclean animal, however, might be redeemed. If he did not redeem it the animal was sold.

28. No devoted thing. The Hebrew word here used for “devoted thing” denotes a far more solemn vow than is indicated by the simple term “devoted.” It means a vow that cannot be broken or redeemed and that must be kept under pain of heavy penalties, even curses and imprecations. It was with this kind of vow that certain men bound themselves to kill Paul—“with an oath of execration” (Acts 23:12, margin). A devoted thing could not be redeemed. If it was offered to the Lord, no change or substitution could be made.

30. The tithe of the land. Already belonging to God, the tithe cannot be vowed. The tithe of grain might be redeemed, but not that of cattle (v. 33).

31. Redeem ought of his tithes. The question has been raised whether it is legitimate now to withhold the tithe if later a fifth is added to it. This question reveals a misunderstanding of the words of Scripture. It was not a matter of withholding tithe that demanded a fifth to be added. It was a question of paying the tithe in kind, in wheat, barley, or whatever produce was tithed. There might be cases in which a man needed wheat for sowing, and would rather pay in money than in wheat. Under these conditions he might redeem the tithe by having the wheat appraised and paying this sum plus one fifth. The withholding of tithe was never contemplated. As noted above, it was only grain and garden produce that could thus be redeemed. Cattle could not be redeemed or exchanged.

32. Passeth under the rod. Rabbinical writers give the following explanation: When a man was to give the tithe of his sheep or calves to God, he shut up the whole flock in one fold, in which there was a narrow door capable of letting out one animal at a time. The owner about to give the tenth to the Lord stood by the door with a rod in his hand, the end of which was dipped in vermilion or red ocher. The mothers of these lambs or calves stood without. When the door was opened the young ones ran out to join their mothers, and as they passed out, the owner stood with his rod and touched every tenth one, coloring it. Whether poor or lean, perfect or blemished, it was re-received as the legitimate tithe.

34. These are the commandments. With these words Leviticus closes, giving God as the authority for its contents.

Ellen G. White comments

14-164T 467

30 AA 74, 336; CS 66, 71; CSW 130; Ed 44; MYP 308; 4T 467

30, 32 Ed 138; PP 525

32 3T 546