Numbers 30
by Pastor David Groendyk

Next up as this generation prepares to enter the Promised Land, Moses addresses the topic of vows. This is a topic we probably know a little bit about. A vow is something someone would make in a time of need. It would go along the lines of, “Lord, if you _______, then I will _______.” I’m sure we’ve all filled in those blanks during prayer at some points in our lives. Typically, on his end of the bargain, the Israelite would either give something to God as a gift or he would abstain from something. And God expected his people to keep these vows. Ecclesiastes 5:4 says, “When you vow a vow to God, do not delay paying it, for he has no pleasure in fools. Pay what you vow.” God has no time for fools who don’t keep their vows.

The striking and perhaps confusing aspect of this chapter is the difference between men and women. Men were required to keep their vows to the Lord absolutely (vv. 1–2), whereas women had a set of conditions by which their vows could be voided by a husband or father (vv. 3–13). On the one hand, you might think that’s unfair towards women. How come a man has permission to void a woman’s vow? On the other hand, you might think that’s unfair towards men! How come men don’t get an “out”? On the third hand, maybe you’re just confused. But behind these differences are two foundational family principles: obedience to parents and the headship of the husband.

You see that in verses 3–5, if a young woman makes a vow, her father can void that vow immediately if he doesn’t like it. Likewise, in verses 6–13, if a betrothed or married woman makes a vow, her husband can void it. Why? Because, according to Gordon Wenham, a child’s obedience to their parents and a wife’s submission to her husband’s authority are more important than voluntarily-undertaken religious obligations, which is what vows were. To put it another way, no one is able to substitute self-imposed religious obligations for the God-given duties of family or marriage. This is also why widows do not have anyone to void their vows (v. 9), because they’re no longer married and are not subject to their parents’ authority. The New Testament addresses similar themes. In Matthew 15:3–9, Jesus condemned the Pharisees for allowing children to not take care of their parents for the sake of a vow they took. In that way, they were voiding God’s command for the sake of a human tradition and obligation. So, snuck into this chapter about vows, we have a good lesson on the importance of submitting to our parents as children and the authority (and responsibility!—see verses 14–15 about husbands bearing the penalty for his wife’s broken vow) of the husband in marriage.

But what about vows? Jesus says in Matthew 5:33–39 that Christians shouldn’t even need to take vows. When God keeps up his end of the bargain and the trial or crisis passes, we tend to forget the vow and promise we made. But a Christian’s ‘yes’ should be ‘yes’ and their ‘no’ be ‘no’. We shouldn’t need to invoke the name of the Lord to prove that we’ll keep our word, especially when it’s a matter of worship, obedience, or service to God. God is always true to his Word and his promises, and so should we be. In what ways have you felt the need to make a vow or pledge before God? In what ways do you fail to live consistently with what you’ve said?