Read Numbers 30
Vows
30 Moses said to the heads of the tribes of Israel: “This is what the Lord commands: 2 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.
3 “When a young woman still living in her father’s household makes a vow to the Lord or obligates herself by a pledge 4 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. 5 But if her father forbids her when he hears about it, none of her vows or the pledges by which she obligated herself will stand; the Lord will release her because her father has forbidden her.
6 “If she marries after she makes a vow or after her lips utter a rash promise by which she obligates herself 7 and her husband hears about it but says nothing to her, then her vows or the pledges by which she obligated herself will stand. 8 But if her husband forbids her when he hears about it, he nullifies the vow that obligates her or the rash promise by which she obligates herself, and the Lord will release her.
9 “Any vow or obligation taken by a widow or divorced woman will be binding on her.
10 “If a woman living with her husband makes a vow or obligates herself by a pledge under oath 11 and her husband hears about it but says nothing to her and does not forbid her, then all her vows or the pledges by which she obligated herself will stand. 12 But if her husband nullifies them when he hears about them, then none of the vows or pledges that came from her lips will stand. Her husband has nullified them, and the Lord will release her.13 Her husband may confirm or nullify any vow she makes or any sworn pledge to deny herself. 14 But if her husband says nothing to her about it from day to day, then he confirms all her vows or the pledges binding on her. He confirms them by saying nothing to her when he hears about them. 15 If, however, he nullifies them some time after he hears about them, then he must bear the consequences of her wrongdoing.”
16 These are the regulations the Lord gave Moses concerning relationships between a man and his wife, and between a father and his young daughter still living at home.
Go Deeper
Numbers 30 is a chapter that dives into the importance of vows and the seriousness with which we should make a vow or pledge. As Moses gathered the leaders of the tribes of Israel, he had important instructions for them to heed. Vows are made all the time. We give a handshake, we share that someone has our word, and we stretch out our littlest finger for a pinky promise. In many moments of the human experience, we make covenants and commitments in the day to day.
We interchangeably use the terms commitment and covenant, but there is a major difference. A commitment is a one-sided obligation that requires only one person. Think of the responsibility to a New Year’s Resolution, a student to their class schedule, an employee to a work project, or an athlete to their training program. On the other hand, a covenant is a shared agreement between two parties. The relationship between parents and children could be looked at as a covenant when we see healthy commitment of respect and honor. Additionally, the marriage of a husband and wife is our most transcendent yet immanent earthly picture of covenant. There is a deeply shared commitment from both parties that represent a bond greater than their own.
Although modern Christians may say to value “relationship over religion”, it is crucial to glean the wisdom of the Old Testament and use it to view God’s whole story. In the book of Numbers, Moses wrote on the laws that were established by Yawheh, the One True God of the Israelites. The law shared in Chapter 30 declares the importance of the integrity in the covenant of husbands and wives. The wisdom of this teaching is not exclusive to those in marriage. The law is meant to reveal that what matters to God should matter to us.
In Matthew 5:17, Jesus shares “Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them”. While Jesus was never in a marriage, we see the evidence of his faithfulness to the covenant with the Bride: the Church. We ought to be followers of Jesus that don’t only use him as a moral example, but a lifeline to our side of the commitment in covenants.
Questions
- What does this passage teach you about God? What does it teach you about humanity?
- In your relationship with God, how have you seen him stay faithful to the covenant in difficult times?
- How seriously do you take the covenants in your own life? Are there any areas of your life where you’ve strayed away from your covenant with God or others?
Did You KNow?
Pastor David Guzik of the Enduring Word commentary has this note, showing the connection between this passage and when Jesus addresses making oaths:
“Some people believe, usually based on Matthew 5:34-37, that vows or oaths are not permitted for God’s people today. But what Jesus said in the Sermon on the Mount regarding oaths was an emphasis on truth-telling and honesty, not an absolute prohibition of every oath. The Bible shows us that oaths are permitted under certain circumstances if they are not abused and used as a cover for deception.”
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8 thoughts on “Numbers 30”
Power of your WORDS
Let your yes be yes, and your no be no. Matthew 5:37. Say what you mean and mean what you say. Our ultimate goal in this life is to be Christ followers. We are to show who He is by our example. “Lie not one to another, seeing that ye have put off the old man with his deeds; And have put on the new man, which is renewed in knowledge after the image of him that created him: Where there is neither Greek nor Jew, circumcision nor uncircumcision, Barbarian, Scythian, bond nor free: but Christ is all, and in all” (Colossians 3:9-11, KJV). I am sure in your “life” you have come across or were one of those persons who said “Christians are hypocrites”, they say one thing but do another. Our words, actions, deeds, and demonstration of a believer is on view at all times. “I am being tempted by God.” For God is not tempted by evil, and He Himself doesn’t tempt anyone. But each person is tempted when he is drawn away and enticed by his own evil desires. Then after desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin, and when sin is fully grown, it gives birth to death (James 1:13-15, HCSB).
Sin happens when the thoughts of our minds become the desires of our hearts. The desires of our hearts then become the actions of our lives, and these actions are the sins that bring destruction in our lives. That means if all we are thinking about is not sinning, well, sooner or later we will do the very thing we are trying not to do. Why? Because it has become the thing that consumes our minds. So instead “Finally brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable—if there is any moral excellence and if there is any praise—dwell on these things” (Philippians 4:8, HCSB).
God thank You for how amazing You are!! God I give You honor, glory and thanksgiving for this beautiful COLD day. God protect those that do not have a home. God thank You for my yes being yes and my no being no. Thank You for the desires of my heart staying on You and Your word. God when my thoughts are not according to what You desire, thank You for being able to change the thought of my cheeseburger to a steak. God let You be what consumes my mind. Continually help me to bring all thoughts captive and to think, true, honorable, just, pure, lovely and commendable thoughts to Your praise. God thank You for these up coming minutes in this day, that You are on my mind more than any other thoughts in Jesus name amen
WOOHOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
2 “he must not break his word but must do everything he said.”
The lesson today is most certainly, “when you make a vow, keep it”! It puzzles me though that that the instructions for men is only two verses, but for women it is 13 verses with all sorts of differing scenarios depending upon the presence of men in her life! Why is this? Was this a bigger issue for women for some reason? Was this really about spelling out the consequences for men for the women under their care? Not really clear to me!
Anyway, my main takeaway today will be “keep my promises”!
Tara-Leigh Cobble has some helpful takeaways on this subject at The Bible Recap, Episode 66 (Numbers 28-30, 3/6/24).
https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-bible-recap/id1440833267?i=1000648171998
Thank you!
“These are the regulations the Lord gave Moses concerning relationships between a man and his wife, and between a father and his young daughter still living at home” (16). We see God as a protector over those he considered vulnerable, wives and young women. God’s instructions were always given out of a deep love for his people.
The Lord keeps His promises to us. In His wisdom He knows how much guidance we need in keeping our promises to Him and to one another. This chapter reminds me that my words and intentions have weight and power and must be honorable.
It’s crazy how god honors his covenant no matter if I sin a little or a lot. He’s always there for me.
I try to be like him in keeping commitments
🤐 Watch your words. Speak to uplift.