Dues. The position which this chapter holds after the formal conclusion, Leviticus 26:46, suggests that it is of a supplementary character. There seems, however, no reason to doubt its Mosaic origin.

And the Lord spake unto Moses,.... After he had delivered the body of laws in the preceding chapter, which by the close of the last seem to have been finished; but here some rules and instructions concerning vows are given, which a man was not obliged to make, but which he did of his own freewill and good pleasure: saying; as follows.

The directions concerning vows follow the express termination of the Sinaitic lawgiving (Leviticus 26:46), as an appendix to it, because vows formed no integral part of the covenant laws, but were a freewill expression of piety common to almost all nations, and belonged to the modes of worship current in all religions, which were not demanded and might be omitted altogether, and which really lay outside the law, though it was necessary to bring them into harmony with the demands of the law upon Israel. Making a vow, therefore, or dedicating anything to the Lord by vowing, was not commanded, but was presupposed as a manifestation of reverence for God, sanctified by ancient tradition, and was simply regulated according to the principle laid down in Deuteronomy 23:22-24, that it was not a sin to refrain from vowing, but that every vow, when once it had been made, was to be conscientiously and inviolably kept (cf. Proverbs 20:25; Ecclesiastes 5:3-5), and the neglect to keep it to be atoned for with a sin-offering (Leviticus 5:4). - The objects of a vow might be persons (Leviticus 27:2-8), cattle (Leviticus 27:9-13), houses (Leviticus 27:14, Leviticus 27:15), and land (Leviticus 27:16-25), all of which might be redeemed with the exception of sacrificial animals; but not the first-born (Leviticus 27:26), nor persons and things dedicated to the Lord by the ban (Leviticus 27:28, Leviticus 27:29), nor tithes (Leviticus 27:30-33), because all of these were to be handed over to the Lord according to the law, and therefore could not be redeemed. This followed from the very idea of the vow. For a vow was a promise made by any one to dedicate and given his own person, or a portion of his property, to the Lord for averting some danger and distress, or for bringing to his possession some desired earthly good. - Besides ordinary vowing or promising to give, there was also vowing away, or the vow of renunciation, as is evident from Numbers 30. The chapter before us treats only of ordinary vowing, and gives directions for redeeming the thing vowed, in which it is presupposed that everything vowed to the Lord would fall to His sanctuary as corban, an offering (Mark 7:11); and therefore, that when it was redeemed, the money would also be paid to His sanctuary. - (On the vow, see my Archaeologie, 96; Oehler in Herzog's Cycl.)

Leviticus 27:1-3This was to be, for persons between twenty and thirty years of age, 50 shekels for a man and 30 for a woman; for a boy between 5 and 20, 20 shekels, for a girl of the same age 10 shekels; for a male child from a month to five years 5 shekels, for a female of the same age 3 shekels; for an old man above sixty 15 shekels, for an old woman of that age 10; the whole to be in shekels of the sanctuary (see at Exodus 30:15). The valuation price was regulated, therefore, according to capacity and vigour of life, and the female sex, as the weaker vessel (1 Peter 3:7), was only appraised at half the amount of the male.

And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying,

CHAPTER 27

Le 27:1-18. Concerning Vows.

27:1-13 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.