Numbers 30:2-4

New English Translation

Footnotes

1. Numbers 30:2 tn The legal construction states the class to which the law applies, and then lays down the condition: “men [man]—if….”
2. Numbers 30:2 tn The Hebrew text uses a cognate accusative construction to express this: “a man if he vows a vow.”
3. Numbers 30:2 tn The expression is “swear an oath” (הִשָּׁבַע שְׁבֻעָה, hishavaʿ sh^evuʿah). 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).
4. Numbers 30:2 tn The Hebrew text hasלֶאְסֹר אִסָּר (leʾsor ʾissar), 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.
5. Numbers 30:2 tn Heb “according to all that goes out of his mouth.”
6. Numbers 30:3 tn The qualification comes at the end of the verse, and simply says “in her youth.”
7. Numbers 30:3 tn The Hebrew text just has “in her father’s house” and not “who is still living,” but that is the meaning of the line.
8. Numbers 30:4 tn The intent of this expression is that he does not object to the vow.
9. Numbers 30:4 tn 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).