Numbers 30:3

“If a woman also vow a vow unto the Lord, etc.] Who has not passed thirteen years, as the Targum of Jonathan: [and] bind [herself] by a bond; lay herself under obligation to perform her vow by an oath: being in her father’s house; unto the twelfth year, as the same Targum; that is, that is under his care, tuition, and jurisdiction, whether she literally, or properly speaking, is in the house or no at the time she vows; so Jarchi interprets it of her being in the power of her father, though not in his house, she being not at age to be at her own disposal, but at his: wherefore it is added, in her youth; which, as the same writer explains it, signifies that she is “neither a little one, nor at…”

“If a woman also vow a vow unto the Lord, and bind herself by a bond, being in her father's house in her youth--Girls only are specified; but minors of the other sex, who resided under the parental roof, were included, according to Jewish writers, who also consider the name "father" as comprehending all guardians of youth. We are also told that the age at which young people were deemed capable of vowing was thirteen for boys and twelve for girls. The judgment of a father or guardian on the vow of any under his charge might be given either by an expressed approval or by silence, which was to be construed as approval. But in the case of a husband who, after silence from day to day, should…”

“Being in her father’s house in her youth - It was not ordinarily until her betrothal or marriage, that the female passed (some suppose by purchase) from the power of her father to that of her husband. return to 'Top of Page'”

“30:3-5 A young woman was under the authority of her father, who was responsible for her actions and her financial obligations.”

“Num 30:3-15 contain the rules relating to positive and negative vows made by a woman, and four different examples are given. The first case ( Num 30:3-5) is that of a woman in her youth, while still unmarried, and living in her father's house. If she made a vow of performance or abstinence, and her father heard of it and remained silent, it was to stand, i.e., to remain in force. But if her father held her back when he heard of it, i.e., forbade her fulfilling it, it was not to stand or remain in force, and Jehovah would forgive her because of her father's refusal. Obedience to a father stood higher than a self-imposed religious service. - The second case ( Num 30:6-8) was that of a vow of…”