Numbers 30:9

Old Testament Law (Torah) ASV (1901)

What does Numbers 30:9 say?

The American Standard Version records this verse as: “But the vow of a widow, or of her that is divorced, [even] everything wherewith she hath bound her soul, shall stand against her.” Read the surrounding verses and the named sources below before drawing broader conclusions.

The verse

But the vow of a widow, or of her that is divorced, [even] everything wherewith she hath bound her soul, shall stand against her.
Numbers 30:9 — American Standard Version

Context — Numbers 30

American Standard Version (1901) — public domain. Click any verse for its study page.
9But the vow of a widow, or of her that is divorced, [even] everything wherewith she hath bound her soul, shall stand against her.

What do historical commentaries say?

John Gill's Exposition
John Gill (1697–1771) · Exposition of the Old and New Testament · 18th-century historical commentary
“But every vow of a widow, etc.] The Scripture speaks, as Jarchi says, of a widow from marriage, or that has been married, but a widow from espousals (or that has been only espoused), the husband dead, the power is transmitted, and returns to the father; and with respect to such a case, it is said in the Misnah f451 “if the father (of such a betrothed person) dies, the power is not transmitted to the husband; but if the husband dies, the power is transmitted to the father; in this case, greater is the power of a father than of an husband; in others, greater is the power of an husband than of a father, because an husband makes void (the vow of) one at age, but a father does not make void (the…”
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Jamieson, Fausset & Brown
Robert Jamieson, A. R. Fausset & David Brown · Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible · 19th-century historical commentary
“every vow of a widow--In the case of a married woman, who, in the event of a separation from her husband, or of his death, returned, as was not uncommon, to her father's house, a doubt might have been entertained whether she was not, as before, subject to paternal jurisdiction and obliged to act with the paternal consent. The law ordained that the vow was binding if it had been made in her husband's lifetime, and he, on being made aware of it, had not interposed his veto [Num 30:10-11]; as, for instance, she might have vowed, when not a widow, that she would assign a portion of her income to pious and charitable uses, of which she might repent when actually a widow; but by this statute she…”
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Wesley's Explanatory Notes
John Wesley (1703–1791) · Explanatory Notes upon the New Testament and Old Testament notes · 18th-century historical commentary
“Widow or divorced - Though she be in her father's house, whither such persons often returned. Numbers 30:10”
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Tyndale Open Study Notes
Tyndale House Publishers · Tyndale Open Study Notes · Modern study notes
“30:9 A widow or a divorced woman usually returned to her father’s family (Lev 22:13), but a mature single woman who made a vow or pledge was required to fulfill her religious duties.”
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Treasury of Scriptural Knowledge
R. A. Torrey and contributors · The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge · Cross-reference reference work
“Lev 21:7; Luk 2:37; Rom 7:2 Numbers 30:12”
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Related study paths

Sources and verification