When you vow a vow to Yahweh your God, you shall not be slack to pay it, for Yahweh your God will surely require it of you; and it would be sin in you. But if you refrain from making a vow, it shall be no sin in you. You shall observe and do that which has gone out of your lips. Whatever you have vowed to Yahweh your God as a free will offering, which you have promised with your mouth, you must do.
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Deuteronomy 23:21-23 sits inside this longer paragraph.
When you vow a vow to Yahweh your God, you shall not be slack to pay it, for Yahweh your God will surely require it of you; and it would be sin in you. But if you refrain from making a vow, it shall be no sin in you. You shall observe and do that which has gone out of your lips. Whatever you have vowed to Yahweh your God as a free will offering, which you have promised with your mouth, you must do. When you come into your neighbor’s vineyard, then you may eat your fill of grapes at your own pleasure; but you shall not put any in your container. When you come into your neighbor’s standing grain, then you may pluck the ears with your hand; but you shall not use a sickle on your neighbor’s standing grain.
Parallel Translations
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When you vow a vow to Yahweh your God, you shall not be slack to pay it, for Yahweh your God will surely require it of you; and it would be sin in you.
But if you refrain from making a vow, it shall be no sin in you.
You shall observe and do that which has gone out of your lips. Whatever you have vowed to Yahweh your God as a free will offering, which you have promised with your mouth, you must do.
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When thou shalt vow a vow unto the LORD thy God, thou shalt not slack to pay it: for the LORD thy God will surely require it of thee; and it would be sin in thee.
But if thou shalt forbear to vow, it shall be no sin in thee.
That which is gone out of thy lips thou shalt keep and perform; even a freewill offering, according as thou hast vowed unto the LORD thy God, which thou hast promised with thy mouth.
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(23-22) When thou shalt vow a vow unto the LORD thy God, thou shalt not be slack to pay it; for the LORD thy God will surely require it of thee; and it will be sin in thee.
(23-23) But if thou shalt forbear to vow, it shall be no sin in thee.
(23-24) That which is gone out of thy lips thou shalt observe and do; according as thou hast vowed freely unto the LORD thy God, even that which thou hast promised with thy mouth.
Examined in Scripture Analysis
Commandments (2)
The laws of the Torah, each cited and shown as a primary source.
Cross-references (27)
- Ecclesiastes 5:4-5 (vv21, 23) When you vow a vow to God, don’t defer to pay it; for he has no pleasure in fools. Pay that which you vow. It is better that you should not…
- Psalms 66:13-14 (vv21, 23) I will come into your temple with burnt offerings. I will pay my vows to you, which my lips promised, and my mouth spoke, when I was in…
- Psalms 116:18 (vv21, 23) I will pay my vows to Yahweh, yes, in the presence of all his people,
- Numbers 30:1-16 (v21) Moses spoke to the heads of the tribes of the children of Israel, saying, “This is the thing which Yahweh has commanded. When a man vows a…
- Psalms 56:12 (v21) Your vows are on me, God. I will give thank offerings to you.
Show all 24 cross-references
- Psalms 76:11 (v21) Make vows to Yahweh your God, and fulfill them! Let all of his neighbors bring presents to him who is to be feared.
- Genesis 28:20 (v21) Jacob vowed a vow, saying, “If God will be with me, and will keep me in this way that I go, and will give me bread to eat, and clothing to…
- Genesis 35:1-3 (v21) God said to Jacob, “Arise, go up to Bethel, and live there. Make there an altar to God, who appeared to you when you fled from the face of…
- Leviticus 27:2-34 (v21) “Speak to the children of Israel, and say to them, ‘When a man consecrates a person to Yahweh in a vow, according to your valuation, your…
- Deuteronomy 23:18 (v21) You shall not bring the hire of a prostitute, or the wages of a male prostitute, into the house of Yahweh your God for any vow; for both of…
- Proverbs 20:25 (v23) It is a snare to a man to make a rash dedication, then later to consider his vows.
- Jonah 1:16 (v21) Then the men feared Yahweh exceedingly; and they offered a sacrifice to Yahweh, and made vows.
- Matthew 5:33 (v21) “Again you have heard that it was said to the ancient ones, ‘You shall not make false vows, but shall perform to the Lord your vows,’
- Judges 11:30-31 (v23) Jephthah vowed a vow to Yahweh, and said, “If you will indeed deliver the children of Ammon into my hand, then it shall be, that whatever…
- Jonah 2:9 (v21) But I will sacrifice to you with the voice of thanksgiving. I will pay that which I have vowed. Salvation belongs to Yahweh.”
- Nahum 1:15 (v21) Behold, on the mountains the feet of him who brings good news, who publishes peace! Keep your feasts, Judah! Perform your vows, for the…
- Numbers 30:2 (v23) When a man vows a vow to Yahweh, or swears an oath to bind his soul with a bond, he shall not break his word. He shall do according to all…
- 1 Samuel 1:11 (v23) She vowed a vow, and said, “Yahweh of Armies, if you will indeed look at the affliction of your servant and remember me, and not forget…
- 1 Samuel 14:24 (v23) The men of Israel were distressed that day; for Saul had adjured the people, saying, “Cursed is the man who eats any food until it is…
- Jeremiah 44:25-27 (v23) Yahweh of Armies, the God of Israel, says, ‘You and your wives have both spoken with your mouths, and with your hands have fulfilled it,…
- Mark 6:22-23 (v23) When the daughter of Herodias herself came in and danced, she pleased Herod and those sitting with him. The king said to the young lady,…
- Acts 23:12 (v23) When it was day, some of the Jews banded together, and bound themselves under a curse, saying that they would neither eat nor drink until…
- Acts 23:21 (v23) Therefore don’t yield to them, for more than forty men lie in wait for him, who have bound themselves under a curse to neither eat nor…
- Judges 11:35 (v23) When he saw her, he tore his clothes, and said, “Alas, my daughter! You have brought me very low, and you are one of those who trouble me;…
24 distinct cross-references across this passage (27 total citations).
Cross-references from openbible.info (CC BY 4.0)
Explain this passage (14 sources)
Historical commentary, presented as a primary source — not an endorsement.
Private notes
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Geneva Bible translators 1599 · Public Domain On v23 If the vow be lawful and godly.
If the vow be lawful and godly.
Geneva Bible (1599) marginal notes — public domain.
John Trapp 1656 · Public Domain On vv21–22 Deu 23:21 When thou shalt vow a vow unto…
Deu 23:21 When thou shalt vow a vow unto the LORD thy God, thou shalt not slack to pay it: for the LORD thy God will surely require it of thee; and it would be sin in thee.
Ver. 21. Thou shalt not slack to pray.] Come off with it round and readily, as those {Zec 5:9} that had "wings," and "wind in their wings," Habent aulae suum cito, cito God loves a cheerful giver.
John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Matthew Poole 1685 · Public Domain On vv21, 23 Thou shalt not slack to pay it, to wit,…
Thou shalt not slack to pay it, to wit, if the matter of it be lawful, and in thy own power. See Num 30:2. Not slack or delay, because delays may make thee both unable to pay it, and unwilling too, the sense of one’s obligation growing every day weaker than other, &c.
It would be sin in thee, i.e. it would be laid to thy charge as a sin, and bring judgment upon thee.
Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
John Gill 1763 · Public Domain On vv21–23 When thou shalt vow a vow unto the Lord…
When thou shalt vow a vow unto the Lord thy God,.... Which must be of things in a man's power to perform, and of what are lawful to be done, and according to the mind and will of God revealed in his word, and agreeably to the manner of worship prescribed by him; as that he will offer such a sacrifice, a freewill offering to him, and the like, besides what he was bound to do, or give such and such things for the repair of the sanctuary, or for the relief of the poor; See Gill on Num 30:2. This law is thought by Aben Ezra to be repeated on the mention of the hire of a whore, &c. being forbidden to be brought for a vow, Deu 23:18,
thou shall not slack to pay it; or delay the payment of it, but do it immediately; since zeal and affection might abate, and there might not be hereafter an ability to perform, or death might come and prevent it; the Targum of Jonathan adds, at the three feasts, that is, of the passover, pentecost, and tabernacles; and the Jewish writers (h) say, that no man transgresses this precept respecting the delay of paying a vow, until the three feasts have passed:
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for the Lord thy God will surely require it of thee; exact the payment of it, and expect it, insist upon the performance of it, and punish for neglect:
and it would be sin in thee; guilt of sin would be contracted, and punishment inflicted; Aben Ezra interprets it of the latter.
(h) Maimon. & Bartenora in Misn. Roshhashanah, c. 1. sect. 1. & in Ediot, c. 7. sect. 4.
John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
John Wesley 1765 · Public Domain On vv21, 23 Not slack - Not delay: because delays may make…
Not slack - Not delay: because delays may make them both unable to pay it, and unwilling too.
John Wesley, Explanatory Notes Upon the Whole Bible (1754–1765) — public domain. Text via the GEBible commentary corpus.
Adam Clarke 1810 · Public Domain On v21 Verse 21. When thou shalt vow, &c.] See Clarke…
Verse 21. When thou shalt vow, &c.] See Clarke on Nu 30:2, &c.
Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible (1810–1826) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Joseph Benson 1811 · Public Domain On v21 Deu 23:21; Deu 23:23. Not slack — Not delay;…
Deu 23:21; Deu 23:23. Not slack — Not delay; because delays might make them both unable to pay it, and unwilling too. A free-will-offering — Which, though thou didst freely make, yet, being made, thou art no longer free, but obliged to perform it.
Joseph Benson's Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1811–1818) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Haydock's Catholic Bible Commentary 1859 · Public Domain On v21 Delay, beyond the time appointed. (Menochius) --- If no…
Delay, beyond the time appointed. (Menochius) --- If no time was specified, the vow must be fulfilled without any unnecessary procrastination. See Numbers xxx. 2. (Haydock) --- Vows induce an obligation which before did not exist. (Worthington)
George Leo Haydock (1774–1849), Haydock's Catholic Family Bible and Commentary, 1859 edition — public domain. Excludes Psalms (Douay-Rheims chapter numbering differs from Protestant) and Deuterocanonical books (Catholic canon only).
Robert Jamieson, A. R. Fausset & David Brown 1871 · Public Domain On v21 When thou shalt vow a vow--(See on Num 30:2).
When thou shalt vow a vow--(See on Num 30:2).
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown — Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
Daniel D. Whedon 1874 · Public Domain On v21 21. When thou shalt vow — Vows which were…
21. When thou shalt vow — Vows which were made to Jehovah must be kept, but there was no requirement to make the vows. Comp. Exo_22:29; Num_30:2, and Leviticus 27.
Daniel D. Whedon (gen. ed.), Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1874–1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers 1878 · Public Domain On v21 (21) When thou shalt vow . . . thou…
(21) When thou shalt vow . . . thou shalt not be slack . . .—The three yearly feasts are mentioned by Rashi and the Rabbis as occasions for the payment of vows. (See 1Sa_1:21.) This precept is cited in Ecc_5:4, but with sufficient verbal variation to prevent its being called a quotation.
A Bible Commentary for English Readers, edited by Charles John Ellicott (1878–1897) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Pulpit Commentary 1880 · Public Domain On v21 Vers. 21-23. A vow to the Lord, once made,…
Vers. 21-23. A vow to the Lord, once made, was to be religiously kept; the Lord would require it, and to refuse or neglect to pay it would be held a sin. No one, however, was under any obligation to vow that was to be a purely voluntary act. That which is gone out of thy lips thou shalt keep and perform. .. according as thou hast vowed unto the Lord thy God of free-will (hbdn, spontaneously). (For the law concerning vows in general, see Le 27, and Nu 30)
Vers. 21-23. Vows to God to be performed.
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The vow here made is supposed to be entirely voluntary. It was "a free-will offering." in Num_30:3-8, abuse is guarded against. Yews made without the knowledge or consent of the father or husband were to be of no force. No priest had any warrant from the Mosaic institutes to come between a young woman and her father, or between husband and wife. Vows to God were to he completely spontaneous, as between the soul and God. They were not to he extorted by others, nor yet to involve the entanglement of others.
Vers. 21-23. The place of vows.
It is not obligatory to make vows; it is obligatory to fulfill them. We are often free to contract an obligation; we are not free to violate it. A man is not bound to marry; having married, he is bound to cherish his wife.
I VOWS IMPLY SPECIAL ACTS OF KINDNESS ON THE PART OF GOD. The ordinary course of God"s bounty baffles verbal description. The forethought, the active energy, the well-laid plans, the unslumbering attention, the changeless affection, which are required for the preservation of human life, no language can express. But this is not all that God does for us. In times of unusual perplexity, special guidance is often vouchsafed to us. When surrounding events seemed most adverse to our interests, in answer to prayer, sudden deliverance has come. A precious life was in jeopardy: human help was unavailing; but God graciously interposed, and midnight suddenly became a summer noon.
II VOWS IMPLY, ON OUR PART, DEFECTIVE PIETY. Vows are made under the influence of excessive fear or from an influx of sudden joy. In a time of sharp distress, a man will put himself under special obligation, if God will grant his request. Or, when some expected good has fallen to one"s lot, in the impulse of sudden gladness we vow to devote some special offering unto God. Now, this is not wrong. Still there is something better. It is better to be always in a frame of trustful feeling, so that we may welcome whatever God ordains, and realize that what God does is best. It is better to rely upon his promise that help shall come in times of need! It is better to cultivate the habit of frequent offerings to God"s cause, so that no vow is needed to prick us up to the full discharge of duty. The vow implies that we cannot trust ourselves at all times to give to God his due. Therefore our endeavor should be to cultivate a childlike and a steadfast faith. It is good that the "heart be established with grace.
III VOWS CREATE FOR US A NEW OBLIGATION. Having made a debt, we are bound to pay it; but it is better not to accumulate a debt. Men lay a trap to catch themselves. Conscious of deficient trust and love towards God, they take advantage of some favorable state of feeling to make new obligations from which it shall be difficult to escape. In their better moods of mind they create new motives and new sanctions for religious conduct, which they cannot remove when the better feeling has vanished. They use the rising tide to bear their barque away. They utilize summer piety to provide for winter coldness. But having framed a religious vow, truth requires that it should be scrupulously kept. To violate a vow would injure our own soul"s life would deaden and stupefy conscience, would justly provoke our God. No common sin is this. D.
The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Biblical Illustrator 1887 · Public Domain On v22 If thou shalt forbear to vow.
Deu_23:22
If thou shalt forbear to vow.
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Extraordinary and particular vows considered as not necessary under the Mosaic or expedient under the Christian institution
I. The nature of vows under the Jewish dispensation: which, as they are particularly voluntary engagements, we ought to observe when made, though we cannot infer a necessity of making them from the Divine law or the nature of things. It would seem but an ill consequence should we thus argue: God has commanded us in general to honour Him with our substance, and therefore we ought to make ourselves liable to His judgments, if in such a particular case, at such a particular time, and to such a particular degree we do it not. This I say would be but an ill consequence, though there may be some fit reasons assigned why such particular vows were used by good and pious men under the circumcision (Gen_28:20; Jdg_11:20; Jdg_11:31; 2Sa_15:7-8). Hence we observe that things consecrated or desecrated, though they are in a vulgar sense styled devoted, are not always reducible under the general nature of a vow, in the proper and scriptural sense of the word, and there seems to be a greater difference than is commonly apprehended between them. Thus much may suffice to determine the notion of vows as they are distinguished from other sacrifices under the Jewish dispensation; but it will still be more clear from some further reflections upon the lawful matter of them. For this we need only in general observe that everything which was not appropriated to God, which was not profaned, or which was not properly under the right or arbitrament of another, was the subject matter of them. From whence it follows that tenths in the first place were, under the Mosaic law, excluded from it, and that these could not be vowed to the Almighty, or be accepted by Him as a freely promised offering, because they were properly His before both by prescription and command. Again, nothing which was profaned or unclean, unless as it was redeemable, could be the matter of a vow. The heathens, for the generality, had more exalted notions than to think their gods would be gratified with such sacrifices as were held in contempt by themselves, and were in their kind of least estimation with them. Lastly, whatsoever was under the right and power of another was excluded from the matter of a vow, and therefore those who were subject to the authority of fathers or husbands were by the law not obliged to the performance of vows made without their consent during their right and power over them.
II. Under the Gospel the Christians vows are comprehended under the sacramental, and therefore particular vows are neither necessary nor expedient. It may be proper to give a fit instance or two of particular vows in order to settle what are so. We are, in general, by our baptismal covenant, obliged to renounce all the sinful lusts of the flesh, and in consequence of this are obliged to make use of the means prescribed, suppose mortification by fasting. But should we by a solemn promise to God Almighty oblige ourselves to abstain such a number of days or hours, this circumstance nowhere enjoined would make it a particular vow. Again, we are obliged by our general vow to acts of charity and piety; but should we make a voluntary promise to God to bestow at such a future time such a certain sum to such an assigned use in view of such a desired blessing, this would also be a particular vow. And these are the vows which I undertake to prove neither necessary nor expedient. If they had been necessary, we might reasonably suppose that as our Saviour appointed that grand one for the initiation of His followers, He would also have prescribed the other, either by precept or practice, for the perfection of them, that so the use of them might have been derived by authority to the Christian Church, as it was to the Jews from the patriarchs. But we have no instance of this kind, either from our Saviour, His apostles, or followers, in the New Testament. And if we take them, under the general notion, as acts of gratitude, by which the good Christian promises to God the acknowledgment of a blessing by a suitable offering and oblation, though it is lawful and not absurd, as Calvin expresses it, to enter into such engagements, yet what advantage this method of acknowledgment has above others is not easily discerned. Should the pious Christian be made a peculiar favourite of heaven, and blessed with extraordinary advantages, either in prospect or possession, he may by his free gifts and offerings give a more noble and generous instance of his pious resentment, which under the law were always deemed the most acceptable sacrifices, and must recommend to the favour of the Almighty, who loveth a cheerful giver, whereas he, who lays a constraint upon himself, may give afterwards with an unwilling mind, and though he pays the vow, may not answer the end of it. And it is for these reasons, I presume, that the Jewish doctors discouraged and deterred their scholars from such kind of vows. But were they ever so expedient, the ill use which has been made of the doctrine of particular vows by the Church of Rome would be enough to give us a prejudice against them. (T. Silvester, M. A.)
The Biblical Illustrator, edited by Joseph S. Exell (c. 1880s–1900s) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
unfoldingWord translationNotes 2017 · CC BY-SA 4.0 On v21 General Information:
General Information:
Moses speaks to the Israelites as if they were one man, so the words "you" and "your" here are singular. (See: Forms of You)
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you must not be slow in fulfilling it
"you must not take a long time to fulfill the vow"
for Yahweh your God will surely require it of you
"because Yahweh your God will blame you and punish you if you do not fulfill your vow"
But if you will refrain from making a vow, it will be no sin for you
The full meaning of this statement can be made explicit. AT: "But, if you do not make a vow, you will not sin because you will not have a vow to fulfill" (See: Assumed Knowledge and Implicit Information)
That which has gone out from your lips
This is an idiom. AT: "The words you have spoken" (See: Idiom)
according as you have vowed to Yahweh your God
"whatever you have vowed to Yahweh your God that you will do"
anything that you have freely promised with your mouth
"anything that people have heard you promise to do because you wanted to do it"
with your mouth
"so that people heard you say it"
translationWords
vow
fulfill
sin
promise
unfoldingWord translationNotes — © Distant Shores Media and the Door43 World Missions Community, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Source: git.door43.org/Door43/en_tn.