Numbers 30:9-10

Vows Made by Widows

30:9 “But every vow of a widow or of a divorced woman which she has pledged for herself will remain intact. ¹  30:10 If she made the vow in her husband’s house or put herself under obligation with an oath,

Numbers 30:4

30:4 and her father hears of her vow or the obligation to which she has pledged herself, and her father remains silent about her, ²  then all her vows will stand, ³  and every obligation to which she has pledged herself will stand.

¹ tn The Hebrew text says her vow “shall stand against her.” In other words, she must fulfill, or bear the consequences of, whatever she vowed.

² tn The intent of this expression is that he does not object to the vow.

³ 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).