Numbers 30:13 (WEB)
Every vow, and every binding oath to afflict the soul, her husband may establish it, or her husband may make it void.
As quoted in the map (KJV)
Numbers 30:13 (KJV)
Every vow, and every binding oath to afflict the soul, her husband may establish it, or her husband may make it void.
Key words
- נֶדֶרneder · Hebrew
- 'vow' — a solemn promise made to God.
- שְׁבֻעַת אִסָּרshevuat issar · Hebrew
- 'binding oath' — an oath of self-restriction.
- לְעַנֹּת נָפֶשׁle'annot nafesh · Hebrew
- 'to afflict the soul' — a vow of self-denial. Later Jewish law understood such vows to include abstaining from marital relations.
Why it matters
The Law of Moses assumes that a married woman may take a binding vow of self-denial, and gives her husband the right either to confirm it or to annul it when he hears of it; if he says nothing, the vow stands (30:6–8, 13–15). Pitre presents this as the legal framework that makes Mary's vow of virginity within marriage intelligible: Joseph, told of her state and her calling, upholds rather than annuls it. It is the second of his three evidences for the perpetual virginity.