Introduction:      There are a lot of things found in the Bible, particularly in the Old Testament, which seem rather quaint or mysterious, such as the concept of vows to God. Since this word occurs about 75 times in the Old and New Testaments, it is something that we ought to understand.

What ought to catch our attention first is, vows are found throughout the Old Testament, but not nearly as often in the New (and they are not spoken of in the epistles, which are Church Age doctrine). Let me suggest to you that, prior to the cross, man had a legal or a covenantal relationship with God. Although we tend to be very anthropocentric, it is the covenant which obligated God far more than it obligated us as men. If God does not do as He says He will, then God is not God (and a part of the Angelic Conflict is God vindicating His Own character). In order for God to fulfill his covenants with man, there needed to be the Suffering Servant Who went to the cross, offered Himself for our sins, and then became Israel’s promised Messiah and King. Once God has fulfilled this obligation in time, a number of things change. Covenants are downplayed, as would be vows (a divine covenant is God proposing an agreement between Himself and man; a vow is man proposing an agreement between himself and God).

After the cross, God sent us the Holy Spirit, a down payment on the future blessings that we will enjoy (2Cor. 1:22). This changes everything. Our lives are now based upon grace and relationship rather than upon covenants. We receive an inheritance from God because we are in Christ, His Son, and share His inheritance (Rom. 8:17). Furthermore, there are specific mechanics to the spiritual life and to spiritual maturity, none of which are dependent upon a covenant. It is in this light that we need to understand the concept of a vow.

Preface:              Personally, I have been putting off doing this doctrine for about 10 or more years. There were times in the books of Leviticus and Numbers when it was called for; and later in the book of Samuel and the Psalms. I had hoped that someone had saved me the work, but that does not seem to be the case. After beginning this doctrine, I became somewhat more enthusiastic; and must admit to being surprised that more doctrinal churches have not covered this topic.

1.      Definition of a vow and basic considerations:

         1)      In a divine covenant, God proposes an agreement to man, which obligates both man and God. Obviously, we can reject God’s covenants. In a vow, man proposes a contract which obligates both man and God; and God can reject any vow.

         2)      A vow is a promise that you make to God, either to do something or not to do something, in exchange for something that you ask God to do for you. Vows often occur when a person is under pressure. Financially, they cannot make their monthly obligations; they are in a foxhole and mortar fire is coming in at them; they have just received a cancer (AIDS, shingles) diagnosis; they face some intolerable situation and/or person at work (school, the barracks), etc. The person under this pressure asks God for relief from this pressure and he offers up something somewhat sacrificial in exchange (I will begin tithing at church; I will stop cheating on my wife; I will begin being honest in my business dealings; I will start attending church again). Gen. 28:20–22

         3)      Although the vow is officially made between man and God, vows are also observed by angels, who make up a cloud of witnesses. Heb. 12:1

         4)      Although there is real interaction between ourselves and God, there is not going to be any audible response from God. God is not going to say from on high, “Deal.” He is not going to send a bolt of lightning next to you.

         5)      Vows are made by believers (in Jesus Christ and/or in God), unbelievers, agnostics and outright atheists. It is not out of the question for an out-an-out avowed atheist to, under very difficult circumstances, make a vow to God or knowingly refuse to make a vow with God because they don’t want to give in.

         6)      Consequences: it is reasonable to suppose that, if God agrees to your vow, and then you renege on this vow, then there are consequences that we face. Eccles. 5:4

         7)      A vow is not defined under the Mosaic Law, but given some regulation. People made vows to God long before the Mosaic Law and people make vows to God as recently as the last second (and we are not under the Mosaic Law today).

         8)      The Bible legitimizes vows (it is found in at least 62 verses in the Bible). That is, we have examples of people who have made such vows; we have followed some of these vows out (not in depth, but enough to know the outcomes). It is reasonable to assume that God will keep up His half of a vow when He chooses to honor the vow.

         9)      Some vows can be goofy and even blasphemous; e.g., “If You make me a millionaire, I will blink my eyes 4 times in the next few seconds.” Some vows offer up things in exchange which God is not interested in—a donation to PETA, for instance.

         10)    If a vow gets an unbeliever in proximity with the gospel (e.g., I promise to go to church, a vow made by an unbeliever), then God often will agree to such a thing. If a similar vow gets a believer to move toward spiritual maturity, God will often agree to such a thing. Most people who make vows have no doctrinal conception of what they are doing. God agreeing to a vow is a matter of grace and the consequences for us are going to be gracious as well. A person who agrees to go to church, where the end result is, they hear the gospel or they learn some doctrine—this is obviously quite beneficial to them, even though they may see it as some great sacrifice that they are making.

2.      ISBE definition of a vow:

         1)      A vow could be positive (nedher) and included all promises to perform certain things for, or bring certain offerings to, God, in return for certain benefits which were hoped for at His hand (Gen. 28:20–22, Jacob; Lev. 27:2, Lev. 27:8; Nu 30; Judges 11:30, Jephthah; 1Sam. 1:11, Hannah; 2Sam. 15:8, Absalom; Jon. 1:16, vows of heathen); or negative ('iṣṣār), and included promises by which a person bound himself or herself to abstain from certain things (Num. 30:3).

         2)      Nowhere in the Old Testament do we find the making of vows regarded as a religious duty (Deut. 23:22), but the fulfilling of a vow was considered as a sacred and binding duty (Deut. 23:21–23; Judges 11:35; Eccles. 5:4; compare Psalm 22:25; Psalm 66:13; Psalm 76:11; Psalm 116:18).

3.      Smith’s definition of a vow: A vow is a solemn promise made to God to perform or to abstain from performing a certain thing. The earliest mention of a vow is that of Jacob. Gen. 28:18–22; Gen. 31:13. Vows in general are also mentioned in the book of Job, Job. 22:27. The law [of Moses], therefore, did not introduce, but regulated the practice of, vows [Genesis certainly predates the Law of Moses and Job is thought to predate it]. Smith suggests that there are 3 sorts of vows: (1) Vows of devotion; (2) Vows of abstinence; (3) Vows of destruction.

4.      The next few points are general thoughts on vows: There is a lot in Christianity which is not understood today. I think of, immediately, a person’s credit record, the importance of work and paying your own way; honesty in business dealings or the concept of a corporate witness. When it comes to vows and oaths, we need to keep focused on the Angelic Conflict. When we give a vow, which can include a contract or a handshake agreement, our personal integrity is on the line, as is our witness before the angels.

5.      A vow or an oath means that you are agreeing to do something or obligating yourself to do something (or a group of things). In the Old Testament, there were vows which were made to God, and we make those as well, to a lesser degree; but most of the vows which we make today are before men and with men (I use the word men in the non-gender-specific sense).

6.      Early on, in the Old Testament, we are introduced to the concept of the Suzerain-vassal treaty, where a sovereign makes an agreement with those who are often subject to his whims (that is, he could simply march his army into their city and destroy them all). Except to develop a reputation, a city of dead people does a Suzerain no good unless he simply wants this city for himself. Preferably, a suzerain wants to turn a city filled with people into an income producing entity. So he offers them a treaty of sorts. Sometimes, this treaty can be rather nasty (for instance, requiring that the right eye of every male be plucked out) and sometimes it can be somewhat reasonable (a payment of taxes or tribute to the suzerain). More information on the Suzerain-Vassal treaty can be found in the appendix.

7.      When you say something, this is heard, not only by those around you, but by the angels who surround you, both fallen and elect angels. Therefore, what you say is reasonably important. Remember when Jacob, who was pretty much an experiential loser throughout much of his life, spoke of his sons individually and blessed them—these blessings were meaningful, even though Jacob was not necessarily prophesying what would come to pass. He spoke of some general trends of these various tribes, and men have read this passage many times, and angels heard what he said; so God, therefore, would be put upon to see that, to some reasonable degree, that the blessings comes to pass.

8.      When you sign a contract, it is incumbent upon you, as a believer in Jesus Christ, to make every reasonable attempt to understand what it is you are signing, and then to perform your duties as laid out by the contract. You should do no less.

9.      A covenant is a treaty, contract or agreement which is made between two parties. A suzerain vassal covenant is a treaty/contract/agreement/covenant made between two unequal parties. The suzerain (king) dictates all the terms, lays down the law, makes certain promises, and explains the sanctions if the covenant is violated. What follows is not a suzerain-vassal treaty, which requires the ratification of the vassals and requires something from them (they will have obligations, duties, and/or taxes to render to their suzerain). What follows is known as an unconditional covenant—God makes unconditional promises to David and to Israel concerning what He will do on their behalf in the future. David is not required to do anything in order to receive God’s blessing.

10.    Old Testament vows before the Mosaic Law:

         1)      One of the first vows made in the Old Testament was made by Jacob:

                  (1)     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 put on, so that I come again to my father's house in peace, and Yahweh will be my God, then this stone, which I have set up for a pillar, will be God's house. Of all that you will give me I will surely give the tenth to you." (Gen. 28:20–22; WEB).

                  (2)     Jacob was asking for logistical grace (food and clothing) so that Y^ehowah would be his God, and that the stone that he set up would be a place of meeting God; and he promised to give a tenth of his income to God.

                  (3)     This was after God appeared to him in a dream the previous night and reaffirmed His covenant with Abraham, Isaac and Him (Abraham was his grandfather and Isaac his father). Unlike his grandfather Abraham, you might say that Jacob was less than faithful in his relationship with God. Gen. 28:11–17

                  (4)     There was some kind of an understood votive system in existence before the Mosaic Law, as is implied by Job 22:27.

11.    Vows in the Mosaic Law:

         1)      One could not offer up substandard merchandise in a vow. For instance, you don’t take a sickly calf and make some vow to offer it up to God. Lev. 22

         2)      A vow in the Mosaic Law was often dedicating one’s self, animals, possessions or land to God (that is, you promise to give some of these items to the Levites). Deut. 6 You could, instead, substitute money. You cannot vow something which is already due God (e.g., a tithe). Lev. 27.

         3)      Becoming a Nazarite was a system of vows, dedicating oneself to God. Num. 6

         4)      Num. 30 summarized: ISBE: A vow was as binding as an oath (see OATH) and therefore to be kept to the letter; and it was not to be lightly made (Prov. 20:25). A father could veto a daughter's vow, and a husband a wife's. If a husband did not veto a wife's vow, and then caused her to break it, the sin was his and not hers.

         5)      There are things which are not appropriate to vow to God. Deut. 23:18

                  (1)     Application: Offering up God some bit of human good will not be considered in order to get you out of some jam. That is, you can vow, “I will give $1000 to the Democratic party” or “I will begin to purchase carbon credits from one of Al Gore’s companies.” God is not interested.

         6)      We have to be careful as to what we say, so that we do not make a rash vow. There are human witness, angelic witnesses and God’s witness. Deut. 23:23

         7)      No one is required to make vows under the Mosaic Law. Deut. 23:22

12.    Old Testament vows after the Mosaic Law:

         1)      Israel, when moving up toward the land, in Num. 21:2–3, vowed to kill all of the Canaanites if God delivered them into their hand in battle. This suggests that a culture can complete destroy the souls of its children and women, to where such are not even redeemable as slaves.

         2)      Jepthah’s tragic vow of Judges 11:30–31.

                  (1)     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 comes forth from the doors of my house to meet me, when I return in peace from the children of Ammon, it shall be Yahweh's, and I will offer it up for a burnt offering. So Jephthah passed over to the children of Ammon to fight against them; and Yahweh delivered them into his hand. He struck them from Aroer until you come to Minnith, even twenty cities, and to Abelcheramim, with a very great slaughter. So the children of Ammon were subdued before the children of Israel. Jephthah came to Mizpah to his house; and, behold, his daughter came out to meet him with tambourines and with dances: and she was his only child; besides her he had neither son nor daughter. It happened, when he saw her, that he tore his clothes, and said, Alas, my daughter! you have brought me very low, and you are one of those who trouble me; for I have opened my mouth to Yahweh, and I can't go back. She said to him, My father, you have opened your mouth to Yahweh; do to me according to that which has proceeded out of your mouth, because Yahweh has taken vengeance for you on your enemies, even on the children of Ammon. She said to her father, Let this thing be done for me: let me alone two months, that I may depart and go down on the mountains, and bewail my virginity, I and my companions. He said, Go. He sent her away for two months: and she departed, she and her companions, and mourned her virginity on the mountains. It happened at the end of two months, that she returned to her father, who did with her according to his vow which he had vowed: and she was a virgin. It was a custom in Israel, that the daughters of Israel went yearly to celebrate the daughter of Jephthah the Gileadite four days in a year (Judges 11:30–40; WEB).

                  (2)     Although it appears as though Jephthah’s vow was to dedicate the first thing he saw come through the gates to Y^ehowah and that he would offer this same thing up as a burnt offering, that is not necessarily the case. She does not bewail her upcoming sacrifice as if she were an animal to have its throat cut, but she mourned her sacrifice as being and remaining a virgin for the rest of her life. See the exegesis of Judges 11 (HTML) (PDF).

         3)      Hannah’s vow to God concerning Samuel:

                  (1)     So Hannah rose up after they had eaten in Shiloh, and after they had drunk. Now Eli the priest was sitting on his seat by the door-post of the temple of Yahweh. She was in bitterness of soul, and prayed to Yahweh, and wept sore. She vowed a vow, and said, Yahweh of hosts, if you will indeed look on the affliction of your handmaid, and remember me, and not forget your handmaid, but will give to your handmaid a man-child, then I will give him to Yahweh all the days of his life, and there shall no razor come on his head. It happened, as she continued praying before Yahweh, that Eli marked her mouth. Now Hannah, she spoke in her heart; only her lips moved, but her voice was not heard: therefore Eli thought she had been drunken. Eli said to her, How long will you be drunken? put away your wine from you. Hannah answered, No, my lord, I am a woman of a sorrowful spirit: I have drunk neither wine nor strong drink, but I poured out my soul before Yahweh. Don't count your handmaid for a wicked woman; for out of the abundance of my complaint and my provocation have I spoken hitherto. Then Eli answered, Go in peace; and the God of Israel grant your petition that you have asked of him. She said, Let your handmaid find favor in your sight. So the woman went her way, and ate; and her facial expression wasn't sad any more. They rose up in the morning early, and worshiped before Yahweh, and returned, and came to their house to Ramah: and Elkanah knew Hannah his wife; and Yahweh remembered her. It happened, when the time was come about, that Hannah conceived, and bore a son; and she named him Samuel, saying, Because I have asked him of Yahweh. The man Elkanah, and all his house, went up to offer to Yahweh the yearly sacrifice, and his vow. But Hannah didn't go up; for she said to her husband, I will not go up until the child be weaned; and then I will bring him, that he may appear before Yahweh, and there abide forever. Elkanah her husband said to her, Do what seems you good; wait until you have weaned him; only Yahweh establish his word. So the woman waited and nursed her son, until she weaned him. When she had weaned him, she took him up with her, with three bulls, and one ephah of meal, and a bottle of wine, and brought him to the house of Yahweh in Shiloh: and the child was young. They killed the bull, and brought the child to Eli. She said, Oh, my lord, as your soul lives, my lord, I am the woman who stood by you here, praying to Yahweh. For this child I prayed; and Yahweh has given me my petition which I asked of him: therefore also I have granted him to Yahweh; as long as he lives he is granted to Yahweh. He worshiped Yahweh there (1Sam. 1:9–28; WEB).

                  (2)     Hannah, a barren wife of Elkanah, was quite distraught over the fact that she had not children; so she vowed to dedicate her first child to God, so that he would be raised up in the Tabernacle of God.

                  (3)     It is important to note that God listened to her vow and did His part of the bargain.

         4)      Absalom, in planning out his revolution against his father David, lied about taking a vow in Geshur in order to go down to Hebron and complete his plot to overthrow the established government in Jerusalem. His life would be cut short. 2Sam. 15

         5)      Don't be rash with your mouth, and don't let your heart be hasty to utter anything before God; for God is in heaven, and you on earth. Therefore let your words be few. 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 vow, than that you should vow and not pay (Eccles. 5:2, 4–5; WEB). Often times, in the Old Testament, a vow would be made, which involved additional animal sacrifices or additional monies for the Tabernacle or the Temple or for the Levites. The writer of Ecclesiastes recommends that these vows be paid—otherwise, do not make the vow in the first place.

         6)      We find a similar thing in Deut. 23:21–23: When you shall 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 shall forbear to vow, it shall be no sin in you. That which is gone out of your lips you shall observe and do; according as you have vowed to Yahweh your God, a freewill-offering, which you have promised with your mouth.

         7)      Psalmists spoke of fulfilling their vows to God. Such vows are mentioned about a dozen times in the psalms, including Psalm 66:13 76:11 116:14, 18 119:106 132:1–2. In fact, this actually reveals a whole other aspect to David’s life, as we do not read of David making any vows in the narrative of Samuel (unless one was made without using the word vow); however, his many mentions of them in the psalms indicates that David made a number of vows throughout his life.

         8)      Vows tend to be mentioned much less often in the prophets. Isa. 19:21

         9)      When Jonah evangelized the Assyrians, they both fears God and made vows. Jonah 1:16

13.    Jesus and vows:

         1)      Jesus did not condemn the practice of vows; simply their abuse.

         2)      One common abuse was, a person would take an oath and devote their money to God (R. B. Thieme, Jr. called this the Corban gimmick) so that they would not have to give it to their parents for the needs of their parents. “For God commanded, saying, "Honor your father and mother"; and, "He who speaks evil of father or mother, let him die by death." But you say, Whoever says to his father or mother, Whatever you would gain from me, It is a gift to God; and in no way he honors his father or his mother. And you voided the commandment of God by your tradition.” (Matt. 15:4–6; MKJV). The parallel passage in Mark 7:10–13 includes the word corban.

14.    New Testament vows:

         1)      There does not appear to be any sort of emphasis upon vows made in the New Testament, although some were made. In the Old Testament, the crucifixion was in the future, although it was a promise made by God. Our relationship to God was, in many ways, contractual (e.g., the covenants God made with Abraham and David). However, in the New Testament, we have the historic perspective and understanding of the cross, and recognize that God is completely gracious to us. In this way, both sides of a vow can often be seen as God’s grace to us.

         2)      Paul’s vow associated with the shaving of his head was likely a mistake on his part. Acts 18:18

         3)      Many Jews banded together to kill Saul, vowing not to eat and drink until he had been killed. Acts 23:12–15

         4)      Vows are not mentioned in any of the epistles.

15.    There is no reason to think that the God of the Bible does not listen to or consider the things which we have said. How many military men have made promises to God when pinned down in a fox hole, only to later honor their vow; or to ignore their vow. In any case, God clearly kept many such men alive.

16.    J. Vernon McGee: Christians today are notorious at making vows and breaking them. I noted this when I first began to move in Christian circles. As a young Christian, I went to a young people’s conference and watched eighteen young people go forward and dedicate themselves to the Lord for full time Christian service. I wouldn’t go forward because I did not know whether I could make good my promise. May I say that out of all of those who dedicated themselves to the Lord’s service that night, not one of them entered full time service! Have you made a vow to God? If you have, He wants you to keep it.

The Appendix

Notes to myself: Also check Strong's #'s 631 and 632 (binding with a bond) and swearing [or, oathing] an oath (Strong's #'s 7650 & 7621—BDB #989). See Scofield's footnotes Num. 30:2 (mentioned in Deut. 6:13) See Gen. 28:20 Ex. 20:3 Num. 21:2 30:2 Deut. 23:21–23 I Sam. 1:11 20:3 Psalm 50:14 66:13 76:11 116:14, 18 132:2–5 Prov. 20:25 31:2 Eccles. 5:4–5 Matt. 5:33–37 Acts 23:12–15. Keep in mind that making a vow is a natural thing for a man to do. We often, in order to get out of a jam, make a vow or a promise to God. See also Barnes' Notes Vol. II pg. 284 v. 13. (see ZPEB, p. 890) Check 1Sam. 1:28. Also check out Hard Sayings of the Bible, p. 194. Don’t forget our vows in marriage (Matt. 5:33–37 follows Jesus’ teaching on divorce)!!