If a man vows a vow unto the LORD, or swears an oath to bind his soul with a bond; he shall not break his word, he shall do according to all that proceeds out of his mouth.
Read Chapter 30
Procopius of Gaza
AD 528
If it is a serious matter to lie to another person, how much more to lie to God. When Scripture describes his majesty, it says that God is in heaven above, and you are on the earth below. This passage was written for us to imitate God, who said, “I will not break my covenant.” He says this about the life of each man: that is, if one has vowed abstinence from food, or shaving his head, or the offering of a sheep or a calf. Malachi commands that the best offerings should be brought forth when he says, “Cursed is he who has a male animal in his flock and makes a vow and then offers a blemished animal to the Lord.” The daughter of Jephthah preferred to undergo death rather than to render her father’s vow unfulfilled and mendacious. She did not know that she was the type of the saving Victim, whom she prefigured in herself. For this reason Jephthah’s deed was immune to guilt. It is not a model, because it does not follow the law. The deed was permitted only once, as a sign, for God rejects human sacrifice. Moreover, what is undertaken by children to the disgrace of their parents does not merit the name of vow, despite those wicked doctors and teachers who tell their parents that “whatever you would have received from me is Corban.” For God commands us to honor father and mother in all cases. A man who infringes on the vow of his new bride, which she made without her father’s approval, [does not sin]. The same applies to a married man who does not consent to a vow his wife made. For what is vowed when the woman is subject to a greater power, if it is not carried out, does not make her guilty. But if the woman becomes a widow or is separated from her husband, her vow is binding. This ancient institution of God is confirmed because the woman was made for the sake of the man, and it is just for her to obey him. There is also that verse from Paul, that the woman should revere the man. Scripture gives a similar explanation for matters concerning affliction of the soul, fasting and other practices, when it says, concerning the month of fasting, “In that month you will afflict your souls.” Catena on the Octateuch, on Numbers :.
