Leviticus 27

Leviticus 27:2

A Singular vow] Vowes are religious promises of our selves, or those persons, or things, which are in our disposall and power, with reference unto God, and with a purpose to binde our selves by the vow for that, wherein before we were free. A singular vow, is a vow of a singular person, for himselfe, or for any thing by vow separate, and set apart from common to a sacred use; the word in the Originall hath a more emphaticall signification then is exprest (in the translation) importing somewhat of a miracle.

the persons] For of such were vowes sometimes, as 1 Samuel 1:11. It was also a personall vow, when a man vowed abstinence from some things (otherwise lawfull) with respect unto God, (as in the vow of the Nazarites to forbeare wine, strong drinke, and the eating of grapes, moist or dry, Numb. 6. vers. 3.) or to serve at the Tabernacle by carrying of water, or wood, or ashes, or sweeping the court, or by any other ministeriall attendance upon the Levites in their service of the Sanctuary; as the Gibeonites and Nethenims, Joshua 9:21; Joshua 9:27. So might women vow their assistance, as by weaving, washing, making, or mending the garments of the Priests. Now if a Levite vowed any thing above the dutie of his place in his ordinarie course, he was to performe both his ordinarie dutie whereto his calling did oblige him, and that whereto by vow he was engaged afterward.

Leviticus 27:3

thy estimation] The order proposed in generall, is applied to every one in particular according to the different estimation of his person, whereof the rules and raes follow afterwards; or thy estimation, may be the estimation of the Priest, in such cases as are not punctually determined.

thy estimation shall be] That is, if he will redeeme his vow, he shall pay so much for the maintenance of the Priest, and service and repaire of the Sanctuary.

fiftie shekels] By the yeare, that is, for every yeare 50. shekels; (as is conceived) for if the shekels had beene rated by the yeare, a single shekell for every severall yeare, it should have beene rather fourtie shekels for the fourtie yeares, then fifty.

shekell of the Sanctuary] See Annot. on Exodus 30:13.

Leviticus 27:4

thirty shekels] We are not by the different rate set upon a male and female, to value the difference of their persons or sexes, but rather their service, because a man for the most part is able to doe more profitable and advantageous service then a woman so also vers. 5. yet there is a different price, vers. 6. where there seemes to be no preeminence in abilitie for use and service.

Leviticus 27:5

five yeare old] If his parents have made a vow concerning him; for one so young could not by vow dispose of himselfe.

Leviticus 27:6

from moneth old] See Annot. on vers. 5.

Leviticus 27:8

poorer] Then that he can beare, or pay the estimation or rate according to his age, then the Priests shall value him, &c. this may be meant chiefly of such a one as was of abilitie when he vowed, but was by mishap made poorer when he should have performed what he had formerly vowed.

before the Priest] That may be inferiour Priests; for there is nothing to make the matter peculiar to the office of the Highpriest.

Leviticus 27:11

uncleane beast] Unlesse the Dogge were excepted, Deuteronomy 23:18.

Leviticus 27:12

good or bad] That according to the qualitie of it, the Priest may make the value more or lesse.

Leviticus 27:13

a fifth part] This was set down to make men stedfast in their vowes; and if they be not, for a penaltie of their levitie, if they faile, or fall off: the like addition was to be made for redemption of an house, vers. 15. which they might be willing to give, because otherwise it could not be redeemed, no not in the yeare of Jubile: and also for dealing falsly in the holy things, Chap. 5. vers. 16.

Leviticus 27:14

sanctifie] Or dedicate as by a vow, saying; This house shall be holy unto the Lord, and so separated for an holy use; if he redeeme his vow, or his house from his vow, he shall pay the rate which the Priest set upon him; else the Priest was to keepe the possession of it in perpetuitie.

Leviticus 27:15

fifth part] See Annot. on vers. 13.

Leviticus 27:16

according to the seed] That is, according to the proportion and value of the seed, which is fit to be sowne upon such a parcell of ground; as if it will take an Omer of Barley, it shall be valued at fiftie shekels of silver from Jubile to Jubile; that is, a shekell for a yeare; and this was so low a price, that the worst ground was worth it. Some take it, that the fifty shekels were to be for one yeares rent, and so the whole time from Jubile to Jubile would be about five hundreth shekels; but the former rate is more received.

of barley] That graine is especially mentioned, because it was most usuall in Africa, and other Easterne Countries.

Leviticus 27:17

sanctifie his field] That is, dedicate his field by a vow, to bestow the price or profit of it to the service of the Sanctuary.

from the yeare of Jubile] That is, as soone as the Jubile is past, and onward towards another Jubile.

Leviticus 27:18

after the Jubile] That is, at some yeares distance after the former Jubile.

it shall be abated] The yeare of Jubile shall be abated, and no price reckoned for that, because that yeare the land was to be free: nor is more price reckoned for the rest of the yeares, then according to the remainder of them after the vow o the yeare of Jubile.

Leviticus 27:19

fifth part] See Annot on vers. 13.

Leviticus 27:20

not redeeme] Neither he nor his next kinsman, Chap. 25. 25. See Gen. 5: 73

or if he have sold it] This is not meant, as some conceive, of him that dedicated the field by vow; for he could not sell it, having vowed it before, (unlesse he had redeemed it, which it here denied) but of some officer of the Sanctuary, as a Steward, or Treasurer, who managed such matters for the best behoofe and benefit thereof: so that though (hee) be the same word, the person may be varied: yet others conceive it to be meant of the person vowing, when either he neglected to redeeme his vow, or fraudulently sought to transferre the title of the field vowed, from God to another, in which cases he lost all liberty of redemption; and though he that bought it might possesse it untill the yeare of Jubile, yet then it was not to returne to the seller, but to the Priest, by vertue of the precedent vow; yet so that the Priests were to transferre the right of it to some of the same Tribe, and first of all to the neerest kinsman of him that vowed it; because the Land was divided betwixt the other Tribes, (among whom the Levites had no part allotted, Numbers 18:20.) whose portions were not to be confounded.

Leviticus 27:22

which is not of the fields of his possession] Wherein he had rather a tenant right as a Leasee, then a right of inheritance; and in such a case he was not to adde a fifth part, as in the redemption, vers. 19.

Leviticus 27:23

thy estimation] He gave the rule in generall, in the first part of the verse, of the Priest, in the third person; but puts it afterward, for instance, to present application of the Priest in being; so the meaning is, the Priest shall reckon, as thou for example, who art the Priest, for the present shalt value it, so shall it be. So is it, vers. 12.

Leviticus 27:24

shall returne] This, and the two precedent verses, may best be joyned together in one continued exposition, thus; If any man have bought a field, and before it be redeemed, have vowed it unto the Lord; when the yeare of Jubile is come, then he shall give the worth of it from the time of his vow to the yeare of Jubile, unto the Lord; and the field shall returne to the first owner, the vow of the buyer cannot alienate it from him; because it was not in his power to give away that right, which was by Gods expresse law in the yeare of Jubile due to another; for though it had passed by sale through never so many hands, it must be his at the last, to whom it belonged at the first.

Leviticus 27:25

Gerahs] A Gerah was a piece of silver, weighing sixteene graines of Barley corne.

Leviticus 27:26

It is the Lords] It is his already, by his expresse law designed for sacrifice, Exodus 13:2. Numbers 8:17. therefore not to be dedicated to him by a vow. Because a vow must be of such things as wherein the vower hath a particular interest, as his owne, though that interest cannot be any other then derivative from, and dependent on God; but such things as were not dedicated to God for sacrifice, might, or rather must be redeemed, whether of man or uncleane beasts. And though vowing and redeeming seeme contrary acts, yet a vow in one sense might be made with a purpose of redemption in another sense; as Samuel was vowed to God for service, yet with an intent to redeeme him from sacrifice, 1 Samuel 1:11.

Leviticus 27:27

an uncleane beast] Which though it might not be offered in sacrifice to the Lord, the price of it might be of use to the repaire of the Sanctuary, and the maintenance of the Priest.

shall adde] That is, if he will redeeme it. This is not to be understood of the first-borne of uncleane beasts, which the possessor was to redeeme by law, (without the addition of a fifth part) because as first-borne they were generally belonging unto God, though not by way of sacrifice; but of other uncleane beasts which were vowed voluntarily, vers. 11. See Annot. on vers. 13.

Leviticus 27:28

devoted thing] That is, so absolutely devoted unto God, as that it is not subject to redemption; but they rather devoted it to execration, that shall alienate it to any other use, then that whereby God may be glorified, whether in his service, or by his justice: whence the gifts of the Temple are styled anathemata, Luke 21:5. that is, gifts hanged up upon the wals or pillars of the Temple.

Leviticus 27:29

put to death] The Hebrew word Hherem, which is rendred by devoted, coming fron Hharam, which signifieth to consecrate, or curse; (but most usually to kill, or to destroy,) may be varied in the exposition of it, according to the difference of things or persons, to which it is applied; for applied to a thing without life, (as a fild is said to be Hherem, vers. 28. and the case is alike in other things also, set apart for Gods portion, Joshua 6:19.) it signifies either the alienation of it from all Civill right, and the perpetuall consecration, or dedication of it to the maintenance of Gods service and Sanctuary; (and if it were sold, or let out by the Steward, or some Officer belonging to the Sanctuary: for such dealing, in such affaires, it was in the yeare of Jubile to returne to the right of the Sanctuary againe, and to be disposed of, for the use and service thereof;) or the execration and destruction of it: If the thing called Hherem, were a living creature, and not of mankinde, it was either cleane or uncleane; if cleane, it was to be offered in sacrifice to God; if uncleane, the neck of it was to be broken: See Annot. on Exodus 13:13. If of mankinde, it was either of such as were acceptable to God, or execrable to him of the former sort were the Levites, who were chosen by God for the service of the Sanctuary all the dayes of their lives, in which respect they were Civilly dead, that is, so estranged from other worldly callings, and commerce, as if they were dead; and to continue so long in that service as that they must dye in it; and in this respect onely is the word Hherem, for the latter acception applyed to them, if they were such as were odious to God, as wicked men, and things belonging to them, which were abhorred of God for their sakes; then if he devoted them to destruction, there was no reprieve or preservation of them; Hherem applied to them was a fixed doome of their destruction, as of Idolaters, Exodus 22:20. and Canaanites, Deuteronomy 20:17. especially the Amalekites, Deuteronomy 25:19. See also 1 Samuel 15:3. 26. So that the manner of devoted things or persons called Hherem, was different from all others which might be redeemed; these being devoted absolutely and perfectly, with a resolution either expresse or implicite, to be irrevocable, never to be redeemed.

Leviticus 27:30

all the tythes] Out of the yearely increase, the first-fruits were deducted; out of the rest the tenth was taken for the Levites, Numbers 18:21. out of the nine parts remaining, was another tenth taken, and brought to Jerusalem, and there eaten by the owners, Deut. 12. 6, 7. and this second tythe was every third yeare distributed to the poore, Deut. 14. 28, 29. The tythe here meant is of the first sort, because if it were redeemed, a fifth part must be added.

Leviticus 27:31

fifth part] Besides the value of the thing it selfe. See Annot. on vers. 13.

Leviticus 27:32

rod] The Rod coloured at the further end with red, to marke the tenth of the cattle, that came out of the fold; whose doore was so little, that onely one could come out at once; and so counting one, two, three, &c. the tenth was touched with the red Rod, and marked for the tithe.

Leviticus 27:33

both it, and, &c.] This penaltie was to prevent the change, as vers. 10.