Commentaria in Leviticum
Allegorically, the man who vows and promises his soul is Christ, who in the first instant of his conception, seeing that it pleased the heavenly Father that he should offer himself wholly for men unto death, even the death of the cross, and that this was his will, nay precept, Philip. 2:8, accepted it, and bound himself to it by vow. For from that instant Christ consecrated himself by vow to God to redeem men, and to this end offered to God by vow all the actions and passions of his life, and death itself and the cross, Francis Suarez probably teaches, part 3, vol. 2, Quest. 28, sect. 2, and St. Augustine, Jerome, Theodoret and Basil hint the same on that of Psalm 21:26: “I will pay my vows to the Lord;” for these words, as of the whole of Psalm 21, are written literally of Christ. Christ therefore, vowing his soul, paid its price, namely the blood which he shed on the cross. For this blood, being that of the Son of God, was equal in price to the Son of God himself, namely Christ the Lord.
Tropologically, the Religious vows his soul, that is, himself wholly to God, the body namely by the vow of chastity, riches by the vow of poverty, the soul by the vow of obedience. Wherefore such follow Christ most nearly, and are Martyrs, spouses, temples and holocausts of God, as our Platus beautifully shows, book 2 On the Good of the Religious State.
HE SHALL GIVE THE PRICE ACCORDING TO THE ESTIMATION (which is here taxed and prescribed in the following verses).—The Hebrew here is involved; with Vatablus you may render it well and clearly thus: When a man shall have separated a vow of souls to the Lord, according to thy estimation (O priest: for he addresses him) it shall be estimated, and the vow of souls that has been made shall be redeemed; as if to say: When anyone shall have uttered a vow by which he devotes himself to God, according to thy estimation, O priest, he shall give the price, and redeem his vow and himself. For a vow of souls is that by which one devotes his soul, that is himself, to God.
3. HE SHALL GIVE FIFTY SICLES OF SILVER, AFTER THE WEIGHT OF THE SANCTUARY,—which, namely, are of most just weight, like the weight which is kept in the Sanctuary, as I said Exod. 30:13.
IF A WOMAN, THIRTY,—as if to say: Whatever man shall be of 20 years or more, provided he exceed not the sixtieth year, and shall have devoted himself to God, he shall give for the redemption of the vow 50 shekels, that is 50 Brabant florins; if a woman, he shall give 30. Note: A greater price is imposed here on men than on women or boys, because a man is worth more than a woman or a boy, both in himself, and for works and labours. Understand this of free persons, not of servants: whence you will ask what if anyone had vowed his servant to God, whether, and at what price, he had to redeem him? I answer with Abulensis, Quest. 55, 56 and 57: Such a servant was to be redeemed like other men, or rather like fields and possessions; for a servant is the possession of the master. The master, therefore, for the Hebrew servant whom he had vowed, paid a price in proportion to the time for which that servant was to serve the master, so that, namely, considering at what price he had bought him, and at the same time considering how long that servant was still to serve, he paid as much as corresponded, out of the price at which he bought him, to the years in which he was still to serve: e.g. a master bought a servant just after the seventh or sabbatical year, in the first year, for 60 shekels, and vows him when the third year has passed: since therefore the servant has three years still to serve, and in the seventh year, according to the law Exod. 21:2, to go out free, the master shall pay for his redemption half the price at which he bought him, namely 30 shekels; for these correspond to half the time, namely the three years in which the servant is still to serve. The master shall add besides a fifth part of the price, as was done in the redemption of other vows, namely 12 shekels; for 12 is the fifth part of 60. But if the master will not redeem the servant, the priest shall estimate and fix for the servant the just price already mentioned, namely of 30 shekels, at which he may be sold to some other.
But if the servant was not a Hebrew but a Gentile, and therefore to serve for ever, then he was sold at as much as he was absolutely worth for his whole life; and if his master wished to redeem him at the price just stated, he had to add over a fifth part of the price.
5. FROM THE FIFTH YEAR.—If, namely, his parents have devoted him; for a boy of five, lacking the use of reason, cannot vow.
8. BEFORE THE PRIEST,—even a lesser one, who at that time is ministering; for it is not expressed here that he must be the high priest. So Abulensis.
9 and 10. A BEAST THAT MAY BE SACRIFICED TO THE LORD, IF ANY MAN VOW, SHALL BE HOLY, AND CANNOT BE CHANGED,—as if to say: An animal fit for immolation is by vow as it were consecrated to God; whence I will not have it changed into another; and so if anyone has vowed such an animal for immolation, that very animal which he vowed ought to be immolated, not redeemed.
But if he did not determinately vow an animal for immolation, but said only in general: I vow this animal to the Lord; then he shall give it to the priest, as a thing consecrated to God, nor shall he be able to change it for another; and if he change it, both that which was changed and that for which it was changed shall be consecrated to the Lord: the priest, however, is not bound to immolate to God what was vowed in general; but may keep it for himself, or give or sell it to whom he will, as also tithes and firstfruits.
The same I say of an unclean animal which anyone had vowed to God, namely that the priest could take it, and keep it for himself, or give or sell it to another, if the vower and offerer would not redeem it; for God willed and ordained that all that is offered by vow should fall to the priest, Num. 18:14.
11, 12 and 13. AN UNCLEAN BEAST THAT CANNOT BE SACRIFICED TO THE LORD, IF ANY MAN VOW, SHALL BE PRESENTED BEFORE THE PRIEST, AND HE SHALL JUDGE WHETHER IT BE GOOD OR BAD (of great or small value), AND SHALL SET THE PRICE; WHICH IF HE THAT OFFERETH WILL GIVE, HE SHALL ADD ABOVE THE ESTIMATION THE FIFTH PART,—that by this fifth part, as an increase of the price, the burden of the priest might be compensated, by which he is bound to resell to him who vowed and offered the unclean animal, if he wishes to redeem it;
but if he will not redeem it, then the priest shall retain the animal, give it away or sell it, as I have said.
Note: This law held equally for any other movable thing that was vowed to God; for it is likely that movable things are reckoned under this law of animals, according to what will be said ver. 21. So Abulensis.
Note secondly: All animals and all things vowed to God could be redeemed, except clean animals for sacrifice.
14–15. ... SANCTIFY (consecrate by vow to the Lord), IT SHALL BE SOLD; BUT IF HE THAT VOWED WILL REDEEM IT, HE SHALL GIVE THE FIFTH PART OF THE ESTIMATION OVER AND ABOVE,—namely above the price estimated and taxed by the priest. The cause of this fifth part I assigned ver. 11.
Most preferred, however, to add the fifth part to the price, that they might redeem their property, because if they had not redeemed the house and other immovable thing, it would never have returned to them, not even in the jubilee, but passed absolutely into the dominion of the priests, who sold it; but so that in the jubilee it should return to them as the first owners, as is plain ver. 21; whence also the thing was sold for more or less, according as the jubilee was more or less distant, and therefore for less than if it had been sold and alienated for ever. For this reason, therefore, those vowing an immovable thing almost always redeemed it, and therefore few possessions devolved in the jubilee to the Levites and priests. So Abulensis.