I. Principles of vows and devoted things.

A. Voluntary - These things are not required of God, but are freely offered by a person because of an uncommon zeal for God. (This is talking about things vowed, not devoted.)

B. Divisions of things vowed.

1. Verse 1-8 - People.

2. Verse 9-13 - Beasts.

3. Verse 14-15 - Houses.

4. Verse 16-25 - Land.

C. Verse 26-34 - Things devoted (required or sanctified) to the Lord.

1. Verse 26-29 - Beasts.

2. Verse 30-34 - The tithe.

II. Verse 1-8 - The vow of the people. These people do not become slaves. The process works like this: Suppose a member of the Tribe of Judah became very encouraged or excited about God's service. So excited that they wanted to perform the services of the priest in the tabernacle. Since only the Levites were to go into the Tabernacle, anyone else would be killed. To take care of this situation, the Lord devised this method of payment, as a means of satisfying the person.

A. This does two things:

1. Cause the person to count the cost of service. The people would begin to understand some of the things the priest had to pay in order to be a servant of God.

2. An example of Matt. 10:40-42 - A church member isn't supposed to run or pastor the church, but if that person supplies for the pastor and aids him in his work, he'll receive the reward of the pastor.

B. Verse 3,4 - From 20 to 60 years old.

1. Male - 50 shekels of silver.

2. Female - 30 shekels of silver.

C. Verse 5 - From 5-20 years old.

1. Male - 20 shekels of silver.

2. Female - 10 shekels of silver.

D. Verse 6 - From 1 month to 5 years (This includes Hannah and Samuel [I Samuel 1:24-28]).

1. Male - 5 shekels of silver.

2. Female - 3 shekels of silver.

E. Verse 7 - From 60 years old and older.

1. Male - 15 shekels of silver.

2. Female - 10 shekels of silver.

F. What we learn from the rates of payment.

1. The male is always valued higher than the female because the responsibility of the Tabernacle is upon them. (Their judgment is also greater if they don't keep God's service like they ought to.)

2. Females can feel the desire to worship God just like a man does.

3. The age of 20-60 is the prime time to serve God.

4. There is no place for retirement in God's service, for anybody. People don't expect pastors to retire, but many pastors and church members do retire. There is a difference between backing up from active service and retiring altogether.

5. Babies a month old can begin their service of God through their parents.

G. Verse 8 - If a person can't pay the required amount, they go before the priest who works out a compromise.

1. Therefore, every person can dedicate themselves to the Lord and receive the reward of a prophet.

2. Therefore, there was grace in the law!!

III. Verse 9-13 - Beasts.

A. Verse 9-10 - Clean Beasts.

1. He can't change his mind, either for good or bad.

2. If he dos change his mind, both the original animal and the exchange belongs to the Lord.

B. Verse 11-13 - Unclean Beasts.

1. The priest puts a value on the unclean and keeps it for his own use.

2. If the original seller would buy the unclean animal back, he must add 20% to the price.

IV. Verse 14, 15 - Houses.

A. The value of the house is fixed by the priest. The house will be sold and the money given to the use of the Tabernacle.

B. If the original owner of the house decides he wants it back, he had to add 20% to the price.

V. Verse 16-25 - Land.

A. Verse 16-21 - The land that is a part of the possession given by Joshua.

1. Verse 16 - The value of the land is determined by its ability to produce and;

2. Verse 17,18 - The value is determined according to the time from the Jubilee.

3. Verse 19 - The original owner can redeem the land after its valued and before it's sold by adding 20% to the price.

4. Verse 20 - Once the land is sold it can't be redeemed by the original owner.

5. Verse 21 - In the Jubilee, the land doesn't return to the original owner, but goes instead to the priest.

B. Verse 22-25 - Land that is not a part of the possession given by Joshua.

1. The value of the land is determined like the land that is a part of the possession given by Joshua.

2. In the Year of Jubilee, the land returns to the original owner.

VI. Verse 26-34 - Things devoted (required or sanctified) to the Lord.

A. Verse 26-29 - Beasts

1. Verse 26 - All the firstborn of the clean beasts belong to the Lord. It was not to be used for a vow.

2. Verse 27 - All unclean animals will be sold at the appraisal price and the money given to the work of the priesthood, or it can be redeemed by adding 20% to the price.

3. Verse 28,29 - Nothing that is devoted to God can become anything else. They must be given completely to God.

B. Verse 30-34 - The Tithe.

1. Verse 30,31 - The tithe (tenth) belongs to the Lord. If the tithe would not be paid now, it must be paid later with a 20% charge for late payment.

2. Verse 32-34 - Two or three times a year, the priest would go to all the farms and cause all the animals to pass under his staff (rod). He would mark every 10th animal, which then belonged to the Lord. The condition of the animal didn't matter.

VII. All of these laws and regulations were received at Mt. Sinai.