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Sforno on Numbers Chapter 30

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זֶה הַדָּבָר אֲשֶׁר צִוָּה ה׳. כְּשֶׁאָמַר בְּהַר סִינַי ״וְלֹא תִשָּׁבְעוּ בִשְׁמִי לַשֶּׁקֶר וְחִלַּלְתָּ״ (ויקרא יט:יב), הָיְתָה הַכַּוָּנָה ״אִישׁ הַנֹּדֵר אוֹ נִשְׁבָּע לֹא יַחֵל דְּבָרוֹ״, כִּי בְּחַלְּלוֹ דְּבָרוֹ הוּא מְחַלֵּל אֶת ה׳. אֲבָל הָאִשָּׁה שֶׁאֵינָהּ בִּרְשׁוּת עַצְמָהּ, לֹא תִהְיֶה מְחַלֶּלֶת אִם יָפֵר הַמֵּפֵר.

Eliyahu Munk, HaChut Hameshulash

'וידבר משה אל ראשי המטות....זה הדבר אשר צוה ה, G’d had commanded the basic legislation at Mount Sinai when He had said (Leviticus 19,12) ולא תשבעו בשמי לשקר וחללת וגו' “do not render a false oath in My name and thereby desecrate it.” The plain meaning of that verse had not been that you must not deliberately swear falsely, but that having sworn you must honour your oath in all its details. A woman who is married and therefore subject to restrictions imposed upon her by the authority of her husband, is not considered as having desecrated G’d’s name when violating her vows or oath on that account, provided her husband had declared her vow void.

וַה׳ יִסְלַח לָהּ. עַל שֶׁנָּדְרָה מַה שֶּׁאֵין בְּיָדָהּ לְקַיֵּם.

Eliyahu Munk, HaChut Hameshulash

וה' יסלח לה, for having made a vow which it was not in her power to fulfill

כִּי הֵנִיא אָבִיהָ אוֹתָהּ. וְהִיא לֹא יָדְעָה אֶת דַּעַת אָבִיהָ כְּשֶׁנָּדְרָה, וְהָיָה נִדְרָהּ עַל דַּעַת לְקַיֵּם.

Eliyahu Munk, HaChut Hameshulash

כי הניא אביה אותה, and at the time she made the vow she had not known that her father would object to it. It had been her intention to honour her vow.

וְאִם הַחֲרֵשׁ יַחֲרִישׁ. שֶׁהַשְּׁתִיקָה בְּמִי שֶׁיֵּשׁ בְּיָדוֹ לִמְחוֹת הִיא כְּמוֹ הוֹדָאָה, שֶׁהַשּׁוֹתֵק הוּא כִּמְסַכִּים בְּמָה שֶׁנַּעֲשָׂה.

Eliyahu Munk, HaChut Hameshulash

ואם החרש יחריש, when someone who has the authority to cancel a vow keeps silent when he hears it, it is as if he had given his consent by not voicing his objection.

וְאִם הָפֵר יָפֵר אוֹתָם אַחֲרֵי שָׁמְעוֹ. אַחֲרֵי יוֹם שָׁמְעוֹ, שֶׁאֵינוֹ יָכוֹל אָז לְהִתְחָרֵט וּלְהָפֵר.

Eliyahu Munk, HaChut Hameshulash

ואם הפר יפר אותם אחרי שמעו, more than 24 hours after he had heard about it, i.e. when the period during which he could have cancelled it had expired, he can no longer change his mind;

וְנָשָׂא אֶת עֲוֺנָהּ. כְּמִשְׁפַּט כָּל מַכְרִיחַ אֶת חֲבֵרוֹ לַעֲבוֹר עֲבֵרָה, אוֹ מוֹרֶה שֶׁקֶר וּמַתְעֶה.

Eliyahu Munk, HaChut Hameshulash

ונשא את עונה, the same guilt as that of a person who forces someone else to commit a violation of Torah law, or who teaches Torah other than according to the halachah, thereby misleading the student.

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