But if he shall any ways make them void after he hath heard them; then he shall bear her iniquity — If the husband initially holds his peace but later voidsthe vow, he bears the iniquity (the covenant guilt) that would otherwise fall on the woman. His retroactive voiding does not absolve him; it transfers guilt to him. The law protects the woman from bearing responsibility for a vow that the husband has allowed to stand through silence and then undermined. The principle of male responsibility for household vows is clarified: if a husband nullifies a vow after initially accepting it (by silence), the moral burden falls on the husband's breach of faith.

COMMUNITY REFLECTIONS

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