Do Not Vow
Scripture Reading: Ecclesiastes 5: 1–7
“Be not rash with thy mouth, and let not thine heart be hasty to utter any thing before God: for God is in heaven, and thou upon earth: therefore let thy words be few . . . Better is it that thou shouldest not vow, than that thou shouldest vow and not pay,” Ecclesiastes 5:2, 5.
Do Not Vow
Father, in your mercy, deliver us from the traps and bondages of vows that we have not kept. Deliver us from foolish vows. Give us the grace to take counsel from your Word.
“Keep thy foot when thou goest to the house of God, and be more ready to hear, than to give the sacrifice of fools: for they consider not that they do evil,” Ecclesiastes 5:1. Next we are told not to be impulsive with our words of commitment, verse
2. “For a dream cometh through the multitude of business; and a fool’s voice is known by multitude of words. When thou vowest a vow unto God, defer not to pay it; for he hath no pleasure in fools: pay that which thou hast vowed,” verses 3–
4. It is better that we do not promise what we cannot deliver, verse 5. “Suffer not thy mouth to cause thy flesh to sin; neither say thou before the angel, that it was an error: wherefore should God be angry at thy voice, and destroy the work of thine hands? For in the multitude of dreams and many words there are also divers vanities: but fear thou God,” verses 6–7.
Many of us are familiar with making pledges. Upon joining an organization, members are encouraged to pledge a specified amount of money. After being encouraged to “step out in faith,” we make all sorts of promises. This is sometimes the case even in Christian ministries. We make vows with good intentions and at emotional moments, though we are not sure if we will be able to keep them. Either we are ill equipped to fulfill the vow or we forget.
Consequently, we decide to do whatever we can do, as little as it might be, and justify our actions by saying, “God understands.” But the Bible teaches that God does not understand. In fact, God is angry at such a voice uttering empty promises to Him. Can you imagine praying fervently, but as your voice comes out it causes God to be angry? What if God gets so furious that He destroys the works of your hands? Do not think that God does not hear when you make a vow to Him. Honour Him by fulfilling your vows, or better yet, do not vow. No matter how sweet the speaker or the pastor is, do not pledge; just give when you can afford it and give joyfully so that God will reward you.
If you are locked up in that bondage, ask our Lord Jesus to pray for you. Jesus is not only the Lord and Saviour, but He is also the Husband of the church; His body of believers. The Word of God says that if the husband nullifies the vows, it is nullified, Numbers 30:8,12. There is hope for deliverance from the destruction that is upon us due to our careless vows; Jesus sits at the right hand of God the Father interceding for us, and God loves to hear His Son’s voice.
Prayer Points:
Father God Almighty, we thank you for your reconciliatory work in our Lord Jesus Christ. We pray that our Lord Jesus Christ Himself will pray for us concerning careless unfulfilled vows, even as we determine in our hearts never to fall into that trap again. O Lord, give us the grace to fulfill the vows we can fulfill and deliver us from the bondage we are in because of the ones we cannot fulfill. O Holy Jesus, in your mercy, intercede for us today. Amen.
