Tanach · Rishonim on Tanach · Ramban · Torah
Ramban on Numbers 30:7/רמב"ן על במדבר ל׳:ז׳
אוְאִם הָיוֹ תִהְיֶה לְאִישׁ וּנְדָרֶיהָ עָלֶיהָ – עַל דַּעַת רַבּוֹתֵינוּ (נדרים עא א) יֹאמַר "אִם הָיוֹ תִהְיֶה לְאִישׁ" בָּאִשָּׁה הַזֹּאת אֲשֶׁר אָסְרָה אִסָּר בְּבֵית אָבִיהָ בִּנְעוּרֶיהָ וּנְדָרֶיהָ עָלֶיהָ, שֶׁלֹּא שָׁמַע בָּהֶן אָבִיהָ וְלֹא הוּפְרוּ וְלֹא הוּקְמוּ, וְשָׁמַע גַּם אִישָׁהּ בָּהֶן וְהֵפֵר אֶת נִדְרָהּ, כִּי גַּם הוּא יִשְׁתַּתֵּף עִם הָאָב בַּהֲפָרַת הַנְּדָרִים:
1AND IF SHE WERE AT ALL [BETROTHED] TO A MAN, AND THERE ARE VOWS UPON HER. In the opinion of our Rabbis45 Scripture [here] is saying: “and if she, this woman [mentioned above in Verses 4-6] were at all [betrothed] to a man, and bound herself by a bond, being in her father’s house, in her youth46 — and there are vows upon her, meaning that her father had not heard them, so that they were neither annulled nor confirmed, and her [betrothed] husband hears them as well [as her father who hears them now when she is betrothed], then he makes void her vow,47 signifying that he also joins [now] with the father in annulling her vows [that are upon her].”
בוְטַעַם הָיוֹ תִהְיֶה לְאִישׁ, שֶׁתִּהְיֶה אֵלָיו בְּבֵית אָבִיהָ וְלֹא בָּאָה אֶל בֵּיתוֹ, וְהִיא הָאֲרוּסָה, שֶׁגַּם הִיא יִקְרָאֶנָּה הַכָּתוּב "אֵשֶׁת רֵעֵהוּ" (דברים כב כד). וְלֹא רָאוּ רַבּוֹתֵינוּ לְפָרֵשׁ שֶׁיָּפֵר הַבַּעַל לְבַדּוֹ לְאִשְׁתּוֹ הַנְּשׂוּאָה הַנְּדָרִים שֶׁהֵבִיאָה מִבֵּית אָבִיהָ אֶל בֵּיתוֹ, כַּנִּגְלֶה מִן הַכָּתוּב, שֶׁאִם כֵּן מַה צֹרֶךְ שֶׁיַּחְזֹר וְיֹאמַר "וְאִם בֵּית אִישָׁהּ נָדָרָה" (במדבר ל׳:י״א)? בַּקּוֹדְמִין הוּא מֵפֵר, בַּנְּדָרִים שֶׁבְּבֵיתוֹ לֹא כָּל שֶׁכֵּן? וְהַקַּבָּלָה תַּכְרִיעַ:
2And the phrase she were at all ‘to a man’ means that she is [promised] unto him but [still] is in her father’s house, and has not yet come to his [the man’s] house, and [hence] this must refer to a betrothed girl, for Scripture calls her too, the wife of his fellow.48 of the man to whom she is betrothed, in the same way that here he is described as her ish (man) — literally “husband.” Now our Rabbis did not explain [that this verse refers to a fully-married wife, and teaches] that a husband himself can annul the vows of his married wife which she “brought along” from her father’s house to his house, as would seem the simple meaning of the verse, for if that were so, why would Scripture have to repeat itself and say [in Verse 11], And if a woman vowed in her husband’s house, for if he can annul [even] those vows which preceded [his marriage to her], surely [he can annul] those vows which [she makes whilst she is] in his house!49 a woman vowed in her husband’s house etc.? It must be because Verses 7-9 speak about a betrothed woman, in which case both the father and the betrothed do jointly annul her vow. “If the father revoked the vow but not the betrothed, or if the betrothed revoked it but not the father, the vow is not revoked. Still less need it be said if one of them explicitly confirmed the vow” (Nedarim 67a). — It should be noted that the term “betrothed” in this connection has reference to the actual “betrothal” of a man to a woman to be his wife [not a mere “engagement”]. In the eyes of the Jewish law she is then considered his wife, except that the consummation of the marriage takes place some time after the betrothal. And [even without resorting to this reasoning], it is the tradition [of the Rabbis] which decides [the true meaning of the verses].