Leviticus 27

What is the worth of a human being? How would you measure a person's value? People are made in the image of God Almighty. We know that God determined to redeem mankind, and that the Son of God became man. We know that even after Jesus came to save us, He did not relinquish His humanity. He is God and man now for the rest of eternity. People must be of great worth.

But in the ceremonial law of the Old Testament there was a valuation of persons in connection with voluntary vows made to the Lord where a male was worth more than a woman, and a mature adult was worth more than a little baby. The Lord established this system of redemption prices allowing someone to be bought back to freedom after giving himself to the Lord's service.

Under the worship laws of Israel a vow was a conditional promise made to the Lord. If the Lord would hear the petition of the one crying out to Him in worship, if God would give what was requested, then the worshiper was bound to pay the Lord what he had promised. This system of valuation allowed a person to promise himself or some other good gift, and then to pay a redemption price instead. This practice established something essential to Biblical grace. A payment could be made to free one who was in debt to the Lord.

The Lord did not reveal the reason for different valuations for different categories of people. While it might have seemed like an insult to have a lower value, remember that this made redemption more feasible for those in that group. If someone was too poor to pay the valuation according to the Law, the Lord had a different way: “He shall be made to stand before the priest, and the priest shall value him; the priest shall value him according to what the vower can afford.” The goal was freedom for the Lord's people, and not bondage.

A vow of a clean animal could not be redeemed or substituted. It had to be given. But if someone vowed an unclean animal, the priest would determine the value. If someone wanted to redeem it, he could add a fifth to the value given by the priest. The same procedure was to be followed for a house vowed to the Lord.

A man might make a vow to the Lord of part of his land. The value was to be based on the worth of its seed with an eye to the coming year of jubilee. The priest was to value the gift and it could be redeemed by the worshiper by adding a fifth to its valuation price. The land that was not redeemed would be a holy gift to the Lord.

A firstborn of a clean animal could not be dedicated to the Lord. It already belonged to God by His work of redeeming Israel out of bondage in Egypt. An unclean animal could be bought back, adding the fifth to the value.

A man was not to make a vow to the Lord too lightly. The priest would establish the value of the conditionally promised payment, and the only way to get that item back was to add a fifth to the amount the priest indicated. Some things could not be bought back at all. Anything set aside for destruction in the Lord's eyes could not be redeemed. A person needed to carefully consider what he dedicated to the Lord. The worshiper was not left to his own opinion on these matters. The priest would have the final word. This system of vows made and paid before God was not a light matter.

The tithes that Israel gave to the Lord were also to be paid according to the Lord's blessing. To keep a portion of the goods that should be in the tithe required the addition of a fifth to the fair valuation of this payment. No one should presume to cheat the Lord on vows or tithes. Any substitution designed to defraud God and His priests was an offense against God.

In the New Testament era, we no longer are called to make conditional promises to the Lord involving payments of people, animals, houses, or other gifts. We ourselves have been valued and purchased. The price set upon the people of God was not a small payment. God paid Himself for us in the coin of His own perfect righteousness. The blood of His Son was the only acceptable price according to the system of grace ordained by the Lord.

If anyone had brought a substitute in place of Jesus, it would have been judged as lacking in value. Partial righteousness would have done us no good in securing our own redemption, and we have absolutely none of our own perfect righteousness to give.

But now that we have been bought with the price of the precious Lamb of God, our Lord has been content to freely grant to us the fullness of heavenly freedom. We who were purchased by the blood of Jesus have now been given the greatest liberty. Yet we are pleased to remain as the Lord's servants. We even possess all the privileges of being His sons. Our love for our Redeemer has made us eager to stay near the Lamb who gave His price for our eternal well-being. This is grace upon grace, a costly redemption, and a gift of freedom to us as the beloved children of the Lord.