When (A)you vow a vow to God, (B)do not delay paying it, for he has no pleasure in fools. (C)Pay what you vow. (D)It is better that you should not vow than that you should vow and not pay. Let not your mouth lead you[a] into sin, and do not say before (E)the messenger[b] that it was (F)a mistake. Why should God be angry at your voice and destroy the work of your hands?

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Footnotes

  1. Ecclesiastes 5:6 Hebrew your flesh
  2. Ecclesiastes 5:6 Or angel

When you make a vow to God, do not delay to fulfill it.(A) He has no pleasure in fools; fulfill your vow.(B) It is better not to make a vow than to make one and not fulfill it.(C) Do not let your mouth lead you into sin. And do not protest to the temple messenger, “My vow was a mistake.” Why should God be angry at what you say and destroy the work of your hands?

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25 It is a snare to say rashly, “It is holy,”
    and to reflect only (A)after making vows.

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25 It is a trap to dedicate something rashly
    and only later to consider one’s vows.(A)

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