Vote
Vote
In his defence before Agrippa, St. Paul said when they were put to death, I gave my voice (, Revised Version vote) against them (Act 26:10). In Greek judicial procedure, pebbles () were used-black for condemnation, and white for acquittal (A. O. Seyfferts Dict. of Class. Antiquities, ed. H. Nettleship and J. E. Sandys5, London, 1899, p. 333a). Amongst the Romans, voting papers (tabellae) were used (W. Ramsay, Manual of Roman Antiquities, London, 1866, p. 108). In the Jewish Sanhedrin, decisions were given by word of mouth (Hasting’s Dictionary of the Bible (5 vols) , article Sanhedrin). It is very doubtful whether Saul was a member of the Sanhedrin. Most probably, when he spoke of his vote, he was expressing his approval of the sentence of condemnation pronounced against the Christians. The word is also found in Rev 2:17 bis, To him that overcometh () will I give a white stone, etc. In Greek judicial procedure, the man who was acquitted was spoken of as having overcome () (C. G. Wilke and C. L. W. Grimm, Clavis Nov. Test., Leipzig, 1888, s.v. ). (For other interpretations see Smiths Dict. of the Bible , articles Stones and Hospitality; Expository Times i. [1889-90] 1.) In both instances the word is used metaphorically.
John Reid.
VOW
The word vow occurs twice (as translation of the Greek word ) in the Authorized Version of the NT (Act 18:18; Act 21:23). In both passages it has been retained by the Revised Version . In Act 18:18 we are told that St. Paul, when on his homeward route at the close of his second missionary journey, had the hair of his head cut at Cenchreae before sailing from the port, for he had a vow.
In Act 21:23 reference is made to four members of the Church at Jerusalem who had a vow upon them. St. Paul had just returned from his third journey, and disquieting rumours had preceded him to Jerusalem. It was reported that he was teaching all the Jews of the Dispersion to forsake Moses, telling them not to circumcise their children, neither to walk after the customs (Act 21:21). Grave offence was thereby being given to the Jewish Christians, who were all zealous for the law. Accordingly, James and the elders urged the Apostle to seize the opportunity of vindicating his character which circumstances offered. By purifying himself with the men who had the vow, and by bearing the expenses incidental to its due completion, he would be able to prove that he had not abandoned the ancient custom of his nation.
There is nothing distinctively Christian about such vows as these. Indeed, the whole point of the course urged upon St. Paul lay in the fact that the vow was a purely Jewish custom, which would be completed in the Temple by a purely Jewish rite.
Such vows are not uncommon in the OT: e.g. the detailed exposition of the vow of the Nazirite in Num 6:1-22 (the Septuagint here translates the Hebrew word , which is rendered vow in the English Version , by ). They consist of an obligation, commonly self-imposed, to observe some special form of ceremonial purity for some specified time. The duration of the vow was marked by allowing the hair of the head to grow freely, its expiration by trimming the hair in the normal manner, and by the offering of certain special sacrifices. The vow of a Nazirite might be for life, as in the case of Samson (Jdg 13:7), or might even include an entire clan for several generations, as in the case of the Rechabites (Jer 35:6-11). The terms of St. Pauls own vow are unknown; but it is to be noted that it was terminated at a distance from Jerusalem, and therefore without sacrifices. As his departure from Cenchreae was virtually the end of the evangelistic work of his second journey, he may have considered that his vow expired automatically at that point. Or he may have terminated it in view of the impossibility of maintaining on shipboard the conditions which it imposed.
The only other passage in the NT in which the word occurs is Jam 5:15 (the prayer of faith [EV [Note: V English Version.
Fuente: Dictionary of the Apostolic Church
Vote
The Orientals are not accustomed to formal ballots on any occasion, and the Hebrews do not appear to have resorted to it in any form unless the lot (q.v.) may be so regarded. In Roman times the Greek custom of hand- showing (, ordain) gradually came into vogue, and hence has usually prevailed in the Christian Church. In Act 26:10 (A. V. voice) the Attic method of public decision by means of a tessara (, Rev 2:17) is thought to be alluded to; but if so, the use of the term is there merely metaphorical in the sense of judgment. SEE PAUL; SEE STEPHEN.
Fuente: Cyclopedia of Biblical, Theological and Ecclesiastical Literature
Vote
* For VOTE, Act 26:10, RV, see STONE, No. 2