Here we read that the priest had to make personal judgments about the value and quality of different things dedicated to the LORD, whether that was food, land, or animals. We also read that people were dedicated to God, such as when Hannah gave her young son Samuel to the High Priest Eli ( 1 SAMUEL 1:11). The LORD made provisions for these types of dedications. In ancient times, this was normal. The Nazirites made holy vows dedicated to God (NUMBERS 6, JUDGES 13). This practice was not restricted to just Israel: other nations often gave their firstborn children, and sometimes themselves, to the god they worshipped. As Israel was emerging from ancient Egypt, they would have been familiar with these customs. God moved in and instructed Moses how to deal with this kind of ancient custom. This is what Leviticus 27 is alluding to when God instructsMoses on the assessment of the people depending on their gender and age. It is interesting that
these assessments do not consider if the person is sick or prone to sickness—a stunning deviation from the regular procedures for dedication in other religions of the ancient world.

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