May 5, 2023

Would You Have Taken the Vow?

Numbers 6

Kathy Hempel Cox
Friday's Devo

May 5, 2023

Friday's Devo

May 5, 2023

Friday's Devo

May 5, 2023

Friday's Devo

May 5, 2023

Big Idea

God reveals the way and His will through His Word.

Key Verse | Numbers 6:24-26

The LORD bless you and keep you;
the LORD make his face to shine upon you and be gracious to you;
the LORD lift up his countenance upon you and give you peace.

Numbers 6

The Nazirite Vow

1 And the LORD spoke to Moses, saying, 2 “Speak to the people of Israel and say to them, When either a man or a woman makes a special vow, the vow of a Nazirite, 1 6:2 Nazirite means one separated, or one consecrated to separate himself to the LORD, 3 he shall separate himself from wine and strong drink. He shall drink no vinegar made from wine or strong drink and shall not drink any juice of grapes or eat grapes, fresh or dried. 4 All the days of his separation 2 6:4 Or Naziriteship he shall eat nothing that is produced by the grapevine, not even the seeds or the skins.

5 All the days of his vow of separation, no razor shall touch his head. Until the time is completed for which he separates himself to the LORD, he shall be holy. He shall let the locks of hair of his head grow long.

6 All the days that he separates himself to the LORD he shall not go near a dead body. 7 Not even for his father or for his mother, for brother or sister, if they die, shall he make himself unclean, because his separation to God is on his head. 8 All the days of his separation he is holy to the LORD.

9 And if any man dies very suddenly beside him and he defiles his consecrated head, then he shall shave his head on the day of his cleansing; on the seventh day he shall shave it. 10 On the eighth day he shall bring two turtledoves or two pigeons to the priest to the entrance of the tent of meeting, 11 and the priest shall offer one for a sin offering and the other for a burnt offering, and make atonement for him, because he sinned by reason of the dead body. And he shall consecrate his head that same day 12 and separate himself to the LORD for the days of his separation and bring a male lamb a year old for a guilt offering. But the previous period shall be void, because his separation was defiled.

13 And this is the law for the Nazirite, when the time of his separation has been completed: he shall be brought to the entrance of the tent of meeting, 14 and he shall bring his gift to the LORD, one male lamb a year old without blemish for a burnt offering, and one ewe lamb a year old without blemish as a sin offering, and one ram without blemish as a peace offering, 15 and a basket of unleavened bread, loaves of fine flour mixed with oil, and unleavened wafers smeared with oil, and their grain offering and their drink offerings. 16 And the priest shall bring them before the LORD and offer his sin offering and his burnt offering, 17 and he shall offer the ram as a sacrifice of peace offering to the LORD, with the basket of unleavened bread. The priest shall offer also its grain offering and its drink offering. 18 And the Nazirite shall shave his consecrated head at the entrance of the tent of meeting and shall take the hair from his consecrated head and put it on the fire that is under the sacrifice of the peace offering. 19 And the priest shall take the shoulder of the ram, when it is boiled, and one unleavened loaf out of the basket and one unleavened wafer, and shall put them on the hands of the Nazirite, after he has shaved the hair of his consecration, 20 and the priest shall wave them for a wave offering before the LORD. They are a holy portion for the priest, together with the breast that is waved and the thigh that is contributed. And after that the Nazirite may drink wine.

21 This is the law of the Nazirite. But if he vows an offering to the LORD above his Nazirite vow, as he can afford, in exact accordance with the vow that he takes, then he shall do in addition to the law of the Nazirite.”

Aaron's Blessing

22 The LORD spoke to Moses, saying, 23 “Speak to Aaron and his sons, saying, Thus you shall bless the people of Israel: you shall say to them,

24  The LORD bless you and keep you;
25  the LORD make his face to shine upon you and be gracious to you;
26  the LORD lift up his countenance 3 6:26 Or face upon you and give you peace.

27 So shall they put my name upon the people of Israel, and I will bless them.”

Footnotes

[1] 6:2 Nazirite means one separated, or one consecrated
[2] 6:4 Or Naziriteship
[3] 6:26 Or face

S2:085 Numbers 6

Listen Now

Dive Deeper | Numbers 6

Leviticus 20:26 tells us, "You shall be holy to me, for I the LORD am holy and have separated you from the peoples, that you should be mine." In the New Testament, Peter says, "But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light." (1 Peter 2:9) I thought holiness was a one-and-done deal. I accepted Jesus into my heart, and I am set apart. God has different standards for those set apart. Yet, He calls us all.

God chose the Levites to be set apart from the other Israelites. They had to live above the long list of to-do's established for the Israelites. Out of the Levites, God chose Aaron's line as high priests whose standards go a notch above the Levites. In Numbers 6, we learn of people temporarily setting themselves apart and calling themselves to a period of complete devotion to the Lord. They could not eat or drink anything from the vine, and no razor could be used on their heads. During their period of devotion, they could not go near a dead body—even a family member. If they accidentally did so, they had to bring offerings and begin their dedication period again.

Wow, clearly I misconstrued being set apart. It left me questioning: Could I/would I take that vow? The prideful part of me thought I could handle it until I got to the part about not being in the presence of a dead family member. But maybe I could, right? Then I realized that I can’t even make it through any day, setting myself apart.

But God didn't just leave His blessing, the Aaronic blessing in Numbers 6:24-26, to the Nazirites or the high priest or the Levites. His blessing was for everyone. I can and do fail. We all have sinned and fall short of His glory (Romans 3:23). But His blessing and gift of grace through His Son is for you and for me. He can put His name on us and bless us with more of Him (Numbers 6:27).

This month's memory verse

3 Do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves. 4 Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others.

– Philippians 2:3-4

Discussion Questions

1. If your community group, or better yet, unbelievers, were to look at your life, would they say that you lived a life set apart from the rest of the world?

2. We all fall short and need God's grace in our lives (Romans 3:23). Is the Holy Spirit leading you to give up something in your life? What might that be? If you are struggling to know what that might be, ask your community group what they see.

3. The Nazirites volunteered to devote themselves completely to God, knowing the sacrifice. Could you take that vow? What might give you pause?

As we gear up to release even more features for Join The Journey in 2025, our staff team, unfortunately, no longer has the margin to continue to support the comment functionality. We have big things in store for Join The Journey 2025. Stay tuned!

HS

Hugh Stephenson

GM Kathy. Great deep dive into Nazerites and the Aaronic Blessing. Both are favorite subjects of mine. Q1. At times yes. I’ve developed proficiency in confessing because I seem to have a lot to confess. But too often I’m majoring in the minors and getting sideways about things are not worth it or even close. Q2. Ok, so now we’re getting serious. Amplifying, what do I not want to give up and would hesitate? Hunting? SEC football? MLB playoffs? 3. The Nazirites volunteered to devote themselves completely to God, knowing the sacrifice. Could you take that vow? What might give you pause? No wine. No problem. No haircut…eh kind of messy but I’d deal with it. No dead bodies. No issue. No ESPN? Really? No iPhone? Now we have a problem. No bread pudding? Maybe with a grain offering as a sacrifice. I don’t think I’d be a good Nazerite.
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Hugh Stephenson

Love this note that helps me date the passage- Today - Some long copy/paste pieces from the notes but I’m including them as they have helped me better understand and clarify my thoughts. “The material in this major section (Lev. 1—Num. 6) comes between the date of the erection of the tabernacle and the movement of the camp some fifty days later (Num. 10:11)." In each chapter I am reminded not only how powerful the presence of God is but how focused I need to be in order to have this presence fill up every hour and minute of my day. Full focus and devotion are necessary. Carelessness will be very painful. “The Nazirite (from the Hebrew root nazar, meaning "to separate") illustrated the consecrated character of all the Israelites, and of the nation as a whole, in an especially visible way.” “His dedication to God did not remove him from society, but affected his motivation and activities as he lived.” On this point I see direct application. As in Genesis 1:26-28- God calls me to full engagement. I am set apart and sent out- but that doesn’t mean I’m on the sidelines watching the game. He has given me gifts so that I proclaim, witness, and teach, (Psalm 70:18, Acts 1:8, Matthew 28:19-20). All so that I may know Him and make Him known to others. "This law specifically shows that there were provisions not just for the priest but for all members of God's people to commit themselves wholly to God. Complete holiness was not the sole prerogative of the priesthood or the Levites. The Nazirite vow shows that even laypersons, men and women in everyday walks of life, could enter into a state of complete devotion to God. Thus this segment of text teaches that any person in God's nation could be totally committed to holiness."[102] "It can hardly be denied that there is a desperate need in the church today for such leadership, for men utterly given over to God for His purposes—not men of fanatical zeal (which can very often be fleshly and even devilish), but men of controlled fire, men who can truly say, 'One thing I do' (Philippians 3:13), men of whom it can be said that the love of Christ constrains them, giving their lives depth, drive, and direction in the service of God." “Though Jesus was not a Nazirite, He exemplified what those dedicated to God should look like in their behavior, regardless of when they happen to live.” “Severe uncleanness led to the Canaanites losing the land, and the same fate could befall Israel (Lev. 20:22–23). People who were unclean were forbidden to participate in worship, and their uncleanness could somehow infect the tabernacle, which would make it impossible for God to dwell there.” “These regulations in Numbers 5–6 are preventative: they aim to eliminate uncleanness from the camp so that the tabernacle will remain pure and God will stay with his people as they journey to Canaan. The principle that only the purified can belong to the kingdom of heaven is reaffirmed in Ephesians 5:5; Revelation 21:27; 22:14–15. Nazirites were the most dedicated laypeople in the OT. Samson, Samuel, and John the Baptist were lifelong Nazirites, but usually a person took a vow to become a Nazirite for only a specific period of time. https://www.gotquestions.org/Nazirite-vow.html https://www.gotquestions.org/grain-offering.html https://www.gotquestions.org/peace-offering.html https://www.gotquestions.org/drink-offering.html https://www.gotquestions.org/burnt-offering.html https://www.gotquestions.org/sin-offering.html
HS

Hugh Stephenson

On the Aaronic blessing- “The first blessing is the most general ("The LORD bless you, and keep you," v. 24). God's blessing is His goodness poured out. The priest called on Him, not only to provide for His people, but to defend them from all evil (cf. Matthew 6:13).” “The second blessing is more specific ("The LORD cause His face to shine on you, and be gracious to you," v. 25). God's "face" is obviously an anthropomorphism (a description of God in human form). A person's face reflects and expresses his or her attitude toward others. God's "face" is the revelation of His personality (i.e., Himself) to people. It radiates as fire does, consuming evil and bestowing light and warmth, and it shines as the sun, promoting life. God's graciousness refers to the manifestation of His favor and grace in the events of life.” “The third blessing is the most specific ("The LORD lift up His face on you, and give you peace," v. 26). The idea seems to be that God would look upon the Israelites, rather than disregarding them, and act on their behalf. He would give His attention to them. The priests, in pronouncing this blessing, would be calling on God to manifest His power for His people. This would produce peace (Heb. shalom). Shalom does not mean simply the absence of aggravation or hostility; it is the sum of all God's blessings.”
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Michael Sisson

Re: Num 6:1-21 Numbers 6:1-21 provides important ritual and cultural context where Nazirite vows figure prominently in the backstories of important individuals and episodes found elsewhere in Scripture. While most Nazirite vows involved a fixed period of time (usually 30 to 100 days), Scripture mentions two notables who were Nazirites for life: Samson (Judges 13:7) and John the Baptist (Luke 1:15-17). Conversely, the Apostle Paul himself took a Nazirite vow for a fixed period of time. (Acts 18:18) While we could glean spiritual insights from the experience of all three men, I’d like to take this occasion to focus solely on what we can learn from Paul’s Nazirite vow experience. In Acts 18:18, we learn Paul placed himself under a Nazirite vow. While we’re not told his reasons for doing so, his Nazirite vow is indisputable evidence that, more than two decades after the Resurrection, Paul was continuing to authentically practice Torah observant Judaism as a follower of Messiah Yeshua (Christ Jesus); he was NOT a cultural chameleon living one way among gentiles and another way among his fellow Jews. Moreover, from Acts 21:20-26 we learn Paul, at James’ urging, used the completion of his Nazirite vow (>>>which included making a sin offering [Num 6:16]; thus he wasn’t adding to the work of Christ, but rather demonstrating the “obedience of faith.” [Jn 14:15 and Rom 1:5]<<<) to very publicly and authentically demonstrate his ongoing Torah observance as a follower of Messiah Yeshua (Christ Jesus). >>>Paul did so expressly to disprove false accusations he was, “…teaching all the Jews who are among the Gentiles to forsake Moses, telling them not to circumcise their children nor to walk according to the customs.” (Acts 21:21; See similar “false” accusations in Acts 6:13-14; 21:28)<<< This further demonstrates Paul’s personal conduct was consistent with his own “rule in all the churches.” (1Cor 7:17-20; See also Gal 5:3) So why do we find Christian churches today still making those same “false” claims about the teachings of both Jesus and Paul?! Re: Num 6:22-27 The “Birkat Kohanim” (i.e. the “Priestly Blessing” or the Aaronic Benediction; conceivably recited by Yeshua at His Ascension in Lk 24:50-51) was intended to “put the Name of the L-RD upon the people of Israel.” ….Traditionally, the priests blessed the people every morning after the sacrifice at the Mishkan (Tabernacle, and later at the Temple). Today, Sephardi (Jews of Spanish extraction) synagogues end their services with this blessing as a benediction, whereas the Ashkenazi (Jews of northwestern and eastern European extraction) only recite it on Pesach, Shavuot, Rosh Hashanah, Yom Kippur, and Sukkot (Passover, the Feast of Weeks, the Feast of Trumpets, the Day of Atonement, and the Feast of Tabernacles). The Aaronic Benediction (spoken audio, with commentary) https://hebrew4christians.com/Blessings/Blessing_Cards/num6-24-26-jjp.mp3 The Aaronic Benediction (cantillation audio, with subtitles) https://youtu.be/VoDd0rQzg9U
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Chris Landry

Quite the challenge to consider the Nazirites and their vow. Any vow that challenges my comfort is one that I may simply (AKA: naturally) choose to sidestep. However, it is worth considering the underlying reasons for this. My first thought is the original sin: pride. You telling me what to do (or not do) is a direct assault on my own selfish desires. I think that's why God so literally commands us through Paul and our memory verse for this month. "Do nothing out of selfish ambition or in conceit..." Thankful for Grace. Thankful for the cross. Thankful for the substitutionary atonement for my own shortcomings. Lord, help me to be less selfish today.
SB

Sue Bohlin

Thank you, Kathy. This chapter is very dear to me. This year I'm using my old and tattered NIV from 1978. When we went through the Navigators' 2:7 Series, which is the foundation for Watermark's Equipped Disciple program, I learned that I could keep a streak of daily Bible readings going no matter what. Next to the Aaronic blessing, in fading ink, I read my inscription, "February 11, 1982. The morning of Kevin's birth." I remember waking up that morning, inwardly wondering how yet another chapter in Numbers could possibly fill my cup when I was so nervous about my scheduled C-section. Reading about the Nazirite vow didn't do it for me . . . and then I read the Aaronic blessing. Wow. So very beautiful, so very powerful. And so easily memorizable, which blessed me as I underwent all the steps of preparing for and undergoing both childbirth and surgery, meditating on this magnificent passage. It's always been very special to me. Then my appreciation cranked up even more when Oprah had author Toni Morrison on her show, who asked, "When your child walks in the room, does your face light up? Because that's when your face shows what's in your heart." And suddenly I understood what it means for "the Lord's face to shine upon you." How wonderful it is to both receive, and to give, the blessing of a lit-up face that says, "Oh, how I love and delight in you!" And the Lord God wanted His people to receive this very blessing--because He loved and delighted in them. As He does us.
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Amy Lowther

1. No. They consider me active and pleasant in work activities and active and pleasant in everyday activities. 2. There’s nothing right now. 3. Considering what the Nazirites went through, I appreciate my opportunities to learn and celebrate God in today’s society.
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Michael Scaman

What comes to mind about Nazarites for me? Besides no haircuts, wine or touching something dead for Samson who was an unusual Nazarite and managed broke all those rules? Eat locus with lots of honey like John the Baptist comes to mind? A hairy man like Elijah comes to mind. on Question 3) More importantly, whether I would choose to be a Nazarite might have the question the wrong way? Who does God choose as His Nararites might be closer to what we see in those cases.. We think of choosing but the Nazarites we know didn't 'chose' their dedication before birth or deaths. Samson, John the Baptist. John the Baptist were set apart by God through working through special circumstances and the parents somehow. We don't know Elijah's birth as he appeared on the scene suddenly turning off the rain. His death and going to heaven in a whirlwind puts him in the remarkable start and end of life category with the others. The Nazarites we know of appear chosen to be that before they were born. Yjey had special purpose in their lives and deaths , sometimes dying for God and sometimes being taken into the sky). That suggests God purpose will stand by His choosing and will. We think of no winner, losers just choosers, but it is God superintending it all "you did not choose Me I chose You' said Jesus. Psalm 65:4 ESV Blessed is the one you choose and bring near, to dwell in your courts! We shall be satisfied with the goodness of your house, the holiness of your temple!