The Nazarite Vow

Let's bow in a word of prayer before we move on any further.

Let's ask the Lord for His help and for His favor.

Our Heavenly Father, again we thank You for this opportunity that You have afforded us to come into Your house to worship.

And we pray that You will help us.

Lord, we confess that we need Thy presence as it were to fill the room.

Lord, we need to know the power of God resting in this meeting house.

Lord, let there be nothing between our souls and the Savior.

Lord, we ask that we will know that felt reality of God speaking to our hearts.

And as we so often remind ourselves of the words of Samuel, Lord, let us hear that still small voice.

Lord, we pray that You will apply, as it were,

Your grace and Your love to our hearts.

Lord, we pray that You will apply, as it were, Your grace and Your love to our hearts.

Swear not, neither by heaven, neither by the earth, neither by any other oath,

but let your yea be yea and your nay be nay, lest ye fall into condemnation.

And then to the Psalms, the book of the Psalms, Psalm 61.

Again, these are just a few that I have selected.

Psalm 61 and the verse 8.

So will I sing praise unto thy name forever, that I may daily perform my vows.

And then Psalm 76 and the verse 11.

Now, vow and pay unto the Lord your God.

Let all that be round about Him bring presence unto Him that ought to be feared.

And then lastly, in the book of Deuteronomy, Deuteronomy chapter 23.

And the verses 21 to 23.

When thou shalt vow, a vow unto the Lord thy God, thou shalt not slack to pay it.

For the Lord thy God will surely require it.

And it would be sin in thee.

But if thou shalt forbear to vow, it shall be no sin in thee.

That which is gone out of thy lips, thou shalt keep and perform.

Even a freewill offering according as thou hast vowed unto the Lord thy God,

which thou hast promised with thy mouth.

Amen.

These are some serious verses that deal with the subject, the serious subject of a vow.

And so we're encouraged, we're admonished not to vow rashly or prematurely if we cannot pay the vow.

And so it's better that we do not vow if we cannot pay.

Verses to vow and then not to pay.

And then I want to turn over to Judges chapter 11.

And we've dealt with just the vow in Scripture.

We've seen these references, but there is a vow specifically.

And I'm sure you're familiar with it in Judges chapter 11 and the verses 30 to 31.

And you remember here, this is what's called Jephthah's vow.

And Jephthah vowed a vow unto the Lord.

And said,

If thou shalt without fail deliver the children of Ammon into my hands.

And so he puts a condition before the Lord.

Then it shall be that whatsoever cometh forth of the doors of my house to meet me,

when I return in peace from the children of Ammon,

shall surely be,

the Lord's,

and I will offer it up for a burnt offering.

We do remember who came to the door.

And it was Jephthah's daughter.

And so we learn that the foolishness of vows or rash vows from this passage.

And so a vow is not to be, as we also read here,

in many respects,

not to be in violation to the word of God.

Well, those are just a few references and that's really not,

those aren't the passages that we're going to look at here this evening.

I do want to turn our attention back to Numbers,

to Numbers chapter 6.

And I apologize, maybe I should have read it first.

But we're going to read the first 21 verses.

And we're going to get into the vow that is talked about in this verse.

In this passage.

And I trust the Lord to encourage our hearts and to help us as we study His words.

So let's begin reading in the verse 1 of Numbers chapter 6.

And the Lord spake unto Moses, saying,

Speak unto the children of Israel, and say unto them,

When either man or woman shall separate themselves to vow a vow of a Nazarite,

to separate themselves unto the Lord.

He shall separate himself from wine and strong drink,

and shall drink no vinegar of wine or vinegar of strong drink,

neither shall he drink any liquor or grapes, nor eat moist grapes or dried.

All the days of his separation shall be eating nothing that is made of the vine tree,

from the kernels even to the husk.

All the days of the vow of his separation, there shall no razor come upon his head,

until the days be fulfilled in the which he separateth himself unto the Lord.

He shall be holy, and shall let the locks of the hair of his head grow.

All the days that he separateth himself unto the Lord, he shall come at no dead body.

He shall not make himself unclean for his father,

or for his mother, or for his brother, or for his sisters, when they die,

because the consecration of his God is upon his head.

All the days of his separation he is holy unto the Lord.

And if any man die very suddenly by him, and he hath defiled the head of his consecration,

then he shall shave his head in the day of his cleansing, on the seventh day shall he

shave it.

And on the eighth day he shall bring two turtles, or two young pigeons, to the priest, to the

door of the tabernacle of the congregation.

And the priest shall offer the one for a sin offering, and the other for a burnt offering,

and make an atonement for him, for that he sinned by the dead, and shall hallow his head

that same day.

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . and he shall consecrate

unto the Lord the days of his separation, and shall bring a lamb of the first year for

a trespass offering.

But the days that were before shall be lost, because his separation was defiled.

And this is the law of the Nazarite, when the days of his separation are fulfilled,

he shall be brought unto the door of the tabernacle of the congregation, and he shall offer his

offering unto the Lord, one he-lamb of the first year without blemish, for a burnt offering,

and one you-lamb of the first year without blemish, for a sin offering, and one ram without

blemish, for peace offerings, and a basket of unleavened bread, cakes of fine flour,

mingled with oil, and wafers of unleavened bread, anointed with oil, and their meat,

offering, and their drink offerings.

And the priest shall bring them before the Lord, and shall offer his sin offering and

his burnt offering.

And he shall offer the ram for a sacrifice of peace offerings unto the Lord, with the

basket of unleavened bread.

The priest shall offer also his meat offering and his drink offering.

And the Nazarite shall shave the head of his separation at the door of the tabernacle

of the congregation, and shall take the hair of the head of his separation and put it

in the fire, which is under the sacrifice of the peace offerings.

And he shall take the sodden shoulder of his ram, and one unleavened cake out of the basket,

and one unleavened wafer, and shall put them upon the hands of the Nazarite, after the

hair of his separation is shaven.

And the priest shall wave them for a wave offering before the Lord.

This is holy for the priest.

With the wave breast and heave shoulder,

and after that the Nazarite may drink wine.

This is the law of the Nazarite who hath vowed,

and of his offering unto the Lord for his separation beside,

that that his hand shall get,

according to the vow which he vowed.

So he must do after the law of his separation.

Amen. I trust the Lord again to bless the public reading of his word.

It's also encouraging to see the last few verses.

That's a very encouraging benediction or blessing.

And I think we'll read that in closing here tonight.

But what I'd like to do is deal tonight,

with the Nazarite vow, if you haven't guessed already.

And so we come here, a Nazarite.

The Hebrew is Nazir.

And what does it simply mean?

It means one who is separated.

One who is consecrated.

And so a Nazarite was a person who really took a vow

to separate from certain worldly things,

and to consecrate himself to God.

And we read those verses in the opening eight verses

of Numbers chapter 6.

Now as you look at this vow,

and maybe I should have outlined it initially,

there are really five features of the Nazarite vow.

And I'll just outline them for you first,

before we get into our study.

The Nazarite vow really was voluntary.

It wasn't demanded.

It wasn't put upon him.

This was all done voluntary.

They took the initiative.

Whether it was a man or a woman,

they took the initiative to take this vow.

And we read there in verse 2,

when either man or woman shall separate themselves

to vow a vow of a Nazarite,

to separate themselves unto the Lord.

As I've already stated,

it could have been either a man or a woman.

This vow was done voluntarily.

This vow had a specific time frame.

And we'll get into that in a little more detail,

but you find there in verse 8,

as well as verse 13.

And it says there in verse 13,

and this is the law of the Nazarite,

when the days of his separation are fulfilled.

There were specific requirements.

There were specific restrictions the Nazarite had to adhere to.

In verses 3 to 7.

And then we see lastly at its conclusion,

a sacrifice is offered.

When the Nazarite was done,

a sacrifice was given in verses 13 to 20.

So we're going to jump into this

and we're just going to look at it as a study.

And I trust the Lord to encourage our hearts

as we look through this chapter here this evening.

We have to ask ourselves the question,

who were Nazarites?

Well, unlike a priest,

and we know that priests came from the tribe of Levi,

a Nazarite could really be anyone

from among the Hebrew people.

They could take a pledge to become a Nazarite.

They could have been rich.

They could have been poor.

They could have been young or old.

And as we've already pointed out in verse 2,

they could have been male,

male or female.

All were allowed to be a Nazarite.

Now, we have to then ask ourselves,

what was their vow?

What was the purpose of the vow?

Well, the requirements of the Nazarite vow

really are found primarily in the Old Testament passage

that we read here this evening.

But we could also turn to a couple others,

and we may look at that here

in Judges 13 as well as Amos 2.

And those who took the pledge,

those who voluntarily took this pledge,

consecrated himself or herself

to do some special service of God

for a period of time.

Although the Mishnah,

a collection of the Jewish oral law,

suggests a period possibly of 30,

or 60, 90, and even 100 days

that the Nazarite would agree to live

following certain prescribed regulations

as they do this special service as unto the Lord.

Now, as they were serving God,

they did not live under a rock or in a cave.

They didn't become a recluse or an isolationist.

No, they didn't live like a hermit.

They were among the people.

And so much so, they were showing the people

that they were performing a vow.

Now, there are some who were Nazarites for life.

And I'm sure you're thinking in your head

of the few that were Nazarites for life.

There was John the Baptist.

You remember reading of him in Luke 1.

And I'll turn there.

John was a Nazarite.

A Nazarite for life.

Luke 1 and verse 15 says,

For he shall be great in the sight of the Lord,

and shall drink neither wine nor strong drink.

And he shall be filled with the Holy Ghost

even from his mother's womb.

Now, he's an interesting figure, is he not?

And this is just by the way.

I truly believed he was saved in his mother's womb.

He had a unique family.

They all knew the Lord.

And here, John the Baptist was filled with the Holy Spirit,

even from his mother's womb.

I do believe that there is a rule,

but I also believe that there are exceptions to the rule.

And John the Baptist proves

that there are exceptions to the rule.

You turn to,

to Judges and we learn that Samson was a judge,

You turn to, to Judges and we learn that Samson was a judge,

or excuse me, he was, yes, and a Nazarite.

We read there in Judges chapter 13.

And the verse five to seven.

For lo, thou shalt conceive and bear a son,

and no razor shall come on his head.

For the child shall be a Nazarite unto God from the womb,

and he shall begin to deliver Israel

out of the hand of the Philistines.

Then the woman came and told her husband,

saying, a man of God came unto me.

And his countenance was like the countenance of an angel of God,

very terrible but i asked him not whence he was neither told he me his name but he said unto me

behold thou shalt conceive and bear a son and now drink no wine nor strong drink neither eat any

unclean thing for the child shall be a nazarite to god from the womb to the day of his death

and then we can turn just a few uh over well we have references in judges chapter 16 as well

concerning

samson and it says there that he told her all his heart and he said unto her there hath not come a

razor upon mine head for i have been a nazarite unto god and i have been a nazarite unto god and

i have been a nazarite unto god and i have been a nazarite unto god and i have been a nazarite unto

from my mother's womb and if I be shaven then my strength will go from me and I shall become weak

and be like any other man and then Samuel though Samuel really is not directly stated

but he met all the requirements so let's turn to first Samuel

and the chapter

the chapter 1

1st Samuel chapter 1 and verse 28 and verse 1

so we'll read now there was a certain man of Ramatham Zophim of Mount Ephraim

and his name was Elkazim

the son of Jehom

the son of Elihu

the son of Tohu

the son of Zuth

and Ephraim

and he had two wives

the name of the one was Hannah

and the name of the other Penina

and Penina had children

but Hannah had no children

but then we're going to read in verse 28

and we're going to skip down

therefore also I have lent him to the Lord

as long as he liveth

he shall be lent to be

or to the Lord

to the Lord

and he worshipped the Lord

and so the three

and these are the exceptions

as we've already stated

the Nazarite was to have a time frame

30, 60, 90, 100 days of service

but these three

we have Samuel

we have Samson

and we have John the Baptist

they were all from their mother's womb

dedicated for the service of God

they were Nazarites for life

and so we're going to read

those desiring to take the vow of a Nazarite

really had to be willing

to sacrifice certain aspects of their life

and for a duration of their pledge

and it's interesting

some of the things

and I'm going to turn back to numbers

some of the things

they had to abstain from

they had to abstain entirely from wine

they had to abstain from drinking

any intoxicating beverage

in fact it was so strict

those who decided to dedicate themselves

to God as a Nazarite

really had to abstain from

eating any grapes

or any product made from them

like juice or raisins

and even so on

so it was quite extensive

they had to not touch

their lips could not touch

the fruit of the vine

perhaps they had to

perhaps this was really

to guard the Nazarite

from being controlled

or being influenced

by any other spirit

other than God's spirit himself

and we can turn to Proverbs chapter 20

and as we've seen in Proverbs

these pithy statements

Proverbs 20

specifically addresses

or excuse me

addresses alcohol

it says

wine is a mocker

and strong drink is raging

and whosoever is deceived thereby

is not wise

and then we can appeal

to the New Testament Scriptures

you remember Paul speaking there

to the church at Ephesus

and he says there in chapter 5

in verses 17 to 18

wherefore be ye not unwise

but understanding what the will of God is

and the will of the Lord is

and be not drunk with wine

where is excess

but be filled with the Spirit

so the law of the Nazarite

they were to come apart

they were to separate themselves

they were consecrated

to the work of God

and they were to serve God

for a period of time

they were to live in the public arena

they were to show others around them

what they were doing

and why

as we continue on

we notice that probably

one of the most telling indicators

one of the things that stood out

for a Nazarite

was the fact

that they did not cut their hair

and so if you saw a Nazarite

walking down as it were

the street or the city square

and you saw someone

who had a hair cut

who had uncut hair

most probably you would have guessed

that they were a Nazarite

that they were performing a vow

and those who were under the vow

could not shave any hair

on their head

their eyebrows

their mustache

their beard

nothing

this meant that those who promised

to serve God in such a way

were easily recognizable

to other people

as long as they had long hair

bushy eyebrows

and an unkept beard

they stood out as it were

like a sore thumb

everyone knew

another thing

the Nazarite was not permitted

to come near a corpse

even if it was from a close family member

so that they would not be rendered unclean

and we read there in the verse 6

I think it's interesting

and I just say this by the way

that the interior design

of the temple itself in Jerusalem

had a special chamber

dedicated to those who pledged themselves

as a Nazarite

you read sketches of Jewish social life

in the days of Christ

by Alfred Edersheim

he said that this location was used

to wash their peace offerings

now it is interesting

if you turn back

and we're not going to go there entirely

but if you turn back

and you turn back

believe it or not

a vow could be rescinded

a vow could be broken

and it would be acceptable

but there were only two cases

in which that could happen

now under the Mosaic law

if there was a single woman

who made a Nazarite vow

who vowed a vow unto the Lord

her father actually could step in

and he could rescind her oath

as well in Numbers chapter 30

it states that a married woman

who had made a vow

who made a vow unto the Lord

her vow could be broken as well

and it could be broken by her husband

and so those are the two cases

where a vow could be broken

but apart from that

all had to follow through

with the vow

now I guess one of the big questions

that is often asked

is was Jesus a Nazarite

well Jesus was raised in Nazareth

yes we know that to be true

and so he is called a Nazarene

we can turn to Matthew chapter 2

and the verse 23

and he came and dwelt in a city called Nazareth

that it might be fulfilled

which was spoken by the prophets

he shall be called a Nazarene

but just because he was called a Nazarene

it doesn't mean that he was a Nazarite

he was not

he was not a Nazarite

he practiced things in many respects

that would not be permitted

if he were under the vow

and you know

we're not going to talk about that today

we're not going to get into all the debate there

at the wedding feast of Cana

did he or did he not drink

we know that he turned the water into wine

but there is some debate there

some people would even go as far as to say

that he did drink

and the reason why they say that

is because he was falsely accused

in Matthew chapter 11

and in Luke chapter 7

as being a wine bibber

or one who

was drunk

so Jesus also came close

to or even touched dead bodies

a Nazarite

was not allowed to do that

and we know at least three people

that the scripture records

that the Lord brought back to life

we know

Lazarus to be one of them

we read there in John chapter 11

he raised

Lazarus from the dead

he came to

the young corpse, that young man

in Luke chapter 7

and as well

to that girl, that little girl

in Luke chapter 8

and so he came

close or into

close proximity to

corpses which was

something that a Nazarite

was not permitted to do

but what happened

if

the Nazarite accidentally

broke his or her

vow

well the Nazarite had to go

through a ceremony

we read that there already

of restoration for cleansing

we read in Numbers chapter 6

and specifically verses 9 to 12

he shaved

or she shaved his head

brought two turtle doves

for two pigeons to the priest

for offerings and the priest made

an atonement for him

in addition a Nazarite

had to present a lamb

for a trespass offering

and it was as if he were starting

all over again

and the days already served

under the vow did not count

after their period

of dedicated service

as a Nazarite

it ended

a person had to present burnt

sin and peace offerings

at the temple again in

verses 13 to 21

and there they were

to shave their heads

and to burn the hairs

after which they were allowed

to return back to normal life

and so what was

their influence

among the people

and so the presence of

the many Nazarites

was considered as a sign

of God's blessing on Israel

you would take great encouragement

if you saw them walking around

there were many Nazarites

during the time of the prophets

Amos, Amos you remember

strongly condemned

the people for tempting

the Nazarites

to break their vows

let's turn to Amos chapter 2

Hosea, Joel, Amos, Obadiah

Amos chapter 2

and last verses of 11 and 12

and I raised up

of your sin

of your sons

for prophets

and of your young men

for Nazarites

is it not even thus

O ye children of Israel

saith the Lord

but then in verse 12

but ye gave the Nazarites

wine to drink

and commanded the prophets

saying prophesy

not

and so there were people

in Amos' day

who tempted the Nazarites

to betray his vow

with all this being said

I suppose it leads us now

to ask a few more questions

do Nazarites

or do Christians

practice the Nazarite vow today?

well no

in just a word

it was part of the Old Testament economy

and because the Nazarite vow

was voluntary

and personal

we can learn then

much from this

Old Testament passage

I suppose if there is

a passage that parallels

the Nazarite vow

it would be in

Romans chapter 12

verses 1 and 2

Romans chapter 12

also we'll turn to

1 Corinthians chapter 6

but you remember Paul

he says here

I beseech you therefore brethren

by the mercies of God

that ye present your bodies

a living sacrifice

wholly acceptable unto God

which is your reasonable service

and be not conformed to this world

but be ye transformed

by the renewing of your mind

that ye may prove

what is that good

and acceptable

and perfect will of God

it's interesting to see the words

Paul uses here in the verse 1

he says a living sacrifice

present your bodies

a living sacrifice

really in many respects

he's speaking of those

who have experienced the new birth

those who have been made alive

in Christ

those who are not dead

present your bodies

as a living sacrifice

unto the Lord

and you can contrast that

with the sacrifices

even in the Old Testament

the animal had to be slain

and so here Paul is suggesting

he's really exhorting

that we are to give God

our wholehearted devotion

is really the only logical

thing

a child of God can do

you turn to 1 Corinthians chapter 6

and the verse 20

it states there

and I'll back up and read verse 19

what

know ye not that your body

is the temple

of the Holy Ghost

which is in you

and you are to give God

your wholehearted devotion

which ye have of God

and ye are not your own

for ye are bought with a price

therefore glorify God

in your body

and in your spirit

which is God's

and just before we close

let me make just a quick point

of application through this all

you know God

at the end of the day

you and me

those who are His children

those who have experienced

the new birth

those who have been washed

in the blood of the Lamb

those who are now filled

with the Holy Spirit of God

those who claim to be

the temples of the living God

God wants us

to live a separated life

He wants us to live

a holy life

we read there

and it's of no coincidence

there in Leviticus chapter 20

in our reading

you know

be ye holy

for I am holy

we are called as God's people

to live holy lives

separated lives

consecrated lives

unto the Lord

we're to give our entire life

our entire being to Him

we're to live wholeheartedly

in devotion to Him

and as it was stated already

it's the logical thing

we should do

we are to abstain

and I do believe

abstinence is found in the New Testament

that there are things that we are to abstain from

and so we are to abstain from things of God's will

of the world.

The world may go after them

and crave them.

We are to abstain.

Now, it's not my desire.

It's not my intention

to get into whether a Christian can drink

or not drink.

And there are some who will argue

that they can,

and there is good proof

that they should not.

But I do believe that at the end of the day,

a child of God should nonetheless

abstain from those things

that the world finds pleasure in.

Especially drink.

You know, let not your good be evil spoken of.

You don't want to give the appearance of evil.

And so I think it's very good

for the children of God

to abstain from those things

that the world seeks and runs after.

Like the Nazarite,

the Christian must live

a dedicated life of service

to God.

And, you know,

we don't have to all be,

as it were,

in the ministry to do that.

We don't need to be missionaries

and Sunday school teachers

and pastors.

We can simply be moms and dads,

those who go to work

Monday through Friday.

Those who are serving the Lord

wherever it is they find their hand to do.

They do it with all their might.

But they live a dedicated life

unto the Lord.

They're being faithful in the small things.

They're being faithful in the great things.

They're serving the Lord with gladness.

And they're not doing it for a period of time.

You know, oh, there are some who,

you know, they kind of,

like a flash in the pan,

you know, they just burn up

and they're on fire

and then nothing.

You know, for the child of God,

we're to be constant.

We're to just keep on keeping on.

We're to serve the Lord

not for a period of 30 or 60 or 90 or 100 days,

but we're to serve the Lord for a lifetime.

Day by day.

And with each passing moment.

And during that time,

if the Christian fails in any way,

and you know we will,

but if at any time the Christian fails

in any way,

he or she can bring before the Lord

the person and the work

of the Lord Jesus Christ.

We have an advocate with the Father,

Jesus Christ the righteous.

And so we have, you know,

this parallel, I suppose,

a passage of the Nazarite vow

in Numbers chapter 6.

Oh, we don't have to let our hair grow long

and let our beard get scraggly

and our eyebrows go awry.

Oh, we, you know, give a good appearance

that we're walking with the Lord.

But nonetheless, we are to show the world

like the Nazarite,

that yes, we are different.

That there is something peculiar about us.

That we are the Lord's people.

And that we speak that way,

that we walk that way.

And that they'll see in us, Christ,

the hope of glory.

Well, I trust the Lord to take this study

concerning the Nazarite vow

and to bless it to our own hearts.

Again, I was certainly encouraged

to open up with that hymn here this evening.

There in the first hymn, 576.

Vows are very important.

And I suppose we have to be very careful.

And especially, I think, young people.

And I find this to be something,

you know, when you go to, say, a camp.

You know, I think it's very important

to encourage young people

to be careful what they vow.

Because sometimes, you know,

you can get caught up into the moment.

And you don't have to be young necessarily,

but you can be caught up into the moment.

You can, you know, see things going,

going on around you.

You can see the Lord moving possibly

among other hearts and in other lives.

And then all of a sudden, in a flash,

you make a vow.

And maybe over a course of a time,

you forget that vow.

But you have to remember,

God did not forget the vow.

And He will hold you to it.

And so you have to remember what you have vowed.

And as the Word of God states,

as we've looked in Ecclesiastes and James

and in the Psalms and in Deuteronomy,

be careful what you vow.

It is better not to have vowed

versus vowing and not paying.

Well, I trust the Lord to bless our hearts

and to encourage us all in the things of the Lord.

Let's bow in a word of prayer.

Heavenly Father, we thank You

for this study concerning the Nazarite vow.

And vows, as it were, in general,

we've looked at several verses.

Lord, forgive us, we pray.

And help us, we ask, to let our yea be yea

and our nay be nay.

Let our words be few.

We pray that You will put a guard over our mouths.

We ask, Heavenly Father,

that You will keep us in Your presence.

Keep us from doing something

as we saw Jephthah do.

Keep us from vowing a vow rashly.

O Lord, certainly our desire is

to give our whole lives to the Lord.

It is our desire to walk with our God.

It is our desire to live a separated

and holy life unto Thee.

And so, Lord, to that end we pray,

help us.

Keep us from evil.

Keep us, O Lord, from spoiling our testimonies.

Keep us, O Lord, from taking to ourselves

that which we should not.

O Lord, I ask that You will preserve

and protect each of Your people.

And help us in the days to come

to truly take to heart the words of Scripture,

Paul's words specifically,

to present our bodies as a living sacrifice.

Lord, it's the least we can do, we know.

You have done so much for us.

You have taken us

and You have shapened us into Your image.

As it were, we are now the children of God.

We are bought with a price.

We're thankful, Heavenly Father,

for the new life that You've given us in Christ.

And so we ask that You'll help us to live for Thee.

Lord, we know that there is only one life

that will soon be passed.

And only what's done for Christ's

will last.

Help us, we pray.

And help us now as we sing.

We ask all this in Jesus' name.

Amen.