DAD'S RAMBLINGS -- THE NAZIRITE VOW

DAD'S RAMBLINGS – THE NAZIRITE VOW

"Then the LORD spoke to Moses, saying, 'Speak to the children of Israel, and say to them: "When either a man or woman consecrates an offering to take the vow of a Nazirite, to separate himself to the LORD, he shall separate himself from wine and similar drink; he shall drink neither vinegar made from wine nor vinegar made from similar drink; neither shall he drink any grape juice, nor eat fresh grapes or raisins.' " " (Numbers 6:1-3)

Numbers chapter 6 lists the requirements for anyone taking a Nazirite vow. This is not to be confused with the word "Nazarene." Jesus was identified as a Nazarene – that is, He was from Nazareth (Matthew 2:23). As a side note, the KJV used the spelling of Nazarite while most modern translations use the term Nazirite.

The Nazirite vow was a voluntary time of special consecration to spiritual ministry. The key word is separation: separating himself or herself to the LORD, or as the New Living Translation phrases verse 2, they were "setting themselves apart to the LORD in a special way." As a part of this time of separation, there were certain things to be avoided, such as grape products, shaving of the men, and touching anything dead. There were also special offerings to be sacrificed to the LORD.

There is no other mention of this special vow in the Bible except for Samson. Samson was a Nazirite all of his life from his mother's womb (Judges 13:5, 7; 16:17), although he was not a very good example of being consecrated to God. And it is supposed that John the Baptists observed the Nazirite vow, though the Bible does not say that explicitly.

The Nazirite vow is not a part of the New Covenant. Even though we do not observe the Nazirite vow, we are sometimes called to special times of dedicating ourselves for prayer and fasting. And all of our lives are to be consecrated to the Lord in holiness – separated from the world to God. This is demonstrating that God is first in our lives. Our lives should exemplify the Nazirite vow.

Love, Dad