2 `Speak unto the sons of Israel, and thou hast said unto them, When a man or woman doeth singularly, by vowing a vow of a Nazarite, to be separate to Jehovah;
for, lo, thou art conceiving and bearing a son, and a razor doth not go up on his head, for a Nazarite to God is the youth from the womb, and he doth begin to save Israel out of the hand of the Philistines.'
And I raise of your sons for prophets, And of your choice ones for Nazarites, Is not this true, O sons of Israel? An affirmation of Jehovah. And ye cause the Nazarites to drink wine, And on the prophets ye have laid a charge, Saying, `Do not prophecy!'
and in what is it known now, that I have found grace in Thine eyes -- I and Thy people -- is it not in Thy going with us? and we have been distinguished -- I and Thy people -- from all the people who `are' on the face of the ground.'
and ye have been holy to Me; for holy `am' I, Jehovah; and I separate you from the peoples to become Mine.
`All days of the vow of his separation a razor doth not pass over his head; till the fulness of the days which he doth separate to Jehovah he is holy; grown up hath the upper part of the hair of his head. `All days of his keeping separate to Jehovah, near a dead person he doth not go;
that he declareth to her all his heart, and saith to her, `A razor hath not gone up on my head, for a Nazarite to God I `am' from the womb of my mother; if I have been shaven, then hath my power turned aside from me, and I have been weak, and have been as any of the human race.'
For `an object of' desire he who is separated doth seek, With all wisdom he intermeddleth.
for he shall be great before the Lord, and wine and strong drink he may not drink, and of the Holy Spirit he shall be full, even from his mother's womb;
`This, therefore, do that we say to thee: We have four men having a vow on themselves, these having taken, be purified with them, and be at expence with them, that they may shave the head, and all may know that the things of which they have been instructed concerning thee are nothing, but thou dost walk -- thyself also -- the law keeping.
and what agreement to the sanctuary of God with idols? for ye are a sanctuary of the living God, according as God said -- `I will dwell in them, and will walk among `them', and I will be their God, and they shall be My people,
and when God was well pleased -- having separated me from the womb of my mother, and having called `me' through His grace --
Worthy.Bible » Commentaries » Matthew Henry Commentary » Commentary on Numbers 6
Commentary on Numbers 6 Matthew Henry Commentary
Chapter 6
In this chapter we have,
Num 6:1-21
After the law for the discovery and shame of those that by sin had made themselves vile, fitly follows this for the direction and encouragement of those who by their eminent piety and devotion had made themselves honourable, and distinguished themselves from their neighbours. It is very probable that there were those before the making of this law who went under the character of Nazarites, and were celebrated by that title as persons professing greater strictness and zeal in religion than other people; for the vow of a Nazarite is spoken of here as a thing already well known, but the obligation of it is reduced to a greater certainty than hitherto it had been. Joseph is called a Nazarite among his brethren (Gen. 49:26), not only because separate from them, but because eminent among them. Observe,
Num 6:22-27
Here,