Numbers 6:2

Speak unto the children of Israel, and say unto them,.... Whom the following law only concerned, and not Gentiles; so runs the Jewish canon, "the Gentiles have no Nazariteship, though they may bring

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: When either man or woman

Either man or woman; for both sexes might make this vow, if they were free and at their own dispose, for otherwise their parents or husbands could disannul the vow, , and in that case they sinned in taking God’ s name in vain, and vowing what they could not perform. A vow of a Nazarite; whereby they did sequester themselves in a great part from worldly employments and enjoyments, that they might entirely consecrate themselves to God’ s service; and this either for their whole lifetime, of which see 16:17 ; or for a less and limited space of time, of which in this chapter.

Numbers 6:2 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:Ver. 2. To vow a vow.] A voluntary vow, a religious promise made in prayer; hence ευχη, a vow, προσευχη, a prayer. To separate themselves unto the Lord.] As mirrors of singular sobriety and sanctimony, especially required in such as are "separated unto the gospel of God," and as types of Christ, that great votary, true Nazarite, holy, harmless, undefiled, and separate from sinners, that holy thing, that holy of holies, or most holy.

VI.(2) When either man or woman shall separate themselves to vow a vow . . . —Better, When a man or woman shall make a special (or singular) vow (as in Leviticus 27:2)—the vow of a Nazirite. The verb which is here used denotes the doing something wonderful or extraordinary, and the spiritual lesson seems to be that Christ’s servants are expected and required to do something more than others (Matthew 5:46-47). The vows here referred to were made for a specific period. At a later time, however, some were consecrated or set apart as Nazirites during the entire period of their lives, as in the case of Samson, Samuel, and John the Baptist. This consecration, however, appears to have been made rather as the result of Divine revelation than of arbitrary appointment on the part of their parents. The meaning of the word Nazirite (Hebrew nazir) is contained in the concluding words of the verse—to separate (i.e., himself) unto Jehovah—where the cognate verb is used.

Verse 2. When either man or woman shall separate, c.] The word נזיר nazir, from נזר nazar, to separate, signifies merely a separated person, i. e., one peculiarly devoted to the service of God by being separated from all servile employments. From the Nazarites sprang the Rechabites, from the Rechabites the Essenes, from the Essenes the Anchorites or Hermits, and in imitation of those, the different monastic orders. Some contend strongly that the Nazarite was a type of our Lord but neither analogy nor proof can be produced. Our blessed Lord both drank wine and touched the dead, which no Nazarite would do: as to his either shaving his hair or letting it grow, we know nothing. His being called a Nazarene, Matthew 2:23, is nothing to the purpose, as it can mean no more than either that he was an inhabitant of Nazareth, which was a place of no credit, and therefore used as a term of reproach; or that he was in a general sense consecrated to the service of God-so were Samson, Samuel, Jeremiah, and John Baptist; or rather, that he was the נצר netser or BRANCH, Isaiah 11:1, and צמח tsemach, Numbers 3:8; Numbers 6:12, which is quite a different word; but this title is expressly applied to our blessed Lord by the above prophets; but in no place do they or any other prophets call him a Nazarite, in the sense in which נזיר nazir is used. Indeed it could not in truth be applied to him, as the distinguishing marks of a Nazarite never belonged to him. He was, it is true, the נצר netser or branch out of the root of Jesse, the genuine heir to the throne of David, whose dominion should extend over the universe, who should be King of kings, and Lord of Lords; but the word ναζωραιος, Matthew 2:23, signifies merely a Nazoraean, or inhabitant of Nazareth.

2. shall make a special vow] as in Numbers 15:3; Numbers 15:8, Leviticus 22:21; Leviticus 27:2. The exact force of the term is not clear, but it does not seem to differ from ‘make a vow.’ a Nazirite1 [Note: The spelling Nazarite, of the A.V., is erroneous.] ] Heb. Nâzîr, denotes ‘one separated’ (as R.V. marg.). The full form is ‘a Nazir of God’ (Judges 13:5; Judges 13:7), i.e. a religious devotee. Two kinds of Nazirites are mentioned in the O.T.2 [Note: See art. Nazirite in Hastings’ DB. iii.] , (1) those who were bound for life, (2) those who took the vow for a specified time. There is no evidence that the latter class existed before the exile. Of life-long Nazirites Samson is the clearest instance; and see Amos 2:11 f., and perhaps 1 Samuel 1:11, Luke 1:15. The Rechabites (Jeremiah 35:6-10) may have been devotees of a somewhat similar type. Temporary Nazirites were very numerous in later Jewish history. They are probably referred to in Acts 18:18; Acts 21:23 f. ‘The Nazirites who had accomplished their days’ are spoken of in 1Ma 3:49. And in the Mishna, the authoritative compendium of rabbinic regulations, one section or ‘tract’ is called Nazir, and deals exclusively with the subject. The temporary vow was frequently taken for purely private and personal reasons, such as thanksgiving for recovery from illness, for the birth of a child, and so on. The present passage deals with an already established custom, and is written chiefly with the object of prescribing the offerings to be made at the conclusion of the vow.

2. Man or woman — Childless parents, says the Mishna, undertook this vow in the hope of obtaining offspring. This course was followed by Manoah’s wife and by Samuel’s mother.