The emphasis in this section continues to be on the importance of maintaining purity in the camp so God's blessing on Israel might continue unabated.
The Nazarite (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.
The "Nazarite"vow was normally temporary. There are two biblical examples of life-long Nazarites: Samson and Samuel.53It was also normally voluntary. Any male or female could take this vow that involved dedication to God's service.
The vow itself required three commitments. These were not the vow but grew out of it.
1. The separated one abstained from any fruit of the grape vine (v. 4).
Perhaps God commanded this because, ". . . its fruit was regarded as the sum and substance of all sensual enjoyment."54
"In itself, wine culture was considered to be good--Israelites regarded the harvest of their vineyards as a blessing--but there was also a dangerous side to it: the possibility of lapsing into a pagan lifestyle."55
2. The Nazarite would leave his or her hair uncut (v. 5). The significance of this restriction has had many interpretations by the commentators as have the other restrictions. The most probable explanation, I believe, connects with the fact that hair represented the strength and vitality of the individual (cf. Judg. 16:13; 2 Sam. 14:25-26).56The long hair of the Nazarite would have symbolized the dedication of the Nazarite's strength and vigor to God.
"There might also have been a negative reason [for] this prescription. In many nations at this time, people devoted their hair to their gods."57
3. The third commitment was to avoid any physical contact with a human corpse. This is perhaps the easiest restriction to explain. It seems that since the Nazarite had dedicated himself to a period of separation to God and from sin he should avoid contact with even the product of sin, namely, death. Since death was an abnormal condition, contact with dead bodies caused defilement.
If the Nazarite broke his vow through no fault of his own he had to follow the prescribed ritual for cleansing and then begin the period of his vow again (vv. 9-12).
". . . there was the recognition that some things in life superseded the requirements of the vow. If someone died suddenly in one's presence, for example, the vow could be temporarily suspended (v. 9). After the emergency had passed, there were provisions for completing the vow (vv. 10-12ff)."58
The Nazarite did not withdraw from society except in the particulars of these restrictions. He lived an active life of service in Israel. His dedication to God did not remove him from society but affected his motivation and activities as he lived.
The Nazarite lived as a priest temporarily in the sense that he lived under more stringent laws of holiness and served God more directly than other Israelites did. His service was not the same as the priests', but sometimes it did involve some sanctuary service as well as other types of service (e.g., Samuel).
"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."59
When the time of the Nazarite's vow expired, he had to go through a prescribed ritual called "the law of the Nazarite"(vv. 13, 21). Burning his cut hair on the brazen altar under his peace offering (v. 18) probably symbolized his giving to God the strength and vigor that he had previously employed in His service. It also ensured that no one would misuse his hair, possibly in a pagan ritual.
The Nazarite ate part of his offering (v. 19). He physically enjoyed part of the fruits of his dedication to God.
God did not require the taking of vows under the Mosaic Law (cf. Lev. 27). Consequently the fact that Paul took a Nazarite vow (Acts 18:18) and paid the expenses of others who had taken one (Acts 21:26) does not indicate that he was living under the Law of Moses. He was simply practicing a Jewish custom that prevailed as the Mosaic Law regulated that custom. He did this to win Jews to Jesus Christ, not because as a Christian Jew he was under the Mosaic Law (1 Cor. 9:19-23).
"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' (Phil. 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."60
