#Nazirite

[biblebloodhound]

Born to Die (Judges 13:2-24)

In the anticipation of Christ’s birth, we are reminded that there have been extraordinary births in history – a sign that the delivery of a baby will lead to a deliverance of the people.

The angel and Manoah, by Sadao Watanabe, 1972 There was a man from Zorah named Manoah. Manoah was from the family of Dan. His wife was not able to have children. The Messenger of the Lord appeared to her and said, “You’ve never been able to have a child, but now you will become pregnant and have a son. Now you must be careful. Don’t drink any wine or liquor or eat any unclean  food. You’re going…

[kdmiller55]

The God Who Hears

9 After they had eaten and drunk in Shiloh, Hannah rose. Now Eli the priest was sitting on the seat beside the doorpost of the temple of the Lord. 10 She was deeply distressed and prayed to the Lord and wept bitterly. 11 And she vowed a vow and said, “O Lord of hosts, if you will indeed look on the affliction of your servant and remember me and not forget your servant, but will give to your…

[bobmnazareti]

[lordgodjehovahsway]

Numbers 6: God Tells Moses How To Make Vow Of Dedication To Him As A Nazirite

1 The Lord said to Moses, 

2 “Speak to the Israelites and say to them: ‘If a man or woman wants to make a special vow, a vow of dedication to the Lord as a Nazirite, 

3 they must abstain from wine and other fermented drink and must not drink vinegar made from wine or other fermented drink. They must not drink grape juice or eat grapes or raisins. 

4 As long as they remain under their Nazirite vow, they must not eat anything that comes from the grapevine, not even the seeds or skins.

5 “‘During the entire period of their Nazirite vow, no razor may be used on their head. They must be holy until the period of their dedication to the Lord is over; they must let their hair grow long.

6 “‘Throughout the period of their dedication to the Lord, the Nazirite must not go near a dead body. 

7 Even if their own father or mother or brother or sister dies, they must not make themselves ceremonially unclean on account of them, because the symbol of their dedication to God is on their head. 

8 Throughout the period of their dedication, they are consecrated to the Lord.

9 “‘If someone dies suddenly in the Nazirite’s presence, thus defiling the hair that symbolizes their dedication, they must shave their head on the seventh day—the day of their cleansing. 

10 Then on the eighth day they must bring two doves or two young pigeons to the priest at the entrance to the tent of meeting. 

11 The priest is to offer one as a sin offering and the other as a burnt offering to make atonement for the Nazirite because they sinned by being in the presence of the dead body. That same day they are to consecrate their head again. 

12 They must rededicate themselves to the Lord for the same period of dedication and must bring a year-old male lamb as a guilt offering. The previous days do not count, because they became defiled during their period of dedication.

13 “‘Now this is the law of the Nazirite when the period of their dedication is over. They are to be brought to the entrance to the tent of meeting. 

14 There they are to present their offerings to the Lord: a year-old male lamb without defect for a burnt offering, a year-old ewe lamb without defect for a sin offering, a ram without defect for a fellowship offering, 

15 together with their grain offerings and drink offerings, and a basket of bread made with the finest flour and without yeast—thick loaves with olive oil mixed in, and thin loaves brushed with olive oil.

16 “‘The priest is to present all these before the Lord and make the sin offering and the burnt offering. 

17 He is to present the basket of unleavened bread and is to sacrifice the ram as a fellowship offering to the Lord, together with its grain offering and drink offering.

18 “‘Then at the entrance to the tent of meeting, the Nazirite must shave off the hair that symbolizes their dedication. They are to take the hair and put it in the fire that is under the sacrifice of the fellowship offering.

19 “‘After the Nazirite has shaved off the hair that symbolizes their dedication, the priest is to place in their hands a boiled shoulder of the ram, and one thick loaf and one thin loaf from the basket, both made without yeast. 

20 The priest shall then wave these before the Lord as a wave offering; they are holy and belong to the priest, together with the breast that was waved and the thigh that was presented. After that, the Nazirite may drink wine.

21 “‘This is the law of the Nazirite who vows offerings to the Lord in accordance with their dedication, in addition to whatever else they can afford. They must fulfill the vows they have made, according to the law of the Nazirite.’”

The Priestly Blessing

22 The Lord said to Moses, 

23 “Tell Aaron and his sons, ‘This is how you are to bless the Israelites. Say to them:

24 “‘“The Lord bless you     and keep you; 25 the Lord make his face shine on you     and be gracious to you; 26 the Lord turn his face toward you     and give you peace.”’

27 “So they will put my name on the Israelites, and I will bless them.”

[wolfythewitch]

My bible hyperfixated ass: oh cool Wolfy makes Bible art? Sign me up!

Me looking at the Jesus design: ay wait a minute *checks cultural customs of 1st century Nazareth* Nazerites had long hair!

(Its fine lol just something I remembered(i know too much))

Nazirites had long hair, not Nazarenes. Nazirites were people who had taken the Nazirite vow, where some of the conditions include: not cutting your hair, not drinking alcohol, and not touching or going near the dead. Two of which Jesus has done multiple times

There are people who were nazirites, like John the Baptist and Samson

[jdsquared]

Nazir 10a

[dadyomi]

Tuesday 1/31, Nazir 8: Basket Case

This tractate is just chock full of these situations where it’s only a single paragraph, but it is also just a whole-ass journey. There’s a lot going on in this tale of a basket that could be, but is not, full of mustard seeds.

[battleforgodstruth]

Samson: a Nazirite - Pastor Kenneth Stewart Sermon

[artandthebible]

Samson and Delilah

Artist: Johann Carl Loth (German, 1632-1698)

Date: 1675-1680

Medium: Oil on Canvas

Collection: Fondazione Brescia Musei, Brescia, Italy

Samson and Delilah

The story of Samson and Delilah begins with the announcement of Samson’s birth by the angel of the Lord (Judges 13:1–24). In fact, Samson is one of the few in Scripture whose birth was divinely preannounced to his parents (Judges 13:3). He shares this honor with Isaac, John the Baptist, and Jesus. Samson, whose name means “sunshine,” was born sometime between 1045 BC and 1000 BC, during a dark period of Israel’s history. Seven times this nation had turned from God and now found themselves under the oppressive rule of the Philistines.

Samson was born a Nazirite, meaning he was “separated” or “set aside” for God. This meant that he was not to drink wine or fruit of the vine. He couldn’t go near or touch a dead body, human or animal, nor could he cut his hair. Though he was set apart for special service to God (Judges 13:5), Samson ignored his Nazirite vow of godly devotion and relied upon his own strength and abilities rather than upon God’s. Although God empowered him with supernatural strength to begin the deliverance of the people of Israel from the Philistines (Judges 13:5),

Although the Lord chose Samson, Samson did not always choose God. He fell in love with a Philistine woman named Delilah, who did not believe in God. The Philistine rulers paid Delilah to find the secret of Samson’s strength. Delilah begged Samson to tell her his secret and finally revealed that his strength was in his long hair. Delilah told the Philistine leaders, and they cut Samson’s hair, made him blind, and put him in prison to do hard work.

[walkswithmyfather]

‭‭Judges 13:1-5, 24-25 (NIV‬‬). “Again the Israelites did evil in the eyes of the Lord, so the Lord delivered them into the hands of the Philistines for forty years. A certain man of Zorah, named Manoah, from the clan of the Danites, had a wife who was childless, unable to give birth. The angel of the Lord appeared to her and said, “You are barren and childless, but you are going to become pregnant and give birth to a son. Now see to it that you drink no wine or other fermented drink and that you do not eat anything unclean. You will become pregnant and have a son whose head is never to be touched by a razor because the boy is to be a Nazirite, dedicated to God from the womb. He will take the lead in delivering Israel from the hands of the Philistines”...The woman gave birth to a boy and named him Samson. He grew and the Lord blessed him, and the Spirit of the Lord began to stir him while he was in Mahaneh Dan, between Zorah and Eshtaol.”

“Promises and Expectations” by in Touch Ministries:

“Serving God may not always look like what we expect, but we can rest in His love and faithfulness.”

“In today’s passage, an angel brings good news to Manoah’s infertile wife: She would have a baby who’d be set apart for God’s service and bring deliverance to His people (vv. 1-5). After news like that, she probably imagined that her son’s life would be filled with holiness and happily-ever-afters. And in accordance with God’s plan, Manoah and his wife taught Samson to follow the strict guidelines of the Nazirite vow of dedication. (See Numbers 6:1-21.)

But Samson’s life didn’t turn out the way his parents may have dreamed. Though blessed with a godly upbringing and incredible physical strength, he got involved with women from pagan countries. And he confessed to Delilah, a Philistine woman he loved, the secret of his strength: It was related to the Nazirite vow, which included that “no razor shall pass over his head” (v. 5). Delilah betrayed him by cutting his hair and turning him over to the Philistines. Yet God was at work in all this: In his final moments, Samson regained his strength and fulfilled the promise of deliverance.

The faithfulness of Samson’s parents is a reminder that we can’t predict how events will unfold but must nevertheless hold tightly to God’s promises. Even though our story might not look like what we expect, we can trust that the Lord loves us and is able to work everything for His glory.”

(Photo by Nong at Unsplash)

[kdmiller55]

A Vow of Separation and Service

1 And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, 2 “Speak to the people of Israel and say to them, When either a man or a woman makes a special vow, the vow of a Nazirite, to separate himself to the Lord, 3 he shall separate himself from wine and strong drink. He shall drink no vinegar made from wine or strong drink and shall not drink any juice of grapes or eat grapes, fresh or dried. 4 All the days of…

[galadrieljones]

Veilguard spoilers ahead!

After seeing images of Solas when he was young, with his full head of hair, I wonder if there will be Samson parallels. Samson was blessed by God with enormous power. When the Angel of the Lord came to Samson's mother to tell her that she was pregnant, he gave her specific rules, as Samson would be born a Nazirite, aka: a person with a special loyalty and connection to God. Most importantly, she was never to cut his hair. He was going to be the one to deliver the Israelites from the hand of the Philistines.

Samson had supernatural strength and power, though he was a man. There are stories of Samson vanquishing a lion, and one where he brandished the jaw bone of a donkey, which he used to slay 1,000 men. Samson was famously betrayed by the prostitute Delilah. He had a playful nature, and his interactions with Delilah communicate a "tricky" and arrogant sensibility. But one night, she seduced him into revealing his power source to her: his hair. Having been compromised by the Philistines, she had her servants remove it as he slept.

While he was nearly sacrificed to Dagon, Samson's hair began to miraculously grow again, as he was so eternally blessed, and he died bringing down the temple upon both himself and his captors. Samson was a judge for the Israelites, one of the last ones in the Book of Judges, and this basically means that he was a major military leader in a time of war and crisis. While we don't know exactly what Solas did yet, back in the days of Elvhenan, there is the suggestion that he was essentially brought into "being" by Mythal, because she needed him to lead. These Samson examples do remind me of Solas, especially because Mythal was the Goddess of Justice, and because Solas, in creating the Veil, did seem to do so as an act of "judgment." Fen'Harel was also the spiritual and military leader of a rebellion.

The story of Samson and the lion is especially interesting. It chronicles the time he slayed a lion with his bare hands in a vineyard, a testament to enormous, supernatural strength. When he came back upon the lion at a later time, it had been colonized by bees, who were making honey. This informed a bizarre riddle, which he coined on his wedding day: "Out of the eater, something to eat; out of the strong, something sweet." Bees do play a role in Inquisition. There is something about bees and Sera, and her strange connection to Solas and the Veil. People used to wonder if Sera had some sort of ancient power inside her, without her knowledge, particularly that of Andruil, the huntress. While I have no theories about that, it's clear that she does have some sort of connection to Solas, even if it's just thematic, to show that all elves are sort of gifted in this way, and all elves are connected to Solas.

In Inquisition, Sera has a War Table mission that revolves around getting special "grenades" which are essentially jars of bees. The mission comes with a little poem:

Know what ruins a party? Bees. I know a man who teaches how to jar them safe but angry. Stingy, no good for honey, but great for throwing! He’s somewhere south.

The "bee" thing is totally random. There's no obvious connotations related to Sera that would suggest a connection to bees. So where did they get that? Of course it could just be for silliness, as Sera is a silly character, but it could also be meaningful. It could be both.

Anyway, the comparison is not perfect, but it's interesting. I don't necessarily think there is a definitive reason Solas lost his hair, and it may just be a thing where they handwave it somehow, but the question is there, and they definitely could use it to characterize his journey. When he lost his hair, was that a part of how he lost his power? Like was he betrayed in some way? Or did he have to make a bargain? Did he lose his hair as he slept in Uthenara? If he did, then why aren't Abelas and the other Sentinels at the Well of Sorrows also bald? Maybe this is just me overanalyzing lol but I find it interesting

[hindahoney]

Hi! I’ve been doing some personal research on Judaism for just a few short weeks now and came across the history of the Nazirs/Nazirites and am really interested in learning more. And I was wondering if you have any Jewish resources to learn about it (because the majority of the ones I’ve found are from Christian resources and only really mention Samuel and Samson)? And do you know if the Nazirite vow is still taken today? Thanks in advance, your page has been a great resource for me!

Hello, thank you so much for your question.

For anyone who doesn't know, a Nazir/Nazirite is a Jewish person who vows to restrict themselves from drinking any grape product, whether it is intoxicating or not, cannot touch a corpse, or cut their hair, and remain abstinent. These vows can be temporary or permanent, depending on the duration the individual wishes to take on the vow. It is said that all of the restrictions that apply to the high priests are taken upon by the Nazirite. In essence, it is a person vowing to live a holy lifestyle and separate themselves from worldly pleasures.

Yes, there have been people who take on this vow, but after the destruction of the Beit Hamikdash it is exceedingly rare due to the fact that they cannot offer a sacrifice to HaShem should they violate their vow, but there have been people who still take it on. The most famous example is the Nazir of Jerusalem, Rabbi David Cohen (z"l, 1884-1972). It is difficult to find information about this group of people, as they are an exclusive group among an already exclusive group.

It's kind of controversial, from my understanding, because many believe Judaism is about experiencing the joys of life and that it's not necessarily a good thing to restrict yourself so much, as Maimonides points out that the laws of the Torah are restrictive enough, and that if HaShem did not want people to drink wine, He wouldn't have made it.

Here, here, and here are some Jewish resources on the subject, and they list their sources as well. Admittedly, I do not know much about the subject, so hopefully these sources can assist you better than I can.

[wolfythewitch]

Every time I get the "Jesus had long hair" comment I get marginally more violent

[jdsquared]

Nazir 3b

[dadyomi]

Friday 3/24, Nazir 60: screaming in nazirite

So relieved to conclude the analysis of WAIT A MINUTE --

Reminds me of having to sit through boring speakers at school who had learned the specific oratorical cadence where it SOUNDS like they're about to wrap up but then they breathe deep and start another whole mind-numbing paragraph of nonsense.

One more week...one more week and we might free ourselves of this naziriteship...