Dave Camp (3 Apr 2004)
"The Nazirite Vow of Jesus (NVJ)"

Dear Doves,

Intro

Here are some of my thoughts on whether or not Jesus took a Nazirite vow, and what it might mean to the "watchers" - here at the Doves, and elsewhere!

So in this post, we'll look at the vow itself. In my second and third posts, we'll look at the various ways the vow can end. And in my fourth post, we'll look at what all this might mean for us prophetically.


Nazirite Vow - What Is It ?

Here's the passage that "defines" for us what's entailed in the Nazirite vow:

Num. 6:1-8 And the Lord spake unto Moses, saying, 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 Nazirite, to separate themselves unto the Lord: 3 He shall separate himself from wine and strong drink, and shall drink no vinegar of wine, or vinegar of strong drink, neither shall he drink any liquor of grapes, nor eat moist grapes, or dried. 4 All the days of his separation shall he eat nothing that is made of the vine tree, from the kernels even to the husk. 5 All the days of the vow of his separation there shall no razor come upon his head: until the days be fulfilled, in the which he separateth himself unto the Lord, he shall be holy, and shall let the locks of the hair of his head grow. 6 All the days that he separateth himself unto the Lord he shall come at no dead body. 7 He shall not make himself unclean for his father, or for his mother, for his brother, or for his sister, when they die: because the consecration of his God is upon his head. 8 All the days of his separation he is holy unto the Lord.

In a nutshell, the requirements for the Nazirite are these:

• He is to be separated unto God;
• He is to refrain from eating grapes, or any food product made from them;
• He must not cut his hair;
• He is not come near a dead body.

Now since we DON'T have a verse where Jesus says, for example, "Today I am taking a Nazirite vow," we need to take our "hints" from the requirements of the vow instead.

So where might we find evidence of such a vow - or even evidence that would SUGGEST that Jesus would do so?


A Nazirite Vow - For Jesus ?

This is probably a good place to start:

John 5:39 Search the scriptures; for in them ye think ye have eternal life: and they are they which testify of me.

Jesus said the Scriptures testify of Himself. But since He did NOT say "SOME of the Scriptures testify of Me," then that must mean they ALL do - whether we can "see" it or not!

Thus, the regulations for the Nazirite in Numbers 6 must somehow testify of Jesus, too!

So the question then becomes - either:

• Does the Nazirite vow somehow vaguely picture Jesus in His being separated from "normal" men - such as when He would retire into Mount Olivet to pray without taking the disciples with Him?
• Or is it MORE than that? Did He actually put Himself under the vow? And if so, when? Why? And what does it mean to us?

I go with the second, as you might suspect. <grin>


Vow Taken - When ?

Here, it seems that Jesus is announcing His putting Himself under the vow:

Matt. 26:29 But I say unto you, I will not drink henceforth of this fruit of the vine, until that day when I drink it new with you in my Father's kingdom.

Yet he only mentions that He won't be drinking wine for "a while." He says nothing about not eating grapes or grape products.

But what about here?

Matt. 27:34 They gave him vinegar to drink mingled with gall: and when he had tasted thereof, he would not drink.

Since this is most likely WINE vinegar, we see Him keeping His vow, even here!

So if we take the testimony of these two "witness" verses, then yes, Jesus DID take a Nazirite vow! And thus, the first place to start would most likely be to review Numbers 6.

But we also need to consider these verses, too:

Matt. 5:33-34 Again, ye have heard that it hath been said by them of old time, Thou shalt not forswear thyself, but shalt perform unto the Lord thine oaths: But I say unto you, Swear not at all; neither by heaven; for it is God's throne

So if Jesus is saying "don't make vows," then why did HE? - or rather, HOW could He have done so without sinning? I think the answer would have to be that He made the vow NOT as merely a man, but as the God-Man - ie, as the Son of God. And in a sense, then, His vow would not only draw our attention to itself (because of His command to us), but would also suggest that we consider any vows that HE might make!


Conclusion

So if we assume that Jesus DID put Himself under a Nazirite vow ...


Outro

... then studying how His vow might END should prove to be VERY profitable for us!


-Dave

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Homework

Exercise 1: The regulations for the Nazirite are "open" to both men and women, as we see in Numbers 6. Is there any place in the Scriptures where we can see a woman who might be under the Nazirite vow? If not, why not? But if so, what might it mean prophetically to us?