Dave Camp (3 Apr 2004)
"NVJ, Part 3 - An Early End?"

Dear Doves,

Intro

In this post, we'll look at the ways the Nazirite vow can end "involuntarily," if you will - and then see how these "endings" might apply to Jesus.


Recap

Again, here are the ways the Nazirite could end his vow:

• Voluntarily; He is then required to to perform certain actions
  (such as making a sacrifice and cutting his hair);
  
• INvoluntarily (perhaps), by violating one of the conditions of the vow.

We'll focus on the second one here.


Whoops !

One way for Jesus' vow to end would be for Him to partake of wine, grapes, or some grape product. Now we looked at one verse where he ALMOST did so at the cross - but we need to look at ALL the accounts in order to get the full picture! Here they are:

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

Mark 15:23 And they gave him to drink wine mingled with myrrh: but he received it not.

John 19:29-30 Now there was set a vessel full of vinegar: and they filled a spunge with vinegar, and put it upon hyssop, and put it to his mouth. When Jesus therefore had received the vinegar, he said, It is finished: and he bowed his head, and gave up the ghost.

Now it SEEMS we have a problem, because in two accounts, Jesus did NOT drink the wine, but in the third, He DID do so! So it SEEMS that there's an inconsistency here!

However, note the context! The incidents recorded in Matthew and Mark both occur BEFORE the three hourse of darkness. And as Luke tells us -

Luke 23:44-46 And it was about the sixth hour, and there was a darkness over all the earth until the ninth hour. 45 And the sun was darkened, and the veil of the temple was rent in the midst. 46 And when Jesus had cried with a loud voice, he said, Father, into thy hands I commend my spirit: and having said thus, he gave up the ghost.

- the darkness occurred JUST BEFORE Jesus died - which means that the three incidents are NOT the same!

In other words, Jesus was offered wine BEFORE the darkness, but refused it. Yet He DID drink of it AFTER the darkness, JUST BEFORE His death!

Which means that Jesus' Nazirite vow ENDED just before He died!


End of the Vow

Now if the vow ends due to the Nazirite becoming defiled by coming near a dead person, he is allowed to "re-vow" the vow, although the previous days are "lost":

Num. 6:10,12 And on the eighth day he shall bring two turtles, or two young pigeons, to the priest, to the door of the tabernacle of the congregation ... 12 And he shall consecrate unto the Lord the days of his separation, and shall bring a lamb of the first year for a trespass offering: but the days that were before shall be lost, because his separation was defiled.

So three questions naturally arise:

1) Might the same rules apply if the vow is ended by his "partaking of the grape?"
2) If so, how many days were "lost" by Jesus?
3) And finally, did Jesus "re-vow" His vow?

Since we can't prove DEFINITIVELY that the answer to the first is "yes," let's look at the last two questions first - because the answers to them STRONGLY suggest a "yes" answer for the first question!

First, note the TIMING of Jesus' vow:

John 13:26,30 Jesus answered, He it is, to whom I shall give a sop, when I have dipped it. And when he had dipped the sop, he gave it to Judas Iscariot, the son of Simon. 27 And after the sop Satan entered into him. Then said Jesus unto him, That thou doest, do quickly. ... 30 He then having received the sop went immediately out: and it was night.

Jesus instituted the Lord's Supper AFTER Judas left. But it was ALREADY night when he left, which means that the Lord's Supper (and thus the vow) were instituted AFTER sundown - which would then have been 14 Nisan.

But 14 Nisan - Passover - was the day that Jesus was crucified. Which means that NO DAYS were lost in this first "leg" of the vow (and see my last post in the series for the significance of this fact)!

OK, can we find any "hints" that Jesus "re-vowed" the vow?


The Eighth Day

If the Nazirite inadvertently comes near a dead body, he must then separate himself for seven days due to his uncleanness (see Numbers 19). At the end of this time, he cuts his hair; he then makes a sacrifice on the eighth day, and the days of his vow then begin "recounting."

So consider these verses regarding that "eighth day":

John 20:17 Jesus saith unto her, Touch me not; for I am not yet ascended to my Father

Num. 6:10,12 And on the eighth day he shall bring two turtles, or two young pigeons, to the priest, to the door of the tabernacle of the congregation

John 20:26 And after eight days again his disciples were within, and Thomas with them: then came Jesus, the doors being shut, and stood in the midst, and said, Peace be unto you.

Jesus appears again to the disciples after eight days; might these eight days correspond to the eight days necessary to "re-vow" the vow?

Hmm ...


Dead Man - Where ?

Now we might think that Jesus was defiled by "coming near" a dead man while on the cross. After all, the rules for the Nazirite don't say how close "near" is - and we're not told how far Jesus was from the two thieves, either. But there is one thing we DO know:

John 19:32-33 Then came the soldiers, and brake the legs of the first, and of the other which was crucified with him. 33 But when they came to Jesus, and saw that he was dead already, they brake not his legs

The soldiers had been commanded to break the legs of the prisoners, causing them to die; this was at the request of the Jews, so that their dead bodies could be taken down before the Sabbath of Unleavened Bread began.

However, Jesus was ALREADY dead when the soldiers came to Him; in other words, He died BEFORE the thieves did! Thus he COULD NOT have been defiled by "being near" their dead bodies!

But what if the part of the vow about being defiled by a dead body is yet to come? Do we have such an event anywhere in Scripture that might relate to Jesus?


Son of Man

Jesus identified Himself as the Son of Man - a title given to Ezekiel by God Himself! If so then, since ALL the Scriptures testify of Jesus, might the events of Ezekiel's life be somehow prophetic of Him as well?

Ezek. 24:16-18 Son of man, behold, I take away from thee the desire of thine eyes with a stroke: yet neither shalt thou mourn nor weep, neither shall thy tears run down. 17 Forbear to cry, make no mourning for the dead, bind the tire of thine head upon thee, and put on thy shoes upon thy feet, and cover not thy lips, and eat not the bread of men. 18 So I spake unto the people in the morning: and at even my wife died; and I did in the morning as I was commanded.

Since the church is Jesus' bride-to-be, what might her death symbolize?

A judgment upon her for her sins, perhaps?

By the way, isn't it interesting that, in Leviticus 21:1-12, when discussing what dead bodies the High Priest can and cannot come near (and thus defile himself), God gives a list of those in the immediate family for which he can do so - yet the High Priest's wife is conspicuously ABSENT from the list!

Now IF such a judgment were to occur when Jesus "comes to the door," these two verses should come to mind:

1Pet. 4:17 For the time is come that judgment must begin at the house of God

Rev. 3:20 Behold, I stand at the door, and knock

Remember that the Revelation verse is NOT primarily a "salvation" verse, as we've tended to make it; it's a part of the Lord's REBUKE to the lukewarm Laodicean Church!

Hmm ...


Conclusion

OK, we've seen some "puzzle pieces" relating to the ending of Jesus' Nazirite vow - but there are still some peices missing.


Outro

In my last post, I'll show you where those "missing pieces" just MIGHT be found!


-Dave