Preface:    The bulk of this chapter is devoted to the traditions of the Nazirite and the last two verses are blessings of God to Israel

The Bible Summary of Numbers 6 (in 140 characters or less): Anyone who makes a Nazirite vow shall not drink wine or cut their hair. Aaron's blessing shall be: "The LORD bless you and keep you." 

There are many chapter commentaries on the book of Numbers. This will be the most extensive examination of Numbers 6, where you will be able to examine in depth every word of the original text. Every attempt has been made to make this both a complete and self-contained study. Therefore, all references, vocabulary, and related concepts should be found within this extensive study. Easy access links to more in-depth studies of some vocabulary words, concepts and doctrines are also provided.

Outline of Chapter 6:

Introduction

         vv.     1–

         vv. 

         vv. 

         vv. 

         vv. 

Chapter Summary

Addendum

Charts, Graphics and Short Doctrines:

         Preface               Quotations

         Introduction         Titles and/or Brief Descriptions of Numbers 6 (by various commentators)

         Introduction         Brief, but insightful observations of Numbers 6 (various commentators)

         Introduction         Fundamental Questions About Numbers 6

         Introduction         The Prequel of Numbers 6

         Introduction 

         Introduction 

         Introduction         The Principals of Numbers 6

         Introduction         The Places of Numbers 6

         Introduction         By the Numbers

         Introduction         Timeline for Numbers 6

         Introduction         A Synopsis of Numbers 6

         Introduction         Outlines of Numbers 6 (Various Commentators)

         Introduction         A Synopsis of Numbers 6 from the Summarized Bible

         Introduction         The Big Picture (Numbers 1–15)

         Introduction 

         Introduction 

         Introduction         Changes—additions and subtractions (for Numbers 6)

         Introduction 

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         Summary            A Set of Summary Doctrines and Commentary

         Summary            Why Numbers 6 is in the Word of God

         Summary            What We Learn from Numbers 6

         Summary            Jesus Christ in Numbers 6

         Summary            Edersheim Summarizes Numbers 6

         Summary 

         Addendum 

         Addendum          Josephus’ History of this Time Period

         Addendum          A Complete Translation of Numbers 6

         Addendum          Doctrinal Teachers Who Have Taught Numbers 6

         Addendum          Word Cloud from a Reasonably Literal Paraphrase of Numbers 6

         Addendum          Word Cloud from Exegesis of Numbers 6

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An Introduction to Numbers 6

I ntroduction: Numbers 6 is all about the Nazirite and the Nazirite vows. Who are these men (and women); what was their purpose in relationship to Israel? What exactly do they represent about the future? As a believer in the Church Age, what meaning or value has this to me? If the answer is none, then what meaning or value is this group of believers to the people of the Age of Israel? These are questions which occur to me, questions which I am not certain that I can satisfactorily answer. This seems like, for the Old Testament, to be a moderately important topic. We have studied them in Exodus, Leviticus; and there will be mentions of them in Samuel and in the Psalms. Its location in so many books in so many contexts suggests some importance of this strange topic.

What I am leaning toward is, this lifestyle does not describe the vows taken by John, but rather mirror his lifestyle when he is called into service to act as the herald for the King.

Numbers 6 deals with an unusual breed of character—the Nazarite (and the Nazarite vows). Of the stories with which everyone is familiar, that of Sampson if one of the most notorious. Samson was a Nazarite. This is a vocation of personal choice, possibly for those who wished that they were Levites, but were not. Their interest in spiritual service might be greater than that of the average Levite, therefore, the lifestyle of the Nazarite might appeal to such a one. However, this is in no way to be confused with a Nazarene—that is, a person either born or raised in Nazareth. Our Lord was a Nazarene; He was not a Nazarite. So Samson had long hair, as per the Nazarite vows; Jesus Christ did not, because He was not a Nazarite (by vow).

Timeline for Numbers

There is very little narrative in the book of Numbers; so this information may have been given to Moses in a few days or, at most, a few weeks; and Moses both wrote these things down and informed the people. Because of information previously studied in the introduction, we are not 100% certain if all of this material was given to Moses while in the newly erected Tabernacle. I would lean towards that being the case.

As I have done previously, since this chapters is what God is saying to Moses, I will begin and end the chapter with quotation marks. I will not insert a new set of quotation marks for each new paragraph.

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Here is how others have translated this passage:

Ancient texts:                       Note: I compare the Hebrew text to English translations of the Latin, Syriac (= Aramaic) and Greek texts, using the Douay-Rheims translation; George Lamsa’s translation, and Sir Lancelot Charles Lee Brenton’s translation as revised and edited by Paul W. Esposito, respectively. I often update these texts with non-substantive changes (e.g., you for thou, etc.). I often use the text of the Complete Apostles’ Bible instead of Brenton’s translation, because it updates the English text.

The Septuagint was the earliest known translation of a book (circa 200 b.c.). Since this translation was made before the textual criticism had been developed into a science and because different books appear to be translated by different men, the Greek translation can sometimes be very uneven.

When there are serious disparities between my translation and Brenton’s (or the text of the Complete Apostles’ Bible), I look at the Greek text of the Septuagint (the LXX) to see if a substantive difference actually exists (and I reflect these changes in the English rendering of the Greek text). I use the Greek LXX with Strong’s numbers and morphology available for e-sword. The only problem with this resource (which is a problem for similar resources) is, there is no way to further explore Greek verbs which are not found in the New Testament. Although I usually quote the Complete Apostles’ Bible here, I have begun to make changes in the translation when their translation conflicts with the Greek and note what those changes are.

The Masoretic text is the Hebrew text with all of the vowels (vowel points) inserted (the original Hebrew text lacked vowels). We take the Masoretic text to be the text closest to the original. However, differences between the Masoretic text and the Greek, Latin and Syriac are worth noting and, once in a great while, represent a more accurate text possessed by those other ancient translators.

In general, the Latin text is an outstanding translation from the Hebrew text into Latin and very trustworthy (I say this as a non-Catholic). Unfortunately, I do not read Latin—apart from some very obvious words—so I am dependent upon the English translation of the Latin (principally, the Douay-Rheims translation).

The comparisons which I do are primarily between the English translations which are taken from the ancient tongues. For the most part, the variances are so minor that I rarely investigate them any further than that.

Underlined words indicate differences in the text.

Bracketed portions of the Dead Sea Scrolls are words, letters and phrases lost in the scroll due to various types of damage. Underlined words or phrases are those in the Dead Sea Scrolls but not in the Masoretic text.

I will only list the translation from the Dead Sea Scrolls if it exists and if it is different from the Masoretic text.

The Targum of Onkelos is actually the Pentateuchal Targumim, which are The Targums of Onkelos and Jonathan Ben Uzziel. On the Pentateuch With The Fragments of the Jerusalem Targum From the Chaldee by J. W. Etheridge, M.A. From http://www.becomingjewish.org/texts/targum/onkelos_Numbers.html and first published in 1862.

Occasionally, there is an obvious error in the English translation, and I correct those without additional mention or footnoting. For instance, the online version of the Targum of Onkelos which I use has gorund in Ex. 4:9; I simply corrected the text. This may occur once or twice in a chapter.

I attempt to include translations which are different in their vocabulary and phrasing. On many occasions, I may include a translation which is not substantially different than another listed translation.

Most of the translations can be found here.

Ancient texts:

Masoretic Text (Hebrew)        And so speaks Y^ehowah unto Moses, to say, “Speak unto sons of Israel and you have said unto them, ‘A man or a woman that will do an extraordinary thing, to vow a vow, a Nazirite, to live as a Nazirite to Y^ehowah. From wine and alcohol, to live as a Nazirite, vinegar of wine and vinegar of alcohol he will not drink. And every juice of grapes he will not drink. And so grapes, fresh and dry, he will not eat. All days of his Nazirite status, from all which has been done, from a vine of the wine, from grape seeds and as far as grape skin, he will not eat.

Dead Sea Scrolls                   .

Targum (Onkelos)                  . Translation for Onkelos and Pseudo-Jonathan by J. W. Etheridge, M.A. (1862).

Targum (Pseudo-Jonathan)   .

Jerusalem targum                  .

Updated Douay-Rheims         .

Douay-Rheims 1899 (Amer.) And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying:

Speak to the children of Israel, and thou shalt say to them: When a man, or woman, shall make a vow to be sanctified, and will consecrate themselves to the Lord:

They shall abstain from wine, and from every thing that may make a man drunk. They shall not drink vinegar of wine, or of any other drink, nor any thing that is pressed out of the grape: nor shall they eat grapes either fresh or dried.

All the days that they are consecrated to the Lord by vow: they shall eat nothing that cometh of the vineyard, from the raisin even to the kernel.

Aramaic ESV of Peshitta        Mar-Yah spoke to Mosha, saying,

"Speak to the B'nai Yisrael, and tell them: 'When either man or woman shall make a special vow, the vow of a Nasari, to separate himself to Mar-Yah,

he shall separate himself from wine and strong drink. He shall drink no vinegar of wine, or vinegar of fermented drink, neither shall he drink any juice of grapes, nor eat fresh grapes or dried.

All the days of his separation he shall eat nothing that is made of the grapevine, from the seeds even to the skins.

Lamsa’s Peshitta (Syriac)     .

V. Alexander’s Aramaic T.     .

Samaritan Pentateuch           .

Updated Brenton (Greek)       And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying,

speak to the children of Israel, and you shall say to them, Whatsoever man or woman shall specially vow a vow to separate oneself with purity to the Lord,

he shall purely abstain from wine and strong drink; and he shall drink no vinegar of wine or vinegar of strong drink; and whatever is made of the grape he shall not drink; neither shall he eat fresh grapes or raisins,

all the days of his vow: he shall eat none of the things that come from the vine, wine from the grape stones to the husk,...

Significant differences: 

Limited Vocabulary Translations:

Bible in Basic English             And the Lord said to Moses, 

Say to the children of Israel, If a man or a woman takes an oath to keep himself separate and give himself to the Lord; 

He is to keep himself from wine and strong drink, and take no mixed wine or strong drink or any drink made from grapes, or any grapes, green or dry. 

All the time he is separate he may take nothing made from the grape-vine, from its seeds to its skin.

Easy English                          .

Easy-to-Read Version–2008  The LORD said to Moses, "Tell the Israelites this: If there are people, men or women, who want to make a vow dedicating themselves to the LORD as Nazirites for a time, this is what they must do: They must stay away from wine or other strong drink. They must not drink vinegar that is made from wine or from other strong drink. They must not drink grape juice or eat grapes or raisins. During that special time of dedication, they must not eat anything that comes from grapes. They must not even eat the seeds or the skins from grapes.

God’s Word™                         The LORD said to Moses, "Speak to the Israelites and tell them: A man or a woman may make a special vow to live as a Nazirite dedicated to the LORD. Nazirites must never drink wine, liquor, vinegar made from wine or liquor, or any kind of grape juice, and they must never eat fresh grapes or raisins. As long as they are Nazirites, they must never eat anything that comes from a grapevine, not even grape seeds or skins.

Good News Bible (TEV)         The LORD commanded Moses to give the following instructions to the people of Israel. Any of you, male or female, who make a special vow to become a nazirite and dedicate yourself to the LORD shall abstain from wine and beer. You shall not drink any kind of drink made from grapes or eat any grapes or raisins. As long as you are a nazirite, you shall not eat anything that comes from a grapevine, not even the seeds or skins of grapes.

The Message                         .

Names of God Bible               .

NIRV                                      .

New Simplified Bible              .

Thought-for-thought translations; dynamic translations; paraphrases:

Casual English Bible             .

Contemporary English V.       The LORD told Moses to say to the people of Israel: If any of you want to dedicate yourself to me by vowing to become a Nazirite, you must no longer drink any wine or beer or use any kind of vinegar. Don't drink grape juice or eat grapes or raisins-- not even the seeds or skins.

The Living Bible                     .

New Berkeley Version           .

New Life Version                    .

New Living Translation           .

UnfoldingWord (Simplified)    Yahweh also said this to Moses: "Tell this to the Israelite people: If any of you wants to make a solemn promise to dedicate himself to belong to me in a special way, after you obey these instructions, you will be called a Nazir, which means 'a dedicated person.' You must not drink any wine or other alcoholic drink. You must not drink grape juice or eat grapes or raisins. You must not eat anything that comes from grapevines, not even the skins or seeds of grapes, during the time that you are a Nazir.

Partially literal and partially paraphrased translations:

American English Bible          .

Beck’s American Translation .

Common English Bible           .

New Advent (Knox) Bible       .

Translation for Translators     .

Mostly literal renderings (with some occasional paraphrasing):

Christian Standard Bible        .

Berean Study Bible                .

Conservapedia                       .

Revised Ferrar-Fenton Bible  .

God’s Truth (Tyndale)           .

The Heritage Bible                          And Jehovah spoke to Moses, saying,

Speak to the children of Israel, and say to them, When a man or woman shall be separated to vow a vow of a Nazirite, to be set apart to Jehovah,

He shall be set apart from wine and hard liquor, and shall not drink vinegar of wine, or vinegar of hard liquor, neither shall he drink any juice of grapes, nor eat fresh grapes, or dried.

All the days of his being set apart he shall eat nothing that is made of the vine tree, from the kernels even to the skins.

International Standard V        .

International Standard V        Nazirites

Then the Lord told Moses, “Tell the Israelis that a man or woman who commits to the vow of the Nazirite, is to be separated to the Lord, then is to remain separate from wine and strong drink. He is not to drink vinegar or strong drink made from wine. He is not to drink grape juice or eat grapes, whether fresh or dried.

“During the entire time of his dedication, he is not to eat any product from the grapevine, from the seed to the skin.

Lexham English Bible            .

NIV, ©2011                             .

Unfolding Word Literal Text   . everything

Urim-Thummim Version         YHWH spoke to Moses saying, Speak to the children of Israel and say to them, When either man or woman will separate themselves to make a vow, a vow of a Nazarite to consecrate themselves to YHWH. He will separate himself from wine and intoxicating drink, and will drink no vinegar of wine, or vinegar of intoxicating drink, neither will he drink any juice of grapes, nor eat moist grapes, or raisins. All the days of his consecration he will eat nothing that is made of the vine tree, from the kernels even to the husk.

Wikipedia Bible Project          .

Catholic Bibles (those having the imprimatur):

Christian Community (1988)  The Nazirites

• Yahweh spoke to Moses, “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 dedicate himself to Yahweh, he shall abstain from wine and strong drink. He shall not drink vinegar made from wine or strong drink; nor shall he drink the juice of the grape or eat fresh or dried grapes. All the time he lives as a Nazirite he shall eat nothing produced by the grapevine, from the pips to the skin. Jdg 13:5; 1S 1:11; Am 2:11; Lk 1:15

• 6.1 The Nazirites were men who consecrated themselves to God for a while or for life. Samson was a Nazirite (Jdg 13:5) and John the Baptist may have also been one (see Lk 1:15). There were also Nazirites among the first Christians of Jewish descent (Acts 21:23). See also Paul’s vow (Acts 18:18).

We do not know of any religious congregations in Israel as we now have in the church. There fore the law concerning the Nazirites enabled any believer to dedicate himself to God in a personal way.

New American Bible(2011)    .

The Catholic Bible                  .

New Jerusalem Bible             .

NRSV (Anglicized Cath. Ed.) .

Revised English Bible–1989            .

Jewish/Hebrew Names Bibles:

Complete Jewish Bible           .

Eth Cepher Bible                    AND Yahuah spoke unto El־Mosheh, saying, 

Speak unto the children of Yashar’el, and say unto them, When either man or woman shall separate themselves to vow a vow of a Naziyr, to separate themselves unto Yahuah: 

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. 

All the days of his separation shall he eat nothing that is made of the vine tree, from the kernels even to the husk.

exeGeses companion Bible   .

Hebraic Roots Bible               .

Kaplan Translation                 .

The Scriptures–2009              And יהוה spoke to Mosheh, saying, “Speak to the children of Yisra’ěl, and say to them, ‘When a man or woman does separate, by making a vow of a Nazirite, to be separate to יהוה, he separates himself from wine and strong drink – he drinks neither vinegar of wine nor vinegar of strong drink, neither does he drink any grape juice, nor eat grapes or raisins.  All the days of his separation he does not eat whatever is made of the grapevine, from seed to skin.

Tree of Life Version                Again Adonai spoke to Moses saying, “Speak to Bnei-Yisrael and say to them: Any man or woman who desires to vow a Nazirite vow to be separate for Adonai, is to abstain from wine and any other fermented drink. He is not to drink any vinegar made from wine or any fermented drink, or any grape juice, or eat grapes or raisins. All during his days as a Nazirite he is not to eat anything from the grapevine—even the seeds or skins.

Weird English, Olde English, Anachronistic English Translations:

Alpha & Omega Bible            (The Nazarite Vow) AND JESUS SPOKE TO MOSES, SAYING,

SPEAK TO THE CHILDREN OF ISRAEL, AND YOU SHALL SAY TO THEM, WHATSOEVER MAN OR WOMAN SHALL GREATLY VOW A VOW TO SEPARATE ONESELF WITH PURITY TO JESUS,

HE SHALL PURELY ABSTAIN FROM WINE AND ALCOHOL; AND HE SHALL DRINK NO VINEGAR OF WINE OR VINEGAR OF ALCOHOL; AND WHATEVER IS MADE OF THE GRAPE HE SHALL NOT DRINK; NEITHER SHALL HE EAT FRESH GRAPES OR RAISINS, †(This is one of many verses that shows that it is not a sin to drink alcohol & also not a sin for men to have long hair. This was a specific vow for only certain people to abstain from alcohol. Samuel, Samson & John the Baptizer were among those with this vow. A Nazarite should not be confused with a Nazarene who is anyone from the city of Nazareth. It is debated about whether Jesus also had this vow) V. 4 will be placed with the next passage for context.

Awful Scroll Bible                   Sustains To Become was speaking to Moses, to the intent:

Be speaking to the sons of Contends-with-he-mighty even is you to have said: Was a man or a woman to make an extraordinary vow, a vow of a Nazarite, to separate himself to Sustains To Become

He was to separate himself from wine and intoxicating drinks - was he to drink the vinegar of wine, or the vinegar of intoxicating drinks? - was he to drink the juice of the grapes? - was he to eat moist grapes or dry? -

Was he, the days of his separation, to eat that what was made of the wine, its vine, the grapestone, or its skin? -

Concordant Literal Version    Yahweh spoke to Moses, saying.

Speak to the sons of Israel and say to them:In case a man or a woman should make an extraordinary vow, the Nazirite vow, to sequester himself to Yahweh, from wine and intoxicant shall he sequester himself. Vinegar of wine and vinegar of an intoxicant he shall not drink, and any other liquid of grapes he shall not drink, and grapes, sappy or dried, he shall not eat.

All the days of his sequestration from all which is made from the vine, the wine from pips as well as grape-skin he shall not eat.

exeGeses companion Bible   THE SEPARATIST VOW OF SEPARATISM

And Yah Veh words to Mosheh, saying,

Word to the sons of Yisra El and say to them,

When either man or woman separate to vow a vow

- the vow of a Separatist,

to marvel to Yah Veh:

he separates from wine and intoxicants

and he drinks not fermented wine

or fermented intoxicants,

neither drinks steepings of grapes,

nor grapes - dried or fresh:

all the days of his separatism

he eats naught worked of the wine of the vine

- from the kernels even to the husk.

Orthodox Jewish Bible           And Hashem spoke unto Moshe, saying,

Speak unto the Bnei Yisroel, and say unto them, When either ish or isha shall separate themselves to vow a neder of a Nazir, to separate themselves unto Hashem;

He shall separate himself from yayin and shekhar (fermented drink), and shall drink no chometz (vinegar) of yayin, or chometz of shekhar, neither shall he drink any grape juice, nor eat moist grapes, or dried (i.e., raisins).

Kol hayamim of his nazir (vow as a nazir) shall he eat nothing that is made of the gefen hayayin, from the seeds even to the grape-skins.

Rotherham’s Emphasized B. .

Expanded/Embellished Bibles:

The Amplified Bible                .

The Expanded Bible              .

Kretzmann’s Commentary    .

Lexham English Bible            Rules Concerning Nazirites

Yahweh spoke to Moses, saying, “Speak to the Israelites [Literally “sons/children of Israel”] and say to them, ‘When a man or a woman takes a special vow, a vow of a Nazirite, [Literally “one separated”] to keep separate for Yahweh, he will abstain from wine and fermented drink; he will not drink wine vinegar or vinegar of fermented drink; he will not drink the fruit juice of grapes or eat fresh or dry grapes. All the days of his separation [That is, “the Nazirite”] you will not eat from anything that is made from the grapevine, from sour grapes to the skin of grapes.

Syndein/Thieme                     .

The Voice                               .

Bible Translations with Many Footnotes:

The Complete Tanach           .

The Geneva Bible                  .

Kaplan Translation                 The Nazirite

God spoke to Moses, telling him to

speak to the Israelites and say to them:

[This is the law] when a man or woman expresses a nazirite vow to God.

He must separate himself completely from wine and wine-brandy. He may not even drink vinegar made from wine and wine-brandy. He shall not drink any grape beverage, and he shall not eat any grapes or raisins.

As long as he is a nazirite, he may not eat anything coming from the grape, from its seeds to its skin. The Kaplan Translation, particularly in Numbers through Deuteronomy, takes note of historic rabbinic opinions.

nazirite

This is unlike ordinary vows, since it involves a special protocol and ordinarily is for thirty days (Sifri; Yad, Nazir 3:1). The word nazir denotes that which is set apart and consecrated (Rashi; see notes on Genesis 49:26, Leviticus 25:5). It can also denote the 'crown' of hair that the nazirite wears (Ibn Ezra on Numbers 6:7; Ramban). According to Talmudic tradition, the main purpose of the nazirite vow is to be a discipline against sexual temptation (Sotah 2a; Rashi) and to avoid pride (Sotah 4b). However, it is also seen as a means of attaining spiritual gifts (cf. Judges 13:3; 1 Samuel 1:11), and possibly as an initiation to prophecy (cf. Amos 2:11). By taking a nazirite vow, a layperson also to some degree attains the status of a priest (Philo 1, Legum Allegoriae 249). Some say that it is an offering where one presents his hair to God (Josephus, Antiquities 4:4:4).

wine-brandy

(Nazir 4a, 34b; Rashi). But not intoxicants in general.

grape beverage

(Septuagint; Menachem, quoted in Rashbam). Mishrah in Hebrew. It includes any liquid in which grapes have been soaked or steeped (Nazir 37a; Rashi; Sherashim).

NET Bible®                             .

New American Bible(2011)    .

Rotherham’s Emphasized B.                                                § 6. The Law of the Nazîrʹ.

Chapter 6.

And Yahweh spake unto Mosesˎ saying: Speak unto the sons of Israel, and thou shalt say unto them,—

≤When ||any man or woman|| would make the special vow of One Separate,^a by separating himself unto Yahweh≥ <from wine and strong drink> shall he separate himself, <neither vinegar of wineˎ nor vinegar of strong drink> shall he drink,—and <no liquor of grapes> shall he drink, <no grapes fresh or dried> shall he eat.

≤All the days of his separation≥ <of nothing that is made from the grapevineˎ from the seeds even to the skin> shall he eat.

^a Heb.: a nâdar. Cp. Gen. xlix. 26; Jud. xiii. 5; Lam. iv.7.

Literal, almost word-for-word, renderings:

A Faithful Version                  And the LORD spoke to Moses, saying, 

"Speak to the children of Israel, and say to them, 'When a man (or woman) shall separate himself in order to vow the vow of a Nazarite, in order to separate himself to the LORD, He shall separate 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.  All the days of his consecration he shall eat nothing that is made of the grapevine, from grape seeds even to a stem.

C. Thomson Updated OT       .

Charles Thomson OT            Again the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, Speak to the children of Israel, and thou shalt say to them, When a man or a woman shall make a solemn vow to preserve the strictest purity for the Lord, they must abstain from wine, and strong drink. Such a one shall not drink vinegar made of wine, nor vinegar made of strong drink; nor shall such a one drink any thing made of the grape; nor eat any grapes, fresh pulled, or dryed, all the days of the vow. V. 4 will be placed with the next passage for context.

Context Group Version          .

English Standard Version      .

Green’s Literal Translation    . pressed

Legacy Standard Bible           .

Literal Standard Version        .

Modern English Version         .

Modern Literal Version 2020  {Numbers 6:1-27, 10:1-36}

And Jehovah spoke to Moses, saying, Speak to the sons of Israel and say to them, When either man or woman will make a special vow, the vow of a Nazirite, to separate himself to Jehovah, he will separate himself from wine and strong drink. He will drink no vinegar of wine, or vinegar of strong drink, neither will he drink any juice of grapes, nor eat fresh grapes or dried. All the days of his separation he will eat nothing that is made of the grapevine, from the kernels even to the husk.

New American Standard B.    .

New European Version          .

New King James Version       .

Niobi Study Bible                   .

Revised Mechanical Trans.    ...and YHWH spoke to Mosheh saying, speak to the sons of Yisra'eyl, and you will say to them, a man or woman that will perform to make a vow, a vow of dedication, to be dedicated to YHWH. From wine and liquor he will dedicate, vinegar of wine and vinegar of liquor he will not gulp, and any juice of grapes he will not gulp, and moist or dry grapes he will not eat. All the days of his dedication, from all that will be made from the grapevine, the wine, the kernels and even the grape skin he will not eat.

Updated Bible Version 2.17   .

A Voice in the Wilderness      And Jehovah spoke to Moses, saying, Speak to the children of Israel, and say to them: When either a man or woman makes an extraordinary vow, the vow of a Nazirite, to separate himself unto Jehovah, he shall separate himself from wine and strong drink; he shall drink neither vinegar made from wine nor vinegar made from strong drink; neither shall he drink any grape juice, nor eat fresh grapes or dried. All the days of his separation he shall eat nothing that is produced from the grapevine, from seed to skin.

Webster’s Bible Translation  .

World English Bible                . Ferment

Young's Literal Translation     .

Young's Updated LT              .

The gist of this passage: 

1-4

Translation: And Y^ehowah speaks to Moses, saying,...

God will speak to Moses about the Nazirite vows.

Translation: ...“Speak to the sons of Israel and say to them,...

God tells Moses to speak to the sons of Israel.

Numbers 6:1–2a And Y^ehowah speaks to Moses, saying, “Speak to the sons of Israel and say to them,... (Kukis mostly literal translation)

Translation: ...‘When a man or a woman does the difficult thing, to vow a vow of the Nazirite, to be separated to Y^ehowah,...

The first thing which should catch your eye, if you recall anything about Samson, is that a Nazarite can be a man or a woman. Until now, I had never thought of a woman becoming a Nazarite. We have seen before the verb pâlâʾ (פָּלָא) [pronounced paw-LAW], which is usually used of God in reference to doing that which is miraculous or extraordinary. Here, we find this word used the same way, except with reference to a person who has chosen to do that which is extraordinary—set himself apart fully to Yahweh. This is in the Hiphil imperfect, meaning causative continuous action. So this person is caused to make such a choice and, like all spiritual growth, it is done on a day-by-day basis, involving thousands of decisions. Strong's #6381 BDB #810.

There are actually three different words for separation in this verse.

Nazarite is a transliteration. The Hebrew word is nâzîyr (נָזִיר) [pronounced naw-ZEER] and we have seen this word thrice previously in Scripture: Genesis 49:26 Leviticus 25:5, 11. In Genesis 49:26, we are given the renderings distinguished (NASB), the Separated One (The Emphasized Bible), him that was separate (KJV), who was set apart from (NRSV), and separate (Young's); and it is almost ignored, but footnoted as the one separated from in the NIV. Whereas most translations transliterate this word, the Septuagint translated it to separate (obviously, that is the English translation of the Greek). In Leviticus 25:5, 11, this word is translated untrimmed vines (NASB), separated thing (Young's) undressed vine (KJV), untended vines (NIV), and unpruned vine (NRSV). The connection here is that this is like a Nazarite with unshorn hair. Strong's #5139 BDB #634.

The corresponding verb is nâzar (נָזַר) [pronounced naw-ZAHR] and it is translated to take the vows of a Nazarite, to live as a Nazarite; and more simply to separate, to consecrate (Leviticus 15:31 22:2 Numbers 6:2–3, 5–6, 12 Ezekiel 14:7 Hosea 9:10 Zech. 7:3). Strong's #5144 BDB #634.

A related masculine noun is nêzer (נֵזֶר) [pronounced nay-ZER], which means crown, consecration, Nazariteship. Strong’s #5145 BDB #634. There is actually a connection between these various renderings. It is a crown which separates one man entirely from every other man; the crown is on the head and the Nazarites crown is his hair, which is untrimmed, like the vines during the Sabbath Year. These are words which began with a common meanings and Yahweh coined them to mean Nazarite, to become a Nazarite.

It is possible that the vows made herein were similar to vows made by the Jews prior to Mount Sinai, but here they are regulated and made a part of God's Law. Making a vow to separate oneself to God is not to be entered into lightly, nor is this to be an exercise in creativity. God was very specific in what He expected of the Nazarite. This separation to God did not mean that these men or women separated themselves from society, per se. That is, they did not go off into the mountains and live off lettuce and bird seed, as Thieme was wont to say. They remained in the camp of Israel. Famous people who have taken the vows of a Nazarite include Samson (Judges 13:5–7 16:17), Samuel (1Samuel 1:11, 28) and possibly John the Baptist (Luke 1:15) and possibly even Paul (Acts 21:23–26), although it would have been a mistake on the part of Paul to enter into a vow like that during the church age.

The end of this verse is a paronomasia: lîn^errôr nâzîyr nerer l^ehazzîyr (לְהַזִּיר נֶרֶר נָזִיר לִנְרֹּר) [pronounced leen'r-roar naw-zeer neh-zer l'hahz-zeer], emphasizing the solemn character of this vow.

We have occasionally made reference to the Charismatics; I would guess that there must be a group of them somewhere where of those who, instead of doing incredible miracles or speaking in tongues, they might be taking Nazarite vows.

This topic is all about the man or the woman who takes a Nazirite vow. This, for a period of time (a few days, weeks or months).

Jesus was not a Nazirite. He was a Nazarene, meaning that he was raised in Nazareth.

Translation: ...[then] he will be separated from wine and alcohol.

The Nazirite could not have any connection to wine or alcohol.

Numbers 6:2b–3a ...‘When a man or a woman does the difficult thing, to vow a vow of the Nazirite, to be separated to Y^ehowah, [then] he will be separated from wine and alcohol. (Kukis mostly literal translation)

Translation: He will not drink vinegar [made from] wine or vinegar [made from] alcohol. He will not drink any juice made from grapes. He will not eat [any form of] grape, fresh or dried.

The Nazirite was also cut off from anything coming from the grape vine. No fresh grapes; no raisins.

Numbers 6:3b He will not drink vinegar [made from] wine or vinegar [made from] alcohol. He will not drink any juice made from grapes. He will not eat [any form of] grape, fresh or dried. (Kukis mostly literal translation)

The grapes speak of blessing here on earth. Grapes are a personal favorite of mine and I often have them with breakfast, lunch or dinner. To me, they have the most marvelous taste—not too sweet, but wondrously flavorful. As is pointed out here, the Jews were adept at a great deal of food processing. They used grapes to make both vinegar and wine; they ate grapes raw and as raisins. However, the Nazarite would not eat any of the products associated with grapes, as grapes speak of that which is tied to the earth. They are marvelous blessings from God, but they are a part of this fallen earth.

Translation: [For] all the days of his Nazirite status, he will not eat anything produced from the vine of the grape, from grape seeds to grape skins. (Kukis mostly literal translation)

The Nazirite was not to eat even grape seeds or grape skins.

Numbers 6:4 [For] all the days of his Nazirite status, he will not eat anything produced from the vine of the grape, from grape seeds to grape skins. (Kukis mostly literal translation)

There is a complete abstinence from all that which is associated with unsinful earthly pleasures. As mentioned, the Nazarite is a type of Jesus Christ, Who is holy, harmless, undefiled, separate from sinners (Hebrews 7:26b).

Numbers 6:1–4 And Y^ehowah speaks to Moses, saying, “Speak to the sons of Israel and say to them, ‘When a man or a woman does the difficult thing, to vow a vow of the Nazirite, to be separated to Y^ehowah, [then] he will be separated from wine and alcohol. He will not drink vinegar [made from] wine or vinegar [made from] alcohol. He will not drink any juice made from grapes. He will not eat [any form of] grape, fresh or dried. [For] all the days of his Nazirite status, he will not eat anything produced from the vine of the grape, from grape seeds to grape skins. (Kukis mostly literal translation)

Numbers 6:1–4 Jehovah said to Moses, “Speak to the sons of Israel and say to them, ‘When a man or a woman vows to live as a Nazirite, to be separated to Jehovah, then that person must keep on being separated from wine and alcohol. He will not even drink vinegar made from wine or from any other form of alcohol. In fact, he will not eat or drink anything from the grape vine—not juice, not wine, not even grape seeds or grape skins. (Kukis paraphrase)

——————————

Here is how others have translated this passage:

Ancient texts:

Masoretic Text (Hebrew)        All days of a vow of his Nazirite status, a razor will not pass over upon his head as far as a fulfilling of the days that he separates (himself) to Y^ehowah. Holy he is. To make great a lock of hair of his head. All days of his separation to Y^ehowah upon a soul dying he will not come. To his father and to his mother, to his brother and to his sister he will not make himself unclean for them in their dying to his Nazirite status of his Elohim upon his head. All days of his Nazirite status holy he [is] to Y^ehowah.

Dead Sea Scrolls                   .

Jerusalem targum                  .

Targum (Onkelos)                  .

Targum (Pseudo-Jonathan)   .

Aramaic Targum                    .

The Psalms Targum              .

Updated Douay-Rheims         .

Douay-Rheims 1899 (Amer.) All the time of his separation no razor shall pass over his head, until the day be fulfilled of his consecration to the Lord. He shall be holy, and shall let the hair of his head grow.

All the time of his consecration he shall not go in to any dead,

Neither shall he make himself unclean, even for his father, or for his mother, or for his brother, or for his sister, when they die, because the consecration of his God is upon his head.

All the days of his separation he shall be holy to the Lord.

Aramaic ESV of Peshitta        "'All the days of his vow of separation there shall no razor come on his head, until the days are fulfilled, in which he separates himself to Mar-Yah. He shall be holy. He shall let the locks of the hair of his head grow long.

"'All the days that he separates himself to Mar-Yah he shall not go near a dead body.

He shall not make himself unclean for his father, or for his mother, for his brother, or for his sister, when they die; because his separation to God is on his head.

All the days of his separation he is holy to Mar-Yah.

Original Aramaic Psalms        .

V. Alexander’s Aramaic T.     .

Plain English Aramaic Bible   .

Lamsa’s Peshitta (Syriac)     .

Samaritan Pentateuch           .

Updated Brenton (Greek)       ...all the days of his separation — a razor shall not come upon his head, until the days be fulfilled which he vowed to the Lord. He shall be holy, cherishing the long hair of his head,

all the days of his vow to the Lord: he shall not come near to any dead body,

to his father or his mother, or to his brother or his sister; he shall not defile himself for them, when they have died, because the vow of God is upon him, on his head.

All the days of his vow he shall be holy unto the Lord.

Significant differences: 

Limited Vocabulary Translations:

Bible in Basic English             All the time he is under his oath let no blade come near his head; till the days while he is separate are ended he is holy and his hair may not be cut. 

All the time he is separate he may not come near any dead body. 

He may not make himself unclean for his father or his mother, his sister or his brother, if death comes to them; because he is under an oath to keep himself separate for God. 

All the time he is separate he is holy to the Lord.

Easy English                          .

Easy-to-Read Version–2008  "The whole time of their Nazirite vow they must not cut their hair. They must be holy until this time of special dedication to the LORD is ended. They must let their hair grow long.

"If you have taken the Nazirite vow, you must not go near someone who is dying during that special time of dedication. You have given yourself fully to the LORD, so you must not let yourself become unclean like this--even for your own father or mother, brother or sister when they die. This is because you have the hair that you dedicated to God on your head! It is holy because you have given yourself fully to the LORD for the full time of that dedication.

God’s Word™                         "As long as they are under the Nazirite vow, no razor may touch their heads. During the entire time that they are dedicated to the LORD as Nazirites, they will be holy. They must let their hair grow long. While they are dedicated to the LORD as Nazirites, they must never go near a dead body. Even if their own father, mother, brother, or sister dies, they must not make themselves unclean by going near them. Nazarites show their vow to God with their long hair. As long as they are Nazirites, they will be holy to the LORD.

Good News Bible (TEV)         As long as you are under the nazirite vow, you must not cut your hair or shave. You are bound by the vow for the full time that you are dedicated to the LORD, and you shall let your hair grow. Your hair is the sign of your dedication to God, and so you must not defile yourself by going near a corpse, not even that of your father, mother, brother, or sister. As long as you are a nazirite, you are consecrated to the LORD.

The Message                         .

Names of God Bible               .

NIRV                                      .

New Simplified Bible              .

Thought-for-thought translations; dynamic translations; paraphrases:

Casual English Bible             .

Contemporary English V.       Even the hair of a Nazirite is sacred to me, and as long as you are a Nazirite, you must never cut your hair. During the time that you are a Nazirite, you must never go close to a dead body, not even that of your father, mother, brother, or sister. That would make you unclean. Your hair is the sign that you are dedicated to me, so remain holy.

The Living Bible                     .

New Berkeley Version           .

New Life Version                    .

New Living Translation           .

The Passion Translation        .

Unfolding Bible Simplified      Even your hair will be dedicated to me during the time that you are a Nazir, so you must never allow anyone to cut your hair. Until the time that your solemn promise to dedicate yourself to me is ended, you must allow your hair to grow long. And you must not go near a corpse during the time that you are a Nazir. Even if the person who died is your father or your mother or your brother or your sister, you must not cause yourself to become unacceptable to me by coming close to the corpse. Your long hair shows that you belong to me in a special way, so you must do what you have solemnly promised and not cut your hair. You are required to keep doing this all the time that you are dedicated to me in this special way.

Partially literal and partially paraphrased translations:

American English Bible          .

Beck’s American Translation .

Common English Bible           .

New Advent (Knox) Bible       .

Translation for Translators     .

Mostly literal renderings (with some occasional paraphrasing):

Berean Study Bible                . entire period

Christian Standard Bible        .

Conservapedia Translation    .

Revised Ferrar-Fenton Bible  .

God’s Truth (Tyndale)           .

The Heritage Bible                 .

International Standard V        .

H. C. Leupold                         .

Lexham English Bible            .

NIV, ©2011                             .

Unfolding Bible Literal Text    During all the time of his vow of separation, no razor is to be used on his head until the days of his separation to Yahweh are fulfilled. He must be set apart to Yahweh. He must let the hair grow long on his head. During all the time that he separates himself to Yahweh, he must not come near a dead body. He must not make himself unclean even for his father, mother, brother, or sister, if they die. This is because he is separated to God, as everyone can see by his long hair. During all the time of his separation he is holy, reserved for Yahweh.

Urim-Thummim Version         .

Wikipedia Bible Project          .

Catholic Bibles (those having the imprimatur):

Christian Community (1988)  All the days of his vow of separation no razor shall touch his head. Until the time of his dedication to Yahweh is over, he will be a consecrated person and he shall let his hair grow freely. For all the time of his separation in honor of Yahweh he shall not go near a dead person, not even for his father, mother, brother or sister, lest he be defiled, for he bears on his head the sign of his consecration to God. All the time he lives as a Nazirite he is consecrated to Yahweh.

New American Bible (2011)   .

The Catholic Bible                  .

New Jerusalem Bible             .

NRSV (Anglicized Cath. Ed.) .

Revised English Bible–1989   .

Jewish/Hebrew Names Bibles:

Complete Jewish Bible           .

Eth Cepher Bible                    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 separates himself unto Yahuah, he shall be holy, and shall let the locks of the hair of his head grow. 

All the days that he separates himself unto Yahuah he shall come at no dead body. 

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 Elohiym is upon his head. 

All the days of his separation he is holy unto Yahuah.

exeGeses companion Bible   .

Hebraic Roots Bible               .

Kaplan Translation                 .

The Scriptures–2009              All the days of the vow of his separation a razor does not come upon his head. Until the days are completed for which he does separate himself to יהוה, he is set-apart. He shall let the locks of the hair of his head grow long.  All the days of his separation to יהוה he does not go near a dead body.  He does not make himself unclean for his father, or for his mother, for his brother or his sister, when they die, because his separation to Elohim is on his head.  All the days of his separation he is set-apart to יהוה.

Tree of Life Version                All the duration of his Nazirite vow, no razor is to come on his head until the time of his consecration to Adonai is over. He is to be holy, and the hair of his head is to grow long. All the days of his separation to Adonai, he is not to go near a dead body. Even if his father, mother, brother or sister should die, he is not to make himself unclean, because his consecration to God is on his head. All the days of his separation, he is to be consecrated to Adonai.

Weird English, Olde English, Anachronistic English Translations:

Alpha & Omega Bible            ALL THE DAYS OF HIS SEPARATION, A RAZOR SHALL NOT COME UPON HIS HEAD, UNTIL THE DAYS BE FULFILLED WHICH HE VOWED TO JESUS: HE SHALL BE HOLY, CHERISHING THE LONG HAIR OF THE HEAD,

ALL THE DAYS OF HIS VOW TO JESUS: HE SHALL NOT COME NEAR TO ANY DEAD BODY,

TO HIS FATHER OR HIS MOTHER, OR TO HIS BROTHER OR HIS SISTER; HE SHALL NOT DEFILE HIMSELF FOR THEM, WHEN THEY HAVE DIED, BECAUSE THE VOW OF THEOS (The Alpha & Omega) IS UPON HIM ON HIS HEAD.

ALL THE DAYS OF HIS VOW HE SHALL BE HOLY TO JESUS.

Awful Scroll Bible                   Was there, in the days of his vow of separation, that in a sheath to pass over his head, until the days are to be fulfilled, that he was consecrated to Sustains To Become? - He is set apart. The locks of the hair of his head are to be let to grow.

Was he, the days he is to be consecrated to Sustains To Become to go to he being dead of the breathers.

Was he to make himself unclean for his father or mother, or his brother or sister, in their death? - The consecration of he of mighty ones is on his head.

The days of his consecration, he is set apart to Sustains To Become

Concordant Literal Version    All the days of his Nazirite vow no razor shall pass over his head; until the days are fulfilled in which he is sequestering himself to Yahweh he shall come to be holy, letting the locks of the hair of his head grow great.

All the days of his sequestration to Yahweh he shall not come near a dead soul. Even for his father or for his mother, for his brother or for his sister, he shall not defile himself for them at their death, because the symbol of sequestration to his Elohim is on his head.

All the days of his sequestration he is holy to Yahweh.

exeGeses companion Bible   All the days of the vow of his separatism

no razor passes on his head:

until the days fulfill wherein he separates to Yah Veh,

he becomes holy

and the locks of the hair of his head grow.

All the days of his vow of separatism to Yah Veh

he comes at no soul who died:

he fouls not himself for his father or for his mother,

for his brother or for his sister,

when they die:

because the separatism of his Elohim is on his head.

All the days of his separatism

he becomes holy to Yah Veh.

Orthodox Jewish Bible           Kol hayamim of the neder of his nazir there shall no razor come upon his head; until hayamim be fulfilled, in the which he separateth himself unto Hashem, he shall be kadosh, and shall let the locks of the hair of his head grow.

Kol hayamei of his separation unto Hashem he shall go not near nefesh met (dead body).

He shall not make himself tameh for his av, or for his em, for his ach, or for his achot, when they die; because the Nezer Elohav (Consecration of his G-d) is upon his head.

Kol yemei of his nazir (separation) he is kadosh unto Hashem.

Rotherham’s Emphasized B. <All the days of his vow of separation> ||no razor|| shall pass over his head,—≤until the days are fulfilled for which he shall separate himself to Yahweh≥ <hallowed> shall he be, letting the locks of the hair of his head grow long. ≤All the days for which he hath separated himself unto Yahweh≥ <to no dead person>b shall he go in.

<Neither for his father nor for his motherˎ nor for his brotherˎ nor for his sister> shall he make himself unclean—<not even for ||them||ˎ should they die>,—because ||his separationc unto God|| is upon his head. ≤All his days of separation≥ <hallowed> is he unto Yahweh.

Expanded/Embellished Bibles:

The Amplified Bible                .

The Expanded Bible              .

International Standard V        “During the entire time of his dedication, he is not to allow a razor to pass over his head until the days of his holy consecration to the Lord have been fulfilled. He is to let the locks on his head grow long.

“During the entire time of his dedication, he is not to come near a dead body. [Lit. soul] He is not to defile himself on account of his father, mother, brother, and sister when they die, because the crown of his consecration to God is on his head. V. 8 will be placed with the next passage for context.

Kretzmann’s Commentary    

Lexham English Bible            “ ‘All the days of the vow of his separation a razor will not pass over his head. Until fulfilling the days that he separated himself to Yahweh he will be holy and grow long the locks of the hair of his head.

“ ‘All the days of keeping himself separated for Yahweh he will not go to a person who is dead; for even his father, mother, brother, or sister he will not make himself unclean by their death, [Literally “with their dying”] because the separation to his God is on his head. He will be holy for Yahweh all the days of his separation. [That is, “the Nazirite”]

Syndein/Thieme                     .

The Voice                               .

Bible Translations with Many Footnotes:

The Complete Tanach           .

The Geneva Bible                  .

Kaplan Translation                 As long as he is under nazirite oath, no cutting instrument shall touch [the hair on] his head. Until he completes his term as a nazirite to God, the uncut hair that grows on his head is sacred.

As long as he is a nazirite to God, he may not have any contact with the dead.

He may not ritually defile himself even when his father, mother, brother or sister dies, since his God's nazirite crown is on his head.

As long as he is a nazirite, he is holy to God.

cutting instrument

(Saadia; Sotah 16a). Literally, 'razor'.

nazirite crown

His uncut hair (Targum: Ibn Ezra).

NET Bible®                             .

New American Bible (2011)   .

New Catholic Bible                 .

Rotherham’s Emphasized B. .

Literal, almost word-for-word, renderings:

A Faithful Version                  .

C. Thomson Updated OT       .

Charles Thomson OT            From every thing produced from the grape, including wine; from the pulp to the stone, such a one shall abstain all the days of the purification. A razor shall not come upon his head, until the days which he hath vowed to the Lord be fulfilled. Being hallowed, he shall let the hair of his head grow all the days of his vow to the Lord. He shall not come near any dead body. For a father or a mother, or for a brother or a sister, if they chance to die, he shall not defile himself; for the vow of his God is on his head. All the days of his vow he shall be holy to the Lord. V. 4 is included for context.

Context Group Version          All the days of his vow of separation no razor shall come on his head: until the days be fulfilled, in which he separates himself to YHWH, he shall be special; he shall let the locks of the hair of his head grow long. All the days that he separates himself to YHWH he shall not come near to a dead body. He shall not make himself unclean for his father, or for his mother, for his brother, or for his sister, when they die; because his separation to God is on his head. All the days of his separation he is special to YHWH.

English Standard Version      .

Legacy Standard Bible           .

Literal Standard Version        All [the] days of the vow of his separation a razor does not pass over his head; he is holy until the fullness of the days [in] which he separates himself to YHWH; the upper part of the hair of his head has grown up. All [the] days of his keeping separate to YHWH, he does not go near a dead person; for his father, or for his mother, for his brother, or for his sister—he does not become unclean for them at their death, for the separation of his God [is] on his head; all [the] days of his separation he [is] holy to YHWH.

Modern English Version         .

Modern Literal Version 2020  All the days of his vow of separation no razor will come upon his head. Until the days be fulfilled, in which he separates himself to Jehovah, he will be holy. He will let the locks of the hair of his head grow long. He will not come near to a dead body all the days that he separates himself to Jehovah. He will not make himself unclean for his father, or for his mother, for his brother, or for his sister, when they die, because his separation to God is upon his head. All the days of his separation he is holy to Jehovah.

New American Standard B.    .

New European Version          .

New King James Version       .

Niobi Study Bible                   .

Owen's Translation                .

Revised Mechanical Trans.    All the days of the vow of his dedication, a razor will not cross over upon his head, until the filling of the days that he dedicated to YHWH, he will exist unique, magnified is the long hair of his head. All the days of his dedication to YHWH, he will not come upon a dying soul. For his father and for his mother, for his brother and for his sister, he will not be dirty for them in their death, given that the dedication of his Elohiym is upon his head. All the days of his dedication he will be unique for YHWH,...

Updated Bible Version 2.17   .

A Voice in the Wilderness      .

Webster’s Bible Translation  .

World English Bible                .

Young's Literal Translation     .

Young’s Updated LT             .

The gist of this passage: 

5-8

Translation: [For] all the days of his vow of a Nazirite status, a razor will not pass over his head until the completion of the days while he separates (himself) to Y^ehowah.

The Nazirite will not cut his hair during the time of his separation.

Translation: He is holy. [He] will let grow the locks of hair on his head.

The man, being set apart to God, will allow his hair to grow without being cut.

Numbers 6:5 [For] all the days of his vow of a Nazirite status, a razor will not pass over his head until the completion of the days while he separates (himself) to Y^ehowah. He is holy. [He] will let grow the locks of hair on his head. (Kukis mostly literal translation)

Men grow hair on their heads and on their beards. This vow clearly related to the hair of one's head. And she made a vow and said, "O, Yahweh of the armies, if You will indeed look upon the affliction of Your maidservant and remember me and not forget Your maidservant, but You will give Your maidservant a son, then I will give him to Yahweh all the days of his life, and a razor will never come on his head (1Samuel 1:11). We have all of thee goofy pictures of the patriarchs with this long flowing hair. This was an unusual vow, not taken by any of the patriarchs and not taken by Moses, Aaron, or any of the prophets that we know much about. The point here is that these men did not all have long, flowing hair. They were not Nazarites. This is a vow of separation. How can you be all that separate if you look exactly like everyone else? Paul made it very clear that if a man has long hair, it is a shame unto him (1Corinthians 11:14). Taking the vows of a Nazarite was an exception to this. Obviously, long hair would not be a primary distinguishing mark between Nazarites and everyone else if every other male had long, hippie hair. Also see Ezekiel 44:20.

Translation: All the days of his separating to Y^ehowah, he will not come near to a dying soul.

A person under a Nazirite vow cannot come near to a dying person.

Numbers 6:6 All the days of his separating to Y^ehowah, he will not come near to a dying soul. (Kukis mostly literal translation)

As we have seen, a person who has died represents the ultimate of what this earth has to offer—death. A person's death, although it is a promotion to God, is viewed as tragic and sad—often the result of many accumulated sins and often a result of the natural decay of the body. In any case, from the human standpoint, death is everything which is wrong with this world. We have laws passed which attempt to keep people from dying. The Nazarite is to be separated from all that is related to the earth. Even a priest was allowed contact with close relatives who had died (Leviticus 21:1–3). See also Numbers 19:11–22.

It might seem logical to you to examine the Doctrine of the Nazarite (HTML) (PDF) (WPD) at this point in time; although, that may be better suited for our first case history, which is Samson in the book of the Judges (Judges 13:5).