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Numbers 6-7; Hebrews 13 Listen to Today's Reading
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Numbers 6
The Lord said to Moses, “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, 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. 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. 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. Throughout the period of their dedication to the Lord, the Nazirite must not go near a dead body. 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. Throughout the period of their dedication, they are consecrated to the Lord. 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. 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. The priest is to offer one as a sin offering[a] 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. They must re-dedicate 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. 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. 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, 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. The priest is to present all these before the Lord and make the sin offering and the burnt offering. 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. 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. 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. 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. 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 Lord said to Moses, “Tell Aaron and his sons, This is how you are to bless the Israelites. Say to them: The Lord bless you and keep you; the Lord make his face shine on you and be gracious to you; the Lord turn his face toward you and give you peace. So they will put my name on the Israelites, and I will bless them.” Numbers 6 (NIV)
I won’t try to convince you that my devotion will enlighten you, because I wrote this devotion, based on a number of questions I’ve had in the past, and questions I had after reading Numbers 6. If you’re like me, have you wondered / questioned why God established some of the Ceremonial Laws relative to worship and ritual regulations for ancient Israel, including sacrifices, festivals and purity rules? Based on the Nazirite vows, I researched the question, why was a corpse considered to make one ceremonially unclean?
AI’s answer: “The General Purity Law. Under the Torah, touching a dead body made a person unclean for 7 days. This impurity was not moral in the modern sense, but a ritual status that prevented one from participating in worship or entering the Tabernacle until purification rites were completed.”
The next question I researched was the meaning of Nazirite, which is: An Israelite consecrated to the service of God, under vows to abstain from alcohol, let the hair grow, and avoid defilement by contact with corpses. From Agape Bible Study, The Vow of the Nazirite, the vow could be a special service performed for a certain length of time or the vow could tie the Nazirite to a lifetime of service. Thirty days was the shortest possible period of time for a Nazirite vow.
Next question, which I didn’t research, along with a number of other questions I had from Numbers 6, and will wonder about is, why was the Nazirite defiled simply by being in the presence of someone who died suddenly, rather than by touching the corpse as noted above? I expect Pastor Michael would be able to enlighten me on these questions, so if he reads this……..
As I re-learned from Numbers 6, the ELCA Benediction comes from the Priestly Blessing in Numbers 6:24–26. This declaration that God’s blessing is upon his people, is something I experienced for the first time in four years, when I attended a service at Southwood this summer, and which I miss, along with other parts of the ELCA Order of Worship. While I’m not a regular user of AI, it helped me grasp some understanding of Numbers 6, but it also reminded me the Benediction affirms that God’s presence and peace abide in the congregation, recalling baptism and the sacrament, and sending us forth to live out our vocations in love and service. Thanks be to God!
Questions for Reflection:
- Are there questions you’ve had about why God established some of the Ceremonial Laws relative to worship and ritual regulations?
- Have you inquired / researched the basis for those Ceremonial Laws if you’ve questioned why God established them?
Prayer:
Lord, I give thanks to you for the Priestly Blessing you spoke to Moses. While the Bible holds many questions, through the blessing of Your Word in verses 24-26, we are reminded that Your presence and peace abide in us. Help us to carry your message out through the doors of church every Sunday, and live out our vocations in love and service.
In Your name I pray. Amen.
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