Numbers 6

Law of the Nazirites

1Again the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, 2“Speak to the sons of Israel and say to them, ‘When a man or woman makes a 1special vow, the vow of 2a 3Nazirite, to 4dedicate himself to the Lord, 3he shall 5abstain from wine and strong drink; he shall drink no vinegar, whether made from wine or strong drink, nor shall he drink any grape juice nor eat fresh or dried grapes. 4All the days of his 6separation he shall not eat anything that is produced by the grape vine, from the seeds even to the skin.

5‘All the days of his vow of separation 7no razor shall pass over his head. He shall be holy until the days are fulfilled for which he separated himself to the Lord; he shall let the locks of hair on his head grow long.

6‘8All the days of his separation to the Lord he shall not go near to a dead person. 7He 9shall 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. 8All the days of his separation he is holy to the Lord.

9‘But if a man dies very suddenly beside him and he defiles his dedicated head of hair, then 10he shall shave his head on the day when he becomes clean; 11he shall shave it on the seventh day. 10Then on the eighth day he shall bring 12two turtledoves or two young pigeons to the priest, to the doorway of the tent of meeting. 11The priest shall offer 13one for a sin offering and the other for a burnt offering, and make atonement for him 14concerning his sin because of the dead person. And that same day he shall consecrate his head, 12and shall dedicate to the Lord his days 15as a 16Nazirite, and shall bring a male lamb a year old for a guilt offering; but the former days will be void because his separation was defiled.

13‘Now this is the law of the Nazirite 17when the days of his separation are fulfilled, he shall bring 18the offering to the doorway of the tent of meeting. 14He shall present his offering to the Lord: one male lamb a year old without defect for a burnt offering and one 19ewe-lamb a year old without defect for a sin offering and one ram without defect for a peace offering, 15and a basket of 20unleavened cakes of fine flour mixed with oil and unleavened wafers spread with oil, along with 21their grain offering and their drink offering. 16Then the priest shall present them before the Lord and shall offer his sin offering and his burnt offering. 17He shall also offer the ram for a sacrifice of peace offerings to the Lord, together with the basket of unleavened cakes; the priest shall likewise offer its grain offering and its drink offering. 1822The Nazirite shall then shave his dedicated head of hair at the doorway of the tent of meeting, and take the dedicated hair of his head and put it on the fire which is under the sacrifice of peace offerings. 1923The priest shall take the ram’s shoulder when it has been boiled, and one unleavened cake out of the basket and one unleavened wafer, and shall put them on the 24hands of the Nazirite after he has shaved his 25dedicated hair. 20Then the priest shall wave them for a wave offering before the Lord. It is holy for the priest, together with the breast offered by waving and the thigh offered by lifting up; and 26afterward the Nazirite may drink wine.’

21“This is the law of the Nazirite who vows his offering to the Lord according to his separation, in addition to what else 27he can afford; according to his vow which he takes, so he shall do according to the law of his separation.”

Aaron’s Benediction

22Then the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, 23“Speak to Aaron and to his sons, saying, ‘Thus 28you shall bless the sons of Israel. You shall say to them:

24The Lord 29bless you, and 30keep you;

25The Lord 31make His face shine on you, And 32be gracious to you;

26The Lord 33lift up His countenance on you, And 34give you peace.’ 27So they shall 3536invoke My name on the sons of Israel, and I then will bless them.”