Numbers 6

Numbers_6
3/1/09

I. In Numbers chapters 5, 6 we encounter the first group of laws contained in this book.
A. They relate to the theme of separation from impurity and dedication to the Lord.
B. Chapter-5 dealt with Separation from sin; we want to be separated FROM our sin, and separated TO God.
1. So as we move into chapter-6 we have some laws that pertain to dedication and separation of our selves TO or toward God.
II. The Law of the Nazarite
A. Purpose of the vow
Numbers 6:1-2 (NKJV)
1 Then the Lord spoke to Moses, saying,
2 “Speak to the children of Israel, and say to them: ‘When either a man or woman consecrates an offering to take the vow of a Nazirite, to separate himself to the Lord,
1. The key phrase for us is "to separate himself to the Lord"
a. Nazarite is the transliteration of the Hebrew word nazir and it means consecrated or devoted one.
(1) And it comes from the nazar which means to dedicate.
2. So the vow of a nazarite was an expression of special desire to draw near to God.
3. It was a voluntary vow, something desired in the heart of the one making the vow.
B. What a wonderful principal is contained in this, the priests and Levites were called by God and specially separated to Him obviously a very great honor and privilege.
1. But here is a way that any Jew could set himself apart from the norms of life and dedicate himself to God for some special service or communion.
a. Both men and women could devote themselves for a special time of separation as a nazarite.
2. What a wonderful truth it is to know that God wants us to draw near to Him, to dedicate ourselves to Him, that it is something that pleases His heart, but that it is something that needs to be taken seriously as we will see in the upcoming verses.
a. Consider the NT instruction of James 4:8
James 4:8 (NKJV)
8 Draw near to God and He will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners; and purify your hearts, you double-minded.
(1) As we desire to draw near to God, He meets us, He draws near to us, but it begins with separating ourselves (with His help) from impurities of our sinful natures.
3. It is good to draw near God
Psalm 73:28 (NKJV)
28 But it is good for me to draw near to God; I have put my trust in the Lord God, That I may declare all Your works.
a. May each of us have such a desire: voluntary actions motivated by love…
(1) Also we want to keep in mind that here in this section of numbers we are looking at preparation for the Promised Land, and so as the Promised Land is analogous to the Spirit filled life, special dedication to God is an ingredient that prepares us or helps us in the journey.
(a) Fasting from time to time may be a kind of special dedication to draw near to the Lord (week of prayer and fasting coming up in May I believe...)
C. Dedication to any cause or purpose or person involves sacrifice and discipline...
1. Before we move on to look at the requirements of a nazarite vow let me just say don't confuse nazarite with Nazarene or Nazareth, there isn't really a connection
D. Requirements of the vow
Numbers 6:3-8 (NKJV)
3 he shall separate himself from wine and similar drink; he shall drink neither vinegar made from wine nor vinegar made from similar drink; neither shall he drink any grape juice, nor eat fresh grapes or raisins.
4 All the days of his separation he shall eat nothing that is produced by the grapevine, from seed to skin.
5 ‘All the days of the vow of his separation no razor shall come upon his head; until the days are fulfilled for which he separated himself to the Lord, he shall be holy. Then he shall let the locks of the hair of his head grow.
6 All the days that he separates himself to the Lord he shall not go near a dead body.
7 He shall not make himself unclean even for his father or his mother, for his brother or his sister, when they die, because his separation to God is on his head.
8 All the days of his separation he shall be holy to the Lord.
1. There were three things that marked nazarite separation.
a. Abstinence from wine or any product of grapes.
(1) Symbols of blessing and joy so this was a form of self-denial
b. No razor was to come upon his head.
(1) So his hair was to grow and not be cut during the period of the vow, and then shaved off at the conclusion of the vow.
(2) It was an outward demonstration that the person was under a special vow.
(a) In churches such as the Russian Orthodox Church, long hair is considered a sign of piety.
i) Many people misunderstand 1 Corinthians 11 and the statement Paul makes about it being a shame for a man to have long hair, in its context there Paul is referring to authority and the place of men and women concerning God given authority and responsibility.
(c) And they were not to go near a dead body even that of a close relative (death remember is the effect of sin).
2. They were obligatory to the vow, they were not optional, so the vow involved counting the cost and was only to be entered into in a serious manner not haphazardly or rashly.
E. Penalty of breaking the vow.
Numbers 6:9-12 (NKJV)
9 ‘And if anyone dies very suddenly beside him, and he defiles his consecrated head, then he shall shave his head on the day of his cleansing; on the seventh day he shall shave it.
10 Then on the eighth day he shall bring two turtledoves or two young pigeons to the priest, to the door of the tabernacle of meeting;
11 and the priest shall offer one as a sin offering and the other as a burnt offering, and make atonement for him, because he sinned in regard to the corpse; and he shall sanctify his head that same day.
12 He shall consecrate to the Lord the days of his separation, and bring a male lamb in its first year as a trespass offering; but the former days shall be lost, because his separation was defiled.
1. If someone dies very suddenly beside the nazarite his hair was to be shaved off, a sacrifice made and he started back at the beginning of the vow the days already completed were lost.
2. You were not free to say I don't want to do this anymore.
F. Concluding the nazarite vow.
Numbers 6:13-15 (NKJV)
13 ‘Now this is the law of the Nazirite: When the days of his separation are fulfilled, he shall be brought to the door of the tabernacle of meeting.
14 And he shall present his offering to the Lord: one male lamb in its first year without blemish as a burnt offering, one ewe lamb in its first year without blemish as a sin offering, one ram without blemish as a peace offering,
15 a basket of unleavened bread, cakes of fine flour mixed with oil, unleavened wafers anointed with oil, and their grain offering with their drink offerings.
1. He was brought to the door of the tabernacle so it was a public ceremony, and the items needed were –
a male lamb for a burnt offering,
a ewe lamb for a sin offering,
a ram for peace offering,
and a basket of unleavened bread as a grain offering along with the drink offering associated with it.
a. This obviously was a costly endeavor, but let me tell you that there is a cost to worship.
2 Samuel 24:24 (NKJV)
24 Then the king said to Araunah, “No, but I will surely buy it from you for a price; nor will I offer burnt offerings to the Lord my God with that which costs me nothing.” So David bought the threshing floor and the oxen for fifty shekels of silver.
(1) Worship involves the best we have to offer, not our leftovers.
b. This was an offering that was presented to the Lord; I wonder how mindful we are in our service to God that it is to be done as an offering presented to Him?
2. Verses 16-21
Numbers 6:16-21 (NKJV)
16 ‘Then the priest shall bring them before the Lord and offer his sin offering and his burnt offering;
17 and he shall offer the ram as a sacrifice of a peace offering to the Lord, with the basket of unleavened bread; the priest shall also offer its grain offering and its drink offering.
18 Then the Nazirite shall shave his consecrated head at the door of the tabernacle of meeting, and shall take the hair from his consecrated head and put it on the fire which is under the sacrifice of the peace offering.
19 ‘And the priest shall take the boiled shoulder of the ram, one unleavened cake from the basket, and one unleavened wafer, and put them upon the hands of the Nazirite after he has shaved his consecrated hair,
20 and the priest shall wave them as a wave offering before the Lord; they are holy for the priest, together with the breast of the wave offering and the thigh of the heave offering. After that the Nazirite may drink wine.’
21 “This is the law of the Nazirite who vows to the Lord the offering for his separation, and besides that, whatever else his hand is able to provide; according to the vow which he takes, so he must do according to the law of his separation.”
a. The priest and the Nazarite would make the offering and the vow would be completed.
III. The Priestly Blessing.
A. God gave a command and instruction for Aaron and his sons to bless the people
Numbers 6:22-23 (NKJV)
22 And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying:
23 “Speak to Aaron and his sons, saying, ‘This is the way you shall bless the children of Israel. Say to them:
1. "This is the way you shall bless them", so the priests were not only commanded to bless the people but God gave them a formula to follow for blessing the people.
a. Spurgeon wrote concerning this:
"Free prayer is most useful, and it will ordinarily consort best with the movements of the free Spirit; but in the case of a benediction, it is well that it was dictated to the man of God. The children of Israel might miss blessing through the ignorance, or forgetfulness, or unbelief of Aaron; and therefore it was not left to him; but he had to learn by heart each word and sentence. In this wise, and in no other, was he to bless the people. I like this; for if God himself puts the very words into the mouth of his priest, then they are God’s words." (Spurgeon)
2. And here is the blessing, it is known as the "Aaronic Blessing"
Numbers 6:24-26 (NKJV)
24 “The Lord bless you and keep you;
25 The Lord make His face shine upon you, And be gracious to you;
26 The Lord lift up His countenance upon you, And give you peace.” ’
a. The Lord Bless You
(1) God delights in blessing His people, and reminds us that all blessing come from the Lord.
(a) We need to understand that God's blessing has our higher good in mind, not simply our temporal comfort.
i) We often desire or settle for things such as comfort and happiness, which may have nothing to do with God's true blessing.
b. And Keep You
(1) As a shepherd keeps his sheep, so the Lord desires to keep His people, protecting them, guarding them, setting boundaries and limits for them, sustaining them.
c. The Lord Make His Face to Shine Upon You
(1) To have God look upon us and be pleased with us is one of the greatest blessing we can have.
(a) And He is pleased with us not for what we have done, but because we are in Christ.
d. And be Gracious to You
(1) The expression that God would show care and tender mercy for us His people.
(a) Boy how I need this blessing daily!
e. The Lord lift Up His Countenance Upon You
(1) That God would look upon His people and pay attention to them
(a) And so He does.
f. And Give You Peace.
(1) Not simply the cessation of hostility, but wholeness, goodness, the abundant life that Jesus spoke of
John 10:10 (NKJV)
10 The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly.
g. Note the Phrase "The Lord" is repeated three times, a hint at the Trinity
As Guzik points out:
(1) God the Father blesses and keeps us
(2) God the Son makes God's face to shine upon us and brings us grace.
(3) God the Holy Spirit communicates God's attention to us, and gives us peace
(4) And six times we read you (God wants to bless you)
B. The Fruit of the Blessing
Numbers 6:27 (NKJV)
27 “So they shall put My name on the children of Israel, and I will bless them.”
1. To be blessed by God means to have His name put on us and thus be identified with who He is and all that pertains to His nature.
a. The blessing was commanded for the people of God not the surrounding nations, so we have to be joined to Him to gain this blessing.
(1) Like in marriage.
2. And God says "I will bless them" so in response to this blessing God promises to bless what a wonderful truth for us to take to heart and walk in by faith.
C. May we desire to set ourselves apart in special ways in order to experience more intimacy in our fellowship with God.
1. Not working for reward, but taking time to draw near to Him, allowing Him to draw near to us.
a. Quiet times, retreats, special study, fasts, special service...
D. And may we seek and walk in His blessings by faith
IV. Communion