Numbers 6:5

Num 6:5 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 separateth [himself] unto the LORD, he shall be holy, [and] shall let the locks of the hair of his head grow.

Ver. 5. There shall no razor.] In opposition to heathens, votaries who nourished their hair to offer to their gods. The popish priests also cut and shave their hair, that they may still look neat and effeminate; which God allowed not in his Nazarites. {Amo 2:11}

John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Num 6:5. No razor shall come upon his head — Nor scissors, or other instrument, to cut off any part of his hair. This is the second rule he was to observe, and appointed, partly as a sign of his mortification to worldly delights and outward beauty; partly as a testimony of that purity which he professed, because the cutting off the hair was a sign of uncleanness, as appears from Num 6:9; partly that by the length of his hair he might be constantly put in mind of his vow. Holy — That is, wholly consecrated to God and his service, whereby is shown that inward holiness was the great thing which God required and valued in these, and consequently in other rites and ceremonies.

Joseph Benson's Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1811–1818) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

6:5 Hair had special symbolic significance (cp. Lev 19:27); religious persons often left their hair uncut or shaved it off entirely (Num 8:5-7). The Israelites were not expected to leave their hair entirely uncut, but the Nazirites were.

Tyndale Open Study Notes — © Tyndale Open Resources, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

Verse 5. There shall no razor come upon his head] The vow of the Nazarite consisted in the following particulars: -

1. He consecrated himself in a very especial and extraordinary manner to God.

2. This was to continue for a certain season, probably never less than a whole year, that he might have a full growth of hair to burn in the fire which is under the sacrifice of the peace-offering, Nu 6:18.

3. During the time of his separation, or nazarate, he drank no wine nor strong drink; nor used any vinegar formed from any inebriating liquor, nor ate the flesh or dried grapes, nor tasted even the kernels or husks of any thing that had grown upon the vine.

4. He never shaved his head, but let his hair grow, as the proof of his being in this separated state, and under vows of peculiar austerity.

5. He never touched any dead body, nor did any of the last offices, even to his nearest kin; but was considered as the priests, who were wholly taken up with the service of God, and regarded nothing else.

6. All the days of his separation he was holy, Nu 6:8.

During the whole time he was to be incessantly employed in religious acts.

Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible (1810–1826) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

(5) There shall no razor come upon his head.—The hair was to be suffered to grow in all its luxuriance during the days of the Nazirite vow. The meaning may be illustrated by reference to Lev_25:4-5; Lev_25:11, where it is prescribed that in the seventh year the vine was not to be pruned, and that the grapes of “the undressed vine” (literally, the grapes of the Nazirite) should not be gathered.

A Bible Commentary for English Readers, edited by Charles John Ellicott (1878–1897) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

5. Second regulation. The hair to be left uncut. This is found in every reference to the Nazirites, both in early and late times. Long hair was the visible mark of consecration.

The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

All the days of the vow of his separation,.... Be the time he has vowed to be a Nazarite a week, a, month, or more, even a thousand days, but not less than thirty, as Ben Gersom observes:

there shall no razor come upon his head; he might not shave his beard, nor cut off his locks, and shave his head, nor cut short his locks with a pair of scissors, nor any with anything by which the hair may be removed, as Ben Gersom; nor pluck off his hair with his hands, as Maimonides says (x); but let it grow as long as it would during the time of his separation, which is expressed in the latter part of the verse:

until the days be fulfilled, in the which he separateth himself unto the Lord; to his service, to which he wholly addicted himself as long as his vow continued:

he shall be holy; separate from other men, and their practices and customs, and spend his time in holy exercises, in a religious way, and abstain from what might be a temptation to sin, or in the least hinder him in his acts of devotion:

and shall let the locks of his hair grow; two reasons Fagius gives of this part of the law, the one is, because of the mystery of it; letting the hair grow signified an increase of virtue or grace, as Samson's strength was increased and became very great while his hair was not cut; and so spiritual Nazarites, while they are in the way of their duty, grow in grace, and in knowledge of God and Christ, and all divine things, and grow stronger and stronger in the Lord, and in the power of his might; and Ainsworth hints at the same thing, and also supposes it might be an emblem of the subjection of the saints to Christ, as the letting the hair grow was a sign of the woman's subjection to man: the other is, that it was appointed to take the Israelites off of the errors and superstitious they had imbibed in Egypt, by ordering them to perform those rites and ceremonies to the honour of the true God, which they had used in the service of demons; and for this he cites a passage out of Cyrill; but it does not appear, by any good authority, that such a custom obtained among the Egyptians, or any other Gentiles so early; and what were used among them in later times took their rise from hence, and were imitations of this law; though there seems to be no great likeness between this law of Nazariteship and the customs of the Heathens, who used to consecrate their hair to their deities, Apollo, Hercules, Bacchus, Minerva, and Diana: what seems best to agree is what Lucian says (y), who observes, that young men consecrate their beards, and let their hair grow, consecrated from their birth, which they afterwards cut and lay up in vessels in the temple, some of gold, others of silver.

(x) Hilchot Nezirut, c. 5. sect. 11. (y) De Dea Syria.

John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

Grow. At the commencement, and at the end of the Nazariteship, the hair was cut; though perhaps a sort of crown was left at the top of the head, as the 7th verse may be rendered, "the crown of his God," &c. (Calmet) --- The Nazarite is under the same regulations with the high priest, with respect to any corpse, ver. 6. (Maimonides; More, p. 3.; Leviticus xxi. 11.) Both were consecrated to God in the most perfect manner. (Menochius) --- When the hair of Samson was cut off, he immediately lost his supernatural strength, Judges xvi.

George Leo Haydock (1774–1849), Haydock's Catholic Family Bible and Commentary, 1859 edition — public domain. Excludes Psalms (Douay-Rheims chapter numbering differs from Protestant) and Deuterocanonical books (Catholic canon only).

No razor, nor scissors, or other instrument to cut off any part of his hair. This was appointed, partly, as a sign of his mortification to worldly delights, and vain affectation of outward beauty, which is promoted by the polling or cutting off the hair; partly, as a testimony of that purity which hereby he professed, because the cutting off the hair was a sign of uncleanness, as appears from Num 6:9, and Lev 14:8,9; partly, that by the notorious length of his hair he might be constantly minded of his vow, and the exquisite holiness it required, and that others might thereby be admonished and stirred up to the imitation of his holy example; and partly, that he might reserve his hair entirely for God, to whom it was to be offered, Num 6:18.

He shall be holy, i.e. wholly consecrated to God and his service, whereby lie shows that inward and substantial holiness was the great thing which God required and valued in these, and consequently in other rites and ceremonies.

Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

5. No razor come upon his head — The unshorn head was not a symbol of holiness among the Hebrews, as Bahr suggests, but simply an ornament in which the whole strength and fulness of life were set forth in honour of Jehovah as a sign of the perfect consecration of all his energies to his service. It was not a sign of perfect liberty, still less of dependence upon some other power, nor of abasement, nor abstinence, nor of renunciation of the world.

Until the days be fulfilled — The law prescribed no period.

Daniel D. Whedon (gen. ed.), Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1874–1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

There shall no razor come upon his head. The meaning of this law is best understood from the case of Samson, whose strength was in his hair, and departed from him when his hair was cut. No doubt that strength was a more or less supernatural gift, and it went and came with his hair according to some supernatural law; but it is clear that the connection was not merely arbitrary, but was founded on some generally received idea. To the Jew, differing in this from the shaven Egyptian and the short-haired Greek, the hair represented the virile powers of the adult, growing with its growth, and failing again with its decay. To use a simple analogy from nature, the uncropped locks of the Nazirite were like the mane of the male lion, a symbol of the fullness of his proper strength and life. (cf. 2Sa_14:25, 2Sa_14:26, and, for the disgrace of baldness, 2Ki_2:23) In later ages Western and Greek feeling on the subject prevailed over Eastern and Jewish, and a "Hebrew of the Hebrews" was able to argue that "even nature itself" teaches us "that if a man have long hair it is a shame unto him". (1Co_11:14) No doubt "nature itself" taught the Greek of Corinth that lesson; but no doubt also "nature itself" taught the Jew of Palestine exactly the opposite lesson; and the Apostle himself did not quite discard the earlier sentiment, for he too made a Nazirite vow, and suffered his hair to grow while it lasted. (Act_21:24) The meaning, therefore, of the law was that the whole fullness of the man"s vitality was to be dedicated without any diminution to the Lord, as typified by the free growth of his hair. It has been conjectured that it was allowed to the Nazirite to "poll" (keirasyai ) his hair during his vow, although not to "shave" it (xurasyai ); and in this way the statement is explained that St. Paul "polled his head" (keiramenov thn , Act_18:18, compared with Act_21:24) in Cenchraea, because he had a vow. It is, however, quite evident that any permission to cut the hair is inconsistent with the whole intention of the commandment; for if a man might "poll his head" when he pleased, he would not be distinguished from other men. If it was allowed in the Apostle"s time, it is only another instance of the way in Which the commandments of God were made of none effect by the traditions of men.

The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

No razor - Nor scissors, or other instrument to cut off any part of his hair. This was appointed, partly as a sign of his mortification to worldly delights and outward beauty; partly as a testimony of that purity which hereby he professed, because the cutting off the hair was a sign of uncleanness, as appears from ver. 9, partly that by the length of his hair he might be constantly minded of his vow; and partly that he might reserve his hair entirely for God, to whom it was to be offered. Holy - That is, wholly consecrated to God and his service, whereby he shews that inward holiness was the great thing which God required and valued in these, and consequently in other rites and ceremonies.

John Wesley, Explanatory Notes Upon the Whole Bible (1754–1765) — public domain. Text via the GEBible commentary corpus.

vow of separation

This is an idiom. Here "separation" means "dedication" AT: "vow of dedication" (See: Idiom)

no razor is to be used on his head

This can be stated in active form. AT: "no one is to use a razor on his head" (See: Active or Passive)

the days of his separation to Yahweh

The word "separation" is an abstract noun that can be expressed as a verb. Here "separation" is an idiom that means "dedication." AT: "the days that he has separated himself to Yahweh" or "the days that he has dedicated himself to Yahweh" (See: Abstract Nouns and Idiom)

to Yahweh are fulfilled

This can be stated in active form. AT: "to Yahweh are complete" (See: Active or Passive)

He must be set apart to Yahweh

This can be stated in active form. AT: "He must set himself apart to Yahweh" (See: Active or Passive)

translationWords

vow

fulfill

set apart

unfoldingWord translationNotes — © Distant Shores Media and the Door43 World Missions Community, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Source: git.door43.org/Door43/en_tn.

קדש יהיה means HOLY SHALL IT (not “he”) BE viz., his hair shall be holy. inasmuch as he must let grow freely the hair of his head (lit., so as to let grow the over-growth, פרע, of the hair of his head) (Sifrei Bamidbar 25; Taanit 4a).

פרע — The word פרע is punctuated (as to its first syllable) with Patach-Katan (Segol) because it is in construct state to שער ראשו and the meaning is: the פרע, the wild growth of שער ראשו — The meaning of the word פרע is over-growth of the hair; similar is (Leviticus 21:10) “He shall not let his hair grow wild (יפרע)”. Growth of the hair of less than thirty days’ duration does not come under the term פרע (Sifrei Bamidbar 25; Sanhedrin 22b).

Rashi on the Tanakh — English translations: “The Judaica Press complete Tanach with Rashi, translated by A. J. Rosenberg” (CC BY 4.0); “Pentateuch with Rashi's commentary by M. Rosenbaum and A.M. Silbermann, 1929-1934” (public domain); “The Metsudah Tanach series, Lakewood, N.J” (CC BY 4.0); and “The Book of Joshua, Metsudah Publications, 1997” (CC BY 4.0). Text via Sefaria.