Numbers - The Old Testament

¹ Yahweh spoke to Moses and said,

² 'Speak to the Israelites and say: "If a man or a woman wishes to make a vow, the nazirite vow, to vow himself to Yahweh,

³ he will abstain from wine and fermented liquor, he will not drink vinegar derived from one or the other, he will not drink grape-juice or eat grapes, be they fresh or dried.

⁴ For the duration of his vow he will eat nothing that comes from the vine, not even juice of unripe grapes or skins of grapes.

⁵ As long as he is bound by his vow, no razor will touch his head; until the time for which he has vowed himself to Yahweh is completed, he remains consecrated and will let his hair grow freely.

⁶ For the entire period of his vow to Yahweh, he will not go near a corpse,

⁷ he will not make himself unclean for his father or his mother, or his brother or his sister, should they die, since on his head he carries his vow to his God.

⁸ Throughout the whole of his vow he is a person consecrated to Yahweh.

⁹ "If anyone suddenly dies near him, making his vowed hair unclean, he will shave his head on the day he is purified, he will shave his head on the seventh day.

¹⁰ On the eighth day, he will bring two turtledoves or two young pigeons to the priest, at the entrance to the Tent of Meeting.

¹¹ The priest will offer one as a sacrifice for sin, and the other as a burnt offering and will then perform for the person the rite of expiation for the pollution which he has contracted from the corpse. He will consecrate his head that same day;

¹² he will vow himself to Yahweh for the period of his nazirate, and will bring a male yearling lamb as a sacrifice of reparation. The time already spent will not count, since his hair had become unclean.

¹³ "This is the ritual for the nazirite on the day when the period of his vow is completed. He will be led to the entrance of the Tent of Meeting,

¹⁴ bringing his offering to Yahweh: an unblemished male yearling lamb as a burnt offering, an unblemished yearling ewe lamb as a sacrifice for sin, an unblemished ram as a peace offering,

¹⁵ and a basket of unleavened loaves made of fine flour mixed with oil, and of unleavened wafers spread with oil, with the cereal offerings and libations appropriate to them.

¹⁶ The priest, having brought all this before Yahweh, will offer the nazirite's sin sacrifice and burnt offering.

¹⁷ The latter will then offer the ram as a communion sacrifice with the basket of unleavened bread, and the priest will offer the accompanying cereal offering and libation.

¹⁸ The nazirite will then shave off his vowed hair at the entrance to the Tent of Meeting and, taking the locks of his vowed head, he will put them in the fire of the communion sacrifice.

¹⁹ The priest will take the shoulder of the ram, as soon as it is cooked, with an unleavened cake from the basket, and an unleavened wafer, and put them into the hands of the nazirite once he has shaved off his hair.

²⁰ With these he will make the gesture of offering before Yahweh; as it is a holy thing, it reverts to the priest, in addition to the forequarter that has been presented and the thigh that has been set aside. After this, the nazirite may drink wine.

²¹ "Such is the ritual for the nazirite. If, besides his hair, he has also vowed a personal offering to Yahweh, he will (apart from anything else that his means allow) fulfil the vow that he has made, in addition to what the ritual prescribes for his hair."

²² Yahweh spoke to Moses and said,

²³ 'Speak to Aaron and his sons and say: "This is how you must bless the Israelites. You will say:

²⁴ May Yahweh bless you and keep you.

²⁵ May Yahweh let his face shine on you and be gracious to you.

²⁶ May Yahweh show you his face and bring you peace."

²⁷ This is how they must call down my name on the Israelites, and then I shall bless them.'