The Nazarite Vow was a form of covenant the Israelites made with God. According to Strong (1990) the word Nazarite comes from the Hebrew word “naziyr” (naw-zeer) or “Nazir” (nawzeer,), which means, “consecrated or unpruned vine” (p.92). Merriam Webster Dictionary (2012) describes a covenant as “a usually formal, solemn, binding agreement.” This agrees with the definition Merriam Webster (2012) gives for a vow, “a solemn promise by which a person is bound to a service, act, or condition.” This means that the Nazarite Vow was a formal, solemn, binding agreement that was consecrated between the person taking the vow and God. The Nazarite Vow could be taken by a man or a woman and had various dietary, social restrictions as well as temple requirements. As shown in the Old Testament and New Testament, the Nazarite Vow was an important type of covenant God used when someone was called to a specific task for the Kingdom of God.
The book of Numbers gives very specific directions for the man or woman who wants to take a Nazarite Vow. The person taking the vow cannot partake of any part of the
vine such as the grape or anything made from the vine products. The vow affected the person’s every day life. It determined how they wore their hair since they could not cut it during the vow. The vow also prohibited the person from being near the dead. If a person violated this requirement they had to shave their head, offer a sin offering, a burnt offering and a guilt offering. Once this was done the time for consecration, started all over again.
The person undertaking the covenant usually determined the timeframe of the Nazarite Vow. The timeframe could be as short as thirty days and as long as a lifetime. There is more than one...
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... the Old Testament and Three that he still used this as a tool to show this calling and consecration in the New Testament as well. The examples of Samson, John the Baptist and Paul, show us that this was a very important vow in the eyes of God.
Works Cited
1. Strong, J. (1990). Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance of the Bible, (pp. 80, 92) Nashville, TN: Thomas Nelson Publishers
2. Dake, F. J. (1991). The Dake Annotated Reference Bible, King James Version, Red Lettered Edition, (pp. 56, 280). Lawrenceville, GA: Dake Bible Sales, Inc.
3. Barker, K. (Gen. Ed.) (1995) The NIV Study Bible, Grand Rapids MI: Zondervan Publishing
4. Covenant (2012) Merriam Webster Dictionary online. Retrieved from: http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/covenant
5. Vow (2012) Merriam Webster Dictionary online. Retrieved from: http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/vow
Carson, D. A. New Bible Commentary: 21st Century Edition. 4th ed. Leicester, England; Downers Grove, IL: Inter-Varsity Press, 1994.
Covenant according in bible's point of view is a promise made by God to man. According to the book of Genesis, Chapter 6 Verse 13, as a result of human's disobedient and evil ways on earth, God had planned to put an end to humanity with flood. The covenants between God and Noah was established in Genesis Chapter 9 Verse 11. God promised Noah and his descendants, never again would he destroy the earth by flood of water because of the pleasant sacrifice offered to God by Noah. God also confirmed his covenant by putting up signs in the sky in the form of a rainbow. The reason Noah and his family weren’t destroyed in the flood was because Noah found grace in God's sight. What this means is that God do not establish any kind of covenant with just anyone. Clearly Abel, Noah and Abraham were unshakable, upright and obedient towards God’s command.
...yne A. The HarperCollins Study Bible New Revised Standard Edition . New York: HarperCollins Publishers, 1993. 1645-1722. Print.
as a way of life. In this there were three specific vows, they are used to make
New Testament. Vol. 2. Edited by Gerhard Kittel. Translated by Geoffrey W. Bromiley. Grand Rapids, Mich.: Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co., 1964.
(Michigan;Dunham Publishing Company,1969). pages 76-108 Other resources: Strong’s Concordance young’s Analytical Concordance Harper’s Bible Dictionary NIV Application Commentary
The New Oxford Annotated Bible with the Apocrypha, Augmented Third Edition, New Revised Standard Version, Indexed. New York: Oxford UP, 2007. Print
In Deuteronomy 30:6 that the covenant promise established is still in place and as we believe we understand that through righteous faith in following the Lord we will receive underserved blessings from the Lord.In Deuteronomy 6:5 Shows the duty we have as Christians to obey the first commandment of God’s love by emerging ourselves whole heartedly into service, enjoyment, and obedience to Him based on the principle of love.
The New Oxford Annotated Bible: New Revised Standard Version with the Apocrypha. Eds. Michael D. Coogan, et al. 3rd Ed. New York: Oxford University Press, 2001.
Bromiley, Geoffrey William, Fredrich, Gerhard, Kittel, Gerhard. “Theological Dictionary of the New Testament.” Struttgart, Germany. W. Kohlhammer Verlag. 1995. Print.
I solemnly pledge myself before God and in the presence of this assembly, to pass my life in purity, and to practice my profession faithfully. I will abstain from whatever is deleterious and mischievous, and will not take or knowingly administer any harmful drug. I will do all in
Kohlenberger, III, John R. and Barker, Kenneth L., eds. Zondervan NIV Bible Commentary: An Abridgement of the Expositors Bible Commentary. Chicago: Zondervan Publishing House, 1994.
Holy Bible: Contemporary English Version. New York: American Bible Society, 1995. Print. (BS195 .C66 1995)
Carson, D, & Moo, D. (2005) An introduction to the New Testament. Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan.