Naz´arite. This word is derived from a Hebrew word, which signifies to ’separate one’s self;’ and as such separation from ordinary life to religious purposes must be by abstinence of some kind, so it denotes ’to refrain from anything.’ Hence the import of the term Nazarite—one, that is, who, by certain acts of self-denial,’ consecrated himself in a peculiar manner to the service, worship, and honor of God.
We are here, it is clear, in the midst of a sphere of ideas totally dissimilar to the genius of the Christian system; a sphere of ideas in which the outward predominates, in which self-mortification is held pleasing to God, and in which man’s highest service is not enjoyment with gratitude, but privation with pain.
It may be questioned, if at least so much of this set of notions as supposes the Deity to be gratified and conciliated by the privations of his creatures, is in harmony with the ideas of God which the books of Moses exhibit, or had their origin in the law he promulgated. The manner in which he speaks on the subject (Num 6:1-21) would seem to imply that he was not introducing a new law, but regulating an old custom; for his words take for granted, that the subject was generally and well known, and that all that was needed was such directions as should bring existing observances into accordance with the Mosaic ritual.
The law of the Nazarite, which may be found in Numbers 6, is, in effect, as follows—male and female might assume the vow; on doing so a person was understood to separate himself unto the Lord; this separation consisted in abstinence from wine and all intoxicating liquors, and from everything made therefrom: ’From vinegar of wine, and vinegar of strong drink; neither shall he drink any liquor of grapes, nor eat moist grapes or dried;’ he was to ’eat nothing of the vine-tree, from the kernels even to the husks.’ Nor was a razor to come upon his head all the time of his vow; he was to ’be holy, and let the locks of the hair of his head grow.’ With special care was he to avoid touching any dead body whatever. Being holy unto the Lord, he was not to make himself unclean by touching the corpse even of a relative. Should he happen to do so, he was then to shave his head and offer a sin-offering and a burnt-offering; thus making an atonement for himself, ’for that he sinned by the dead.’ A lamb also, of the first year, was to be offered as a trespass-offering. On the termination of the period of the vow the Nazarite himself was brought unto the door of the tabernacle of the congregation, there to offer a burnt-offering, a sin-offering, a peace-offering and a meat and a drink-offering. The Nazarite also shaved his head at the door of the tabernacle, and put the hair grown during the time of separation into the fire which was under the sacrifice of the peace-offerings. ’And the priest shall take the sodden shoulder of the ram and one unleavened cake out of the basket, and one unleavened wafer, and shall put them in the hands of the Nazarite after the hair of his separation is shaven; and the priest shall wave them for a wave-offering.’ ’After that the Nazarite may drink wine.’
There do not want individual instances which serve to illustrate this vow, and to show that the law in the case went into operation. Hannah, Samson’s mother, became a Nazarite that she might have a son. Samson himself was a Nazarite from the time of his birth (Judges 13).
From the language employed by Samson, as well as from the tenor of the law in this case, the retention of the hair seems to have been one essential feature in the vow. It is, therefore, somewhat singular that any case should have been considered as the Nazaritic vow in which the shaving of the head is put forth as the chief particular. St. Paul is supposed to have been under this vow, when (Act 18:18) he is said to have ’shorn his head in Cenchrea, for he had a vow’ (see also Act 21:24). The head was not shaven till the vow was performed, when a person had not a vow.
Under the ancient Hebrew law, a man or woman engaged by a vow to abstain from wine and all intoxicating liquors, and from the fruit of the vine in any form; to let the hair grow; not to enter any house polluted by having a dead body in it, nor to be present at any funeral. If by accident any one died in their presence, they recommenced the whole of their consecration and Nazariteship. This vow generally lasted eight days, sometimes only a month, and sometimes during their whole lives. When the time of Nazariteship expired, the person brought a umber of sacrifices and offerings to the temple; the priest then cut off his hair and burnt it; after which he was free from his vow, Num 6:1-27 1Sa 2:11,12 .\par Perpetual Nazarites were consecrated as such by their parents from their birth, as was proposed by the mother of Samuel, 1Sa 1:11, and continued all their lives in this state, neither drinking wine, nor cutting their hair. Such were Samson and John the Baptist, Jdg 13:4,5 Luk 1:15 7:33.\par As the cost of the offerings required at the expiration of the term of Nazariteship was very considerable for the poor, they were often relieved by persons not Nazarites, who assumed these charges for them for the sake of performing an act of piety and charity. Paul availed himself of this custom to disarm the jealousy of those who represented him as hostile to the faith of their fathers. He took four Christian Jews whose vow of Nazariteship was accomplished, assumed the expense of their offerings, and with them went through the customary services and purification’s at the temple, Mal 21:20-26 . There is also in Mal 18:18 an unexplained allusion to some similar vow made by Paul himself, or perhaps by Aquila, probably in view of some danger escaped or some blessing received.\par
Naz’arite. More properly, Naz’irite. (one separated). One of either , who was bound by a vow of a peculiar kind, to be set apart from others for the service of God. The obligation was either for life or for a defined time. There is no notice in the Pentateuch of Nazarites for life; but the regulations for the vow of a Nazarite of days are given. Num 6:1-21.
The Nazarite, during the term of his consecration, was bound to abstain from wine grapes, with every production of the vine and from every kind of intoxicating drink. He was forbidden to cut the hair of his head, or to approach any dead body, even that of his nearest relation.
When the period of his vow was fulfilled, he was brought to the door of the Tabernacle, and was required to offer a he-lamb for a Burnt Offering, a ewe-lamb for a Sin Offering, and a ram for a Peace Offering, with the usual accompaniments of Peace Offerings, Lev 7:12-13, and of the offering made at the consecration of priests. Exo 29:2; Num 6:15 He brought also a Meat [Meal] Offering and a drink offering, which appear to have been presented by themselves as a distinct act of service. Num 6:17. He was to cut off the hair of "the head of his separation," (that is, the hair which had grown during the period of his consecration), at the door of the Tabernacle, and to put it into the fire under the sacrifice on the altar.
Of the Nazarites for life, three are mentioned in the Scriptures -- Samson, Samuel and St. John, the Baptist. The only one of these actually called a Nazarite is Samson. We do not know whether the vow for life was ever voluntarily taken by the individual. In all the cases mentioned in the sacred history, it was made by the parents before the birth of the Nazarite himself.
The consecration of the Nazarite bore a striking resemblance to that of the nigh priest. Lev 21:10-12. The meaning of the Nazarite vow has been regarded in different lights. It may be regarded as an act of self-sacrifice, That it was essentially a sacrifice of the person to the Lord is obviously in accordance with the terms of the law. Num 6:2. As the Nazarite was a witness for the straitness of the law, as distinguished from the freedom of the gospel, his sacrifice of himself was a submission to the letter of the rule. Its outward manifestations were restraints and eccentricities. The man was separated from his brethren, that he might be peculiarly devoted to the Lord. This was consistent with the purpose of divine wisdom, for the time for which it was ordained.
NAZARITE, properly, NAZIRITE; Hebrew
Voluntary vows accorded with legalism. Noah’s excess in wine, Joseph’s untrimmed hair separating him from the closely polled Egyptians, the distinction of clean and unclean, and the connection of death with sin known long before, suggested voluntary vows prompted by religious zeal, to which now was afforded legal sanction. Man or woman might ordinarily of their own free will take the vow. In special cases God imposed the vow through the parent. The Pentateuch lays down the rule only for a "Nazarite of days" as the Mishna terms it; "the Nazarite for perpetuity" appears only in the Scripture history. Samson ordained to be a Nazarite from the womb (Jdg 13:5-6; Jdg 16:17). Samuel in a great degree (but not as to abstinence from wine) was the same (1Sa 1:11), by Hannah before his birth "given unto the Lord all the days of his life ... no razor coming upon his head."
Also John the Baptist, "drinking neither wine nor strong drink ... filled with the Holy Spirit even from his mother’s womb," but not letting the hair grow (Luk 1:15). The three were called of God to be instruments of a revival in great crises of Israel and the church. The seeming violation of the Nazarite law in Samson’s contact with the dead shows that the spirit of the law herein rises above the letter; the object of his mission justified the deviation from rule even without ceremonial purification. In three things the Nazarite separated himself from ordinary men, though otherwise freely mixing with them:
1. Abstinence from wine, strong drink (including date and palm wine), and the grape in whatever form; so the high priest and priests when performing official functions (Lev 10:9).
2. Not cutting the hair during the vow; it symbolized physical strength and youthful manhood, and thus the man’s whole powers dedicated to the service of God; answering to the high priest’s" ’crown’ (
3. Noncontact with a corpse even of a nearest relative; so the high priest (Lev 21:11-12).
Samuel’s Nazarite prerogative, with God’s extraordinary call, seem to have given him a sacerdotal character. The Nazarites did not form an ascetic fraternity, but followed observances typifying restraint of self will and fleshly appetite and separation unto God; Rom 12:1-2, expresses the corresponding obligation of our Christian life to "present our bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God," etc. Accidental defilement entailed loss of the previous time and recommencing the days of his dedication, shaving the head and the ordinary purification enjoined for others Num 6:9-12; Num 19:11-12), besides a trespass offering peculiar to his case. In concluding his term of days he offered a sin offering, a burnt offering (implying whole self dedication), and a peace offering (thanksgiving) with unleavened bread. That the three offerings might represent the one reality, namely, his realizing in himself penitent faith in God’s atoning mercy covering sin, whole self-surrender to God, and thankfulness to Him, the three animals were of one species, a lamb of the first year, an ewe, a ram.
His shorn hair was put on the fire of the altar, in order that, although human blood must not be offered, something of the Nazarite’s body, and that representing his manly strength, should be offered. "Separation unto Jehovah (Num 6:2) is the radical idea. Whereas the Nazarite marked this by abstaining from wine, the Christian seals his consecration by obeying Christ’s invitation, "drink ye all of this." Lightfoot (Exercit. Luk 1:15) leans to the Jews’ identification of the vine with the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, and the N. vow with Adam’s state before he fell.(?) Paul’s shaving his head at Cenchreae was not a strict Nazarite’s vow, otherwise he would have offered his hair with the sacrifices at the temple door; but a modified Nazarite vow, usual then in respect to deliverances from sickness or other calamity (Act 18:18). In Act 21:24-27 a strict Nazarite vow is referred to on the part of four poor men. Paul as a charity defrayed the charges of their offerings to show his respect for the law.
God by Amos (Amo 2:11-12) complains, "I raised up of your young men for Nazarites." It was part of Israel’s high privilege that there were, of the class most addicted to self-indulgence, youths who by solemn vow abstained from wine and all defilements. God left nothing undone to lead Israel to holiness. "Her Nazarites were purer than snow ... whiter than milk ... more ruddy in body than rubies, their polishing was of sapphires" (Lam 4:7). God made their body not less, but more, fair by abstinence. Similarly, Daniel (Dan 1:8-15); David (1Sa 16:12; 1Sa 17:42), type of Messiah (Son 5:10). But Israel so despised God’s favors to tempt the Nazarite to break the vow; "ye gave the Nazarite wine to drink." Though not cut off from the social world, the Nazarite would feel in spirit reminded by his peculiar dedication, which was a virtual protest against the self indulgence and self seeking of the world, that he was not of the world. Our rule is similar (Joh 17:15-16).
[Naz’arite]
This term implies ’separation’; it was applied to either man or woman that vowed to separate themselves unto the Lord. Three things especially were enjoined upon the Nazarite.
1. He must not touch strong drink or anything that came of the vine: typical of turning away from sources of earthly energy and joy.
2. No razor must come upon his head: suggestive of the renunciation of self, and the giving up of natural rights and proprieties as man: cf. 1Co 11:7; 1Co 11:14.
3. He must not touch any dead body: typical of avoiding contact with moral defilement, the sphere of death and alienation from God brought about through sin. The point of the Nazarite was to live to God.
If any one died suddenly near to a Nazarite, he was defiled: he had to shave his head, offer sacrifices, and commence all again. When the period of his separation was fulfilled, he was to offer a burnt offering, a sin offering, a peace offering, a meat offering, and a drink offering, with the addition of the offerings made at the consecration of the priests. He was to shave his head and burn the hair in the fire which was under the peace offering: type of the full communion, which is the result of the sacrifice of Christ. Num 6:1-21.
The Nazarite was specially raised up of God as the vessel of His power on behalf of the people when the pressure under which they were suffering was from enemies within their own border (as the Philistines), and when owing to the moral condition of the people it was not possible for God to interfere in ordinary ways of deliverance. The Nazarite was marked on the one hand by a special energy of the Spirit of God, but on the other by rigid separation from the natural sources of excitement, the proprieties and the moral corruption which were connected with the life of the people. We see this in John the Baptist.
Samson was a Nazarite from his birth. Before he was born it was declared that no razor must come on his head. His mission was to deliver Israel from the hand of the Philistines. Samson betrayed his secret, but sealed his mission by his own death. Jdg 13:1-5.
Christ was morally the true Nazarite; He was the holy one, and instead of having earthly joy He was emphatically ’the man of sorrows’ when here, but also He has died to sin and lives to God. He answered to all the sacrifices, but the day is approaching when He will drink wine anew in the kingdom, as He said in Mat 26:29; and be able to say to others, "Eat, O friends; drink, yea, drink abundantly, O beloved." Christians also are Nazarites to God, not because of any vow, but as sanctified in Christ Jesus. He said, "For their sakes I sanctify myself, that they also might be sanctified through the truth." Joh 17:19; 1Co 1:2.
By: Executive Committee of the Editorial Board., George A. Barton, Ludwig Blau
One who lives apart; one who has made a vow of abstinence; in the former sense used as early as Sifra, Emor, iv. 3; Sifre, Num. 23.
Nazarite Laws.
—Biblical Data:
Three restrictions are imposed upon the Nazarite, according to Num. vi.: he may not take wine, or anything made from grapes; he may not cut the hair of his head; he may not touch the dead, not even the body of his father or mother. If a Nazarite has become unclean by accident, he must offer a sacrifice and begin the period of his vow anew. He is "holy unto the Lord" (Num. vi. 8), and the regulations which apply to him actually agree with those for the high priest and for the priests during worship (Lev. x. 8 et seq., xxi.; Ezek. xliv. 21). In ancient times the priests were persons dedicated to God (Ezek. xliv. 20; I Sam. i. 11), and it follows from the juxtaposition of prophets and Nazarites (Amos ii. 11-12) that the latter must have been regarded as in a sense priests. Young men especially, who found it difficult to abstain from wine on account of youthful desire for pleasure, took the vow. The most prominent outward mark of the Nazarite was long, flowing hair, which was cut at the expiration of the vow and offered as a sacrifice (Num. l.c.; Jer. vii. 29).
In Ancient Israel.
The history of Nazariteship in ancient Israel is obscure. Samson was a Nazarite, whose mother abstained from wine during her pregnancy. His superhuman strength lay in his long, unshorn locks (Judges xiii. et seq.). Samuel's mother promised to dedicate him to God during his whole life, saying, "There shall no razor come upon his head" (I Sam. i. 11); the Septuagint concludes from the latter promise (to which it adds "he shall drink no wine") that Samuel was a Nazarite. Neither the nomadic Rechabites nor their wives or children drank wine (Jer. xxxv.; II Kings x. 15 et seq.).
—In Rabbinical Literature:
The Nazarite law was minutely developed in post-Biblical times and became authoritative, while the popularity of Nazariteship and the influence it exercised on men's minds appear from its numerous regulations, which form a voluminous treatise of the Mishnah, and from the many expressions and phrases accompanying the taking of the vow. If one said, "May I be a Nazarite," he became a Nazarite at once (Naz. i. 1). As a consequence of the universal custom, peculiar words and phrases, some of which are now unintelligible, were formulated for the taking of the vow (Naz. i. 1, ii. 1; p. 10a; Ned. 10a, b, et passim). "'Let my hand, my foot be nazir,' is not valid; 'Let my liver [or some other vital part] be nazir,' is valid" (Naz. 21b; Tos. to Naz. iii. 3). When the sanctuary was defiled at the time of the wars of the Maccabees the people assembled all the Nazarites before God as persons who could not be released from their vows (I Macc. iii. 49); yet when Nazarites returned from the Diaspora and found the sanctuary destroyed they were absolved from their vows (Naz. v. 4), although at the same time others took it (ib. v., end).
The expenses of the offerings of poor Nazarites were borne by the wealthy, this charitable obligation being expressed by the phrase "to have [his head] shorn"; and King Agrippa had many Nazarites "shorn" (Josephus, "Ant." xix. 6, § 1; Naz. ii. 5, 6; Acts xviii. 18; xxi. 23, 24 [Nazariteship ofPaul]). "At the time of R. Simeon b. Sheṭaḥ 300 Nazarites came to Jerusalem. In the case of 150 he found a reason for annulling their vows, but in the case of the others he found none. He went to his brother-in-law King Jannai [103-76 B.C.] and said to him: 'There are 300 Nazarites who need 900 sacrificial animals; you give one-half and I will give the other half'; so the king sent 450 animals" (Yer. Ber. 11b and parallels). Noble persons also, both men and women, took Nazarite vows. Queen Helena was a Nazarite for fourteen (or twenty-one) years (Naz. iii. 6; see Jew. Encyc. vi. 334, s.v. Helena), and Agrippa's sister Berenice was at Jerusalem on account of a Nazarite vow taken before the outbreak of the great war against the Romans (Josephus, "B. J." ii. 15, § 1).
Reasons for the Vow.
There were different reasons for taking the Nazarite vow. "It is usual with those that had been afflicted either with a distemper, or with any other distress, to make vows; and for thirty days before they are to offer their sacrifices, to abstain from wine, and to shave the hair of their heads" (Josephus, l.c.). The vow was taken also for the fulfilment of a wish, such as for the birth of a child (Naz. i. 7; comp. 9 and 10). "The pious in ancient times took such a vow, that they might have an opportunity to make a sin-offering" (Ned. 10b). "If one sees a woman suspected of adultery and convicted by the water of jealousy [Num. v.] let him become a Nazarite, since the law of Nazariteship follows immediately in Num. vi." (Ber. 63a). Some said: "I shall not die before I have become a Nazarite" (Ned. 3b), or, "Let me be a Nazarite on the day when the son of David [the Messiah] shall come." Such a Nazarite was allowed to drink wine only on the Sabbath and on feast-days, since the Messiah will not appear on these days ('Er. 43a). A shepherd who saw a lock of his own beautiful hair reflected in the water, and was tempted thereby to sin, took a Nazarite vow (Tosef., Naz. iv. 7; Ned. 9b). Although Nazariteship was marked by asceticism, many abstained from wine and meat even without taking the vow (B. B. 60b; Shab. 139a). Because of this some prominent rabbis who were opposed to asceticism regarded as sinners those who fasted or became Nazarites or took any vow whatsoever, and held that the person in question was an evil-doer, even if the vow was fulfilled (Ned. 9a, b, 20a, 77b; Naz. 4a; Ta'an. 11a).
Persons and Duration.
Women and slaves, who did not have full rights before the religious law, could take the Nazarite vow, but only with the consent of their husbands or owners, while the vow was not valid among the heathen (Naz. iv. 1-5, ix. 1, et passim). Fathers were allowed to dedicate minors, but mothers were forbidden to do so (ib. iv. 29b). The proper name "Nazira" may be connected with some such custom (Gen. R. lxxxii. end, et passim). Jesus is said to have been dedicated while still in the womb (Luke i. 15). Tradition regards not only Samson and Samuel, but also Absalom, as Nazarites, the last on account of his long hair (Naz. 4b). The duration of Nazariteship was voluntary, and ranged from one hour to a lifetime. In the former case, however, it really lasted for thirty days, which was also the period when no definite time was set (ib. i. 3; Sifre, Deut. 357). While the usual time was thirty days, two or more additional vows were generally taken, in which case each period was regarded as a separate Nazariteship, to be immediately followed, when duly completed, by the succeeding one (Maimonides, "Yad," Nezirut, iii. 6). The period was at times measured by the number of days of the solar or the lunar year (Naz. i., end; Yer. Naz. 54b); or one might say: "Let the number of my Nazariteships be as the hairs of my head, or as the dust-particles of the earth, or as the sands of the sea" (Naz. i. 4). A Nazarite for life might cut his too abundant hair once a year, but a Samson Nazarite might not cut his hair under any circumstances, although he might defile himself by touching a corpse (ib. 4a). While no comb was allowed to touch the hair, it might be cleansed and arranged by other means (ib. vi., end). A proverb says, "Let the Nazarite go around the vineyard, but let him not approach it" (Shab. 13a and parallels; Num. R. x.).
Outside of Palestine and in the Middle Ages.
Nazarite vows were taken also outside of Palestine (Naz. v. 4; iii. 6). Besides Helena, Queen of Adiabene, Miriam of Palmyra is mentioned as a Nazarite (Tos. to Naz. iv. 10). While the Law stated that Nazariteship was equally valid in the country and outside it, in the time of the Temple and after its destruction there was a difference of opinion between the followers of Shammai and of Hillel: the former held that one who entered Palestine after the fulfilment of a prolonged period of Nazariteship must live there thirty days longer as a Nazarite, while the latter maintained that he must begin his vow anew (Naz. iii. 6; comp. Maimonides, "Yad," Nezirut, ii. 20-21). The earlier and more universal custom agreed with the view of the school of Shammai, Josephus referring to the thirty days demanded, as above, in the passage already quoted—"B. J." ii. 15, § 1. The observance of the Nazarite vow probably continued for many centuries, but was finally lost in asceticism and mysticism. No Nazarites are known in the Middle Ages.
Bibliography:
Bastian, Der Mensch, vol. iii.;
Benzinger, Arch. Index, s.v. Nasiräer;
G. B. Gray, The Nazirite, in Journal of Theol. Studies, 1900, i. 201 et seq.;
Hamburger, R. B. T. i. 785 et seq.;
W. Nowack, Handbuch der Hebräischen Archäologie, ii. 134-138, Leipsic, 1894;
Schürer, Gesch. 3d ed., i. 116, 554, 592; iii. 120;
Fr. Schwally, Der Heilige Krieg in Israel, 1900.
—Critical View:
The conclusion that because wine was prohibited to Samson's mother during pregnancy (Judges xiii. 4) it was prohibited to Samson also can hardly be correct, since he engaged in drinking-bouts (
; comp. Judges xiv. 10 et seq.). Budde ("Richter," in Marti's "Commentar," pp. 94 et seq.) has shown that the text in Judges xiii. 4 is glossed, the oldest form of it containing no reference to wine. Nor could the later Nazaritic prohibition of touching a corpse have been observed by Samson, the conditions of whose life brought him frequently into contact with the dead. Furthermore, at such feasts as that described in I Sam. ix. 19 Samuel, too, probably partook of some kind ofintoxicant, and he can not have kept himself free from contact with dead bodies, for he hewed Agag in pieces (I Sam. xv. 33). Samson and Samuel, then, belonged to an early type of simple devotees to Yhwh who were distinguished by unshorn hair. This meaning of the word is preserved in Lev. xxv. 5, 11, where "nazir" is used to describe an unshorn vine.
The Nazarites of Amos must have had a different origin from those with long hair. Because the Rechabites also are said (II Kings x. 15 et seq.; Jer. xxxv.) to have abstained from wine it has been conjectured that the Nazarites of the time of Amos were, like the Rechabites, representatives of the pre-Canaanitish type of Yhwh worship and abstained from all the luxuries of civilization; there are no data to prove or disprove this hypothesis.
The law of Num. vi. 1-21 was made for a new class of Nazarites; for in post-exilic times the life-long Nazarite is no longer found; instead there appears the Nazarite who has vowed himself to Yhwh for a longer or shorter period; any one may assume the Nazarite's vow. This law dates, possibly, from the sixth century B.C. It belongs to an intermediate stratum of the priestly law, neither the oldest nor the latest. In it apparently three older customs have been fused; according to one the Nazarite abstained from intoxicating drink; another prohibited to him all fruits of the vine; the third demanded unshorn hair. To the first or second, or to both, the prohibition of contact with the dead attached. Here all have not only been fused, but have been made temporary. These temporary Nazarites seem to have been very numerous. They are mentioned in the Maccabean period (I Macc. iii. 49), in the time of Herod Agrippa I. (Josephus, "Ant." xix. 6, § 1; idem, "B. J." ii. 15, § 1), and later in the mishnaic tractate Nazir.
The description of James the Just which Eusebius ("Hist. Eccl." ii. 23) quotes from Hegesippus indicates that James may have been a Nazarite for life, though the name is not applied to him. The general regulations concerning Nazarites in post-exilic times resemble, though with many differences, those of the Arabic "iḥram," the condition of one who has undertaken the pilgrimage to Mecca (comp. Wellhausen, "Reste des Arabischen Heidentums," 2d ed., pp. 122 et seq.). Parallels to the long hair of the Nazarites are found in many parts of the world (comp. W. R. Smith, "Rel. of Sem." 2d ed., pp. 332, 482; Frazer, "Golden Bough," 2d ed., i. 362-389).
Bibliography:
Nowack, Hebräische Archäologie, ii. 133 et seq.;
Benzinger, Arch. pp. 430 et seq.;
G. Buchanan Gray, in Jour. of Theological Studies, 1900, i. 201 et seq.;
Numbers, in International Critical Commentary, pp. 56 et seq.
(Hebrew: to consecrate, to separate)
Among the Hebrews one separated from the common ways of men, and by vow consecrated to God. Though the vow of the Nazarite is pre-Mosaic, its codified form is found in Numbers, 6. According to this law, Nazarites might be of either sex. They were bound not to cut the hair or beard; to abstain from any wine, or fruit of the vine, or any strong drink; not to touch a dead Roman body or enter the house of the dead; and to offer sacrifices proper to their state. The Nazarite vow was either perpetual or temporary, the minimum being 30 days. Similar custom exists among the Arabs.
(Hebrew, "consecrated to God").The name given by the Hebrews to a person set apart and especially consecrated to the Lord. Although Nazarites are not unknown to early Hebrew history, the only specific reference to them in the Law is in Num. (vi, 1-21), a legal section of late origin, and embodying doubtless a codification of a long-standing usage. The regulations here laid down refer only to persons consecrating themselves to God for a specified time in virtue of a temporary vow, but there were also Nazarites for life, and there are even indications pointing to the consecration of children to that state by their parents.According to the law in Num. (vi, 1-21) Nazarites might be of either sex. They were bound to abstain during the period of their consecration from wine and all intoxicating drink, and even from all products of the vineyard in any form. During the same period the hair must be allowed to grow as a mark of holiness. The Nazarite was forbidden to approach any corpse, even that of his nearest relatives, under pain of defilement and consequent forfeiture of his consecration. If through accident he finds himself defiled by the presence of a corpse, he must shave "the head of his consecration" and repeat the operation on the seventh day. On the eighth day he must present himself at the sanctuary with two turtle doves or young pigeons, one of which was offered as a holocaust and the other for sin, and furthermore, in order to renew the lost consecration, it was necessary to present a yearling lamb for a sin offering. At the expiration of the period determined by the vow the Nazarite brought to the sanctuary various offerings, and with symbolical ceremonies including the shaving of the head and the burning of the hair with the fire of the peace offering, he was restored by the priest to his former liberty (Numbers 6:13-21). The meaning symbolized by these different rites and regulations was in part negative, separation from things worldly, and partly positive, viz. a greater fulness of life and holiness indicated by the growth of the hair and the importance attached to ceremonial defilement.The existence of a class of perpetual Nazarites is known to us through occasional mention of them in the Old Testament writings, but these references are so few and vague that it is impossible to determine the origin of the institution or its specific regulations, which in some respects at least must have differed from those specified in Num. (vi, 1-21). Thus of Samson who is called a "Nazarite of God from his mother’s womb" (Judges 13:5), it is merely said that "no razor shall touch his head". No mention is made of abstention from wine etc., though it has been plausibly assumed by many commentators, since that restriction is enjoined upon the mother during the time of her pregnancy. That his quality of Nazarite was considered to be independent of defilement through contact with the dead is plain from the account of his subsequent career and the famous exploits attributed to him. The prophet Samuel is generally reckoned among the Nazarites for life, but nothing is known of him in that connection beyond what is inferred from the promise of his mother: "I will give him to the Lord all the days of his life, and no razor shall come upon his head" (1 Samuel 1:11). It has likewise been inferred from Jer. (35; cf. 2 Kings 10:15 sqq.) that the Rechabites were consecrated to the Lord by the Nazarite vow, but in view of the context, the protest against drinking wine which forms the basis of the assumption is probably but a manifestation on the part of the clan of their general preference for the simplicity of the nomadic as opposed to the settled life. In a passage of Amos (ii, 11, 12) the Nazarites are expressly mentioned together with the Prophets, as young men raised up by the Lord, and the children of Israel are reproached for giving them wine to drink in violation of their vow. The latest Old Testament reference is in I Mach. (iii, 49, 50), where mention is made of a number of "Nazarites that had fulfilled their days." In the prophecy of Jacob (Genesis 49:26), according to the Douay Version, Joseph is called a "Nazarite among his brethren", but here the original word nazir should be translated "chief" or "leader" -- Nazarite being the equivalent of the defective rendering nazaroeus in the Vulgate. The same remark applies to the parallel passage in Deuteronomy (xxxiii, 16), and also to Lam. (iv, 7), where "Nazarites" (Heb. nezerim) stands for "princes" or "nobles".Nazarites appear in New Testament times, and reference is made to them for that period not only in the Gospel and Acts, but also in the works of Josephus (cf. "Ant. Jud.", XX, vi, 1, and "Bell. Jud.", II, . xv, 1) and in the Talmud (cf. "Mishna", Nazir, iii, 6). Foremost among them is generally reckoned John the Baptist, of whom the angel announced that he should "drink no wine nor strong drink". He is not explicitly called a Nazarite, nor is there any mention of the unshaven hair, but the severe austerity of his life agrees with the supposed asceticism of the Nazarites. From Acts (xxi, 23 sqq.) we learn that the early Jewish Christians occasionally took the temporary Nazarite vow, and it is probable that the vow of St. Paul mentioned in Acts, xviii, 18, was of a similar nature, although the shaving of his head in Cenchræ, outside of Palestine, was not in conformity with the rules laid down in the sixth chapter of Numbers, nor with the interpretation of them by the Rabbinical schools of that period. (See Eaton in Hastings, Dict. of the Bible, s. v. Nazarites.) If we are to believe the legend of Hegesippus quoted by Eusebius ("Hist. Eccl.", II, xxiii), St. James the Less, Bishop of Jerusalem, was a Nazarite, and performed with rigorous exactness all the ascetic practices enjoined by that rule of life.----------------------------------- MEINHARD, De Naziroeis (Jena, 1676); LESETRE, Nazaréat in VIG., Dict. de la Bible, s.v. Nazaréat; FOUARD, Saint Paul, ses missions (Paris, 1892), p. 268; KNABENBAUER, Actus Apostolorum (Paris, 1899), 317 sqq. JAMES P. DRISCOLL Transcribed by Kenneth M. Caldwell Dedicated to St. John the Baptizer The Catholic Encyclopedia, Volume XCopyright © 1911 by Robert Appleton CompanyOnline Edition Copyright © 2003 by K. KnightNihil Obstat, October 1, 1911. Remy Lafort, S.T.D., CensorImprimatur. +John Cardinal Farley, Archbishop of New York