(א) וַיְדַבֵּ֥ר יי אֶל־מֹשֶׁ֥ה לֵּאמֹֽר׃ (ב) דַּבֵּר֙ אֶל־בְּנֵ֣י יִשְׂרָאֵ֔ל וְאָמַרְתָּ֖ אֲלֵהֶ֑ם אִ֣ישׁ אֽוֹ־אִשָּׁ֗ה כִּ֤י יַפְלִא֙ לִנְדֹּר֙ נֶ֣דֶר נָזִ֔יר לְהַזִּ֖יר לַֽיי׃ (ג) מִיַּ֤יִן וְשֵׁכָר֙ יַזִּ֔יר חֹ֥מֶץ יַ֛יִן וְחֹ֥מֶץ שֵׁכָ֖ר לֹ֣א יִשְׁתֶּ֑ה וְכָל־מִשְׁרַ֤ת עֲנָבִים֙ לֹ֣א יִשְׁתֶּ֔ה וַעֲנָבִ֛ים לַחִ֥ים וִיבֵשִׁ֖ים לֹ֥א יֹאכֵֽל׃ (ד) כֹּ֖ל יְמֵ֣י נִזְר֑וֹ מִכֹּל֩ אֲשֶׁ֨ר יֵעָשֶׂ֜ה מִגֶּ֣פֶן הַיַּ֗יִן מֵחַרְצַנִּ֛ים וְעַד־זָ֖ג לֹ֥א יֹאכֵֽל׃ (ה) כָּל־יְמֵי֙ נֶ֣דֶר נִזְר֔וֹ תַּ֖עַר לֹא־יַעֲבֹ֣ר עַל־רֹאשׁ֑וֹ עַד־מְלֹ֨את הַיָּמִ֜ם אֲשֶׁר־יַזִּ֤יר לַיי קָדֹ֣שׁ יִהְיֶ֔ה גַּדֵּ֥ל פֶּ֖רַע שְׂעַ֥ר רֹאשֽׁוֹ׃ (ו) כָּל־יְמֵ֥י הַזִּיר֖וֹ לַיי עַל־נֶ֥פֶשׁ מֵ֖ת לֹ֥א יָבֹֽא׃
(1) Hashem spoke to Moses, saying: (2) Speak to the Israelites and say to them: If anyone, man or woman, explicitly utters a nazirite’s vow, to set himself apart for Hashem, (3) he shall abstain from wine and any other intoxicant; he shall not drink vinegar of wine or of any other intoxicant, neither shall he drink anything in which grapes have been steeped, nor eat grapes fresh or dried. (4) Throughout his term as nazirite, he may not eat anything that is obtained from the grapevine, even seeds or skin. (5) Throughout the term of his vow as nazirite, no razor shall touch his head; it shall remain consecrated until the completion of his term as nazirite of Hashem, the hair of his head being left to grow untrimmed. (6) Throughout the term that he has set apart for Hashem, he shall not go in where there is a dead person.
(יג) וְזֹ֥את תּוֹרַ֖ת הַנָּזִ֑יר בְּי֗וֹם מְלֹאת֙ יְמֵ֣י נִזְר֔וֹ יָבִ֣יא אֹת֔וֹ אֶל־פֶּ֖תַח אֹ֥הֶל מוֹעֵֽד׃ (יד) וְהִקְרִ֣יב אֶת־קָרְבָּנ֣וֹ לַיי כֶּבֶשׂ֩ בֶּן־שְׁנָת֨וֹ תָמִ֤ים אֶחָד֙ לְעֹלָ֔ה וְכַבְשָׂ֨ה אַחַ֧ת בַּת־שְׁנָתָ֛הּ תְּמִימָ֖ה לְחַטָּ֑את וְאַֽיִל־אֶחָ֥ד תָּמִ֖ים לִשְׁלָמִֽים׃ (טו) וְסַ֣ל מַצּ֗וֹת סֹ֤לֶת חַלֹּת֙ בְּלוּלֹ֣ת בַּשֶּׁ֔מֶן וּרְקִיקֵ֥י מַצּ֖וֹת מְשֻׁחִ֣ים בַּשָּׁ֑מֶן וּמִנְחָתָ֖ם וְנִסְכֵּיהֶֽם׃ (טז) וְהִקְרִ֥יב הַכֹּהֵ֖ן לִפְנֵ֣י יי וְעָשָׂ֥ה אֶת־חַטָּאת֖וֹ וְאֶת־עֹלָתֽוֹ׃ (יז) וְאֶת־הָאַ֜יִל יַעֲשֶׂ֨ה זֶ֤בַח שְׁלָמִים֙ לַֽיי עַ֖ל סַ֣ל הַמַּצּ֑וֹת וְעָשָׂה֙ הַכֹּהֵ֔ן אֶת־מִנְחָת֖וֹ וְאֶת־נִסְכּֽוֹ׃ (יח) וְגִלַּ֣ח הַנָּזִ֗יר פֶּ֛תַח אֹ֥הֶל מוֹעֵ֖ד אֶת־רֹ֣אשׁ נִזְר֑וֹ וְלָקַ֗ח אֶת־שְׂעַר֙ רֹ֣אשׁ נִזְר֔וֹ וְנָתַן֙ עַל־הָאֵ֔שׁ אֲשֶׁר־תַּ֖חַת זֶ֥בַח הַשְּׁלָמִֽים׃
(13) This is the ritual for the nazirite: On the day that his term as nazirite is completed, he shall be brought to the entrance of the Tent of Meeting. (14) As his offering to Hashem he shall present: one male lamb in its first year, without blemish, for a burnt offering; one ewe lamb in its first year, without blemish, for a sin offering; one ram without blemish for an offering of well-being; (15) a basket of unleavened cakes of choice flour with oil mixed in, and unleavened wafers spread with oil; and the proper meal offerings and libations. (16) The priest shall present them before Hashem and offer the sin offering and the burnt offering. (17) He shall offer the ram as a sacrifice of well-being to Hashem, together with the basket of unleavened cakes; the priest shall also offer the meal offerings and the libations. (18) The nazirite shall then shave his consecrated hair, at the entrance of the Tent of Meeting, and take the locks of his consecrated hair and put them on the fire that is under the sacrifice of well-being.
(ט) יַ֣יִן וְשֵׁכָ֞ר אַל־תֵּ֣שְׁתְּ ׀ אַתָּ֣ה ׀ וּבָנֶ֣יךָ אִתָּ֗ךְ בְּבֹאֲכֶ֛ם אֶל־אֹ֥הֶל מוֹעֵ֖ד וְלֹ֣א תָמֻ֑תוּ חֻקַּ֥ת עוֹלָ֖ם לְדֹרֹתֵיכֶֽם׃
(9) Drink no wine or other intoxicant, you or your sons, when you enter the Tent of Meeting, that you may not die. This is a law for all time throughout the ages,
(כז) לֹ֣א תַקִּ֔פוּ פְּאַ֖ת רֹאשְׁכֶ֑ם וְלֹ֣א תַשְׁחִ֔ית אֵ֖ת פְּאַ֥ת זְקָנֶֽךָ׃
(27) You shall not round off the side-growth on your head, or destroy the side-growth of your beard.
וַיֹּ֤אמֶר יי אֶל־מֹשֶׁ֔ה אֱמֹ֥ר אֶל־הַכֹּהֲנִ֖ים בְּנֵ֣י אַהֲרֹ֑ן וְאָמַרְתָּ֣ אֲלֵהֶ֔ם לְנֶ֥פֶשׁ לֹֽא־יִטַּמָּ֖א בְּעַמָּֽיו׃
Hashem said to Moses: Speak to the priests, the sons of Aaron, and say to them: None shall defile himself for any [dead] person among his kin,
(יד) וטעם ה'נזירות' מבואר מאד והוא הפרישות מן היין אשר הפסיד הראשונים והאחרונים 'רבים ועצומים כל הרוגיו' "וגם אלה ביין שגו וגו'. ובא מדין ה'נזירות' מה שתראה מאיסור "כל אשר יצא מגפן היין" - להרחקה יתרה עד שיספיק לאדם ממנו הדבר הצריך כי הנשמר ממנו נקרא 'קדוש' והושם במדרגת 'כהן גדול' ב'קדושה' - עד ש'לא יטמא' אפילו 'לאביו ולאימו' כמוהו זאת הגדולה - מפני שפרש מן היין:
(14) The object of Nazaritism (Num. vi.) is obvious. It keeps away from wine that has ruined people in ardent and modern times. "Many strong men have been slain by it" (Prov. 27:26). "But they also have erred through wine. . . . the priest and the prophet" (Isa. 28:7). In the law about the Nazarite we notice even the prohibition, "he shall eat nothing that is made of the vine tree" (Num. 6:4), as an additional precaution, implying the lesson that man must take of wine only as much as is absolutely necessary. For he who abstains from drinking it is called "holy"; his sanctity is made equal to that of the high-priest, in not being allowed to defile himself even to his father, to his mother, and the like. This honour is given him because he abstains from wine.
From Rabbi Ruhi Sophia Rubenstein, "Nasso After Orlando", https://www.tbieugene.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/05/Nasso-after-Orlando-5776.pdf
Some of the traditional commentators posit that people took this vow because they had previously indulged to excess, and the vow helped restrain those impulses. My father, Rabbi Jonathan Rubenstein, posits the Nazirite vow may have functioned like a twelve- step program, which is to say that maybe people didn’t make vows of abstinence in order to become a nazir, but rather, people might have become nazirim in order to have a structure for abstinence.
מיין ושכר יזיד לא יסגף עצמו בצום שממעט כמלאכת שמים כדבריהם ז''ל ולא יצער גופו כמכות פרושים כמנהג צכועים וכומרים אבל יפריש עצמו מן היין שבזה הוא ממעט את התיפלה מאד ומכניע יצרו ולא יתיש כחו בזה כלל:
מיין ושכר יזיר, he is not to flagellate himself, or practice fasting, but only to abstain from wine and intoxicating liquids. The former methods of self-denial would result in a diminished ability to serve the Lord with all one’s faculties. Flagellation, a common practice among certain types of monks and “holy men,” is not allowed, but becoming a teetotaler does reduce the urge to let oneself go and engage in demeaning activities due to drunkenness
From Rabbi Lazer Gurkow, "The Recovering Addict", https://www.chabad.org/parshah/article_cdo/aid/1860258/jewish/The-Recovering-Addict.htm
Maimonides declared that once we indulge in an extreme, the solution is to turn to the opposite extreme for a while, till our system has been detoxified. For example, one prone to anger should practice extreme tolerance, and one prone to procrastination should practice extreme discipline. We continue on this extreme path till we have regained our balance, and only then do we return to the middle path.4
This is the context of the nazir’s vow. Wine is a metaphor for all worldly pleasures. When we become addicted to a particular indulgence, we must wean ourselves from the addiction by abstaining completely until we have recovered. The vow serves to reinforce the discipline that is required for such abstinence.
טעם החטאת שיקריב הנזיר ביום מלאת ימי נזרו, לא נתפרש. ועל דרך הפשט כי האיש הזה חוטא נפשו במלאת הנזירות, כי הוא עתה נזור מקדושתו ועבודת השם, וראוי היה לו שיזיר לעולם ויעמוד כל ימיו נזיר וקדוש לאלקיו, כענין שאמר )עמוס ב יא( ואקים מבניכם לנביאים ומבחוריכם לנזירים, השוה אותו הכתוב לנביא, וכדכתיב (לעיל פסוק ח) כל ימי נזרו קדוש הוא ליי והנה הוא צריך כפרה בשובו להטמא בתאוות העולם:
Ramban (Nachmanides) on Numbers 6:14
And the reason that he must bring a sin offering on the day that he completes his days of being a Nazirite? It is not explained, but the most simple explanation is that this man sins against his soul on this day of the completion of his Naziritehood; for until now he was separated in sanctity and the service of God, and he should therefore have remained separated forever, continuing all his life consecrated and sanctified to his God, as it is written (Amos 2:11): ‘And I raised up prophets from among your sons and nazirites from among your young men.’, and also later in Numbers, verse 8, ‘Throughout his term as Nazirite, he is holy to Adonai.’ Thus he requires atonement, since he goes back to be defiled by worldly desires.
באופן שהולד אשר במעיה יזון במאכלים טהורים, ויהיה נזיר אלקים מן הבטן, ועם זה יקנה מזג טהור ומתחלף למזגי הפלשתים האוכלים כל טומאה ושותים במזרקי היין, ויהיה זה סבה לשנאתו אותם ולהלחם בהם תמיד ולעשות בתוכם נקמות יי:
From Rabbi Beryl Padorr, "The Nazirite "Sin": Parashat Naso, 2015", https://ohev-sholom.com/rabbi-remarks/the-nazirite-sin-parashat-naso-2015/
The nazir’s sin lay not in ceasing, but in becoming a nazir. Why? Rabbi Eliezer explains: “From this we may infer that if one who denies himself the enjoyment of wine is called a sinner, all the more so one who denies himself the enjoyment of other pleasures of life.” In this line of thinking, the reason for the sin offering is not ceasing, but becoming a nazir in the first place.
From Dena Weiss, "Forbidding the Permitted", https://www.hadar.org/torah-resource/forbidding-permitted
The fear of the slippery slope is persistent, but the Nazir and the husband of the Sotah point us to the dangers of living in fear, of blowing things out of proportion, of not being able to strike a balance and to be willing to run the risk that is part and parcel of a small amount of freedom. They also deprive themselves of the advantage of living on the slippery slope. When you are on the slant you have to take care not to slide down. Living with some ambiguity keeps you vigilant and wary, keeps your muscles engaged, and keeps you alive and participating in your own moral choices and personal development.
The jealous husband restricts the yetzer hara by imposing restrictions on someone else and the Nazir tries to impose restrictions on him or herself. But in both cases, these overly harsh restrictions can backfire. It’s important to have rules and boundaries. And it’s also important to have space to breathe, to trust ourselves and to trust others.
From Rabbi Richard Hirsh, "The Nazirite", https://www.reconstructingjudaism.org/dvar-torah/nazirite
One wonders why an ancient Israelite, already subject to the requirements of the Torah, would voluntarily assume additional obligations. Perhaps the obvious answer is that every religious tradition shows evidence of a tendency towards pietistic performance, the submission to stringencies which mark one as exceptionally dedicated to the Divine.
What often starts out as a quest to strengthen one's own religious identity can result in the adoption of a severe lifestyle which in fact separates one from one's community or family. The ceaseless quest in some quarters of our community to discover ever more restrictive decisors with regard to kashrut, for example, suggests not merely a devotion to the dietary regulations, but a desire to “rise above” those who would settle for “merely acceptable” levels of supervision.The urge towards exemplary religious devotion is noble, and healthy. There is nothing wrong with trying to observe more, and assuming on oneself certain restrictions. But such personal decisions should be seen as acts of involvement and not of isolation, and those whose levels of observance differ need not be disparaged.