Nazirites, Arise!
It was a freezing cold day in late November 2003. I was bundled up in layers, standing in the Cotton Bowl Stadium with tens of thousands of other believers. While my family gathered in Connecticut for holiday festivities, I had chosen to forgo Thanksgiving and fly to Texas for a 12-hour solemn assembly called TheCall Dallas. I traded turkey, stuffing and pumpkin pie for a day of prayer, fasting and mourning. TheCall Dallas was a day of corporate repentance for our nation. It was a time to come humbly before God, asking Him to forgive our sins and release mercy in our land.
TheCall Dallas was directed by Lou Engle, a father in the modern-day prayer movement. Throughout the day, Lou spoke of radical ones being raised up–ones who would burn with fiery hearts and passionate zeal. Lou spoke of Nazirites–ones who like John the Baptist were called to live lives set apart for the Lord. As he spoke it hit me, “He’s talking about me!” I thought to myself, “This is who I am. This is who I was made to be!” For the first time someone was telling me it was okay to be extreme in my love for God. I realized that day that I was called to be a Nazirite.
The word Nazir in Hebrew means ‘consecrated one; separated one; a person of the vow.’ Nazirites were ones that were set apart unto God. They were often birthed in times of moral crisis and spiritual decay in the land. When the people of Israel did evil in the sight of the Lord, He gave them over to the Philistines for 40 years. At the end of that time when He desired to raise up a deliverer, He did it by answering the cries of a barren woman named Manoah. He sent an angel to tell her she would have a son, and no razor would ever come upon his head, for the child would be a Nazirite unto God from the womb. Her son Samson was declared to be a Nazirite before he was even born! (Judges 13:5). When Eli’s sons were corrupting the priesthood and the word of the Lord was rare, God spoke through a young boy named Samuel. Samuel was birthed through the desperate prayers of his barren mother, Hannah. She vowed to the Lord that if He gave her a son, she would give him back to the Lord all the days of his life, and a razor would never come on his head (1 Sam 1:11). When the Lord wanted a forerunner who would prepare the way for His Son’s arrival, He gave a child to barren Elizabeth. The angel that announced his birth proclaimed he would be filled with the Holy Spirit from the womb (Lk 1:15). Samson, Samuel and John the Baptist were called as lifelong Nazirites. All three were born to barren mothers who were desperate for God. In their pain, they cried out to God and He gave them arrows in their quiver–sons who would change history. Out of once barren wombs, mighty deliverers were birthed!
Aside from lifelong Nazirites, there are many who chose to take a Nazirite vow for a specific time of consecration to God. The three main components of a Nazirite vow, outlined in Numbers Chapter 6, are abstaining from wine, strong drink, grapes or anything produced from the grape vine, growing their hair long, and not going near dead bodies. All three of these requirements had great spiritual significance.
“He shall abstain from wine and strong drink…” Numbers 6:3
Wine was a common beverage choice in that day. It wasn’t a sin to drink wine, and many people drank it as a normal part of their everyday life. Wine was something that was enjoyable, sweet, and desirable to man. By not drinking wine, eating grapes, or even partaking of anything that came from the grape vine, Nazirites were declaring to God “I have no good besides you” (Ps 16:2). They were making it known that they had found something greater than wine. It was God’s love. They forsook even the legitimate pleasures of this life for the greater pleasure of knowing God. Although their vow was for a set time, the heart of a Nazirite desired to live their entire life seeking the Lord through fasting and prayer. They embraced a fasted lifestyle unto God.
“He shall let the locks of hair on his head grow long.” Numbers 6:5
The Nazirite’s long locks were an outward sign of their inward consecration to God. The length of their hair was a symbol of their heart’s devotion to the Lord. Their long hair was visible to all around them. There was no hiding a Nazirite. Their dedication to God was “put on display” before all. They were burning and shining lamps, who refused to hide their light under a bushel, but chose to rather put it on a lampstand for the world to see.
Nazirites did not always look like the religious norm. Jesus said to the crowds about John, “What did you go into the wilderness to see? A man dressed in soft clothing? Those who wear soft clothing are in kings’ palaces! But what did you go out to see? A prophet? Yes, I tell you, and one who is more than a prophet” (Mt 11:8). Nazirites weren’t concerned about impressing others with their appearance, for they cared more about pleasing God with their lifestyle. His opinion was what mattered most to them.
In 2007, I went on a year-long Nazirite vow where I felt impressed by the Lord to allow my hair to grow out naturally. I stopped chemically straightening my hair, which I had done since the age of 12, and grew it out as an offering unto God. This was challenging because I did not think my natural hair was very attractive. The Lord used this season to speak volumes to me about my identity and beauty before Him. He gave me a dream where I was in a salon feeling pressure to straighten my hair. As I stood there, someone passed me a note that said, “Never make apologies for your hair.” The Lord was shouting to me, “You never have to make apologies for the way I made you; you’re beautiful to me.” I love my hair now because I see it as he does. Nazirites find their true identity in the affections of the Lord towards them. “Your head crowns you like Carmel, The king is captivated by your tresses” (Son of Sol 7:5)
“All the days of his separation to the LORD he shall not go near to a dead person…” Numbers 6:6
Nazirites could not go near a dead person. When their father or mother died they were not even allowed to go to their funeral. This was extreme devotion to God. To have one closest to you die and not even able to go near their body must have been a very painful thing. Yet Nazirites were willing to sacrifice even this to the Lord. Jesus said, “Anyone who loves his father or mother more than Me is not worthy of Me” (Mt 10:37). By accepting the terms of this vow, Nazirites were choosing to love God even more than their own father or mother.
This also speaks of renouncing dead works and legalistic activities. The Lord wasn’t looking for the Israelites to take this vow out of mere religious duty or obligation. He wanted a sacrifice from a willing heart full of love and desire for him. Nazirites choose to lay down their lives for the Lord. Like Jesus said in John 10:17 “The reason my Father loves me is that I lay down my life—only to take it up again. No one takes it from me, but I lay it down of my own accord.” A Nazirites sacrifice was born not out of pressure to please God, but out of heartfelt passion for him. They knew they were loved by God, and their vow was made in response to that love.
“All the days of his separation he is holy to the LORD.” Numbers 6:8
Nazirites were characterized by their pursuit of holiness. Not touching death can also speak of staying away from sinful things that would bring death to their souls. Romans 6:23 says that “the wages of sin is death.” The Nazirite vow was one of separation unto God. They weren’t looking to see how much they could get away with. Rather they were longing to see how far they could go in pursuing holiness in the fear of the Lord. They chose to separate themselves from anything that would defile their purity before God.
A Nazirite’s desire is to love God with all of their heart, soul, mind and strength. It is extremism for God, based not out of legalism, but out of love. It is love that causes the Nazirites to forsake everything for God. It is love that leads them to fast, pray and pursue holiness. Nazirites are arising in America today. There is an army of young and old who are tired of living lives of compromise and half-hearted devotion to God. They are burning men and women, full of fire and zeal for God. History belongs to ones such as these. Their wholehearted love moves the heart of the Father, and it will shift the culture of this nation. Let the longhairs arise! Let America see her Nazirites!