Lectionary Calendar
Friday, May 2nd, 2025
the Second Week after Easter
Attention!
StudyLight.org has pledged to help build churches in Uganda. Help us with that pledge and support pastors in the heart of Africa.
Click here to join the effort!

Read the Bible

Good News Translation

Numbers 6:9

If your consecrated hair is defiled because you are right beside someone who suddenly dies, you must wait seven days and then shave your head; and so you become ritually clean.

Bible Study Resources

Concordances:

- Nave's Topical Bible - Fraternity;   Nazarite;   Scofield Reference Index - Leaven;   Thompson Chain Reference - Shaving;   Torrey's Topical Textbook - Nazarites;  

Dictionaries:

- American Tract Society Bible Dictionary - Hair;   Nazarite;   Bridgeway Bible Dictionary - Nazirite;   Priest;   Baker Evangelical Dictionary of Biblical Theology - Abstain, Abstinence;   Clean, Unclean;   Priest, Priesthood;   Easton Bible Dictionary - Baldness;   John the Baptist;   Nazarite;   Samson;   Fausset Bible Dictionary - Baldness;   John the Baptist;   Nazarite;   Pentateuch;   Holman Bible Dictionary - Birds of Abomination;   Consecration;   Hair;   Nazirite;   Hastings' Dictionary of the Bible - Clean and Unclean;   Head;   Nazirite;   Numbers, Book of;   Hastings' Dictionary of the New Testament - Nazirite;   Vote;   Morrish Bible Dictionary - Nazarite ;   The Hawker's Poor Man's Concordance And Dictionary - Nazarene;   Nazarites;   Smith Bible Dictionary - Baldness;   Knife;   Naz'arite,;   Razor;  

Encyclopedias:

- Condensed Biblical Cyclopedia - Samuel the Prophet;   International Standard Bible Encyclopedia - Consecrate;   Hair;   Nazirite;   Shaving;   Kitto Biblical Cyclopedia - Burnt-offerings;   The Jewish Encyclopedia - Blessing, Priestly;   Commandments, the 613;   Mishnah;   Nazarite;   Nazir;   Priestly Code;   Shaving;  

Parallel Translations

Hebrew Names Version
"If any man dies very suddenly beside him, and he defiles the head of his separation; then he shall shave his head in the day of his cleansing. On the seventh day he shall shave it.
King James Version
And if any man die very suddenly by him, and he hath defiled the head of his consecration; then he shall shave his head in the day of his cleansing, on the seventh day shall he shave it.
Lexham English Bible
"‘If someone dies suddenly and makes the head of his separation unclean, he will shave off the hair of his head on the day of his cleansing; on the seventh day he will shave it off.
New Century Version
"‘If they are next to someone who dies suddenly, their hair, which was part of their promise, has been made unclean. So they must shave their head seven days later to be clean.
New English Translation
"‘If anyone dies very suddenly beside him and he defiles his consecrated head, then he must shave his head on the day of his purification—on the seventh day he must shave it.
Amplified Bible
'If a man dies very suddenly beside him, and he defiles his dedicated head, then he shall shave his head on the day that he becomes [ceremonially] clean; he shall shave it on the seventh day [the end of the purification period].
New American Standard Bible
'But if someone dies very suddenly beside him and he defiles his consecrated head of hair, then he shall shave his head on the day when he becomes clean; he shall shave it on the seventh day.
Geneva Bible (1587)
And if any dye suddenly by him, or hee beware, then the head of his consecration shall be defiled, and he shall shaue his head in the day of his clensing: in the seuenth day he shall shaue it.
Legacy Standard Bible
‘But if a man dies very suddenly beside him and he defiles the head of hair during his Nazirite vow, then he shall shave his head on the day when he becomes clean; he shall shave it on the seventh day.
Contemporary English Version
If someone suddenly dies near you, your hair is no longer sacred, and you must shave it seven days later during the ceremony to make you clean.
Complete Jewish Bible
"‘If someone next to him dies very suddenly, so that he defiles his consecrated head, then he is to shave his head on the day of his purification; he is to shave it on the seventh day.
Darby Translation
And if any one die unexpectedly by him suddenly, and he hath defiled the head of his consecration, then he shall shave his head on the day of his cleansing; on the seventh day shall he shave it.
Easy-to-Read Version
So if you are with someone when they suddenly die, you will be unclean and you will have to shave the hair from your head. You must do that on the seventh day of your purification ceremony when you are made clean.
English Standard Version
"And if any man dies very suddenly beside him and he defiles his consecrated head, then he shall shave his head on the day of his cleansing; on the seventh day he shall shave it.
George Lamsa Translation
And if any man dies very suddenly by him, he has defiled the crown of his separation; then he shall shave his head on the day of his cleansing, on the seventh day shall he shave it.
Christian Standard Bible®
“If someone suddenly dies near him, defiling his consecrated head, he must shave his head on the day of his purification; he is to shave it on the seventh day.
Literal Translation
And if any man dies very suddenly beside him, and he defiles his consecrated head, then he shall shave his head on the day of his cleansing, on the seventh day he shall shave it.
Miles Coverdale Bible (1535)
And yf it chaunce eny man to dye sodenly before him, then shal ye heade of his abstynence be defyled. Therfore shal he shaue his heade in the daye of his clensynge, that is vpon the seuenth daye:
American Standard Version
And if any man die very suddenly beside him, and he defile the head of his separation; then he shall shave his head in the day of his cleansing, on the seventh day shall he shave it.
Bible in Basic English
If death comes suddenly to a man at his side, so that he becomes unclean, let his hair be cut off on the day when he is made clean, on the seventh day.
Bishop's Bible (1568)
And if any man dye sodenly before him, or he be ware, the head of his consecration shalbe defiled: and he shall shaue his head the day of his cleansyng, euen the seuenth day shall he shaue it.
JPS Old Testament (1917)
And if any man die very suddenly beside him, and he defile his consecrated head, then he shall shave his head in the day of his cleansing, on the seventh day shall he shave it.
King James Version (1611)
And if any man die very suddenly by him, and he hath defiled the head of his consecration, then he shall shaue his head in the day of his cleansing, on the seuenth day shall he shaue it.
Brenton's Septuagint (LXX)
And if any one should die suddenly by him, immediately the head of his vow shall be defiled; and he shall shave his head in whatever day he shall be purified: on the seventh day he shall be shaved.
English Revised Version
And if any man die very suddenly beside him, and he defile the head of his separation; then he shall shave his head in the day of his cleansing, on the seventh day shall he shave it.
Berean Standard Bible
If someone suddenly dies in his presence and defiles his consecrated head of hair, he must shave his head on the day of his cleansing-the seventh day.
Wycliffe Bible (1395)
But if ony man is deed sudeynly bifore hym, the heed of his halewyng schal be defoulid, which he schal schaue anoon in the same dai of his clensyng, and eft in the seuenthe dai;
Young's Literal Translation
`And when the dead dieth beside him in an instant, suddenly, and he hath defiled the head of his separation, then he hath shaved his head in the day of his cleansing; on the seventh day he doth shave it,
Update Bible Version
And if any man dies very suddenly beside him, and he defiles the head of his separation; then he shall shave his head in the day of his cleansing, on the seventh day he shall shave it.
Webster's Bible Translation
And if any man shall die very suddenly by him, and he hath defiled the head of his consecration; then he shall shave his head in the day of his cleansing, on the seventh day shall he shave it.
World English Bible
"If any man dies very suddenly beside him, and he defiles the head of his separation; then he shall shave his head in the day of his cleansing. On the seventh day he shall shave it.
New King James Version
"And if anyone dies very suddenly beside him, and he defiles his consecrated head, then he shall shave his head on the day of his cleansing; on the seventh day he shall shave it.
New Living Translation
"If someone falls dead beside them, the hair they have dedicated will be defiled. They must wait for seven days and then shave their heads. Then they will be cleansed from their defilement.
New Life Bible
‘But if a man dies next to him, making his hair unclean which had been set apart to the Lord, then he must cut all the hair from his head on the day he is made clean. He will cut it off on the seventh day.
New Revised Standard
If someone dies very suddenly nearby, defiling the consecrated head, then they shall shave the head on the day of their cleansing; on the seventh day they shall shave it.
J.B. Rotherham Emphasized Bible
But if one that is dying should die by him in a moment suddenly, then shall he count unclean his head of separation, - and shall shave his head, on the day he cleanseth himself, on the seventh day, shall he shave it.
Douay-Rheims Bible
But if any man die suddenly before him: the head of his consecration shall be defiled: and he shall shave it forthwith on the same day of his purification, and again on the seventh day.
Revised Standard Version
"And if any man dies very suddenly beside him, and he defiles his consecrated head, then he shall shave his head on the day of his cleansing; on the seventh day he shall shave it.
THE MESSAGE
"If someone should die suddenly in your presence, so that your consecrated head is ritually defiled, you must shave your head on the day of your purifying, that is, the seventh day. Then on the eighth day bring two doves or two pigeons to the priest at the entrance to the Tent of Meeting. The priest will offer one for the Absolution-Offering and one for the Whole-Burnt-Offering, purifying you from the ritual contamination of the corpse. You resanctify your hair on that day and reconsecrate your Nazirite consecration to God by bringing a yearling lamb for a Compensation-Offering. You start over; the previous days don't count because your consecration was ritually defiled.
New American Standard Bible (1995)
'But if a man dies very suddenly beside him and he defiles his dedicated head of hair, then he shall shave his head on the day when he becomes clean; he shall shave it on the seventh day.

Contextual Overview

1 The Lord commanded Moses 2 to give the following instructions to the people of Israel. Any of you, male or female, who make a special vow to become a nazirite and dedicate yourself to the Lord 3 shall abstain from wine and beer. You shall not drink any kind of drink made from grapes or eat any grapes or raisins. 4 As long as you are a nazirite, you shall not eat anything that comes from a grapevine, not even the seeds or skins of grapes. 5 As long as you are under the nazirite vow, you must not cut your hair or shave. You are bound by the vow for the full time that you are dedicated to the Lord , and you shall let your hair grow. 6Your hair is the sign of your dedication to God, and so you must not defile yourself by going near a corpse, not even that of your father, mother, brother, or sister. 8 As long as you are a nazirite, you are consecrated to the Lord . 9 If your consecrated hair is defiled because you are right beside someone who suddenly dies, you must wait seven days and then shave your head; and so you become ritually clean. 10 On the eighth day you shall bring two doves or two pigeons to the priest at the entrance of the Tent of the Lord 's presence. 11 The priest shall offer one as a sin offering and the other as a burnt offering, to perform the ritual of purification for you because of your contact with a corpse. On the same day you shall reconsecrate your hair

Bible Verse Review
  from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge

and he: Numbers 19:14-19

shave: Numbers 6:18, Acts 18:18, Acts 21:23, Acts 21:24, Philippians 3:8, Philippians 3:9

Reciprocal: Leviticus 9:1 - the eighth day Leviticus 14:2 - in the day Leviticus 14:9 - shave all Numbers 6:4 - separation Ezekiel 44:27 - he shall offer

Cross-References

Genesis 2:4
And that is how the universe was created. When the Lord God made the universe,
Genesis 5:1
This is the list of the descendants of Adam. (When God created human beings, he made them like himself.
Genesis 5:22
After that, Enoch lived in fellowship with God for 300 years and had other children.
Genesis 5:24
He spent his life in fellowship with God, and then he disappeared, because God took him away.
Genesis 6:9
This is the story of Noah. He had three sons, Shem, Ham, and Japheth. Noah had no faults and was the only good man of his time. He lived in fellowship with God,
Genesis 6:15
Make it 450 feet long, 75 feet wide, and 45 feet high.
Genesis 7:1
The Lord said to Noah, "Go into the boat with your whole family; I have found that you are the only one in all the world who does what is right.
Genesis 10:1
These are the descendants of Noah's sons, Shem, Ham, and Japheth. These three had sons after the flood.
Genesis 17:1
When Abram was ninety-nine years old, the Lord appeared to him and said, "I am the Almighty God. Obey me and always do what is right.
Genesis 48:15
Then he blessed Joseph: "May God, whom my fathers Abraham and Isaac served, bless these boys! May God, who has led me to this very day, bless them!

Gill's Notes on the Bible

And if any man die very suddenly by him,.... In the place where he is, whether house or field, a public or private place, in the tent where he is, as Jarchi; there are two words we render, "very suddenly", which many take to be synonymous; and that being of the same signification, two being used increase the sense, but others think they have a different meaning: the Targums of Onkelos and Jonathan render them,

"suddenly through ignorance,''

understanding it of a chance matter, as when one man is killed by another, not wilfully and through malice, but without intention and design: Jarchi interprets the first of them by violence, and the latter through error or mistake, and so may include both cases; as when a man dies at once, through the force of a disease seizing him, or he is killed by the violent hands of a man, who stabs him in the presence of a Nazarite; or else when this is done ignorantly and through mistake; be it which way it will, if a Nazarite was present:

and he both defiled the head of his consecration: or the consecration of his head, his Nazariteship, that is, his hair, he being polluted by the dead, through being where it was:

then he shall shave his head in the day of his cleansing; which was the seventh day from his defilement, as follows:

on the seventh day he shall shave it; for so many days was a person unclean that had touched a body, of had been where one was, and on the seventh day he was to be cleansed, Numbers 19:11; and this was one way of cleansing the Nazarite, cutting off his locks of hair, which were to grow long, and made him to be a Nazarite; and shave his head for his pollution by the dead, put an end to his Nazariteship; and he was obliged to begin again, and his hair being polluted, must be shaved, and new hair grow to make him a Nazarite again: thus by one single breach of the law of God a man becomes guilty of all, and liable to its curse, and his legal righteousness becomes insufficient to justify him before God, and therefore his own righteousness must be renounced by him in the business of justification; and which, Ainsworth suggests, is the mystery of the Nazarite's head being shaved when polluted.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

The law of the Nazarite is appropriately added to other enactments which concern the sanctity of the holy nation. That sanctity found its highest expression in the Nazarite vow, which was the voluntary adoption for a time of obligations to high and strict modes of self-dedication resembling, and indeed in some particulars exceeding, those under which the priests were placed. The present enactments do not institute a new kind of observance, but only regulate one already familiar to the Israelites Numbers 6:2.

Numbers 6:2

A Nazarite - Strictly, Nazirite. This term signifies “separated” i. e., as the words following show, “unto God.” It became a technical term at an early date; compare Judges 13:5, Judges 13:7; Judges 16:17.

Numbers 6:3

Liquor of grapes - i. e. a drink made of grape-skins macerated in water.

Numbers 6:4

From the kernels even to the husk - A sour drink was made from the stones of unripe grapes; and cakes were also made of the husks Hosea 3:1. This interdict figures that separation from the general society of men to which the Nazarite for the time was consecrated.

Numbers 6:5

Among the Jews the abundance of the hair was considered to betoken physical strength and perfection (compare 2 Samuel 14:25-26), and baldness was regarded as a grave blemish (compare Leviticus 21:20 note, Leviticus 13:40 ff; 2 Kings 2:23; Isaiah 3:24). Thus, the free growth of the hair on the head of the Nazarite represented the dedication of the man with all his strength and powers to the service of God.

Numbers 6:7

The consecration of his God - i. e. the unshorn locks: compare Leviticus 25:5 note, where the vine, left during the Sabbatical year untouched by the hand of man, either for pruning or for vintage, is called simply a “Nazarite.”

The third rule of the Nazarite interdicted him from contracting any ceremonial defilement even under circumstances which excused such defilement in others: compare Leviticus 21:1-3.

Numbers 6:9-12

Prescriptions to meet the case of a sudden death taking place “by him” (i. e. in his presence). The days of the dedication of the Nazarite had to be recommenced.

Numbers 6:13

When the days of his separation are fulfilled - Perpetual Nazariteship was probably unknown in the days of Moses; but the examples of Samson, Samuel, and John the Baptist, show that it was in later times undertaken for life. Again, Moses does not expressly require that limits should be assigned to the vow; but a rule was afterward imposed that no Nazarite vow should be taken for less than thirty days. To permit the vow to be taken for very short periods would diminish its solemnity and estimation.

Numbers 6:14, Numbers 6:15

The sin-offering (compare the marginal references), though named second, was in practice offered first, being intended to expiate involuntary sins committed during the period of separation. The burnt-offering (Leviticus 1:10 ff) denoted the self-surrender on which alone all acceptableness in the Nazarite before God must rest; the peace-offerings (Leviticus 3:12 ff) expressed thankfulness to God by whose grace the vow had been fulfilled. The offerings, both ordinary and additional, required on the completion of the Nazarite vow involved considerable expense, and it was regarded as a pious work to provide the poor with the means of making them (compare Acts 21:23 ff; Acts 1:0 Macc. 3:49).

Numbers 6:18

Shave the head - As the Nazarite had during his vow worn his hair unshorn in honor of God, so when the time was complete it was natural that the hair, the symbol of his vow, should be cut off, and offered to God at the sanctuary. The burning of the hair “in the fire under the sacrifice of the peace offering “represented the eucharistic communion with God obtained by those who realised the ideal which the Nazarite set forth (compare the marginal reference).

Numbers 6:20

The priest shall wave them - i. e. by placing his hands under those of the Nazarite: compare Leviticus 7:30.

Numbers 6:21

Beside that that his hand shall get - The Nazarite, in addition to the offerings prescribed above, was to present free-will offerings according to his possessions or means.


 
adsfree-icon
Ads FreeProfile