Cornelius a Lapide
Table of Contents
Synopsis of the Chapter
The vow, consecration, and rites of the Nazirites are described. Second, at verse 23, the form of blessing is given, by which the priests bless the people.
Vulgate Text: Numbers 6:1-27
1. And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying: 2. Speak to the children of Israel, and you shall say to them: When a man or woman shall have made a vow to be sanctified, and shall wish to consecrate themselves to the Lord; 3. they shall abstain from wine and from everything that can intoxicate. They shall not drink vinegar made from wine or from any other drink, nor anything that is pressed from the grape; they shall not eat fresh or dried grapes; 4. all the days during which they are consecrated to the Lord by vow, they shall eat nothing that can come from the vineyard, from raisin to grape seed. 5. All the time of his separation no razor shall pass over his head, until the day is completed during which he is consecrated to the Lord. He shall be holy, with the hair of his head growing. 6. All the time of his consecration he shall not go near a dead body; 7. nor shall he be defiled even at the funeral of his father or mother or brother or sister, because the consecration of God is upon his head. 8. All the days of his separation he shall be holy to the Lord. 9. But if anyone should die suddenly in his presence, the head of his consecration shall be defiled: which he shall shave immediately on the same day of his purification, and again on the seventh day; 10. and on the eighth day he shall offer two turtledoves or two young pigeons to the priest at the entrance of the tabernacle of the testimony, 11. and the priest shall offer one for sin and the other as a holocaust, and shall make atonement for him, because he sinned over the dead person: and he shall sanctify his head on that day; 12. and he shall consecrate to the Lord the days of his separation, offering a yearling lamb for sin: yet so that the former days shall become void, since his sanctification has been defiled. 13. This is the law of consecration. When the days which he had decreed by vow are completed, he shall bring him to the door of the tabernacle of the covenant; 14. and he shall offer his oblation to the Lord: an unblemished yearling lamb as a holocaust, and an unblemished yearling ewe for sin, and an unblemished ram as a peace offering, 15. also a basket of unleavened bread sprinkled with oil, and wafers without leaven anointed with oil, and the libations for each: 16. which the priest shall offer before the Lord, and shall make offering both for sin and as a holocaust. 17. And the ram he shall immolate as a peace offering to the Lord, offering at the same time the basket of unleavened bread and the libations that are customarily due. 18. Then the Nazirite shall be shaved at the door of the tabernacle of the covenant of the hair of his consecration; and he shall take his hair and place it upon the fire that is beneath the sacrifice of peace offerings. 19. And the boiled shoulder of the ram, and one unleavened cake from the basket, and one unleavened wafer, he shall place in the hands of the Nazirite, after his head has been shaved. 20. And receiving them back from him he shall elevate them in the sight of the Lord: and being sanctified they shall belong to the priest, like the breast that was commanded to be set apart, and the thigh. After this the Nazirite may drink wine. 21. This is the law of the Nazirite, when he has vowed his oblation to the Lord at the time of his consecration, apart from those things which his hand has found; according to what he had vowed in his mind, so shall he do for the perfection of his sanctification. 22. And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying: 23. Speak to Aaron and his sons: Thus shall you bless the children of Israel, and you shall say to them: 24. May the Lord bless you and keep you. 25. May the Lord show His face to you and have mercy on you. 26. May the Lord turn His countenance toward you and give you peace. 27. And they shall invoke My name upon the children of Israel; and I will bless them.
Verse 2: When a Man or Woman Shall Have Made a Vow to Be Sanctified
In Hebrew, when they shall have separated, or made themselves wondrous by vowing, that is, when they have vowed the vow of the Nazirite, that they may separate themselves from the common way of life, customs, and manner of living (which is something new and remarkable), and consecrate themselves to the Lord. Sanctification here therefore signifies separation from the common life of men, and abstinence from wine and strong drink, that is, from every drink that can intoxicate, and this for the honor and worship of God, from which separation the Nazirite, that is, the separated one, is so called. More on this at verse 7.
The Nazirites Among the Jews
The Nazirites among the Jews were religious men who, in order to devote themselves more freely to the law and meditation on divine things, renounced the company of others, either perpetually or for a time, and gave themselves entirely to the Lord; or who, having previously indulged too freely in wine and other pleasures, afterwards bound themselves to a life of abstinence and greater austerity, in order to afflict the body. These were penitent Nazirites; the former were, as it were, contemplative Nazirites. So Vatablus. Moreover, the Nazirites were of two kinds: for some had a perpetual vow, such as Samuel, 1 Kings 28, and Samson, Judges 13:7; others for a fixed period, which was not determined by law, but each one set the time for himself according to his own devotion. Such a Nazirite was St. Paul, Acts 21:23.
Note on the Word Nezer
Note that nezer signifies first, separation; second, consecration; third, a crown; fourth, the hair or locks like a crown, which was consecrated to God. Hence nazir, derived from nezer, that is, Nazirite, signifies first, one separated for God; second, consecrated; third, crowned; fourth, long-haired.
Allegorical Sense: The Nazirites and Christ
Allegorically, Rupert applies all these things to Christ, of whom it is said through the Prophets in Matthew 2, last verse: "For He shall be called a Nazarene;" which St. Jerome explains thus: Nazarene, he says, is interpreted as holy. And all Scripture proclaims that the Lord was to be holy, and all these Nazirites, and specifically Joseph the patriarch, Genesis 49:26, and Samson, Judges 13:5, prefigured His holiness: as a symbol of which Christ was raised in Nazareth, by the providence of God, signifying through this that He was a Nazirite in life and conduct; and Leo de Castro proves this at length in his commentary on Isaiah 11:1, both from other arguments and from the fact that the Evangelists always write Nazarenus with the letter zeta, which corresponds to the Hebrew zain, with which letter our Nazirites are written. For if Nazarenus were derived from netser, Isaiah 11:1, that is, flower or shoot, as many wish, then they would not write Nazarenus with z, but with the letter s. For netser there is written with tsade, which letter is always rendered by the sacred writers as s, never as z; but this matter must be treated more precisely at Matthew 2.
Verse 3: Whatever Is Pressed from the Grape
In Hebrew, the residue of grapes, that is, whatever remaining liquid is pressed from grapes that have already been pressed and then either soaked in water or cooked. For the Nazirites could eat or drink nothing of this kind.
Verse 4: From Raisin to Grape Seed They Shall Not Eat
That is, not even a single grape seed, or nothing at all that belongs to the grape, shall they eat. For this is what this Hebrew phrase signifies. A similar expression is found at chapter 8, verse 4, in the Hebrew, and Genesis 14:23, where it says: "From a thread to a sandal strap," that is, not even a thread or a strap shall I accept from all that is yours. From this it is clear that the Nazirites could not eat raisins or dried grapes.
Verse 5: No Razor Shall Pass Over His Head
Namely for shaving or cutting the hair of the Nazirite. Until the day is completed during which He is consecrated to the Lord. — In Hebrew, until the days are fulfilled during which he has separated himself to the Lord. He shall be holy with the hair of his head growing, — as if to say, he will be and will be recognized as a Nazirite, if according to this command of Mine he lets his pledged hair grow long.
God commanded the Nazirite to grow his hair, partly so that by this sign it would be shown that he was separated from cultivation of the body as well as from bodily pleasures, and partly so that he might give them to the Lord at the end of his vow.
Verse 6: He Shall Not Go Near a Dead Body
He shall not go to the funeral of a dead person, not even of his father or mother. In this the Nazirites were more perfect than ordinary priests; for these were able to attend the funeral of a father, mother, brother, and sister, and thus the Nazirites are made equal to the High Priest, who could not attend the funeral of either father or mother, Leviticus 21:11.
Note: Three Ways of Defilement by the Dead
Among the Hebrews, a person was defiled by a dead body in three ways: first, if he touched a corpse or bones, even those found in a field; second, if he went to the funeral rites of those mourning a dead person, or if he was in a house in which a dead person lay, or one breathing his last, says Abulensis. Third, if he touched any of his vessels, as is clear from Numbers 19:10 and following.
Verse 7: Because the Consecration of God Is Upon His Head
As if to say, because the unshorn hair is upon his head, which shows that he is separated, crowned, and consecrated to the Lord; and in this hair or locks seems to have been the principal ceremony of the Nazirites, and the one by which they were most recognized and named. Whence it follows:
Verse 9: The Head of His Consecration Shall Be Defiled
That is, his consecration shall be defiled, which is most visible in the hair of the head; and therefore lest these hairs of the Nazirites, being as it were sacred, should afterwards be profaned, at the end of the vow they were burned for the Lord to whom they were consecrated, as is clear from verse 18.
Tropological Sense: The Nazirites and Religious Life
Tropologically, Rabanus and Cyril, in Book 16 of On Worship, consider that the life of the abstinent and continent is signified in the Nazirites. Therefore, whoever wishes to consecrate himself to God by a great vow, that is, by a life of perfect righteousness, let him withdraw his mind from wine and strong drink, that is, from everything that can disturb it. These things are worldly sense, earthly desires, cares of the flesh, and vain distractions. Let him grow the hair of the head, that is, let him not have a mind that is bare, but one adorned with divine thoughts and knowledge. Let him not go near father and mother, that is, let him renounce carnal love, and prefer God to the bond of blood.
The Religious as True Nazirites
Therefore the Nazirites prefigured the life of our Religious, as St. Gregory Nazianzen teaches in his oration in praise of St. Basil, St. Gregory in Book 32 of the Moralia, chapter 17, Innocent cited in chapter 4, 49, and St. Thomas, II-II, Question 186, article 6. Religious therefore are the true Nazirites, that is, separated from the common life of men, and likewise crowned on the head like Kings and Emperors, both of heaven and earth, of whom it is said, Lamentations 4: "Her Nazirites were whiter than snow, purer than milk, more ruddy than ancient ivory, more beautiful than sapphire." In snow and milk is signified the chastity of the Religious; in ancient ivory their constant and strong obedience; in sapphire, which is of heavenly color, the poverty that fixes its hope in God alone. Hence at verse 21, the Nazirite state is called a state of perfection and sanctification, namely of the old law: just as Religious life in the new law is a state of perfection — not of perfection already acquired (for that is the Episcopate), but of perfection to be acquired through the three vows. For, as Eusebius of Emesa says: "A Religious ought to be one who neglects ease, flees pleasure, seeks labor, is patient in abjection, impatient of honor, poor in money, rich in conscience, humble regarding his merits, proud against his vices." Whence those converts to Religious life plainly go astray "who, as Blessed Prosper says in On the Contemplative Life, cast off nothing of their former habits, because they are changed not in mind but in dress; not in deed but in attire; not in works but in speech. For in Religious life they live in a worldly manner, seek the reputation of virtue instead of virtue itself, preach great things and do them not, accuse vices and do not put them away, publicly pretend to dislike what they secretly commit."
On Abstinence and the Dangers of Small Transgressions
Second, just as the Nazirites, so also the Religious ought to abstain from wine and from everything that can disturb or defile the mind. Let them hear St. Jerome instructing the monk Paulinus: "Let your food be simple and taken in the evening — herbs and vegetables; now and then count a small fish among your greatest delicacies: whoever desires Christ and feeds on that Bread does not greatly concern himself about how costly the food is from which he makes excrement." And further: "I am not content that anything in you be mediocre; I desire everything to be supreme, everything to be perfect."
Third, the Nazirites had to abstain even from grape seeds, lest from seeds they proceed to grapes, and from grapes to wine: so the Religious ought to cut off every occasion of gluttony and sin, even the smallest and most remote. For, as the Gloss rightly says on that passage in Job 31, I made a covenant with my eyes: "Sight is followed by thought, thought by delight, delight by consent, consent by deed, deed by habit, habit by necessity, necessity by despair, despair by damnation."
Let Religious hear, let Ecclesiastics hear, what the neglect of the least canons and ordinances produces, as St. Antoninus teaches, Part 2 of his History, title 15, section 2, after treating of many Religious Orders: "The aforesaid Religious Orders," he says, "which began with great fervor and sanctity of life, neglecting the smallest of their paternal traditions, in the course of time gradually declined and were emptied out, even down to their foundations, namely their substantial vows; but by divine mercy, sprouting forth again after seventy years, they reflowered in a few who reformed themselves to regular life."
Let them hear St. Anselm, Epistle 6 to Monks: "It is most certain," he says, "as we have learned by experience in many churches, that in a monastery where the smallest things are strictly observed, where the rigor of the monks remains inviolable, there peace reigns among the brothers, and complaints at chapter meetings cease. But where the smallest transgressions are neglected, there the entire Order is gradually dissipated and destroyed. If therefore you wish to ascend from virtue to virtue, always fear to offend God in the smallest particulars."
Rightly therefore does St. Gregory Nazianzen admonish Religious men and women, in his oration On Dissimulation, saying: "I would have you not be unaware that a single wrinkle is more shameful for you than the greatest wounds are for those who live in the world; for a stain does not produce such noticeable and conspicuous ugliness in dirty garments as it does in clean garments of a single color."
On Cutting Away Carnal Affections
Fourth, the Nazirite could not mourn the dead, even father or mother: so the Religious ought to cut away all carnal affections toward their parents, and hear that word of Christ, Matthew 8:22: "Follow Me;" and: "Let the dead bury their dead;" and that of Psalm 44: "Hear, O daughter, and see, and incline your ear, and forget your people and your father's house, and the king will desire your beauty."
Fifth, the Nazirite was defiled even by the mere presence of a corpse: so a Religious ought to be as far removed as possible from every sin, on which more at verse 9.
Sixth, the sanctification of the Nazirites consisted chiefly in growing their hair. But this mystically represents the sprouting of holy thoughts, by which a person is made holy; and these the Religious foster and nourish.
Seven Further Applications to Religious Life
Seventh, if it happened that the Nazirite was defiled by a dead body, his hair was shaved off as though polluted, so that new hair might grow in: so the Religious, if their thoughts and affections are stained by any taint of sin, immediately cut them away and summon new and holy ones afresh.
Eighth, if the Nazirite was defiled, the past days of his Nazirite state were considered void, and he was compelled to begin the time of his vow anew; for God delights most in unbroken fellowship. So a Religious, if he has fallen into negligence or some other sin, again must seize upon the path of virtue with renewed effort, as if he had accomplished nothing before, and say with the Psalmist, Psalm 76: "I said: Now I begin."
On the Burning of the Hair and the Religious as Holocaust
Ninth, when the time of the vow was completed, the Nazirite was shaved, and the hair was burned on the altar of the holocaust; by which was signified, says Gregory, Book 2 of the Moralia, chapter 39, "that we then reach the summit of perfection when we so overcome our worse vices that we even cut away superfluous thoughts from the mind, to burn which indeed with the fire of sacrifice is to set them ablaze with the flame of divine love, so that the Religious heart may burn entirely with the love of God." And then the Nazirite offered himself, first, as a sin offering, which signifies the full remission of sins that Religious receive at their entrance into Religious life. Hence both by St. Jerome, in his epistle to Demetrias, and by St. Bernard, in the book On Precept and Dispensation, chapter 23, and others, entrance into Religious life is called a second baptism; second, as a peace offering, which signified that God is easily appeased and gives assent to the prayers of the Religious; third, as a holocaust, which signified that Religious life is nothing other than a holocaust, as St. Thomas teaches, II-II, Question 186, article 7, because just as in a holocaust the entire victim was burned, so a Religious has nothing that he does not offer to God. For he offers his external goods through the vow of poverty, the good of the body through the vow of chastity, and the good of the soul through the vow of obedience. Finally, that Religious life might lack no kind of sacrifice, it is itself also a most illustrious martyrdom. For, as St. Jerome says in the Epitaph of Paula, "the unstained service of a devoted mind is a daily martyrdom;" and St. Bernard, in Sermon 1 on the feast of All Saints: "Truly," he says, "voluntary poverty is a kind of martyrdom."
The Duties and Martyrdoms of a Monk
Hear what the duties and martyrdoms of a monk are, from St. Jerome to Rusticus: "In the monastery," he says, "let one teach you silence, another meekness; do not do what you wish; eat what you are ordered, wear what you receive; complete the task assigned to you, be subject to one you would not choose; come to your bed exhausted, and sleep while walking, and be compelled to rise before your sleep is finished. Recite the psalm in your turn, in which not sweetness of voice but devotion of mind is sought; serve the brothers, wash the feet of guests, suffer injury in silence, fear the superior of the monastery as a lord, love him as a father; believe that whatever he commands is salutary for you, and do not judge the opinion of your superiors, whose duty it is to obey and fulfill what is commanded; let women know your name but not your appearance; for a long time learn what you may teach, and do not believe your flatterers — rather, your mockers."
These and more can be found in Viegas on Apocalypse 9:2, section 11. See also Hieronymus Platus, On the Good of the Religious State, Book 2, chapter 19, and chapters 12 and 15.
On Sudden Defilement of the Nazirite
But if anyone should die suddenly in his presence, the head of his consecration shall be defiled. — Why this? Lyranus responds: so that the Nazirite might attribute such a death to his own sins. For so great should be the humility of a religious man that he attributes whatever evil happens to his own sins.
Second, Viegas above: A Nazirite is considered defiled, he says, if someone dies in his presence, because he could be suspected of being the person's killer; to signify that a religious man must by all means flee even the very appearance and presumption of evil, even when free from blame, according to 1 Thessalonians 5: "Abstain from every appearance of evil."
Third, and in the plainly genuine sense, Abulensis: The Nazirite was defiled, he says, if anyone died in his presence, because he himself was bound to be immune from all contamination; for he was most abundantly holy, and in the case of the dead, the contamination was greatest under that law. Hence likewise if a corpse or the bones of a dead person had by chance fallen upon the Nazirite, or if he himself had by chance been carried or had fallen into the house of a dead person, he would have been defiled; and this in order to signify that a religious man ought to be as far removed as possible from every sin (for the corpse was the type of sin), even from accidental and surreptitious sin, even from the sin of another.
On the Double Shaving of the Defiled Nazirite
Which he shall shave immediately on the same day of his purification, and again on the seventh — day he shall shave his head, and this for greater cleanliness. But the Hebrews and Vatablus think that the head of the Nazirite had to be shaved not on the first day, but only on the seventh; for the Hebrew implies this, reading as follows: He shall shave his head on the day of his purification, on the seventh day he shall shave it. But our Translator sagaciously understood that, in Hebrew fashion, the conjunction "and" is to be understood, as if to say: And on the seventh day he shall shave it. For it is not plausible that the Nazirite remained in his defilement until the seventh day, but that he ought to have been purged and shaved immediately; and the Hebrew vav, that is "and," sufficiently implies this, which our Translator rightly renders as "immediately"; for the Hebrew reads, and he shall be defiled and he shall shave, that is, as soon as he has been defiled, he shall shave.
Note: Temporary Versus Perpetual Nazirites
This shaving was only to be done by a temporary Nazirite: for a perpetual one was never shaved, however he might be defiled, and consequently he did not offer turtledoves or young pigeons for his expiation, as Abulensis teaches, Question 11 on chapter 13 of Judges. For all the prescriptions of this chapter pertain only to the Nazirite who is such for a fixed period of time, as is clear from verses 4, 5, 6, 13, and 18.
Verse 10: At the Entrance of the Covenant of the Testimony
That is, at the entrance of the tabernacle of the testimony. So the Hebrew, Chaldean, and Septuagint. The tabernacle therefore is here called the covenant by metonymy: because it was the sign of the covenant made between God and the people through Moses.
Verse 11: The Priest Shall Offer One for Sin
"He shall offer," that is, he shall sacrifice and slaughter it; but the flesh shall go to the priest. For in the sin offering, only the fat was to be burned and consumed according to the law of Leviticus 7:1. But in the turtledove and pigeon there is no fat; therefore only their blood had to be poured out and offered to God.
Because he sinned over the dead, — because he was contaminated over a dead person, that is, because he was defiled by the funeral of the dead. For "sin" here signifies not guilt but legal uncleanness. See what was said on Leviticus 15:15.
Verses 11-12: Sanctifying the Head and Consecrating the Days
And he shall sanctify his head on that day, and shall consecrate to the Lord the days of his separation, — in Hebrew, the days of his Naziriteship, that is, from that time he will begin again to count the time of his Naziriteship, that is, the time during which the other had vowed to be a Nazirite, as if to say: the priest shall by this purification restore the Nazirite's head to its former sanctity and consecration, so that from that day of purification the days of his vow and consecration may begin again: for the first days had been made void by the ensuing defilement.
Verse 13: The Threefold Sacrifice at the Completion of the Vow
When the days which he had determined by his vow shall be completed, he shall bring (supply: the priest, for he is the minister of the tabernacle and all sacred things) him (the Nazirite) to the entrance of the tabernacle of the covenant, — so that he may offer on his behalf every kind, that is, the threefold kind of sacrifice, namely "a lamb for a holocaust, a ram for a peace offering, and a ewe for sin" — not for some particular and determined sin, but for sin in general, in case he had committed any before, especially during his Naziriteship. So Abulensis.
Verse 15: A Basket of Unleavened Bread
Also a basket of unleavened bread which are mixed (that is, kneaded) with oil (when the flour was being kneaded and worked), and the drink offerings of each, — which are prescribed in chapter 15:4.
Verse 18: The Shaving and Burning of the Hair
Then the Nazirite shall be shaved before the entrance of the tabernacle of the covenant, etc., and (the priest) shall take his hair and place it upon the fire. — The hair of the Nazirite is burned in honor of God, as being already sacred and consecrated to Him: for by the hair, which is the covering of the head, it was signified that the very head of the Nazirite was consecrated to God; and since the head itself could not be offered and burned to God without destroying the person, therefore in place of the head, the hair was given to God and burned, so that by this symbol "they might consecrate the perfection of their devotion to the Lord," says Isidore. Similarly, the Gentiles also dedicated their hair to their gods, that is, to demons, when they offered themselves to them, as Theodoret testifies on chapter 19 of Leviticus, Question 28, and Cyril, Book 16 of On Adoration. St. Gregory, Book 2 of the Moralia, chapter 6, and Rupert take these things mystically in another way, as I said at verse 7, namely that the hair signifies superfluous and presumptuous thoughts, and therefore they are commanded to be burned and consumed in honor of God.
On the Ecclesiastical Tonsure
Moreover, Isidore teaches that the use of the ecclesiastical tonsure began with the Nazirites, in On the Divine Offices: "The practice of this example (of the Nazirites)," he says, "was introduced by the Apostles, so that those who are devoted to divine worship and consecrated to the Lord, like Nazirites, that is, holy ones of God, might be renewed by the cutting of the hair; so that by this sign and religious practice vices might be cut away, and we might be stripped of the crimes of our flesh, as of hair, putting off the old man with his deeds: which renewal must take place in the mind, but be demonstrated on the head, where the mind itself is known to dwell; and because the upper part of the head is shorn while a circular crown is left below, I believe the priesthood and kingdom of the Church are figured in them. Hence also the tiara was placed among the ancients upon the head of the priests, because you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood."
Another reason is also given for this, namely on account of the perpetual memory of the crown of thorns of Christ: and that this was practiced by the Apostles and handed down to the Church, Bede teaches with firm assertion in Book 5 of the Ecclesiastical History of the English, chapter 22: "Nor," he says, "do we wear the tonsure in a crown only because Peter was so tonsured, but because Peter was so tonsured in memory of the Lord's passion: therefore we also, who desire to be saved through the same passion, bear the sign of that passion upon the crown of our head together with him. Just as the faithful bear the sign of the cross on their foreheads against malign spirits, and to learn that they must crucify the flesh with its vices: so clerics and monks bear the form of the crown which Christ wore, a crown of thorns, on His head in His passion, so that He might bear, that is, carry away and remove from us the thorns and thistles of our sins: so that they, by their very appearance, might teach themselves to willingly and readily bear mockeries and insults for Christ; so that they might show that they always await the crown of life which God has promised to those who love Him, and that for the sake of receiving it, they despise both the adversities and prosperities of the world." These and more things Bede teaches, and also Albinus Flaccus, On the Divine Offices.
On the Monastic Shaving of the Head
But for monks, from the time of St. Dionysius the Areopagite already, as he himself testifies in the Ecclesiastical Hierarchy, Parts 2 and 3, the head was customarily shaved: for the shaving of the head is a reminder and symbol, first, of a mourning and grieving person; second, of one who is chaste and "unadorned with the ornament of modesty," as St. Paulinus says, Epistle 7; third, of one who despises earthly things and meditates on heavenly things. See more in Baronius at the year of Christ 58.
Verse 20: The Sanctified Portions for the Priest
The sanctified portions (that is, those elevated and offered to God) shall belong to the priest, like the breast (so also) and the thigh, — the right shoulder, as the Hebrew has; for this shoulder, as also the breast, in peace offerings went to the priest and was separated for him from the victim, as is clear from Leviticus 7:31 and 32.
Verse 21: The Law of the Nazirite
This is the law of the Nazirite, when he shall have vowed his offering to the Lord, at the time of his consecration, — that is, when he has vowed the Naziriteship, or to be a Nazirite, and consequently when he has vowed the offering to be made at the end of the vow, which I have here prescribed for the Nazirites: he has vowed it, I say, on the day of consecration, that is, on the day when he consecrated himself to God and began to be a Nazirite.
Besides those things which his hand shall find (as if to say: he shall offer the victims already prescribed in verse 14, besides those which he may wish to offer voluntarily, according to his means and resources; and this) for the perfection of sanctification. — In Hebrew: according to the law of his Naziriteship, which pertains to his perfection in the holiness of the state of that time, namely of the Old Testament.
Verses 23-24: The Priestly Blessing
Speak to Aaron and his sons: Thus shall you bless the children of Israel: May the Lord bless you, — that is, may the Lord give you an abundance of all temporal and spiritual goods; for this is what blessing signifies among the Hebrews.
Verse 25: May the Lord Show His Face to You
In Hebrew: May the Lord make His face shine upon you, that is, may God show Himself benign, cheerful, favorable, and generous to you. For this is what light and illumination signify in Scripture, as in Psalm 96:11: "Light has risen for the just, and gladness for the upright of heart;" and Psalm 44:4: "For it was not by their sword that they possessed the land, and their arm did not save them, but Your right hand and Your arm, and the light of Your countenance, because You were pleased with them."
Second, the better and more genuine sense is: as if to say, may the Lord be to you like a light and a lamp, so as to direct all your actions. That this is so is clear from the fact that in Psalm 66:1, where these blessings are repeated, when the Psalmist had said: "May God make His face shine upon us," he immediately adds in explanation: "That we may know Your way upon the earth." Hence also in Psalm 4:7 it is said: "The light of Your countenance, O Lord, is signed upon us," as if to say: the lamp of reason and faith has been kindled in us by Your divine light, O Lord. In a similar sense it is said in Psalm 17:29: "For You illuminate my lamp, O Lord;" and Psalm 118:135: "Make Your face shine upon Your servant, and teach me Your statutes;" and Luke 1:79: "To give light to those who sit in darkness and in the shadow of death, to direct our feet into the way of peace;" and Psalm 89, last verse: "May the splendor of the Lord our God be upon us, and direct the works of our hands upon us."
Verse 26: May the Lord Turn His Face Toward You
As if to say: may the Lord console, help, and protect you. Metaphorically, the turning of the face is attributed to God, as also its aversion, signifying His present help, just as aversion signifies His abandonment. In this priestly blessing, says Rabanus, which is formulated in threefold form, the name of the Lord is set forth and repeated three times, to signify the Most Holy Trinity, from which, through which, and in which are all good things: hence also now among Christians, the ecclesiastical blessing is conferred through the names of the Persons of the Most Holy Trinity, saying: May Almighty God bless you, the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit; or: May God be in your heart and in your mouth, that you may duly proclaim His Gospel, in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.
Verse 27: They Shall Invoke My Name Upon the Children of Israel
In Hebrew: and they shall place my name upon the children of Israel, namely by invoking it over them; hence Vatablus and the Hebrews explain it thus, as if to say: when the priests bless the children of Israel, they shall join to their blessing my tetragrammaton name.
On the Efficacy of the Priestly Blessing
And I will bless them. — Note here the efficacy and effect of the priestly blessing, even in the old law. For God here promises that He will hear this blessing and actually fulfill it, and will bless, that is, do good to the people thus blessed by the priest. Thus the blessing of parents, especially of the dying, given to their children was formerly efficacious, and was therefore eagerly sought by the children, as is clear in the blessing of Isaac, Genesis 27, and of Jacob, Genesis 29, and of Moses, Deuteronomy 31. And this is what the Wise Man says, Sirach 3:11: "The blessing of a father strengthens the houses of the children; but the curse of a mother uproots their foundations." What wonder then if the blessing of the priests of the New Testament is efficacious? Especially if it is sought and received with the faith and devotion that is fitting. Hence true Catholics are accustomed to seek and receive it reverently. Thus most of the English, even nobles, when a priest enters the house, prostrate themselves with their whole family on the ground, and humbly beg his blessing. Thus from the Holy Fathers and hermits, Christians of old, even princes, used to request a blessing, and experienced its great fruit. Thus finally Christ the supreme priest, ascending into heaven, blessed His own, Luke last chapter, verse 51. More on this pontifical blessing I have discussed at Sirach 36:19.