A Nazarite and Jesus of Nazareth

 A Nazarite and Jesus of Nazareth

 

Judges 13:1-5 『 And the children of Israel did evil again in the sight of the LORD; and the LORD delivered them into the hand of the Philistines forty years. And there was a certain man of Zorah, of the family of the Danites, whose name was Manoah; and his wife was barren, and bare not. And the angel of the LORD appeared unto the woman, and said unto her, Behold now, thou art barren, and bearest not: but thou shalt conceive, and bear a son. Now therefore beware, I pray thee, and drink not wine nor strong drink, and eat not any unclean thing: For, lo, thou shalt conceive, and bear a son; and no razor shall come on his head: for the child shall be a Nazarite unto God from the womb: and he shall begin to deliver Israel out of the hand of the Philistines.』

In Numbers 6:5, if a man wanted to live as a Nazarite for a certain period of time, he could not cut his hair during that period. However, when he returned to normal life, he was able to shave his head. However, unlike this, a man who was designated as a Nazirite from the fetus could not shave his head throughout his life, because he had to remain a permanent Nazirite until his death.

The Hebrew word 'Nazir', which corresponds to Nazarite, is a noun derived from the verb 'Nazar', which means 'to consecrate, sanctify, set apart', and means 'one who is set apart as holy.' These regulations for the Nazirites are mentioned in Numbers 9:12, and were given by God through Moses just before the Israelites left Mount Sinai. Nazarites were not allowed to eat fruit from the vine or drink strong drink, they were not to cut their hair, and they were not allowed to approach a corpse. From a redemptive historical perspective, these Nazarite regulations typify Jesus Christ, who offered himself as a perfect sacrifice before God. The story of Samson, the last judge, is directed to David. And David is turning to Jesus Christ.

The contents of the period of the judges are mostly about "idolatry and the resulting invasion of foreign nations, the cries of Israel, and God's requests by appointing judges." However, the story of crying out against the law does not appear in Judges 13. And it is said that Gideon was peaceful only for 40 years. After Gideon, through Abimelech and Jephthah, the word peace disappeared. In Judges 13:1, there is no peace, and there is no crying out to God. The Israelites thought of it as peace amidst the invasion and domination of the Philistines.

The Philistines were a people who lived as pirates and engaged in intermediate trade around the Mediterranean Sea. Even before Samson was born, Israel was already being harassed by the Philistines. And Samson served as a judge under the Philistines for only 20 years, and the Philistines continued to harass Israel even after Samson. However, considering that there was a temporary lull in the Philistine oppression towards the end of Samuel's reign, the period up to this point can be viewed as approximately 40 years. Afterwards, even during the reign of Israel, the Philistines continued to harass Israel, and when King David conquered them, the Philistines' oppression finally came to an end. It tells us that the period of the judges is heading towards the period of David.

After Solomon's time, when Israel was divided into two, Jeroboam, who presided over the north, made golden calf idols and placed one in Bethel and the other in Dan. Dan could be said to be a shrine to idols. In Danjipa, a man named Manoah appears. Manoah is reminiscent of Noah. Its meaning is rest. The cause of the flood of anger was the marriage of the sons of God and the daughters of men. This is spiritual adultery in which those who have the seed of promise mix with those who do not have the seed of promise. This is the story of how God judges God with water because they served both God and idols, and Noah and his family are saved through the ark. Salvation is rest. However, there was no rest during the time of the judges. Not having rest means not being in God.

Manoah's wife was barren, but God opened her womb. Mary, who was betrothed to Joseph, was infertile before her marriage, but God made her pregnant through the power of the Holy Spirit. Infertility refers to her inability to bear a son and represents the condition of Israel. People have to have sons to continue the generations. However, God gave a son to the barren woman. From Manoah's wife to Samson, from Mary to Jesus Christ. Samson is a name that means light. In John 1:1, Jesus also became a light during the spiritual darkness of Roman rule.

“The Annunciation of the Son to the forefathers of faith who could not bear a son” extends not only to Manoah’s wife, but also to Abraham’s wife Sarah, Samuel’s mother Hannah, John the Baptist’s mother Elizabeth, and Jesus’ mother Mary. In Luke 1:31, “And, behold, thou shalt conceive in thy womb, and bring forth a son, and shalt call his name JESUS.”

The church today is women who could not get pregnant. A woman must meet a man. The story of Genesis 2:24 and Ephesians 5:31-32 explains this relationship. 『For this cause shall a man leave his father and mother, and shall be joined unto his wife, and they two shall be one. flesh. This is a great mystery: but I speak concerning Christ and the church.』 Church does not mean the church building, but the saints. Because the saint (woman) meets Christ (man), the two become completely one. And they can have sons. That is the gospel and salvation. In Chapter 12 of the Book of Revelation, there is a scene where a son is born, and the dragon (Satan) interferes with the woman's birth.

Becoming one is something that takes place in the hearts of believers. A temple is built in the heart, the Saint becomes a priest and enters the temple, and when Christ also returns and enters the temple in the heart, the two meet.

In Isaiah 54:1, “Sing, O barren, thou that didst not bear; break forth into singing, and cry aloud, thou that didst not travail with child: for more are the children of the desolate than the children of the married wife, saith the LORD.』 The answer here is 『Fear not; for thou shalt not be ashamed: neither be thou confounded; for thou shalt not be put to shame: for thou shalt forget the shame of thy youth, and shalt not remember the reproach of thy widowhood any more. For thy Maker is thine husband; the LORD of hosts is his name; and thy Redeemer the Holy One of Israel; The God of the whole earth shall he be called.』

God informs the people that “Israel’s condition under Philistine rule is spiritually barren.” The Bible tells us that just as Israel cannot escape spiritual infertility on its own, neither can it give birth to a spiritual son. That means there is no salvation. A virgin giving birth to a son is a sign of spiritual salvation. In Isaiah 7:14, “Therefore the Lord himself shall give you a sign; Behold, a virgin shall conceive, and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel.』

According to the regulations, "in order to become a Nazarite, a person must not drink wine, cut hair, or touch a corpse for a certain period of time." Nazir is related to the vine. It means not to prune the vines during a certain period of time. In Leviticus 25:5, “That which groweth of its own accord of thy harvest thou shalt not reap, neither gather the grapes of thy vine undressed: for it is a year of rest unto the land.”

Psalm 104:15 says, “Wine makes people happy.”

In Deuteronomy 14:26, “And thou shalt bestow that money for whatsoever thy soul lusteth after, for oxen, or for sheep, or for wine, or for strong drink, or for whatsoever thy soul desireth: and thou shalt eat there before the LORD thy God, and thou shalt rejoice, thou, and thine household,』

This means that it is okay to drink wine during the Feast of Tabernacles. The tabernacle means rest. The words “Noah came out of the ark, dwelt in a tent, and became drunk with wine” mean rest. Those who rest can drink wine, but those who cannot rest cannot drink wine. The reason saints drink wine during the Holy Communion is because they rest. Those who have been baptized participate in the Holy Communion, but those who have not rested must not participate in the Holy Communion.

In Matthew 26:29, “But I say unto you, I will not drink henceforth of this fruit of the vine, until that day when I drink it new with you in my Father's kingdom.” After drinking wine three times during the Holy Communion the night before his death on the cross, Jesus said he would not drink a fourth glass of wine. He said he would drink new wine to replace the Passover wine. So, through this scene, Jesus Christ is identified as a Nazarite. The old wine was the wine of suffering, but the new wine is the wine of joy and the wine of the feast. It is the wine that turns water into wine. In Revelation 3:20, “Behold, I stand at the door, and knock: if any man hear my voice, and open the door, I will come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with me.” Jesus said, “When the bridegroom is taken from you, fast,” but when you enter the wedding feast with the bridegroom, you drink wine.

Wine is an expression of rest. “He who does not rest” fasts, but he who rests drinks wine. Being a Nazarite is an expression of having no rest, and Israel is like that. In the Bible, the phrase “do not get drunk” means that you are spiritually restless. Nazir (Nazarite) has a pronunciation almost similar to Nazar (Nazareth).