The name of this week’s Parasha is Nasso, which means “Take up,” “Elevate” or “Lift” and covers Numbers 4:21-7:89. After taking a census earlier in chapter 4 of the Kohathite men that worked at the Tent of Meeting, who were Levites, Adonai told Moses to do the same thing for the Gershonites and Merarites, who were also Levites. The total number of men that worked at the Tent of Meeting from these groups was 8,580.
Adonai commanded Moses what to do regarding uncleanness among the Jewish people in chapter 5. Anyone who had a skin ailment (including leprosy) or any type of bodily discharge, or who touched a dead body and was ceremonially unclean, was to be isolated outside the camp for a prescribed period of time pending the priest’s evaluation, which is described in Leviticus 13. God required this because He was dwelling among the Jewish people, and their adherence to cleanliness was a display of their obedience to Him; they were to be holy as He is holy. This teaches us that Adonai regards personal hygiene and physical well-being important, since our bodies are a special and significant part of His Creation.
Adonai also commanded Moses to instruct the Jewish people on making restitution for harm done to each other. The person who sinned must confess their sin, make full restitution to the wronged person, and add another 1/5 of the monetary value to the restitution. This procedure is also described in Leviticus 6. If there was no relative available to receive it, the restitution and the ram for the guilt offering was to be given to the priest.
The Jewish people were also given instructions for determining whether a wife accused of adultery was innocent or guilty. If a husband suspected his wife of adultery, he was to take her to the priest with a grain offering of jealousy consisting of an ephah (2 quarts) of barley flour without oil or incense. The priest would take holy water and combine it with dust from the Tabernacle floor in a clay jar. The woman would loosen her hair, signifying either her remorse or uncleanness, and would hold the grain offering of jealousy while the priest would hold the jar with the bitter water.
The priest would declare that the wife would be immune from the effects of this bitter water if she was innocent, but if she had committed adultery the water would cause her abdomen to swell and her child-bearing ability would vanish. The wife would affirm these conditions, and the priest would write these curses on a scroll before washing the ink off into the bitter water. The priest would take the grain offering from the wife, wave it before Adonai, bring it to the altar and then burn part of it on the altar. The wife would then drink the water and either suffer these curses if she was guilty of adultery, or be completely fine and be able to bear children if she was innocent.
Although this procedure may seem, at first, unfair towards the wife (and women in general), it was actually quite lenient given the culture of the day and the severity of the accusation. Due to its destructive effect on the family, adultery has long been considered one of the worst offenses committed by one person against another. This is why Moses permitted divorce on the grounds of adultery, as well as Yeshua’s affirmation of divorce only being allowed due to adultery. Unfortunately, our society has trivialized adultery in popular culture to the point where it’s almost commonplace. But it has led to pain and misery through a multitude of consequences, including broken marriages and homes, devastated children, and the spread of debilitating diseases.
This procedure also prevented the jealous husband from being judge, jury and executioner by requiring him to submit to God’s procedure and the mediation of a priest. By requiring the jealous husband to make his accusation of adultery public, the potential loss in material possessions and/or public shame should he be proven wrong was meant to prevent these accusations from being commonplace. It forced a husband to think long and hard before going down this path.
The conditions of a Nazirite vow are listed in chapter 6. The word Nazirite comes from the Hebrew word Nazir, which means “consecrated”. Although this passage describes an adult deciding to take this vow for themselves, a child could have this decision made for them by the parents, as we see with Samson in Judges 13 and with Samuel in 1 Samuel 1.
A Nazirite was prohibited from eating or drinking any grape products, and forbidden to cut their hair. If a Nazirite came in contact with a dead person, they had to shave their head and be cleansed on the 7th day. The Nazirite would bring either 2 doves or young pigeons on the 8th day to the priest, who would sacrifice one as a sin offering and the other as a burnt offering. The Nazirite would also bring a year-old lamb for a guilt offering and then restart their Nazirite vow on the 8th day, since the previous days didn’t count due to their ritual defilement.
When the vow ended, the Nazirite was to bring the priest a year-old male lamb without defect for a burnt offering, a year-old ewe lamb without defect for a sin offering, and a fellowship offering of a ram without defect with grain and drink offerings, and a basket of matza. After the priest made these offerings, the Nazirite’s hair would be cut and burned in the fire of the fellowship offering. The priest would then give the Nazirite a boiled shoulder from the sacrificed ram, along with some of the matza, and wave them as a wave offering to Adonai. Once these things were accomplished, the vow was complete and the Nazirite could once again enjoy the fruit of the vine.
It’s worth noting that Rabbi Paul, in order to refute false charges that he was teaching Jewish people to reject their customs, joined and assisted 4 Israeli men who were completing a Nazirite vow in their purification process in Acts 21.
The Aaronic blessing is introduced at the end of chapter 6. It reads: “The Lord bless you, and keep you; the Lord make His face shine on you, and be gracious to you; The Lord lift up His countenance on you, and give you peace.” Part of this promise appears again in the opening verse of Psalm 67. What a wonderful assurance of God’s love, goodness and provision!
The parasha ends in chapter 7 with a description of the offerings the leaders of the Jewish people brought to Adonai. After Moses anointed and consecrated the Tabernacle, the altar and everything associated with it, the leaders presented their offerings over the course of 12 days. The offerings consisted of 12 oxen divided among the Gershonites and Merarites, but the Kohathites didn’t receive any oxen because their responsibility was to carry the holy things.
There are several lessons from Parasha Nasso that we can apply to our lives. First, there’s always a price to pay for sin. In this passage, we see that a person could suffer physically, financially and socially due to their sins. Whether it’s harming another person through adultery or some other sinful behavior, violating God’s standards eventually leads to pain and suffering. Furthermore, trying to hide our sins is futile. Even if there’s no one around when we sin, God sees it, and we are ultimately accountable to Him.
If we see the consequences of sin and decide it’s better to live in holiness and obedience to God, just remember: it isn’t always an easy process. An innocent wife had to drink bitter water to show that she hadn’t committed adultery against her suspicious husband, who had to present an offering to the priest before his suspicions were confirmed or rejected.
Those under Nazirite vows needed to watch how they looked, and were restricted in what they ate and with whom they interacted. This vow was not to be entered into frivolously because of the considerable demands of keeping it, as well as the high regard this vow had in Israeli society.
A Nazirite went above and beyond what was expected from the Jewish people when taking that vow. But Messiah Yeshua made the supreme sacrifice in coming to Earth to suffer and die for us. Yeshua was completely dedicated to Adonai’s will, and presents the greatest example of living in obedience to God. His perfect life and atoning death has made it possible for us to be reconciled to God. And since Messiah has risen from the dead and is seated at the right hand of God, we can be confident that we can live forever with God because we are His followers!
What we say and do in this life can have eternal consequences, so let’s make sure we are living in obedience to God’s commandments by loyally following Yeshua as Lord and Savior!