Numbers 6:19

Old Testament Law (Torah) ASV (1901)

What does Numbers 6:19 say?

The American Standard Version records this verse as: “And the priest shall take the boiled shoulder of the ram, and one unleavened cake out of the basket, and one unleavened wafer, and shall put them upon the hands of the Nazirite, after he hath shaven [the head of] his separation;” Read the surrounding verses and the named sources below before drawing broader conclusions.

The verse

And the priest shall take the boiled shoulder of the ram, and one unleavened cake out of the basket, and one unleavened wafer, and shall put them upon the hands of the Nazirite, after he hath shaven [the head of] his separation;
Numbers 6:19 — American Standard Version

Context — Numbers 6

American Standard Version (1901) — public domain. Click any verse for its study page.
19And the priest shall take the boiled shoulder of the ram, and one unleavened cake out of the basket, and one unleavened wafer, and shall put them upon the hands of the Nazirite, after he hath shaven [the head of] his separation;

What do historical commentaries say?

John Gill's Exposition
John Gill (1697–1771) · Exposition of the Old and New Testament · 18th-century historical commentary
“And the priest shall take the sodden shoulder of the ram, etc.] The left shoulder, for the right shoulder, which is the heave shoulder of every peace offering, belonged to the priest by another law; and by this law of the Nazarite, he had also the other shoulder, and so had both, which was peculiar to this case; the vow of the Nazarite being a very sacred thing and he being enabled to perform it, a greater expression of gratitude for it was expected and required of him: this shoulder was taken out of the pot in which it was boiled: and one unleavened cake out of the basket, and one unleavened wafer; one of the ten cakes, and one of the ten wafers, both are mentioned; and which appear by this…”
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Barnes' Notes
Albert Barnes (1798–1870) · Notes on the Whole Bible · 19th-century historical commentary
“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…”
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Wesley's Explanatory Notes
John Wesley (1703–1791) · Explanatory Notes upon the New Testament and Old Testament notes · 18th-century historical commentary
“The shoulder - The left - shoulder, as it appears from Num 6:20, where this is joined with the heave - shoulder, which was the right - shoulder, and which was the priests due in all sacrifices, Lev 7:32, and in this also. But here the other shoulder was added to it, as a special token of thankfulness from the Nazarites for God's singular favours vouchsafed unto them. The hands - That he may give them to the priest, as his peculiar gift. Numbers 6:20”
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Treasury of Scriptural Knowledge
R. A. Torrey and contributors · The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge · Cross-reference reference work
“the sodden: Lev 8:31; Sa1 2:15 put them: Exo 29:23-28; Lev 7:30, Lev 8:27 Numbers 6:20”
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Related study paths

Sources and verification