Naso (Lift)
(Sefer Bamidbar) Numbers 4:21 – 7:89

6:2- “Speak unto the children of Yisrael, and say unto them, When either man or woman shall separate
themselves to vow a vow of a Nazarite, to separate themselves unto YHVH:
3- He shall separate himself from wine and strong drink, and shall drink no vinegar of wine, or vinegar of strong drink, neither shall he drink any liquor of grapes, nor eat moist grapes, or dried.
4- All the days of his separation shall he eat nothing that is made of the vine tree, from the kernels even to the husk.
5- All the days of the vow of his separation there shall no razor come upon his head: until the days be fulfilled, in the which he separates himself unto YHVH, he shall be holy, and shall let the locks of the hair of his head grow.
6- All the days that he separates himself unto YHVH he shall come at no dead body.
7- He shall not make himself unclean for his father, or for his mother, for his brother, or for his sister, when they die: because the consecration of his Elohim is upon his head.
8- All the days of his separation he is holy unto YHVH.
9- And if any man die very suddenly by him, and he has 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.
22- And YHVH spoke unto Moshe, saying,
23- Speak unto Aharon and unto his sons, saying, On this wise ye shall bless the children of Yisrael, saying unto them,
24- YHVH bless thee, and keep thee:
25- YHVH make His face shine upon thee, and be gracious unto thee:
26- YHVH lift up His countenance upon thee, and give thee peace.
27- And they shall put My name upon the children of Yisrael; and I will bless them.
7:1- And it came to pass on the day that Moshe finished the tabernacle, and anointed it, and sanctified it and all the vessels, both the altar and all the vessels and had anointed them, and sanctified them;
2- That the princes of Yisrael, heads of the house of their fathers, who were the princes of the tribes, and were over them that were numbered, offered:
11- And YHVH said to Moshe, They shall offer their offering, each prince on his day, for the dedicating of the altar.
88- And all the cattle for the sacrifice of the peace offerings were twenty-four bulls, sixty rams, sixty he
goats sixty, sixty lambs of the first year. This was the dedication of the altar, after it was anointed.
89- And when Moshe was gone into the tent of meeting to speak with him, then he heard the voice of
One speaking unto him from above the cover that was upon the ark of testimony, from between the
two keruvim: and He spoke unto him.”

“If iniquity be in thine hand, put it far away, and let not wickedness dwell in thy tabernacles.
For then shall thou lift up thy face without spot; and thou shall be steadfast and not fear.”
(Job 11:14-15)

“Sorrow is better than laughter: for by the sadness of the countenance the heart is made better.”
(Ecclesiastes 7:3)

“But know that YHVH has set apart him that is pious for himself: YHVH will hear when I call to
him. Stand in awe and sin not: commune with your own heart upon your bed, and be still. Selah.”
(Psalms 4:3-4)

“Thou shall pray unto him, and he shall hear thee, and thou shall pay thy vows. Thou shall also
decree a thing, and it shall be established unto thee: and the light shall shine upon thy ways.” (Job 22:27-28)
“O my dove, that art in the clefts of the rock, in the secret places of the stairs, let me see thy
countenance, let me hear thy voice; for sweet is thy voice, and thy countenance is comely.”
(Song of Songs 2:14)

“For righteous is YHVH; He loves righteousness; his countenance beholds the upright.”
(Psalms 11:7)

“Now therefore, O our Elohim, hear the prayer of thy servant, and his supplications, and cause thy
face to shine upon thy sanctuary that is desolate, for YHVH’s sake.”
(Daniel 9:17)

Naso Summary:
1. Radiating His Countenance through Consecration:
As one of Torah’s beautiful orderings, the rules of the Nazarite vow are immediately succeeded by the wondrously shining words of the Aharonic Benediction. To understand this profound connection, one most go beyond the Haphtarah’s introduction into the life of Shimshon and His awesome Nazarite strength and rather, reflect upon the testimony of the prophet Daniel. Though no overt reference is ever made to such a vow, the choice of self-abnegation to insure non-compromise took the exiled Hebrew from glory to glory. In Sefer Daniel, chapter One, the denial of earthly appetites is quickly rewarded:

“But Daniel purposed in his heart that he would not defile himself with the portion of the king's
meat, nor with the wine which he drank: therefore he requested of the prince of the eunuchs that
he might not defile himself.” (v.8)

“And at the end of ten days their countenances appeared fairer and stouter in flesh than all the
children which did eat the portion of the king's meat.” (v.15)

“As for these four children, Elohim gave them knowledge and skill in all learning and wisdom:
and Daniel had understanding in all visions and dreams.” (v.17)

The correlation between sacrificing carnal pleasures in preference to spiritual blessings is clear: Vows for a greater consecration (which are kept!) will be honored by Hashem. Amid that darkened day when Yermiyahu roamed the streets of a bruised Yerushalayim, the glory of Yisrael’s consecrated ones, with their shining countenances, remained blazingly etched as with a solar gaze, as Lamentations 4:7 recalls:
“Her Nazarites were purer than snow, they were whiter than milk, they were more ruddy in body
than rubies, their polishing was of sapphire.”

2. Making Light of Nazarite Zeal and Those Desiring More:
Alongside a generation that presumptively casts off restraint, banking on an endless entitlement of Elohim’s eradicative mercies, is an insidious attempt to extinguish the effort of another’s consecration. Concealed in an attempt to “liberate” souls who voluntarily suspend certain passing pleasures, such seducers minimize the resolve of those who earnestly seek the higher ground. Rejecting the need for a greater sanctification, these restless reprobates resist the Heavenly invite; to this, Proverbs 30:12 warns:
“There is a generation that are pure in their own eyes, and yet is not washed from their filthiness.”
Indeed, this would explain the flagrantly malevolent behavior against the righteous of Yisrael in a time when the words of Amos 2:12 confronted the scornful condition of the people, as it is written:
“But ye gave the Nazarites wine to drink; and commanded the prophets, saying, Prophesy not.”
Oblivious to the glory that is in the face of the holy path, this unbelieving class of men recklessly aim their firebrands of frivolity and complacency against the mourners in Tzion, as Proverbs 30:14 relates:
“There is a generation, whose teeth are as swords, and their jaw teeth as knives, to devour the poor
from off the earth, and the needy from among men.”
How shall we then act? By what spirit shall we speak? May our words and deeds precipitate out of Heaven. As refreshing dew awakens us out of slumber, Torah admonishes the ‘sufficiently’ acute to pursue the path of mercy as Leviticus 19:14 emphatically cautions us to watch out, as it warns:
“Thou shall not curse the deaf nor put a stumblingblock before the blind, but shall fear thy Elohim...”
And, it is Isaiah 42:19 which sheds light, eliminating any callous oblivion toward the those set apart:
“Who is blind, but My servant? Or deaf, as My messenger that I sent? Who is blind as he
that is perfect, and blind as YHVH 's servant?”