Imamat 21:5

21:5 Priests ¹  must not have a bald spot shaved on their head, they must not shave the corner of their beard, and they must not cut slashes in their body. ² 

Bilangan 6:5

6:5 “‘All the days of the vow ³  of his separation no razor may be used on his head ⁴  until the time ⁵  is fulfilled for which he separated himself to the Lord. He will be holy, ⁶  and he must let ⁷  the locks of hair on his head grow long.

[21:5]  ¹ tn Heb “they”; the referent (priests, see the beginning of v. 1) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[21:5]  ² tn Heb “and in their body they shall not [cut] slash[es]” (cf. Lev 19:28). The context connects these sorts of mutilations with mourning rites (cf. Lev 19:27-28 above).

[6:5]  ³ tc The parallel expression in v. 8 (“all the days of his separation”) lacks the word “vow.” This word is also absent in v. 5 in a few medieval Hebrew manuscripts. The presence of the word in v. 5 may be due to dittography.

[6:5]  ⁴ sn There is an interesting parallel between this prohibition and the planting of trees. They could not be pruned or trimmed for three years, but allowed to grow free (Lev 20:23). Only then could the tree be cut and the fruit eaten. The natural condition was to be a sign that it was the Lord’s. It was to be undisturbed by humans. Since the Nazirite was to be consecrated to the Lord, that meant his whole person, hair included. In the pagan world the trimming of the beard and the cutting of the hair was often a sign of devotion to some deity.

[6:5]  ⁵ tn Heb “days.”

[6:5]  ⁶ tn The word “holy” here has the sense of distinct, different, set apart.

[6:5]  ⁷ tn The Piel infinitive absolute functions as a verb in this passage; the Piel carries the sense of “grow lengthy” or “let grow long.”