The question was raised in another thread as to whether or not Jesus ever took a Nazarite vow. In studying the issue I had determined that He did not. In fact, until it was mentioned here on the forum I had never heard such an idea. Jesus was from Nazareth, hence the reference to Him as a Nazarene (this is what everyone from Nazareth was called). But the Bible never tells us that He took a Nazarite vow.
So where does the idea come from, that Jesus might have taken such a vow?
The verses that are used to make such a claim are the verses where Jesus, while observing the Passover with His disciples and instituting the Lord's Supper, says that He will no longer drink of the cup until He does so in the kingdom. Here are the verses:
[b:981bd66534]Matthew 26[/b:981bd66534]
26 And as they were eating, Jesus took bread, blessed and broke it, and gave it to the disciples and said, "Take, eat; this is My body." 27Then He took the cup, and gave thanks, and gave it to them, saying, "Drink from it, all of you. 28For this is My blood of the new covenant, which is shed for many for the remission of sins. 29[u:981bd66534]But I say to you, I will not drink of this fruit of the vine from now on until that day when I drink it new with you in My Father's kingdom[/u:981bd66534]." 30And when they had sung a hymn, they went out to the Mount of Olives.
[b:981bd66534]Mark 14[/b:981bd66534]
22 And as they were eating, Jesus took bread, blessed and broke it, and gave it to them and said, "Take, eat; this is My body." 23Then He took the cup, and when He had given thanks He gave it to them, and they all drank from it. 24And He said to them, "This is My blood of the new covenant, which is shed for many. 25[u:981bd66534]Assuredly, I say to you, I will no longer drink of the fruit of the vine until that day when I drink it new in the kingdom of God[/u:981bd66534]." 26And when they had sung a hymn, they went out to the Mount of Olives.
[b:981bd66534]Luke 22[/b:981bd66534]
14 When the hour had come, He sat down, and the twelve apostles with Him. 15Then He said to them, "With fervent desire I have desired to eat this Passover with you before I suffer; 16[u:981bd66534]for I say to you, I will no longer eat of it until it is fulfilled in the kingdom of God[/u:981bd66534]." 17Then He took the cup, and gave thanks, and said, "Take this and divide it among yourselves; 18[u:981bd66534]for I say to you, I will not drink of the fruit of the vine until the kingdom of God comes[/u:981bd66534]."
Now then, it is further believed that Jesus refused to take the sour wine and myrrh while on the cross because of this vow (Matt 27:34; Mark 15:23). However, it is clear when we understand that myrrh was a narcotic mixed with any drink to be given to dull pain and extend the suffering of one on the cross that Jesus refused this not because it was wine, but because it was a pain killer and there is no releif from the wrath of God for the judgment of sin, which Jesus was bearing for us on the cross.
So the question that we need to ask is this:
Did Jesus mean that He had taken a Nazarite vow and would not drink any wine until the coming of the Kingdom? Or did He mean that He would not observe the Passover (as fulfilled in the Lord's Supper) and drink of the "cup" of that ordinance until the coming of the Kingdom?
Was His reference to the fruit of the vine a specific reference to all wine whatsoever, or was it a reference to the cup of the Supper, the cup of the new covenant in His shed blood?
I think that we can deduce clearly from Scripture that Jesus did NOT mean that He would not drink any wine whatsoever until the coming of the kingdom, but that instead He meant that He would not partake of the cup of the Supper until later.
How can I say this? Because if Jesus was really saying that He would not drink any wine at all again until the coming of the kingdom (His second coming at the marriage feast of the Lamb - Rev 19), then Jesus LIED to His disciples!
WHAT? How can I say sucj a thing? Jesus never lied. He is God. "God cannot lie" the Bible tells us.
So how is it that Jesus lied if He meant that He was taking a Nazarite vow and would never again drink anything from the fruit of the vine until His return?
Jesus was offered sour wine TWICE while on the cross. The first was mixed with gall, or myrrh, and was refused because it was a pain killer! The second time, He said on the cross, 'I thirst." And they brought Him sour wine and He drank it!!!
[b:981bd66534]John 19[/b:981bd66534]
28 After this, Jesus, knowing that all things were now accomplished, that the Scripture might be fulfilled (Psalm 69:21), said, "I thirst!" 29Now a vessel full of sour wine was sitting there; and they filled a sponge with sour wine, put it on hyssop, and put it to His mouth. 30[u:981bd66534]So when Jesus had received the sour wine[/u:981bd66534], He said, "It is finished!" And bowing His head, He gave up His spirit.
Psalm 69:21 also confirms that there were two instances at play here. The first, as prophesied, was the offering of a narcotic to deaden pain. The second was an offering of sour wine, old wine that had turned to vinegar. It was the fruit of the vine and Jesus received it!!
That means He could not have been saying that He would not drink the fruit of the vine until the coming of the kingdom, but that He meant that He would not participate in the Supper, in the cup of blessing, the cup of the new covenant in His shed blood, until all the elect have been gathered together for the marriage feast of the Lamb!
Jesus was not a Nazarite. He is looking to that day, as should we, when we will partake of this cup together! That cup has been made possible because Jesus bowed His will to the Father, and drank from teh cup of His wrath in our place. When Jesus does drink with us, it will be because He did exectly what He said He would do while praying in the garden....."let this cup pass from Me, nevertheless, not My will, but Thine."
He has exchanged the cup of wrath for the cup of blessing!!What a work He has done on our behalf to the glory of the Father.
Phillip
So where does the idea come from, that Jesus might have taken such a vow?
The verses that are used to make such a claim are the verses where Jesus, while observing the Passover with His disciples and instituting the Lord's Supper, says that He will no longer drink of the cup until He does so in the kingdom. Here are the verses:
[b:981bd66534]Matthew 26[/b:981bd66534]
26 And as they were eating, Jesus took bread, blessed and broke it, and gave it to the disciples and said, "Take, eat; this is My body." 27Then He took the cup, and gave thanks, and gave it to them, saying, "Drink from it, all of you. 28For this is My blood of the new covenant, which is shed for many for the remission of sins. 29[u:981bd66534]But I say to you, I will not drink of this fruit of the vine from now on until that day when I drink it new with you in My Father's kingdom[/u:981bd66534]." 30And when they had sung a hymn, they went out to the Mount of Olives.
[b:981bd66534]Mark 14[/b:981bd66534]
22 And as they were eating, Jesus took bread, blessed and broke it, and gave it to them and said, "Take, eat; this is My body." 23Then He took the cup, and when He had given thanks He gave it to them, and they all drank from it. 24And He said to them, "This is My blood of the new covenant, which is shed for many. 25[u:981bd66534]Assuredly, I say to you, I will no longer drink of the fruit of the vine until that day when I drink it new in the kingdom of God[/u:981bd66534]." 26And when they had sung a hymn, they went out to the Mount of Olives.
[b:981bd66534]Luke 22[/b:981bd66534]
14 When the hour had come, He sat down, and the twelve apostles with Him. 15Then He said to them, "With fervent desire I have desired to eat this Passover with you before I suffer; 16[u:981bd66534]for I say to you, I will no longer eat of it until it is fulfilled in the kingdom of God[/u:981bd66534]." 17Then He took the cup, and gave thanks, and said, "Take this and divide it among yourselves; 18[u:981bd66534]for I say to you, I will not drink of the fruit of the vine until the kingdom of God comes[/u:981bd66534]."
Now then, it is further believed that Jesus refused to take the sour wine and myrrh while on the cross because of this vow (Matt 27:34; Mark 15:23). However, it is clear when we understand that myrrh was a narcotic mixed with any drink to be given to dull pain and extend the suffering of one on the cross that Jesus refused this not because it was wine, but because it was a pain killer and there is no releif from the wrath of God for the judgment of sin, which Jesus was bearing for us on the cross.
So the question that we need to ask is this:
Did Jesus mean that He had taken a Nazarite vow and would not drink any wine until the coming of the Kingdom? Or did He mean that He would not observe the Passover (as fulfilled in the Lord's Supper) and drink of the "cup" of that ordinance until the coming of the Kingdom?
Was His reference to the fruit of the vine a specific reference to all wine whatsoever, or was it a reference to the cup of the Supper, the cup of the new covenant in His shed blood?
I think that we can deduce clearly from Scripture that Jesus did NOT mean that He would not drink any wine whatsoever until the coming of the kingdom, but that instead He meant that He would not partake of the cup of the Supper until later.
How can I say this? Because if Jesus was really saying that He would not drink any wine at all again until the coming of the kingdom (His second coming at the marriage feast of the Lamb - Rev 19), then Jesus LIED to His disciples!
WHAT? How can I say sucj a thing? Jesus never lied. He is God. "God cannot lie" the Bible tells us.
So how is it that Jesus lied if He meant that He was taking a Nazarite vow and would never again drink anything from the fruit of the vine until His return?
Jesus was offered sour wine TWICE while on the cross. The first was mixed with gall, or myrrh, and was refused because it was a pain killer! The second time, He said on the cross, 'I thirst." And they brought Him sour wine and He drank it!!!
[b:981bd66534]John 19[/b:981bd66534]
28 After this, Jesus, knowing that all things were now accomplished, that the Scripture might be fulfilled (Psalm 69:21), said, "I thirst!" 29Now a vessel full of sour wine was sitting there; and they filled a sponge with sour wine, put it on hyssop, and put it to His mouth. 30[u:981bd66534]So when Jesus had received the sour wine[/u:981bd66534], He said, "It is finished!" And bowing His head, He gave up His spirit.
Psalm 69:21 also confirms that there were two instances at play here. The first, as prophesied, was the offering of a narcotic to deaden pain. The second was an offering of sour wine, old wine that had turned to vinegar. It was the fruit of the vine and Jesus received it!!
That means He could not have been saying that He would not drink the fruit of the vine until the coming of the kingdom, but that He meant that He would not participate in the Supper, in the cup of blessing, the cup of the new covenant in His shed blood, until all the elect have been gathered together for the marriage feast of the Lamb!
Jesus was not a Nazarite. He is looking to that day, as should we, when we will partake of this cup together! That cup has been made possible because Jesus bowed His will to the Father, and drank from teh cup of His wrath in our place. When Jesus does drink with us, it will be because He did exectly what He said He would do while praying in the garden....."let this cup pass from Me, nevertheless, not My will, but Thine."
He has exchanged the cup of wrath for the cup of blessing!!What a work He has done on our behalf to the glory of the Father.
Phillip