Ⅰ
Samuel was of the tribe of Levi (1 Chron. 6:33-38) but was not of the house of Aaron, the family of the priests ordained by God; Samuel ministered to the Lord as one who was a priest not by birth but by the Nazarite vow:
A
God's move with His answer to Hannah's prayer was to produce an overcoming Nazarite who was absolute for the fulfilling of God's desire; even before he was born, Samuel was consecrated by his mother to be such a person—1 Sam. 1:10-11, 18-20.
B
God desires that all His people be Nazarites; to be a Nazarite is to be sanctified, separated, absolutely and ultimately to God, that is, to be for nothing other than God and for nothing other than His satisfaction—the testimony of Jesus, which is the testifying church as the testimony and the expression of Christ—Num. 6:1-2; Psa. 73:25-26; Rev. 1:2, 9-13; 19:10; cf. Exo. 38:21:
１
For a Nazarite to abstain from wine and anything related to its source signifies abstaining from all kinds of earthly enjoyment and pleasure and taking and experiencing Christ as his enjoyment and pleasure; eating the tree of life, that is, enjoying Christ as our life supply, should be the primary matter in the church life—Num. 6:3-4; Rev. 2:7; Judg. 9:12-13.
２
For a Nazarite to not shave his head signifies not rejecting but being absolutely subject to the headship of the Lord as well as to all deputy authorities appointed by God—Num. 6:5; Rom. 13:1-2a; Eph. 5:21, 23; 6:1; Heb. 13:17; 1 Pet. 5:5.
３
For a Nazarite to not be defiled by the death of his blood relatives, but remain in his separation to be holy to God, signifies that a Nazarite overcomes natural affection—Num. 6:7.
４
For a Nazarite to not come near a dead person or to not be defiled by the sudden death of one beside him signifies that a Nazarite is separated from death—vv. 6-9; Rev. 3:4; Lev. 11:31; 5:2; cf. 1 John 5:16.
Ⅱ
At the time of Samuel, the priesthood of the house of Aaron was utterly fallen; God, however, foresaw the situation; besides His ordaining the house of Aaron to be the priests, He made a supplement—the Nazarite vow in Numbers 6—in case there should be an inadequacy in the ordained priests:
A
When the house of Aaron fell, this supplement was put into practical use; Samuel became a priest by being consecrated, separated, and lent to the Lord—1 Sam. 1:11, 27-28.
B
At the time of Eli, God was poor as far as the priesthood was concerned, so Hannah lent Samuel to the Lord; when the situation is abnormal, the Lord becomes poor with respect to His administration, and there is the need for someone to voluntarily lend himself to the Lord.
C
After she presented Samuel to Eli, Hannah praised God for His salvation accomplished through His marvelous deeds; her prayer was related to God's move in His economy and indicated that she realized something concerning God's economy—2:1-10.
Morning Nourishment
1 Sam. 1:11 …I will give him to Jehovah for all the days of his life, and no razor will come upon his head.27-28 It was for this child that I prayed, and Jehovah has granted me my request that I requested from Him. Therefore I, for my part, have lent him to Jehovah; all the days that he lives, he is lent to Jehovah…
God’s move with His answer to Hannah’s prayer was to produce a Nazarite who was absolute for the fulfilling of His desire. A Nazarite is one who is consecrated to God absolutely. A Nazarite could never cut his hair or drink wine. In the Bible, long hair signifies the headship, the authority. A Nazarite’s keeping his hair long was a sign that just as a female takes her husband as her head, he takes God as the Head, considering God his Husband. Thus, a Nazarite is one who submits himself to God, taking God as the Head, the authority. This is why Hannah prayed that if the Lord would give her a boy, no razor would come upon his head (1 Sam. 1:11). In the Bible, to drink wine is to enjoy the worldly pleasures. A Nazarite…has no interest in the enjoyment of worldly pleasures. Even before he was born, Samuel was consecrated by his mother to be such a person. This is a great thing, for it was Samuel who brought in a new age. (Life-study of 1 & 2 Samuel, p. 12)
Today’s Reading
In his youth, perhaps at the age of two or three, Samuel was offered to Jehovah by his mother to fulfill her vow to God (1 Sam. 1:21-28, 11). In 2:1-10 we have the offering mother’s prayer. In her prayer she praised God for His salvation through His marvelous deeds. Her prayer was related to God’s move in His economy and indicated that she realized something concerning God’s economy. (Life-study of 1 & 2 Samuel, p. 13)The Lord had given Moses a supplement in Numbers 6. This…was His special provision against the degradation of the priesthood. The Lord had appointed and ordained only the house of Aaron, of the tribe of Levi, to be the priests. The rest of the Levites who served in the tabernacle were not the priests.
God’s intention had been to make the whole nation of Israel a kingdom of priests; however, through Israel’s failure, the Lord chose the Levites as a tribe of priests to replace a nation of priests in Israel. But not all of the tribe of Levi were chosen by the Lord. Only those of the house of Aaron were to be the priests. But the house of Aaron eventually came to the point of being fully and utterly fallen at the time of Eli’s sons (1 Sam. 2:12-17). However, the Lord foresaw the situation. Besides His ordination of the house of Aaron as priests, He had made a supplement in Numbers 6. This supplement was given in case there should be an inadequacy in the ordained priests. When the house of Aaron fell, this supplement was put into practical use.
The principle of the Nazarite is voluntary consecration. It is not by being appointed, ordained, or even chosen by the Lord, but by voluntarily consecrating yourself to Him. At the time of Eli, the Lord was really poor as far as the priesthood was concerned; so Hannah lent Samuel to the Lord. She told the Lord that if He would give her a son, then she would lend him to the Lord…. When the situation is abnormal, the Lord becomes poor with respect to His administration, and there is the need for someone to voluntarily lend himself to the Lord. Samuel was of the tribe of Levi (1 Chron. 6:33-38), of Mount Ephraim (1 Sam. 1:1-2). He was not of the house of Aaron. But he became a priest by being consecrated, separated, and lent to God. Samuel became a priest by coming through the side door, not by coming through the main entrance. He became a priest according to the supplement provided in Numbers 6, not according to an appointment or ordination. By the principle of the Nazarite he became a voluntarily consecrated person to replace the ordained priest. (Truth Lessons—Level One, vol. 1, pp. 122-123)
Further Reading: Truth Lessons—Level One, vol. 1, lsn. 10