Numbers 6:20 (LSB)

Passage

Then the priest shall wave them for a wave offering before Yahweh. It is holy for the priest, together with the breast offered by waving and the thigh offered by raising up; and afterward the Nazirite may drink wine.’

Nearby Context

Numbers 6:18 The Nazirite shall then shave the head of hair for his Nazirite vow at the doorway of the tent of meeting and take the hair of his head of his Nazirite vow and put it on the fire which is under the sacrifice of peace offerings.

Numbers 6:19 And the priest shall take the ram’s shoulder when it has been boiled, and one unleavened cake out of the basket and one unleavened wafer, and shall put them on the hands of the Nazirite after he has shaved the hair of his Nazirite vow.

Numbers 6:20 Then the priest shall wave them for a wave offering before Yahweh. It is holy for the priest, together with the breast offered by waving and the thigh offered by raising up; and afterward the Nazirite may drink wine.’

Numbers 6:21 “This is the law of the Nazirite who vows his offering to Yahweh according to his Nazirite vow, in addition to what else he can afford; according to his vow which he takes, so he shall do according to the law of his Nazirite vow.”

Numbers 6:22 Then Yahweh spoke to Moses, saying,

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "priest", "shall", "wave", "offering", "before", "yahweh", and "holy". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "priest" and "shall", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 19's "And the priest shall take the ram..." into verse 21's "This is the law of the Nazirite...", so "priest" and "shall" belong inside that flow. In Numbers context, the local focus is covenant, worship, and faithfulness.

A plain takeaway is to answer the verse's own emphasis on "priest" and "shall" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.