(1) יהוה spoke to Moses, saying: (2) Speak to the Israelites and say to them: If any men or women explicitly utter a nazirite’s vow, to set themselves apart for יהוה, (3) they shall abstain from wine and any other intoxicant; they shall not drink vinegar of wine or of any other intoxicant, neither shall they drink anything in which grapes have been steeped, nor eat grapes fresh or dried. (4) Throughout their term as nazirite, they may not eat anything that is obtained from the grapevine, even seeds or skin. (5) Throughout the term of their vow as nazirite, no razor shall touch their head; it shall remain consecrated until the completion of their term as nazirite of יהוה, the hair of their head being left to grow untrimmed. (6) Throughout the term that they have set apart for יהוה, they shall not go in where there is a dead person. (7) Even if their father or mother, or their brother or sister should die, they must not become defiled for any of them, since hair set apart for their God is upon their head: (8) throughout their term as nazirite they are consecrated to יהוה.

(13) This is the ritual for the nazirite: On the day that the term as nazirite is completed, the person shall be brought to the entrance of the Tent of Meeting. (14) As an offering to יהוה that person shall present: one male lamb in its first year, without blemish, for a burnt offering; one ewe lamb in its first year, without blemish, for a sin offering; one ram without blemish for an offering of well-being; (15) a basket of unleavened cakes of choice flour with oil mixed in, and unleavened wafers spread with oil; and the proper meal offerings and libations. (16) The priest shall present them before יהוה and offer the sin offering and the burnt offering. (17) He shall offer the ram as a sacrifice of well-being to יהוה, together with the basket of unleavened cakes; the priest shall also offer the meal offerings and the libations. (18) The nazirite shall then shave the consecrated hair, at the entrance of the Tent of Meeting, and take those locks of consecrated hair and put them on the fire that is under the sacrifice of well-being. (19) The priest shall take the shoulder of the ram when it has been boiled, one unleavened cake from the basket, and one unleavened wafer, and place them on the hands of the nazirite after the consecrated hair has been shaved. (20) The priest shall elevate them as an elevation offering before יהוה; and this shall be a sacred donation for the priest, in addition to the breast of the elevation offering and the thigh of gift offering. After that the nazirite may drink wine. (21) Such is the obligation of a nazirite; except that those who vow an offering to יהוה of what they can afford, beyond their nazirite requirements, must do exactly according to the vow that they have made beyond their obligation as nazirites.

(10) The priest who is exalted above his fellows, on whose head the anointing oil has been poured and who has been ordained to wear the vestments, shall not bare his head or rend his vestments. (11) He shall not go in where there is any dead body; he shall not defile himself even for his father or mother.

FOR HIS FATHER, OR FOR HIS MOTHER. And certainly not for his wife, his daughter, and others. Some say that the word nazir (Nazirite) is related to the word nezer (crown). Because his consecration (nezer) unto God is upon his head is proof of this. This interpretation is not farfetched. Note that most people are slaves to worldly lusts. The true king, the one who has a crown, the one who wears the royal diadem, is the person who is free from this lust.

כי יפלא means, IF HE CLEARLY UTTERS (cf. Rashi on Leviticus 22:21 and Note thereon). — Why is the section dealing with the Nazarite placed in juxtaposition to the section dealing with the סוטה? To tell you that he who has once seen a סוטה in her disgrace should abstain from wine, because it may lead to adultery (Sotah 2a).

(20) They shall neither shave their heads nor let their hair go untrimmed; they shall keep their hair trimmed.

(talking about the priests)

Dr Richard Lederman:

The Priestly legislation in Numbers incorporates the nazirite into the priestly landscape, but neutralizes them. While nazirites take an oath to dedicate themselves to YHWH, they do not have any responsibilities or privileges in the official cult. In the Torah, the service of YHWH is exclusively the realm of the kohanim from the family of Aaron, assisted by members of the tribe of Levi. The nazirites play no role, thus even women can be nazirites.[19]Moreover, the nazirite’s status is controlled by the priests. While the nazirite’s entry point is merely a vow, the exit is controlled by sacrificial offerings at the altar, which is brought by the priests. So too, if the holy hair becomes impure, the nazirite must undergo the purification process supervised by the priests, and must bring an offering to the Temple.The hair, once the sign of the freedom of nazirites from social bonds becomes a sign of their subservience to the priests.[20] As Susan Niditch of Amherst College writes, the naziris “in a perpetual state of priestly-style cleanness and holiness, as if he were about to enter the sacred locus.”[21] As the Priestly authors did with other subjects, such as divination,[22] rather than fighting against a religious institution that went against their sensibilities, they domesticated it.

A person might say, "Since envy, desire, [the pursuit] of honor, and the like, are a wrong path and drive a person from the world, I shall separate from them to a very great degree and move away from them to the opposite extreme." For example, he will not eat meat, nor drink wine, nor live in a pleasant home, nor wear fine clothing, but, rather, [wear] sackcloth and coarse wool and the like - just as the pagan priests do.This, too, is a bad path and it is forbidden to walk upon it. Whoever follows this path is called a sinner [as implied by Numbers 6:11's] statement concerning a nazarite: "and he [the priest] shall make an atonement for him, for his having sinned regarding [his] soul." Our sages declared: If the nazarite who abstained only from wine requires atonement, how much more so does one who abstains from everything. Therefore, our Sages directed man to abstain only from those things which the Torah denies him and not to forbid himself permitted things by vows and oaths [of abstention]. Thus, our Sages stated: Are not those things which the Torah has prohibited sufficient for you that you must forbid additional things to yourself?This general statement also refers to those who fast constantly. They are not following a good path, [for] our Sages have forbidden a man to mortify himself by fasting. Of all the above, and their like, Solomon directed and said: "Do not be overly righteous and do not be overly clever; why make yourself desolate?" (Ecclesiastes 7:16).

A person should direct his heart and the totality of his behavior to one goal, becoming aware of God, blessed be He. The [way] he rests, rises, and speaks should all be directed to this end.For example: when involved in business dealings or while working for a wage, he should not think solely of gathering money. Rather, he should do these things, so that he will be able to obtain that which the body needs - food, drink, a home and a wife.Similarly, when he eats, drinks and engages in intimate relations, he should not intend to do these things solely for pleasure to the point where he will eat and drink only that which is sweet to the palate and engage in intercourse for pleasure. Rather, he should take care to eat and drink only in order to be healthy in body and limb.Therefore, he should not eat all that the palate desires like a dog or a donkey. Rather, he should eat what is beneficial for the body, be it bitter or sweet. Conversely, he should not eat what is harmful to the body, even though it is sweet to the palate. For example: a person with a warm constitution should not eat meat or honey, nor drink wine, as Solomon has stated in a parable: The eating of much honey is not good (Proverbs 25:27). One should drink endive juice, even though it is bitter, for then, he will be eating and drinking for medical reasons only, in order to become healthy and be whole - for a man cannot exist without eating and drinking.Similarly, he should not have intercourse except to keep his body healthy and to preserve the [human] race. Therefore, he should not engage in intercourse whenever he feels desire, but when he knows that he requires a seminal emission for medical reasons or in order to preserve the [human] race.

THIS IS THE LAW OF THE NAZIRITE WHO VOWETH HIS OFFERING UNTO THE ETERNAL FOR HIS NAZIRITEHOOD, BESIDES THAT WHICH HIS MEANS SUFFICE. The correct meaning of the verse is as if it had said: “This is the law of the Nazirite who voweth a vow of the Nazirite; his offering unto the Eternal for his Naziritehood shall be besides that which his means suffice.” Or it may mean: “This is the law of the Nazirite, and this is the law of his offering unto the Eternal for his Naziritehood.” It is possible that He is saying: “This is the law of the Nazirite, that he vow his offering unto the Eternal for his Naziritehood,” meaning to say that he should not specify a particular animal as an offering, but should vow: “I shall bring an offering for my Naziritehood,” or he should simply say: “I am a Nazirite,” for as soon as he vowed to be a Nazirite, it is [already] binding upon him as a vow [to bring] the offering mentioned [in the Torah]. He reverts and states, besides that which his means suffice, [meaning to say] that if he is rich he may [voluntarily] increase his offerings [i.e., the burnt-offerings and peace-offerings, as will be explained, but not the sin-offering]; and according to his vow which he voweth concerning these offerings, whether [he is] rich or poor, so he must do after the law of his Naziriteship — so that he may bring more, but not less [than what Scripture prescribes for him to bring]. He mentioned this in order to teach us that if the Nazirite was rich and wants to bring several offerings, or if he vowed at the beginning: “I am a Nazirite and I shall bring a thousand burnt-offerings and peace-offerings,” then he must bring them all on the day of completion [of his time as a Nazirite], and he may not drink wine until he has offered them all up, for they all constitute the law of his Naziriteship. It is possible that [the latter half of the verse means]: “besides that for which his means suffice so must he do according to his vow which he voweth.” This He mentioned because it is usually the rich who vow in this way.

(6) In all your ways acknowledge Him, And He will make your paths smooth.

Maimonides uses this to illustrate that even ordinary acts contain the seeds of holiness.