Thank you for the question, “Why was Samson called a Nazarene?”
Samson was a Nazirite, not a Nazarene. The difference is that a Nazirite is a certain procedure that an Israelite follows as a vow or service to God while a Nazarene is a city of whom a person is born in or associate with.
Judges 13 says this of Samson being a Nazirite, “A certain man of Zorah, named Manoah, from the clan of the Danites, had a wife who was childless, unable to give birth. 3 The angel of the LORD appeared to her and said, “You are barren and childless, but you are going to become pregnant and give birth to a son. 4 Now see to it that you drink no wine or other fermented drink and that you do not eat anything unclean. 5 You will become pregnant and have a son whose head is never to be touched by a razor because the boy is to be a Nazirite, dedicated to God from the womb. He will take the lead in delivering Israel from the hands of the Philistines.” (NIV).
As one reads the passage, an angel charged to Samson’s mother she will have a son. He is never to have a razor on his heard because he will be dedicated to God from her womb in starting to free the Israelites from the Philistines.
The ritual of Nazirite is listed in Numbers 6:1–21. The text says this, “1 The LORD said to Moses, 2 “Speak to the Israelites and say to them: ‘If a man or woman wants to make a special vow, a vow of dedication to the LORD as a Nazirite, 3 they must abstain from wine and other fermented drink and must not drink vinegar made from wine or other fermented drink. They must not drink grape juice or eat grapes or raisins. 4 As long as they remain under their Nazirite vow, they must not eat anything that comes from the grapevine, not even the seeds or skins. 5 “ ‘During the entire period of their Nazirite vow, no razor may be used on their head. They must be holy until the period of their dedication to the LORD is over; they must let their hair grow long…21 “ ‘This is the law of the Nazirite who vows offerings to the LORD in accordance with their dedication, in addition to whatever else they can afford. They must fulfill the vows they have made, according to the law of the Nazirite.’ ”(N(V).
In the case of Samson, his parents were to dedicate him to the LORD. Normally the Nazirite vow is for a duration of time but for Samson it was to be for his life. The Israelites would know that a person is under a Nazirite vow because that person would not cut his hair or eat/drink anything from the grapevine.
SUMMARY: Samson was a Nazirite, not a Nazarene.
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