The Preacher's Bible

The children of Israel again did that which was evil in Jehovah’s sight; and Jehovah delivered them into the hand of the Philistines forty years. ²There was a certain man of Zorah, of the family of the Danites, whose name was Manoah; and his wife was barren, and childless. ³Jehovah’s angel appeared to the woman, and said to her, “See now, you are barren and childless; but you shall conceive and bear a son. ⁴Now therefore please beware and drink no wine nor strong drink, and don’t eat any unclean thing; ⁵for, behold, you shall conceive and give birth to a son. No razor shall come on his head, for the child shall be a Nazirite to God from the womb. He shall begin to save Israel out of the hand of the Philistines.”

⁶Then the woman came and told her husband, saying, “A man of God came to me, and his face was like the face of the angel of God, very awesome. I didn’t ask him where he was from, neither did he tell me his name; ⁷but he said to me, ‘Behold, you shall conceive and bear a son; and now drink no wine nor strong drink. Don’t eat any unclean thing, for the child shall be a Nazirite to God from the womb to the day of his death.’”

⁸Then Manoah entreated Jehovah, and said, “Oh, Lord, please let the man of God whom you sent come again to us, and teach us what we should do to the child who shall be born.”

⁹God listened to the voice of Manoah, and the angel of God came again to the woman as she sat in the field; but Manoah, her husband, wasn’t with her. ¹⁰The woman hurried and ran, and told her husband, saying to him, “Behold, the man who came to me that day has appeared to me.”

¹¹Manoah arose and followed his wife, and came to the man, and said to him, “Are you the man who spoke to my wife?” He said, “I am.”

¹³Jehovah’s angel said to Manoah, “Of all that I said to the woman let her beware. ¹⁴She may not eat of anything that comes of the vine, neither let her drink wine or strong drink, nor eat any unclean thing. Let her observe all that I commanded her.”

¹⁵Manoah said to Jehovah’s angel, “Please stay with us, that we may make a young goat ready for you.”

¹⁶Jehovah’s angel said to Manoah, “Though you detain me, I won’t eat your bread. If you will prepare a burnt offering, you must offer it to Jehovah.” For Manoah didn’t know that he was Jehovah’s angel.

¹⁷Manoah said to Jehovah’s angel, “What is your name, that when your words happen, we may honor you?”

¹⁸Jehovah’s angel said to him, “Why do you ask about my name, since it is incomprehensible?”

¹⁹So Manoah took the young goat with the meal offering, and offered it on the rock to Jehovah. Then the angel did an amazing thing as Manoah and his wife watched. ²⁰For when the flame went up toward the sky from off the altar, Jehovah’s angel ascended in the flame of the altar. Manoah and his wife watched; and they fell on their faces to the ground. ²¹But Jehovah’s angel didn’t appear to Manoah or to his wife any more. Then Manoah knew that he was Jehovah’s angel. ²²Manoah said to his wife, “We shall surely die, because we have seen God.”

²³But his wife said to him, “If Jehovah were pleased to kill us, he wouldn’t have received a burnt offering and a meal offering at our hand, and he wouldn’t have shown us all these things, nor would he have told us such things as these at this time.” ²⁴The woman bore a son and named him Samson. The child grew, and Jehovah blessed him. ²⁵Jehovah’s Spirit began to move him in Mahaneh Dan, between Zorah and Eshtaol.