Richter 13 | New International Reader’s Version

Samson is born

1 Once again the Israelites did what was evil in the sight of the LORD. So the LORD handed them over to the Philistines for 40 years. 2 A certain man from Zorah was named Manoah. He was from the tribe of Dan. Manoah had a wife who wasn’t able to have children. 3 The angel of the LORD appeared to Manoah’s wife. He said, ‘You are not able to have children. But you are going to become pregnant. You will have a baby boy. 4 Make sure you do not drink any kind of wine. Also make sure you do not eat anything that is “unclean”. 5 You will become pregnant. You will have a son. The hair on his head must never be cut. That is because the boy will be a Nazirite. He will be set apart to God from the day he is born. He will take the lead in saving Israel from the power of the Philistines.’ 6 Then the woman went to her husband. She told him, ‘A man of God came to me. He looked like an angel of God. His appearance was so amazing that it filled me with great wonder. I didn’t ask him where he came from. And he didn’t tell me his name. 7 But he said to me, “You will become pregnant. You will have a son. So do not drink any kind of wine. Do not eat anything that is ‘unclean’. That is because the boy will be a Nazirite. He will belong to God in a special way from the day he is born until the day he dies.” ’ 8 Then Manoah prayed to the LORD. He said, ‘Pardon your servant, Lord. I beg you to let the man of God you sent to us come again. He told us we would have a son. We want the man of God to teach us how to bring up the boy.’ 9 God heard Manoah. And the angel of God came again to the woman. He came while she was out in the field. But her husband Manoah wasn’t with her. 10 The woman hurried to her husband. She told him, ‘He’s here! The man who appeared to me the other day is here!’ 11 Manoah got up and followed his wife. When he came to the man, he spoke to him. He said, ‘Are you the man who talked to my wife?’ ‘I am’, he replied. 12 So Manoah asked him, ‘What will happen when your words come true? What rules should we follow for the boy’s life and work?’ 13 The angel of the LORD answered him. He said, ‘Your wife must do everything I have told her to do. 14 She must not eat anything that comes from grapevines. She must not drink any kind of wine. She must not eat anything that is “unclean”. She must do everything I have commanded her to do.’ 15 Manoah said to the angel of the LORD, ‘We would like you to stay and eat. We want to prepare a young goat for you.’ 16 The angel of the LORD replied, ‘Even if I stay, I will not eat any of your food. But if you still want to prepare a burnt offering, you must offer it to the LORD.’ Manoah didn’t realise it was the angel of the LORD. 17 Then Manoah asked the angel of the LORD a question. ‘What is your name?’ he said. ‘We want to honour you when your word comes true.’ 18 The angel replied, ‘Why are you asking me what my name is? You would not be able to understand it.’ 19 Manoah got a young goat. He brought it along with the grain offering. He sacrificed it on a rock to the LORD. Then the LORD did an amazing thing. It happened while Manoah and his wife were watching. 20 A flame blazed up from the altar towards heaven. The angel of the LORD rose up in the flame. When Manoah and his wife saw it, they fell with their faces to the ground. 21 The angel of the LORD didn’t show himself again to Manoah and his wife. Then Manoah realised it was the angel of the LORD. 22 ‘We’re going to die!’ he said to his wife. ‘We’ve seen God!’ 23 But his wife answered, ‘The LORD doesn’t want to kill us. If he did, he wouldn’t have accepted a burnt offering and a grain offering from us. He wouldn’t have shown us all these things. He wouldn’t have told us we’re going to have a son.’ 24 Later, the woman had a baby boy. She named him Samson. As he grew up, the LORD blessed him. 25 The Spirit of the LORD began to work in his life. It happened while he was in Mahaneh Dan. That place is between Zorah and Eshtaol.

English Standard Version

The Birth of Samson

1 And the people of Israel again did what was evil in the sight of the Lord, so the Lord gave them into the hand of the Philistines for forty years. 2 There was a certain man of Zorah, of the tribe of the Danites, whose name was Manoah. And his wife was barren and had no children. 3 And the angel of the Lord appeared to the woman and said to her, “Behold, you are barren and have not borne children, but you shall conceive and bear a son. 4 Therefore be careful and drink no wine or strong drink, and eat nothing unclean, 5 for behold, you shall conceive and bear a son. No razor shall come upon his head, for the child shall be a Nazirite to God from the womb, and he shall begin to save Israel from the hand of the Philistines.” 6 Then the woman came and told her husband, “A man of God came to me, and his appearance was like the appearance of the angel of God, very awesome. I did not ask him where he was from, and he did not tell me his name, 7 but he said to me, ‘Behold, you shall conceive and bear a son. So then drink no wine or strong drink, and eat nothing unclean, for the child shall be a Nazirite to God from the womb to the day of his death.’” 8 Then Manoah prayed to the Lord and said, “O Lord, please let the man of God whom you sent come again to us and teach us what we are to do with the child who will be born.” 9 And God 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 was not with her. 10 So the woman ran quickly and told her husband, “Behold, the man who came to me the other day has appeared to me.” 11 And Manoah arose and went after his wife and came to the man and said to him, “Are you the man who spoke to this woman?” And he said, “I am.” 12 And Manoah said, “Now when your words come true, what is to be the child’s manner of life, and what is his mission?” 13 And the angel of the Lord said to Manoah, “Of all that I said to the woman let her be careful. 14 She may not eat of anything that comes from the vine, neither let her drink wine or strong drink, or eat any unclean thing. All that I commanded her let her observe.” 15 Manoah said to the angel of the Lord, “Please let us detain you and prepare a young goat for you.” 16 And the angel of the Lord said to Manoah, “If you detain me, I will not eat of your food. But if you prepare a burnt offering, then offer it to the Lord.” (For Manoah did not know that he was the angel of the Lord.) 17 And Manoah said to the angel of the Lord, “What is your name, so that, when your words come true, we may honor you?” 18 And the angel of the Lord said to him, “Why do you ask my name, seeing it is wonderful?” 19 So Manoah took the young goat with the grain offering, and offered it on the rock to the Lord, to the one who works* wonders, and Manoah and his wife were watching. 20 And when the flame went up toward heaven from the altar, the angel of the Lord went up in the flame of the altar. Now Manoah and his wife were watching, and they fell on their faces to the ground. 21 The angel of the Lord appeared no more to Manoah and to his wife. Then Manoah knew that he was the angel of the Lord. 22 And Manoah said to his wife, “We shall surely die, for we have seen God.” 23 But his wife said to him, “If the Lord had meant to kill us, he would not have accepted a burnt offering and a grain offering at our hands, or shown us all these things, or now announced to us such things as these.” 24 And the woman bore a son and called his name Samson. And the young man grew, and the Lord blessed him. 25 And the Spirit of the Lord began to stir him in Mahaneh-dan, between Zorah and Eshtaol.

Richter 13 | New International Reader’s Version English Standard Version

Samson is born

The Birth of Samson