Judges 13

1Once more the Israelites did what was evil in the sight of the LORD, and the LORD gave them into the power of the Philistines for forty years.

2There was a man from Zorah, of the clan of the Danites, whose name was Manoah. His wife was unable to conceive and had borne no children. 3The angel of the LORD appeared to the woman. “Listen,” he told her, “you are unable to conceive and have borne no children, but you will conceive and bear a son. 4So now be careful: drink no wine or beer, and eat nothing unclean. 5For you will conceive and give birth to a son. No razor is to touch his head, because the boy will be a Nazirite, set apart to God from the womb. He will begin to save Israel from the power of the Philistines.” 6The woman went to her husband and said, “A man of God has come to me. He looked like the angel of God, very awe-inspiring. I did not ask where he was from, and he did not give me his name. 7But he said to me, ‘You will conceive and give birth to a son. So now, drink no wine or beer, and eat nothing unclean, for the boy is to be a Nazirite, set apart to God from the womb until the day he dies.’”

8Then Manoah prayed to the LORD: “Please, my Lord, let the man of God whom you sent come to us again and teach us what we should do for the boy who is to be born.” 9God listened to Manoah, and the angel of God came to the woman again while she was sitting in the field. But Manoah her husband was not with her. 10The woman ran quickly to tell her husband. “Look,” she said to him, “the man who came to me the other day has appeared to me again.” 11Manoah got up and followed his wife. When he reached the man, he asked, “Are you the one who spoke to my wife?” “I am,” he answered. 12Then Manoah said, “Now when your words come true, what is to be the boy’s way of life, and what will his work be?” 13The angel of the LORD said to Manoah, “Your wife must be careful to do all that I told her. 14She must not eat anything that comes from the grapevine, or drink wine or beer, or eat anything unclean. She must keep everything I have commanded her.” 15Manoah said to the angel of the LORD, “Please stay with us, so that we can prepare a young goat for you to eat.” 16The angel of the LORD answered Manoah, “Even if you hold me back, I will eat none of your food. If you want to prepare a burnt offering, offer it to the LORD.” For Manoah had not realized that he was the angel of the LORD. 17Manoah then said to the angel of the LORD, “What is your name? We would like to honor you when your words come true.” 18The angel of the LORD answered him, “Why do you ask about my name? It is wonderful.” 19So Manoah took the young goat along with the grain offering and offered them to the LORD on the rock. Then, while Manoah and his wife watched, the angel did a wonderful thing. 20As the flame rose from the altar toward the sky, the angel of the LORD went up in the flame from the altar. When Manoah and his wife saw it, they fell face down on the ground. 21The angel of the LORD appeared no more to Manoah and his wife. Then Manoah realized that it had been the angel of the LORD. 22Manoah said to his wife, “We are certain to die, because we have seen God!” 23But his wife answered him, “If the LORD had meant to kill us, he would not have accepted a burnt offering and a grain offering from our hands. He would not have shown us all these things, or let us hear such things now.” 24In time the woman bore a son, and she named him Samson. As the boy grew up, the LORD blessed him. 25Then the Spirit of the LORD began to drive him on at Mahaneh-dan, between Zorah and Eshtaol.