1 The people of Israel again did what was evil in the eyes of the LORD {YHWH, Righteous Judge}, and He placed them under the hand of the Philistines for forty years {shanah: complete time period}.
2 There was a man from Zorah of Danite descent, and his name was Manoah {Manoach: Rest Giver}. His wife was sterile {akarah: Unfruitful Womb}, and she had not borne a child.
3 The angel of the LORD {YHWH, Promise Giver} appeared to the woman and said, “Look closely: you are barren {akarah: unable to bear children} and have not borne a child, yet you will conceive and bear a son.”
4 Now therefore, please take care{hishhamri: guard yourself}, you must not drink wine or strong drink, and you must not eat anything unclean{tame: ritually impure}.
5 For behold, you will conceive and bear a son, and a razor {morah: shaving blade} shall not come upon his head, for the boy will be a Nazirite {nazir: set-apart one} to God {Elohim, Holy One} from the womb; and he will begin to deliver Israel from the hand of the Philistines.
6 Then the woman came and said to her husband, “A man of God{ish ha’elohim: God-sent messenger} came to me, and he looked like an angel of God—very awesome{nora: awe-inspiring}. I did not ask him where he came from, nor did he tell me his name.”
7 And he said to me, “Behold, you shall conceive and bear a son; and now you must not drink wine or strong drink, nor shall you eat any unclean thing, for the boy shall be a Nazirite {nazir: set-apart one} to God {Elohim, Holy One} from the womb until the day of his death.”
8 And Manoah pleaded with the LORD {YHWH, Prayer Receiver} and said, “O my Lord {Adonai, Sovereign Guardian}, please let the man of God whom You sent come again and teach us what we should do for the child who is to be born.”
9 And God {Elohim, Prayer Hearer} listened to the voice {kol: earnest petition} of Manoach, and the angel of God came again to the woman while she was sitting in the field; yet Manoach, her husband, was not with her.
10 And the woman hurried and ran and told her husband, and she said to him, “Behold, the man {ish: mysterious visitor} who appeared to me has come {ba: arrived} today!”
11 And Manoah {Manoach: restful one} got up {vayakam: upward movement} and went after his wife, and he came to the man and said to him, “Are you the man who spoke to the woman?” And he said, “I am.”
12 And Manoach said, “Now when your words come to pass, what will be the rule {mishpat: prescribed ordinance} for the boy {na'ar: male youth}, and what is his work?”
13 And the angel {mal'akh: divine envoy} of the LORD {YHWH, Divine Messenger} said to Manoah, “Let her be careful with everything I spoke to the woman; she must keep it.”
14 She shall not eat anything that comes from the vine {gefen: grapevine plant}, and she shall not drink wine or strong drink, and she shall not eat any unclean {tumah: ritually impure} thing. Everything that I have commanded her, she shall observe.
15 And Manoah said to the angel of the LORD {YHWH, Divine Messenger}, “Please let us detain you {naʿṣrah-nāʾ: invitation to remain}, and let us prepare before you a young goat from the goats.”
16 And the angel of the LORD {YHWH, Divine Messenger} said to Manoah, “Even if you detain me, I will not eat of your bread {lechem: daily sustenance}; but if you prepare a burnt offering, you must 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 {YHWH, Divine Envoy}, “What is your name {shmecha: personal designation}, so that when your word comes to pass we may honor you?”
18 And the messenger of the LORD {YHWH, Divine Revealer} said to him, “Why do you ask for my name? For it is wonderful {pele’: beyond human comprehension}.”
19 And Manoah took the young goat {gedi: male kid} and the grain offering, and offered them on the rock to the LORD {YHWH, Wonder-Worker}; and the LORD acted wondrously as Manoah and his wife watched.
20 When the flame ascended from the altar {mizbeach: sacrificial platform} toward heaven, the angel of the LORD {YHWH, Divine Messenger} ascended within the altar’s flame. Manoah and his wife watched, and they fell on their faces to the ground.
21 And the angel of the LORD {YHWH, Divine Messenger} did not appear again to Manoah or to his wife; then Manoah realized that it was the angel {malakh: supernatural emissary} of the LORD.
22 And Manoah said to his wife, “We will surely perish {mot: utter destruction}, for we have beheld God {Elohim, Radiant Judge}.”
23 And his wife said to him, “If the LORD{YHWH, Preserver of Life} had desired to kill us, He would not have taken a burnt offering{olah: whole-burnt sacrifice} and a grain offering from our hand, nor would He have shown us all these things, nor at this time have caused us to hear such things.”
24 And the woman bore a son and called his name Samson. The youth grew, and the LORD {YHWH, Destiny Shaper} blessed {vayevarkhehu: imparted favor} him.
25 And the Spirit of the LORD {YHWH, Empowering Presence} began to stir him from time to time in the camp {machaneh: encampment site} of Dan, between Zorah and Eshtaol.