Iudicum 13
1 rursumque filii Israhel fecerunt malum in conspectu Domini qui tradidit eos in manus Philisthinorum quadraginta annis
The Israelites continued to do what was evil in the Lord's sight, so the Lord handed them over to the Philistines to rule them for forty years.
2 erat autem vir quidam de Saraa et de stirpe Dan nomine Manue habens uxorem sterilem
At that time there was a man named Manoah. He was from the tribe of Dan and lived in the town of Zorah. His wife couldn't conceive and had no children.
3 cui apparuit angelus Domini et dixit ad eam sterilis es et absque liberis sed concipies et paries filium
The Angel of the Lord appeared to her and told her, “It's true that you couldn't conceive, and have no children, but now you're going to become pregnant and give birth to a son.
4 cave ergo ne vinum bibas ac siceram ne inmundum quicquam comedas
So then please be careful not to drink any wine or other alcoholic drink, and don't eat anything unclean.
5 quia concipies et paries filium cuius non tanget caput novacula erit enim nazareus Dei ab infantia sua et ex matris utero et ipse incipiet liberare Israhel de manu Philisthinorum
You're going to become pregnant and have a son whose head a razor must never touch, because the boy is to be a Nazirite, dedicated to God from birth. He will start the process of saving Israel from the Philistines.”
6 quae cum venisset ad maritum dixit ei vir Dei venit ad me habens vultum angelicum terribilis nimis quem cum interrogassem quis esset et unde venisset et quo nomine vocaretur noluit mihi dicere
The woman went and told her husband, “A man of God came to me. He looked like the Angel of God, really frightening. I didn't ask him where he came from, and he didn't did not tell me his name.
7 sed hoc respondit ecce concipies et paries filium cave ne vinum bibas et siceram et ne aliquo vescaris inmundo erit enim puer nazareus Dei ab infantia sua et ex utero matris usque ad diem mortis suae
But he told me, ‘You're going to become pregnant and give birth to a son. You must not drink wine or any other alcoholic drink, and don't eat anything unclean. For the boy is to be a Nazirite, dedicated to God from birth until the day of his death.’”
8 oravit itaque Manue Deum et ait obsecro Domine ut vir Dei quem misisti veniat iterum et doceat nos quid debeamus facere de puero qui nasciturus est
Then Manoah prayed to the Lord, “Please, Lord, let the man of God you sent us return to us to explain what we're supposed to do with the boy who is to be born.”
9 exaudivitque Dominus precantem Manue et apparuit rursum angelus Domini uxori eius sedenti in agro Manue autem maritus eius non erat cum ea quae cum vidisset angelum
God responded to Manoah's request, and the Angel of God returned to the woman while she was sitting out in the field. However, her husband Manoah was not with her.
10 festinavit et cucurrit ad virum suum nuntiavitque ei dicens ecce apparuit mihi vir quem ante videram
So she ran quickly to tell her husband, “Look! The man who appeared to me the other day has come back!”
11 qui surrexit et secutus est uxorem suam veniensque ad virum dixit ei tu es qui locutus es mulieri et ille respondit ego sum
Manoah got up and went back with his wife, and asked, “Are you the man who spoke to my wife before?” “Yes I am,” he replied.
12 cui Manue quando inquit sermo tuus fuerit expletus quid vis ut faciat puer aut a quo se observare debebit
So Manoah said, “May your promise come true! What shall be decided for the boy, and what is to be his vocation?”
13 dixitque angelus Domini ad Manue ab omnibus quae locutus sum uxori tuae abstineat se
“Make sure your wife is careful to follow everything I told her,” the angel of the Lord replied.
14 et quicquid ex vinea nascitur non comedat vinum et siceram non bibat nullo vescatur inmundo et quod ei praecepi impleat atque custodiat
“She must not eat anything that comes from the vine or drink wine or any other alcoholic drink. She must not eat anything unclean. Your wife must follow everything I instructed her to do.”
15 dixitque Manue ad angelum Domini obsecro te ut adquiescas precibus meis et faciamus tibi hedum de capris
Manoah said to the angel of the Lord, “Please let us keep you here while we prepare a meal of a young goat for you.”
16 cui respondit angelus si me cogis non comedam panes tuos sin autem vis holocaustum facere offer illud Domino et nesciebat Manue quod angelus Dei esset
The angel of the Lord replied, “I'll stay, but I won't eat your food. However, if you prepare a burnt offering, you can present it to the Lord.” (Manoah didn't know he was the angel of the Lord.)
17 dixitque ad eum quod est tibi nomen ut si sermo tuus fuerit expletus honoremus te
Manoah asked the angel of the Lord, “What is your name, so when your promise comes true we may honor you?”
18 cui ille respondit cur quaeris nomen meum quod est mirabile
“Why do you ask this?” the angel of the Lord responded. “My name is beyond comprehension.”
19 tulit itaque Manue hedum de capris et libamenta et posuit super petram offerens Domino qui facit mirabilia ipse autem et uxor eius intuebantur
Manoah took a young goat and a grain offering and presented them on a rock to the Lord. As Manoah and his wife watched, the LORD did something amazing.
20 cumque ascenderet flamma altaris in caelum angelus Domini in flamma pariter ascendit quod cum vidisset Manue et uxor eius proni ceciderunt in terram
As the flame from the altar blazed up into the sky, the angel of the Lord ascended in the flame. Manoah and his wife saw what happened and fell with their faces to the ground.
21 et ultra non eis apparuit angelus Domini statimque intellexit Manue angelum esse Domini
The angel of the Lord did not appear to Manoah or his wife again, and Manoah realized that he was the angel of the Lord.
22 et dixit ad uxorem suam morte moriemur quia vidimus Deum
“We're definitely going to die,” he told his wife, “for we have seen God!”
23 cui respondit mulier si Dominus nos vellet occidere de manibus nostris holocaustum et libamenta non suscepisset nec ostendisset nobis haec omnia neque ea quae sunt ventura dixisset
But his wife replied, “If the Lord had wanted to kill us he wouldn't have accepted our burnt offering and grain offering. He wouldn't have shown us all these things, and he wouldn't have come now and announced this to us.”
24 peperit itaque filium et vocavit nomen eius Samson crevitque puer et benedixit ei Dominus
She gave birth to a son and named him Samson. The boy grew up, and the Lord blessed him.
25 coepitque spiritus Domini esse cum eo in castris Dan inter Saraa et Esthaol
The Spirit of the Lord began to prompt him at Mahaneh Dan, a place between Zorah and Eshtaol.
