Samson’s birth foretold
1 ① The Israelites again treated Yahweh badly so he gave them into the hands of the Philistines for forty years.
2There was a man of Zorah of the tribe of Dan, called Manoah. His wife could not bear children. 3The Angel of Yahweh appeared to this woman and said to her, “You have not borne children and have not given birth, but see, you are to conceive and give birth to a son. 4Because of this, take care not to take wine or any alcoholic drink, nor to eat unclean foods from now on, 5for you shall bear a son who shall be a Nazirite of Yahweh from the womb of his mother. Never shall his hair be cut for he is consecrated to Yahweh. He shall begin the liberation of the Israelites from the Philistine oppression.”
6The woman went to her husband and told him, “A messenger of God who bore the majesty of an angel spoke to me. I did not ask him where he came from nor did he tell me his name.
7But he said to me: ‘You are to conceive and give birth to a son. Henceforth, you shall not drink wine or fermented drinks, nor eat anything unclean, for your son shall be a Nazirite of God from the womb of his mother until the day of his death’.”
8Manoah called upon Yahweh and said, “I pray you, Lord, that the man of God whom you have sent may come again to us and teach us how to bring up the boy who is to be born.” 9Yahweh listened to Manoah and the Angel of Yahweh came to the woman as she was seated in the fields. Again Manoah, her husband, was not with her when the Angel came.
10The woman immediately ran to inform her husband and told him, “Look, the man who came to me the other day is here again.” 11Manoah rose and followed his wife. He came to the man and said to him, “Are you the man who has spoken to this woman?”
He answered, “I am.” 12Manoah said to him, “When your word is fulfilled, what rule and direction shall the boy follow?”
13The Angel of Yahweh answered Manoah, “She must abstain from all I have indicated to this woman. 14She shall not taste anything that comes from the grape, nor drink wine or fermented drinks, nor eat anything unclean, and she shall observe everything I have commanded her.”
15Manoah then said to the Angel of Yahweh, “Permit us to detain you and prepare a young goat for you.” (Manoah did not know that the man was the Angel of Yahweh) 16But he said to Manoah, “Even if I did stay, I would not taste your food. But if you want to offer a burnt offering, offer it to Yahweh.” 17So Manoah said to the Angel of Yahweh, “What is your name, that we may honor you when your word comes true.” 18The Angel of Yahweh answered him, “Why do you ask my name? It is Wonderful…” 19Manoah then took the young goat and the cereal offering, and offered it upon the rock as a holocaust to Yahweh who does wonderful things.
20And something happened as Manoah and his wife looked on. A fire broke forth from the altar rising toward heaven, and the Angel of Yahweh ascended in the flame.
When Manoah and his wife saw this, they fell face downwards on the ground. 21When the Angel of Yahweh vanished from the sight of Manoah and his wife, Manoah knew then that he was the Angel of Yahweh. 22And he said to his wife, “We shall surely die for we have seen God.” 23She answered him, “If Yahweh had wanted to kill us, he would not have accepted the holocaust or the offering from our hand; he would not have made all these things happen or said what we have just heard.”
24The woman gave birth to a son and named him Samson. The boy grew and Yahweh blessed him. 25Then the Spirit of Yahweh began to move him when he was in Mahane Dan between Zorah and Eshtaol.
- Jdg 13,1 Here follow four episodes from the stories of Samson. Samson seems to have been a man from the countryside who had extraordinary strength and fought on his own account against the Philistines. Legend attributes to him numerous feats. Samson is said to have been miraculously born of a barren couple. This was in accordance with God's ways, as seen in the case of Abraham's son (Gen 18), and in the case of Samuel (1 S 1), and still later John the Baptist (Lk 1:5). The child must be a Nazirite, i.e., consecrated to God, according to a very ancient rite in the Bible (Num 6:1). This consecration to God is the source of his strength.
