Journey
Samson
A Nazarite from birth with a strength he did not guard: follow Samson from an angel's promise at Zorah to the house of Dagon at Gaza.
People in this journey
Opening stop: A Nazarite from the womb, Judges 13:2
Unlike earlier stories in Judges, no one here is said to cry out to the Lord (compare Judges 3:9, 6:6, 10:10). Help comes unasked. The angel speaks to Manoah's wife, who is never named. The Nazarite vow in Numbers 6 was chosen by an adult for a set time. This one is laid on a child before birth, and his mother keeps part of it for him while she carries him. The promise is carefully limited: he will only begin to deliver Israel.
And there was a certain man of Zorah, of the family of the Danites, whose name was Manoah; and his wife was barren, and bare not.
King James Version
During forty years of Philistine rule, the Lord's angel appears to Manoah's childless wife and announces a son. She must avoid wine, strong drink and unclean food; the boy is to have no razor upon his head and be a Nazirite from the womb. He will begin Israel's deliverance from the Philistines. She reports the encounter to Manoah, who asks for further instruction. The angel returns to her, and she brings her husband to him. His answer repeats the instructions given to the woman. He declines their proposed meal and directs any burnt offering to the Lord. When the offering's flame rises, the angel ascends in it. Manoah fears they will die after seeing God, but his wife reasons that the accepted offering and promised child contradict that conclusion. She bears and names Samson; he grows under the Lord's blessing, and the Spirit begins to move him between Zorah and Eshtaol.
Continue the journey
This journey has 10 stops. The opening stop is free. Premium opens the rest of the guided path, and every Scripture chapter stays free to read.