The Birth of Samson

13¹ And the sons of Israel add to do the evil thing in the eyes of Jehovah, and Jehovah giveth them into the hand of the Philistines forty years. ² And there is a certain man of Zorah, of the family of the Danite, and his name 'is' Manoah, his wife 'is' barren, and hath not borne; ³ and a messenger of Jehovah appeareth unto the woman, and saith unto her, 'Lo, I pray thee, thou 'art' barren, and hast not borne; when thou hast conceived, then thou hast borne a son. ⁴ And, now, take heed, I pray thee, and do not drink wine, and strong drink, and do not eat any unclean thing, ⁵ for, lo, thou art conceiving and bearing a son, and a razor doth not go up on his head, for a Nazarite to God is the youth from the womb, and he doth begin to save Israel out of the hand of the Philistines.' ⁶ And the woman cometh and speaketh to her husband, saying, 'A man of God hath come unto me, and his appearance 'is' as the appearance of a messenger of God, very fearful, and I have not asked him whence he 'is', and his name he hath not declared to me; ⁷ and he saith to me, Lo, thou art pregnant, and bearing a son, and now do not drink wine and strong drink, and do not eat any unclean thing, for a Nazarite to God is the youth from the womb till the day of his death.'

⁸ And Manoah maketh entreaty unto Jehovah, and saith, 'O, my Lord, the man of God whom Thou didst send, let him come in, I pray thee, again unto us, and direct us what we do to the youth who is born.' ⁹ And God hearkeneth to the voice of Manoah, and the messenger of God cometh again unto the woman, and she 'is' sitting in a field, and Manoah her husband is not with her, ¹⁰ and the woman hasteth, and runneth, and declareth to her husband, and saith unto him, 'Lo, he hath appeared unto me—the man who came on 'that' day unto me.' ¹¹ And Manoah riseth, and goeth after his wife, and cometh unto the man, and saith to him, 'Art thou the man who spake unto the woman?' and he saith, 'I 'am'.' ¹² And Manoah saith, 'Now let thy words come to pass; what is the custom of the youth—and his work?' ¹³ And the messenger of Jehovah saith unto Manoah, 'Of all that I said unto the woman let her take heed; ¹⁴ of anything which cometh out from the wine-vine she doth not eat, and wine and strong drink she doth not drink, and any unclean thing she doth not eat; all that I have commanded her she doth observe.'

¹⁵ And Manoah saith unto the messenger of Jehovah, 'Let us detain thee, we pray thee, and prepare before thee a kid of the goats.' ¹⁶ And the messenger of Jehovah saith unto Manoah, 'If thou detain me—I do not eat of thy bread; and if thou prepare a burnt-offering—to Jehovah thou dost offer it;' for Manoah hath not known that He 'is' a messenger of Jehovah. ¹⁷ And Manoah saith unto the messenger of Jehovah, 'What 'is' thy name? when thy words come to pass, then we have honoured thee.' ¹⁸ And the messenger of Jehovah saith to him, 'Why 'is' this—thou dost ask for My name?—and it 'is' Wonderful.' ¹⁹ And Manoah taketh the kid of the goats, and the present, and offereth on the rock to Jehovah, and He is doing wonderfully, and Manoah and his wife are looking on, ²⁰ and it cometh to pass, in the going up of the flame from off the altar toward the heavens, that the messenger of Jehovah goeth up in the flame of the altar, and Manoah and his wife are looking on, and they fall on their faces to the earth, ²¹ and the messenger of Jehovah hath not added again to appear unto Manoah, and unto his wife, then hath Manoah known that He 'is' a messenger of Jehovah. ²² And Manoah saith unto his wife, 'We certainly die, for we have seen God.' ²³ And his wife saith to him, 'If Jehovah were desirous to put us to death, He had not received from our hands burnt-offering and present, nor shewed us all these things, nor as 'at this' time caused us to hear 'anything' like this.'

²⁴ And the woman beareth a son, and calleth his name Samson, and the youth groweth, and Jehovah doth bless him, ²⁵ and the Spirit of Jehovah beginneth to move him in the camp of Dan, between Zorah and Eshtaol.

Samson and the Woman of Timnath

14¹ And Samson goeth down to Timnath, and seeth a woman in Timnath of the daughters of the Philistines, ² and cometh up and declareth to his father, and to his mother, and saith, 'A woman I have seen in Timnath, of the daughters of the Philistines; and now, take her for me for a wife.' ³ And his father saith to him—also his mother, 'Is there not among the daughters of thy brethren, and among all my people, a woman, that thou art going to take a woman from the uncircumcised Philistines?' and Samson saith unto his father, 'Take her for me, for she is right in mine eyes.' ⁴ And his father and his mother have not known that from Jehovah it 'is', that a meeting he is seeking of the Philistines; and at that time the Philistines are ruling over Israel. ⁵ And Samson goeth down—also his father and his mother, to Timnath, and they come unto the vineyards of Timnath, and lo, a lion's whelp roareth at meeting him, ⁶ and the Spirit of Jehovah prospereth over him, and he rendeth it as the rending of a kid, and there is nothing in his hand, and he hath not declared to his father and to his mother that which he hath done. ⁷ And he goeth down and speaketh to the woman, and she is right in the eyes of Samson; ⁸ and he turneth back after 'some' days to take her, and turneth aside to see the carcase of the lion, and lo, a company of bees 'are' in the body of the lion—and honey. ⁹ And he taketh it down on to his hands, and goeth on, going and eating; and he goeth unto his father, and unto his mother, and giveth to them, and they eat, and he hath not declared to them that from the body of the lion he took down the honey.

¹⁰ And his father goeth down unto the woman, and Samson maketh there a banquet, for so the young men do; ¹¹ and it cometh to pass when they see him, that they take thirty companions, and they are with him. ¹² And Samson saith to them, 'Let me, I pray you, put forth to you a riddle; if ye certainly declare it to me 'in' the seven days of the banquet, and have found 'it' out, then I have given to you thirty linen shirts, and thirty changes of garments; ¹³ and if ye are not able to declare 'it' to me, then ye have given to me thirty linen shirts, and thirty changes of garments.' And they say to him, 'Put forth thy riddle, and we hear it!' ¹⁴ And he saith to them: 'Out of the eater came forth meat, And out of the strong came forth sweetness;' and they were not able to declare the riddle 'in' three days. ¹⁵ And it cometh to pass, on the seventh day, that they say to Samson's wife, 'Entice thy husband, that he declare to us the riddle, lest we burn thee and the house of thy father with fire; to possess us have ye called for us? is it not?' ¹⁶ And Samson's wife weepeth for it, and saith, 'Thou hast only hated me, and hast not loved me; the riddle thou hast put forth to the sons of my people—and to me thou hast not declared it;' and he saith to her, 'Lo, to my father and to my mother I have not declared 'it'—and to thee I declare 'it'!' ¹⁷ And she weepeth for it the seven days 'in' which their banquet hath been, and it cometh to pass on the seventh day that he declareth 'it' to her, for she hath distressed him; and she declareth the riddle to the sons of her people. ¹⁸ And the men of the city say to him on the seventh day, before the sun goeth in:—'What 'is' sweeter than honey? And what stronger than a lion?' And he saith to them: 'Unless ye had ploughed with my heifer, Ye had not found out my riddle.' ¹⁹ And the Spirit of Jehovah prospereth over him, and he goeth down to Ashkelon, and smiteth of them thirty men, and taketh their armour, and giveth the changes to those declaring the riddle; and his anger burneth, and he goeth up to the house of his father; ²⁰ and Samson's wife becometh his companion's, who 'is' his friend.

15¹ And it cometh to pass, after 'some' days, in the days of wheat-harvest, that Samson looketh after his wife, with a kid of the goats, and saith, 'I go in unto my wife, to the inner chamber;' and her father hath not permitted him to go in, ² and her father saith, I certainly said, that thou didst certainly hate her, and I give her to thy companion; is not her sister—the young one—better than she? Let her be, I pray thee, to thee, instead of her.' ³ And Samson saith of them, 'I am more innocent this time than the Philistines, though I am doing with them evil.' ⁴ And Samson goeth and catcheth three hundred foxes, and taketh torches, and turneth tail unto tail, and putteth a torch between the two tails, in the midst, ⁵ and kindleth fire in the torches, and sendeth 'them' out into the standing corn of the Philistines, and burneth 'it' from heap even unto standing corn, even unto vineyard—olive-yard. ⁶ And the Philistines say, 'Who hath done this?' And they say, 'Samson, son-in-law of the Timnite, because he hath taken away his wife, and giveth her to his companion;' and the Philistines go up, and burn her and her father with fire. ⁷ And Samson saith to them, 'Though ye do thus, nevertheless I am avenged on you, and afterwards I cease!' ⁸ And he smiteth them hip and thigh—a great smiting, and goeth down and dwelleth in the cleft of the rock Etam.

Samson Defeats the Philistines at Lehi

⁹ And the Philistines go up, and encamp in Judah, and are spread out in Lehi, ¹⁰ and the men of Judah say, 'Why have ye come up against us?' and they say, 'To bind Samson we have come up, to do to him as he hath done to us.' ¹¹ And three thousand men of Judah go down unto the cleft of the rock Etam, and say to Samson, 'Hast thou now known that the Philistines are rulers over us? and what 'is' this thou hast done to us?' And he saith to them, 'As they did to me, so I did to them.' ¹² And they say to him, 'To bind thee we have come down—to give thee into the hand of the Philistines.' And Samson saith to them, 'Swear to me, lest ye fall upon me yourselves.' ¹³ And they speak to him, saying, No, but we certainly bind thee, and have given thee into their hand, and we certainly do not put thee to death;' and they bind him with two thick bands, new ones, and bring him up from the rock. ¹⁴ He hath come unto Lehi—and the Philistines have shouted at meeting him—and the Spirit of Jehovah prospereth over him, and the thick bands which 'are' on his arms are as flax which they burn with fire, and his bands are wasted from off his hands, ¹⁵ and he findeth a fresh jaw-bone of an ass, and putteth forth his hand and taketh it, and smiteth with it—a thousand men. ¹⁶ And Samson saith, 'With a jaw-bone of the ass—an ass upon asses—with a jaw-bone of the ass I have smitten a thousand men.' ¹⁷ And it cometh to pass when he finisheth speaking, that he casteth away the jaw-bone out of his hand, and calleth that place Ramath-Lehi;

¹⁸ and he thirsteth exceedingly, and calleth unto Jehovah, and saith, 'Thou—Thou hast given by the hand of Thy servant this great salvation; and now, I die with thirst, and have fallen into the hand of the uncircumcised.' ¹⁹ And God cleaveth the hollow place which 'is' in Lehi, and waters come out of it, and he drinketh, and his spirit cometh back, and he reviveth; therefore hath 'one' called its name 'The fountain of him who is calling,' which 'is' in Lehi unto this day. ²⁰ And he judgeth Israel in the days of the Philistines twenty years.

Love for Enemies

²⁷ 'But I say to you who are hearing, Love your enemies, do good to those hating you, ²⁸ bless those cursing you, and pray for those accusing you falsely; ²⁹ and to him smiting thee upon the cheek, give also the other, and from him taking away from thee the mantle, also the coat thou mayest not keep back. ³⁰ 'And to every one who is asking of thee, be giving; and from him who is taking away thy goods, be not asking again; ³¹ and as ye wish that men may do to you, do ye also to them in like manner; ³² and—if ye love those loving you, what grace have ye? for also the sinful love those loving them; ³³ and if ye do good to those doing good to you, what grace have ye? for also the sinful do the same; ³⁴ and if ye lend 'to those' of whom ye hope to receive back, what grace have ye? for also the sinful lend to sinners—that they may receive again as much. ³⁵ 'But love your enemies, and do good, and lend, hoping for nothing again, and your reward will be great, and ye shall be sons of the Highest, because He is kind unto the ungracious and evil; ³⁶ be ye therefore merciful, as also your Father is merciful.

Judging Others

³⁷ 'And judge not, and ye may not be judged; condemn not, and ye may not be condemned; release, and ye shall be released. ³⁸ 'Give, and it shall be given to you; good measure, pressed, and shaken, and running over, they shall give into your bosom; for with that measure with which ye measure, it shall be measured to you again.' ³⁹ And he spake a simile to them, 'Is blind able to lead blind? shall they not both fall into a pit? ⁴⁰ A disciple is not above his teacher, but every one perfected shall be as his teacher. ⁴¹ 'And why dost thou behold the mote that is in thy brother's eye, and the beam that 'is' in thine own eye dost not consider? ⁴² or how art thou able to say to thy brother, Brother, suffer, I may take out the mote that 'is' in thine eye—thyself the beam in thine own eye not beholding? Hypocrite, take first the beam out of thine own eye, and then thou shalt see clearly to take out the mote that 'is' in thy brother's eye.

A Tree Is Known by Its Fruit

⁴³ 'For there is not a good tree making bad fruit, nor a bad tree making good fruit; ⁴⁴ for each tree from its own fruit is known, for not from thorns do they gather figs, nor from a bramble do they crop a grape. ⁴⁵ 'The good man out of the good treasure of his heart doth bring forth that which 'is' good; and the evil man out of the evil treasure of his heart doth bring forth that which 'is' evil; for out of the abounding of the heart doth his mouth speak.

The House Built on a Rock

⁴⁶ 'And why do ye call me, Lord, Lord, and do not what I say? ⁴⁷ Every one who is coming unto me, and is hearing my words, and is doing them, I will shew you to whom he is like; ⁴⁸ he is like to a man building a house, who did dig, and deepen, and laid a foundation upon the rock, and a flood having come, the stream broke forth on that house, and was not able to shake it, for it had been founded upon the rock. ⁴⁹ 'And he who heard and did not, is like to a man having builded a house upon the earth, without a foundation, against which the stream brake forth, and immediately it fell, and the ruin of that house became great.'