²There was a man named Manoah from the tribe of Dan, who lived in the city of Zorah. He had a wife, but she could not have children. ³The angel of the Lord appeared to Manoah’s wife and said, “You have not been able to have children, but you will become pregnant and give birth to a son. ⁴Be careful not to drink wine or beer or eat anything that is unclean, ⁵because you will become pregnant and have a son. You must never cut his hair, because he will be a Nazirite, given to God from birth. He will begin to save Israel from the power of the Philistines.”

⁶Then Manoah’s wife went to him and told him what had happened. She said, “A man from God came to me. He looked like an angel from God; his appearance was frightening. I didn’t ask him where he was from, and he didn’t tell me his name. ⁷But he said to me, ‘You will become pregnant and will have a son. Don’t drink wine or beer or eat anything that is unclean, because the boy will be a Nazirite to God from his birth until the day of his death.’ ”

⁸Then Manoah prayed to the Lord: “Lord, I beg you to let the man of God come to us again. Let him teach us what we should do for the boy who will be born to us.”

⁹God heard Manoah’s prayer, and the angel of God came to Manoah’s wife again while she was sitting in the field. But her husband Manoah was not with her. ¹⁰So she ran to tell him, “He is here! The man who appeared to me the other day is here!”

¹¹Manoah got up and followed his wife. When he came to the man, he said, “Are you the man who spoke to my wife?”

The man said, “I am.”

¹²So Manoah asked, “When what you say happens, what kind of life should the boy live? What should he do?”

¹³The angel of the Lord said, “Your wife must be careful to do everything I told her to do. ¹⁴She must not eat anything that grows on a grapevine, or drink any wine or beer, or eat anything that is unclean. She must do everything I have commanded her.”

¹⁵Manoah said to the angel of the Lord, “We would like you to stay awhile so we can cook a young goat for you.”

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