Samson Is Born
1 Once again the Israelites started disobeying the Lord. So he let the Philistines take control of Israel for 40 years.
2 Manoah from the tribe of Dan lived in the town of Zorah. His wife was not able to have children, 3-5 but one day an angel from the Lord appeared to her and said:
You have never been able to have any children, but very soon you will be pregnant and have a son. He will belong to God from the day he is born, so his hair must never be cut. And even before he is born, you must not drink any wine or beer or eat any food forbidden by God's laws.
Your son will begin to set Israel free from the Philistines.
6 She went to Manoah and said, “A prophet who looked like an angel of God came and talked to me. I was so frightened, that I didn't even ask where he was from. He didn't tell me his name, 7 but he did say that I'm going to have a baby boy. I'm not supposed to drink any wine or beer or eat any food forbidden by God's laws. Our son will belong to God for as long as he lives.”
8 Then Manoah prayed, “Our Lord, please send that prophet again and let him tell us what to do for the son we are going to have.”
9 God answered Manoah's prayer, and the angel went back to Manoah's wife while she was resting in the fields. Manoah wasn't there at the time, 10 so she found him and said, “That same man is here again! He's the one I saw the other day.”
11 Manoah went with his wife and asked the man, “Are you the one who spoke to my wife?”
“Yes, I am,” he answered.
12 Manoah then asked, “When your promise comes true, what rules must he obey and what will be his work?”
13 “Your wife must be careful to do everything I told her,” the Lord's angel answered. 14 “She must not eat or drink anything made from grapes. She must not drink wine or beer or eat anything forbidden by God's laws. I told her exactly what to do.”
15 “Please,” Manoah said, “stay here with us for just a little while, and we'll fix a young goat for you to eat.” 16 Manoah didn't realize that he was really talking to one of the Lord's angels.
The angel answered, “I can stay for a little while, although I won't eat any of your food. But if you would like to offer the goat as a sacrifice to the Lord, that would be fine.”
17 Manoah said, “Tell us your name, so we can honor you after our son is born.”
18 “No,” the angel replied. “You don't need to know my name. And if you did, you couldn't understand it.”
19 So Manoah took a young goat over to a large rock he had chosen for an altar, and he built a fire on the rock. Then he killed the goat, and offered it with some grain as a sacrifice to the Lord. But then an amazing thing happened. 20 The fire blazed up toward the sky, and the Lord's angel went up toward heaven in the fire. Manoah and his wife bowed down low when they saw what happened.
21 Although the angel didn't appear to them again, they realized he was one of the Lord's angels. 22 Manoah said, “We have seen an angel. Now we're going to die.”
23 “The Lord isn't going to kill us,” Manoah's wife responded. “The Lord accepted our sacrifice and grain offering, and he let us see something amazing. Besides, he told us that we're going to have a son.”
24 Later, Manoah's wife did give birth to a son, and she named him Samson. As the boy grew, the Lord blessed him. 25 Then, while Samson was staying at Dan's Camp between the towns of Zorah and Eshtaol, the Spirit of the Lord took control of him.
Ongwatero ya Simson
1 Ovaisrael va tura ondjo rukwao komurungu wa Muhona. Nu Muhona we ve yandja mouvara wOvafilisti oure wozombura omirongo vine.
2 Nu pa ri omurumendu wena ra Manoah, womuhoko wa Dan, ngwa zire kotjihuro Sora. Omukazendu we wa ri ongandji. 3 Omuengeri wa Muhona we rimunikisa komukazendu ngwi na tja ku ye: “Tara, oove ongandji, nungwari nambano mo rire otjingundi, nu mo panduka omuzandu. 4 Ritjevera kutja o ha nu omavinu poo omanuwa omazeu oparukaze, no ha ri ovikurya ovihakohoke. 5 Orondu ove mo rire otjingundi, nu mo panduka omuzandu. Ozondjise zomuzandu ngwi aze ha horwa, eye tjinga ama yapurirwa Ndjambi okurira Omunasirite okuza mezumo raina. Eye ma rire ingwi ngu ma utu okukutura Ovaisrael kOvafilisti.”
6 Okuzambo omukazendu wa karaera omurumendu we a tja: “Omundu wa Ndjambi weya ku ami, nombunikiro ye ya ri tjimuna oyomuengeri wa Ndjambi, neye wa ri omuurumise tjinene. Ami hi mu purire kutja ma zu pi, neye ke ndji raerere ena re. 7 Nungwari eye wa tja nai ku ami: ‘Tara, ove mo rire otjingundi, nu mo panduka omuzandu. Okuzamba o nu ko omavinu poo omanuwa omazeu, nu o ri ko ovikurya ovihakohoke, omuzandu ngwi tjinga ama yapurirwa Ndjambi okurira Omunasirite okuza kongwatero nga konḓiro ye.’ ”
8 Manoah wa kumba ku Muhona a tja: “Arikana, Muhona, omundu wa Ndjambi ingwi ngu wa hindire nga kotoke ku eṱe rukwao okuyekutuhonga kutja matu tjiti vi nomuzandu ngwi ngu ma pandukwa.”
9 Ndjambi wa zuvira ongumbiro ya Manoah, nomuengeri wa Ndjambi wa kotoka komukazendu, ngunda a haama mokuti; nomurumendu we Manoah ka ri puna ye. 10 Nomukazendu wa tupuka tjimanga komurumendu we ne kemu raera a tja: “Tara, omundu ngwi ngwe ere ku ami eyuva ndina we rimunikisa ku ami rukwao.”
11 Manoah wa sekama na kongorere omukazendu we. Eye wa ya ku ingwi omundu ne mu pura a tja: “Oove ngu u ri omundu ngu wa hungira kuna omukazendu wandje are?”
Neye wa zira nai: “Ii, owami.”
12 Manoah wa pura nai: “Omambo woye tji ya yenenisiwa, omuzandu ma sokuritjinda vi, nu ma sokuungura tjike?”
13 Nomuengeri wa Muhona wa zira Manoah a tja: “Omukazendu woye ma sokuritjaera koviṋa avihe mbi mbe mu raera. 14 Eye a roro ko otjiṋa ngamwa atjihe tji matji zu komuvite, nu a nu ko otjiṋa ngamwa atjihe tji matji zu komuvite, nu a nu ko omavinu poo omanuwa omazeu, nu a ri ko ovikurya ovihakohoke. Eye nga ṱakamise nawa ihi atjihe ami tji mbe mu raera.”
15 Manoah wa tja nai komuengeri wa Muhona: “Arikana, o yaruka tjimanga, tu esa tu ku terekere okangombona.”
16 Nungwari omuengeri wa Muhona wa zira nai ku Manoah: “Nandarire tji mba kara puna ove, ami himee ri ovikurya vyoye. Nu tji movanga okukeṱuna ke rire ombunguhiro oningiririsiwa ke punguhira Muhona.” Manoah ka tjivirwe kutja ingwi eye omuengeri wa Muhona.
17 Nu Manoah wa zira nai komuengeri wa Muhona: “Tu raera ena roye kutja imbi mbi wa hungire tji vya yenenisiwa tu ku yozike.”
18 Nomuengeri wa Muhona we mu pura a tja: “Mo vangere tjike okutjiwa ena randje? Oro ehimise.”
19 Manoah arire tja toora okangombona novirya ne vi punguhire Muhona kotjipunguhiro tjoruuwa. Nu ngunda ama punguha, tjandje Muhona ma tjiti ovihimise momurungu wa Manoah nomukazendu we. 20 Otururumo ngunda amatu rondo kombanda okuza kotjipunguhiro, owo va muna omuengeri wa Muhona ama rondo keyuru motururumo twi. Nowo va wa onḓurumika. 21 Nomuengeri wa Muhona ka munikire rukwao ku Manoah nomukazendu we. Manoah opa tjivirwa kutja ingwi wa ri omuengeri wa Muhona.
22 Manoah wa tja komukazendu we: “Eṱe, tjiri, matu koka, orondu twa munu Ndjambi.”
23 Nungwari omukazendu we we mu zira a tja: “Andakuzu Muhona wa vanga okutuzepa, katja yakura ozombunguhiro zetu. Eye ketje tu raisira avihe mbi poo okuturaera oviṋa otja imbi moruveze ndwi.”
24 Nomukazendu wa panduka omuzandu ne mu ruku Simson. Omuatje ngwi we kura, nu Muhona we mu sera ondaya. 25 Nombepo ya Muhona ya uta okumupa omasa, ngunda e ri mozondanda za Dan pokati ka Sora na Estaol.
