And Manoah said to the agent of LORD, What is thy name, that, when thy words come to pass, we may do thee honor?

And the agent of LORD said to him, Why do thou ask after my name, seeing it is wonderful?

So Manoah took the kid with the meal-offering, and offered it upon the rock to LORD. And [the heavenly agent] did wondrously, and Manoah and his wife looked on,

for it came to pass, when the flame went up toward heaven from off the altar, that the agent of LORD ascended in the flame of the altar. And Manoah and his wife looked on, and they fell on their faces to the ground.

But his wife said to him, If LORD were pleased to kill us, he would not have received a burnt-offering and a meal-offering at our hand, neither would he have shown us all these things, nor would at this time have told such things a

But his father and his mother knew not that it was of LORD, for he sought an occasion against the Philistines. Now at that time the Philistines had rule over Israel.

And the Spirit of LORD came mightily upon him, and he tore him apart as he would have torn a kid, and he had nothing in his hand. But he did not tell his father or his mother what he had done.

And he took it into his hands, and went on, eating as he went. And he came to his father and mother, and gave to them, and they ate, but he did not tell them that he had taken the honey out of the body of the lion.

And it came to pass, when they saw him, that they brought thirty companions to be with him.

And Samson said to them, Let me now put forth a riddle to you. If ye can declare it to me within the seven days of the feast, and find it out, then I will give you thirty linen garments and thirty changes of raiment,

but if ye cannot declare it to me, then ye shall give me thirty linen garments and thirty changes of raiment. And they said to him, Put forth thy riddle, that we may hear it.

And he said to them, Out of the eater came forth food, and out of the strong came forth sweetness. And they could not in three days declare the riddle.

And it came to pass on the seventh day, that they said to Samson's wife, Entice thy husband, that he may declare to us the riddle, lest we burn thee and thy father's house with fire. Have ye called us to impoverish us? Is it not [s

And Samson's wife wept before him, and said, Thou do but hate me, and not love me. Thou have put forth a riddle to the sons of my people, and have not told it to me. And he said to her, Behold, I have not told it to my father nor m

And she wept before him the seven days, while their feast lasted. And it came to pass on the seventh day, that he told her because she pressed him greatly. And she told the riddle to the sons of her people.

And the men of the city said to him on the seventh day before the sun went down, What is sweeter than honey? and what is stronger than a lion? And he said to them, If ye had not plowed with my heifer, ye would not have found out my

But it came to pass after a while, in the time of wheat harvest, that Samson visited his wife with a kid. And he said, I will go in to my wife into the chamber, but her father would not allow him to go in.

Then three thousand men of Judah went down to the cleft of the rock of Etam, and said to Samson, Know thou not that the Philistines are rulers over us? What then is this that thou have done to us? And he said to them, As they did t

And he found a fresh jawbone of a donkey, and put forth his hand, and took it, and smote a thousand men with it.

And it came to pass, when he had made an end of speaking, that he cast away the jawbone out of his hand. And that place was called Ramath-lehi.

But God split the hollow place that is in Lehi, and water came out there. And when he had drunk his spirit came again, and he revived. Therefore the name of it was called En-hakkore, which is in Lehi to this day.

[And it was told] the Gazites, saying, Samson has come here. And they encompassed him in, and laid wait for him all night in the gate of the city, and were quiet all the night, saying, [Not] till morning light, then we will kill hi

And Samson lay till midnight, and arose at midnight, and laid hold of the doors of the gate of the city, and the two posts, and plucked them up, bar and all, and put them upon his shoulders, and carried them up to the top of the mo

And it came to pass afterward, that he loved a woman in the valley of Sorek, whose name was Delilah.

And the lords of the Philistines came up to her, and said to her, Entice him, and see in what his great strength lays, and by what means we may prevail against him, that we may bind him to afflict him. And we will give thee every o

And Delilah said to Samson, Tell me, I pray thee, in what thy great strength lays, and with what thou might be bound to afflict thee.

Now she had an ambush abiding in the inner chamber. And she said to him, The Philistines are upon thee, Samson. And he broke the withes, as a string of tow is broken when it touches the fire. So his strength was not known.

And Delilah said to Samson, Behold, thou have mocked me, and told me lies. Now tell me, I pray thee, with what thou might be bound.

So Delilah took new ropes, and bound him with it, and said to him, The Philistines are upon thee, Samson. And the ambushment was abiding in the inner chamber. And he broke them off his arms like a thread.

And Delilah said to Samson, Until now thou have mocked me, and told me lies. Tell me with what thou might be bound. And he said to her, If thou weave the seven locks of my head with the web.

And she fastened it with the pin, and said to him, The Philistines are upon thee, Samson. And he awoke out of his sleep, and plucked away the pin of the beam, and the web.

And she said to him, How can thou say, I love thee, when thy heart is not with me? Thou have mocked me these three times, and have not told me with what thy great strength lays.

And it came to pass, when she pressed him daily with her words, and urged him, that his soul was vexed to death.

And she said, The Philistines are upon thee, Samson. And he awoke out of his sleep, and said, I will go out as at other times, and shake myself free, but he knew not that LORD was departed from him.

And the Philistines laid hold on him, and put out his eyes. And they brought him down to Gaza, and bound him with fetters of brass, and he did grinding in the prison-house.

And it came to pass, when their hearts were merry, that they said, Call for Samson, that he may make sport to us. And they called for Samson out of the prison-house, and he made sport before them. And they set him between the pilla

And Samson called to LORD, and said, O lord LORD, remember me, I pray thee, and strengthen me, I pray thee, only this once, O God, that I may be at once avenged of the Philistines for my two eyes.

And Samson said, Let me die with the Philistines. And he bowed himself with all his might, and the house fell upon the lords, and upon all the people that were in it. So the dead that he killed at his death were more than those tha

And he said to his mother, The eleven hundred [pieces] of silver that were taken from thee, about which thou uttered a curse, and also spoke it in my ears, behold, the silver is with me. I took it. And his mother said, Blessed be m

And he restored the eleven hundred [pieces] of silver to his mother. And his mother said, I verily dedicate the silver to LORD from my hand for my son to make a graven image and a molten image. Now therefore I will restore it to th

And when he restored the money to his mother, his mother took two hundred [pieces] of silver, and gave them to the founder, who made of it a graven image and a molten image. And it was in the house of Micah.

And there was a young man out of Bethlehem-judah, of the family of Judah, who was a Levite, and he sojourned there.

And the man departed out of the city, out of Bethlehem-judah, to sojourn where he could find [a place]. And he came to the hill-country of Ephraim to the house of Micah, as he journeyed.

And the sons of Dan sent of their family five men from their whole number, men of valor, from Zorah, and from Eshtaol, to spy out the land, and to search it. And they said to them, Go, search the land. And they came to the hill-cou

When they were by the house of Micah, they recognized the voice of the young man the Levite. And they turned aside there, and said to him, Who brought thee here? And what are thou doing in this place? And what have thou here?

Then the five men departed, and came to Laish, and saw the people that were in it, how they dwelt in security, according to the manner of the Sidonians, quiet and secure, for there was none in the land possessing authority, that mi

And they came to their brothers to Zorah and Eshtaol. And their brothers said to them, What [say] ye?

And they said, Arise, and let us go up against them, for we have seen the land, and, behold, it is very good, and are ye idle? Be not slothful to go and to enter in to possess the land.

When ye go, ye shall come to a people secure. And the land is large, for God has given it into your hand, a place where there is no want of anything that is on the earth.

And there set forth from there of the family of the Danites, out of Zorah and out of Eshtaol, six hundred men girded with weapons of war.

And they went up, and encamped in Kiriath-jearim, in Judah. Therefore they called that place Mahaneh-dan, to this day. Behold, it is behind Kiriath-jearim.

Then the five men who went to spy out the country of Laish, answered and said to their brothers, Do ye know that there is in these houses an ephod, and teraphim, and a graven image, and a molten image? Now therefore consider what y

And the five men who went to spy out the land went up, and came in there, and took the graven image, and the ephod, and the teraphim, and the molten image. And the priest stood by the entrance of the gate with the six hundred men g

And when these went into Micah's house, and fetched the graven image, the ephod, and the teraphim, and the molten image, the priest said to them, What do ye?

And they said to him, Hold thy peace, lay thy hand upon thy mouth, and go with us, and be to us a father and a priest. Is it better for thee to be priest to the house of one man, or to be priest to a tribe and a family in Israel?

And they cried out to the sons of Dan. And they turned their faces, and said to Micah, What troubles thee that thou come with such a company?

And he said, ye have taken away my gods which I made, and the priest, and have gone away, and what have I more? And how do ye then say to me, What troubles thee?

And there was no deliverer because it was far from Sidon, and they had no dealings with any man, and it was in the valley that lays by Beth-rehob. And they built the city, and dwelt in it.

And they called the name of the city Dan, after the name of Dan their father who was born to Israel. However the name of the city was Laish at first.

And it came to pass in those days, when there was no king in Israel, that there was a certain Levite sojourning on the farther side of the hill-country of Ephraim, who took to him a concubine out of Bethlehem-judah.

And his father-in-law, the damsel's father, retained him, and he abode with him three days. So they ate and drank, and lodged there.

And it came to pass on the fourth day, that they arose early in the morning, and he rose up to depart. And the damsel's father said to his son-in-law, Strengthen thy heart with a morsel of bread, and afterward ye shall go your way.

So they sat down, and ate and drank, both of them together. And the damsel's father said to the man, Be pleased, I pray thee, to tarry all night, and let thy heart be merry.

And he arose early in the morning on the fifth day to depart. And the damsel's father said, Strengthen thy heart, I pray thee, and tarry ye until the day declines. And they ate, both of them.

When they were by Jebus, the day was far spent, and the servant said to his master, Come, I pray thee, and let us turn aside into this city of the Jebusites, and lodge in it.

And, behold, there came an old man from his work out of the field at evening. Now the man was of the hill-country of Ephraim, and he sojourned in Gibeah, but the men of the place were Benjamites.

Yet there is both straw and provender for our donkeys, and there is bread and wine also for me, and for thy handmaid, and for the young man who is with thy servants. There is no want of anything.

So he brought him into his house, and gave the donkeys fodder. And they washed their feet, and ate and drank.

As they were making their hearts merry, behold, the men of the city, certain base fellows, beset the house round about, beating at the door. And they spoke to the master of the house, the old man, saying, Bring forth the man who ca

And the man, the master of the house, went out to them, and said to them, No, my brothers, I pray you, do not so wickedly, seeing that this man has come into my house. Do not this folly.

Behold, here is my daughter a virgin, and his concubine. I will bring them out now, and humble ye them, and do with them what seems good to you, but to this man do not any such folly.

Then the woman came in the dawning of the day, and fell down at the door of the man's house where her lord was, till it was light.

And her lord rose up in the morning, and opened the doors of the house, and went out to go his way, and, behold, the woman his concubine was fallen down at the door of the house, with her hands upon the threshold.

And it was so, that all who saw it said, There was no such deed done nor seen from the day that the sons of Israel came up out of the land of Egypt to this day. Consider it, take counsel, and speak.

Then all the sons of Israel went out. And the congregation was assembled as one man, from Dan even to Beersheba, with the land of Gilead, to LORD at Mizpah.

But now this is the thing which we will do to Gibeah: [We will go up] against it by lot,

and we will take ten men of a hundred throughout all the tribes of Israel, and a hundred of a thousand, and a thousand out of ten thousand, to fetch provision for the people, that they may do, when they come to Gibeah of Benjamin,

And the tribes of Israel sent men through all the tribe of Benjamin, saying, What wickedness is this that has come to pass among you?

And the sons of Benjamin gathered themselves together out of the cities to Gibeah, to go out to battle against the sons of Israel.

And the sons of Benjamin were numbered on that day out of the cities twenty-six thousand men who drew a sword, besides the inhabitants of Gibeah, who were numbered seven hundred chosen men.

Among all this people there were seven hundred chosen men left-handed. Every one could sling stones at a hair-breadth, and not miss.

And the men of Israel went out to battle against Benjamin. And the men of Israel set the battle in array against them at Gibeah.

And the sons of Benjamin came forth out of Gibeah, and destroyed down to the ground of the Israelites on that day twenty-two thousand men.

And Benjamin went forth against them out of Gibeah the second day, and destroyed down to the ground of the sons of Israel again eighteen thousand men. All these drew the sword.

and Phinehas, the son of Eleazar, the son of Aaron, stood before it in those days), saying, Shall I yet again go out to battle against the sons of Benjamin my brother, or shall I cease? And LORD said, Go up, for tomorrow I will del

And the sons of Israel went up against the sons of Benjamin on the third day, and set themselves in array against Gibeah, as at other times.

And the sons of Benjamin went out against the people, and were drawn away from the city. And they began to smite and kill of the people as at other times, in the highways, of which one goes up to Bethel, and the other to Gibeah, in

And the sons of Benjamin said, They are smitten down before us as at the first. But the sons of Israel said, Let us flee, and draw them away from the city to the highways.

And all the men of Israel rose up out of their place, and set themselves in array at Baal-tamar, and the ambushment of Israel broke forth out of their place, even out of Maareh-geba.

And there came opposite Gibeah ten thousand chosen men out of all Israel, and the battle was severe, but they knew not that evil was close upon them.

Now the appointed sign between the men of Israel and the ambushment was, that they should make a great cloud of smoke rise up out of the city.

But when the cloud began to arise up out of the city in a pillar of smoke, the Benjamites looked behind them, and, behold, the whole of the city went up [in smoke] to heaven.

Therefore they turned their backs before the men of Israel to the way of the wilderness. But the battle followed hard after them, and those who came out of the cities destroyed them in the midst of it.

They enclosed the Benjamites round about, [and] chased them, [and] trod them down at [their] resting-place, as far as opposite Gibeah toward the sunrise.

And it came to pass on the morrow, that the people rose early, and built there an altar, and offered burnt-offerings and peace-offerings.

What shall we do for wives for those who remain, since we have sworn by LORD that we will not give them of our daughters to wives?

And Benjamin returned at that time, and they gave them the women whom they had saved alive of the women of Jabesh-gilead. And even so they were not sufficient for them.

Then the elders of the congregation said, What shall we do for wives for those who remain, since the women are destroyed out of Benjamin?

And they said, There must be an inheritance for those who are escaped of Benjamin, that a tribe be not blotted out from Israel.

And they commanded the sons of Benjamin, saying, Go and lay in wait in the vineyards,