The Lord's messenger said to him, "You should not ask me my name, because you cannot comprehend it."

But his wife said to him, If the Lord was purposing our death, he would not have taken our burned offering and our meal offering, or have given us such orders about the child.

And the woman bare a son, and called his name Samson: and the child grew, and the LORD blessed him.

But his father and mother said to him, "Certainly you can find a wife among your relatives or among all our people! You should not have to go and get a wife from the uncircumcised Philistines." But Samson said to his father, "Get her for me, because she is the right one for me."

And Samson's wife wept before him, and she said, "You must hate me; you do not love me. You told the riddle to {my people}, but you have not explained [it] to me." He said to her, "I have not explained [it] to my father and mother. [Why] should I explain it to you?"

And Samson said of them, I shall be more blameless, this time, than the Philistines, - though I should do them a mischief.

And Samson said unto them, "Should ye do so? For I will surely be avenged of you; and then I will cease."

And Delilah will say to Samson, Announce now to me in what is thy great strength, and in what thou shalt be bound to humble thee.

And Samson said unto her, "If men bound me with seven ropes of fresh sinews that were never dried, I should be weak and as another man."

And Delilah will say to Samson, Behold, thou deceivest me, and thou wilt speak to me lies: this time announce to me now in what thou shalt be bound.

And he said, "If I were bound with new ropes that never were occupied, then should I be weak, and as another man."

And Delilah will say to Samson, Till now thou deceivedst me, and thou wilt speak to me lies: announce to me in what thou shalt be bound. And he will say to her, If thou shalt weave the seven braids of my head with the warp.

so he told her all his heart, and said to her - No, razor, hath come on my head, for, one separate unto God, have I been, from my birth, - if I were shaven, then would depart from me my strength, and I should become weak, and be as any other man.

And Micah will say to him, Whence shalt thou come? and the Levite will say to him, I am from the House of Bread, of Judah, and I go to sojourn where I shall find.

They replied, "Let's get going and attack them. We've scouted out the land and look! it's a very good one. Why should we sit still? We can't wait to go back, invade, and take over the land.

The five men who had gone to scout out the land of Laish told their brothers, “Did you know that there are an ephod, household gods, and a carved image overlaid with silver in these houses? Now think about what you should do.”

And the descendants of Dan said to him, "You should not let your voice be heard among us, so that {ill-tempered men} {will not attack you}, {and take your life} and the lives of your household."

And, when the man rose up to go - he and his concubine and his young man, - his father-in-law, the father of the damsel, said to him, Come now, see! the day hath sunk down towards evening, come now! tarry the night; lo! the day goeth down, tarry the night here, and let thy heart be glad, so shall ye rise early to-morrow for your journey, and thou shalt go thy way to thine own home.

But his master said to him, "We should not stop at a foreign city where non-Israelites live. We will travel on to Gibeah."

The old man said, "Peace be with thee, all that thou lackest shalt thou find with me: onely abide not in the streets all night."

The Israelites went up to Bethel and asked God, "Who should lead the charge against the Benjaminites?" The Lord said, "Judah should lead."

The {Israelites} went up and wept before Yahweh until evening and inquired of Yahweh, saying, "Should we again draw near from the battle against the descendants of Benjamin, our relatives?" And Yahweh said, "Go up against them."

and Phinehas son of Eleazar, son of Aaron, [was] standing {before it} [to minister] in those days), saying, "Should we go out once more to battle against the descendants of Benjamin our relatives, or should we stop?" And Yahweh said, "Go up tomorrow; I will give them into your hand."

Now there was an appointed sign between the men of Israel and the liers in wait, that they should make a great flame with smoke rise up out of the city.

the men of Israel should turn in battle. Now Benjamin had begun to smite and kill about thirty men of Israel; they said, "Surely they are smitten down before us, as in the first battle."

And said, O LORD God of Israel, why is this come to pass in Israel, that there should be to day one tribe lacking in Israel?

And the children of Israel asked, "Who are they among all the tribes of Israel that came not with the congregation unto the LORD?" For they had made a great oath concerning them that came not up to the LORD to Mizpeh, saying that they should surely die.

What should we do about wives for the survivors? We’ve sworn to the Lord not to give them any of our daughters as wives.”

This is what you should do: Completely destroy every male, as well as every female who has slept with a man.”

So the elders of the congregation said, "What should we do for the remaining [ones] for wives, since the women from Benjamin have been destroyed?"

The remnant of Benjamin must be preserved. An entire Israelite tribe should not be wiped out.

And it shall be, when their fathers or their brethren come unto us to complain, that we will say unto them, Be favourable unto them for our sakes: because we reserved not to each man his wife in the war: for ye did not give unto them at this time, that ye should be guilty.

Naomi said to her two daughters-in-law, "Listen to me! Each of you should return to your mother's home! May the Lord show you the same kind of devotion that you have shown to your deceased husbands and to me!

Then said Naomi - Go back, my daughters! wherefore should ye journey with me? Have I, yet, sons in my womb, that they should become your, husbands?

Turn again, my daughters, go your way; for I am too old to have an husband. If I should say, I have hope, if I should have an husband also to night, and should also bear sons;

Would ye wait for them till they should be grown? would ye stay for them from having husbands? nay, my daughters; for it grieveth me much for your sakes, that the hand of the LORD has gone out against me.

And Ruth will say, Thou shalt not urge upon me to forsake thee, to turn back from after thee: for where thou shalt go, I will go; and where thou shalt lodge, I will lodge: thy people my people, and thy God my God:

Where thou shalt die, I will die, and there will I be buried: thus will Jehovah do to me, and thus will he add, for death shall separate between me and between thee.

And she said to them, "You should not call me Naomi; call me Mara, for Shaddai has {caused me to be very bitter}.

I was full when I departed, but, empty, am I brought back of Yahweh, - wherefore should ye call me Naomi, when, Yahweh, hath given answer against me, and, the Almighty, hath crushed me?

And Boaz said unto Ruth - Hearest thou not, my daughter? Do not go to glean in any other field, neither indeed shalt thou pass on, from hence, - but, here, shalt thou keep fast by my maidens:

Then she kneeled face downward, bowing to the ground, and said to him, “Why have I found favor in your eyes that you should notice me, when I am a foreigner?”

And Ruth the Moabitess said, He said unto me also, Thou shalt keep fast by my young men, until they have ended all my harvest.

Naomi then said to her daughter-in-law Ruth, "It is good, my daughter, that you should go out to work with his female servants. That way you will not be harmed, which could happen in another field."

Now Naomi her mother-in-law said to her, "My daughter, should I not seek for you security that [things] may be good for you?

And wash thou and anoint thyself, and put thy garments upon thee, and go down to the threshing-floor: thou shalt not make thyself known to the man till his finishing to eat and to drink.

And it shall be, when he lieth down, that thou shalt mark the place where he shall lie, and thou shalt go in, and uncover his feet, and lay thee down; and he will tell thee what thou shalt do.

And she will say to her, All that thou shalt say to me, I will do.

Now, therefore, my daughter, do not fear, whatsoever thou shalt say, I will do for thee, - for all the gate of my people doth know, that, a virtuous woman, thou art.

And said thereto, "These six measures of barley gave he me and said, 'Thou shalt not go empty unto thy mother-in-law.'"

And she will say, Sit, my daughter, till thou shalt know how the word will fall: for the man will not rest till he finished the word this day.

I thought I should inform you: Buy it back in the presence of those seated here and in the presence of the elders of my people. If you want to redeem it, do so. But if you do not want to redeem it, tell me so that I will know, because there isn’t anyone other than you to redeem it, and I am next after you.”

“I want to redeem it,” he answered.

And he that had the right of redemption said, I cannot redeem it for myself, lest I mar mine own inheritance. Redeem thou for thyself what I should redeem, for I cannot redeem it.

So Boaz took Ruth and she became his wife; and he went in to her, and the Lord made her with child and she gave birth to a son.

And Naomi took the child, and laid it in her bosom, and became nurse unto it.

And the women who were her neighbours gave it a name, saying, Naomi has a child; and they gave him the name of Obed: he is the father of Jesse, the father of David.

So Elkanah her husband said to her - Hannah! wherefore shouldst thou weep? and wherefore wilt thou not eat? and wherefore should thy heart be sad? Am, I, not better to thee, than ten sons?

And she vowed a vow, and said, O LORD of hosts, if thou wilt indeed look on the affliction of thine handmaid, and remember me, and not forget thine handmaid, but wilt give unto thine handmaid a man child, then I will give him unto the LORD all the days of his life, and there shall no rasor come upon his head.

Now the time came when Hannah, being with child, gave birth to a son; and she gave him the name Samuel, Because, she said, I made a prayer to the Lord for him.

But Hannah went not up; for she said unto her husband, I will not go up until the child be weaned, and then I will bring him, that he may appear before the LORD, and there abide for ever.

And when she had weaned him, she took him up with her, with three bullocks, and one ephah of flour, and a bottle of wine, and brought him unto the house of the LORD in Shiloh: and the child was young.

And they slew a bullock, and brought the child to Eli.

For this child I prayed; and the LORD hath given me my petition which I asked of him:

And Elkanah went to Ramah to his house. And the child did minister unto the LORD before Eli the priest.

Also before they will burn the fat and the boy of the priest came and said to the man sacrificing, Thou shalt give flesh to roast for the priest; and he will not take from thee flesh boiled but living.

And if any man said unto him, Let them not fail to burn the fat presently, and then take as much as thy soul desireth; then he would answer him, Nay; but thou shalt give it me now: and if not, I will take it by force.

But Samuel ministered before the LORD, being a child, girded with a linen ephod.

And every year Eli gave Elkanah and his wife a blessing, saying, May the Lord give you offspring by this woman in exchange for the child you have given to the Lord. And they went back to their house.

And the LORD visited Hannah, so that she conceived, and bare three sons and two daughters. And the child Samuel grew before the LORD.

So he said to them, Wherefore should ye do such things as these? for I keep hearing of your wicked doings, from all these people.

And the child Samuel grew on, and was in favour both with the LORD, and also with men.

Wherefore the LORD God of Israel saith, I said indeed that thy house, and the house of thy father, should walk before me for ever: but now the LORD saith, Be it far from me; for them that honour me I will honour, and they that despise me shall be lightly esteemed.

And thou shalt see an enemy in my habitation, in all the wealth which God shall give Israel: and there shall not be an old man in thine house for ever.

And the child Samuel ministered unto the LORD before Eli. And the word of the LORD was precious in those days; there was no open vision.

And the LORD called Samuel again the third time. And he arose and went to Eli, and said, Here am I; for thou didst call me. And Eli perceived that the LORD had called the child.

Therefore Eli said unto Samuel, Go, lie down: and it shall be, if he call thee, that thou shalt say, Speak, LORD; for thy servant heareth. So Samuel went and lay down in his place.

You should tell him that I am about to judge his house forever because of the sin that he knew about. For his sons were cursing God, and he did not rebuke them.

And he said, What is the thing that the LORD hath said to thee? I pray thee hide it not from me: God do so to thee, and more also, if thou shalt hide any thing from me, of all the things that he said to thee.

And his daughter in law, Phinehas' wife, was with child, near to be delivered: and when she heard the tidings that the ark of God was taken, and that her father in law and her husband were dead, she bowed herself and travailed; for her pains came upon her.

And about the time of her death, and they standing by will speak to her, Thou shalt not be afraid, for thou broughtest forth a son. And she answered not, and set not her heart

And she named the child Ichabod, saying, The glory is departed from Israel: because the ark of God was taken, and because of her father in law and her husband.

The men of Ashdod saw [that] it [was] so, and they said, "The ark of the God of Israel should not remain with us, because his hand [is] harsh on us and on Dagon our god!"

So they called all the Philistine rulers together and asked, “What should we do with the ark of Israel’s God?”

“The ark of Israel’s God should be moved to Gath,” they replied. So the men of Ashdod moved the ark.

and [the] Philistines called to the priests and to those who practiced divination, saying, "What should we do with the ark of Yahweh? Inform us how we should send it to its place."

And they said, "What [is] the guilt offering that we should return to him?" They said, "The number of the rulers of [the] Philistines [is] five. Therefore send five gold tumors and five gold mice, because one plague [was] on all of you and all your rulers.

You should make images of the sores and images of the mice that are destroying the land. You should honor the God of Israel. Perhaps he will release his grip on you, your gods, and your land.

Why should you harden your hearts like [the] Egyptians and Pharaoh hardened their heart? Is it not just like when he dealt with them wantonly so that they sent them away and they left?

Then take the ark of the Lord and place it on the cart, and put in a chest beside it the gold objects you are sending to him as a guilt offering. You should then send it on its way.

But keep an eye on it. If it should go up by the way of its own border to Beth Shemesh, then he has brought this great calamity on us. But if that is not the case, then we will know that it was not his hand that struck us; rather, it just happened to us by accident."

The men of Beth-shemesh asked, “Who is able to stand in the presence of this holy Lord God? Who should the ark go to from here?”

And the LORD said unto Samuel, Hearken unto the voice of the people in all that they say unto thee: for they have not rejected thee, but they have rejected me, that I should not reign over them.

Now therefore hearken unto their voice: howbeit thou shalt protest solemnly unto them, and shalt show them the manner of the king that shall reign over them.

And he said unto him, Behold now, there is in this city a man of God, and he is an honourable man; all that he saith cometh surely to pass: now let us go thither; peradventure he can shew us our way that we should go.

So Saul said to his servant, "Look, we may go, but what should we bring to the man? For the bread [is] gone from our bags, and there [is] no present to bring to the man of God. What [do we have] with us?"

The servant went on to answer Saul, "Look, I happen to have in my hand a quarter shekel of silver. I will give it to the man of God and he will tell us where we should go."

To morrow about this time I will send thee a man out of the land of Benjamin, and thou shalt anoint him to be captain over my people Israel, that he may save my people out of the hand of the Philistines: for I have looked upon my people, because their cry is come unto me.

And Samuel will say to the cook, Thou shalt give the portion which I gave to thee, which I said to thee, Put it with thee.

When thou art departed from me to day, then thou shalt find two men by Rachel's sepulchre in the border of Benjamin at Zelzah; and they will say unto thee, The asses which thou wentest to seek are found: and, lo, thy father hath left the care of the asses, and sorroweth for you, saying, What shall I do for my son?

Then shalt thou go on forward from thence, and thou shalt come to the plain of Tabor, and there shall meet thee three men going up to God to Bethel, one carrying three kids, and another carrying three loaves of bread, and another carrying a bottle of wine:

And they will salute thee, and give thee two loaves of bread; which thou shalt receive of their hands.