Log inSign up

Favor · the best way to learn the Bible

Judges 13 Bible study: A Nazirite from the womb

This round has no cry to the LORD, yet his angel came with a son who would "begin to save Israel" (13:5). Judges records no vow for Samson: he is a Nazirite "from the womb to the day of his death" (13:7). And the angel's "Why do you ask about my name" (13:18) is, in Hebrew, word for word what Jacob heard at Peniel (Genesis 32:29).

Favor is a Bible study app that explains every chapter as you read: the words behind the words, what most readers miss, and how it all leads to Jesus.

Start your free weekWhat is Favor?

First week free, then $10 a month per person

“But his wife said to him, “If the LORD were pleased to kill us, he wouldn’t have received a burnt offering and a meal offering at our hand, and he wouldn’t have shown us all these things, nor would he have told us such things as these at this time.””
Judges 13:23 · World English Bible

Try it · Did you catch it?

“In Judges 13, when the angel came the second time, Manoah wasn't with his wife.”

Is that in Judges 13, or not? Make your call.

What's really going on

Again, and this time no cry

In the text

Samson's round opens the way others have: "The children of Israel again did that which was evil in the LORD’s sight; and the LORD delivered them into the hand of the Philistines forty years" (13:1). The earlier rounds named eight years (3:8), eighteen (3:14), twenty (4:3), seven (6:1) and eighteen (10:8); this one names forty. In those rounds the book went on to say that "the children of Israel cried to the LORD" (3:9, 3:15, 4:3, 6:6, 10:10). This chapter doesn't say it. The last time Judges says Israel cried to the LORD is 10:10, and there the LORD answered, "Therefore I will save you no more" (10:13). What chapter 13 tells next is a man of Zorah whose "wife was barren, and childless" (13:2) (tap barren), and the LORD's angel coming to her with a son who "shall begin to save Israel out of the hand of the Philistines" (13:5) (tap save).

Where it leads to Jesus

Named among the faithful

In the text

Judges 13:24leads toHebrews 12:2

"The woman bore a son and named him Samson" (13:24). Hebrews names him: "the time would fail me if I told of Gideon, Barak, Samson, Jephthah, David, Samuel, and the prophets" (Hebrews 11:32). It gives only his name, not an act. Of everyone in its list it says, "These all, having been commended for their faith, didn’t receive the promise" (Hebrews 11:39), and it calls its readers to run "looking to Jesus, the author and perfecter of faith" (Hebrews 12:2).

Honest questions

Questions people ask about Judges 13

That was a taste

The rest of Judges 13 is waiting in Favor

  • A Nazirite, from the womb
  • "What is your name?"
  • Begin
  • The same question, word for word, at Peniel
  • "No razor"
  • His wife's answer
  • 14 questions as you read
  • 11 more Hebrew words
  • A short check at the end
  • Your notes, saved as you go
Start your free week

Favor reads the Bible in order, so you'll reach Judges 13 with everything before it in view. First week free, then $10 a month per person.

The Hebrew word behind it

נָזִירnazirsay na-ZEER

Brown-Driver-Briggs: "one consecrated, devoted". Strong's: "separate, i.e. consecrated (as prince, a Nazirite)". "The child shall be a Nazirite to God from the womb" (13:5), and in his mother's telling, "from the womb to the day of his death" (13:7). In Numbers 6 it is someone who takes "the vow of a Nazirite, to separate himself to the LORD" (Numbers 6:2) for a set time (Numbers 6:5, 6:13); Samson makes no vow in this chapter. Judges uses the word three times, all of Samson (13:5, 13:7, 16:17), and he says it of himself: "I have been a Nazirite to God from my mother’s womb" (16:17). The Hebrew Bible uses it sixteen times.

For your group

Judges 13 Bible study questions

  1. 1Manoah prayed, "teach us what we should do to the child who shall be born" (13:8). Who has God put in your care right now, and what would you ask him to teach you about them?
  2. 2When Manoah said, "We shall surely die", his wife answered from what the LORD had already done (13:22-23). What has God already done in your life that you could hold up against a fear you're carrying?
  3. 3The angel wouldn't give his name: "Why do you ask about my name, since it is incomprehensible?" (13:18). How do you live with the things about God you can't fully understand?

Leading a group? In Favor, everyone reads Judges 13 during the week and answers these questions privately. Answers stay sealed until you meet, then appear together, and you can print the week's sheet.

Start a Bible study
Free quizTake the Judges 13 quizQuestions with the answers explained, for your group or your familyFree printablePrint this Bible studyOne page: the chapter, the verse, and the questions with room to write

The best way to learn the Bible

Favor opens up every chapter as you read.

Favor is a Bible study app for your phone or computer. It takes you through the Bible one chapter at a time, a few minutes a day, and shows you what's really there: the words behind the words, the moments most people miss, and how the whole story fits together. For you. For everyone.

  • Every chapter explains itself

    As you read, short notes open up what's really going on, the details most readers walk past, and the honest questions people ask.

  • The Hebrew and Greek behind it

    Tap a highlighted word to see the original, how to say it, and what it means, checked against the original-language texts.

  • Every page leads to Jesus

    Watch promises made in Genesis kept in Jesus. Each line lights up on your map as you read.

  • Better together

    Read on your own, or start a Bible study with friends, family or your church. Answers stay sealed until you meet, then appear together.

  1. 1

    Start your free week

    Sign up in a minute with your email.

  2. 2

    Read a few minutes a day

    Each chapter opens itself up as you go. Tap what you're curious about.

  3. 3

    Bring your people, if you like

    Send one link. Everyone reads the same chapter, then meets to talk.

Start your free week

First week free, then $10 a month per person

Questions

What is Favor?

Favor is a Bible study app that explains every chapter as you read: the Hebrew and Greek behind the words, the details most readers miss, and how each part of the Bible leads to Jesus. Read on your own, or start a Bible study with friends, family or your church.

How much does it cost?

Your first week is free. After that it's $10 a month per person, the same for everyone, including groups and churches. There are no tiers and nothing extra to unlock.

Can I read Judges 13 straight away?

Favor takes the Bible as one story, in order, so you'll reach Judges 13 with everything that leads up to it in view. Start from Genesis, or meet Jesus first in the Gospels. You can read the text of any chapter in Favor's Look up whenever you like.

Do I need a group?

No. Many people read on their own. If you'd like to read with others, start a Bible study and share one link. Everyone's answers stay private until you meet.

I've never really read the Bible. Is this for me?

Yes. Favor starts where you are and explains as it goes. The questions along the way aren't marked right or wrong: you answer, then see what the text shows.

Which Bible does Favor use?

The World English Bible, a modern, readable translation in the public domain. God's name appears as "the LORD", as in most English Bibles.

Is Favor tied to a church?

No. Favor is non-denominational. Where Christians read a passage differently, it shows the main views side by side and doesn't pick one.

Start with Judges 13

The best way to learn the Bible. For you. For everyone.

There's a seat for you at the table.

Start your free week

First week free, then $10 a month per person · Log in

All Bible study guides

Scripture quotations are from the World English Bible, which is in the public domain. Hebrew and Greek words are checked against the original-language texts and public-domain lexicons. What we believe · Favor home