Judges 13:25
in Judges 13And the Spirit of the LORD began to stir him at Mahaneh-dan, between Zorah and Eshtaol.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
And the Spirit of Jehovah began to move him in Mahaneh-dan, between Zorah and Eshtaol.
KJV
And the Spirit of the Lord began to move him at times in the camp of Dan between Zorah and Eshtaol.
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This verse in Judges 13
Commentary
10 notes on this verseAnd why should i speak of all one by one? Samson, born by the divine promise, had the Spirit accompanying him, for we read: "The Lord blessed him, and the Spirit of the Lord began to be with him in the camp." And so foreshadowing the future mystery, he demanded a wife of the aliens, which, as it is written, his father and mother knew not of, because it was from the Lord.
This site's exposition
the woman bare a son
on Judges 13:24-25
The name Samson stands close to the Hebrew word for sun, and the town of Beth-shemesh, the house of the sun, sits a short way along the same valley from Zorah. The Spirit of the Lord comes on a man seven times in Judges, at 3:10, 6:34 and 11:29, and then four times on this one man at 13:25, 14:6, 14:19 and 15:14. The wording here is that the Spirit began to move him at times, which is intermittent rather than settled, and it describes the start of a life rather than a single act. Zorah and Eshtaol close the account as well as open it, since 16:31 buries him between those two towns in his father's grave.
The record, by era
The Church Fathers2 voices
Above, you read that "the Lord blessed him, and the Spirit of the Lord began to go with him." Farther on it is said, "And the Spirit of the Lord came upon him." Again he says, "If I be shaven, my strength will depart from me." After he was shaven, see what the Scripture says: "The Lord," it says, "departed from him."4You see, then, that he who went with him, himself departed from him. The same is, then, the Lord, who is the Spirit of the Lord, as also the apostle says: "The Lord is the Spirit, now where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty."
The strength which Samson possessed, dearly beloved, came from the grace of God rather than by nature, for if he had been naturally strong his power would not have been taken away when his hair was cut. Where, then, was that most powerful strength, except …
The Puritans and the Awakening3 voices
To move - That is, to stir him up to heroical designs; to shew forth its power in the frame of his mind, and in the strength of his body, discovered to his neighbours in extraordinary actions; to encline his heart to great attempts for the help and deliverance of God's people, to give some essays of it to his brethren, and to seek all opportunities for it.
And the Spirit of the Lord began to move him at times in the camp of Dan,....
They did evil, as they had done, in the sight of the Lord, and then God delivered them, as he had done, into the hands of their enemies. If there had been no sin, there would have needed no Saviour; but sin was suffered to abound, that grace might much more abound.
3 more voices on this verse
The Puritans and the Awakening1 voice
This was an evidence that the Lord blessed him. Where God gives his blessing he gives his Spirit to qualify for the blessing. Those are blessed indeed in whom the Spirit of grace begins to work betimes, in the days of their childhood.
The Nineteenth Century2 voices
A commentator
Albert Barnes1798–1870
Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869)
In the camp of Dan - Rather, “Mahaneh-Dan” (see the margin). The impulses of the Spirit of the Lord perhaps took the shape of burning indignation at the subjection of his brethren, and thoughts and plans for their deliverance, but especially showed themselves in feats of strength (Jdg 14:6; Jdg 15:14; Jdg 16:30. Compare Act 7:23-25).
The Spirit of the Lord began to move him - He felt the degrading bondage of his countrymen, and a strong desire to accomplish something for their deliverance. These feelings and motions he had from the Divine Spirit. Camp of Dan - Probably the place where his parents dwelt; for they were Danites, and the place is supposed to have its name from its being the spot where the Danites stopped when they sent some men of their company to rob Micah of his teraphim, etc. See Jdg 18:13-20. As he had these influences between Zorah and Eshtaol, it is evident that this was while he dwelt at home with his parents; for Zorah was the place where his father dwelt; see Jdg 13:2. Thus God began, from his infancy, to qualify him for the work to which he had called him.
The words behind it
10 Hebrew wordsEvery Hebrew word of this verse in the order it stands, with what it means and the door to its own study. The last column counts the times a word stands in the whole Bible: the rarer the word, the more the places it appears belong together.
| Hebrew | Sound | Meaning | Word study | In the Bible |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| וַתָּ֙חֶל֙ | vatachel | and it began | H2490 → | 143 times |
| ר֣וּחַ | ruach | [the] spirit of | H7307 → | 378 times |
| יְהוָ֔ה | yahweh | Yahweh | H3068 → | 6520 times |
| לְפַעֲמ֖וֹ | lefaamo | to stir him | H6470 → | |
| בְּמַחֲנֵה־ | bemachaneh- | in Mahaneh | H4265 → | 4 times |
| דָ֑ן | dan | Dan | H4265 → | 4 times |
| בֵּ֥ין | bein | between | H996 → | 407 times |
| צָרְעָ֖ה | tzareah | Zorah | H6881 → | 10 times |
| וּבֵ֥ין | uvein | and between | H996 → | 407 times |
| אֶשְׁתָּאֹֽל׃ פ | ʾeshtaol | Eshtaol | H847 → | 7 times |
וַתָּ֙חֶל֙and it began
vatachelH2490 →143 times
ר֣וּחַ[the] spirit of
ruachH7307 →378 times
יְהוָ֔הYahweh
yahwehH3068 →6520 times
לְפַעֲמ֖וֹto stir him
lefaamoH6470 →
בְּמַחֲנֵה־in Mahaneh
bemachaneh-H4265 →4 times
דָ֑ןDan
danH4265 →4 times
בֵּ֥יןbetween
beinH996 →407 times
צָרְעָ֖הZorah
tzareahH6881 →10 times
וּבֵ֥יןand between
uveinH996 →407 times
אֶשְׁתָּאֹֽל׃ פEshtaol
ʾeshtaolH847 →7 times
A shaded row is a word that stands 400 times or fewer in the Bible.
The walk
8 stopsEach card is a verse this one points to, and under it the verses that one points to in turn. Where several paths arrive at the same place, that place is listed first: the text keeps returning to it.
Through
John 3:34For the One whom God has sent speaks the words of God, for God gives the Spirit without limit.
it leads to
- Acts 10:38
how God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and with power, and how Jesus went around doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil, because God was with Him.
- Matthew 12:18
“Here is My Servant, whom I have chosen, My beloved, in whom My soul delights. I will put My Spirit on Him, and He will proclaim justice to the nations.
- John 15:26
When the Advocate comes, whom I will send to you from the Father—the Spirit of truth who proceeds from the Father—He will testify about Me.
- John 5:26
For as the Father has life in Himself, so also He has granted the Son to have life in Himself.
- Colossians 2:9
For in Christ all the fullness of the Deity dwells in bodily form.
- Acts 10:38
Through
Judges 6:34So the Spirit of the LORD came upon Gideon, who blew the ram’s horn and rallied the Abiezrites behind him.
it leads to
- 1 Chronicles 12:18
Then the Spirit came upon Amasai, the chief of the Thirty, and he said: “We are yours, O David! We are with you, O son of Jesse! Peace, peace to you, and peace to…
Reached by 2 separate paths from here.
- Judges 3:10
The Spirit of the LORD came upon him, and he became Israel’s judge and went out to war. And the LORD delivered Cushan-rishathaim king of Aram into the hand of Othniel, who prevailed against…
Reached by 2 separate paths from here.
- 2 Chronicles 24:20
Then the Spirit of God came upon Zechariah son of Jehoiada the priest, who stood up before the people and said to them, “This is what God says: ‘Why do you transgress the commandments…
- 1 Chronicles 12:18
Where this verse is studied
On this page
About Judges
This page draws on 9 works. Open the list of works
This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; Albert Barnes, Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869); Ambrose of Milan, On the Holy Spirit 2, Introduction, 5; Ambrose of Milan, On the Holy Spirit 2.1.17-18; Caesarius of Arles, SERMON 118.2; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763); John Wesley, Explanatory Notes upon the Old Testament; Keil and Delitzsch, Biblical Commentary on the Old Testament: Joshua, Judges, Ruth and Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible.