Daily Text and Bible Reading: Saturday, March 21 [Press play below]

12.1 Then the men of Ephraim were summoned, and they crossed over to Zaphon and said to Jephthah: “Why did you not call us to go with you when you crossed over to fight against the Ammonites? We will burn your house down with you in it.”
12.2 But Jephthah said to them: “Along with my people, I was engaged in a great conflict with the Ammonites. I did call to you for help, but you did not save me from their hand.
12.3 When I saw that you would not save me, then I decided to risk my life and go against the Ammonites, and Jehovah handed them over to me. So why have you come today to fight against me?”
12.4 Jephthah then gathered all the men of Gilead, and they fought Ephraim; the men of Gilead defeated Ephraim, who had said: “You are only fugitives from Ephraim, you Gileadites in Ephraim and Manasseh.”
12.5 Gilead captured the fords of the Jordan ahead of Ephraim; and when the men of Ephraim were trying to escape, they would say, “Let me cross over”; then the men of Gilead would ask each one, “Are you an Ephraimite?” When he would reply, “No!”
12.6 they would say to him, “Please say Shibboleth.” But he would say, “Sibboleth,” as he was unable to say the word correctly. Then they would seize him and slay him at the fords of the Jordan. So 42,000 Ephraimites fell at that time.
12.7 Jephthah judged Israel for six years, after which Jephthah the Gileadite died and was buried in his city in Gilead.
12.8 Ibzan from Bethlehem judged Israel after him.
12.9 He had 30 sons and 30 daughters. He sent his daughters to marry men outside his clan, and he brought in 30 women to marry his sons. He judged Israel for seven years.
12.10 Then Ibzan died and was buried in Bethlehem.
12.11 After him Elon the Zebulunite judged Israel; he judged Israel for ten years.
12.12 Then Elon the Zebulunite died and was buried in Aijalon in the land of Zebulun.
12.13 After him Abdon the son of Hillel the Pirathonite judged Israel.
12.14 He had 40 sons and 30 grandsons who rode on 70 donkeys. He judged Israel for eight years.
12.15 Then Abdon the son of Hillel the Pirathonite died and was buried in Pirathon in the land of Ephraim in the mountain of the Amalekite.
13.1 Again the Israelites did what was bad in Jehovah’s eyes, and Jehovah gave them into the hand of the Philistines for 40 years.
13.2 Meanwhile, there was a man of Zorah of the family of the Danites, whose name was Manoah. His wife was barren and childless.
13.3 In time Jehovah’s angel appeared to the woman and said to her: “Look, you are barren and childless. But you will conceive and give birth to a son.
13.4 Now be careful not to drink wine or anything alcoholic, and do not eat anything unclean.
13.5 Look! You will conceive and give birth to a son, and no razor should touch his head, because the child will be a Nazirite of God from birth, and he will take the lead in saving Israel out of the hand of the Philistines.”
13.6 Then the woman went and told her husband: “A man of the true God came to me, and his appearance was like an angel of the true God, very awe-inspiring. I did not ask him where he was from, nor did he tell me his name.
13.7 But he said to me, ‘Look! You will conceive and give birth to a son. Now do not drink wine or anything alcoholic, and do not eat anything unclean, because the child will be a Nazirite of God from birth until the day of his death.’”
13.8 Manoah pleaded with Jehovah and said: “Pardon me, Jehovah. Please let the man of the true God whom you just sent come again to instruct us about what we should do with the child who will be born.”
13.9 So the true God listened to Manoah, and the angel of the true God came again to the woman while she was sitting in the field; her husband Manoah was not with her.
13.10 The woman quickly ran and told her husband: “Look! The man who came to me the other day has appeared to me.”
13.11 Then Manoah got up and went with his wife. He came to the man and said to him: “Are you the man who spoke to my wife?” He said: “I am.”
13.12 Then Manoah said: “May your words come true! What will be the child’s manner of life, and what will be his work?”
13.13 So Jehovah’s angel said to Manoah: “Your wife should keep herself from everything that I mentioned to her.
13.14 She should not eat anything that the grapevine produces, she should not drink wine or anything alcoholic, and she should not eat anything unclean. Everything that I commanded her, let her observe.”
13.15 Manoah now said to Jehovah’s angel: “Please stay, and let us prepare a young goat for you.”
13.16 But Jehovah’s angel said to Manoah: “If I stay, I will not eat your food; but if you wish to present a burnt offering to Jehovah, you may offer it up.” Manoah did not know that he was Jehovah’s angel.
13.17 Then Manoah said to Jehovah’s angel: “What is your name, so that we may honor you when your word comes true?”
13.18 However, Jehovah’s angel said to him: “Why are you asking about my name, seeing that it is a wonderful one?”
13.19 Then Manoah took the young goat and the grain offering and offered them on the rock to Jehovah. And He was doing something amazing while Manoah and his wife were looking on.
13.20 As the flame ascended from the altar heavenward, Jehovah’s angel ascended in the flame from the altar while Manoah and his wife were looking on. At once they fell with their faces to the ground.
13.21 Jehovah’s angel did not appear again to Manoah and his wife. Then Manoah realized that he was Jehovah’s angel.
13.22 Manoah then said to his wife: “We are sure to die, because it is God whom we have seen.”
13.23 But his wife said to him: “If Jehovah wanted to put us to death, he would not have accepted a burnt offering and a grain offering from our hand, he would not have shown us all these things, and he would not have told us any of these things.”
13.24 The woman later gave birth to a son and named him Samson; and as the boy grew, Jehovah continued to bless him.
13.25 In time Jehovah’s spirit started to impel him in Mahaneh-dan, between Zorah and Eshtaol.