Now there was a certain man from Zorah, of the family of the Danites, whose name was Manoah; and his wife was barren and had no children.
Parallel translations
- WEB There was a certain man of Zorah, of the family of the Danites, whose name was Manoah; and his wife was barren, and childless.
- KJV And there was a certain man of Zorah, of the family of the Danites, whose name was Manoah; and his wife was barren, and bare not.
- BSB Now there was a man from Zorah named Manoah, from the clan of the Danites, whose wife was barren and had no children.
- NASB And there was a man of Zorah, of the family of the Danites, whose name was Manoah; and his wife was infertile and had not given birth to any children.
- NLT In those days a man named Manoah from the tribe of Dan lived in the town of Zorah. His wife was unable to become pregnant, and they had no children.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
A Danite named Manoah has a barren, childless wife. Their situation sets the stage for a miraculous birth.
Overview
Barrenness, a recurring biblical theme (Sarah, Hannah), highlights human helplessness before God's power to give life. By introducing this couple, the narrative prepares for a divinely promised child. Such miraculous births anticipate the ultimate miraculous birth of Christ, the true Deliverer of God's people.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 6
- Josh 19:41The border of their inheritance was Zorah, Eshtaol, Irshemesh,
- Luke 1:7But they had no child, because Elizabeth was barren, and they both were well advanced in years.
- Josh 15:33In the lowland, Eshtaol, Zorah, Ashnah,
- Gen 25:21Isaac entreated Yahweh for his wife, because she was barren. Yahweh was entreated by him, and Rebekah his wife conceived.
- Gen 16:1Now Sarai, Abram’s wife, bore him no children. She had a servant, an Egyptian, whose name was Hagar.
- 1 Sam 1:2–6He had two wives. The name of one was Hannah, and the name of other Peninnah. Peninnah had children, but Hannah had no children.
Themes, concepts, people & topics
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Christ at the center
Israel's cycle of sin and rescue through flawed deliverers cries out for a Savior who never fails — the true and final Judge and Deliverer who saves his people not for a season but forever.
How Judges 13:2 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Hebrew word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.