Judges 13:25

the spirit of the Lord See on Judges 3:13. The superhuman power of Jehovah began to stir himto daring feats against the Philistines; cf. St Mark 1:12 -the Spirit driveth him forth." The pass, of the verb (in a trans, sense only here) is rendered -was troubled" in Genesis 41:8; Psalms 77:4 etc.

Mahaneh-dan here lies in the heart of the Danite settlements; but according to Judges 18:12 it was situated in Judah, at Kiriath-jearim or behindit, i.e. on the western side, and the six hundred, starting from Zorah and Eshtaol, are said to have reached Mahaneh-dan on their march to the north. A temporary encampment outside the Danite district might naturally receive the name of Dan's Camp, but not a place among the seats of the tribe. As it is unlikely that there were two places called Dan's Campin this part of the country, we must suppose that there is something wrong about the name here. Perhaps for Mahaneh-dan we should read Manahath-dan, a happy suggestion made by Mr S. A. Cook [Notes on O.T. Hist., p. 88 and Encycl. Bibl. s.v.); cf. 1Ch 2:52; 1 Chronicles 2:54, and see above on Judges 13:2. It is to be noticed that the grave of Manoah, the ancestor of the Manahathites, occupied exactly the position described in this verse, Judges 16:31.

Eshtaol Generally named with Zorah (Judges 13:2); the two places were evidently close together. Zorah is certainly Ṣar-a; and Eshtaol may have stood on the site of Eshû- about 1½ m. to the N.E., up the valley which branches off northwards from the W. eṣ-Ṣarâr (Sorek). Both places overlook the broad basin of the W. eṣ-Ṣarâr near its entrance into the Judaean highlands.