Judges 13:18
New International Version
He replied, “Why do you ask my name? It is beyond understanding.”

New Living Translation
“Why do you ask my name?” the angel of the LORD replied. “It is too wonderful for you to understand.”

English Standard Version
And the angel of the LORD said to him, “Why do you ask my name, seeing it is wonderful?”

Berean Standard Bible
“Why do you ask my name,” said the angel of the LORD, “since it is beyond comprehension?”

King James Bible
And the angel of the LORD said unto him, Why askest thou thus after my name, seeing it is secret?

New King James Version
And the Angel of the LORD said to him, “Why do you ask My name, seeing it is wonderful?”

New American Standard Bible
But the angel of the LORD said to him, “Why do you ask my name, for it is wonderful?”

NASB 1995
But the angel of the LORD said to him, “Why do you ask my name, seeing it is wonderful?”

NASB 1977
But the angel of the LORD said to him, “Why do you ask my name, seeing it is wonderful?”

Legacy Standard Bible
But the angel of Yahweh said to him, “Why do you ask my name, seeing it is wonderful?”

Amplified Bible
But the Angel of the LORD said to him, “Why do you ask my name, seeing it is wonderful (miraculous)?”

Christian Standard Bible
“Why do you ask my name,” the angel of the LORD asked him, “since it is beyond understanding?”

Holman Christian Standard Bible
Why do you ask My name,” the Angel of the LORD asked him, “since it is wonderful.”

American Standard Version
And the angel of Jehovah said unto him, Wherefore askest thou after my name, seeing it is wonderful?

Contemporary English Version
"No," the angel replied. "You don't need to know my name. And if you did, you couldn't understand it."

English Revised Version
And the angel of the LORD said unto him, Wherefore askest thou after my name, seeing it is wonderful?

GOD'S WORD® Translation
The Messenger of the LORD asked him, "Why do you ask for my name? It's a name that works miracles."

Good News Translation
The angel asked, "Why do you want to know my name? It is a name of wonder."

International Standard Version
The angel of the LORD answered him, "Why are you asking this about my name? It's 'Wonderful.'"

Majority Standard Bible
?Why do you ask my name,? said the angel of the LORD, ?since it is beyond comprehension??

NET Bible
The LORD's messenger said to him, "You should not ask me my name, because you cannot comprehend it."

New Heart English Bible
And the angel of the LORD said to him, "Why do you ask for my name? It is incomprehensible."

Webster's Bible Translation
And the angel of the LORD said to him, why askest thou thus after my name, seeing it is secret?

World English Bible
Yahweh’s angel said to him, “Why do you ask about my name, since it is incomprehensible?”
Literal Translations
Literal Standard Version
And the Messenger of YHWH says to him, “Why do you ask this, My Name, since it [is] incomprehensible?”

Young's Literal Translation
And the messenger of Jehovah saith to him, 'Why is this -- thou dost ask for My name? -- and it is Wonderful.'

Smith's Literal Translation
And the messenger of Jehovah will say to him, Wherefore this wilt thou ask for my name, and it is wonderful?
Catholic Translations
Douay-Rheims Bible
And he answered him: Why askest thou my name, which is wonderful?

Catholic Public Domain Version
And he answered him, “Why do you ask my name, which is a wonder?”

New American Bible
The angel of the LORD answered him: Why do you ask my name? It is wondrous.

New Revised Standard Version
But the angel of the LORD said to him, “Why do you ask my name? It is too wonderful.”
Translations from Aramaic
Lamsa Bible
And the angel of the LORD said to him, Why do you ask my name, seeing it is Glorious?

Peshitta Holy Bible Translated
And The Angel of LORD JEHOVAH said to him: “Why do you ask concerning my name which is glorious?”
OT Translations
JPS Tanakh 1917
And the angel of the LORD said unto him: 'Wherefore askest thou after my name, seeing it is hidden?'

Brenton Septuagint Translation
And the angel of the Lord said to him, Why dost thou thus ask after my name; whereas it is wonderful?

Additional Translations ...
Audio Bible



Context
The Birth of Samson
17Then Manoah said to the angel of the LORD, “What is your name, so that we may honor you when your word comes to pass?” 18“Why do you ask my name,” said the angel of the LORD, “since it is beyond comprehension?” 19Then Manoah took a young goat and a grain offering and offered them on a rock to the LORD. And as Manoah and his wife looked on, the LORD did a marvelous thing.…

Cross References
Genesis 32:29
And Jacob requested, “Please tell me your name.” But he replied, “Why do you ask my name?” Then he blessed Jacob there.

Isaiah 9:6
For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given, and the government will be upon His shoulders. And He will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.

Exodus 3:14
God said to Moses, “I AM WHO I AM. This is what you are to say to the Israelites: ‘I AM has sent me to you.’”

Revelation 19:12
He has eyes like blazing fire, and many royal crowns on His head. He has a name written on Him that only He Himself knows.

Proverbs 30:4
Who has ascended to heaven and come down? Who has gathered the wind in His hands? Who has bound up the waters in His cloak? Who has established all the ends of the earth? What is His name, and what is the name of His Son—surely you know!

Psalm 139:6
Such knowledge is too wonderful for me, too lofty for me to attain.

Matthew 11:27
All things have been entrusted to Me by My Father. No one knows the Son except the Father, and no one knows the Father except the Son and those to whom the Son chooses to reveal Him.

Romans 11:33
O, the depth of the riches of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are His judgments, and untraceable His ways!

Job 11:7-9
Can you fathom the deep things of God or discover the limits of the Almighty? / They are higher than the heavens—what can you do? They are deeper than Sheol—what can you know? / Their measure is longer than the earth and wider than the sea.

1 Corinthians 2:9-11
Rather, as it is written: “No eye has seen, no ear has heard, no heart has imagined, what God has prepared for those who love Him.” / But God has revealed it to us by the Spirit. The Spirit searches all things, even the deep things of God. / For who among men knows the thoughts of man except his own spirit within him? So too, no one knows the thoughts of God except the Spirit of God.

Isaiah 55:8-9
“For My thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways My ways,” declares the LORD. / “For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so My ways are higher than your ways and My thoughts than your thoughts.

Colossians 1:26-27
the mystery that was hidden for ages and generations but is now revealed to His saints. / To them God has chosen to make known among the Gentiles the glorious riches of this mystery, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory.

Ephesians 3:18-19
will have power, together with all the saints, to comprehend the length and width and height and depth / of the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge, that you may be filled with all the fullness of God.

Daniel 2:22
He reveals the deep and hidden things; He knows what lies in darkness, and light dwells with Him.

1 Timothy 3:16
By common confession, the mystery of godliness is great: He appeared in the flesh, was vindicated by the Spirit, was seen by angels, was proclaimed among the nations, was believed in throughout the world, was taken up in glory.


Treasury of Scripture

And the angel of the LORD said to him, Why ask you thus after my name, seeing it is secret?

Why askest.

Judges 13:6
Then the woman came and told her husband, saying, A man of God came unto me, and his countenance was like the countenance of an angel of God, very terrible: but I asked him not whence he was, neither told he me his name:

Genesis 32:29
And Jacob asked him, and said, Tell me, I pray thee, thy name. And he said, Wherefore is it that thou dost ask after my name? And he blessed him there.

secret.

Isaiah 9:6
For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counseller, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace.

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Angel Askest Hidden Messenger Questioning Secret Understanding Wherefore Wonder Wonderful
Judges 13
1. Israel is delivered into the hands of Philistines
2. An angel appears to Manoah's wife
8. The angel appears to Manoah
15. Manoah's sacrifices, whereby the angel is discovered.
24. Samson is born














Why do you ask My name
This phrase reflects a common theme in the Old Testament where the name of God or His messengers is often shrouded in mystery. In Hebrew culture, a name is not merely a label but a representation of one's character and essence. The angel's response suggests that the divine nature cannot be fully grasped by human understanding. This echoes the encounter between Jacob and the angel in Genesis 32:29, where the name is withheld, emphasizing the transcendence and holiness of God.

replied the angel of the LORD
The "angel of the LORD" is a significant figure in the Old Testament, often seen as a manifestation of God Himself. The Hebrew term "mal'ak YHWH" can mean "messenger of Yahweh," and in many instances, this figure speaks with divine authority, as seen in the burning bush encounter with Moses (Exodus 3:2-6). This suggests that the angel is not merely a created being but a theophany, a visible manifestation of God, which underscores the sacredness of the message being delivered.

since it is beyond comprehension
The phrase "beyond comprehension" in Hebrew is "פֶּלִאי" (peli), which can also be translated as "wonderful" or "extraordinary." This term is used in Isaiah 9:6 to describe the Messiah as "Wonderful Counselor," indicating something that is marvelous and beyond human understanding. The use of this word here highlights the divine mystery and majesty of God's nature, which surpasses human intellect and invites believers to a posture of awe and reverence. This serves as a reminder of the infinite nature of God, encouraging faith and trust in His divine plan, even when it is not fully understood.

(18) Seeing it is secret.--The word is peli, which in Isaiah 9:5 is rendered "wonderful." The word is an adjective, not the actual name of the angel. The only angel who names himself in Scripture is Gabriel.

Verse 18. - It is secret. The Hebrew word does not mean secret, but wonderful, as it is rendered in Isaiah 9:6, and elsewhere. His name was one which, as St. Paul expresses it, it is not lawful, or possible, for a man to utter (2 Corinthians 12:4), it was so transcendently wonderful. The feeling of the Hebrews in abstaining from uttering the name יחוה was akin to this. Some take the angel to say that WONDERFUL is his name, but the A.V. is right in prefixing seeing - seeing it is wonderful.

Parallel Commentaries ...


Hebrew
“Why
לָ֥מָּה (lām·māh)
Interrogative
Strong's 4100: What?, what!, indefinitely what

do you ask
תִּשְׁאַ֣ל (tiš·’al)
Verb - Qal - Imperfect - second person masculine singular
Strong's 7592: To inquire, to request, to demand

My name,”
לִשְׁמִ֑י (liš·mî)
Preposition-l | Noun - masculine singular construct | first person common singular
Strong's 8034: A name

said
וַיֹּ֤אמֶר (way·yō·mer)
Conjunctive waw | Verb - Qal - Consecutive imperfect - third person masculine singular
Strong's 559: To utter, say

the Angel
מַלְאַ֣ךְ (mal·’aḵ)
Noun - masculine singular construct
Strong's 4397: A messenger, of God, an angel

of the LORD,
יְהוָ֔ה (Yah·weh)
Noun - proper - masculine singular
Strong's 3068: LORD -- the proper name of the God of Israel

“since it
וְהוּא־ (wə·hū-)
Conjunctive waw | Pronoun - third person masculine singular
Strong's 1931: He, self, the same, this, that, as, are

is beyond comprehension?”
פֶ֛לִאי׃‪‬‪‬ (p̄e·li)
Adjective - masculine singular
Strong's 6383: Wonderful, incomprehensible


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OT History: Judges 13:18 The angel of Yahweh said to him (Jd Judg. Jdg)
Judges 13:17
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