Womeninthechurch45

Women in the Bible

Lesson Forty-five: by turtle30c

Women that are reading this that do not have children know it is hard for me to write these lessons
sometimes. The reason being I do not have any children. I know the hurt and pain of not having
children. To talk abut woman having children that could not have children is frustrating as well. Yet to
read the stories it is a blessing, for those that were barren there was a reason that they were childless
for a time. Embrace not having children as blessing. God knows your hearts desire. Ask God to satisfy
your hearts need.

Today we are going to talk about Manoah’s wife. She was barren. It does not say if she was praying
for children or not, or even if she desired children. Maybe she come to a place of resolve about being
childless. The Bible just does not say. Yet an angel appears to her and tell her she is going to have a
son who will save her people from the philistines.

Judges 13:1-3 KJV
(1) And the children of Israel did evil again in the sight of the LORD; and the LORD delivered them
into the hand of the Philistines forty years.
(2) 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.
(3) And the angel of the LORD appeared unto the woman, and said unto her, Behold now, thou art
barren, and bearest not: but thou shalt conceive, and bear a son.

I be honest it seems like a wonderful time to live in Biblical days. To have visitation from angels. To
have special encounter from God. Yet we are blessed in our day to be able to have a personal
relationship with Jesus when we receive Him as Lord. God raises people up for a purpose sometimes.
Some might argue would this child have a choice in life for he was born for a particular purpose to
destroy the philistines. Who were these philistines that were causing all the Hebrew people trouble.
Philistines were people that sought the lives of the Hebrew people, they were idolaters and came from
Noah son Ham. History can be found in Genesis 10.

Genesis 10:14 KJV
(14) And Pathrusim, and Casluhim, (out of whom came Philistim,) and Caphtorim.

Philistines were a village people and were large in number. The worshipped false gods and were known
for attacking their neighbors even Egypt. This would be in the Lebanon region of Middle East. Gives
you a little of the geographical area in which they lived.

Why would God raise up people to destroy people. Some would say though shall not kill. Yet when
close examination of God’s word there were times when God used people for his purpose and glory to
defeat His enemies. This tribe did not fear God, they worship stone statues. They worship Dagon,
Ashtaroth, and Baalzebub. What so bad about that some might wonder in this modern age. The
thought is we worship who we want in this age and time. Yet many people do not understand the
consequence of worshipping other gods. This worship of other gods lead to the sacrifice of innocent
children. With Hebrew people intermarrying and loosing their grandchildren and children to stone
statues this would not of been a good thing. Children are blessing from God. To kill an innocent child is
wrong. Though Judge 13 does not give all this information it is through out Bible history about the
surrounding nations and the problems that they had with the Hebrew people.

God does not only tell Manoah’s wife she would have a child but he would be a Nazarite from the
womb.

Judges 13:2-5 KJV
(2) 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.
(3) And the angel of the LORD appeared unto the woman, and said unto her, Behold now, thou art
barren, and bearest not: but thou shalt conceive, and bear a son.
(4) Now therefore beware, I pray thee, and drink not wine nor strong drink, and eat not any unclean
thing:
(5) For, lo, thou shalt conceive, and bear a son; and no razor shall come on his head: for the child shall
be a Nazarite unto God from the womb: and he shall begin to deliver Israel out of the hand of the
Philistines.

A Nazarite was someone that concentrated to the Lord. For more information on Nazarites and rules
they lived by take time and read Numbers 6. This child would grow up never having his hair cut. Now
if you ever seen anyone with long hair you know how long it takes to grow and imagine years of never
having your hair cut.

Now this puzzled Manoah’s wife and she went and told her husband of the visitation of the minister.

Judges 13:6-7 KJV
(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:
(7) But he said unto me, Behold, thou shalt conceive, and bear a son; and now drink no wine nor
strong drink, neither eat any unclean thing: for the child shall be a Nazarite to God from the womb to
the day of his death.

Manoah did not know what to think about what this angels said to his wife. Manoah went and talked to
God about it. God answer Manoah through his wife. He sent the angel a minister of God back to the
woman. She then ran and got her husband to see.

Judges 13:8-12 KJV
(8) Then Manoah intreated the LORD, and said, O my Lord, let the man of God which thou didst
send come again unto us, and teach us what we shall do unto the child that shall be born.
(9) And God hearkened to the voice of Manoah; and the angel of God came again unto the woman as
she sat in the field: but Manoah her husband was not with her.
(10) And the woman made haste, and ran, and shewed her husband, and said unto him, Behold, the
man hath appeared unto me, that came unto me the other day.
(11) And Manoah arose, and went after his wife, and came to the man, and said unto him, Art thou
the man that spakest unto the woman? And he said, I am.
(12) And Manoah said, Now let thy words come to pass. How shall we order the child, and how shall
we do unto him?

Manoah goes and sees this angel. Before we go any further an angel can be like the seraphim or they
can be ministers. In this case angel is a minister. Manoah begins to ask the minister questions about the
nature of this birth and how to raise the child.

Judges 13:13-15 KJV
(13) And the angel of the LORD said unto Manoah, Of all that I said unto the woman let her beware.
(14) She may not eat of any thing that cometh of the vine, neither let her drink wine or strong drink,
nor eat any unclean thing: all that I commanded her let her observe.
(15) And Manoah said unto the angel of the LORD, I pray thee, let us detain thee, until we shall have
made ready a kid for thee.

Manoah wish to feed this angel, but the angel refused and said to him to build and altar and worship
God. See the blessings of God does not come from angels, they come from God. Any angel except for
Satan always directs people to worship God. If they try and get you to worship them then it is not of
God.

Judges 13:16-18 KJV
(16) And the angel of the LORD said unto Manoah, Though thou detain me, I will not eat of thy
bread: and if thou wilt offer a burnt offering, thou must offer it unto the LORD. For Manoah knew not
that he was an angel of the LORD.
(17) And Manoah said unto the angel of the LORD, What is thy name, that when thy sayings come to
pass we may do thee honour?
(18) And the angel of the LORD said unto him, Why askest thou thus after my name, seeing it is
secret?

The angel told Manoah his name, and in the Hebrew the name secret means secret or wonderful. This
angels was not just ordinary minister, prophet or teacher. It was a visitation from God. This angelica
person was not servant of God but God appearing in human form. We must remember Isaiah 9:6.
Which is a reference to the Son of God.

.Isaiah 9:6 KJV
(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, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The
Prince of Peace.

Manoah and his wife made teh sacrifice to God and God did wonders before them. God received their
offering and departed never to see them again in their life time. Manoah and his wife fell face down in
fear and trembling. Manoah though surely he would die.

Judges 13:19-22 KJV
(19) So Manoah took a kid with a meat offering, and offered it upon a rock unto the LORD: and the
angel did wondrously; and Manoah and his wife looked on.
(20) For it came to pass, when the flame went up toward heaven from off the altar, that the angel of
the LORD ascended in the flame of the altar. And Manoah and his wife looked on it, and fell on their
faces to the ground.
(21) But the angel of the LORD did no more appear to Manoah and to his wife. Then Manoah knew
that he was an angel of the LORD.
(22) And Manoah said unto his wife, We shall surely die, because we have seen God.

Yet Manoah’s wife comforts her husband with these words.

Judges 13:23-25 KJV
(23) But his wife said unto him, If the LORD were pleased to kill us, he would not have received a
burnt offering and a meat offering at our hands, neither would he have shewed us all these things, nor
would as at this time have told us such things as these.
(24) And the woman bare a son, and called his name Samson: and the child grew, and the LORD
blessed him.
(25) And the Spirit of the LORD began to move him at times in the camp of Dan between Zorah and
Eshtaol.

All that God said came true. Samson would be a a mighty warrior to his people and would destroy the
enemies temple after loosing his hair and his eyes. To read the full story of Samson continue in
Judges. Next week we look at Samuel.

What can we learn, to believe the Lord and His word for it will come to pass what He says He will do.