Judges 13

Birth of Samson, the Last Judge

1 The Israelites again did what was evil in the Lord's sight,^[a] so the Lord handed them over to the Philistines 40 years.

2 There was a certain man from Zorah, from the family of Dan, whose name was Manoah; his wife was barren and had no children.

3 The Angel of the Lord appeared to the woman and said to her, "It is true that you are barren and have no children, but you will conceive and give birth to a son.

4 Now please be careful not to drink wine or other alcoholic beverages, or to eat anything unclean;

5 for indeed, you will conceive and give birth to a son. You must never cut his hair,^[b] because the boy will be a Nazirite to God from birth, and he will begin to save Israel from the power of the Philistines."

6 Then the woman went and told her husband, "A man of God came to me. He looked like the awe-inspiring Angel of God. I didn't ask Him where He came from, and He didn't tell me His name.

7 He said to me, 'You will conceive and give birth to a son. Therefore, do not drink wine or other alcoholic beverages, and do not eat anything unclean, because the boy will be a Nazirite to God from birth until the day of his death.' "

8 Manoah prayed to the Lord and said, "Please Lord, let the man of God you sent come again to us and teach us what we should do for the boy who will be born."

9 God listened to^[c] Manoah, and the Angel of God came again to the woman. She was sitting in the field, and her husband Manoah was not with her.

10 The woman ran quickly to her husband and told him, "The man who came to me today has just come back!"

11 So Manoah got up and followed his wife. When he came to the man, he asked, "Are You the man who spoke to my wife?" "I am," He said.

12 Then Manoah asked, "When Your words come true, what will the boy's responsibilities and mission^[d] be?"

13 The Angel of the Lord answered Manoah, "Your wife needs to do everything I told her.

14 She must not eat anything that comes from the grapevine or drink wine or other alcoholic beverages. And she must not eat anything unclean. Your wife must do everything I have commanded her."

15 "Please stay here," Manoah told Him, "and we will prepare a young goat for You."

16 The Angel of the Lord said to him, "If I stay, I won't eat your food. But if you want to prepare a burnt offering, offer it to the Lord." For Manoah did not know He was the Angel of the Lord.

17 Then Manoah said to Him, "What is Your name, so that we may honor You when Your words come true?"

18 "Why do you ask My name," the Angel of the Lord asked him, "since it is wonderful."

19 Manoah took a young goat and a grain offering and offered them on a rock to the Lord, and He did a wonderful thing^[e] while Manoah and his wife were watching.

20 When the flame went up from the altar to the sky, the Angel of the Lord went up in its flame. When Manoah and his wife saw [this], they fell facedown on the ground.

21 The Angel of the Lord did not appear again to Manoah and his wife. Then Manoah realized that it was the Angel of the Lord.

22 "We're going to die," he said to his wife, "because we have seen God!"

23 But his wife said to him, "If the Lord had intended to kill us, He wouldn't have accepted the burnt offering and the grain offering from us, and He would not have shown us all these things or spoken to us now like this."

24 So the woman gave birth to a son and named him Samson. The boy grew, and the Lord blessed him.

25 Then the Spirit of the Lord began to direct him in the Camp of Dan,^[f] between Zorah and Eshtaol.

Judges 13 Commentary

Chapter 13

The Philistines, Samson announced. (1-7) The angel appears to Manoah. (8-14) Manoah's sacrifice. (15-23) Birth of Samson. (24,25)

Verses 1-7 Israel did evil: then God delivered them again into the hands of the Philistines. When Israel was in this distress, Samson was born. His parents had been long childless. Many eminent persons were born of such mothers. Mercies long waited for, often prove signal mercies; and by them others may be encouraged to continue their hope in God's mercy. The angel notices her affliction. God often sends comfort to his people very seasonably, when they feel their troubles most. This deliverer of Israel must be devoted to God. Manoah's wife was satisfied that the messenger was of God. She gave her husband a particular account, both of the promise and of the precept. Husbands and wives should tell each other their experiences of communion with God, and their improvements in acquaintance with him, that they may help each other in the way that is holy.

Verses 8-14 Blessed are those who have not seen, and yet, as Manoah, have believed. Good men are more careful and desirous to know the duty to be done by them, than to know the events concerning them: duty is ours, events are God's. God will guide those by his counsel, who desire to know their duty, and apply to him to teach them. Pious parents, especially, will beg Divine assistance. The angel repeats the directions he had before given. There is need of much care for the right ordering both of ourselves and our children, that we may be duly separate from the world, and living sacrifices to the Lord.

Verses 15-23 What Manoah asked for instruction in his duty, he was readily told; but what he asked to gratify his curiosity, was denied. God has in his word given full directions concerning our duty, but never designed to answer other questionings. There are secret things which belong not to us, of which we must be quite contented to be ignorant, while in this world. The name of our Lord is wonderful and secret; but by his wonderful works he makes himself known as far as is needful for us. Prayer is the ascent of the soul to God. But without Christ in the heart by faith, our services are offensive smoke; in him, acceptable flame. We may apply this to Christ's sacrifice of himself for us; he ascended in the flame of his own offering, for by his own blood he entered in once into the holy place, ( Hebrews 9:12 ) . In Manoah's reflections there is great fear; We shall surely die. In his wife's reflection there is great faith. As a help meet for him, she encouraged him. Let believers who have had communion with God in the word and prayer, to whom he has graciously manifested himself, and who have had reason to think God has accepted their works, take encouragement from thence in a cloudy and dark day. God would not have done what he has done for my soul, if he had designed to forsake me, and leave me to perish at last; for his work is perfect. Learn to reason as Manoah's wife; If God designed me to perish under his wrath, he would not give me tokens of his favour.

Verses 24-25 The Spirit of the Lord began to move Samson when a youth. This was evidence that the Lord blessed him. Where God gives his blessing, he gives his Spirit to qualify for the blessing. Those are blessed indeed in whom the Spirit of grace begins to work in the days of their childhood. Samson drank no wine or strong drink, yet excelled in strength and courage, for he had the Spirit of God moving him; therefore be not drunk with wine, but be filled with the Spirit.

Footnotes

• [a]. Jdg 3:12; 4:1; 10:6
• [b]. Lit And a razor is not to go up on his head
• [c]. Lit to the voice of
• [d]. Lit work
• [e]. LXX reads to the Lord, to the One who works wonders
• [f]. Or in Mahaneh-dan

Chapter Summary

INTRODUCTION TO JUDGES 13

This chapter relates the birth of Samson, another of the judges of Israel, which was foretold by an angel to his mother, who told her husband of it, Jud 13:1-7 upon whose entreaty the angel appeared again, and related the same to them both, Jud 13:8-14 and who was very, respectfully treated by the man, and by the wonderful things he did was known by him to be an angel of the Lord, which greatly surprised him, Jud 13:15-23 and the chapter is closed with an account of the birth of Samson, and of his being early endowed with the Spirit of God, Jud 13:24,25.