The Mother of Samson
An unnamed woman who played an important role in the history of the Israelites, the mother of Samson the wife of Manoah is a woman we can all strive to be like. She did not need to be named or get credit for raising a son who was used by the LORD God to save Israel from the Philistines.
Judges 13:1-25
The mother of Samson is not referred to by name in the story of Samson. The dedication and obedience to the LORD and knowing what is important is an attribute we get from this unnamed woman. We know that she was barren and could not conceive children for her husband Manoah.
The story of the mother of Samson is not too uncommon in the Bible. Women who are barren produce exceptional children who have major roles in the strategy of the LORD. We saw this with Sarah the wife of Abraham bore Isaac. Rebecca the wife of Isaac bore the twins Jacob and Esau. Rachel was the wife of Jacob and bore Joseph. We cannot forget the mother of John the Baptist, Elisabeth also was barren. Just like these women the mother of Samson and wife of Manoah felt sorrow and disappointment over being childless.
We know that she was a God fearing Israelite. That is saying a lot since the children of Israel id evil again in the sight of the LORD. They were delivered in the hand of the Philistines for forty years.
One day an angel of the LORD appeared to her and told her she would have a baby boy. The angel of the LORD gave her some rules to follow. She was not to drink wine or strong drink, and she could not eat anything the Israelites knew to be unclean (these are things that are impure and ritually unclean). Leviticus 11:29 mentions creeping things that creep upon the earth; the weasel, and the mouse, and the tortoise are unclean things.
Once the baby boy was born there was to be no razor to come to his head. The hair symbolized the sacred life of a person. That means that the uncut hair was the visible sign of the divine power and strength. 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. This baby was chosen to be the deliverer of Israel. We can tell she had a good relationship with her husband because when she told him she had a visit with an angel of the LORD he did not doubt her. Manoah was concerned and pleaded that the LORD teach them what they should do unto the child that was going to be born. The LORD heard the plea of Manoah and sent the angel again unto them.
Because the angel of the LORD went to the mother of Samson directly shows that good relationship with the LORD God. It was the woman that would have to follow the Nazarite rules. The angel of the LORD went directly to her and did not speak through her husband.
The angel of the LORD told Manoah all that he had told the woman let her beware. Manoah asked the angel of the LORD to wait until he could fix a young male goat for him. The angel of the LORD refused to eat and suggested Manoah make it an burnt offering to the LORD God.
Manoah took the young male goat and offered it upon a rock unto the LORD. The angel of the LORD did an extraordinary thing while Manoah and his wife looked on. When the flame went up toward heaven the angel of the LORD ascended in the flame of the altar. Then they realized that they had been speaking to an angel of the LORD.
Manoah was so afraid that they were going to die because they had seen God. 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 showed us all these things, nor would as at this time have told us such things as the LORD had told them.
Again we see that the mother of Samson had confidence in the LORD would not kill them. She had a relationship with Him. This clearly shows that the mother of Samson and the wife of Manoah was an obedient and godly woman who did have a relationship with the LORD. The woman had a son, and called his name Samson: and the child grew, and the LORD blessed him. The Spirit of the LORD began to move him at times in the camp of the tribe of Dan.
The attributes we find in the mother of Samson is she was obedient to the instructions she was given to make sure Samson had a good chance of being everything the LORD God wanted him to be. We know the rest of the story about Samson how he chose the wrong type of wife who was responsible for his demise. Samson’s mother and father both urged him find an Israelite wife. Just like all parents the only thing they could do was to urge Samson not to marry outside their faith. Once they are adults they are responsible for their actions.
The mother of Samson and the wife of Manoah did the will of the LORD. She was not credited with a name, yet she was obedient to the bidding of the LORD and remained faithful to Him. We can learn from her to not expect the glory or the praise for achieving what the LORD need us to do. She is truly a woman to be noticed.
Cite Article Source
MLA Style Citation:
Holstein, Joanne “The Mother of Samson:.” Becker Bible Studies Library Jan 2015.< https://guidedbiblestudies.com/?p=2015,>.
APA Style Citation:
Holstein, Joanne (2015, January) “The Mother of Samson:.” Becker Bible Studies Library. Retrieved from https://guidedbiblestudies.com/?p=2015,.
Chicago Style Citation:
Holstein, Joanne (2015) “The Mother of Samson:.” Becker Bible Studies Library (January), https://guidedbiblestudies.com/?p=2015, (accessed).
