“And the Angel of the LORD appeared to the woman and said to her, “Indeed now, you are barren and have borne no children, but you shall conceive and bear a son.” Judges 13:3 (NKJV)
This woman is only known as Manoah’s wife and that she had not been able to have children. Her name is not given in the Bible, yet she is important to this story in Judges.
She was visited by the Angel of the Lord who told her that she would conceive and give birth to a son. Then she was told not to drink wine or any similar drink nor to eat anything unclean. These restrictions were very common for those who took a Nazarite vow.
In fact, the Angel of the Lord also told her that the child was never to have his hair cut because the child was to be a Nazarite from the time in the womb. The Angel of the Lord told her that the child would deliver Israel from the Philistines.
Wow! If I had received that kind of message from the Lord, I think I would probably have fainted! What an awesome responsibility to parent a child who would deliver Israel.
Today society has differing opinions about the influence upon an unborn child of diet and emotions of the mother during pregnancy. Yet the Bible is clear that the diet of the mother affects the infant even while in the womb. This infant was to be set aside for the Lord’s purposes even before conception. Oh, that today I might take more seriously the influencing power I may exert upon those in my sphere.
Listen to Don Besig and Nancy Price as they sing “Use Me Lord.”
Published on MyBibleRoom.com 1/28/25, 5:00 pm