"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."
FORTY YEARS UNDER THE PHILISTINES
Those are the words that start out Judges Chapter 13. How sad! God had blessed Israel with peace and prosperity for years and what do they do? They did evil in the sight of the Lord.
Anytime you see these words you can bet the people were sinning by worshiping idols and reveling in perveted sexual acts and completely destroying the culture by breaking every commandment.
SAME SAD PATTERN
It is a repeated pattern.
We have seen it over and over again. As a matter of fact; it is going on right this minute. The people of God are allowing the culture to lead them instead of following God and living in His ways.
Even today after at least a million examples.
When this happens to a people long enough God gets disgusted and turns His back away.
He quits giving them victories with their enemies. With Israel in the days following Judge Abdon's reign, God allowed the Israelites to become captives of the Philistines. Their captivity lasted for forty years.
A BARREN WOMAN RECEIVES GOOD NEWS
One day a woman (the wife of a man named Manoah the Danite) had a visit from an angel. This is what the angel told her:
"You are barren and childless, but you are going to become pregnant and give birth to a son. Now see to it that you drink no wine or other fermented drink and that you do not eat anything unclean. You will become pregnant and have a son whose head is never to be touched by a razor because the boy is to be a Nazirite, dedicated to God from the womb. He will take the lead in delivering Israel from the hands of the Philistines."
MANOAH LEARNS THE NEWS
She was very excited to get this news. That night she reported the story to her husband. Manoah began to pray to God. He asked that the angel come again to explain to them how to raise this son that was to be born to them.
God heard Manoah's prayers. The wife was outside in the field and the angel appeared to her again. Quickly she ran to get her husband so that they could meet.
TALKING TO THE ANGEL OF THE LORD
When Manoah arrived and saw the man whom they perceived to be an angel; he asked him if he was the same one who came to his wife earlier.
When the angel confirmed his identity to Manoah as the same one who spoke before, Monoah had questions to ask. He asked the angel to tell them more:
Manoah said; "When your words are fulfilled, what is to be the rule that governs the boy's life and work?"
The angel said; "Your wife must do all that I have told her. She must not eat anything that comes from the grapevine, nor drink any wine or other fermented drink nor eat anything unclean. She must do everything I have commanded her."
OFFERING TO GOD FOR GOOD NEWS
After hearing this Manoah and his wife wanted to prepare an offering to God for the news that this angel had delived to them. Manoah did not realize that they had been speaking with The Angel of The Lord until they asked the angel to stay and receive an offering. The Angel of The Lord told them He could not eat their food, but they should offer all offerings to God.
And so they did, but first Manoah asked the angel: "What is your name, so that we may honor you when your word comes true?"
Then The Angel of The Lord replied to Manoah; "Why do you ask my name? It is beyond understanding."
So they brought a grain offering and a young goat and sacrificed it on a rock unto the Lord.
As Manoah and his wife watched, the flame of the altar blazed up toward heaven and the Angel of the Lord ascended in the flame.
TO SEE GOD AND LIVE
They immediately fell with their faces to the ground because they now KNEW they had seen The Angel of The Lord and lived.
Manoah expressed his worry to his wife saying, "We have seen God and we are doomed to die!"
The wife disagreed. Her reason was that God would not have accepted their offering or told them of their future if they were doomed to die.
So it was that they lived, and the woman gave birth to a boy whom she named Samson.
A SON NAMED SAMSON
Samson grew and the Lord blessed him.
It was known by his parents that The Spirit of the Lord had begun to stir him while he was in Mahaneh Dan, between Zorah and Eshtaol.
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