Two Manoah's Wife: Hope for the Ignored: Judges 13
MANOAH’S WIFE:
HOPE FOR THE IGNORED
Judges 13
Mrs. Manoah, as we have to call her because we are told only the name of her husband, is quiet and ordinarily stays in the background. We imagine that she lives with constant putdowns that flow from Manoah’s passion for control and unwillingness to trust other people. When an angelic visitor appears to her (not to her husband), she is scared, but she listens carefully. Then she goes straight to her husband and reports the visitor’s message with perfect accuracy. Manoah’s assumption is that he cannot rely on her account. But God has a surprise for both of them.
It is God’s way to spring surprises in the lives of his people. Now imagine yourself standing alongside Manoah and his wife and watching what happens. The visitor who first spoke to Mrs. Manoah has returned. This time she is able to call her husband so that Manoah can hear the message himself. Then suddenly the visitor, who a moment ago was beside them, has somehow moved into the flame of a burned offering. He’s literally going up in it. And now he’s vanished, which they find traumatic—especially Manoah.
This was God in action. From that event we immediately learn that knowing God is not just a matter of doctrinal understanding, of thoroughgoing commitment, of personal, disciplined communion with God, or of peaceful contentment in God (although it includes all those things). It isn’t merely a matter of focusing on Christ as the way to God as your Savior—though it includes that too. With and beyond all that has been mentioned, knowing God is a matter of being ready for surprises. And quiet, shy, ignored Mrs. Manoah was ready for the unpredictability of God. She was a great woman! A woman honored, sustained, and used by God.
Group Discussion. What are some ways that you respond to unexpected events?
Personal Reflection. What is your response when you feel ignored by others or by God?
The children of Israel were in a bad spot; they had disobeyed God, which typically meant they had turned to other gods and had abused the poor and downtrodden. Because of this, they were ruled by the ungodly Philistines for forty years. But the Lord remained true to his promises to Israel and came to deliver them once again. Read Judges 13.
1. In what ways would this visit from “the angel of the Lord” change the lives of Manoah and his wife?
2. What reasons did they have to be frightened about this visit? To be joyful?
3. What hints of yourself do you see in Mrs. Manoah?
4. What hints of yourself do you see in Manoah?
5. Why do you think the angel of the Lord came to the woman both times?
6. What does the conversation between the woman, the man, and the angel reveal about the relationship between Manoah and his wife?
7. Study verses 16-20. What could Manoah and his wife know about God from this experience?
8. God is a surprising God. What are some ways of God that you find mysterious?
9. Manoah’s barren and ignored wife was in what seemed to be a hopeless situation. But the promise the angel of the Lord spoke to Mrs. Manoah and her husband gave them hope for the future. What promises in Scripture likewise give us hope in dark times?
10. How might the story of Manoah and his wife help you cope with life’s surprises?
Praise God for who he is, even for those aspects that you cannot fully understand.
NOW OR LATER
Manoah’s wife was a sensible and spiritually discerning person. Who within your own circle of acquaintances possesses similar characteristics? How can you respectfully draw on those strengths?