News of a Birth

We've seen that the Angel of the LORD was very busy during Old Testament times. He got around. He had many important missions from God and fulfilled them well.

On one mission, he revealed himself to a humble and childless Jewish couple in the times of the Judges, the future parents of Samson. His purpose was to prepare them to raise the child in the fear of God. The Angel of the LORD prophesied the birth of the child and he exhorted the surprised parents to strengthen the boy.

That boy would become the famous foe of the Philistines, Samson. Savior he was, it was appropriate for his coming to be announced by our Lord Jesus.

Scene and Setting

Now even though the Angel of the LORD refused to reveal his name to Samson’s parents, they drew the conclusion that he was the Angel of the LORD. But how were they able to come to that conclusion if he hid his identity from them? Read the story that follows to find out why.

A certain man of Zorah, named Manoah, from the clan of the Danites, had a wife who was childless, unable to give birth. The Angel of the LORD appeared to her…

Manoah asked him, ‘When your words are fulfilled, what is to be the rule that governs the boy’s life and work?’ The Angel of the LORD answered, ‘Your wife must do all that I have told her.’

… Manoah said to the Angel of the LORD, ‘We would like you to stay until we prepare a young goat for you.’ The Angel of the LORD replied, ‘Even though you detain me, I will not eat any of your food. But if you prepare a burnt offering, offer it to the LORD.’ (Manoah did not realize that it was the Angel of the LORD.)

Then Manoah inquired of the Angel of the LORD, ‘What is your name, so that we may honor you when your word comes true?’ He replied, ‘Why do you ask my name? It is beyond understanding.’

Then Manoah took a young goat, together with the grain offering, and sacrificed it on a rock to the LORD. And the LORD did an amazing thing while Manoah and his wife watched: As the flame blazed up from the altar toward Heaven, the Angel of the LORD ascended in the flame. Seeing this, Manoah and his wife fell with their faces to the ground.

When the Angel of the LORD did not show himself again to Manoah and his wife, Manoah realized that it was the Angel of the LORD (Judges 13:2-3, 12-13, 15-21).

So the question is “How were Samson’s parents able to come to the conclusion that they were dealing with the Angel of the LORD?” Answer: His ascension to God in the sacrifice was the palpable sign. It meant, for one thing, that the Angel of the LORD was not from Earth.

Manoah and his wife realized that the mystery messenger belonged with God in Heaven. The Angel of the LORD should not spend much time with human beings because we’re not yet prepared for him. Until we’re resurrected, his place is with God in Heaven.

You heard me say, ‘I am going away and I am coming back to you.’ If you loved me, you would be glad that I am going to the Father, for the Father is greater than I (John 14:28).

How He Ascended

Even more important, the manner in which the Angel of the LORD ascended (in the miraculous flame that consumed the goat and grain offerings) indicated that the Angel’s life was a sacrifice pleasing to God.

Jesus himself did not perform the miracle because it says that ‘the LORD did… [that] amazing thing.’ And God did the miracle to show us three things:

• that the offering he accepts is the one Jesus blesses

• that he has the power to save a man from fire

• that he is able to bring our Savior to himself

The Ascension

The whole scene looks a lot like what the apostles witnessed when they saw the ascension of Jesus, doesn’t it?

… he [Jesus] was lifted up while they were looking on, and a cloud received him out of their sight (Acts 1:9; NASB).

The fact that Manoah and his wife saw the Lord ascend in the fire of a sacrifice they had offered to God was a revelation of Jesus as the Christ! God performed the miracle to demonstrate to Samson’s parents and to all of us who read their story what he would do later for our salvation. Didn’t Jesus ascend to God as the sacrifice for our sins?

[Jesus] entered the Holy Place once for all… through his own blood… through the eternal spirit [Jesus] offered himself without blemish to God (Hebrews 9:11, 12, 14; NASB).

Christ… [entered] Heaven itself, now to appear in the presence of God for us… [and Jesus] has been manifested to put away sin by the sacrifice of himself (Hebrews 9:24, 26; NASB).

… we have been sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ… (Hebrews 10:10; NASB).

He who descended is the very one who ascended higher than all the heavens, in order to fill the whole universe (Ephesians 4:10).

The Right Logic

If the story stopped there, it would be enough. No doubt you would be satisfied with its powerful lessons. Nevertheless, there are two more verses which we haven’t looked at yet and those two verses deserve our attention. They show Samson’s father’s reaction to the ascension of the Angel of the Lord.

‘We are doomed to die!’ he said to his wife. ‘We have seen God!’ But his wife answered, ‘If the LORD had meant to kill us, he would not have accepted a burnt offering and grain offering from our hands, nor shown us all these things or now told us this’ (22-23).

The interesting thing about this passage is that Manoah’s wife had the exact same logic as Gideon—the right logic. She reasoned that God wouldn’t have accepted an offering if things weren’t okay. But since God accepted the offering, things must have been okay.

Get this (because it's where many well-intended Christians are in error): Manoah was right in thinking that he had seen God, but he was wrong thinking that it was the One God. No man can see the One God and live. He should have understood that they had seen God’s special Messenger: the Angel of the LORD.

Manoah’s wife understood the main idea: that the LORD God accepted their offering, which meant that he had no intentions to kill them. He would have done so if that’s what he wanted. The fact that they were still alive and breathing was the evidence that the sacrifice was pleasing to God.

In the same vein, the fact that you and I are still alive today is further proof that Jesus’ sacrifice on Calvary was pleasing to God—in case you don’t have enough evidence already! If you're breathing today, it's because God's wrath has been appeased through the sacrifice Jesus sanctified at Calvary.

No Sticking Around

Why did the Angel of the LORD say that he would not stick around and eat?

The Angel of the LORD replied, ‘Even though you detain me, I will not eat any of your food. But if you prepare a burnt offering, offer it to the LORD’ (Judges 13:15).

Jesus didn’t stay with Manoah because he was on a mission to bring a message. It was not because he was anti-social, or that he wasn’t capable of eating, or because he wasn’t hungry. If it were for any of those reasons, he would have said so.

But Jesus, just like other messengers and prophets of God, was diligent to accomplish his mission and to return to God. Perhaps God had another assignment for him. Remember the story of the prophet who was killed by a lion?

As he went on his way, a lion met him on the road and killed him (1 Kings 13:24).

Do you remember how that story began? You can read the complete story by clicking on this link. At first, the prophet followed the command of God by resolutely refusing to stay and eat with the king he had rebuked and healed. Then he was deceived by a fellow prophet. He stayed behind to eat with the lying prophet, and God punished him for not following his commands completely.

The Right Stuff

As a reminder of what the right attitude is, let’s recall how the prophet behaved at the beginning.

The king said to the man of God, “Come home with me for a meal, and I will give you a gift.” But the man of God answered the king, “Even if you were to give me half your possessions, I would not go with you, nor would I eat bread or drink water here. For I was commanded by the word of the Lord: ‘You must not eat bread or drink water or return by the way you came’” (1 Kings 13:7-9).

But then the man of God did stay behind, convinced by the lies of a prophet who was very hospitable, but also very dishonest.

Although the man of God in 1 Kings 13 wasn't completely resolute in the mission God had given him, Jesus was. Jesus didn’t stay with Samson’s parents because he was committed to the will of God. When someone is serving God faithfully, they do not get entangled in worldly matters so that they might deliver the message God has sent through them.

Jesus was not visiting Manoah and his wife to get a meal, but to please God.

No one serving as a soldier gets entangled in civilian affairs, but rather tries to please his commanding officer… Reflect on what I am saying, for the Lord will give you insight into all this (2 Timothy 2:4, 7).

If you didn't read the story yet, click on the image below and pick your favorite Bible version to read it online.