Today's Reading Is Judges 13:

Hasn't God chosen the foolish things of the world to confound the wise? So why wouldn't He continue to do that within the tribes of Israel?

1 Corinthians 1:26–29 (NKJV)

26 For you see your calling, brethren, that not many wise according to the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble, are called. 27 But God has chosen the foolish things of the world to put to shame the wise, and God has chosen the weak things of the world to put to shame the things which are mighty; 28 and the base things of the world and the things which are despised God has chosen, and the things which are not, to bring to nothing the things that are, 29 that no flesh should glory in His presence.

Wasn't God found by those who weren't seeking Him? So why wouldn't He do that even within the elect nation of the sons of Israel, who were made of the elementary covenant?

Romans 9:21–26 (NKJV)

21 Does not the potter have power over the clay, from the same lump to make one vessel for honor and another for dishonor? 22 What if God, wanting to show His wrath and to make His power known, endured with much longsuffering the vessels of wrath prepared for destruction, 23 and that He might make known the riches of His glory on the vessels of mercy, which He had prepared beforehand for glory, 24 even us whom He called, not of the Jews only, but also of the Gentiles? 25 As He also says in Hosea: "I will call them My people, who were not My people, And her beloved, who was not beloved." 26 "And it shall come to pass in the place where it was said to them, 'You are not My people,' There they shall be called sons of the living God."

Romans 10:19–21 (NKJV)

19 But I say, did Israel not know? First, Moses says: "I will provoke you to jealousy by those who are not a nation, I will move you to anger by a foolish nation." 20 But Isaiah is very bold and says: "I was found by those who did not seek Me; I was made manifest to those who did not ask for Me." 21 But to Israel, he says: "All day long I have stretched out My hands To a disobedient and contrary people."

Galatians 3:21–25 (NKJV)

21 Is the law then against the promises of God? Certainly not! For if there had been a law given which could have given life, truly righteousness would have been by the law. 22 But the Scripture has confined all under sin, that the promise by faith in Jesus Christ might be given to those who believe. 23 But before faith came, we were kept under guard by the law, kept for the faith which would afterward be revealed. 24 Therefore, the law was our tutor to bring us to Christ so that we might be justified by faith. 25 But after faith has come, we are no longer under a tutor.

Why is Manoah's wife identified as "the woman" unlike the other women of faith whom God had used and was not ashamed to honor by name? (v.3)

Is this demonstrating what the men had learned since Deborah rose up to Judge Israel? (v.1-3)

Therefore this sin of this generation was a sin of a new age that was led by the unclean spirit of that age. (v.4)

Ephesians 2:2–3 (NKJV)

2 in which you once walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit who now works in the sons of disobedience, 3 among whom also we all once conducted ourselves in the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, just as the others.

2 Corinthians 4:4 (NKJV)

4 whose minds the God of this age has blinded, who do not believe, lest the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine on them.

Ephesians 6:12 (NKJV)

12 For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places.

1 Corinthians 2:6 (NKJV)

6 However, we speak wisdom among those who are mature, yet not the wisdom of this age, nor of the rulers of this age, who are coming to nothing.

But why did the Angel of the LORD choose to be gracious to Manoah's house? (v.2)

If the sin (of 40 years) was a failure to appear before the LORD at Shiloh (v.1), then there was likely a question brewing in their hearts as to why Manoah's wife was barren. (v.2)

Exodus 23:24–27 (NKJV)

24 You shall not bow down to their gods, nor serve them, nor do according to their works; but you shall utterly overthrow them and completely break down their sacred pillars. 25 "So you shall serve the Lord your God, and He will bless your bread and your water. And I will take sickness away from the midst of you. 26 No one shall suffer miscarriage or be barren in your land; I will fulfill the number of your days. 27 "I will send My fear before you, I will cause confusion among all the people to whom you come, and will make all your enemies turn their backs to you.

Deuteronomy 7:12–15 (NKJV)

12 "Then it shall come to pass, because you listen to these judgments, and keep and do them, that the Lord your God will keep with you the covenant and the mercy which He swore to your fathers. 13 And He will love you and bless you and multiply you; He will also bless the fruit of your womb and the fruit of your land, your grain and your new wine and your oil, the increase of your cattle and the offspring of your flock, in the land of which He swore to your fathers to give you. 14 You shall be blessed above all peoples; there shall not be a male or female barren among you or among your livestock. 15 And the Lord will take away from you all sickness, and will afflict you with none of the terrible diseases of Egypt which you have known, but will lay them on all those who hate you.

Consider that if Manoah's father didn't take him up to Shiloh over these last 40 years, then he wasn't likely to go up either. Therefore the LORD appears to his wife to sow the desire into her to seek the promise rather than being content to live under the curse. But did they even know they were cursed since they didn't know the Law? (v.3)

So Christ also seeks to sow into her the desire to pursue the promise "according to" the Law, of which both grow to demonstrate their ignorance of it as the narrative continues to unfold. (v.4)

Therefore the gift of the child is the means by which God has chosen to turn them toward Himself for their salvation. Again, there is a repeating theme here regarding the votive offerings and Israel's ignorance of them. (v.5)

Judges 11:30–31 (NKJV)

30 And Jephthah made a vow to the Lord, and said, "If You will indeed deliver the people of Ammon into my hands, 31 then it will be that whatever comes out of the doors of my house to meet me, when I return in peace from the people of Ammon, shall surely be the Lord's, and I will offer it up as a burnt offering."

Judges 11:34–35 (NKJV)

34 When Jephthah came to his house at Mizpah, there was his daughter, coming out to meet him with timbrels and dancing; and she was his only child. Besides her he had neither son nor daughter. 35 And it came to pass, when he saw her, that he tore his clothes, and said, "Alas, my daughter! You have brought me very low! You are among those who trouble me! For I have given my word to the Lord, and I cannot go back on it."

So what was the LORD'S purpose in sowing this Nazarite vow, which did not originate from their own will, for neither she nor Manoah was seeking it, but God put it into them; if it was not to make their deliverance from the oppression of the Philistines happen?

How does "the woman" add to God's Word (and will) by distorting and corrupting His first and original intentions "according to" the Law? (v.6-7)

Numbers 6:1–5 (NKJV)

1 Then the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, 2 "Speak to the children of Israel, and say to them: 'When either a man or woman consecrates an offering to take the vow of a Nazirite, to separate himself to the Lord, 3 he shall separate himself from wine and similar drink; he shall drink neither vinegar made from wine nor vinegar made from similar drink; neither shall he drink any grape juice, nor eat fresh grapes or raisins. 4 All the days of his separation, he shall eat nothing that is produced by the grapevine, from seed to skin. 5 'All the days of the vow of his separation, no razor shall come upon his head; until the days are fulfilled for which he separated himself to the Lord, he shall be holy. Then he shall let the locks of the hair of his head grow.

Wasn't the boy just supposed to be dedicated "to learn" the way of the LORD according to the Nazirite vow?

Numbers 6:6–21 (NKJV)

6 All the days that he separates himself to the Lord, he shall not go near a dead body. 7 He shall not make himself unclean even for his father or his mother, for his brother or his sister, when they die, because his separation to God is on his head. 8 All the days of his separation, he shall be holy to the Lord. 9 'And if anyone dies very suddenly beside him, and he defiles his consecrated head, then he shall shave his head on the day of his cleansing; on the seventh day, he shall shave it. 10 Then on the eighth day he shall bring two turtledoves or two young pigeons to the priest, to the door of the tabernacle of meeting; 11 and the priest shall offer one as a sin offering and the other as a burnt offering, and make atonement for him because he sinned in regard to the corpse; and he shall sanctify his head that same day. 12 He shall consecrate to the Lord the days of his separation, and bring a male lamb in its first year as a trespass offering; but the former days shall be lost, because his separation was defiled. 13 'Now this is the law of the Nazirite: When the days of his separation are fulfilled, he shall be brought to the door of the tabernacle of meeting. 14 And he shall present his offering to the Lord: one male lamb in its first year without blemish as a burnt offering, one ewe lamb in its first year without blemish as a sin offering, one ram without blemish as a peace offering, 15 a basket of unleavened bread, cakes of fine flour mixed with oil, unleavened wafers anointed with oil, and their grain offering with their drink offerings. 16 'Then the priest shall bring them before the Lord and offer his sin offering and his burnt offering; 17 and he shall offer the ram as a sacrifice of a peace offering to the Lord, with the basket of unleavened bread; the priest shall also offer its grain offering and its drink offering. 18 Then the Nazirite shall shave his consecrated head at the door of the tabernacle of meeting, and shall take the hair from his consecrated head and put it on the fire which is under the sacrifice of the peace offering. 19 'And the priest shall take the boiled shoulder of the ram, one unleavened cake from the basket, and one unleavened wafer, and put them upon the hands of the Nazirite after he has shaved his consecrated hair, 20 and the priest shall wave them as a wave offering before the Lord; they are holy for the priest, together with the breast of the wave offering and the thigh of the heave offering. After that, the Nazirite may drink wine.' 21 "This is the law of the Nazirite who vows to the Lord the offering for his separation, and besides that, whatever else his hand is able to provide; according to the vow which he takes, so he must do according to the law of his separation."

Shouldn't both Manoah and "the woman" have waited to apply what the LORD actually said until they understood the Nazirite vow by seeking to go up to Shiloh and examine the Law, the sacrifice, and the testimony? (v.13)

If the boy was to be a Nazirite from the womb "to his death," how would he have ever been able "to deliver" Dan from the Philistines without putting a man to death, which the Nazarite vow would not have permitted him to touch a dead body? Do you see how "the woman" is making no sense? (v.7)

Proverbs 30:4–6 (NKJV)

4 Who has ascended into heaven, or descended? Who has gathered the wind in His fists? Who has bound the waters in a garment? Who has established all the ends of the earth? What is His name, and what is His Son's name, If you know? 5 Every word of God is pure; He is a shield to those who put their trust in Him. 6 Do not add to His words, Lest He rebuke you, and you be found a liar.

Therefore aren't we seeing the beginning stages where God is entering the hearts and minds of all the sons (of the tribes) of Israel as a father rather than merely a judge?

Isn't God now building faith into the heartland of Israel rather than just (the fear of the LORD)? (v.8)

Proverbs 9:10 (NKJV)

10 "The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, And the knowledge of the Holy One is understanding.

But what is the LORD teaching Manoah by always appearing to "the woman" when she is alone without her husband? (v.9)

John 4:3–12 (NKJV)

3 He left Judea and departed again to Galilee. 4 But He needed to go through Samaria. 5 So He came to a city of Samaria which is called Sychar, near the plot of ground that Jacob gave to his son Joseph. 6 Now Jacob's well was there. Jesus, therefore, being wearied from His journey, sat thus by the well. It was about the sixth hour. 7 A woman of Samaria came to draw water. Jesus said to her, "Give Me a drink." 8 For His disciples had gone away into the city to buy food. 9 Then the woman of Samaria said to Him, "How is it that You, being a Jew, ask a drink from me, a Samaritan woman?" For Jews have no dealings with Samaritans. 10 Jesus answered and said to her, "If you knew the gift of God, and who it is who says to you, 'Give Me a drink,' you would have asked Him, and He would have given you living water." 11 The woman said to Him, "Sir, You have nothing to draw with, and the well is deep. Where then do You get that living water? 12 Are You greater than our father Jacob, who gave us the well and drank from it himself, as well as his sons and his livestock?"

Yet, in what way is this intended (to rape) Manoah's sinful mind and soul with the holiness that Christ is sowing into his wife (in secret), for he continues to appear to "the woman" rather than the man, who is the head of the woman, which seems to be out of order for the culture of God? (v.10)

John 4:13–16 (NKJV)

13 Jesus answered and said to her, "Whoever drinks of this water will thirst again, 14 but whoever drinks of the water that I shall give him will never thirst. But the water that I shall give him will become in him a fountain of water springing up into everlasting life." 15 The woman said to Him, "Sir, give me this water, that I may not thirst, nor come here to draw." 16 Jesus said to her, "Go, call your husband, and come here."

Nevertheless, how does this show a divine response of faith by trusting "the man" to be "the man" sent from God? (v.11-12)

John 4:17–19 (NKJV)

17 The woman answered and said, "I have no husband." Jesus said to her, "You have well said, 'I have no husband,' 18 for you have had five husbands, and the one whom you now have is not your husband; in that, you spoke truly." 19 The woman said to Him, "Sir, I perceive that You are a prophet.

But yet, how does "the man" demonstrate his own authority by making it clear to Manoah that he is responsible for the leading of his wife? (v.13)

John 4:20–26 (NKJV)

20 Our fathers worshiped on this mountain, and you Jews say that in Jerusalem is the place where one ought to worship." 21 Jesus said to her, "Woman, believe Me, the hour is coming when you will neither on this mountain nor in Jerusalem, worship the Father. 22 You worship what you do not know; we know what we worship, for salvation is of the Jews. 23 But the hour is coming, and now is, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth; for the Father is seeking such to worship Him. 24 God is Spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth." 25 The woman said to Him, "I know that Messiah is coming" (who is called Christ). "When He comes, He will tell us all things." 26 Jesus said to her, "I who speak to you am He."

That's the soul rape! That's the knife to the heart! That's the circumcision of the heart. That's the opening of the ears and the eyes of the heart to know and understand the spiritual condition of the heart's radical depravity, what the heart is without the Spirit of God's divine help. (v.14)

John 4:27–29 (NKJV)

27 And at this point His disciples came, and they marveled that He talked with a woman; yet no one said, "What do You seek?" or, "Why are You talking with her?" 28 The woman then left her waterpot, went her way into the city, and said to the men, 29 "Come, see a Man who told me all things that I ever did. Could this be the Christ?"

Therefore the purpose of this whole visitation was for them to grow up and out of the glory of their own hospitality to strangers and into the head and king of Israel to know and understand the hospitality of the LORD and the Law of His Word. (v.15-16)

Why were the children of Israel waiting for the words of the LORD to come to pass "before" they would honor Him if it wasn't because they didn't know Him? (v.17)

Isn't this the demonstration of their self-righteousness, that it doesn't seek the LORD?

Psalm 10:4 (NKJV)

4 The wicked in his proud countenance does not seek God; God is in none of his thoughts.

Psalm 14:2–3 (NKJV)

2 The Lord looks down from heaven upon the children of men, To see if there are any who understand, who seek God. 3 They have all turned aside, They have together become corrupt; There is none who does good, No, not one.

Romans 3:9–12 (NKJV)

9 What then? Are we better than they? Not at all. For we have previously charged both Jews and Greeks that they are all under sin. 10 As it is written: "There is none righteous, no, not one; 11 There is none who understands; There is none who seeks after God. 12 They have all turned aside; They have together become unprofitable; There is none who does good, no, not one."

What more does God have to do to prove to them that His Word is true before they will honor it? (v.18)

Deuteronomy 13:1–5 (NKJV)

1 "If there arises among you a prophet or a dreamer of dreams, and he gives you a sign or a wonder, 2 and the sign or the wonder comes to pass, of which he spoke to you, saying, 'Let us go after other gods'—which you have not known—' and let us serve them,' 3 you shall not listen to the words of that prophet or that dreamer of dreams, for the Lord your God is testing you to know whether you love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul. 4 You shall walk after the Lord your God and fear Him, and keep His commandments and obey His voice; you shall serve Him and hold fast to Him. 5 But that prophet or that dreamer of dreams shall be put to death because he has spoken in order to turn you away from the Lord your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt and redeemed you from the house of bondage, to entice you from the way in which the Lord your God commanded you to walk. So you shall put away the evil from your midst.

Didn't Yahweh deliver them from Egypt with many wonders, which was common knowledge to both the circumcised and uncircumcised, O you of little faith?

Again, the Angel of the LORD, which is the pre-incarnate Christ, is leading them to go up to Shiloh to offer again upon the appointed altar. (v.19)

But again, why weren't the Levites coming out as prophets from their sanctuary cities to understand why the sons of Israel weren't coming up to (the sacrifice)? (v.20-21)

Are they too righteous to do their job? (v.23)

Judges 6:7–10 (NKJV)

7 And it came to pass when the children of Israel cried out to the Lord because of the Midianites, 8 that the Lord sent a prophet to the children of Israel, who said to them, "Thus says the Lord God of Israel: 'I brought you up from Egypt and brought you out of the house of bondage; 9 and I delivered you out of the hand of the Egyptians and out of the hand of all who oppressed you, and drove them out before you and gave you their land. 10 Also, I said to you, "I am the Lord your God; do not fear the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you dwell." But you have not obeyed My voice.'"

Why is it not enough to just come out and bark at them? Why must the prophets seek to understand the spirit of the generation? Why must they investigate why the children of Israel are not hearing God's voice?

1 Samuel 3:1 (NKJV)

1 Now, the boy Samuel ministered to the Lord before Eli. And the word of the Lord was rare in those days; there was no widespread revelation.

Again, why was there no mention of them going up to Shiloh, where the tabernacle had been resting since the days of Joshua?

Yet, did this restrain the LORD from blessing the boy? (v.24)

Wasn't the vow that God sowed into her intended to stir him up from the womb like John the Baptist? (v.25)

Luke 1:41–44 (NKJV)

41 And it happened, when Elizabeth heard the greeting of Mary, that the babe leaped in her womb; and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit. 42 Then she spoke out with a loud voice and said, "Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb! 43 But why is this granted to me, that the mother of my Lord should come to me? 44 For indeed, as soon as the voice of your greeting sounded in my ears, the babe leaped in my womb for joy.

Luke 1:13–17 (NKJV)

13 But the angel said to him, "Do not be afraid, Zacharias, for your prayer is heard; and your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you shall call his name John. 14 And you will have joy and gladness, and many will rejoice at his birth. 15 For he will be great in the sight of the Lord, and shall drink neither wine nor strong drink. He will also be filled with the Holy Spirit, even from his mother's womb. 16 And he will turn many of the children of Israel to the Lord their God. 17 He will also go before Him in the spirit and power of Elijah, 'to turn the hearts of the fathers to the children,' and the disobedient to the wisdom of the just, to make ready a people prepared for the Lord."

Therefore why does "Samson" have to learn God's purposes the hard way if it is not because neither Manoah nor his wife listened to the LORD? (v.13)

1 Corinthians 11:3 (NKJV)

3 But I want you to know that the head of every man is Christ, the head of woman is man, and the head of Christ is God.

1 Corinthians 11:7–10 (NKJV)

7 For a man indeed ought not to cover his head, since he is the image and glory of God; but woman is the glory of man. 8 For man is not from woman, but woman from man. 9 Nor was man created for the woman, but woman for the man. 10 For this reason, the woman ought to have a symbol of authority on her head because of the angels.

Therefore be prepared to read that each of them learns the hard way. But isn't their learning through suffering so that we don't have to suffer the same sufferings?

Hebrews 5:7–11 (NKJV)

7 who, in the days of His flesh, when He had offered up prayers and supplications, with vehement cries and tears to Him who was able to save Him from death, and was heard because of His godly fear, 8 though He was a Son, yet He learned obedience by the things which He suffered. 9 And having been perfected, He became the author of eternal salvation to all who obey Him, 10 called by God as High Priest "according to the order of Melchizedek," 11 of whom we have much to say, and hard to explain, since you have become dull of hearing.

Shouldn't we be able to learn from the sins and errors of others? Isn't that why God has preserved this wisdom for us, to walk by faith?

Yet, how did the LORD know all along that Samson nor his parents would be able to keep their vows? How was it for their good that he did not tell them directly to go up to Shiloh? How were they expected to already know where to find the answer to their questions?

Yet, isn't this why God intended to keep his vow to them by going up in the flames of the burnt offering? (v.20)