“And Manoah said unto his wife, we shall surely die, because we have seen God. But his wife said unto him, If the Lord were pleased to kill us, He would not have received a burnt offering and a meat offering at our hands, neither would He have showed us all these things, nor would He at this time have told us such things as these” (Judges 13:22-23).

Our verse takes us back to the time of the Judges. This period of time was approximately 1380 to 1050 BC. What a day that must have been for this couple. Manoah and his wife could not have children. Earlier in the chapter, the writer of the book of Judges explains that she was barren. I personally know of people today who greatly want children and for whatever reason or purpose, the Lord has not allowed them to conceive. I will be honest that sometimes this is a mystery to me. Couples that I believe would be wonderful parents do not seem to be able to conceive. On the other hand, people who are very poor in parenting seem to be able to conceive readily! Let’s get back to Manoah and his wife. Suddenly the Angel of the Lord appears and announces that they would have a son. Manoah completely misunderstands and declares, “We shall surely die because we have seen God.” Manoah’s wife wisely reminds her husband of the Lord’s purpose. What a great lesson for married couples today. Encourage each other by reminding your spouse of the purpose and blessing of our great God.

For today: God has a plan and purpose for your life. Be encouraged!