Judges 13:15

THE ANGEL OF JEHOVAH REVEALS HIS SUPERNATURAL CHARACTER

"And Manoah said unto the angel of Jehovah, I pray thee, let us detain thee, that we may make ready a kid for thee. And the angel of Jehovah said unto Manoah, Though thou detain me, I will not eat of thy bread; and if thou wilt make ready a burnt-offering thou must offer it unto Jehovah. And Manoah said unto the angel of Jehovah, What is thy name, that, when thy words come to pass, we may do thee honor? And the angel of Jehovah said unto him, Wherefore askest thou after my name, seeing it is wonderful? So Manoah took the kid, with the meal-offering and offered it upon the rock unto Jehovah: and the angel did wondrously; and Manoah and his wife looked on. For it came to pass, when the flame went up toward heaven from off the altar, that the angel of Jehovah ascended in the flame of the altar: and Manoah and his wife looked on; and they fell on their faces to the ground."

"I will not eat of thy bread" (Judges 13:16). "The angel perhaps perceived that Manoah was in doubt as to his identity,"[14] and at once moved to prevent Manoah's obvious intention of worshipping him `as an angel.' However, not even an angel may be rightfully worshipped, an honor that belongs only to God, as the apostle John learned in Revelation 22:9. As Hervey said, "The message is clear enough, `Offer sacrifices to no one except God.'"[15]

This chapter appears as one of the most significant in the entire O.T., because of what is said here of the Angel of Jehovah. Back in Judges 13:11, when Manoah asked if "the man" was the same one who had earlier appeared to his wife, the answer was, "I AM." These very words were often used by Jesus Christ himself as his identification, as in John 8:58; Mark 14:62; John 18:5, etc. This strongly supports the belief that the Angel of Jehovah was none other than the pre-incarnate Son of God.

"Wherefore askest thou after my name seeing it is, Wonderful!" (Judges 13:18). "The noun form of this word is rendered `Wonderful' in Isaiah 9:6 as a prophecy of the Messiah."[16] It seems to us that the Angel of Jehovah in this chapter went a long way toward revealing his identity as, "God's pre-incarnate Son."[17] In these six verses, "the Angel of Jehovah" is mentioned in every verse except Judges 13:19, and it is supplied even there.

Moore translated "wonderful" here as "ineffable," and gave the meaning as, "The name is incomprehensible; beyond your capacity to hear and understand it."[18]

It is significant here that the Angel of Jehovah would not `eat bread' with Manoah. This contrasts with the fact that God Himself walked and talked with Adam in the Garden of Eden, and that the Divine Messengers who visited Abraham (Genesis 18) actually ate with that patriarch. "God's intercourse (contact) with mankind was more intimate and natural in the remote past."[19] Moore cited this as a belief held both by Israel and other ancient peoples. The Bible proves that this belief was true, and therefore we are justified in accepting the Pentateuch as a far older book than Judges. We have honored this certainty by accepting a date for Judges as circa 1160-1100 B.C., and the date of Genesis as almost half a millennium earlier, that is, prior to 1400 B.C.

"The Angel of Jehovah did wondrously" (Judges 13:19). It is not so stated here, but the consumption of Manoah's offering by fire probably came about as it did when this same Angel of Jehovah touched Gideon's offering with the end of his staff, causing fire to come up out of the altar and devour the burnt-offering (Judges 6:21). "The angel did wondrously" is probably a reference to the same kind of phenomenon that occurred here.

"When the flame went up from the altar, the angel of Jehovah ascended in the flame of the altar" (Judges 13:20). The text mentions the fact twice that Manoah and his wife "looked on" (Judges 13:19-20), and we may be very sure that this final action of the Angel of Jehovah removed any doubts that they might have had concerning the heavenly identity of their visitor. What a wonderful day it had been for them!

Not only did they learn that they were to have a son born by God's miraculous intervention, but they also came to know that his birth was announced by God's pre-incarnate Son, the Angel of Jehovah.[20]

"They fell on their faces to the ground" (Judges 13:20). No wonder this happened. Only a very few favored persons were ever permitted to see the Angel of Jehovah: Moses, Gideon, Joshua, Zechariah and Manoah and his wife were among those so blessed.