Wife of Manoah

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The Annunciation to Manoah's Wife by Tintoretto. Jacopo Tintoretto - The Annunciation to Manoah's Wife - WGA22660.jpg
The Annunciation to Manoah's Wife by Tintoretto.

The wife of Manoah is an unnamed figure in the Book of Judges. She is introduced in Judges 13:2 as barren woman. The angel of the Lord appears to her and tells her she will have a son. She later gives birth to Samson.

J. Cheryl Exum argues that the wife of Manoah is more perceptive than her husband, in that she "senses at once something otherworldly" about the man of God who visits her, and "recognizes a divine purpose behind the revelation." [1] Bruce Waltke regards her as cynical, noting that, unlike Hannah, she neither prays for a child nor praises God afterwards. [2]

Ancient Rabbinic tradition identifies this woman as the Hazelelponi mentioned in 1 Chronicles 4:3, though the Talmud identifies Samson's mother as a woman named "Tzelelponit" (Hebrew : צללפונית).

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References

  1. Exum, J. Cheryl. "Mother of Samson". Jewish Women's Archive. Retrieved 24 July 2013.
  2. Waltke, Bruce. An Old Testament Theology. p. 610.