“Then the woman came and told her husband, saying, A man of God came unto me, and his countenance was like the countenance of an angel of God, very terrible: but I asked him not whence he was, neither told he me his name:”
My Notes
What Does Judges 13:6 Mean?
"Then the woman came and told her husband, saying, A man of God came unto me, and his countenance was like the countenance of an angel of God, very terrible: but I asked him not whence he was, neither told he me his name." Manoah's wife — unnamed in the text but perceptive beyond her husband — reports the angelic visitation with remarkable OBSERVATION. She sees the visitor's appearance ('like the countenance of an angel of God, very terrible'), she notes what she DIDN'T ask ('I asked him not whence he was'), and she notes what he DIDN'T tell ('neither told he me his name'). Her report is detailed, honest, and self-aware.
The phrase "his countenance was like the countenance of an angel of God, very terrible" (umare'hu kemare'h mal'akh haElohim nora me'od — his appearance was like the appearance of an angel of God, very awesome/terrible) describes AWE: the visitor looked DIVINE. 'Terrible' (nora) means awe-inspiring, fear-inducing — not evil but OVERWHELMING. The woman recognized the supernatural quality of the visitor's appearance. She didn't need to be told it was divine. She SAW it.
The detail "I asked him not whence he was, neither told he me his name" shows RESTRAINT and RESPECT: the woman didn't interrogate the divine visitor. She received the message without demanding credentials. The not-asking isn't ignorance — it's WISDOM. She recognized that some encounters are to be received, not investigated. The message matters more than the messenger's resume.
Reflection Questions
- 1.When was the last time your encounter with God was genuinely awe-inspiring — 'very terrible' in the reverent sense?
- 2.What does the unnamed woman's spiritual perception exceeding her named husband's teach about whose insight God honors?
- 3.How does 'I asked him not whence he was' (restraint, not interrogation) model receiving divine encounters with appropriate reverence?
- 4.What message has God sent you that you're trying to investigate rather than receive?
Devotional
The WOMAN sees what the MAN will need to verify: an angel of God, 'very terrible' — awe-inspiring, overwhelming. She reports it clearly, honestly, with precise detail. She knows what she saw. She knows what she didn't ask. She knows what wasn't told. Her report is COMPLETE in its self-awareness.
Manoah's wife is UNNAMED — one of the most perceptive characters in Judges, and we never learn her name. She receives the angelic announcement of Samson's birth. She accurately describes the divine encounter. She will later demonstrate more spiritual insight than her husband (verse 23 — when Manoah panics 'we shall surely die,' she calmly reasons 'if the LORD were pleased to kill us, He would not have shown us all these things'). The unnamed woman is the wisest person in the room.
The 'I asked him not whence he was' is DISCERNMENT, not passivity: she didn't demand the angel's credentials. She didn't interrogate the divine visitor. She received the message with the REVERENCE appropriate to the encounter. Some things are to be received, not investigated. Some moments call for AWE, not inquiry. The woman's restraint is her wisdom.
The 'very terrible' (nora me'od — exceedingly awesome) describes the KIND of divine encounter that should recalibrate everything: an appearance so overwhelming that it inspires 'terror' — not the terror of threat but the terror of HOLINESS. The awe that strips away casual familiarity with God. The encounter that reminds you: God is not safe. God is not tame. God is TERRIBLE — in the ancient, reverent, knee-buckling sense.
When was the last time your encounter with God was 'very terrible' — genuinely awe-inspiring, not comfortable?
Commentary
Trusted original commentary from respected historical Bible scholars and theologians.
Then the woman came and told her husband,.... To whom it would be joyful news, as it was to her:
saying, a man of God…
A man of God - The designation of a prophet, of frequent use in the books of Samuel and Kings 1Sa 2:27; 1Sa 9:6-8, 1Sa…
The first verse gives us a short account, such as we have too often met with already, of the great distress that Israel…
A man of God An inspired man; the phrase is used of a prophet, Deu 33:1; 1Sa 2:27; 1Sa 9:6-8; 1Ki 12:22 etc. Here the…
Cross References
Related passages throughout Scripture