And the woman bare a son, and called his name Samson: and the child grew, and the LORD blessed him.
The account to which this verse belongs shows God communicating with human beings through angels. In it the son born to Manoah is named Samson, and as the child grew the Lord blessed him. His birth fulfilled the promise of a child who would begin to deliver Israel from the Philistines, so from the start his life lay under God's purpose for a great work for Israel.
He was consecrated to God as a Nazirite from birth, with his mother instructed to avoid wine and strong drink and unclean food. The child was to follow the same restrictions, and his hair was to be left uncut. Those instructions show that his preparation for his work began before birth, and that his parents' habits and care formed part of that preparation. That early provision was directed toward his physical strength and intellectual vigor and moral purity.
His great physical strength did not ensure self-control or faithfulness. Instead of relying on God and obeying His laws he yielded to passion and temptation. The course he chose ended in shame and disaster and death.
The account to which this verse belongs shows God communicating with human beings through angels. In it the son born to Manoah is named Samson, and as the child grew the Lord blessed him. His birth fulfilled the promise of a child who would begin to deliver Israel from the Philistines, so from the start his life lay under God's purpose for a great work for Israel.
He was consecrated to God as a Nazirite from birth, with his mother instructed to avoid wine and strong drink and unclean food. The child was to follow the same restrictions, and his hair was to be left uncut. Those instructions show that his preparation for his work began before birth, and that his parents' habits and care formed part of that preparation. That early provision was directed toward his physical strength and intellectual vigor and moral purity.
His great physical strength did not ensure self-control or faithfulness. Instead of relying on God and obeying His laws he yielded to passion and temptation. The course he chose ended in shame and disaster and death.