We hear a lot about Samson in modern-day sermons and really just in everyday life. Do you have a Samsonite suitcase? They’re strong as steal! Samson is known worldwide for his strength and might, but rarely (ok, I can’t recall one time ever) do we hear about his parents. I’ll be honest, I’ve read this chapter before and never paid one bit of attention to who gave birth to one of the greatest Bible heroes on earth, and reading it again today, I still didn’t recall ever reading about Manoah before now. Weird, huh, how our memories just latch on to some things and completely drop others? As I was finally paying attention to Samson’s parents and their story today, I also realized that while Manoah didn’t sound familiar at all, Samson’s mother is never even given a name! The Bible does this a lot with women, and a few men. And angels. We don’t get the angel’s name, either. Coincidence? I think not.
Writing prompt: What’s in a name?
While we know “who” both the angel and Samson’s mother are, we don’t really know who they are, much like anonymous donors or people who pay for your drive-through order from the car ahead of you. You may see them, but you don’t know their names or who they are. Does it matter? Does it matter that we don’t know Samson’s mother’s name? Or the angel’s name? Get a little philosophical today and write out your thoughts and opinions on what’s in a name.
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