Friday, October 29, 2004
The Venerable Martyr Anastasia the Roman
Kellia: Judges 13:1-15 Epistle: Colossians 4:10-18 Gospel: St. Luke 10:1-18
Judges 13:1-15, especially vs. 5: "For lo, you shall conceive and bear
a son. No razor shall come upon his head, for the boy shall be a Nazirite to God from birth; and
he shall begin to deliver Israel from the hand of the Philistines." The life of the famous strong
man, Samson, is recorded in four chapters of the Book of Judges (13-16). The opening passage
prepares the reader for his miraculous birth and the tumultuous adventures of his life that will
follow. He was born to the hitherto barren wife of Manoah, a man from the tribe of Dan. The
account provides his father's name, but not his mother's. The family home was located in the
biblical town of Zorah, a settlement now called Sara located in the Sorek valley, known today as
Wadi al-Sarar. These sites in the western lowlands of southern Palestine were close to the
Mediterranean Sea and adjacent to the coastal strip inhabited by the pagan Philistine peoples,
quite near their cities of Ekron, Ashkelon, and Ashdod, and immediately north of Gaza.
As seen before in the era of the Judges, the Israelites had become dominated by an idolatrous
people - now the Philistines (vs. 1). In this instance, it was the Danites who lived in settlements
such as Zorah which were very close to the coastal plain and the Philistines. The news of God's
intervention brought by the angel promised two blessings for this couple, as members of the
subjugated ancient People of God: 1) Manoah's wife learned that she would have a son, 2) and
that he would "begin to deliver Israel from the hand of the Philistines" (vs. 5).
The accompanying command of the angel required her to "beware, and drink no wine or strong
drink, and eat nothing unclean" (vs. 4). The command also contained an additional injunction:
that no razor should "come upon his head" for the boy was to be "a Nazirite to God from birth"
(vs. 5). The command complied entirely with the Divine law concerning Nazirites as given
through Moses: a Nazirite "shall separate himself from wine and strong drink; he shall drink no
vinegar made from wine or strong drink, and shall not drink any juice of grapes or eat grapes,
fresh or dried. All the days of his separation he shall eat nothing that is produced by the
grapevine, not even the seeds or the skins" (Num. 6:3,4). In Samson's case, these Nazirite vows
would apply for his lifetime, "from birth to the day of his death" (Jdgs.13:7).
When Manoah's wife reported the news of the angelic visitation to her husband, she did not
mention the mission God had for her son as a Nazirite - to "begin to deliver Israel" (vs. 5).
Naturally, she was excited at the news that she would soon conceive and bear a son. Manoah, on
the other hand was especially interested to know about his son's future. Therefore, when the
angel returned, Manoah asked, "What is to be the boy's manner of life, and what is he to do?"
(vs. 12). In addition to avoiding anything associated with grapes and to letting "the locks of hair
of his head grow long" (Num. 6:5), a Nazirite was to avoid contact with dead bodies, but above
all, in taking the vow, he was to focus his life on completing a specific mission in God's service.
Notice that the angel stressed the preparation that Manoah's wife must undertake during her
pregnancy, but he did not repeat to Manoah what their son's mission would be. In time, no
doubt, Manoah would learn that special future work from his wife. But, in any case, at this point
in the encounter, Manoah hastened to extend hospitality to their Divine visitor.
Samson, like Isaac, Samuel, John the Forerunner, the Theotokos, and the Lord Jesus, was a child
born by Divine intervention for a life mission in service to God. The Angel's command to
prepare for his birth reminds us to prepare ourselves to fulfill our life's mission before God.
Enable us, O Lord God of truth, to walk in all Thy commandments, and to fulfill those things
which are well pleasing unto Thee, that we may find true life in completing them.