1. Judges 13:2 (ESV)
  2. Exposition

How could the Lord respond to Israel’s plight?

Judges 13:2 (ESV)

2 There was a certain man of Zorah, of the tribe of the Danites, whose name was Manoah. And his wife was barren and had no children.

There are at least three possible ways the story could go from here. The first option is that God could completely destroy Israel, once and for all. The second option is that God could simply leave Israel to wallow in their moral filth. The third option is to send a deliverer in spite of Israel’s sin.

No one would blame God for wiping out Israel. But he loves his people too much to do either that or leave them in their sin forever. He will always work toward redeeming his people. What happens in Judges 13, therefore, is that the Lord sends a deliverer. It reminds us that Israel’s crying out to God is not a precondition for him saving them. He is, after all, totally sovereign in the act of salvation, and he saves those he wants to save.