The midrash claims that their lack of children (“His wife was barren and had borne no children” – Jud. 13:2) resulted in a quarrel between Manoah and his wife. He would tell her: You are barren and cannot give birth; while she would charge him: You are sterile, and therefore I did not give birth. When the angel of the Lord appeared to her, he informed her (Jud. 13:3): “You are barren and have borne no children; but you shall conceive and bear a son.” The angel mentioned barrenness in order to effect domestic peace: he tells her that she is barren, and this is why she has not become pregnant (Num. Rabbah 10:5). There is also, however, a contrary tradition, that maintains that in order to bring peace between Manoah and his wife the angel engaged in a fabrication, for Manoah was sterile, and not his wife (Masekhet Derekh Erez, “Gadol ha-Shalom [Great Is Peace]” 7).

Teaching of the shame attached to barrenness, the midrash relates that the Judge Ibzan had sixty children and held one hundred and twenty feasts when they married, but he did not invite Manoah and his wife to a single one of these celebrations. He reasoned: How will this barren mule repay me? This couple has no children, and they will never be able to invite me to their banquet. In the end, Manoah and his wife were blessed with a son, while all of Ibzan’s offspring died in his lifetime. This gave birth to the popular saying: “You begat sixty, of what benefit to you are the sixty. Try and beget one, who will be brighter than sixty.” That is, the only child of Manoah and his wife brought greater benefit than the sixty sons and daughters of Ibzan (BT Bava Batra 91a).

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This barrenness is actually mentioned in praise of Manoah’s wife, since she is among the list of seven renowned barren women: Sarah, Rebekah, Rachel, Leah, Manoah’s wife, Hannah and Zion, of whom Ps. 113:9 states: “He sets the childless woman among her household as a happy mother of children.” The beginning of the verse depicts their barrenness, while its end portrays their happiness when they are blessed with offspring (Pesikta de-Rav Kahana, Rani Akarah [“ Rejoice, O barren one”—Isa. 54:1], 20:1). In addition to a son (Samson), Manoah’s wife also gave birth to a daughter named Nashyan (BT Bava Batra 91a).

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