March 19, 2010 Judges 14-16

The history of Samson reminds me that God's ways are mysterious! As a Nazirite, Samson was set apart (consecrated) to be used by God for His purposes. God wanted to confront the Philisitnes directly, so He used Samson to do this work.

God instilled the idea in Samson's head that he should marry a young Philistine woman he had seen. When Samson told his parents that she was the one he wanted they tried to talk him out of it, but he would not be swayed. As they travelled to where she lived, a lion charged Samson and he tore it apart with his bare hands because he was filled with the Spirit of the Lord. The bible doesn't really explain how Samson was separated from his parents, but they didn't see this happen and Samson didn't tell them about it. They got to Timnah where Samson talked with the woman and he liked her.

When the period of engagement was over Samson returned to Timnah for the wedding. On the way, he decided to check out the lion carcass. Inside the carcass bees had built a hive and he found honey there. He scooped it out of the body with his hands and began to eat it, and he shared some with his parents too (without telling them where he got it.) Nazirites aren't supposed to touch dead bodies. Samson's father went to make the final arrangements for the wedding and Samson threw a big party as was the custom of bridegrooms.

The Philistines saw Samson and he was given 30 companions. Samson told them a riddle with 30 sets of clothes at stake if they could solve it within 7 days. "Once so strong and mighty--now so sweet and tasty!" These 30 companions were some pretty rough chaps because when they couldn't figure out the answer, they went to the bride and threatened to burn her and her family. They made her an offer she couldn't refuse... Anyway, she wheedled it out of Samson, told them, and cheated Samson out of the prize. He was filled with the Spirit of the Lord and went to Ashkelon, killed 30 men, took their clothes, returned to Timnah and gave the clothes to the 30 thugs, and went back home. The bride's father gave his daughter to one of the 30 thugs.

Samson thought she was his wife. So when he went to visit her and wanted to sleep with her, her father told him she wasn't his wife. He was very angry and went out and caught 300 foxes, tied them together in pairs by their tails, attached torches to them and let them loose in the grain and burned it all up. When the Philistines figured out who did it, they burned the bride and her family anyway. This made Samson even more angry. 3000 men from the tribe of Judah went to subdue Samson, and
tied him up to deliver him to the Philistines since they were the rulers. Again the Spirit of the Lord came upon him and the ropes fell off him and he found a fresh jawbone of a donkey and killed 1000 Philistines with it. Then he cried out to God because he was so thirsty and God opened a spring, Samson drank and was revived. Samson ruled for 20 years.

Samson went to Gaza and decided to spend the night with a prostitute. The men plotted to kill him at dawn by the city gate. During the night Samson got up and ripped the closed city gate right off the ground and carried it on his shoulders to the top of a hill where he set it down. Later, he fell in love with Delilah. The rulers of the Philistines wanted her to find out how they could defeat Samson and they offered to pay her for the information. He told her several ways that didn't work. Finally, he told her everything, that his hair was his strength. She lulled him to sleep and cut off his hair. It must have been pretty long since it had never been cut. The Philistines captured him and gouged out his eyes and put him in jail. The Philistines were celebrating and gathered in a temple of their god. They decided to make Samson entertain them. They brought him out, blind, but strong with his hair growing back. Samson prayed and asked God to help him destroy them. He braced himself between the two pillars of the temple and brought the whole thing down killing everyone inside. His parents came and got his body and buried him back at home.

Tomorrow read Judges 17-20:11