Ep. 71. Judges 13-16 | Samson
EPISODE 71
SAMSON: JUDGES 13-16
Samson provides us with a fascinating story here in the book of Judges. He's a childhood favorite, though it has to be for his show of strength and not for his moral fortitude.
God set Samson apart as a Nazarite from the womb. God intended to use Samson to "begin to save Israel from the hand of the Philistines." "Begin" is the key word. God would also use Samuel the prophet and Saul to a small degree, but ultimately, deliverance from the Philistines would come during the reign of David.
I believe there is probably some overlap between the lives of Samson and Samuel. It would not surprise me to find that the overlap is significant. We tend to think of these two men separated by years, partly because of the placement of the Samson narrative within the book of Judges and partly because we want to assume that the start of a new book like Samuel must also mean a change in the timeframe. As we will see in the prophets, this is not always the case.
Samson is a terrible Nazarite, but God's faithfulness to his covenant prevailed over Samson's foolishness. You will notice that the feats of strength he performs are empowered by the Spirit of God rushing upon him. The hair on his head was simply symbolic of his relationship with God.
We have to wonder how Samson could not see clearly that Delilah was trying to betray him. Was he so naive? Was he just too much in love? Was he too proud? Was he just convinced his own hand had saved him to this point? Whatever the reason he behaved so foolishly, the Philistines were able to subdue him finally. Or were they? We know that God had told Samson's mother in 13:5 that he would "begin" the deliverance of Israel from the Philistine oppression. We are told in 16:30 that he killed more at his death than those he had killed in his life. God used Samson just as he said he would.
I am thankful to know that God can use us regardless of our failures and flaws, but I am less inclined to compare myself to Samson in this story than I used to be. We often want to point out Moses' failures, or David's, or Samson's, or even Peter's denial of Christ and align ourselves with them, saying something to the effect, "Look at these broken people God used. I'm so grateful he can use me, too." I used to preach an entire sermon on Samson, pointing out that "the hair on his head began to grow again after it had been cut off." This was certainly symbolic of the work God was about to do in Samson's life, but it is not a great picture of who we are in Christ.
One thing we need to remember about Moses, David, Samson, and even Peter in the gospel writings is that Jesus had not died yet. The cross had not yet overthrown the power of sin. The Holy Spirit had not yet been given as a seal of salvation and righteousness. I mean to say that the version of Peter we see in Acts is very different from the version we see in Matthew. That is because there is a fundamental difference between the two. Peter of the gospels was still missing the point; he had not yet received the Holy Spirit and had not yet had sin's power broken in his life. But Peter, after the cross, after the defeat of sin, after the indwelling of the Holy Spirit, is a force! We see Samson's hair beginning to grow again as an encouragement, and it can be to a small degree, but we must not think of ourselves like Samson. Our lives were consecrated to God the moment we put faith in Jesus. God imparted to us his very righteousness and clothed us in his power the moment we believed. Nothing can diminish that. We need not wait around for our hair to grow again in the hopes that one day, we might be useful to God again. We need not feel helpless beneath the weight of sin. We need not fear death or condemnation, for all has been dealt with on the cross of Christ.
Believer, you are loved and whole. You are righteous and forgiven. Sin's power has been broken. Death is not a threat any longer.
I've gotten off topic a bit, so I'll wrap this up and see you tomorrow.
ADDITIONAL READING: Hebrews 11:32; Numbers 6
