Judges 16:1-31
Samson went to Gaza, and there he saw a prostitute, and he
went in to her. 2 The
Gazites were told, “Samson has come here.” And they surrounded the place and
set an ambush for him all night at the gate of the city. They kept quiet all
night, saying, “Let us wait till the light of the morning; then we will kill him.”
3 But Samson lay
till midnight, and at midnight he arose and took hold of the doors of the gate
of the city and the two posts, and pulled them up, bar and all, and put them on
his shoulders and carried them to the top of the hill that is in front of Hebron.
4 After
this he loved a woman in the Valley of Sorek, whose name was Delilah. 5 And the lords of the
Philistines came up to her and said to her, “Seduce him, and see where his
great strength lies, and by what means we may overpower him, that we may bind
him to humble him. And we will each give you 1,100 pieces of silver.” 6 So Delilah said to
Samson, “Please tell me where your great strength lies, and how you might be
bound, that one could subdue you.”
7 Samson
said to her, “If they bind me with seven fresh bowstrings that have not been
dried, then I shall become weak and be like any other man.” 8 Then the lords of the
Philistines brought up to her seven fresh bowstrings that had not been dried,
and she bound him with them. 9 Now
she had men lying in ambush in an inner chamber. And she said to him, “The
Philistines are upon you, Samson!” But he snapped the bowstrings, as a thread
of flax snaps when it touches the fire. So the secret of his strength was not
known.
10 Then
Delilah said to Samson, “Behold, you have mocked me and told me lies. Please
tell me how you might be bound.” 11 And
he said to her, “If they bind me with new ropes that have not been used, then I
shall become weak and be like any other man.” 12 So Delilah took new ropes and bound him with
them and said to him, “The Philistines are upon you, Samson!” And the men lying
in ambush were in an inner chamber. But he snapped the ropes off his arms like
a thread.
13 Then
Delilah said to Samson, “Until now you have mocked me and told me lies. Tell me
how you might be bound.” And he said to her, “If you weave the seven locks of
my head with the web and fasten it tight with the pin, then I shall become weak
and be like any other man.” 14 So
while he slept, Delilah took the seven locks of his head and wove them into the
web. And she made them tight with the pin and said to him, “The Philistines are
upon you, Samson!” But he awoke from his sleep and pulled away the pin, the
loom, and the web.
15 And
she said to him, “How can you say, ‘I love you,’ when your heart is not with
me? You have mocked me these three times, and you have not told me where your
great strength lies.” 16 And
when she pressed him hard with her words day after day, and urged him, his soul
was vexed to death. 17 And
he told her all his heart, and said to her, “A razor has never come upon my
head, for I have been a Nazirite to God from my mother’s womb. If my head is
shaved, then my strength will leave me, and I shall become weak and be like any
other man.”
18 When
Delilah saw that he had told her all his heart, she sent and called the lords
of the Philistines, saying, “Come up again, for he has told me all his heart.”
Then the lords of the Philistines came up to her and brought the money in their
hands. 19 She made
him sleep on her knees. And she called a man and had him shave off the seven
locks of his head. Then she began to torment him, and his strength left him. 20 And she said, “The
Philistines are upon you, Samson!” And he awoke from his sleep and said, “I
will go out as at other times and shake myself free.” But he did not know that
the Lord had left him. 21 And
the Philistines seized him and gouged out his eyes and brought him down to Gaza
and bound him with bronze shackles. And he ground at the mill in the prison. 22 But the hair of his
head began to grow again after it had been shaved.
23 Now
the lords of the Philistines gathered to offer a great sacrifice to Dagon their
god and to rejoice, and they said, “Our god has given Samson our enemy into our
hand.” 24 And when
the people saw him, they praised their god. For they said, “Our god has given
our enemy into our hand, the ravager of our country, who has killed many of
us.” 25 And when
their hearts were merry, they said, “Call Samson, that he may entertain us.” So
they called Samson out of the prison, and he entertained them. They made him
stand between the pillars. 26 And
Samson said to the young man who held him by the hand, “Let me feel the pillars
on which the house rests, that I may lean against them.” 27 Now the house was full of men and women. All the
lords of the Philistines were there, and on the roof there were about 3,000 men
and women, who looked on while Samson entertained.
28 Then
Samson called to the Lord and said, “O Lord God, please remember me and please
strengthen me only this once, O God, that I may be avenged on the Philistines
for my two eyes.” 29 And
Samson grasped the two middle pillars on which the house rested, and he leaned
his weight against them, his right hand on the one and his left hand on the other.
30 And Samson said,
“Let me die with the Philistines.” Then he bowed with all his strength, and the
house fell upon the lords and upon all the people who were in it. So the dead
whom he killed at his death were more than those whom he had killed during his
life. 31 Then his
brothers and all his family came down and took him and brought him up and
buried him between Zorah and Eshtaol in the tomb of Manoah his father. He had
judged Israel twenty years.
I was once told that the greatest proponents for Evolution
were Pastors. When teachers have a student ask them how evolution and the bible
go together, the general answer was ask your Pastor. The Pastor would then give
some defense of how evolution and the Bible agree. But they do not agree!
Samson is asked repeatedly by Delilah, how he can be
weakened. Samson willingly tells her all his weaknesses. Samson tries to trick
her in the beginning, but ultimately it is Samson who betrays himself.
It is the same for our own defense of the faith. We are more
than willing to tell other people about our struggles with the Bible. We desire
to be open and honest about the places we are weak in agreement with Scripture.
The devil uses our own words and fears and doubts and amplifies them.
After Samson is blinded, shaved, and imprisoned, the
Philistines believe they have won. They believe they have claimed victory over
God. They have claimed a new truth apart from God. They bring Samson out to
parade their victory and sacrifice before Dagon (their god). But it is then
Samson holds to his faith. It is at that time Samson turns to the one True God.
God gives him strength to make his confession publicly and boldly. Samson pulls
down the pillars and dies with his enemies.
Let us not abandon our own confession. Let us boldly
proclaim not our weaknesses, but the certainty we have in Christ’s sacrifice
for the sins for the sins of the World.
OTA: Judges 16:4-21
