Samson's Sin

“Again the Israelites did evil in the eyes of the Lord, so the Lord delivered them into the hands of the Philistines for forty years.” (Judges 13:1)

When we drift from God, he often allows us to go. He isn’t a Disney parent with a leash around his child. This drifting leads to our own destruction. Of course, that looks different depending on our sin and the time we stay separated. In the case of the Israelites, they were dominated by their perennial enemy, the Philistines. Despite their choice to chase after false gods, the Lord still sent his people a way out. In the times before Jesus’ ministry, this took on many different forms from Moses to Joshua. Here, however, we are in the times of the Judges (aka “leaders”) which were some of the darkest days in Israel’s history. This story takes place under the would-be savior, Samson.

Here we have another miraculous birth:

3The angel of the Lord appeared to her and said, “You are barren and childless, but you are going to become pregnant and give birth to a son. 4Now see to it that you drink no wine or other fermented drink and that you do not eat anything unclean. 5You will become pregnant and have a son whose head is never to be touched by a razor because the boy is to be a Nazirite, dedicated to God from the womb. He will take the lead in delivering Israel from the hands of the Philistines” (Judges 13:3-5).

Samson would be set apart by God from birth for a special purpose—to “begin” (NET version, v.5) the deliverance of Israel from the hands of the Philistines. Samson was going to play an important role as witnessed by his vow. It would be a testament to what God was going to do through him. At least, that was what was supposed to happen. Most are probably thinking about the end of the story. Yes, Samson will give away the secret of his vow and specifically how his hair should never be cut. There is, however, more to the story.

Let’s back up to the vow. The Nazarite vow is described in Numbers 6. It is strict in regards to three areas. One, no wine or even any grapes can be consumed. Two, no touching of anything dead or even close proximity. Finally, one cannot cut his hair until the vow is ritually completed at the tent of meeting (later, the temple as Paul did in Acts). For Samson, there was never supposed to be an end to the vow as his life was a consecration. So, this leads to some questions. When did Samson first break his vow? Was the cutting of his hair the reason he lost his strength? Why would he tell Delilah considering that she had already proven her untrustworthiness three times beforehand?

“With such nagging she prodded him day after day until he was sick to death of it. So, he told her everything. “No razor has ever been used on my head,” he said, “because I have been a Nazirite dedicated to God from my mother’s womb. If my head were shaved, my strength would leave me, and I would become as weak as any other man.” Judges 13:16-17

Every man is tempted to say “He told her because she nagged him.” I say this as a joke as my wife doesn’t nag. I think he may have told her, yes, because of her pressure, but also because he didn’t really believe his strength would leave him. Think back to the three parts of the vow. The first two had already been broken. Remember, Samson killed a lion.

6The Spirit of the Lord came powerfully upon him so that he tore the lion apart with his bare hands as he might have torn a young goat. But he told neither his father nor his mother what he had done.

Notice the scripture reads “The Spirit of the Lord came powerfully upon him.” It wasn’t the killing of the lion that led to the breaking of his vow. It was later when he saw the carcass and ate honey out of it (14:8-9). Samson had a desire, so he threw his vow away for a tasty meal (reminds me of Esau). Nevetheless, God didn’t leave him at this point.

Later, Samson intended to marry, albeit to a Philistine woman, the very people he was to deliver the Israelites from. In 14:10, we are informed that he followed the custom for bridegrooms. This may have, then, included the provision of wine (think of the wedding in Cana). The Bible doesn’t explicitly state that he drank wine, but this would have been the custom. That said, the Spirit of the Lord still came upon him after this at the wedding banquet (14:19).

Finally, we arrive at the famous Delilah episode. Samson, though stronger than any man in Israel or among the Philistines, was no match for a beautiful woman’s charms. “He told her everything,” as 16:17 says. Was Samson so in love? That would be doubtful. Was he stupid, again, no. He was prodded by her as v. 16 says, but to give in here seems like an incredibly foolish thing. In fact, it’s so obvious (after three other times) that Samson may not have believed his strength would leave him since it hadn’t left after the dead lion nor the wine. Maybe the story from his mother wasn’t true? Don’t you think the adversary whispered this into his ear. “Did God really say” began with Eve, but it can be seen in many episodes before and after Samson (think of Jesus’ temptation).

And here we come to you and me. How many times have we pushed the boundaries with sin? Nothing has happened yet? God didn’t zap you dead. You lingered on that image longer than you should and seemingly nothing happened. You stayed over at her house and nothing happened. You drank too much but you still got home safely. Sin is deceptive. It will tell you anything to get what it wants all the while selling you into bondage. Samson couldn’t be beat until he was. It wasn’t a stronger man. It wasn’t a lion. It wasn’t an army. It wasn’t even a beautiful woman. It began way back when he decided that it was a “little thing” to disobey God. After all, God wouldn’t withhold honey from me since he loves me, right? Samson was turned from a savior to a slave. 16:25 says that the Philistines had him “perform for them.” Our enemy would like to drag you away from home to see you become his puppet. He even took the light from Samson’s eyes, and he wants to blind you as well. He mocked Samson whom he had enslaved. There is hope, however. “But the hair on his head began to grow” (16:22). Even in the midst of his pain and loss, the Lord heard his prayer. Many of the consequences remained, but Samson returned to the Lord and was put to use in his kingdom once more. You’re not done either. “Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved” (Romans 10:13).