In this passage we observe Samsons action to primarily revenge his own offenses. We know Sampson strength was a gift from God, but Sampson was using this gift in his life for his own glory and his own purposes. He was born for the purpose of deliverance of the Israelites from the Philistines. God was accomplishing His purpose, yet I do not believe he was avenging God’s people as much as his own abuses.
God will give to each of us the strength, not necessarily physical strength, but the moral strength, inner strength, spiritual strength to withstand the lions or spiritual enemies that seek to defeat us. I think of the verse, “Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour..” (1 Peter 5:8) I recognize the lion strikes while we are unprepared.
Sampson was strong enough to single-handedly kill a lion. When the men threatened his wife to find out the answer to his riddle about getting honey from the lion, he lost the wager. Sampson was furious and stole 30 garments from other Philistines to pay his debt.
Sampson waged his own private war against the Philistines. God was going to accomplish His purposes. After a period of time Samson returned to his wife only to discover another man took her for his own. In anger Samson captured 300 foxes, tied their tails together, attached a torch to them and let them loose to burn down their fields. When the Philistines learned it was in retaliation for his wife’s father giving her in marriage to another, they burned down the house and killed her and her father.
3000 men came to do damage to Judah unless they gave up Sampson. Samson let the people tie him with ropes to take him prisoner. Then Sampson broke the ropes and took a jawbone of an ass and starts swinging. When he stopped, 1000 men were dead. Do you notice the verse said the “Spirit of the Lord came upon him in power.” Yet the song of Samson was about his own accomplishment, not Gods.
Pride has a way of controlling us with a God-given gifts and talents we soon credit to ourselves and we pride ourselves by our own accomplishments. What about your abilities? Does pride affect the actions like they did for Sampson who drew attention to himself, his vengeance, his strength?
God has a plan for each of our lives.
Application: Are you following it? Are you living to yourself or are you being used of God so that all you have belongs to Him, or do you keep some and create your own selfish pursuits.
Prayer: Gracious God, Heavenly Father, I need You! Protect my heart and mind through Your Word.
