NARRATIVE OF THE LIFE OF SAMSON
I. THE CIRCUMSTANCES OF HIS BIRTH.
1. Israel had done evil in the sight of God and was under the domination of the Philistines for 40 years.
2. This was a usual cycle for Israel. EXPLAIN
a. Sin
b. Servitude
c. Sorrow
d. Salvation
3. The nation needed a savior and God was about to send another one!
II. THE FAMILY OF SAMSON
1. Manoah was the father. Mother unnamed.
2. Mother barren.
a. One of the worst things that could happen to a woman, she could be divorced for not producing children.
b. Boys were more important than girls
1. Carry family name
2. Labor was more valuable
3. Not as expensive because of dowry.
3. An angel of the Lord announces the birth of a son.
a. Angel tells her that she is not to drink or eat of the fruit of the vine, eat anything unclean, or cut his hair.
b. She is told that her son was to a Nazirite. (Numbers 6:2-21 Nazirite vow) WHAT WAS A NAZIRITE?
1. A Nazirite was not to eat or drink from the fruit of the vine. No grape products.
2. A Nazirite could not touch anything that would be unclean such as a dead body.
3. A Nazirite was to not cut his hair.
4. Probable family life. The family knew what they had to do with Samson in his upbringing. READ JUDGES 13:8-14
III. THE WOMEN OF SAMSON’S LIFE AND THE TROUBLE CAUSED.
1. The woman of Timnah. CHAPTERS 14-15
a. The interesting thing about this first woman in Samson’s life is that God was going to use this relationship to start a fight with the Philistines!
b. Family objects
c. Samson wants her. (READ 14:1-4,7)
d. Goes into Timnah 4 times
e. Second trip he kills a lion
f. On the return he violates his Nazirite vow by reaching into the dead carcass of the lion to get some honey to eat. He gives some to his parents. He knew that it was wrong because he did not tell them about where and how he got it. JUDGES 14:8-9 When he returned later to take her, he turned aside to look at the carcass of the lion; and behold, a swarm of bees and honey were in the body of the lion. So he scraped the honey into his hands and went on, eating as he went. When he came to his father and mother, he gave some to them and they ate it; but he did not tell them that he had scraped the honey out of the body of the lion.
g. Now we have the wedding feast, probably drinking going on, this would violate Samson’s vow again.
1. Samson proposed a riddle to some of the Philistines. If hey could figure it out before the end of the seven day wedding feast, Samson would give them 30 linen wraps and 30 changes of clothing. If they could not do it, they would give Samson the same in return. The riddle to the 30 Philistines.
Out of the eater came something to eat, and out of the strong came something sweet.
2. After three days these guys could not figure it out so they resorted to threatening his wife to be on the fourth.
3. JUDGES 14:15-17 Then it came about on the fourth day that they said to Samson’s wife, "Entice your husband, so that he will tell us the riddle, or we will burn you and your father’s house with fire. Have you invited us to impoverish us? Is this not so?" Samson’s wife wept before him and said, "You only hate me, and you do not love me; you have propounded a riddle to the sons of my people, and have not told it to me." And he said to her, "Behold, I have not told it to my father or mother; so should I tell you?" However she wept before him seven days while their feast lasted. And on the seventh day he told her because she pressed him so hard. She then told the riddle to the sons of her people.
4. Guess what happened. She told, Samson loses the bet, kills 30 men at Ashkelon to pay the bet.
5. He knew she spilled the beans. JUDGES 14:18 So the men of the city said to him on the seventh day before the sun went down, "What is sweeter than honey? And what is stronger than a lion?" And he said to them, "If you had not plowed with my heifer, You would not have found out my riddle."
6. He leaves before consummating the marriage. His father-in-law gives her to Samson’s best man!
7. Samson later returns only to find that his father-in-law gave his wife to best man. He offers Samson his younger, prettier daughter. This will not do! The war was on!
8. Samson ties fire to 150 pairs of foxes and burns Philistine corn fields.
9. The Philistines burn his wife’s house and kill her and her father. Kind of ironic how they died isn’t it.
10. Samson vows revenge for what they did to his wife. VERSE 7-8
11. JUDGES 15:7-8 Samson said to them, "Since you act like this, I will surely take revenge on you, but after that I will quit." He struck them ruthlessly with a great slaughter; and he went down and lived in the cleft of the rock of Etam.
12. Samson kills many.
13. Now the people of Judah are afraid of what the Philistines will do so 3000 men of Judah turn him to Philistines. Once the Philistines get him, look what happens.
14. JUDGES 15:12-15 They said to him, "We have come down to bind you so that we may give you into the hands of the Philistines." And Samson said to them, "Swear to me that you will not kill me." So they said to him, "No, but we will bind you fast and give you into their hands; yet surely we will not kill you." Then they bound him with two new ropes and brought him up from the rock. When he came to Lehi, the Philistines shouted as they met him. And the Spirit of the Lord came upon him mightily so that the ropes that were on his arms were as flax that is burned with fire, and his bonds dropped from his hands. He found a fresh jawbone of a donkey, so he reached out and took it and killed a thousand men with it.
2. The harlot of Gaza. CHAPTER 16
a. This is the second woman in Samson’s life. The Philistines found out that he was in Gaza, and plotted to kill him.
b. Samson played while they plotted and left in the middle of the night taking with him the city gate. He took them 40 miles away to Hebron. This was an insult to the city because the gates were a symbol of the cities strength.
c. The score is now Women and Philistines 0, Samson 2.
3. Delilah CHAPTER 16
a. Samson is about to meet his match, woman #3! Delilah!
b. He falls in love with her.
c. The Philistines offer her 1100 pieces of silver if she can deliver him to them. JUDGES 16:5 The lords of the Philistines came up to her and said to her, "Entice him, and see where his great strength lies and how we may overpower him that we may bind him to afflict him. Then we will each give you eleven hundred pieces of silver."
d. She starts on him and he fools her three times.
1. Seven fresh cords. 16:7-9
2. New ropes. 16:10-12
3. Weave seven locks of his hair in a web. Samson comes close to revealing his secret when he told her about his hair. 16:16-18
d. The text says that she annoyed his soul to death, and he tells her.
e. The Philistines come in and take him. JUDGES 16:19-20 She made him sleep on her knees, and called for a man and had him shave off the seven locks of his hair. Then she began to afflict him, and his strength left him. 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 departed from him.
f. Did you catch the end of that verse?
IV. SAMSON’S CAPTURE AND DEATH.
1. His eyes were poked out and he was put on the grinding wheel.
2. The people praised their god Dagon for Samson’s capture.
3. READ JUDGES 16:23-30
V. APPLICATION
In the end, God gave Samson his revenge, but what a waste!
When we consistently ignore God and His commandments the following things happen:
1. We can suffer personal humiliation. Look how the life of Samson ended, he was blinded, tied to a grinding wheel and was used for entertainment by the enemies of God. JUDGES 16:25 It so happened when they were in high spirits, that they said, "Call for Samson, that he may amuse us." So they called for Samson from the prison, and he entertained them. And they made him stand between the pillars.
2. We can defile other people along the way. Remember what Samson did to his parents when he gave them honey out of the dead lion?
3. The last two are the main points I hope that we can see in this story. We can quench the Spirit of God in us at some point. Samson came to this point in his life; it was so bad that he did not even know that the Spirit of God had departed from him. 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 departed from him. (Judges 16:20) EPHESIANS 4:30 Do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption.
4. Our God is put to open shame. (Judges 16:23-24, 25). Let us look at verses 16:23-24 and 25 again. READ
5. The Book of Hebrews talks of going to a point of no return because we again crucify Christ and put Him to open shame. HEBREWS 6:6 and then have fallen away, it is impossible to renew them again to repentance, since they again crucify to themselves the Son of God, and put Him to open shame.
