Judges 13-14: Faith, Riddles and Corpse Honey

I have to start by saying that for me there aren't many books that can cause me to go through the roller coaster of emotions as the book of Judges does. Story after story of Israel turning away from God, crying out to God, God sending a judge to deliver and lead them, a time of peace, and then turning away again.

The first time I read this book when I was younger I literally wanted to fling the book across the room out of frustration. It took me a while to realize that while these people are flaky that they really are a representation of my own heart. To judge them is to judge myself. I read these stories and I all the more am thankful for Jesus who has made me His very own! And thank God it is not based on my day to day life which is just as much of a cycle of obedience/disobedience and based instead on the greatest sacrifice ever made, Jesus for a stubborn, rebellious, and hard-hearted people like me.

With that I move on to the actual story of the day which is a well known one, the story of Samson, well at least the start of it. Today I present to you a list of thoughts/feelings/meditations of the text as I read it!

• We start with a not so shocking statement given what we've read so far, "Once again the Israelites did evil..." The start of yet another cycle...
• Samson is born to the tribe of Dan and becomes a judge. Check out Jacob's blessing of Dan in Genesis 49:16 for some interesting prophetic reading.
• I was struck by the similarities in this story and the story of Abraham and Sarah. You have both Manoah's wife and Sarah who were barren and a messenger of God showing up to let them know that they will bear a child that will be used by God in a special way.
• This is the first time we hear of someone being a Nazirite, one who takes a vow to be set apart to God. The vow of the Nazirite can be found in Numbers 6:1-21. It's interesting that this vow is described as a voluntary thing someone does, however here we find Samson being declared a Nazirite from birth.
• The people of this land are so removed from worshiping the one true God that they ask for the name of this messenger of God to honor the messenger instead of the One who sent the messenger.
• Growing up when I heard the story of Samson I always thought of him as someone that God blessed with some kind of supernatural strength. However, never does God promise that to him. In fact, I believe that God would not ever grant to him or anyone else a strength that would enable them to no longer need Him.
• On to chapter 14...
• Verse 2, Samson sees a Philistine woman and wants to marry her. This is where I want to reach through time and shake Samson and scream "WHAT ARE YOU THINKING!" One, she is a Philistine, isn't that the people who are hurting your people? Two, I'm pretty sure God meant what he said when he said DON'T MARRY PEOPLE FROM OTHER PEOPLE GROUPS. Come on now.
• Verse 3, Samson's parents speak with surprising obedience to what God commands.
• Samson is like, "Buuuuuttt Daaaaaadddd, she's pretty!"
• Verse 4, proof that God will use anything to fulfill his purposes. You know that verse in the NT about how God is strong in our weakness, well, boom.
• So a lion charges Samson. I googled an image to see what that would look like. Not gonna lie, I'm pretty sure I'd let out a bit of a high pitched squeal at the sight of that.

• Lost in the ballerness of a man defeating a charging roaring lion with his BARE HANDS is the fact that Samson on his own didn't have the strength to do it. The Spirit of God moved on Samson and only then could you manhandle this lion as if he were some small goat.
• Maybe I should rethink my previous desire to reach through time to shake Samson and scream at him.
• How could he not tell his parents what he had done?!?! I'm not gonna lie, if I had taken down a beast with my bare hands by the Spirit of God moving through me you couldn't keep me from telling that story.
• So Samson is on his way to marry the Philistine woman and sees the carcass of the dead lion. Apparently some bees saw this stinky corpse and thought, "hey, lets make a hive here and make some sweet stinky honey!"
• The Nazirite oath includes this "I will not touch a corpse...ever. NEVER EVER." Remember this.
• Annnndddd Samson reaches into the corpse of the lion to score some sweet stinky honey.
• COME ON SAMSON. You're killing me smalls.
• Must. Resist. Purposely. Using. Your. Instead. Of. You're. For. Fun....
• He gives some to his parents but doesn't tell them where he got it from. I guess he didn't want to have that whole "I broke my Nazirite oath for some corpse honey" talk.
• Samson makes a bet with 30 Philistines who were invited to his wedding by using a riddle that is based on the whole lion fight and subsequent corpse honey incident that no one knows about. Looks like he is hoping to score some sweet Philistine gear.
• The Philistines can't figure it out. For some of us in this situation with our pride and a little bit of stuff on the line we might ask for a clue. These guys are a little more intense and go to Samson's wife with a threat to burn down her father's house with her in it. #thatescalatedquickly #imeanthatreallygotoutofhandfast
• Samson's wife begs Samson again and again to give her the answer to the riddle. Samson finally gives in on the 7th and final day of the riddle bet. It's interesting that she never tells him why she wants to know so badly. She never tells Samson about the threat from the 30 Philistines.
• Samson isn't too happy about these guys coming back with the answer from his wife.
• The Spirit of the Eternal rushes upon Samson, he receives great strength and strikes down 30 Philistines in the town of Ashkelon. He takes their possessions and uses that to pay the bet to the 30 Philistines from the wedding feast. That certainly is a creative way to pay a bet.
• Samson leaves the feast furious and returns to his father's house while his wife is given to his best man. #thatismessedup #bestmanfail

You know, Samson and his story is seen in a very negative light a lot of times. We'll read even more of Samson and his many weaknesses and downfalls tomorrow. But as much as I get frustrated reading some of these stories I also know that to judge Samson is to judge myself. Plus, this man is listed in Hebrews 11 as an example of faith right alongside David and Abraham. How could someone who made so many mistakes be listed in the "hall of fame" of faith? 

It is our legalistic nature that has a hard time accepting this. Samson was faithful to God and yes he failed and was disobedient. But thanks be to God that Samson was not abandoned and God was still able to use Him to deliver Israel.

And thank God that despite my mistakes, my weaknesses, and my disobedience that I am not abandoned. I don't have to be perfect and earn God's acceptance. As for my weakness, I can take comfort and be content even in my weakness knowing that God's power is made perfect in weakness.

Lastly (I promise), Samson point us to Jesus as a type of savior. He is a deliverer of Israel. God used this one man to deliver Israel from the hands of the Philistines (as we will read more about tomorrow). But he's not a perfect savior. He's not the savior we read about in Genesis 3 that is to come. Samson points us toward Jesus as THE Deliverer, THE Savior, the King of kings.