Judges 14:12-14 Samson’s Riddle

 12“Let me tell you a riddle,” Samson said to them. “If you can solve it for me within the seven days of the feast, I will give you thirty linen garments and thirty sets of clothes. 13But if you cannot solve it, you must give me thirty linen garments and thirty sets of clothes.”

“Tell us your riddle,” they replied. “Let us hear it.”

14So he said to them:

“Out of the eater came something to eat,

and out of the strong came something sweet.”

For three days they were unable to explain the riddle.

“This literally describes a fine suit of clothes one would wear to an important occasion; therefore 30 fine suits were wagered. Like most betting, this “friendly wager” would turn into something not quite so friendly.” (Guzik)

“Out of the eater came something to eat: “This was a clever riddle, and Samson showed that even if he was weak morally he was not weak intellectually.” (Guzik)

Is gambling, making a wager, casting lots a sin? If you examine the odds most of the time is leads to a loss or it doesn’t end well as we will see with Samson and sometimes it can become an addiction. I am reminded about this verse:

John 19:24 “Let’s not tear it,” they said to one another. “Let’s decide by lot who will get it.” This happened that the scripture might be fulfilled that said, “They divided my clothes among them and cast lots for my garment.” So this is what the soldiers did.

Each Christian has to decide for themselves when and if it becomes a sin. I included a link that may help.

Blessings 

https://www.gotquestions.org/gambling-sin.html 

Judges 14:10-11 Drinking Feast

 10Then his father went to visit the woman, and Samson prepared a feast there, as was customary for the bridegroom. 11And when the Philistines saw him, they selected thirty men to accompany him.

“Literally, this was a drinking feast. If Samson didn’t break his Nazirite vow by partaking in the wine, he certainly put himself in a situation where it would be easy to do so.” (Guzik)

“It was not – and is not – difficult to get many people to be part of a drinking feast.” (Guzik)

Who doesn’t like a free party, right?

Jesus’ first miracle, turned water into wine.

John 2: Then he called the bridegroom aside 10and said, “Everyone serves the fine wine first, and then the cheap wine after the guests are drunk. But you have saved the fine wine until now!”

It’s been said in the time of Jesus that the wedding feast lasted for days!

The thirty men accompanying Samson were not his friends and it doesn’t end well!

The bet and the threat comes next because of Samsons riddle.

Stay tuned.

Blessings 

Judges 14:8-9 Honey

 8When Samson returned later to take her, he left the road to see the lion’s carcass, and in it was a swarm of bees, along with their honey. 9So he scooped some honey into his hands and ate it as he went along. And when he returned to his father and mother, he gave some to them and they ate it. But he did not tell them that he had taken the honey from the lion’s carcass.

Samson did not tell his parents where he got the honey because he knew it was a compromise of his Nazirite vow.

i. Samson had consecration (at least the appearance of it) without communion. This was only good for the sake of image. The empty nature of his consecration would eventually be evident.

ii. In the killing of the lion and the sharing of the honey, Spurgeon saw a spiritual picture of the work of Jesus Christ for us: (Guzik)

“And what a type we have here of our Divine Lord and Master. Jesus, the conqueror of death and hell. He has destroyed the lion that roared upon us and upon him… I see our triumphant Lord laden with sweetness, holding it forth to all his brethren, and inviting them to share in his joy.” (Spurgeon)

iii. In the same way, Samson shared the sweetness of his victory over the lion with others. Spurgeon pointed out that this is, by analogy, a pattern for the way we should share the gospel.

· Samson brought the honey first to those nearest to him.

· Samson brought the honey in his hands, in the simplest way available to him.

· Samson actually gave them some of the honey to taste.

· Samson brought the honey modestly, not boasting about killing the lion. (Guzik)

Are you sharing the gospel of Jesus Christ with those closest to you?

Blessings 

Judges 14:5-7 Roaring Lion

 5Then Samson went down to Timnah with his father and mother and came to the vineyards of Timnah. Suddenly a young lion came roaring at him, 6and the Spirit of the LORD came powerfully upon him, and he tore the lion apart with his bare hands as one would tear a young goat. But he did not tell his father or mother what he had done. 7Then Samson continued on his way down and spoke to the woman, because she was pleasing to his eyes.

“Samson was dedicated to God with a lifelong vow of a Nazirite (Judges 13:4-5). Nazirites were to have nothing to do with grape products in any form (Numbers 6:3-4). Samson was dangerously close to significant compromise.” (Guzik)

“If that roaring lion, that goes about continually seeking whom he may devour, find us alone among the vineyards of the Philistines, where is our hope? Not in our heels, he is swifter than we: not in our weapons, we are naturally unarmed: not in our hands, which are weak and languishing; but in the Spirit of God, by whom we can do all things. If God fight in us, who call resist us? There is a stronger lion in us than that against us.” (Spurgeon)

Spurgeon’s quote of a roaring lion is referring to the devil!

1 Peter 5:8 Be sober-minded and alert. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour.

“The Holy Spirit of God wants to come upon us and give us power but power for something far more important than ripping apart lions. The Holy Spirit comes upon us for the empowering to live for God as we should and for the power to tell others about Jesus effectively.” (Guzik)

“She pleased Samson well: This does not mean that she was a good woman for Samson to be attracted to or to marry. It is possible to fall in love with someone who is actually very wrong for us. This is why Proverbs 4:23 says: Keep (literally, guard or protect) your heart with all diligence, for out of it spring the issues of life. If we don’t guard our hearts, we can end up in trouble.” (Guzik)

Are you telling others about Jesus? If not, start with your family, spouse, children, grandchildren because you need to warn them about the roaring lion!

Blessings 

Judges 14:4 Personal Cost of Sin!

 4(Now his father and mother did not know this was from the LORD, who was seeking an occasion to move against the Philistines; for at that time the Philistines were ruling over Israel.)

“As the rest of the chapter shows, some good ultimately came out of this ungodly marriage. Many Philistines were killed, and they were kept off balance in their attempts to dominate the Israelites.

However, none of that justified Samson’s actions. Though God can make even the evil of man to serve His purposes, it never justifies the evil that man does.

He was seeking an occasion to move against the Philistines: In accomplishing this purpose, God did not make a reluctant Samson pursue the Philistine woman for marriage. God allowed Samson to do what he wanted to do, though the act itself was sinful. God allowed it for reasons in both Samson’s life and for reasons on a larger scale.” (Guzik)

How does this relate to a Christian?

“Someone today might justify their desire to marry a non-Christian because they trust some good will come out of it – such as their non-Christian partner eventually coming to Jesus. Things may work out that way, but even though God used Samson’s marriage to a Philistine woman, it all came at a great personal cost to Samson.” (Guzik)

“No matter how much good God can bring out of even the bad things we do, He can always bring far more good out of our obedience - and we ourselves experience much less pain.” (Guzik)

I am reminded about this saying about sin!

Blessings 

Judges 14:1-3 Samson Went DOWN!

 1One day Samson went down to Timnah, where he saw a young Philistine woman. 2So he returned and told his father and mother, “I have seen a daughter of the Philistines in Timnah. Now get her for me as a wife.”

3But his father and mother replied, “Can’t you find a young woman among your relatives or among any of our people? Must you go to the uncircumcised Philistines to get a wife?”

But Samson told his father, “Get her for me, for she is pleasing to my eyes.” 

“This seemed to be a case of “love at first sight” for Samson. He saw this woman and he instantly wanted to marry her.”

““she is right in my eyes.” What Samson really cared about was how things looked to himself, not how they looked to the LORD.” (Guzik)

“His parents attempted to dissuade him, but he allowed himself to be swept by his passion and determined to realize his own desires.” (Morgan)

“The command to the Israelis to not intermarry with the pagan nations around them applies to the Christian today in that a Christian must not marry someone who is not a Christian, joining themselves together with an unbeliever” (2 Corinthians 6:14). (Guzik)

“It isn’t because those who are not Christians are not lovable - they are sometimes more lovable than believers. It is not because they aren’t good enough, or worthy of our love, or that they are somehow inherently incapable of being a good marriage partner. It is simply because to be a Christian means Jesus Christ is the most important thing in your life; and when a Christian and a non-Christian get together, you have two people who disagree on the most important things in life.” (Guzik)

An important command written by Paul:

1 Corinthians 7:10-16 (NKJV)

- 10 Now to the married I command, [yet] not I but the Lord: A wife is not to depart from [her] husband. 11 But even if she does depart, let her remain unmarried or be reconciled to [her] husband. And a husband is not to divorce [his] wife. 12 But to the rest I, not the Lord, say: If any brother has a wife who does not believe, and she is willing to live with him, let him not divorce her. 13 And a woman who has a husband who does not believe, if he is willing to live with her, let her not divorce him. 14 For the unbelieving husband is sanctified by the wife, and the unbelieving wife is sanctified by the husband; otherwise your children would be unclean, but now they are holy. 15 But if the unbeliever departs, let him depart; a brother or a sister is not under bondage in such [cases]. But God has called us to peace. 16 For how do you know, O wife, whether you will save [your] husband? Or how do you know, O husband, whether you will save [your] wife?

“God did use Samson mightily; but God used Samson despite his sin, not because of it.” (Guzik)

It is fair to say , God uses us despite the sin, not because of it.

Blessings 

Judges 13:24-25 Spirit of the Lord

 24So the woman bore a son and called his name Samson; and the child grew, and the Lord blessed him. 25And the Spirit of the Lord began to move upon him at Mahaneh Dan between Zorah and Eshtaol.

“The promise from the Angel of LORD was fulfilled. It was proven to be true.” (Guzik)

And the LORD blessed him… And the Spirit of the LORD began to move upon Him: “This is the source of the great strength we see in Samson later. We usually think of Samson as a man with huge, rippling muscles; but others couldn’t figure out why he was so strong. It is reasonable to think that he did not look very strong. Whether he looked strong or not, it was the Spirit of God who made him strong.” (Guzik)

After studying the Bible for years and even though the Bible doesn’t say what Samson’s physique was like, my personal opinion is that Samson looked like an average or even a weakly person because of the following verses and numerous examples given in the Bible.

1 Corinthians 1:27 AMP But God has selected [for His purpose] the foolish things of the world to shame the wise [revealing their ignorance], and God has selected [for His purpose] the weak things of the world to shame the things which are strong [revealing their frailty].

Hebrews 11:32-34 I do not have time to tell about Gideon, Barak, Samson and Jephthah, about David and Samuel and the prophets, who through faith conquered kingdoms, administered justice, and gained what was promised; who shut the mouths of lions, quenched the fury of the flames, and escaped the edge of the sword; whose weakness was turned to strength (NIV).

Remember, the Bible teaches us:

Noah was a drunk
Abraham was too old
Isaac was a daydreamer
Jacob was a liar
Leah was ugly
Joseph was abused
Moses had a stuttering problem
Gideon was afraid
Samson had long hair and was a womanizer
Rahab was a prostitute 
David had an affair and was a murderer 
Elijah was suicidal 
Isaiah preached naked 
Jonah ran from God 
Naomi was a widow 
Job went bankrupt 
Peter denied Christ 
The Disciples fell asleep while praying 
Martha worried about everything 
The Samaritan woman was divorced, more than once 
Zaccheus was too small 
Paul was too religious 
Timothy had an ulcer..
AND Lazarus was dead!

Do you believe the Spirit of the Lord can use you?

Blessings

Judges 13:22-23 Encourage One Another!

 22And Manoah said to his wife, “We shall surely die, because we have seen God!”

23But his wife said to him, “If the Lord had desired to kill us, He would not have accepted a burnt offering and a grain offering from our hands, nor would He have shown us all these things, nor would He have told us such things as these at this time.”

“Manoah perhaps knew what God said to Moses in Exodus 33:20: You cannot see My face; for no man shall see Me, and live. Manoah feared that because they had just seen the LORD, they would shortly die.” (Guzik)

“Manoah’s wife was an invaluable source of encouragement for his faith. She didn’t criticize Manoah. She didn’t say, “What a silly man you are. What a stupid man you must be to be so frightened.” We can never strengthen someone’s faith by criticizing. We must do as Manoah’s wife did - encourage them and build faith up.” (Guzik)

He would not have accepted a burnt offering: “The basis of the faith of Manoah’s wife was that she knew that the LORD had accepted their offering to Him. The same principle works for the Christian believer today: If the LORD wanted to do you evil, He would have never accepted an offering on your behalf – the offering of Jesus on the cross.” (Guzik)

“Brother, if the Lord had meant to destroy us, he would not have shown us our sin, because we were happy enough previously, were we not? In our own poor way we were content enough, and if he did not mean to pardon us, it was not like the Lord to show us our sin, and so to torment us before our time, unless he meant to take it away.” (Spurgeon)

Encourage one another and may the Lord bless you and your family on this day of thanksgiving!

Blessings