Judges 15:9-13 Great Faith

 9Then the Philistines went up, camped in Judah, and deployed themselves near the town of Lehi.

10“Why have you attacked us?” said the men of Judah.

The Philistines replied, “We have come to arrest Samson and pay him back for what he has done to us.”

11In response, three thousand men of Judah went to the cave at the rock of Etam, and they asked Samson, “Do you not realize that the Philistines rule over us? What have you done to us?”

“I have done to them what they did to me,” he replied.

12But they said to him, “We have come down to arrest you and hand you over to the Philistines.”

Samson replied, “Swear to me that you will not kill me yourselves.”

13“No,” they answered, “we will not kill you, but we will tie you up securely and hand you over to them.” So they bound him with two new ropes and led him up from the rock.

“The fact that soldiers from the tribe of Judah gave up Samson to the Philistines shows just how much they were under the oppression of the Philistines. They would rather please their oppressorsthan support their deliverer.

i. This is a strangely common phenomenon. Often, when someone stands up to evil, people are angrier at the one who stood up to the evil than they are angry at the evil itself.” (Guzik)

“It seems that Samson submitted to this. Assuming this was true; it showed great faith on Samson’s part. He was willing to put himself in a difficult position and to trust God to take care of him.” (Guzik)

Great Faith

When we prayed and decided to move, I drove across country with a two page list of homes to look at. They were all a bust for one reason or another. My realtor suggested a certain community and as I drove there I noticed a for sale sign. When I turned the corner and saw the house my heart sang! I inspected, had it appraised but our offer was rejected. I drove back home across country and felt defeated. A week later, a phone call came from my realtor and he said, I believe you walking away from negotiations woke the seller up to reality. We purchased the home and planned to move the following year, but the Lord had other plans!

We need to have great faith no matter what our circumstances are knowing that God will take care of us.

Do you have great faith?

Blessings