Samson Tells a Riddle - Judges 14

Samson is an enigma. An enigma is a person or thing that is mysterious, puzzling, or difficult to understand.

There are several things we believe about Samson that aren't (or may not be) true. For example, we think since Samson was a Judge, his chief desire was to serve the Lord. Yet, Samson seems to be a man who was concerned only about one thing: himself. We sometimes assume Samson was very protective of his Nazarite vows. Truthfully, he appeared indifferent. He violated every one of the vows. People assume his strength was from his hair and that he must have had a body-builder physique. There is nothing in the Bible to make us think this. We are told his strength was from the Lord. (Personally, I like to think of him as a skinny guy!)

This morning we look at the first snapshot from the life of Samson. We are setting up his first encounter with the Philistines. As we examine the account I ask you to keep an open mind. You will likely see things here you never saw before.

God's Resourcefulness (14:1-4)

One day when Samson was in Timnah, one of the Philistine women caught his eye. 2When he returned home, he told his father and mother, “A young Philistine woman in Timnah caught my eye. I want to marry her. Get her for me.”

3His father and mother objected. “Isn’t there even one woman in our tribe or among all the Israelites you could marry?” they asked. “Why must you go to the pagan Philistines to find a wife?”

But Samson told his father, “Get her for me! She looks good to me.”

Our first view of Samson the man, is not a very attractive picture. We do not see a man who is governed by his values. We do not see a man "set apart" for the work of the Lord. We see a man who is governed by his hormones! He doesn't just see a woman he is attracted to, it is a Philistine woman!

In the book of Deuteronomy God told the Israelites,

Make no treaties with them and show them no mercy. 3You must not intermarry with them. Do not let your daughters and sons marry their sons and daughters, 4for they will lead your children away from me to worship other gods. Then the anger of the Lord will burn against you, and he will quickly destroy you. (Deut. 7:2-4)

This law was given long before this time but it was one every Israelite should have known. The principle was simple: when you marry one who does not share your beliefs and values, you naturally have to compromise a little to get along. That amounts to a step or two away from the faith. Those steps away generally will continue in marriage. This law was being ignored in Israel and Samson followed suit.

Think about the command to sexual purity today. Christians know the Bible says physical intimacy is to be reserved for marriage, but that command is ignored for the purpose of satisfying desires. This is what is happening here.

Samson's parents tried to call him back to a God-honoring lifestyle. They suggested there may have been women just as attractive who are Jewish. Samson responded with disrespect and a sense of selfishness that I hope surprises you. "Get her for me!" This is a man who is self-absorbed and governed by only one thing: whatever seems good to him now. He is a perfect illustration of the description of the people in the book of Judges: "And everyone did what was right in their own eyes."

You are excused if you are surprised when we read verse 4:

4His father and mother didn’t realize the Lord was at work in this, creating an opportunity to work against the Philistines, who ruled over Israel at that time.

God can, and does, use even the sinfulness of men to accomplish His purposes. Do not misread what is said. We are not told God gave Samson these desires. God does not approve of sinful behavior even if there are some good things he brings from that behavior. Please hear this!

There are a few songs that use the lyric, "It can't be wrong, if it feels so right." That is backwards thinking. The truth is: If God says it is wrong, it is wrong, even if it feels right! People make all kinds of excuses to try to convince others that what is wrong is really right.

But we love each other.

They promised me a promotion!

I think they are charging too much.

They started it!

We aren't hurting anyone!

Don't I have a right to be Happy?

Everybody is doing it.

It just "happened"

Wrong behavior is wrong behavior! What learn here is: God can even use the sinful choices of men to accomplish His purposes. He is so wise, resourceful, and loving that He can use even our rebellion for His purposes! This is not a loophole which justifies sin! This is a testimony to our magnificent God.

Disregarding Holiness

We learned in chapter 13 that Samson was to live as a Nazarite throughout his life. This was a sign that he was "set apart" for the service of God. He was to testify to this by three behaviors:

Abstaining from alcohol

Avoiding contact with dead bodies

Leaving his hair uncut

In the remainder of the chapter, we see Samson treat these Nazarite distinctives with indifference.

Apparently, Samson convinced his parents to do what he wanted them to do. They headed to Timnah to arrange Samson's marriage. That's when we read this:

As Samson and his parents were going down to Timnah, a young lion suddenly attacked Samson near the vineyards of Timnah. 6At that moment the Spirit of the Lord came powerfully upon him, and he ripped the lion’s jaws apart with his bare hands. He did it as easily as if it were a young goat. But he didn’t tell his father or mother about it.

It seems clear that Samson had strayed from his parents. In my imagination, I can see Samson being impatient with the slow pace of his parents so he hurried on ahead. The lion is the first revelation of Samson's supernatural strength.

The killing of the lion is also the first time we learn of the breaking of the Nazarite vows. He completely dismissed the Law! The NIV Life Application Commentary writes,

Samson has, in dealing with the lion, produced a corpse. There is nothing wrong in protecting himself, but according to the Nazirite vow, “if someone [something] dies suddenly in his presence, thus defiling the hair he has dedicated,” one had to go immediately to the tabernacle and undergo a lengthy restoration ritual. This was an eight-day ritual that included shaving one’s head, offering a sin offering and a burnt offering, rededicating oneself for the period of the Nazirite vow, and offering a year-old male lamb as a guilt offering (Num. 6: 9–12).

But to do all this would really cramp Samson’s style! It is inconvenient to travel to the tabernacle, and it would waste time, money, and resources. Besides he has a woman on his mind. So, instead of keeping the Nazirite requirement concerning defilement through uncleanliness, Samson “went down and talked with the woman, and he liked her”. Quite simply, God and his law are not important to Samson, only what is "right" in his own eyes. (301, 302 NIV Application Commentary)

The second vow is broken when,

10As his father was making final arrangements for the marriage, Samson threw a party at Timnah, as was the custom for elite young men. 11When the bride’s parents saw him, they selected thirty young men from the town to be his companions.

The Party was known as a misteh, it was a seven-day drinking party. It would be the equivalent to some of the bachelor parties one might throw today. the whole purpose of the party was to drink much. Vow number two is tossed aside. Vow #3 is broken in a couple of chapters with Delilah.

Let me stop here in the story to raise a pointed question: What will cause you to toss aside your distinctiveness as a follower of Christ? What kind of pressure might cause you to cave in?

the promise of advancement

the prodding of friends

raging hormones

a chance for excitement

a potential profit

a coveted opportunity

At what price will you sell your Christian commitment? Perhaps, like Samson, your commitment to the Lordship of Christ is only valuable when it serves your purpose (which of course means it is really a commitment to YOU, not Christ). My hope is you had never thought about it quite this way before and you will redouble your efforts to live a devoted life as a follower of Christ.

But there is still more to the story . . .

The Riddler

On the way to the wedding, Samson once again saw the lion he had torn apart. It was a strange sight. Rather than being infested with maggots or devoured by predators, it had become the home for bees and the carcass was filled with pure honey. Samson ate some of the honey and then went on to the wedding.

We are told Samson was given 30 companions to join in his celebration (to participate in his bachelor's party). These 30 companions were all Philistines. Perhaps they were there to keep an eye on this foreigner.

During the festivities Samson proposed a little wager. He said if they could figure out his riddle before the week-long party was over, he would give them each (all 30 of them) a new outfit of clothes. If they did not figure it out, they would each have to give him a new set of clothes. The riddle had to do with his encounter with the lion. They agree to the wager and he gave them the riddle,

“Out of the one who eats came something to eat;

out of the strong came something sweet.” (14)

I am sure the group put their heads together but they had no answer. The idea of being fooled by an Israelite was something they couldn't stomach. So, after three days they went to the bride (who was a Philistine) and pressed her for the answer to the riddle. They threatened to burn down the home of she and her father. . . with them in it! (Who invited these guys?) She in turn, pressed Samson. He resisted her tears, her guilt trip, and the pressure until the very last day. Finally, her nagging became too much and he told her the answer to the riddle. She immediately went to the friends. They answered the riddle and Samson was furious. He was mad at his fiancé and at the men. So, he went to a neighboring town of the Philistines, killed 30 innocent men, took their clothes, and paid his debt. The battle had begun.

Samson went home without ever finishing the wedding ceremony. It is important to note the last verse.

So his wife was given in marriage to the man who had been Samson’s best man at the wedding.

That man was likely a Philistine; perhaps one of the 30 men given to him. More on that subject next week.

For now, we are left to scratch our head once again and ask: "Why are we told this story?" The message is definitely not: Be like Samson. This man was self-absorbed and reckless. Why is he in the "Hall of Fame of faith" in Hebrews 11? He was one of the heroes of Israel. He took on the enemy even if he did do it for all selfish reasons. He was used by God, even though he may have been completely unaware that God was using him.

This begs the question: then what do we learn?

First, we learn the deadly nature of accommodation or living by the standards of the secular culture around us. Israel did not call out for help because they couldn't even see they were in trouble. They were losing their distinctiveness and were becoming like the Philistines and they were unaware (or at least unconcerned) about what was happening. It would be like the person who continues to ignore chest pain, rapid heartbeat, and a heavy feeling in their chest. Or maybe they are like the person who drinks in the bar for several hours but still believes they are OK to drive home.

The Israelites believed things were fine, but their distinctiveness was disappearing. They didn't even see it happening. It is sobering to ask if the same thing is happening to us. Are Christians losing their distinctiveness because we are negotiating God's standards to fit in with the world? Have we so embraced the culture that our thinking is molded more by the pundits and the media than the Word of God? Are we so determined to "be successful" that we water down truth and pattern our worship and living after the world rather than the Word of God?

The sobering thing about these questions is we know we can think we are fine and not even see the decay. A commentator writes,

The passage is a warning to us concerning what characteristics we should not want in our lives. In Samson, Israel has a judge who determines what is right and wrong purely based on his senses. Today we are encouraged to live life in this way. We are persuaded by commercials to “just do it,” that if we like something to go for it. Ads are directed to our senses—appearance is everything. If you don’t have the right stuff, you’re nothing. Sex is used to sell everything from cars to ice cream, even “rice”! Samson lived in a fashion that our culture would endorse—at least in his willingness to gratify every inclination of his heart. (310)

Second, Character is stronger than muscle. Samson may have been the world's strong man. Yet he was still a weak man because he had never learned to control himself. He was governed by his desires rather than his principles.

We live at a time when a person's physical appearance is paramount. People spend a great deal of money and a lot of time trying to look a certain way. But we learn from Samson that it is possible to look great on the outside and be empty on the inside.

Paul states it clearly in 1 Timothy,

Do not waste time arguing over godless ideas and old wives’ tales. Instead, train yourself to be godly. 8“Physical training is good, but training for godliness is much better, promising benefits in this life and in the life to come." (1 Timothy 4:7-8)

Our world is starving for people of character and faith. What is lacking are people who will not break even when facing the fiercest winds. We should be on the lookout for people of character; people of spiritual depth. And when we find these people we should follow close and learn everything we can learn. Beauty of form lasts but a few years; beauty of character endures over the course of time.

Third, The Sovereignty of God is stronger than the obstinacy of men. There is no need to wring your hands over the state of the world. God's plan is not dependent on the permission of men. His purpose will stand whether people work with Him or stand against Him.

The story of Samson is really not the story of Samson. It is God's story and how He used Samson to accomplish His purposes here. We must never allow the one God uses to save (in this case, Samson) to eclipse the God who is doing the saving. It was God who chose to rescue Israel. They did not ask for help but He saved them . . . even when they didn't know they needed to be saved.

The Lord WILL bring about His purpose. He will do so either with you, or in spite of you.

Finally, Samson helps us to see that grace is available to anyone who will believe. Samson was not a model disciple. He had lots of weaknesses and made lots of mistakes. Strangely, that encourages me. It is a reminder that God does not call perfect people. He calls ordinary people who have weaknesses, vices, and who sin, sometimes horribly. Yet, Jesus died for each of us.

My hope is the story of Samson will lead you to stop making excuses for why the offer of salvation and new life does not apply to you. Instead I pray you will see this as an opening, an invitation to a new and much better life. I pray you will run to Jesus rather than hide from Him. I pray you will believe Him when He said, "Whoever comes to me I will not cast away"

Come running, come hungry, be set apart. Trust and follow Christ. This decision will not only change your life, it will change hour FOREVER!