book of Judges Archives - God Cherishes You

In the Way of Samson 3

3.Moral turpitude:

I am going to sidestep the fifth major judge, (Jephthah), and all the minor judges. Why? Because the first four major judges that we’ve already examined, more than adequately demonstrated the ongoing pattern of Israel’s sequences of sin, oppression, crying out to God, and His deliverance through the judges.

Before we meet the last and the most famous major judge, (Samson), I am going to segue to the chapters 17 – 21 of the book of Judges, which occur after the account of Samson. These chapters consist of a postscript of the initial period of that same book. It depicts the depths of Israel’s sin that created the need for the judges, which God mercifully provided.

This expose on the depravity of the Israelites, begins with a man named Micah, from the tribe of Ephraim, who stole silver from his mother, and later admits it, returning to her. She says that she will honor him for his repentance by taking a portion of that silver to a silversmith, who created an idol to be placed in Micah’s house.

Micah built a shrine for it and made his son his personal priest. (See Jdg. 17:1 – 5.)

Then, the Bible reveals why behaviors like these were widely perpetrated:

In those days Israel had no king; all the people did whatever seemed right in their own eyes. Jdg. 17:6 NLT

(Nor did they recognize their rightful King, Jehovah.)

Next, a Levite from Bethlehem approached Micah and said he was looking for a place to live. Micah said that he would provide him shelter, treated him like a son, and made him his personal priest. Why?

“I know the Lord will bless me now,” Micah said, “because I have a Levite serving as my priest.” Jdg. 17:13 NLT

Obviously, this is a total desecration of the true Levitical priesthood’s purpose, which was to serve God in the temple.

Simultaneously, the Israeli tribe of Dan, was looking for a place to live. Joshua had allotted land to them[1] That allotment was filled with their enemy, (the Philistines), and the Danites lacked the faith in God to take the land from them.

So, they sent out scouts, who came to Micah’s house, where they met the Levite. And they told him that they had spied out the northernmost Canaanite city of Laish, located at the foot of Mount Horeb. The scouts found the city to be highly desirable. So, they asked the priest if they would be successful in their conquest of same. He gave them his blessing.

Six hundred Danites returned to Micah’s house and forcibly took all his idols; and the Levite, who was only too happy to be a priest for an entire clan, instead of just Micah.

The Danites conquered the city, killing all the inhabitants and burning the city to the ground. Then they rebuilt it and renamed it the city of Dan. But they maintained their idolatry:

Then they set up the carved image, and they appointed Jonathan son of Gershom, son of Moses, as their priest. Jdg. 18:30 NLT

Chapters 19 and 20 present a most serious moral degradation:

This account begins with a Levite, living in Ephraim, who procured for himself a concubine from Bethlehem. Returning to his home, he and his retinue stop to spend the night in the town of Gibeah, in the land of Benjamin.

A kind man took them into his home. But Benjamite men from the city surrounded the house and demanded that the homeowner give up the Levite, so that they could sodomize him. Instead, he offered the crowd his virgin daughter and the Levite’s concubine.

The Levite pushed his concubine out the door, and the men raped her all night, leading to her death. Consequently, the Levite took her home and cut her up into twelve pieces and sent them to the twelve tribes as a call to civil war. (See Jdg. Ch. 19).

Four hundred thousand men from all the eleven tribes of Israel attacked the land of Benjamin, with the permission of Jehovah.

The Benjamite men were slaughtered, leaving only 600 men behind. But that was not all:

And the Israelites returned and slaughtered every living thing in all the towns—the people, the livestock, and everything they found. They also burned down all the towns they came to. Jdg. 20:48 NLT

(Eventually, the Israelites would deeply repent what they did, and send wives to the 600 Benjamite men to repopulate the tribe.)

4.Samson

Again the Israelites did evil in the Lord’s sight, so the Lord handed them over to the Philistines, who oppressed them for forty years. Jdg. 13:1 NLT

During that time, there was a man from the tribe of Dan, named Manoah, whose wife was barren:

And the Angel of the Lord appeared to the woman and said to her, “Behold, you are infertile and have no children, but you shall conceive and give birth to a son.Therefore, be careful not to drink wine or [any other] intoxicating drink, and do not eat anything [ceremonially] unclean. For behold, you shall conceive and give birth to a son. No razor shall come upon his head, for the boy shall be a Nazirite [dedicated] to God from birth; and he shall begin to rescue Israel from the hands of the Philistines.” Jdg. 13:3 – 5. AMP

The Angel of the LORD is consecrating the child for His purposes.

Manoah prayed for the return of the Angel of the LORD, who subsequently manifested Himself to him and his wife. Manoah asked Him for His name. He replies:

“Why do you ask my name,” the angel of the Lord asked him, “since it is beyond understanding?” Jdg. 13:18 CSB

Manoah sacrificed a young goat and gave a grain offering on a rock altar. The Angel of the LORD consumed it with miraculous fire and then He Himself ascended toward heaven. (Once again, we see that He accepted a sacrifice, which angels cannot do. Thus, He can only be explained as a theophany, whom many understand to be the pre-incarnate Christ.)

Later, Manoah’s wife gives birth:

…and named him Samson; and the boy grew and the Lord blessed him. And the Spirit of the Lord began to stir him… Jdg. 13:24, 25. AMP

One day as he matures, Samson sees a Philistine woman who stirs up his lust, and he tells his parents to get her for his wife. They try to reason with him – to marry an Israelite instead of a pagan Philistine. Only caring about how she looks, Samson stands firm.

However, none of them sees that this is God’s plan:

His 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. Jdg. 14:4 NLT

The three of them went to arrange the marriage, but on the way, Samson was attacked by a lion. It was at this moment, that Samson was first imbued with the Spirit of the LORD, strengthening him to be able to tear the lion apart bare-handed. (This was also in God’s plan.)

They met the girl and Samson was pleased and plans were drawn. On the return trip, Samson saw that the body of the lion was filled with bees and honey. He ate some of the honey.

Later, Samson prepared a feast for a ‘bachelor party’ for him and 30 attending Philistine men. As per custom, he began a riddle game, where he said to the Philistines that if they could solve it within the 7 days of the feast, he would reward them with a certain amount of clothing. But if they could not, they would have to reward him likewise.

His riddle:

“Out of the eater came something to eat, and out of the strong came something sweet.” Jdg. 14:14 AMP

By the end of the 3^rd day, they still hadn’t solved it. So, they threatened Samson’s betrothed, saying that if she didn’t get the answer out of him, they would burn her and her father’s house. So, she whined to Samson, crying daily that as his wife, she should know. He finally relented.

Then the 30 Philistines answered him on the 7^th day:

“What is sweeter than honey? What is stronger than a lion?” Jdg. 14:18a AMP

Samson’s response is classic:

If you hadn’t plowed with my young cow, you wouldn’t know my riddle now! Jdg. 14:18b CSB

He went to Philistine city of Ashkelon and killed 30 men and brought the dead men’s clothes and gave them to the 30 men of his wedding party. Subsequently, his father-in-law gave his wife to another man.

Samson reacted with vengeance:

Then he went out and caught 300 foxes. He tied their tails together in pairs, and he fastened a torch to each pair of tails. Then he lit the torches and let the foxes run through the grain fields of the Philistines. He burned all their grain to the ground, including the sheaves and the uncut grain. He also destroyed their vineyards and olive groves. Jdg. 15:4, 5. NLT

The Philistines retaliated by burning up his ex-wife and her father. Samson responded mercilessly. In turn, the Philistines camped in the land of Judah. When the Judahites found out why they were doing that, they sent 3000 men to bind Samson and turn him over to the Philistines. Uh oh:

As Samson arrived at Lehi, the Philistines came shouting in triumph. But the Spirit of the Lord came powerfully upon Samson, and he snapped the ropes on his arms as if they were burnt strands of flax, and they fell from his wrists. ¹⁵Then he found the jawbone of a recently killed donkey. He picked it up and killed 1,000 Philistines with it. Jdg. 15:14, 15. NLT

Samson went to Gaza for a Philistine prostitute. (God can use anybody for His purposes).

The Philistines find out, and they lay in wait for him. But he gets up at midnight and uproots the city gate and carries it away.

After this he fell in love with a [Philistine] woman…whose name was Delilah. So the [five] lords (governors) of the Philistines came to her and said to her, “Persuade him, and see where his great strength lies and [find out] how we may overpower him so that we may bind him to subdue him. And each of us will give you eleven hundred pieces of silver.” Jdg. 16:4, 5. AMP

Delilah did just that. Samson first told her that binding him with 7 ‘fresh cords’ (undried tendons), new ropes, or with 7 locks of his hair weaved on a loom, would weaken him. Each time he told her of these examples, the Philistines would try to take him, but to no avail.

Finally, Delilah worms the truth out of him, i.e., if his head is shaven, he will assuredly weaken. She has it done while he slept. (Samson’s hair didn’t really give him power; God did that – but He took it away because Samson violated his Nazarite vow.)

…Samson did not know that the Lord had departed from him. Jdg. 16:20 AMP

Consequently, the Philistines took Samson captive, gouged out his eyes, bound him in chains and brought him to Gaza. He was imprisoned to labor as a grain grinder. (However, no one paid attention to the fact that his hair was beginning to grow back.)

The Philistines gathered to sacrifice to their pagan god Dagon. They had Samson brought out of prison to entertain them, making him stand between the pillars of Dagon’s temple.

Then Samson said to the boy who held him by the hand, “Let me feel the pillars on which the [roof of the] house rests, so that I may lean against them.” Jdg. 16:26 AMP

The temple was filled with 3000 people. Samson cries out to Jehovah as speaks his last petition:

“O Lord God, please remember me and please strengthen me just this one time, O God, and let me take vengeance on the Philistines for my two eyes.” Samson took hold of the two middle [support] pillars on which the house rested, and braced himself against them, one with his right hand and the other with his left. And Samson said, “Let me die with the Philistines!” Jdg. 16:28 – 30. AMP

Samson pushed against the pillars with all his God-given strength and the pillars fell to the side, and the roof collapsed – killing all the people, and Samson died with them…

Goodnight and God bless.

On a personal note: I am going to take a 3-week hiatus from blogging while I move from the decaying state of California to the sane state of Alabama. I will then return with more of what God wants us to know. It is a blessing to serve you in the Lord.

[1] Jos. 19:40 – 48.

In the Way of Samson 2

It has been said that there were 12 ‘judges’ but in fact there were only 6 major judges, two of which we’ve already discussed. Deborah will be our third:

After Ehud’s death, the Israelites again did evil in the Lord’s sight. So the Lord turned them over to King Jabin of Hazor, a Canaanite king. The commander of his army was Sisera, who lived in Harosheth-haggoyim. Sisera, who had 900 iron chariots, ruthlessly oppressed the Israelites for twenty years. Then the people of Israel cried out to the Lord for help. Jdg. 4:1 – 3. NLT

So, we see that the ‘sin sequences’ are continuing.

Deborah, a prophetess…was judging Israel at that time…and the Israelites went up to her to settle disputes. Jdg. 4:4, 5. CSB

Deborah calls forth her military commander, Barak, and says:

“Behold, the Lord, the God of Israel, has commanded, ‘Go and march to Mount Tabor, and take with you ten thousand men [of war] from the tribes of Naphtali and Zebulun. I will draw out Sisera, the commander of Jabin’s army, with his chariots and his infantry to meet you at the river Kishon, and I will hand him over to you.’” Jdg. 4:6, 7. AMP

And so, Deborah and Barak are divinely called to liberate the Israelites from the devastation and bondage that they brought upon themselves through their paganistic ways.

God used Jabin, a Canaanite king, as His instrument of punishment. However, His children cried out for mercy, and their Holy Father sent them Deborah.

Sisera was informed about Barak being at Mount Tabor, so he gathers his 900 chariots to launch an attack on Barak, but God attacked Sisera’ army with confusion, allowing Barak to be victorious in the battle. Every one of Sisera’s soldiers was wiped out. Sisera ran away on foot.

After Deborah and Barak’s victory, they composed and sang a victor’s song (See Jdg. Ch. 5). Israel had forty years of rest, which brings us up to approximately 1200 B.C.

At the end of those forty years, Israel falls back into a fourth sin sequence:

Then the Israelites did evil in the sight of the Lord; and the Lord gave them into the hand of Midian for seven years. The [powerful] hand of Midian prevailed against Israel. Jdg. 6:1, 2. AMP

The Midianites would destroy Israel’s crops, and the people would go hungry. Midian oppressed the Israelites for seven years. After which, Israel would finally cry out to Jehovah once more.

God first sent an unidentified ‘prophet’ to Israel to remind them of the many times He had delivered them, yet they repeatedly have been disobedient. (See Jdg. 6:7 – 10.) Then the narrative shifts to identify the ‘judge’ that God would prepare to deliver His insubordinate children:

Now the Angel of the Lord came and sat under the terebinth tree at Ophrah, which belonged to Joash the Abiezrite, and his son Gideon was beating wheat in the wine press [instead of the threshing floor] to [hide it and] save it from the Midianites. And the Angel of the Lord appeared to him and said to him, “The Lord is with you, O brave man.” Jdg. 6:11, 12. AMP

Gideon was beating the wheat in a wine press, which is usually contained within a building, whereas a threshing floor is located outside. He was afraid his wheat would be confiscated. Gideon asked the Angel of the Lord why God had abandoned His people to the Midianite oppression. Pay attention to His answer:

The Lord turned to him and said, “Go in the strength you have and deliver Israel from the grasp of Midian. I am sending you!” Jdg. 6:14 CSB

Note the Bible is referring to the Angel of the LORD as the LORD Himself, who declares to Gideon that He is sending him to liberate Israel. Since no one can see Jehovah and live^[1], it must be the pre-incarnate Christ.^[2]

Gideon protests:

“But Lord,” Gideon replied, “how can I rescue Israel? My clan is the weakest in the whole tribe of Manasseh, and I am the least in my entire family!” Jdg. 6:15 NLT

God’s response:

The Lord said to him, “I will be with you. And you will destroy the Midianites as if you were fighting against one man.” Jdg. 6:16 NLT

Gideon prepared a food offering for God (Angel of the LORD), who touched it with His staff, and fire came out of the rock it was laid upon and consumed the offering. (Here is another proof that the Angel of the LORD was a theophany. Angels cannot accept worship.)

^[1] Ex. 33:20

^[2] Jn.1:18

Next, God tells Gideon to destroy his father’s (Joash) pagan altars and replace it with an altar to Jehovah. After he did that, the townspeople find out and they tell Joash that Gideon must be put to death. But Joash challenges them saying that if Baal is a god, he will kill his son. That did not happen.

Israel’s enemies approach:

Soon afterward the armies of Midian, Amalek, and the people of the east formed an alliance against Israel and crossed the Jordan, camping in the valley of Jezreel. Then the Spirit of the Lord clothed Gideon with power. He blew a ram’s horn as a call to arms, and the men of the clan of Abiezer came to him. He also sent messengers throughout Manasseh, Asher, Zebulun, and Naphtali, summoning their warriors, and all of them responded. Jdg. 6:33 – 35. NLT

Then, Gideon is looking for a sign from God that will assure him of his victory. He even has the temerity to ask Him to fulfill a sign of his own design. He places a woolen fleece on the threshing floor and asks that He allows the morning dew to soak the wool but not the ground underneath it. God gives him this sign.

Gideon was not heavily imbued with faith, and asks for another sign, a reversal of the first: fleece dry, ground wet. God provides.

He musters up 32,000 men for battle. Jehovah tells Gideon that he has too many men. God is looking to bolster the faith of Israel in His ability to deliver. He tells Gideon to dismiss anyone who is afraid. 22,000 went home.

God tells him that he still has too many men. He reduced them to 300.

Gideon spies out the enemy camp:

The armies of Midian, Amalek, and the people of the east had settled in the valley like a swarm of locusts. Their camels were like grains of sand on the seashore—too many to count! Jdg. 7:12 NLT

Staying hidden, Gideon overhears one soldier telling another that he had a dream that reveals an Israeli victory in this upcoming battle. Fortified, he divided his 300 men into 3 groups, had them approach the edge of the enemy camp, blew on shofars, lifted up blazing torches and shouted, “A sword for the LORD and Gideon!”

The Midianites panicked, thinking that they were surrounded, and God confused them so that they fought each other. Any who got away was chased down and killed by Gideon’s army.

Gideon lived another 40 years and there was peace in the land. As soon as he died, Israel once again turned to paganism…

Next time, we finally get to meet Samson!

Goodnight and God bless.

In the Way of Samson

Book of Judges

Introduction:

The book of Judges is a bridge that covers the history of Israel from the death of Joshua (1370 B.C. – 1100 B.C.) to the beginning of the kings who would rule over Israel and Judea. The original Hebrew translation of the title of the book was shophetim.

These ‘judges’ in question were more often military leaders who were empowered by God to deliver His children from their wayward (pagan) lapses. Why? As you’ll recall, Joshua left certain pockets of unconquered pagan resistance. These pockets would grow and influence the Israelis into repeatedly pagan rebellions against Jehovah.

The authorship of the book of Judges is unknown. However, some biblical scholars believe that the prophet Samuel was the Holy Spirit-inspired author.

1.Cleaning up where Joshua fell short:

After the death of Joshua, the Israelites asked the Lord, “Which tribe should go first to attack the Canaanites?” The Lord answered, “Judah, for I have given them victory over the land.” The men of Judah said to their relatives from the tribe of Simeon, “Join with us to fight against the Canaanites living in the territory allotted to us. Then we will help you conquer your territory.” So the men of Simeon went with Judah. Jdg. 1:1 – 3. NLT

The two tribes slaughtered ten thousand Canaanites in a town called ‘Bezek’. Then they went to Jerusalem and killed all the Canaanites and again in Hebron as well. Next, they went on to capture 4 more cities. Still, they came up short:

The Lord was with the people of Judah, and they took possession of the hill country. But they failed to drive out the people living in the plains, who had iron chariots. Jdg. 1:19 NLT

Seven of the other tribes were unsuccessful at fully subduing the Canaanites as well. Thus, their covenant promises to fully destroy them, to be fully compliant, was tossed aside, and God sent word by His highest angel to tell the Israelites that they broke the covenant between them:

Now the Angel of the Lord came up from Gilgal to Bochim. And he said, “I brought you up from Egypt and led you to the land which I swore [to give] to your fathers; and I said, ‘I will never break My covenant with you, and as for you, you shall not make a covenant with the inhabitants of this land; you shall tear down their altars.’ But you have not obeyed Me; what is this that you have done? So I also said, ‘I will not drive your enemies out before you; but they will be like thorns in your sides and their gods will be a snare to you.’” Jdg. 2:1 – 3. AMP

Ultimately, it led to Israel’s apostasy. And it only took one generation that didn’t pass on the Law, and the miracles of God to their children for that to happen:

After that generation died, another generation grew up who did not acknowledge the Lord or remember the mighty things he had done for Israel. Jdg. 2:10 NLT

2.The sin sequences of Israel:

What does that mean? It means that Israel committed a series of idolatries. And these events followed a certain pattern: Israel embraced paganism; God lifts His protection off His children; they are conquered by their enemies; and God sends a ‘judge’ to deliver them:

Then the Israelites did evil in the sight of the Lord and worshiped and served the Baals, and they abandoned the Lord, the God of their fathers, who brought them out of the land of Egypt. They followed other gods from the gods of the peoples who were around them, and they bowed down to them, and offended and provoked the Lord to anger. So they abandoned the Lord and served Baal [the pagan god of the Canaanites] and the Ashtaroth. So the anger of the Lord burned against Israel, and He gave them into the hands (power) of plunderers who robbed them; and He sold them into the hands of their surrounding enemies, so that they could no longer stand [in opposition] before their enemies. Wherever they went, the hand of the Lord was against them for evil (misfortune), as the Lord had spoken, and as the Lord had sworn to them, so that they were severely distressed. Jdg. 2:11 – 15. AMP

Baal was the Canaanite god of fertility, and Ashtaroth was a female deity who was Baal’s consort, also related to fertility, temple prostitution, and other sexual deviancies.

God showed His mercy, but to no avail:

Then the Lord raised up judges who rescued them from the hands of those who robbed them. Yet they did not listen to their judges, for they played the prostitute after other gods and they bowed down to them. They quickly turned aside from the way in which their fathers had walked in obeying the commandments of the Lord; they did not do as their fathers. When the Lord raised up judges for them, He was with the judge, and He rescued them from the hand of their enemies all the days of the judge; for the Lord was moved to pity by their groaning because of those who oppressed and afflicted them. But when the judge died, they turned back and behaved more corruptly than their fathers, in following and serving other gods, and bowing down to them. Jdg. 2:16 – 19. AMP

So, God lifted His protection once more.

Let’s drill down and look at the major sequences:

And the Israelites did evil in the sight of the Lord, and they forgot the Lord their God and served the Baals and the Asheroth. So the anger of the Lord was kindled against Israel, and He sold them into the hand of Cushan-rishathaim king of Mesopotamia; and the Israelites served Cushan-rishathaim eight years. Jdg. 3:7, 8. AMP

So, there you have it: apostasy and idolatry. Jehovah facilitates the conquest of Israel by the king of Mesopotamia, who enslaves them for 8 years. When the Israelites couldn’t handle it anymore, they finally turned to their Creator for deliverance. So, God sent them the first judge:

But when the Israelites cried out to the Lord [for help], the Lord raised up a man to rescue the people of Israel, Othniel the son of Kenaz, Caleb’s younger brother. The Spirit of the Lord came upon him, and he judged Israel. He went out to war, and the Lord gave Cushan-rishathaim king of Mesopotamia into his hand, and he prevailed over Cushan-rishathaim. And the land was at rest [from oppression for] forty years. Then Othniel the son of Kenaz died. Jdg. 3:9 – 11. AMP

The pattern presents itself. Israel falls into unrepentant spiritual adultery, God punishes them with an enemy, He takes pity on them when they petition Him for deliverance. Jehovah sends them a ‘judge’, (in this case, Othniel), who is empowered in the Spirit by God to extricate the enemy. And then Israel has a period of peace until the judge of this sin sequence dies.

And then, Israel rinses and repeats, and we begin the second sequence:

Once again the Israelites did evil in the Lord’s sight, and the Lord gave King Eglon of Moab control over Israel because of their evil. Eglon enlisted the Ammonites and Amalekites as allies, and then he went out and defeated Israel, taking possession of Jericho, the city of palms. And the Israelites served Eglon of Moab for eighteen years. Jdg. 3:12 – 14. NLT

Then the Israelites cried out to the Lord, and he raised up Ehud son of Gera, a left-handed Benjaminite, as a deliverer for them. The Israelites sent him with the tribute for King Eglon of Moab. Jdg. 3:15 CSB

And so, once again, Israel turns to idolatry, God sends the king of Moab and two of its allies to conquer the Israelites. They are enslaved for eighteen years, and in that period, they were forced to pay tribute to the king of Moab.

Again, Israel remembers their Maker and beseeches Him for deliverance, and He sends Ehud to do just that. Ehud straps a dagger to his thigh, as it is his clandestine mission to assassinate the king under the ruse of coming to deliver the king his tribute.

When Ehud gave the king his tribute, he also told him that he had a ‘secret message’ for him, so the king cleared the room. Then, Ehud told the king it was a message from God, and plunged his dagger into the king’s belly, whereupon he died.

Ehud escaped and rallied the Israelites in the vicinity of Ephraim. He led them to battle, and severely defeated the Moabites. And Israel had peace for eighty years…

Stay tuned to the continuing adventures of the judges…

Goodnight and God bless.

book of Judges

Simultaneously, the Israeli tribe of Dan, was looking for a place to live. Joshua had allotted land to them[1] That allotment was filled with their enemy, (the Philistines), and the Danites lacked the faith in God to take the land from them.

Six hundred Danites returned to Micah’s house and forcibly took all his idols; and the Levite, who was only too happy to be a priest for an entire clan, instead of just Micah.

The Danites conquered the city, killing all the inhabitants and burning the city to the ground. Then they rebuilt it and renamed it the city of Dan. But they maintained their idolatry:

Then they set up the carved image, and they appointed Jonathan son of Gershom, son of Moses, as their priest. Jdg. 18:30 NLT

Chapters 19 and 20 present a most serious moral degradation:

The Benjamite men were slaughtered, leaving only 600 men behind. But that was not all:

During that time, there was a man from the tribe of Dan, named Manoah, whose wife was barren:

…and named him Samson; and the boy grew and the Lord blessed him. And the Spirit of the Lord began to stir him… Jdg. 13:24, 25. AMP

One day as he matures, Samson sees a Philistine woman who stirs up his lust, and he tells his parents to get her for his wife. They try to reason with him – to marry an Israelite instead of a pagan Philistine. Only caring about how she looks, Samson stands firm.

The three of them went to arrange the marriage, but on the way, Samson was attacked by a lion. It was at this moment, that Samson was first imbued with the Spirit of the LORD, strengthening him to be able to tear the lion apart bare-handed. (This was also in God’s plan.)

He went to Philistine city of Ashkelon and killed 30 men and brought the dead men’s clothes and gave them to the 30 men of his wedding party. Subsequently, his father-in-law gave his wife to another man.

The Philistines retaliated by burning up his ex-wife and her father. Samson responded mercilessly. In turn, the Philistines camped in the land of Judah. When the Judahites found out why they were doing that, they sent 3000 men to bind Samson and turn him over to the Philistines. Uh oh:

Delilah did just that. Samson first told her that binding him with 7 ‘fresh cords’ (undried tendons), new ropes, or with 7 locks of his hair weaved on a loom, would weaken him. Each time he told her of these examples, the Philistines would try to take him, but to no avail.

Consequently, the Philistines took Samson captive, gouged out his eyes, bound him in chains and brought him to Gaza. He was imprisoned to labor as a grain grinder. (However, no one paid attention to the fact that his hair was beginning to grow back.)

Israel’s enemies approach:

He musters up 32,000 men for battle. Jehovah tells Gideon that he has too many men. God is looking to bolster the faith of Israel in His ability to deliver. He tells Gideon to dismiss anyone who is afraid. 22,000 went home.

Ultimately, it led to Israel’s apostasy. And it only took one generation that didn’t pass on the Law, and the miracles of God to their children for that to happen:

Baal was the Canaanite god of fertility, and Ashtaroth was a female deity who was Baal’s consort, also related to fertility, temple prostitution, and other sexual deviancies.

Let’s drill down and look at the major sequences:

And so, once again, Israel turns to idolatry, God sends the king of Moab and two of its allies to conquer the Israelites. They are enslaved for eighteen years, and in that period, they were forced to pay tribute to the king of Moab.

When Ehud gave the king his tribute, he also told him that he had a ‘secret message’ for him, so the king cleared the room. Then, Ehud told the king it was a message from God, and plunged his dagger into the king’s belly, whereupon he died.

Discover more

Archives