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Judges Chapter 16 – The Secret of Samson’s Strength Revealed

08 Monday Jan 2018

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One day Samson went to Gaza, where he saw a prostitute. He went in to spend the night with her. Judges 16:1

Samson had “seen” a woman in Timnah, and although he was an Israelite and she was a Philistine, he told his parents to obtain this woman as his bride. Samson’s disregard of the LORD’s prohibition against intermarriage with the inhabitants of Canaan ended in disaster. His wife and her family were burned to death.

Sometime later, Samson is travelling in Philistine territory where he “saw” a prostitute and spent the night with her.

For everything in the world–the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life–comes not from the Father but from the world. 1 John 2:16

In both instances, Samson first lusted with his eyes before he committed these sinful acts of intermarriage and fornication.

He, who could strangle a lion and kill a thousand men single-handedly, could not conquer his own passion and lust. The man whom God had blessed with supernatural strength again showed himself to be morally and spiritually weak.

Samson who also defiled himself by reaching into the carcass of a dead lion to scoop out honey and defiled himself by using a “fresh jawbone” of a donkey as a weapon, seems to have little or no regard to his calling as a Nazarite.

The people of Gaza were told, “Samson is here!” So they surrounded the place and lay in wait for him all night at the city gate. They made no move during the night, saying, “At dawn we’ll kill him.” Judges 16:2

The men of Gaza heard that Samson was in their city. They may not have known exactly where he was staying, so they set an ambush for him in the city gates. Many men probably hid in the guard-room by the side of the gate. Their intention was to launch a surprise attack against Samson at the time in the morning when the gates were to be opened and kill him.

But Samson lay there only until the middle of the night. Then he got up and took hold of the doors of the city gate, together with the two posts, and tore them loose, bar and all. He lifted them to his shoulders and carried them to the top of the hill that faces Hebron. Judges 16:3

Samson arose at midnight. Possibly the woman had learned of the plot, and gave Samson warning, after the manner of Rahab; or she may have been his betrayer, and planned on keeping him bedded until morning. In any case, Samson arose in the middle of the night. The watchmen were not expecting him until morning. They most probably went into the upper part of the gate-house to rest up in preparation for their morning attack.

Samson took hold of the doors of the gate. The city’s gate was in two sections. It rotated upon pins in sockets, and was secured by a bar which slid into the posts on either side. Instead of forcing the doors open, he tore the posts up with the barred doors attached to them. Samson pulled up the whole framework of the gate, doors, posts and bar, and carried it off in one piece. He carried it to the top of a high hill not far from Gaza, which looked towards Hebron. Although Hebron was several miles from Gaza, Hebron stood upon a mountain and could be seen from the hill facing it.

Samson’s act of supernatural strength sent a message to the men of Gaza. He did it with contempt for their attempt to confine him with gates and bars, and in order to show himself more formidable to the Philistines and more acceptable to his own people.

Some time later, he fell in love with a woman in the Valley of Sorek whose name was Delilah. The rulers of the Philistines went to her and said, “See if you can lure him into showing you the secret of his great strength and how we can overpower him so we may tie him up and subdue him. Each one of us will give you eleven hundred shekels of silver.” Judges 16:4-5

Sorek was not in the Philistine district, but was near Samson’s native town of Zorah. This valley’s name means, “Choice Vine.” Sorek was noted for its fine wine.

The Lord said to Moses, “Speak to the Israelites and say to them: ‘If a man or woman wants to make a special vow, a vow of dedication to the Lord as a Nazirite, they must abstain from wine and other fermented drink and must not drink vinegar made from wine or other fermented drink. They must not drink grape juice or eat grapes or raisins. As long as they remain under their Nazirite vow, they must not eat anything that comes from the grapevine, not even the seeds or skins.

 “‘During the entire period of their Nazirite vow, no razor may be used on their head. They must be holy until the period of their dedication to the Lord is over; they must let their hair grow long.

 “‘Throughout the period of their dedication to the Lord, the Nazirite must not go near a dead body. Numbers 6:1-6

Samson had already disrespected his Nazarite vow not to go near a dead body by thrusting his bare hands into a lion’s carcass and wielding a fresh jawbone of a donkey as a weapon. Now Samson, dedicated to God with a lifelong vow that he would have nothing to do with grape products or fermented drinks, goes into a valley known for its choice vines and fine wine. There he fell in love with a woman named Delilah.

The only stipulation of Samson’s Nazarite vow that he had not yet broken was that a razor was never used on his head.

The Philistines occupied the five cities of Gaza, Ashkelon, Ashdod, Ekron, and Gath. Their rulers each promised Delilah eleven hundred shekels of silver if she could discover the secret of Samson’s strength.

The meaning of Delilah’s name is, “seductive” (tempting and attractive; enticing) or “languishing” (growing weak or feeble). The attractive Delilah was promised fifty five hundred shekels of silver if she could seduce Samson into revealing his secret so that he would grow week and feeble.

So Delilah said to Samson, “Tell me the secret of your great strength and how you can be tied up and subdued.”

Samson answered her, “If anyone ties me with seven fresh bowstrings that have not been dried, I’ll become as weak as any other man.”

Then the rulers of the Philistines brought her seven fresh bowstrings that had not been dried, and she tied him with them. With men hidden in the room, she called to him, “Samson, the Philistines are upon you!” But he snapped the bowstrings as easily as a piece of string snaps when it comes close to a flame. So the secret of his strength was not discovered.

Then Delilah said to Samson, “You have made a fool of me; you lied to me. Come now, tell me how you can be tied.”

 He said, “If anyone ties me securely with new ropes that have never been used, I’ll become as weak as any other man.”

So Delilah took new ropes and tied him with them. Then, with men hidden in the room, she called to him, “Samson, the Philistines are upon you!” But he snapped the ropes off his arms as if they were threads.

Delilah then said to Samson, “All this time you have been making a fool of me and lying to me. Tell me how you can be tied.”

He replied, “If you weave the seven braids of my head into the fabric on the loom and tighten it with the pin, I’ll become as weak as any other man.” So while he was sleeping, Delilah took the seven braids of his head, wove them into the fabric and tightened it with the pin.

Again she called to him, “Samson, the Philistines are upon you!” He awoke from his sleep and pulled up the pin and the loom, with the fabric.

 Then she said to him, “How can you say, ‘I love you,’ when you won’t confide in me? This is the third time you have made a fool of me and haven’t told me the secret of your great strength.” Judges 16:6-15

Delilah claimed that Samson repeatedly made a fool of her by being dishonest and lying about the secret of his great strength. But in reality, Samson was a fool to believe that Delilah loved him. Delilah not only approached Samson and asked him directly for the source of his great strength, but also stated that the purpose of knowing his secret was to bind him up to capture him.

With such nagging she prodded him day after day until he was sick to death of it.

So he told her everything. “No razor has ever been used on my head,” he said, “because I have been a Nazirite dedicated to God from my mother’s womb. If my head were shaved, my strength would leave me, and I would become as weak as any other man.” Judges 16:16-17

“Chinese water torture” is also known as “Spanish water torture” in Europe, because this term often refers to a type of torture used during the Spanish Inquisition. Victims would be strapped down so that they could not move, and cold or warm water would then be dripped slowly onto a small area of their body—usually the forehead. The forehead was found to be the most suitable point for this form of torture because of its sensitivity, and because of its ominous proximity to the brain and facial features.

The victims could see each drop coming and, after a long duration of time, were gradually driven frantic to the point of insanity.

Although Samson was physically strong, he was so tormented by Delilah’s incessant nagging that he finally broke down mentally and emotionally and yielded to her request.

When Delilah saw that he had told her everything, she sent word to the rulers of the Philistines, “Come back once more; he has told me everything.” So the rulers of the Philistines returned with the silver in their hands.  After putting him to sleep on her lap, she called for someone to shave off the seven braids of his hair, and so began to subdue him. And his strength left him.

Then she called, “Samson, the Philistines are upon you!”

He awoke from his sleep and thought, “I’ll go out as before and shake myself free.” But he did not know that the Lord had left him.

Then the Philistines seized him, gouged out his eyes and took him down to Gaza. Binding him with bronze shackles, they set him to grinding grain in the prison. Judges 16:18-21

Samson, who had lusted with his eyes before he committed sinful acts of intermarriage and fornication, now had his eyes gouged out.

Samson’s life is a portrait of unfaithful Israel during the times of the Judges. Like him, the nation was strong so long as its people kept the covenant of their God. Like him, Israel was prone to follow after strange loves. Its Delilahs were the gods of the heathen, in whose laps it laid its anointed head, and at whose hands it suffered the loss of its God-given strength. Like him, the nation was blinded, bound, and reduced to slavery until the people cried out and another judge arose to deliver them.

But the hair on his head began to grow again after it had been shaved. Judges 16:22

Samson’s afflictions were the means of bringing him to deep repentance. By the loss of his natural sight, the eyes of his understanding were opened. Being convicted of his sin, and repenting of it, letting his hair grow was a sign that he renewed his Nazarite vow.

Now the rulers of the Philistines assembled to offer a great sacrifice to Dagon their god and to celebrate, saying, “Our god has delivered Samson, our enemy, into our hands.”

When the people saw him, they praised their god, saying, “Our god has delivered our enemy into our hands, the one who laid waste our land and multiplied our slain.”

While they were in high spirits, they shouted, “Bring out Samson to entertain us.” So they called Samson out of the prison, and he performed for them. Judges 16:23-25a

When the Philistines rulers were high on wine, they sought to ridicule Samson by having him perform for them. Little did they realize that his act would literally bring the house down.

When they stood him among the pillars, Samson said to the servant who held his hand, “Put me where I can feel the pillars that support the temple, so that I may lean against them.” Now the temple was crowded with men and women; all the rulers of the Philistines were there, and on the roof were about three thousand men and women watching Samson perform. Then Samson prayed to the Lord, “Sovereign Lord, remember me. Please, God, strengthen me just once more, and let me with one blow get revenge on the Philistines for my two eyes.” Judges 16:25b-28

Samson’s successful and desired human vengeance required divine authorization or permission. One of the major aspects of vengeance is “the rendering of a just punishment upon a wrongdoer or the recompense given to the victim of the wrongdoing.” In Samson’s case, the gouging out of his eyes would be the wrongful act which would deserve recompense. This is not to be seen as malicious or vindictive retaliation by the wronged person, but rather as a just recompense for a crime. Divine vengeance is often invoked upon “external enemies” who oppress Israel and should be understood as an appeal for justice.

Then Samson reached toward the two central pillars on which the temple stood. Bracing himself against them, his right hand on the one and his left hand on the other,  Samson said, “Let me die with the Philistines!” Then he pushed with all his might, and down came the temple on the rulers and all the people in it. Thus he killed many more when he died than while he lived.

Then his brothers and his father’s whole family went down to get him. They brought him back and buried him between Zorah and Eshtaol in the tomb of Manoah his father. He had led Israel twenty years. Judges 16:29-31

Despite all of Samson’s moral weaknesses and his disregard for the restrictions of a Nazarite, Samson turned back to God before he died. God in His sovereignty used Samson to fulfill His purpose. Samson’s death did much to impede the oppressive actions of the Philistines against the Israelites by killing all five Philistine rulers in his final act of supernatural strength.

Judges Chapter 15 – Samson Takes Vengeance on the Philistines

02 Thursday Nov 2017

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 Later on, at the time of wheat harvest, Samson took a young goat and went to visit his wife. He said, “I’m going to my wife’s room.” But her father would not let him go in. Judges 15:1

Samson’s anger had been kindled against his wife for her treachery and unfaithfulness to him by revealing the answer to his riddle, and against his companions for their deceit. Therefore Samson had left his wife and returned to his father’s house. After some time, Samson’s anger subsided and went to visit his wife. He took a young goat with him, which would have been considered a delicacy, to share a meal with his wife as a sign that he wanted to reconcile with her.

Her father would not allow Samson to enter her room. Samson could have easily overpowered his father-in-law, but showed him respect and did not force the issue.

“I was so sure you hated her,” he said, “that I gave her to your companion. Isn’t her younger sister more attractive? Take her instead.” Judges 15:2

It was the father’s decision to betroth his daughter to another man and collect a second dowry. She had not yet married Samson’s companion, otherwise she would not still been living in her father’s house. If his wife’s father was honest, he should have restored the dowry which Manoah had given for her.

The father offered his younger daughter to Samson in an effort to appease him and justify the wrong he committed.

Samson said to them, “This time I have a right to get even with the Philistines; I will really harm them.” So he went out and caught three hundred foxes and tied them tail to tail in pairs. He then fastened a torch to every pair of tails, lit the torches and let the foxes loose in the standing grain of the Philistines. He burned up the shocks and standing grain, together with the vineyards and olive groves. Judges 15:3-5

It was springtime and the wheat crop was beginning to be harvested. Samson’s actions resulted in the destruction of the Philistines’ wheat fields, olive groves, and vineyards. To burn these items, all of which were staples in the Ancient Near East, would mean an economic disaster for the Philistine people. Also, the Philistines were trying to regain economic and military power after a devastating war with Egypt. The burning of these crops would have dealt a major blow to their overseas trade agreements.

When the Philistines asked, “Who did this?” they were told, “Samson, the Timnite’s son-in-law, because his wife was given to his companion.” So the Philistines went up and burned her and her father to death. Judges 15:6

The Philistines threatened Samson’s wife that they would burn her and her father’s house. She, to save herself and oblige her countrymen, betrayed her husband; and the very thing that she feared, and by sin sought to avoid, came upon her. Ironically, she, and her father’s house were burnt with fire by her countrymen, whom she thought to oblige by the wrong she did to her husband.

Samson said to them, “Since you’ve acted like this, I swear that I won’t stop until I get my revenge on you.” He attacked them viciously and slaughtered many of them. Then he went down and stayed in a cave in the rock of Etam. Judges 15:7-8

Samson having slain many of the Philistines, went and dwelt in a cave of the rock of Etam which was located in the tribal territory of Judah.

The Philistines went up and camped in Judah, spreading out near Lehi. The people of Judah asked, “Why have you come to fight us?”

“We have come to take Samson prisoner,” they answered, “to do to him as he did to us.” Judges 15:9-10

The Philistines were determined to take Samson captive. They were willing to declare war on Judah if Judah insisted on protecting Samson.

Then three thousand men from Judah went down to the cave in the rock of Etam and said to Samson, “Don’t you realize that the Philistines are rulers over us? What have you done to us?”

He answered, “I merely did to them what they did to me.” Judges 15:11

Obviously the power and exploits of Samson were so well known that it took three thousand men from Judah to muster up the courage to confront Samson. They presented their grievances to Samson in an attempt to convince him that it was unwise to provoke the Philistines. Didn’t Samson realize that their rulers had the power to oppress them even further, to increase their tribute, and even to put them to death?

Why had he rebelled against their masters? His reply was simple. He had only done to them what they had done to him. They had burnt his wife and her father to death, and in return he had slain many of them.

They said to him, “We’ve come to tie you up and hand you over to the Philistines.”

Samson said, “Swear to me that you won’t kill me yourselves.”

“Agreed,” they answered. “We will only tie you up and hand you over to them. We will not kill you.” So they bound him with two new ropes and led him up from the rock. Judges 15:12-13

Samson could have resisted, but instead he submitted himself to his fellow Israelites. He understood that they did not have hostile intentions towards him, but were compelled to do what the Philistines demanded of them.

Though they were 3000 of them, Samson did not fear them. If they attempted to take away his life, he could have defended himself. But he chose not to shed the blood of any of his own countrymen. Instead, he consented to be bound by them so that he would be delivered into the hands of their enemies. In this instance, Samson was a type of Christ. Jesus was betrayed by his people the Jews, and delivered by them into the hands of the Romans. Although Samson could have delivered himself by his great strength, he did not. He allowed himself to be taken and bound and given into the hands of his enemies, that his own people might go free.

As he approached Lehi, the Philistines came toward him shouting. The Spirit of the Lord came powerfully upon him. The ropes on his arms became like charred flax, and the bindings dropped from his hands. Judges 15:14

The Philistines ran out to meet Samson. They were shouting with joy when they saw him bound, believing that he was subdued and powerless against them. The Spirit of the LORD came so powerfully upon Samson that his bindings melted away.

Finding a fresh jawbone of a donkey, he grabbed it and struck down a thousand men.

Then Samson said, “With a donkey’s jawbone I have made donkeys of them. With a donkey’s jawbone I have killed a thousand men.”

When he finished speaking, he threw away the jawbone; and the place was called Ramath Lehi. Judges 15:15-17

The donkey’s jawbone was not dry and brittle but probably had some flesh and blood still on it. Samson disregarded the rule of ceremonial cleanness, which as a Nazarite, forbid him to touch a carcass of an unclean animal.

Samson took the jawbone of a donkey as a weapon and attained a mighty victory. But this miraculous feat was of God, and not of man. This victory was not attained by the weapon, or by the arm of flesh, but it was accomplished by the Spirit of God which guided the weapon and empowered the arm.

After Samson’s great victory, the place of the battle was called, “Ramath Lehi” which means the “Elevation of Lehi,” or the “The High Place of the Jawbone”.

Because he was very thirsty, he cried out to the Lord, “You have given your servant this great victory. Must I now die of thirst and fall into the hands of the uncircumcised?” Then God opened up the hollow place in Lehi, and water came out of it. When Samson drank, his strength returned and he revived. So the spring was called En Hakkore, and it is still there in Lehi. Judges 15:18-19

Samson’s carnal character is once again evidenced by the way he addressed the LORD. Samson had demanded that his parents get him a Philistine wife, he killed thirty Philistine men because he was cheated and lost a bet, he disregarded his Nazarite vows, and now he sarcastically cries out to God, “Must I die of thirst…?”

God in His mercy and to fulfill His plan to use Samson to deliver His people from the Philistines, does not upbraid Samson but immediately responds to his request by opening up a spring of water. The place was then called, “En Hakkore” which means, “The fountain of him that cried for thirst” or can be understood as, “The fountain or well which was given in answer to my prayer.”

Samson led Israel for twenty years in the days of the Philistines. Judges 15:20

Twenty years he judged Israel, during which the Philistines, though not utterly subdued, seem not to have oppressed the Israelites as before so that they had respite from their oppression, if not perfect freedom.

Judges Chapter 13 – The Birth of Samson Who was a Nazarite

07 Saturday Oct 2017

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Again the Israelites did evil in the eyes of the Lord, so the Lord delivered them into the hands of the Philistines for forty years. Judges 13:1

The Israelites’ great tribulations at the time of the Judges were the result of both their failure heed God’s command to rid the land of the Canaanites and their backsliding into apostasy by disobeying the Torah. Their acts of rebellion resulted in their subjugation to the Canaanites and the neighboring peoples.

Again the Israelites did evil in the eyes of the Lord… Over and over again during the time of the Judges, the Israelites turned from the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, who had delivered them out of the bondage of Egypt, and committed spiritual adultery by worshipping pagan gods and engaged in immoral acts and child sacrifice. This time their punishment was fierce oppression from the Philistines for forty years.

A certain man of Zorah, named Manoah, from the clan of the Danites, had a wife who was childless, unable to give birth. The angel of the Lord appeared to her and said, “You are barren and childless, but you are going to become pregnant and give birth to a son. Judges 13:2-3

A Christophany is an appearance of the incarnate Christ in the Old Testament. A Christophany is thus a special case of a theophany. The word, “Theophany” is derived from the Ancient Greek, meaning “appearance of God.” Whenever someone received a visit from “the angel of the LORD,” this was in fact the pre-incarnate Christ. The visible appearances of God in human or angelic form in the Old Testament, is actually the Son of God manifesting Himself prior to His incarnation.

There are several instances in the Scriptures where a barren and childless woman miraculously was able to give birth:

God also said to Abraham, “As for Sarai your wife, you are no longer to call her Sarai; her name will be Sarah. I will bless her and will surely give you a son by her. I will bless her so that she will be the mother of nations; kings of peoples will come from her.”

Abraham fell facedown; he laughed and said to himself, “Will a son be born to a man a hundred years old? Will Sarah bear a child at the age of ninety?” Genesis 17:15-17

“Sarai” means “my princess”, but “Sarah” means simply “Princess”, indicating that she will be exalted, not only by her husband but by all nations. Yes, Sarah would miraculously bear a child at the age of ninety.

and Isaac was forty years old when he married Rebekah daughter of Bethuel the Aramean from Paddan Aram and sister of Laban the Aramean. Genesis 25:20

After this, his brother came out, with his hand grasping Esau’s heel; so he was named Jacob. Isaac was sixty years old when Rebekah gave birth to them. Genesis 25:26

Rebekah was barren and childless for twenty years until she gave birth to Esau and Jacob.

When Rachel saw that she was not bearing Jacob any children, she became jealous of her sister. So she said to Jacob, “Give me children, or I’ll die!” Genesis 30:1

Then God remembered Rachel; he listened to her and enabled her to conceive. She became pregnant and gave birth to a son and said, “God has taken away my disgrace.” She named him Joseph, and said, “May the Lord add to me another son.” Genesis 30:22-24

Rachel’s sister Leah had given birth to six sons. Rachel’s servant Bilhah bore Jacob two sons and Leah’s servant Zilpah bore Jacob two sons before God enabled Rachel to conceive and give birth to her first son Joseph.

Although Manoah’s wife was barren and childless she was told by the angel of the LORD that she would become pregnant and give birth to a son.

Now see to it that you drink no wine or other fermented drink and that you do not eat anything unclean. You will become pregnant and have a son whose head is never to be touched by a razor because the boy is to be a Nazirite, dedicated to God from the womb. He will take the lead in delivering Israel from the hands of the Philistines.” Judges 13:4-5

Manoah’s son was to be a Nazarite and dedicated to God from the womb.

Nazarite means one who is separated. A Nazarite is    a person of either sex who was bound by a vow of a peculiar kind to be set apart from others for the service of God. During the term of a Nazarite’s consecration, the person was bound to abstain from wine grapes, with every production of the vine and from every kind of intoxicating drink. He was forbidden to cut the hair of his head, or to approach any dead body, even that of his nearest relation.

Manoah’s son was destined to be a life-long Nazarite. He would serve as a warrior-judge who would lead Israel in victory over the Philistines.

Then the woman went to her husband and told him, “A man of God came to me. He looked like an angel of God, very awesome. I didn’t ask him where he came from, and he didn’t tell me his name. But he said to me, ‘You will become pregnant and have a son. Now then, drink no wine or other fermented drink and do not eat anything unclean, because the boy will be a Nazirite of God from the womb until the day of his death.’” Judges 13:6-7

Manoah’s wife would have to refrain from wine, fermented drinks and unclean foods during her pregnancy. While her baby would be in her womb, he would receive his food and nutrients from his mother through her placenta and his umbilical cord. As she ate, the food would pass through her digestive system where her body would break it down into small particles the body can absorb. The nutrients travel through the mother’s bloodstream and exchange to the bloodstream of the developing baby through the placenta. In order for her son to be a Nazarite from the womb, she needed to refrain from the food and drinks that were forbidden to be consumed by Nazarites.

Then Manoah prayed to the Lord: “Pardon your servant, Lord. I beg you to let the man of God you sent to us come again to teach us how to bring up the boy who is to be born.” Judges 13:8

Without hesitation or doubt, although his wife had been barren and childless, Manoah believed the heavenly messenger and earnestly prayed for divine guidance in raising his son. Manoah understood that his son was selected by God to lead Israel and deliver his people from the Philistines.

God heard Manoah, and the angel of God came again to the woman while she was out in the field; but her husband Manoah was not with her. The woman hurried to tell her husband, “He’s here! The man who appeared to me the other day!” Judges 13:9-10

The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much. James 5:16b

Manoah prayed earnestly in faith and soon received the answer to his prayer.

Manoah got up and followed his wife. When he came to the man, he said, “Are you the man who talked to my wife?”

“I am,” he said.

So Manoah asked him, “When your words are fulfilled, what is to be the rule that governs the boy’s life and work?” Judges 13:11-12

Manoah did not doubt and ask if the words of the angel of the LORD would be fulfilled, but confidently said to the man, “When your words are fulfilled.”  Manoah understood his and his wife’s privilege and responsibility in raising Israel’s next ruler and wanted clear instructions on how to best accomplish their task.

The angel of the Lord answered, “Your wife must do all that I have told her. She must not eat anything that comes from the grapevine, nor drink any wine or other fermented drink nor eat anything unclean. She must do everything I have commanded her.” Judges 13:13-14

Since Manoah was not present at the first appearance of the angel of the LORD, it was important to him that he received the instructions on raising his son directly so that there would be no miscommunication as there was in the Garden of Eden.

And the LORD God commanded the man, “You are free to eat from any tree in the garden; but you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for when you eat of it you will surely die.” Genesis 2:16-17

The LORD God gave this command to Adam before Eve was formed from his rib. God did not say, “You must not eat from any tree in the garden.” In fact, God had given Adam access to a variety of eye pleasing trees that were good for food. God had only forbidden Adam from eating of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.

The woman said to the serpent, “We may eat fruit from the trees in the garden, but God did say, ‘You must not eat fruit from the tree that is in the middle of the garden, and you must not touch it, or you will die.’” Genesis 3:2-3

Eve’s response was not accurate. Actually, there were two trees that were in the middle of the garden – the tree of life and the tree of knowledge. The LORD did say that man must not eat from the tree of the knowledge, but He did not say that if you touch it you will die. When Eve touched the fruit of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil and did not die, she then proceeded to eat it.

Manoah said to the angel of the Lord, “We would like you to stay until we prepare a young goat for you.”

The angel of the Lord replied, “Even though you detain me, I will not eat any of your food. But if you prepare a burnt offering, offer it to the Lord.” (Manoah did not realize that it was the angel of the Lord.) Judges 13:15-16

Manoah did not realize that he was speaking to the angel of the LORD. Manoah assumed him to be a man, a prophet sent from God. Therefore, Manoah offered him a meal as was the custom of Middle Eastern hospitality.

Then angel of the LORD refused to eat, but told Manoah to prepare a burnt offering for Yehovah.

A “burnt offering” is an offering which was wholly consumed by fire on the altar. The burnt offering, except for the ashes, would ascend in the smoke to God. The meaning of the whole burnt offering was that the person offering the sacrifice was submitting himself, soul and body, to God and the submission of his will to the will of the LORD.

Then Manoah inquired of the angel of the Lord, “What is your name, so that we may honor you when your word comes true?”

 He replied, “Why do you ask my name? It is beyond understanding.” Judges 13:17-18

Manoah’s request to learn the name of the angel of the LORD elicited unequivocal proof of the divinity of his supernatural visitor. The NIV translates the reply as “It is beyond understanding.” Other translations includes, “It is wonderful,” “It is hidden,” “It is secret,” and “You can’t comprehend it.”

So Jacob was left alone, and a man wrestled with him till daybreak. When the man saw that he could not overpower him, he touched the socket of Jacob’s hip so that his hip was wrenched as he wrestled with the man. Then the man said, “Let me go, for it is daybreak.” Genesis 32:24-26

Wrestling is one of the most physically demanding activities that there is. Wrestling is personal, physically exhausting, and emotionally taxing. Although Jacob was 97 years old, he wrestled through the night. Even when he suffered excruciating pain from having his hip dislocated, he refused to let go of his opponent. With the coming of daylight, Jacob and this mysterious man might be seen by others. Since this significant encounter was to be highly personal, the man said that it was time for Jacob to let go.

But Jacob replied, “I will not let you go unless you bless me.” Genesis 32:27

Jacob understood that the man he wrestled with was no ordinary man. The hip is the body’s largest ball-and-socket joint. Surrounding the hip joint are many tough ligaments that prevent the dislocation of the joint. The strong muscles of the hip region also help to hold the hip joint together and prevent dislocation. This man just touched the socket of Jacob’s hip and it was wrenched out of place. This man was not only supernaturally powerful but Jacob understood that the man also had the spiritual authority to bless him.

The man asked him, “What is your name?”

“Jacob,” he answered.

Then the man said, “Your name will no longer be Jacob, but Israel, because you have struggled with God and with men and have overcome.” Genesis 32:27-28

Names of people in the Bible have great importance. A person’s name may reflect their character or have prophetic significance, while others reflect their faith and gratitude to God.

Jacob whose name means, “heel-grabber” or “usurper” had deceived his father and stolen his brother’s blessing. In spite of being deceived and cheated by Laban for twenty years, Jacob remained faithful to fulfill his end of their work agreement. Jacob’s struggles served to refine his character. His name change reflected his new nature. Israel means “prince of God” or “he who struggles with God.”

Jacob said, “Please tell me your name.”

But he replied, “Why do you ask my name?” Then he blessed him there. Genesis 32:29

Many years later, Manoah the father of Samson asked the same question.

Manoah said to the angel of the LORD, “What is your name, so that when your words come to pass, we may honor you?” But the angel of the LORD said to him, “Why do you ask my name, seeing it is wonderful?” Judges 13:17-18

So Jacob called the place Peniel, saying, “It is because I saw God face to face, and yet my life was spared.” Genesis 32:30

Both Jacob and Samson’s parents had an encounter with the “Angel of the LORD.” Though Jacob wrestled with a figure that looked like a man, Jacob declared that he saw God face-to-face. Jacob saw the second person of the Godhead – the pre-incarnate Jesus.

Then Manoah took a young goat, together with the grain offering, and sacrificed it on a rock to the Lord. And the Lord did an amazing thing while Manoah and his wife watched: As the flame blazed up from the altar toward heaven, the angel of the Lord ascended in the flame. Seeing this, Manoah and his wife fell with their faces to the ground. Judges 13:19-20

The rock served as an altar. As the fire consumed the sacrificial offering, and the flames and the smoke ascended upwards, the angel of the LORD also ascended upwards towards heaven.

Manoah and his wife in astonishment and awe fell on their faces to the ground in fear and reverence in their realization that they were in the presence of a divine being.

 When the angel of the Lord did not show himself again to Manoah and his wife, Manoah realized that it was the angel of the Lord.

“We are doomed to die!” he said to his wife. “We have seen God!”Judges 13:21-22

Although the parents of Samson had spoken to the angel of the LORD, Manoah knew that they had seen God.

But his wife answered, “If the Lord had meant to kill us, he would not have accepted a burnt offering and grain offering from our hands, nor shown us all these things or now told us this.” Judges 13:23

Manoah’s wife reasoned correctly and helped to quell her husband’s fear. Their sacrifice was acceptable to the LORD and the purpose of the divine visitation was to prepare them to parent Israel’s next judge and deliverer.

 The woman gave birth to a boy and named him Samson. He grew and the Lord blessed him, and the Spirit of the Lord began to stir him while he was in Mahaneh Dan, between Zorah and Eshtaol. Judges 13:24-25

The English name, “Samson” is derived from the Hebrew name Shimshon which means of the “sun”.

While Samson grew to adulthood the Spirit of the LORD began to strengthen him, encourage him, and prepare him for his destiny. This happened while he lived in the territory of Dan which was located near the Philistines. Samson would be a witness to the ravages and oppression by Israel’s enemy and was being groomed to deliver Israel from the hands of the Philistines.

Judges Chapter 3 – The Israelites Lived Among the Canaanites

04 Saturday Mar 2017

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The Israelites lived among the Philistines, the Canaanites, the Sidonians, and the Hivites to test whether or not they would obey the LORD’s commands.

These are the nations the LORD left to test all those Israelites who had not experienced any of the wars in Canaan (he did this only to teach warfare to the descendants of the Israelites who had not had previous battle experience): the five rulers of the Philistines, all the Canaanites, the Sidonians, and the Hivites living in the Lebanon mountains from Mount Baal Hermon to Lebo Hamath. They were left to test the Israelites to see whether they would obey the LORD’s commands, which he had given their ancestors through Moses. Judges 3:1-4

The descendants of Canaan, the son of Ham, settled in the area that God later promised to give to the descendants of Shem. The Canaanites were Hamitic in origin, but they adopted a Semitic language and culture, as we know from both the Bible and archaeology.

Noah, a man of the soil, proceeded to plant a vineyard. When he drank some of its wine, he became drunk and lay uncovered inside his tent. Ham, the father of Canaan, saw his father’s nakedness and told his two brothers outside. But Shem and Japheth took a garment and laid it across their shoulders; then they walked in backward and covered their father’s nakedness. Their faces were turned the other way so that they would not see their father’s nakedness. Genesis 9:20-23

Nakedness in the Old Testament was from the beginning a thing of shame for fallen man. As a result of the Fall, the eyes of Adam and Eve were opened, and knowing they were naked, they covered themselves. To them as sinners the state of nakedness was undignified, shameful and vulnerable. The covering of nakedness was a sound instinct for it provided a boundary for fallen human relations. Nakedness thereafter represented the loss of human and social dignity. To be exposed meant to be unprotected; this can be seen by the fact that the horrors of the Judah’s exile to Babylon are couched in the image of shameful nakedness.

Nakedness is also a punishment to be meted out to the enemies of God:

You came out to deliver your people, to save your anointed one. You crushed the leader of the land of wickedness, you stripped him from head to foot. Habakkuk 3:13

Rejoice and be glad, O Daughter of Edom, you who live in the land of Uz. But to you also the cup will be passed; you will be drunk and stripped naked. Lamentations 4:21

To see someone uncovered was to bring dishonor and to gain advantage for potential exploitation.

When Noah awoke from his wine and found out what his youngest son had done to him, he said, “Cursed be Canaan! The lowest of slaves will he be to his brothers.” Genesis 9:24-25

The curse of slavery was upon Canaan and his descendants. The curse would rest upon the Canaanites who dwelled in ancient Palestine, Phoenicia, and Carthage. The Canaanites detestable practices included idolatry, fornication with temple prostitutes, divination and child sacrifice. The prophecy was fulfilled when the Canaanites were enslaved because of their wickedness by the ancient Israelites – first by Joshua (Joshua 9:23) and later by Solomon (1 Kings 9:20-21).

But why was Noah’s grandson Canaan cursed because of the sin of his father Ham? I think that there are at least two reasons that the curse fell on Canaan. First of all, God foreknew Canaan’s wickedness and how Ham’s disrespectful and dishonoring attitude would wax even worse in Canaan. Secondly, children are to be a blessing and are to honor their parents. Just as Noah’s son Ham did not bring Noah honor but shame, so would Canaan bring dishonor to Ham and not blessing.

The Canaanites and the other nations were left in the Promised Land for a dual purpose. The first was to teach warfare to the descendants of the Israelites who had not had previous battle experience. The second purpose was to test the moral and spiritual discipline of the Israelites to see if they would observe God’s commandments.

The Israelites lived among the Canaanites, Hittites, Amorites, Perizzites, Hivites and Jebusites. They took their daughters in marriage and gave their own daughters to their sons, and served their gods. Judges 3:5-6

The LORD God had forbidden the Israelites from intermarrying with the peoples of the surrounding nations. He told them of the consequences they would suffer if they disobeyed His command.

When the LORD your God brings you into the land you are entering to possess and drives out before you many nations—the Hittites, Girgashites, Amorites, Canaanites, Perizzites, Hivites and Jebusites, seven nations larger and stronger than you—and when the LORD your God has delivered them over to you and you have defeated them, then you must destroy them totally. Make no treaty with them, and show them no mercy. Do not intermarry with them. Do not give your daughters to their sons or take their daughters for your sons, for they will turn your children away from following me to serve other gods, and the LORD’s anger will burn against you and will quickly destroy you.   Deuteronomy 7: 1-4

The Israelites failed to heed the LORD’s warning concerning intermarriage, and just as He had predicted, their children turned away from the LORD their God.

The Israelites did evil in the eyes of the LORD; they forgot the Lord their God and served the Baals and the Asherahs. The anger of the LORD burned against Israel so that he sold them into the hands of Cushan-Rishathaim king of Aram Naharaim, to whom the Israelites were subject for eight years. Judges 3:7-8

Baal, or “lord,” was the chief object of worship of the Canaanites. Asherah was known as the goddess of motherhood and fertility. She was called “Lady Asherah of the Sea.” Asherah or Ashtoreth was their supreme female divinity and Baal’s consort or wife. Some suppose Baal to correspond to the sun and Asherah to the moon; others that Baal was Jupiter and Ashtoreth Venus.

Each locality had its special Baal, and the various local Baals were summed up under the name of Baalim, or “lords.” The Canaanites believed that Baal was in absolute control over nature and over people. They believed that Baal was in charge of the rain and the weather, and man’s survival was dependent upon his provision.

Worship of Baal involved imitative magic, the performance of rituals, including sacred prostitution. Sexual acts by both male and female temple prostitutes were understood to arouse Baal who then brought rain to make Mother Earth fertile.

After the Israelites intermarried with the heathen people from the surrounding nations, they followed their pagan gods and committed natural and spiritual adultery. They were unfaithful to their own spouses as well as unfaithful to the LORD their God.

The name Cushan-Rishathaim is interpreted, as “man from Cush, he of the twofold crime.” Cush was the eldest son of Ham, and the father of Nimrod. The land of Cush probably derives its name from this son of Ham. The Cushites appear to have spread along extensive tracts, stretching from the Upper Nile to the Euphrates and Tigris.

Cushan-Rishathaim was a king of Mesopotamia who was chosen by God as his tool to chastise the Israelites for their idolatry.

But when they cried out to the LORD, he raised up for them a deliverer, Othniel son of Kenaz, Caleb’s younger brother, who saved them. The Spirit of the LORD came on him, so that he became Israel’s judge and went to war. The LORD gave Cushan-Rishathaim king of Aram into the hands of Othniel, who overpowered him. So the land had peace for forty years, until Othniel son of Kenaz died. Judges 3:9-11

Aram means high, or highlands. Aram is the name of an ancient country noted by its elevated region extending from the northeast of Israel to the Euphrates. It corresponded generally with Syria and Mesopotamia of the Greeks and Romans.

The Israelites were punished for turning from the LORD and worshipping the Baals and Asherahs by being subjugated by the king of Aram for eight years. When they finally cried out to the LORD in desperation, in His mercy, the LORD raised up and anointed Caleb’s younger brother as Israel’s first judge.

The Judges were both prophets and warriors who sought to bring God’s people to repentance and deliver them from the hands of their enemies. Their role was to turn the people back from idolatry to the worship of the LORD and the observance of the Torah. The judges were leaders or rulers who took charge of the affairs of several tribes in times of war and who also assumed leadership of their respective tribes in the subsequent times of peace.

Othniel in his role of warrior led Israel in battle and defeated the king of Aram and his army. He then served in his peacetime role of judge for the next forty years.

Again the Israelites did evil in the eyes of the LORD, and because they did this evil the LORD gave Eglon king of Moab power over Israel. Getting the Ammonites and Amalekites to join him, Eglon came and attacked Israel, and they took possession of the City of Palms. The Israelites were subject to Eglon king of Moab for eighteen years. Judges 3:12-14

The Moabites lived just east of the Dead Sea. The Ammonites occupied the countryside north of Moab were both tribes related by blood to Abraham. They were descendants of his nephew Lot. The name Moab, the son of Lot from his older daughter, means “from the father.” The name Ben-ammi, his son by his younger daughter, means “son of my people.” These sons conceived through incest gave rise to the Moabites and the Ammonites.

Given the incestuous origins of Moab and Ammon, we are not surprised that contact with these peoples often brought much trouble for Abraham’s children as these peoples sinned like their parents. Moab led Israel into Baal worship on its way into Canaan (Numbers 25:1-3). Both the Ammonites and the Moabites hired Balaam to curse Israel as it journeyed toward the Promised Land and were thus forbidden to enter the Lord’s assembly for ten generations (Deuteronomy 23:3-4).

The Amalekites were descendants of Amalek, the son of Eliphaz and the grandson of Esau who had despised his birthright. They were related the Edomites. The Amalekites waylaid the Israelites when they came out of Egypt. They waited in ambush and attacked all who were lagging behind mostly women, children, the aged and the infirm.

The armies from these three nations attacked Israel and took possession of the City of Palms (Jericho). The LORD chastened the Israelites for their disobedience by handing them over to Eglon king of the Moabites who subjugated them for eighteen years.

Again the Israelites cried out to the LORD, and he gave them a deliverer—Ehud, a left-handed man, the son of Gera the Benjamite. The Israelites sent him with tribute to Eglon king of Moab. Judges 3:15

The Hebrew Bible mentions left-handed people on three occasions: the story of Ehud’s assassination of the Moabite king (Judges 3:12–30), the 700 Benjamites who could use the sling with deadly accuracy (Judges 20:16) and the two-dozen ambidextrous warriors who came to support David in Hebron (1 Chronicles 12:2). All of these accounts of left-handed people in the Bible appear in military contexts and all involve members of the tribe of Benjamin.

Benjamites may have been genetically disposed to left-handedness at birth, but the trait may also have been encouraged in soldiers to give them a strategic advantage in combat. Ironically, the name Benjamin means “son of (my) right hand.”

Ehud was selected by the LORD as the next judge or minister of Divine justice of Israel. He was chosen to deliver the Israelites from Eglon the king of the Moabites.

Now Ehud had made a double-edged sword about a cubit long, which he strapped to his right thigh under his clothing. He presented the tribute to Eglon king of Moab, who was a very fat man. After Ehud had presented the tribute, he sent on their way those who had carried it. Judges 3:16-18

Since the Israelites had been submissively paying large sums to Eglon for eighteen years, the king would not have been suspicious of meeting with Ehud who was bringing him tribute. Then, to avoid endangering his comrades, Ehud sent away his men who had carried the tribute to the king.

But on reaching the stone images near Gilgal he himself went back to Eglon and said, “Your Majesty, I have a secret message for you.”

The king said to his attendants, “Leave us!” And they all left. Judges 3:19

Ehud left Moab and traveled as far as Gilgal before returning alone to Eglon’s palace. The stone images may have been idols that the Moabites carved out of the 12 stones that were erected as a memorial when Joshua and the Israelites had crossed the Jordan River.

This allotted for enough time for the soldiers who guarded the king during the presentation of the tribute to leave. The king was intrigued by Ehud’s secret message and sent away his attendants.

Ehud then approached him while he was sitting alone in the upper room of his palace and said, “I have a message from God for you.” As the king rose from his seat, Ehud reached with his left hand, drew the sword from his right thigh and plunged it into the king’s belly. Even the handle sank in after the blade, and his bowels discharged. Ehud did not pull the sword out, and the fat closed in over it. Then Ehud went out to the porch; he shut the doors of the upper room behind him and locked them. Judges 3:20-23

After dismissing his servants, the king left the public hall on the main floor and went to the upper room of his palace. The king was sitting in his cool roof-chamber when Ehud approached him and said, “I have a message from God for you.” The king rose from his seat and no suspicions were raised concerning Ehud, who was left-handed, as he drew his sword. Ehud then plunged the sword into the king’s belly and did not pull the sword out. He locked the doors of the upper room behind him and made his escape out the porch.

After he had gone, the servants came and found the doors of the upper room locked. They said, “He must be relieving himself in the inner room of the palace.” They waited to the point of embarrassment, but when he did not open the doors of the room, they took a key and unlocked them. There they saw their lord fallen to the floor, dead. Judges 3:24-25

Finding the doors locked, the servants thought that the king was relieving himself. The irony of the situation is that – when Eglon had been killed the thrust of Ehud’s sword, the king’s bowels had discharged. When the servants finally unlocked the door, they discovered the dead body of their lord.

 While they waited, Ehud got away. He passed by the stone images and escaped to Seirah. When he arrived there, he blew a trumpet in the hill country of Ephraim, and the Israelites went down with him from the hills, with him leading them. Judges 3:26-27

While the servants waited for the king to emerge from the upper room of his palace, Ehud had enough time to travel passed Gilgal. He escaped to Seirath which was “the forest” or “rough” which bordered on the cultivated plain near Gilgal, and extended into “the hill country of Ephraim.” He blew a trumpet which was a signal to gather the fighting men.

“Follow me,” he ordered, “for the LORD has given Moab, your enemy, into your hands.” So they followed him down and took possession of the fords of the Jordan that led to Moab; they allowed no one to cross over. At that time they struck down about ten thousand Moabites, all vigorous and strong; not one escaped. That day Moab was made subject to Israel, and the land had peace for eighty years. Judges 3:28-30

Ehud went down from the mountain of Ephraim into the Jordan valley beneath it, straight to the Jordan fords. These were the places where the water was shallow enough to be crossed by wading. The purpose of possessing the fords of the Jordan was to keep the Moabites on the west side of the Jordan from joining their countrymen on the east side of the Jordan. Having struck down about ten thousand Moabites, Moab was made subject to Israel and the land had peace for eighty years.

After Ehud came Shamgar son of Anath, who struck down six hundred Philistines with an oxgoad. He too saved Israel. Judges 3:31

The south-west area of the Promised Land was inhabited by the Philistines. The Philistines were a sea people that most probably came from the Aegean Sea. God raised up Shamgar to deliver Israel from these enemies. Since he had neither sword nor spear, he used an oxgoad as his weapon. An oxgoad is an instrument of wood about eight feet long, armed with an iron spike or point at one end, with which to spur the ox to plow. It also has an iron scraper at the other end with which to scrape off the earth from the plowshare when it became too clogged to make furrows. Shamgar used his oxgoad and struck down six hundred Philistines. This supernatural act was probably empowered by the Spirit of the LORD coming upon him.

From this verse and Judges 5:6 we may gather that Shamgar was contemporary with Jael, and that he only procured a temporary and partial deliverance for Israel by his