I’ve said it once and I’ll say it again, the Bible has some juicy, amazingly scandalous stories that will rival your favorite Netflix series. Some stories encompass love, sex, drama, betrayal, and redemption. One such story is the story of Samson in Judges chapters 13-16. A minister at my church taught about Samson which made me want to revisit it in my study time.
And babbbyyy, it did not disappoint.
Let me get you caught up on Samson’s story using the CLV (Carrie Lea Version) Summary:
Samson was born during a time of turmoil when the Israelites repeatedly disobeyed God and worshipped idols. And God, in his infinite mercy, repeatedly saved them by raising up judges to lead them and conquer their enemies. Samson was destined to be one of those judges to break the oppression of the Philistines.
Samson’s birth was a miracle birth. His momma was barren for a long time but was visited by an angel of the Lord to tell her she was about to have a baby boy. While she was pregnant, she couldn’t sip on that ‘gnac (that’s cognac for my super saved folks) or eat anything unclean. Once the baby was born, he would have the same stipulations along with the rule that he could never cut his hair. This was called the Nazarite vow.
Samson was born and Homeboy was strong than a mug. He was out there slaying fools with a donkey’s jawbone. (“Knuck if you Buck” would have been his theme song had he lived in current times.) The only thing is, Samson liked the ladies . . a lot. And to make matters worse, he liked the ladies who belonged to the Philistines, the enemy he was called to subdue.
One particular woman, Delilah, was the most significant demise for Samson. When Delilah comes on the scene, I imagine Kanye West’s “Golddigger” would have been the soundtrack because ol’ girl was not a woman with high character or integrity. She was willing to set Samson up and sell him out for a quick coin. Her mission was to find the source of his strength and reveal it to the Philistine leaders so they could capture him.
This woman took her mission seriously! She repeatedly badgered Samson about the source of his strength. She asked him three times and each time he lied. She would find out he was lying because when she did whatever he said would weaken him, for example – braid his hair into seven braids, she would wake him up by saying the Philistines were attacking. Then Samson would wake up ready to brawl and still have his strength.
Delilah was a consistent deceiver. She repeatedly manipulated him to tell her the source of his strength. Finally, because Samson was so annoyed with her constant badgering and pestering, he told her the truth. As a Nazarite from birth, if his head was shaven, all his strength would leave him.
Delilah, in true Golddigger form, shaved his head while he was sleeping and when she brought the Philistines to attack him, he woke up without strength. She made money, he was captured, and his eyes were gouged out.
Dang homie.
So many thoughts came to my mind as I read this with fresh eyes, but the one thing I kept thinking is, how many times have I been the fool for Delilah?
No, I don’t have a gold-digging woman in my bed nagging me every night, but I do have an enemy who consistently nags me with the temptation to sin or defy my God-given purpose and assignment in this life. Delilah represents the enemy’s persistence in presenting the sin that can so easily beset us if we don’t stay prayed up. Just like Delilah, the enemy will manipulate you over and over again and set traps for you to fail so you can become a prisoner to sin.
The sin could be running back to that ex-boyfriend or girlfriend who does nothing to edify your spiritual growth but instead stirs up a lustful nature where you swiftly trade the wisdom of God for a moment of pleasure.
Or the sin could be feeding your food addiction where you seek the comfort of a greasy, fried, or sweet substance instead of turning to God for your comfort and solace.
The sin could also be more subtle. The negative whispering lies that tell you you’re not smart, you’ll never be worthy of God’s promises, or your talent isn’t great enough to be used by God.
The enemy will attack every area he can. He lies in wait, watching you and learning what your weakness is, and then uses that very thing to sell you out and try to destroy you. He’ll nag you and attack you while you’re sleeping and vulnerable. He’ll entice you at every step, repeatedly attacking what you value, hoping you’ll fold and believe his lies over the truth of God. He’ll even send people on assignment to disrupt the plans God has for you and get you off the divine path God created for your life.
As dedicated to your demise as the enemy may be, He is still no match for God.
Samson’s strength did not really come from his hair. Not shaving his head was more about his obedience and inward dedication to serving the Lord. He was called and destined to fulfill God’s will on earth. Even after being betrayed, captured, blinded, and imprisoned, he was still used to destroy the Philistines. For his last act, he cried out to God with repentance and asked the Lord to give him enough strength to destroy the Philistines one last time.
And God granted his request.
In His mercy and grace, God gave His only begotten Son so you and I can have the strength and wisdom to resist the attacks of the enemy. We don’t have to play the fool for the “Delilahs” in our lives. We have the victory to overcome temptation by submitting our lives and actions to God. We can tell him about the Delilahs in our lives and trust that He is strong enough to strengthen our resolve to resist them.
Father, thank you for being our strength when we are weak. Thank you for having a predestined plan for our lives. We ask for strength to resist the enemy’s schemes to get us off track. Help us resist temptation and seek your face above all else. Let you be glorified in all that we do. In Jesus’ mighty name, we pray, amen.
