Samson’s First Conflict With The Philistines

 God had given specific instructions that Samson was to be raised as a Nazarite, a person dedicated to God from his birth, and from time to time, he experienced God’s power.  Unfortunately, like a lot of people raised in Christian homes, he knew all the correct behaviors and rituals, but had a bad attitude toward God’s commands, as we see in Judges 14:1-4.  “And Samson went down to Timnath, and saw a woman in Timnath of the daughters of the Philistines.  And he came up, and told his father and his mother, and said, I have seen a woman in Timnath of the daughters of the Philistines: now therefore get her for me to wife.  Then his father and his mother said unto him, Is there never a woman among the daughters of thy brethren, or among all my people, that thou goest to take a wife of the uncircumcised Philistines? And Samson said unto his father, Get her for me; for she pleaseth me well.  But his father and his mother knew not that it was of the LORD, that he sought an occasion against the Philistines: for at that time the Philistines had dominion over Israel.”

 

Almost five hundred years before, in Exodus 34:12-16, God had forbidden Israel to  get involved with people who worshipped other Gods.  “Take heed to thyself, lest thou make a covenant with the inhabitants of the land whither thou goest, lest it be for a snare in the midst of thee: But ye shall destroy their altars, break their images, and cut down their groves: For thou shalt worship no other god: for the LORD, whose name is Jealous, is a jealous God: Lest thou make a covenant with the inhabitants of the land, and they go a whoring after their gods, and do sacrifice unto their gods, and one call thee, and thou eat of his sacrifice;  And thou take of their daughters unto thy sons, and their daughters go a whoring after their gods, and make thy sons go a whoring after their gods.”   One of the Ten Commandments was “Honour thy father and thy mother: that thy days may be long upon the land which the LORD thy God giveth thee,” in Exodus 20:12.”

 

Samson was ignoring both of these commands, insisting on marrying a Philistine woman, bossing his parents around, and ignoring their concerns. Apparently this was not the first time he had insisted on hanging out with Philistine girls, and his parents were concerned that he was disobeying God.  They didn’t understand that since Samson wouldn’t do what he was supposed to do because of God’s command, God would use his rebellious attitude to accomplish his purposes. 

 

Knowing that God had chosen Samson to lead his people, his parents unwillingly went along with his demands, going to Timnath to make the wedding arrangements.  On their way, God sent a young lion to warn Samson that he shouldn’t do what he was doing, in Judges 14:5-7.  “Then went Samson down, and his father and his mother, to Timnath, and came to the vineyards of Timnath: and, behold, a young lion roared against him.  And the spirit of the LORD came mightily upon him, and he rent him as he would have rent a kid, and he had nothing in his hand: but he told not his father or his mother what he had done.  And he went down, and talked with the woman; and she pleased Samson well.”  Samson easily killed the lion, so he didn’t take the warning to heart.   

 

A short time later, Samson returned to Timnath as arranged to marry the woman.  On his way, he stopped to look at the dead lion’s carcass, as Judges 14:8-9 tells us.  “And after a time he returned to take her, and he turned aside to see the carcase of the lion: and, behold, there was a swarm of bees and honey in the carcase of the lion.  And he took thereof in his hands, and went on eating, and came to his father and mother, and he gave them, and they did eat: but he told not them that he had taken the honey out of the carcase of the lion.” 

 

Finding that some bees had built a hive in the carcass, took some of the honey, and gave some to his parents without telling them where it came from, knowing they probably would not eat it if he told them it had been taken from a dead body since anything that touched a dead body was to be considered unclean according to Leviticus 11.  By touching the carcass, Samson was breaking his Nazarite vow, according to Numbers 6:6.  “All the days that he separateth himself unto the LORD he shall come at no dead body.”   Clearly, Samson did not take God’s commands or his vow very seriously. 

 

Following the Philistine customs, Samson paid for the wedding.  To make it more exciting, Samson bet the Philistines could not guess his riddle, in Judges 14:10-14.  “So his father went down unto the woman: and Samson made there a feast; for so used the young men to do.  And it came to pass, when they saw him, that they brought thirty companions to be with him.  And Samson said unto them, I will now put forth a riddle unto you: if ye can certainly declare it me within the seven days of the feast, and find it out, then I will give you thirty sheets and thirty change of garments: But if ye cannot declare it me, then shall ye give me thirty sheets and thirty change of garments. And they said unto him, Put forth thy riddle, that we may hear it.  And he said unto them, Out of the eater came forth meat, and out of the strong came forth sweetness. And they could not in three days expound the riddle.”

 

It was quite a significant bet, as everything was hand made from hand woven cloth, and in todays money would be like buying designer suits.  Samson was sure he couldn’t lose as there was no way they could know about him killing the lion and taking honey out of its carcass. Realizing they had no hope of guessing and unwilling to suffer a loss, the wedding guests threatened to kill his wife’s family if she didn’t tell them the answer to the riddle, in Judges 14:15-18.  “And it came to pass on the seventh day, that they said unto Samson's wife, Entice thy husband, that he may declare unto us the riddle, lest we burn thee and thy father's house with fire: have ye called us to take that we have? is it not so?

 

And Samson's wife wept before him, and said, Thou dost but hate me, and lovest me not: thou hast put forth a riddle unto the children of my people, and hast not told it me. And he said unto her, Behold, I have not told it my father nor my mother, and shall I tell it thee?  And she wept before him the seven days, while their feast lasted: and it came to pass on the seventh day, that he told her, because she lay sore upon him: and she told the riddle to the children of her people.  And the men of the city said unto him on the seventh day before the sun went down, What is sweeter than honey? and what is stronger than a lion? And he said unto them, If ye had not plowed with my heifer, ye had not found out my riddle.”

 

Angry that they had cheated, Samson went to Ashkelon, another Philistine city, and killed thirty Philistines, taking their clothing to pay his gambling debt, according to Judges 14:19.  “And the spirit of the LORD came upon him, and he went down to Ashkelon, and slew thirty men of them, and took their spoil, and gave change of garments unto them which expounded the riddle. And his anger was kindled, and he went up to his father's house.” Angry at her betrayal, Samson went home for a couple of months, refusing to speak to his wife.

 

Convinced Samson would not want her anymore, her parents married his wife off to the best man.  When Samson finally decided to forgive her and went back to get her, her father was really upset, offering to let him take her younger sister instead, as we see in Judges 14:20-15:2.  “But Samson's wife was given to his companion, whom he had used as his friend.  But it came to pass within a while after, in the time of wheat harvest, that Samson visited his wife with a kid; and he said, I will go in to my wife into the chamber. But her father would not suffer him to go in.  And her father said, I verily thought that thou hadst utterly hated her; therefore I gave her to thy companion: is not her younger sister fairer than she? take her, I pray thee, instead of her.”

 

Samson got mad again, and decided to take revenge, as described in Judges 15:3-5.  “And Samson said concerning them, Now shall I be more blameless than the Philistines, though I do them a displeasure.  And Samson went and caught three hundred foxes, and took firebrands, and turned tail to tail, and put a firebrand in the midst between two tails.  And when he had set the brands on fire, he let them go into the standing corn of the Philistines, and burnt up both the shocks, and also the standing corn, with the vineyards and olives.”

 

In an effort to mollify Samson, the Philistines executed the entire family, in Judges 15:6.  “Then the Philistines said, Who hath done this? And they answered, Samson, the son in law of the Timnite, because he had taken his wife, and given her to his companion. And the Philistines came up, and burnt her and her father with fire.” 

 

Still unsatisfied, Samson killed a lot of Philistines, as we see in Judges 15:7-8.  “And Samson said unto them, Though ye have done this, yet will I be avenged of you, and after that I will cease.  And he smote them hip and thigh with a great slaughter: and he went down and dwelt in the top of the rock Etam.”  When he was finished, Samson went to the top of the rock Etam where he could be alone.  He was far more concerned with his own feelings than with the job of leading Israel.