Samson the Powerful

Judges 14:1-20;

     Samson grew tall and strong - and, just as the angel commanded, they never cut his hair.

     One day Samson went down to Timnah and saw a woman, one of the daughters of the Philistines. He came back and tells his parents to make arrangements for him to marry her. But Samson's parents try to convince Samson to marry an Israelite girl instead. Samson says no. This marriage was part of the Lord's plan to free Israel from Philistine's rule over them.

     As Samson travels to Timnah, a lion attacks him, the power of God fills Samson and he kills it with his bare hands. Samson didn't tell his father and mother what had happened.

         A few days later, Samson went back and he found the lion's body. Bees had built a nest in it. So Samson reached in, and took out a handful of honey. Samson had a nice little snack as he walked home.

God was with Samson, and he did many mighty deeds. The day before his wedding Samson throws a party for 30 young men from Timnah. He uses his experience with the lion to tell a riddle. He tells them, "From the one who eats came something to eat; out of the strong came something sweet." He tells them he will give each man a plain robe and a fancy robe if they answer his riddle. If they can't they must give him the same.

     After 3 days, the men became upset because they could not figure out his riddle. They threaten to kill both his wife and her father if she doesn't tell them the answer. Samson's wife pleads with him to give it to her and at last he does. She tells the men of Timnah. Samson becomes very angry at his wife for causing him to lose the wager. He then goes home to live with his parents. 

Now it was time for God to send the Philistines away. The Philistines had heard of Samson and the things he had done, and so they sent an army to find him. They attacked the town of Lehi, looking for Samson. "Why are you attacking us!" the people of the town cried out. "We want Samson," the Philistines answered. So 3,000 men from the town went up into the nearby mountains to find Samson. They found him in a cave. "The Philistines are attacking us because of you!" they said to Samson. "We have come to tie you up and hand you over to them!" Samson said, "Tie me up, but give me your word that you will not kill me." And so they tied Samson up with two new ropes, and they brought him down the mountain.

     When the Philistine army saw them coming, they gave a great shout and ran towards them swinging their swords in the air. Suddenly, the power of God came over Samson, and he broke the ropes around his arms as if they were thread. There was an old jawbone lying in the dirt. Samson picked it up and swung it over his head. He killed a thousand men with the jawbone of a donkey that day. Samson defeated the Philistine army, and for 20 years he led the people of Israel against the Philistines.