2. Samson The Weak Strong Man? Or the Strong Weak Man?

3. Samson: Preliminaries, Judges 13; 14 There a few things we need to realize going in… The Philistine oppression of Israel was from the Lord, 13:1; God had a purpose for Samson from the beginning, 13:2-25; From Samson’s perspective, he “saw” a woman of the Philistines who “looked good” to him, 14:1-3; His parents objected, not knowing it was “of the Lord,” 14:4. The events that follow stem from these preliminary facts…

4. Samson: The Events, Judges 14; 15 There are events in Samson’s life (and his reaction to them) that greatly influenced his course/direction: The first time “the spirit of the Lord came upon him mightily,” 14:5-9; cp.13:25; (killed young lion); The second time “the spirit of the Lord came upon him mightily, 14:15- 20; (killed 30 men for clothes); The third time “the spirit of the Lord came upon him mightily,” 15:9-17 (killed 1,000 men @ Lehi), see also 15:18-19. In these occasions, God was with, and strengthened, Samson.

5. Samson: The Other Events Judges 14;15;16 There were also times when Samson seems to have acted on his own and without God’s guidance or help: The first time- foxes caught and used to burn Philistine fields, 14:19b – 15:5; The second time- the great slaughter of 15:6-8; The third time- the harlot of Gaza and gates of the city, 16:1-3; The fourth time- Delilah: 3 lies he told her and 4 times she betrayed him to her countrymen, 16:1-21. In these occasions, there is no mention of God, or “the spirit of the Lord”!

6. Samson: What the Strong Man Saw while Weak and Blind Judges 16:21-31 The dramatic conclusion of his story: Samson has been a servant whom God has used (and aided) to carry out His purposes of destroying Israel’s oppressors, 14:4; And a incredibly strong but angry and vengeful man who reacted with violence to situations he created by acting without God’s guidance and assistance. Now, blinded and weakened, he calls to the Lord and returns to God’s original purpose for him, v.28; 13:5; And God answered and assisted, vv.28-31.

7. Samson: Lessons for Us Here’s why I’ve learned to love Samson: He sometimes used God’s blessings for his own less-than-noble purposes, and it got him into even more trouble- I can relate, Prov.13:15; 29:6. He learned to depend on God, and bow to His purposes- I can hope to relate, 2Cor.12:9-10; Jas.4:7-10. He was a ultimately a faithful hero, but there were obvious weaknesses and failures along the way- we hopefully will relate, Heb.12:32.