Judges 16

Judges 16

The great downfall of Samson and his great redemption are both found in Judges 16. Samson’s story has been one of ups and downs. It has been confusing at times, and sometimes it does not appear as if he truly wanted to follow God. The beginning of Judges 16 continues this downward spiral. The first few verses are probably forgotten with this chapter being the story of Delilah, but it begins with Samson going into the home of a prostitute. How could Samson make this foolish decision after seeing God at work in Judges 15? Well the answer is that he is human, just like the Israelites before him, and just like us. We are all prone to wander from God, even after we have seen Him work in some mighty way.


Samson’s story only gets worse as Delilah comes into the story. She had been bribed by the Philistines to find the source of Samson’s strength. They had taken notice to Samson’s incredible strength and the great things he had done for Israel. They were frightened by him and knew that the only way to deal with him was to remove his source of strength. Delilah accepted the bribe and went to Samson. Upon their first encounter, Samson refused to tell her his secret. Instead, he lied about it. Delilah took that information and went to the Philistines. When they came to deal with him in the same manner that he had told Delilah, you would think that would have clued him in about Delilah’s intentions. However, he did not catch on. This happened two other times, and both times, Samson lied to Delilah.

However, Samson eventually gave in. Although it should have been obvious as to what Delilah was up to, Samson let her get into his mind. He let her constant requests eventually break him down. He finally told her the real source of his strength, that being his hair. In a moment of weakness, he gave away his secret, but he also gave something else away. Not only did he end up losing his hair that had never been cut, but he also broke the vow that he had with God, the Nazirite Vow. Yes, his strength was in his hair, but more importantly, his strength came from God. In breaking his vow, he in effect drove God away from him. Part of the reason he lost his strength was because he did not have his hair, but the main reason he lost his strength was because God chose to remove His power from Samson.

So Samson lost his hair as well as God’s help. He was at the lowest point in his life that he had ever been. The Philistines gouged out his eyes and made him a prisoner. Then, they went to a celebration for their god and made Samson their source of entertainment. They brought him out in the midst of the 3,000 Philistines and mocked him. At his lowest point, Samson came to an understanding of his sin. He realized his mistakes and asked God to give him his strength back one last time. God granted his request, and Samson was able to bring the building down that the Philistines had strapped him to. In that one single blow, Samson killed 3,000 Philistines as well as himself. He sacrificed himself for the sake of his people. Earlier in Samson’s story it had seemed as if he was getting away with his sins and mistakes. He would mess up, and God would continue to work through him. It really did not seem fair, but God had given Samson a second chance. Samson did end up paying the consequences for his sins and mistakes in a series of harsh circumstances, but in the end he came back to God and was able to be the man God had called him to be.

Matt