"The Futility of the Flesh: Samson III”
Judges 14

July 9, 2006
by C.W. Powell

We have titled these sermons on the life of Samson “The Futility of the Flesh” for this reason: there is probably not another place in Scripture that so graphically illustrates why Israel after the flesh could not inherit the Kingdom of God. Although Samson was very successful in striking powerful blows against the Philistines that crippled them militarily and prepared the way for the great victory in the next generation under Samuel, yet there was no real renewal in Israel and their sins and lusts consumed them. Before the book of Judges closes we will see the death of Samson, the corruption of the tribe of Dan, and civil war that almost annihilated the tribe of Benjamin. How good men and women of faith must have almost despaired and longed for the coming of the promised Messiah and the outpouring of the Holy Spirit that would create a new nation of Israel; not one born because of physical generation from Abraham, but one born of a spiritual seed, the word of God that lives and abides forever, for those who are born of the promises and the true seed of Abraham and heirs according to the promise, for Abraham’s inheritance was the Spirit of God as Paul tells us. But let us look at the details.

I. The Occasion of the Opening of the Conflict Between Samson and the Philistines.

Judges 14:1-3 “And Samson went down to Timnath, and saw a woman in Timnath of the daughters of the Philistines. 2 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. 3 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.

1. The Israelites were not specifically forbidden to marry Philistines, for they were not included in the list of forbidden nations, unless you count them generally among the Canaanites, but they did not fall under the curse of Noah, as the Canaanites did. But the Philistines certainly qualified as idolaters and would fall under the spirit of the law not to marry and be contaminated by idols.

2. This woman had caught the eye of Samson as he visited some acquaintances in Timnath. He liked her and wanted to marry her. His reason, “She pleaseth me well.”

3. His father and his mother realized that this certainly was not a wise thing to do on the surface, and tried to talk him out of it. Many a father and mother have had children whose wills were stronger than theirs. Like many other parents, they yielded to the will of Samson.

Judges 14:4: 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.

1. “He sought an occasion….” The "he" may refer to Samson. This would change the way you read what follows: that Samson was looking for a quarrel with the Philistines when he went to Timnath in the first place. This would not be the first time that one nation has gone to war with another because of a manipulated provocation. This does not mean that Samson was wrong. The first wrong was the Philistines, who had invaded the land of Israel and brought the people into bondage, although not the kind of backbreaking bondage that they had experience by some of their oppressor in the past.

2. But underneath it all was the hidden hand of God, who in His providence was preparing the destruction of the Philistines. The "he" might very well refer to God.

3. We see contrasted here what we call the preceptive and the decretive will of God. From our finite point of view we understand that God is not obligated to tell us all His mind. The Lord has given us precepts that we must follow if we are to know His joy and gladness in our lives. But it is also true that even if we do not follow God’s precepts, given to us in His commandments, this does not mean that the will of God has been turned aside and all his plan for the world and for us has been thrown into a trash heap. No, in His marvelous providence and wisdom that goes far beyond what we can imagine or discern, God takes even our disobedience to His precepts and advances His secret will to glorify Himself.

4. Samson would pay a heavy price for his disregard of the precepts of God; yet God marvelous used him to destroy the enemies of Israel and show His Own power and glory to Israel.

II. The Lion.

Judges 14:5-6: 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. 6 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."

1. Samson’s parents had to go to make the legal arrangements, which meant the payment of a dowry which would bring about a formal engagement to marry, which was much stronger than engagements are today. The actual wedding would take place six months or a year later, at which time the girl would move in with her husband.

2. The lion was slain by Samson with his bare hands as a man might have slain a baby lamb. The lion would provide Samson with a cause for a quarrel with the Philistines and might very well have been his first knowledge of supernatural strength.

3. He did not tell his parents. Only he and God knew about this event.

Judges 14:7: "And he went down, and talked with the woman; and she pleased Samson well. 8 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. 9 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.”

1. Samson and his parents were well satisified with the young lady and the engagement was contracted and Samson and his parents went home.

2. At the end of the engagement period, Samson returned with his parents to formalize the marriage, have a wedding feast, and bring his new wife home.

3. It is true that in the hot desert sun, dead animals will completely dry out without rotting in just a day or two, even large animals. This had happened to the lion, and bees had built a hive in the dried carcass, and had produced honey. This event is reported in some of the ancient epics. Bees will not nest in rotting carcasses, but a dried carcass in the desert would be like a hollow tree or stump, in which bees commonly nest.

4. Samson diverged from the road to see the lion’s carcass and found bees and honey in the carcass. He scooped the honey comb out in his hands and refreshed himself and gave some to his mother and father, not telling them where he had gotten it. It might very well be that they would have refused to eat it if they had known, for touching a dead animal would render them unclean, but we do not know how scrupulous the men of Dan were in this period.

5. But this even did give Samson a riddle that he could use at the wedding celebration.

III. The Riddle.

Judges 14:10-18: “So his father went down unto the woman: and Samson made there a feast; for so used the young men to do. 11 And it came to pass, when they saw him, that they brought thirty companions to be with him. 12 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: 13 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. 14 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. 15 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]? 16 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? 17 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. 18 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."

1. It was a custom to have a marriage feast during the formalization of a wedding. Samson’s family must have been of some substance and wealth, for he had thirty companions to be with him at the feast, who were friends or relatives of the bride as well as him. Samson might very well have had friends at Timnath among the Philistines and their ungodly and profane manner might have been the cause of him seeking some occasion against them. Such faith sometimes is mixed with a contradictory lifestyle in the godly. Lot was vexed at the lifestyle of the men of Sodom, but he still continued to live there.

2. There are a number of accounts in the ancient literature about the entertainment that riddles provided at such occasions, and often the games were played with stakes or forfeits to be given to the winner. The people of the Middle East have always been a thoughtful and reflective people, interested in intellectual activity. Perhaps the solitude of the desert lends itself to meditation and mental activity. It is a great mistake to think of these people as foolish and stupid, for such is definitely not the case.

3. Samson used the occasion of the lion and the honey to propose a riddle, the stakes being a change of clothes for each of his friends if they could guess his riddle. This was not an insignificant amount. Even by today’s standards, thirty suits would cost a bunch, even if off the rack at WalMart.

4. Samson is not the first, nor would he be the last, who was betrayed by an unbelieving girlfriend. It might very well be that she had more love for one of Samson’s thirty friends than she did for Samson, and she yielded to the threat that they made to her, to burn her and her family with fire if she didn’t find out the riddle.

5. For seven days she wept and made it a proof of his love for him to tell her the riddle. Finally after a long week of crying and weeping and pressing him, Samson told the answer, and she immediately went to her friends, told them the answer, and before the sun set they came to Samson.

6. Samson immediately knew how they had come to find out his riddle, and he responded with another riddle: “If you had not ploughed with my heifer, you had not found out my riddle.” But it was his own fault. Here was a man who could tear a lion with his own hands, but could not tell a woman to shut up and leave him alone. It is an old, old story. Be careful whom you trust.

7. This is a good rule: If you want to keep a secret, don’t tell anyone at all. Secrets are only safe if they stay in your own head. The bible says that a fool uttereth all his mind. Samson could be very strong in body, but very weak in wisdom and understanding.

Judges 14:19-20: "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. 20 But Samson’s wife was [given] to his companion, whom he had used as his friend.”

1. Israel had no treaty probably with the city of Ashkelon and Samson had no friends there, so he went down, killed thirty men, took their garments, and paid his debt. But he was now angry, probably not with his companions, but most of all with his wife. He went home without her.

2. But her family completed the betrayal by marrying her off to one of the thirty.

Application:

1. We see here the wisdom and power of God whose ultimate purpose was the subjection of the Philistines under the rule of Israel. It would be several generations before it was accomplished in the days of Saul and David, but the conflict had started. Samson would now be known as the enemy of the Philistines.

2. God does not need armies and weapons of war. His instruments may be of widely different kinds. Samson was a lone battler in the army of the Lord, for His army is directed by His Spirit.

3. God gives His Spirit by measure: he did not give great wisdom to Samson, but God have Samson His Spirit to do what He had for Samson to do.

4. There is no evidence that the Spirit of God rested upon Samson at all times; most of the time he might seem an ordinary man.

5. There was no king in Israel, but that did not mean that Israel was without resources, if they had been obedience and faithful. It is in the life of Samson that God is showing Israel that they did not need a king. God could raise up one man who would do more than armies and men of war.

6. We should not judge the Lord by “feeble sense” as the hymn writer put it. God had promised that if Israel followed Him, a hundred would chase a thousand and a hundred would put ten thousand to flight. But that was just a figure for Samson himself alone slew a thousand with the jawbone of a donkey. The lesson was that God did not need kings and lords and standing armies; none of these would secure Israel if God was their enemy; and none of them would be necessary if God was their friend. Vain is the help of men. God does as He pleases and it is of first importance that we do our business with Him. Nothing else really matters. All our work is to be done in faith and obedience.

7. But how much did Israel need Messiah, their true king, to come and pour out His Spirit upon them; to change their hearts and give them a right spirit within them. That each man would know the rule of the Lord Jesus in his own heart and mind. Amen and Amen.

May God bless you.

Amen and Amen. May God bless you.