GOD’S WORD FOR YOU
JUDGES 16:10-12
10 Then Delilah said to Samson, “You have mocked me and told me lies! Now please tell me how you can be tied up. ”
We don’t know if this happened all at once, or over the course of time with many days or weeks passing. Delilah’s accusation is a typical illustration of our sinful human nature. Delilah concentrates only on how she was deceived and glosses over the truth that she was betraying him for silver; betraying his trust.
For his part, should we judge Samson for allowing Delilah’s game to continue? One the one hand, he was at this time in no danger, although he was allowing himself to be tempted. This is why Jesus invited us to pray: “Lead us not into temptation” (Luke 11:4). Luther explained:
“God surely tempts no one to sin, but we pray in this petition that God would guard and keep us, so that the devil, the world, and our flesh may not deceive us or lead us into false belief, despair, and other great and shameful sins; and though we are tempted by them, we pray that we may overcome and win the victory.” (Small Catechism, Sixth Petition)
On the other hand, Samson was also showing a willingness to forgive and to forget. He was not sinning by doing this, and even though the result for him was his death, we should not draw a negative conclusion about the way we forgive one another. If someone sins even after we forgive them, we are not to blame. Jesus wants us to forgive one another. This is why he taught us to pray: “Forgive us our sins, as we forgive those who sin against us” (Luke 11:4). Luther explained:
“We pray in this petition that our Father in heaven would not look upon our sins or because of them deny our prayers; for we are worthy of none of the things for which we ask, neither have we deserved them, but we ask that he would give them all to us by grace; for we daily sin much and surely deserve nothing but punishment. So we too will forgive from the heart and gladly do good to those who sin against us.” (Small Catechism, Fifth Petition).
11 He told her, “If they tie me up with new ropes that have never been used, I will become weak, like any other man.”
This had been done before, by the men of Judah (15:13). Perhaps Samson wondered whether his girlfriend remembered the things he told her, or whether the Philistines really paid attention to things that happened or believed the stories that were told about him.
Here Samson was toying with Delilah, aware that she was not looking out for him, that she did not love him (although his heart was captivated by her), and that she was very probably going to bring about his downfall. Still, he understood that to bring about a confrontation with the Philistines, he had to mix with them, and so here he was. It was the will of God that he would be God’s Nazirite, Israel’s judge, and that he would begin to save his people. God wants us to recognize our place in his kingdom. We all function in different ways in the body of Christ. Some of us preach, some drive out demons (1 Cor. 12:8-10), others have gifts of teaching or administration or serving (1 Cor. 12:28). But whatever our roles, we all want to serve and to carry out the will of God. This is why Jesus invited us to pray: “Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven” (Matthew 6:10). Luther explained:
God’s good and gracious will certainly is done without our prayer, but we pray in this petition that it may be done among us also. How is God’s will done? God’s will is done when he breaks and defeats every evil plan and purpose of the devil, the world, and our sinful flesh, which try to prevent us from keeping God’s name holy and letting his kingdom come. And God’s will is done when he strengthens and keeps us firm in his Word and in the faith as long as we live. This is his good and gracious will. (Small Catechism, Third Petition).
12 So Delilah took new ropes and tied him up with them. Then she shouted, “Samson, the Philistines are upon you! ” And again there were men waiting in an inner room to ambush him. But he snapped the ropes off his arms like a thread.
Was this the same day, or later on? We can’t say. In a stage production, these temptations of Samson would form the send of the second act (such as in the opera by Camille Saint-Saëns, 1877), but we must remember that Samson was a real man, in love with the real, historical Delilah, and that these events that are recorded are not just an idea of what he went through, but the actual account of Samson’s struggle with temptation and faith.
Samson knew that the Lord was with him. His miraculous strength snapped the ropes, fresh though they were, and he remained free for the moment. He trusted in God, just as Jesus invites us to trust in God and even to pray to him. Jesus taught us to pray, “Our Father in heaven” (Matthew 6:9). Luther explained:
“With these words God tenderly invites us to believe that he is our true Father and that we are his true children, so that we may pray to him as boldly and confidently as dear children ask their dear father.” (Small Catechism, Address of the Lord’s Prayer).
Trust in the Lord, your heavenly Father, and take your troubles and concerns to him. Be as trusting as a little child. Asaph said, “I cried out to God for help; I cried out to God to hear me” (Psalm 77:1). He was confident that God would hear and act, and we can, too. Put your faith in him: he is your refuge (Psalm 14:6). He will hear you, and he will answer you. And just as he helped his Old Testament children, he will also help you.
In Christ,
Pastor Timothy Smith
Archives by Wisconsin Lutheran Chapel: http://www.wlchapel.org/worship/daily-devotion/
Pastor Smith serves St. Paul’s Lutheran Church, New Ulm, Minnesota