Human Response 392: Lust for Foreign Woman

Judges16:4 And it came to pass afterward, that he loved a woman in the valley of Sorek, whose name was Delilah.

Samson’s exploits against the Enemy finally came to an end through the deceits and nagging of a Philistine woman, Delilah. Samson’s own sin caused his eventual downfall. God was with him, but his response was to give in to the world with its lusts and pleasures instead of faithfully following the God who gave him such superhuman strength. He made a bad choice: he chose to be with a godless woman instead of being with God. God did not abandon Samson, but He did allow his sinful decision to stand, and the consequences of his decisions followed naturally.

The Philistines offered her money if she could find out the secret of Samson’s strength. She lay with him and cajoled him three times to reveal the source of his strength. Finally, on the fourth begging he told her the truth. It was in his hair. So she cut it while he slept, and his strength left him. Of course, it wasn’t in his hair, but in his faith in and loyalty to the Lord, symbolized by the Nazirite vow. God’s strength left him because he left God. Samson ended up being enslaved. That was his choice.

Samson’s hair grew back and his God-given strength returned. Then in his own suicide he killed 3000 Philistines, a heavy price to pay for following the world instead of being faithful to the Lord. We may choose to be close to God or to go our own way, but our choices have consequences. The consequences of our sinful, selfish, and worldly decisions teach us to repent and return to God in faith and devotion every day. Jesus does not leave us, but He does allow the consequences of sin to play out. The result is to bring us back to God, like the prodigal son. Return daily.