No Biblical narrative in the Old Testament captures our imagination like the story of Samson. We cheer him on as he made a mincemeat of the army of the Philistines. He is the hero who never dies in battle; the stuff that Hollywood rakes millions of American Dollars from because people love good stories with interesting characters. The involvement of Delilah gives the plot more depth. But, is romance or failed romance the centre point of this story? Did God include it in the Bible to entertain us and satiate our appetite for adventure? Samson, the central figure of that saga is with us today. He will share with us his perspective on his exploits and fall from grace. We hope that this will help us to appreciate God’s ways in redemption.
Shepherd Heart: We are glad to have you in the house Sir.
Samson: Thank you very much. I appreciate your interest.
Shepherd Heart: Kindly to tell our readers about yourself.
Samson: I was born to my parents, Moanoah and Zealphonis in their old age. Both were from the tribe of Dan. Before I was conceived, they had an angelic visitation in the course of which they were told that God would give them a son. They were however to dedicate him to the LORD at birth as a Nazerite. This meant that no razor would ever touch my hair, nor was I to drink alcoholic beverages, including wine my entire life.
Shepherd Heart: Comparing your physic to the Hercules-like figures featured in movies about your life by Hollywood gives the impression that physical strength and rippling muscles also influenced God’s choice of an action figure in His own production. Why do you think the world or rather Hollywood present a muscular version of you?
Samson: (Laughs) Simple logic would have told them that the Philistine would not have tried to identify the source of my strength if I had the body of Hercules. Almighty God does not work that way. Paul the apostle told the Corinthians that God uses small things, things that people despise and things that seem to be nothing to destroy big things. Do you think that David’s defeat of Goliath would have made such eternal impact if both of them were the same size physically? Why did Yeshua tell Paul that His strength is made perfect in weakness?
Shepherd Heart: I suppose that God does such things to take the glory and to stop men from walking in pride.
Samson: Exactly. I learnt that lesson in a hard way, while in captivity in the land of the Philistine. I am not the only one who finds out the hard way that God would not share His glory with mortal man. Even David made the same mistake when he ignored the counsel of Joab, his military commander and conducted a census of the children of Israel without God’s approval. Sometimes, too much victory can be intoxicating. You start taking attention from God with each victory, revelling in the adulation of the crowd.
Shepherd Heart: Much has been written or speculated about your relationship with Delilah which led to your capture by the Philistine. Certainly, we cannot turn back the hand of the clock by asking why you allowed her to betray you. What I believe our readers would love to know is why you sacrificed everything for the woman. Were you genuinely in love with her?
Samson: Tough question. Of course, I was in love with her. The truth is that I thought she felt the same way about me. What is love anyway? The way I understood things at that point in time was that when two people are in love, they strive to be transparent by not keeping secrets from each other. That was very naïve of me though.
Shepherd Heart: When we read stories in the Bible, we tend to give them a timeline based on our individual experiences. How long did you spend with her before she betrayed your trust?
Samson: Sufficient time to have gotten to know her likes and dislikes. We were very much in love, so I thought. Her people did not interfere in the relationship immediately. That fooled me too.
Shepherd Heart: In our world, Delilah is synonymous with seduction. Was she a seductress?
Samson: That was not my initial assessment of her. You should also remember that she was under pressure from her people, especially her family. It was easy for me to forgive her because I knew that she was coerced to betray my trust.
Shepherd Heart: I believe that our generation miss the important aspect of your story- God’s forgiveness and redemption. Kindly explain to our readers how you were able to reach out to Him while in captivity.
Samson: The first thing you need to know about God is that He abounds in mercy. David said in Psalm 51:17, “The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit; A broken and a contrite heart, God, You will not despise”. I was conscious of my depravity and the fact that I sold my country for the pleasure of sexual relationship with Delilah. That was what broke me. The humiliation meted out to me by the Philistines was small compared to the realisation that I had failed God and my parents. When I saw myself in the light of God’s word, I cried out to Him for forgiveness. He promptly forgave me and caused my Nazerite locks to grow back before the final showdown with the Philistines.
Shepherd Heart: Obviously, your humiliation by the Philistines hastened your repentance. Would you have turned to God if they had treated you humanely?
Samson: (Laughs) The Philistines hated Israelis with passion. Now, I believe that they only reason they allowed Delilah to date me was because they had an evil agenda that later played out after she betrayed my trust. There was no way they would have treated me with decorum. The hatred the Philistines have for Israelis is deep-rooted. Remember that God Himself dispossessed them of their land and gave it to the children of Israel. Anyway, once I was captured, I was not expecting to be treated with kid gloves by my captors. I expected them to kill me immediately. Apparently, making sport of me was more satisfying to them than eliminating me instantly.
Shepherd Heart: I want us to return to God’s mercy and redemptive purposes. In our generation, many people rebel against His will as you did but are not willing to show remorse or repent of their lawlessness. What do you think is responsible for the degree of ungodliness in our times?
Samson: I am not making excuses for anyone. From heaven’s perspective, followers of Yeshua are given the special privilege of revealing God to unbelievers. I am not sure many believers are fulfilling this mandate. In our days, angelic visitations were common. That was because the Messiah had not been revealed on earth. As His ambassadors, your number one responsibility is to make Him known to other people. It is your responsibility to bring down heaven’s culture to the earth. That is what Yeshua meant when He prayed that God’s will would be done on earth as it is done in heaven. Are you promoting heaven’s culture in your environment and other sphere of influence? If you have failed in this assignment, how would people be able to turn from evil and embrace God and His ways?
Shepherd Heart: So, in effect, it is the fault of believers that more people are not embracing God’s mercy in Yeshua?
Samson: Someone has to take the blame. I am sure that it is certainly not God who has already given all believers all things that pertain to life and godliness. You are also aware that His desire is for every human to be saved from His wrath at the end of time. Yeshua meant it when He said that hell was not created for humans but for the devil and his demons. If you want more people to come to the faith, then you have to be bold in the proclamation of the gospel. If you know the horrors of hell, you would sacrifice anything, including your life to save even one soul.
Shepherd Heart: I read a book, God Allows U-Turns edited by Allison Gappa Bottke a while ago. Stories in the book tell of God’s mercy and willingness to forgive and welcome prodigal sons and daughters back into the family. In fact, they reminded me of Proverbs 24:16, “For though a righteous man may fall seven times, he still gets up; but the wicked stumble in bad times”. What was your initial reaction after you realised that the Spirit of God had departed from you?
Samson: I was devastated. I had no hope of redemption. People in your generation can turn to the word of God for succour. Remember that we did not have the Bible then. We had nothing to hold on to except past experiences with God. I did not have much of that. Let us face the truth. I was not a deeply spiritual person as manifested in my lifestyle.
Shepherd Heart: Well, most of us in our generation assume that all Jews have some kind of special relationship with God. Your parents must have been godly to have attracted a visit from God’s angel. Did they not nurture you along these lines?
Samson: (Smiles) Sure. They did the best they could under the circumstances. They followed the instructions of the angel to the letter. What do parents do when their children are no longer under their authority? The moment I became a man, they could no longer control me. I am sure they felt that they had drummed enough common sense and the fear of God into my head.
Shepherd Heart: With the benefit of hindsight, would you have fallen for Delilah if you knew what lay ahead of you through her?
Samson: Another tough question! I am glad that God does not give men that kind of powers. How would we be able to learn from our mistakes if we are not allowed to make them? All I can say is that I sowed the wind and reaped the whirlwinds. Through it all, I experienced the comfort and forgiveness of God. I would not exchange these for any human or earthly comforts.
Shepherd Heart: It is gratifying to see that your circumstances changed you for the better. Most of us allow difficulties to create an unhealthy distance between God and us. Sometimes, we even blame Him for our mistakes! What is your candid advice to people who feel this way?
Samson: Simple. Trust God’s providence even if you miss His mark. Children are prone to making mistakes. God knows this and that is why He makes allowances for our human weaknesses. I am not saying that He encourages them by any means. Psalm 103:14 says that He knows how weak we are; He remembers we are dust”. Whenever we miss His mark, the best option is to get up from where we have fallen and look to Him for redemption. As David noted in Psalm 51:17, God does not despise a broken spirit and a contrite heart. Of course, the repentance must be sincere. If we make the practice of sin a habit, we insult God by apologising for it. The fear of God is the beginning of wisdom and we remain fools when we treat Him with disrespect.
Shepherd Heart: Your humility is infectious. We pray that our readers would take heed to your wise counsel and learn to treat God with utmost reverence by choosing His ways above theirs. Thank you very much for adding value to our life as we prepare for eternal life with God.
Samson: The interaction has blessed me as well. Thanks again for having me.