Front matter (continued, part 39)
Judges 13—14
thing to Samson was not pleasing the Lord, or even pleasing his parents, but pleasing himself (Judg. 14:3, 7; see 2 Cor. 5:14–15).6 When God isn't permitted to rule in our lives, He overrules and works out His will in spite of our decisions. Of course, we're the losers for rebelling against Him, but God will accomplish His purposes either with us or in spite of us (Est. 4:10–14). Samson should have been going to a war instead of to a wedding, but God used this event to give Samson occasion to attack the enemy. Because of this event, Samson killed thirty men (Judg. 14:19), burned up the enemy crops (15:1–5), slaughtered a great number of Philistines (vv. 7–8), and slew 1,000 men (v. 15). Samson hadn't planned these things, but God worked them out just the same.
God's Spirit (3:10; 6:34; 11:29), only of Samson is it said "the Lord blessed him" (13:24; see Luke 1:80 and 2:52). The hand of God was on him in a special way. The secret of Samson's great strength was his Nazirite vow, symbolized by his unshorn hair (Judg. 16:17), and the source of that strength was the Holy Spirit of God (13:25; 14:6, 19; 15:14). We aren't told that Samson's physique was especially different from that of other men, although he may have resembled the strong men pictured in Bible storybooks. Perhaps it was as he entered his teen years, when a Jewish boy became a "son of the law," that he began to demonstrate his amazing ability.
Only a few of Samson's great feats are recorded in the book of Judges: killing the lion bare-handed (14:5–6); slaying thirty Philistines (v. 19); catching 300 foxes (or jackals) and tying torches to their tails (15:3–5); breaking bonds (15:14; 16:9, 12, 14); slaying 1,000 men with the jawbone of a donkey (15:15); carrying off the Gaza city gate (16:3); and destroying the Philistine building (v. 30). Judges 16:24 indicates that he had done many more feats than those listed above, feats that had aggravated the Philistine people.
He lost his Nazirite separation (vv. 5–9). When Samson and his parents went down to Timnah to make arrangements for the marriage, it appears that Samson left the main road (and his parents) and went on a detour into the vineyards; and there a lion attacked him. A vineyard was a dangerous place for a man who was not supposed to have anything to do with grapes (Num. 6:1–4). Did God send the lion as a warning to Samson that he was walking on the wrong path? The Holy Spirit gave Samson power to defeat the enemy, but Samson persisted on his path of disobedience into enemy territory and an unlawful wedding.
As you ponder the record of Samson's life, you get the impression that he was a fun-loving fellow with a good sense of humor, and sometimes he didn't take his gifts and his work seriously. A sense of humor is a good thing to have, but it must be balanced with serious devotion to the things of the Lord. "Serve the Lord with fear, and rejoice with trembling" (Ps. 2:11). Samson's power was a weapon to fight with and a tool to build with, not a toy to play with.
Some weeks later, when Samson returned to claim his bride, he once again turned aside into the vineyard, this time to look at his trophy and perhaps gloat over his victory. His sin began with "the lust of the flesh" and "the lust of the eyes," and now it included "the pride of life" (1 John 2:16). When Samson ate the honey from the lion's carcass, he was defiled by a dead body, and that part of his Nazirite dedication was destroyed. In fact, two thirds of his vow was now gone, for he had defiled himself by going into the vineyard7 and by eating food from a dead body.
Notice another thing: Samson was a loner; unlike previous judges, he never "rallied the troops" and tried to unite Israel in throwing off the Philistine yoke. For twenty years he played the champion, but he failed to act the leader. Joseph Parker said that Samson was "an elephant in strength [but] a babe in weakness." We might add that, when it came to national leadership, he was a lost sheep!
He lost control of his tongue (vv. 10–18). Since Samson hadn't brought any men with him to serve as "friends of the bridegroom" (Matt. 9:15 nkjv), the Philistines rounded up thirty men to do the job for him. These men may also have served as guards for the Philistines, for Samson's reputation had preceded him, and they were never sure what he would do next. Since the atmosphere must have been tense at the beginning of the feast, Samson sought to liven things up by posing a riddle. Sad to say, he constructed the riddle out of the experience of his sin! He didn't take seriously the fact that he had violated his Nazirite vows. It's bad enough to disobey God, but when you make a joke out of it, you've sunk to new depths of spiritual insensitivity.
The man with unreliable character (14:1–20) According to Hebrews 11:32, Samson was a man of faith, but he certainly wasn't a faithful man. He wasn't faithful to his parents' teaching, his Nazirite vow, or the laws of the Lord. It didn't take long for Samson to lose almost everything the Lord had given him, except his great strength, and he finally lost that as well.
He lost his respect for his parents (vv. 1–4). The Lord had given Samson a godly heritage, and he had been raised to honor the Lord, but when Samson fell in love, he wouldn't listen to his parents when they warned him. Samson had wandered four miles into enemy territory where he was captivated by a Philistine woman and decided to marry her. This, of course, was contrary to God's law (Ex. 34:12–16; Deut. 7:1–3; and see 2 Cor. 6:14–18).
It would have been an expensive thing for the thirty guests to supply Samson with sixty garments, so they were desperate to learn the answer to the riddle. Their only recourse was to enlist the help of Samson's wife. Thus they threatened to kill her and burn down her
Samson was living by sight and not by faith. He was controlled by "the lust of the eyes" (1 John 2:16) rather than by the law of the Lord. The important
Judges 14—15
father's house if she didn't supply the answer before the week was up. Samson resolutely refused to tell her, but on the seventh day, he relented. Since the marriage was to be consummated on the seventh day, perhaps that had something to do with it. First the Philistine woman enticed him (Judg. 14:1), then she controlled him (v. 17), and then she betrayed him (v. 17), which is the way the world always treats the compromising believer. Samson could kill lions and break ropes, but he couldn't overcome the power of a woman's tears.
the mind and heart of Samson that can help us better understand the impact of his life for good and for evil. 2 Our word "Palestine" comes from the word "Philistine." 3 Leon Wood, The Distressing Days of the Judges (Grand Rapids: Zondervan Publishing House, 1975), 302–5. 4 Other servants of God who were chosen before birth include Jeremiah (Jer. 1:4–5) and Paul (Gal. 1:15), although Psalm 139:15–16 teaches that the Lord is involved in the conception of every child. 5 "Nazirite" must not be confused with "Nazarene" (Matt. 2:23; 26:71). Since Jesus drank wine (Matt. 11:19; Mark 11:25) and touched dead bodies (Luke 7:14; 8:54), He was obviously not a Nazirite. 6 The phrase "pleases me well" is literally "right in my eyes." It reminds us that during the period of the judges "every man did that which was right in his own eyes" (17:6; 21:25). Instead of following the Lord, Samson was following the crowd and doing the "in" thing. 7 The week-long wedding feast (14:17) certainly involved wine, and it's probable that Samson drank it. He was the bridegroom and was expected to encourage his guests to enjoy themselves. The word translated "feast" means "a drinking party." 8 There was a form of marriage in which the wife remained with her parents and the husband visited her from time to time. But even if that were the case, the wife would expect her husband to consummate the marriage before going away. Perhaps Samson hoped to do that when he visited her at wheat harvest (15:1–3), but then he learned that she wasn't his wife!
We wonder how his wife felt being compared to a heifer? The proverb simply means, "You couldn't have done what you did if you hadn't broken the rules," because heifers weren't used for plowing. Since the guests had played foul, technically Samson could have refused to pay the prize, but he generously agreed to keep his promise. Perhaps he found out that his wife's life had been threatened and he didn't want to put her and her family into jeopardy again.
Those who can't control their tongue can't control their bodies (James 3:2), and in Samson's case, the consequences of this lack of discipline were disastrous.
Samson lost his temper (vv. 19–20). He went twenty miles away to Ashkelon so the news of the slaughter wouldn't get back to Timnah too soon. His joke about the lion and the honey ceased to be a joke, for it led to the death of thirty men whose garments Samson confiscated. Samson was so angry that he didn't even consummate the marriage but went back to Zorah and stayed with his parents.8 While he was away from Timnah, his wife was given to his best man. The Lord used this turn of events to motivate Samson to decide to fight the Philistines instead of entertaining them.
CHAPTER TEN Judges 15—16 THE LIGHT THAT FAILED T
If Samson had won his way and married a Philistine woman, that relationship would have crippled the work God had called him to do. Believers today who enter into unholy alliances are sinning and hindering the work of the Lord too (2 Cor. 6:14–18). If Samson had sought God's leading, the Lord would have directed him. Instead, Samson went his own way, and the Lord had to overrule his selfish decisions.
he life of Samson illustrates the ancient truth that a good beginning doesn't guarantee a good ending.1 The American poet Henry Wadsworth Longfellow said, "Great is the art of beginning, but greater is the art of ending." That's why Solomon wrote, "The end of a matter is better than its beginning" (Eccl. 7:8 niv).
"I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go; I will guide you with My eye. Do not be like the horse or like the mule, which have no understanding, which must be harnessed with bit and bridle, else they will not come near you" (Ps. 32:8–9 nkjv). If we're looking by faith into the face of the Lord, He can guide us with His eye, the way parents guide their children. But if we turn our backs on Him, he has to treat us like animals and harness us. Samson was either impetuously rushing ahead like the horse or stubbornly holding back like the mule, and God had to deal with him.
At the beginning of his career, Samson served in a blaze of glory, but the light began to flicker as he yielded to his passions. In the closing scenes of his life, we watch Samson's light finally go out, and the blind champion ends up buried in the rubble of a heathen temple. Granted, he killed more in his martyrdom than he killed during his judgeship, but how different it would have been had he first conquered himself before he sought to conquer the Lord's enemies. "His whole life," said Spurgeon, "is a series of miracles and follies."
Let's look at the closing scenes in Samson's life and learn from them why he didn't end well.
Notes 1 If you still have your college English literature textbook, read John Milton's epic poem "Samson Agonistes" and compare it with the biblical account. Milton presents some insights into
Samson avenges himself (15:1–8) The passion to get even seemed to govern Samson's life. His motto was, "As they did unto me, so have I done unto them" (15:11). I realize that as the defender of
Judges 15
God was using Samson's exploits to harass the Philistines and prepare them for the sure defeat that was coming in a few years.
Israel, Samson's calling was to defeat the enemy, but you long to see him fighting "the battles of the Lord" and not just his own private wars. When David faced the Philistines, he saw them as the enemies of the Lord and sought to honor the name of the Lord in his victory (1 Sam. 17). Samson's attitude was different.
He avenges his wife's death (vv. 6–8). Violence breeds violence, and the Philistines weren't about to stand around doing nothing while their food and fortune went up in flames. They figured out that Samson was behind the burning of their crops, and they knew they had to retaliate. Since they couldn't hope to overcome Samson, they did the next thing and vented their wrath on his wife and father-in-law. In the long run, her betrayal of Samson didn't save her life after all (14:15).
As Christians, we need to beware of hiding selfish motives under the cloak of religious zeal and calling it "righteous indignation." Personal vengeance and private gain rather than the glory of the Lord has motivated more than one "crusader" in the church. What some people think is godly zeal may actually be ungodly anger, fed by pride and motivated by selfishness. There is a godly anger that we should experience when we see wickedness prosper and defenseless people hurt (Eph. 4:26), but there's a very fine line between righteous indignation and a "religious temper tantrum."
Samson's response? "Since you've acted like this, I won't stop until I get my revenge on you" (15:7 niv). We don't know how many Philistines he killed or what weapons he used, but it was "a great slaughter." Following the attack, he retreated to a cave in the "rock of Etam." This is not the Etam mentioned either in 1 Chronicles 4:32 (too far away) or 2 Chronicles 11:6 (hadn't been built yet). It was some elevated place in Judah, near Lehi, from which Samson could safely and conveniently watch the enemy.
He avenges his ruined marriage (vv. 1–5). Although he had never consummated the marriage, Samson thought he was legally married to the woman of Timnah. Therefore, he took a gift and went to visit her in her father's house. How shocked he was to learn that not only was he not married, but also the woman he loved was now married to his best man!2 Samson had paid the legal "bride price" for his wife, and now he had neither the money nor the wife.
Samson defends himself (15:9–20) If Samson could attack the Philistines, then the Philistines could retaliate and attack Israel; after all, Israel had neither weapons nor an army. The invasion of Judah didn't help Samson's popularity with his own people, who sadly were content to submit to their neighbors and make the best of a bad situation. Instead of seeing Samson as their deliverer, the men of Judah considered him a troublemaker.
Samson was angry, and even the offer of a younger and prettier bride didn't appease him. If anybody should have been punished, it was his father-in-law. He was the real culprit. After all, he took the money and gave the bride away—to the wrong man! But Samson decided to take out his anger on the Philistines by burning up the grain in their fields.
The word translated "foxes" also means "jackals," and that's probably the animal that Samson used. Foxes are solitary creatures, but jackals prowl in large packs. Because of this, it would have been much easier for Samson to capture 300 jackals, and no doubt he enlisted the help of others. Had he tied the firebrands to individual animals, they each would have immediately run to their dens. But by putting two animals together and turning them loose, Samson could be fairly sure that their fear of the fire and their inability to maneuver easily would make them panic. Thus they would run around frantically in the fields and ignite the grain. The fire then would spread into the vineyards and olive groves. It was a costly devastation.
It's difficult to be a leader if you have no followers, but part of the fault lay with Samson. He didn't challenge the people, organize them, and trust God to give them victory. He preferred to work alone, fighting the battles of the Lord as though they were his own private feuds. I realize that Samson's calling was to begin to deliver the nation (13:5), but it seems to me that he could have made a more forceful beginning. When God's people get comfortable with the status quo, and their leaders fail to arouse them to action, they are in pretty bad shape.
When the men of Judah learned that the Philistines wanted only to capture and bind Samson, they offered to help. A nation is in a sad state indeed when the citizens cooperate with the enemy and hand over their own God-appointed leader! This is the only time during Samson's judgeship that the Jews mustered an army, and it was for the purpose of capturing one of their own men! But Samson realized that, if he didn't give himself up to the enemy, the Philistine army would bring untold suffering to the land, so he willingly surrendered. If he defended himself, he would have had to fight his own people. If he escaped, which he could easily have done, he would have left 3,000 men of Judah easy prey for the Philistine army. There was something heroic about Samson's decision, but the men of Judah missed it.
Why he chose to destroy the Philistine's crops in such a strange manner isn't clear to us. If others were helping him, Samson could attack several fields at the same time, and the Philistines, unable to see the animals on the ground, would be alarmed and confused, wondering what was causing the fires. The jackals would undoubtedly make a racket, especially if caught in the rushing flame or overwhelmed by the smoke. His riddle and his rhyme (15:16) indicate that Samson had a boyish sense of humor, and perhaps this approach to agricultural arson was just another fun time for him. However, we must keep in mind that
Judges 15—16
and decided to visit her. Once again the lust of the eyes and the lust of the flesh combined to grip Samson and make him a slave to his passions.
By the power of the Holy Spirit, Samson easily broke the bonds the men of Judah had put on his arms, picked up a new jawbone of a donkey (an old one would have been too brittle) and slaughtered a thousand Philistines. We wonder what the men of Judah thought as they watched their prisoner, their own brother, kill the invaders single-handed. Did any of them feel the urge to pick up the weapons of the slain Philistines and join in the battle? Would they have known how to use them?
It seems incredible to us that a servant of God (Judg. 15:18), who did great works in the power of the Spirit, would visit a prostitute, but the record is here for all to read. The Lord certainly didn't approve of such behavior, especially on the part of a Nazirite, and the experience was for Samson one more step down into darkness and destruction. In recent years, there have been enough ministerial scandals in the United States alone to put all of us on guard. "Therefore let him who thinks he stands take heed lest he fall" (1 Cor. 10: 12 nkjv).
Samson had a way with words. At his wedding feast, he devised a clever riddle (14:14), and after this great victory, he wrote a poem. It's based on the similarity between the sounds of the Hebrew words hamor ("donkey") and homer ("heap"). James Moffatt renders it: "With the jawbone of an ass I have piled them in a mass. With the jawbone of an ass I have assailed assailants."3
We can't help it when Satan and his demons tempt us, but when we tempt ourselves, we become our own enemy. God doesn't tempt us (James 1:12–15). When we pray, "Lead us not into temptation" (Matt. 6:13), we're asking that we not tempt ourselves or put ourselves into such a position that we tempt God. We tempt Him either by forcing Him to intervene and rescue us or by daring Him to stop us. It's possible for people's character to deteriorate so much that they don't have to be tempted in order to sin. All they need is the opportunity to sin, and they'll tempt themselves. Illicit sexual experience may begin as sweet as honey, but it ends up as bitter as wormwood (Prov. 5:1–14). Samson the man had become Samson the animal as the prostitute led him to the slaughter (Prov. 7:6–23).
But his victory celebration didn't last very long, for God reminded him that he was only a man and had to have water to stay alive. So often in Scripture, testing follows triumph. No sooner had the Israelites crossed the Red Sea than they became thirsty (Ex. 15:22–27) and hungry (Ex. 16). Elijah's victory on Mount Carmel was followed by his humiliating flight to Mount Horeb (1 Kings 18–19). If triumphs aren't balanced with trials, there's a danger that we'll become proud and self-confident.
If Samson had only heeded this warning and asked God not only for water but for guidance! "Lead us not into temptation" would have been the perfect prayer for that hour. How quick we are to cry out for help for the body when perhaps our greatest needs are in the inner person. It's when we're weak that we're strong (2 Cor. 12:10); and when we're totally dependent on the Lord, we're the safest.
Word that their enemy Samson was in town spread to the people of Gaza, and they posted a guard at the city gate to capture him and kill him in the morning. But Samson decided to leave town at midnight, while the guards were asleep. The fact that the city gates were barred didn't alarm him. He picked up the doors, posts, and bars and carried them off! Whether he carried them all the way to Hebron, a distance of about forty miles, or only to a hill that faced Hebron, depends on how you translate Judges 16:3. Both interpretations are possible.
Samson's prayer indicates that he considered himself God's servant and that he didn't want to end his life falling into the hands of the godless Philistines. Unfortunately, that's just what happened. But God was merciful and performed a miracle by opening up a spring of water in a hollow place. Samson quenched his thirst and then gave the place the name "Caller's Spring.'' The place where Samson slaughtered the Philistines received the name "Jawbone Hill." Some translations give the impression that the water came from the jawbone because the name of the place in Hebrew is Lehi, which means "jawbone." In the nkjv, Judges 15:19 reads, "So God split the hollow place that is in Lehi," and the NASB and NIV are substantially the same.
The city gate was not only a protection for the city, but also the place where the officials met to transact business (Deut. 25:7; Ruth 4:1–2). To "possess the gate of his enemies" was a metaphor meaning "to defeat your enemies" (Gen. 22:17; 24:60). When Jesus spoke about the gates of hell (hades) not prevailing against the church (Matt. 16:18), He was picturing the victory of the church over the forces of Satan and evil. Through His death and resurrection, Jesus Christ has "stormed the gates of hell" and carried them off in victory!
4. Samson betrays himself (16:4–22) The Valley of Sorek lay between Zorah and Timnah on the border of Judah and Philistia. The city of Bethshemesh was located there. Whenever Samson went into enemy territory, he "went down" both geographically and spiritually (14:1, 5, 7, 10). This time he found a woman in the valley, not too far from home, and he fell in love with her. It's a dangerous thing to linger at the enemy's border; you might get caught.
Samson tempts himself (16:1–3) Gaza was an important seaport town located about forty miles from Samson's hometown of Zorah. We aren't told why Samson went there, but it's not likely he was looking for sensual pleasure. There were plenty of prostitutes available in Israel even though the law condemned this practice (Lev. 19:29; Deut. 22:21). It was after he arrived in Gaza that Samson saw a prostitute
Along with David and Bathsheba, Samson and
Judges 16
finally told her the truth. Since the Philistine "hit squad" had quit coming after the third fiasco, Delilah summoned them quickly, and they once again hid in her chamber.
Delilah have captured the imagination of scores of writers, artists, composers, and dramatists. Handel included Delilah in his oratorio "Samson," and SaintSaens wrote an opera on "Samson and Delilah." (The "Bacchanale" from that work is still a popular concert piece.) When Samson consorted with Delilah in the Valley of Sorek, he never dreamed that what they did together would be made into a Hollywood movie and projected in color on huge screens.
When Delilah's shout awakened Samson, he thought it was another one of her tricks and that he could handle the situation as before. But he was wrong. When he lost his long hair, the Lord left him, and he was as weak as other men. His power was from the Lord, not from his hair, but the hair was the sign of his Nazirite vow. The Spirit who had come upon him with such power had now departed from him.
Scholars disagree on the meaning of Delilah's name. Some think it means "devotee," suggesting that she may have been a temple prostitute. But Delilah isn't called a prostitute as is the woman in Gaza, although that's probably what she was. For that matter, Delilah isn't even identified as a Philistine. However, from her dealings with the Philistine leaders, she appears to be one. Other students believe that the basis for her name is the Hebrew word dalal, which means "to weaken, to impoverish." Whether or not this is the correct derivation, she certainly weakened and impoverished Samson!
Numbers 6:7 reads literally "because the consecration (nezer) of his God is upon his head." The basic meaning of the word nezer is "separation" or "consecration," but it is also used of a royal crown (2 Sam. 1:10; Zech. 9:16; Ps. 89:39). Samson's long hair was his "royal crown," and he lost it because of his sin. "Behold, I come quickly! Hold fast what you have, that no one may take your crown" (Rev. 3:11 nkjv). Since Samson didn't discipline his body, he lost both his crown and his prize (1 Cor. 9:24–27).6
Each of the Philistine leaders offered to pay Delilah a considerable sum of money if she would entice Samson and learn the source of his great strength.4 They didn't want to kill Samson. They wanted to neutralize his power, capture him, torture him, and then use him for their own purposes. Being able to exhibit and control the great champion of Israel would give the Philistines both security and stature among the nations and would certainly satisfy their egos as they humiliated the Jews.
The Philistines easily overpowered Samson and finally had their way with him. They put out his eyes,7 bound him, and took him to Gaza where he toiled at the grinding mill, doing work usually assigned to slaves, women, or donkeys. Someone has said that Judges 16:21 reminds us of the blinding, binding, and grinding results of sin. In his epic poem Samson Agonistes, John Milton has the champion say:
O loss of sight, of thee I most complain! Blind among enemies, O worse than chains, Dungeon, or beggary, or decrepit age!
When Delilah began to probe for the secret of his strength, Samson should have been aware of his danger and, like Joseph (Gen. 39:12; 2 Tim. 2:22), fled as fast as possible. But passion had gripped him, sin had anesthetized him, and he was unable to act rationally. Anybody could have told him that Delilah was making a fool out of him, but Samson would have believed no one.
Samson is one of three men in Scripture who are especially identified with the darkness. The other two are King Saul, who went out in the darkness to get lastminute help from a witch (1 Sam. 28), and Judas, who "went immediately out: and it was night" (John 13:30). Saul lived for the world, Samson yielded to the flesh, and Judas gave himself to the devil (John 13:2, 27), and all three ended up taking their own lives.
It's unlikely that the Philistines who hid in her chamber revealed themselves each time Samson escaped his bonds, because then he would have known that Delilah had set a trap for him. Her cry "The Philistines are upon you!" was the signal for the spies to be alert, but when they saw that Samson was free, they remained in hiding. Each of Samson's lies involved Delilah using some kind of bonds on him, but the Philistines should have known that he could not be bound (Judg. 15:13).
But there was one ray of light in the darkness: Samson's hair began to grow again. His power was not in his hair but in what his hair symbolized—his dedication to God. If Samson renewed that dedication, God might restore his power. I believe Samson talked to the Lord as he turned the millstone, confessing his sins and asking God for one last opportunity to defeat the enemy and glorify His name.8
Delilah had to keep working on Samson or she would have lost the money and perhaps her life. After all, look at what the Philistines did to Samson's first wife! If Samson had stopped visiting Delilah, he would have kept his hair and his power,5 but he kept going back, and each time she implored him to reveal his secret. Samson didn't know his own heart. He thought he possessed enough moral strength to say no to the temptress, but he was wrong.
Samson destroys himself (16:23–31) It was tragic that a servant of the Lord, raised in a godly home, was now the humiliated slave of the enemy. But even worse, the Philistines gave glory to their god Dagon for helping them capture their great enemy. Instead of bringing glory to the God of Israel, Samson gave the enemy opportunity to honor their false gods.
Being wise in the ways of sin (Luke 16:8; Prov. 7:21), during the fourth visit, Delilah knew that he had
Judges 16
Dagon was the god of grain, and certainly the Philistines remembered what Samson had done to their fields (15:1–5).
and he who rules his spirit than he who takes a city" (Prov. 16:32 nkjv).
I wonder whether Solomon was thinking about Samson when he wrote those words.
The people at the religious festival called for Samson to be brought to entertain them. They were in high spirits because their enemy was now in their control and Dagon had triumphed over Jehovah. They thought that Samson's blindness rendered him harmless. They didn't know that God had deigned to forgive him and restore his strength.
Notes 1 No doubt you can think of many more examples from the Scriptures. Lot had the privilege of walking with Abraham and yet ended in a cave, drunk and committing incest with his daughters. King Saul began as a humble man but ended up a suicide, destroyed by his stubborn pride. King Uzziah was a godly man until he became strong. When he tried to usurp the place of the priests, God judged him by giving him leprosy. Ahithophel was David's most trusted advisor, but he ended up hanging himself. Paul's helper Demas abandoned the ministry because he "loved this present world" (2 Tim. 4:10). May the Lord help us all to end well! 2 There are several surprised bridegrooms in the Bible. Adam went to sleep a single man and woke up to learn (happily) that he was married (Gen. 2:21–25). Jacob woke up and discovered he was married to the wrong woman (Gen. 29:21–30). Boaz woke up to find his prospective wife Iying at his feet on the threshing floor (Ruth 3:1–13). Life is full of rude awakenings. 3 James Moffatt, A New Translation of the Bible (London: Hodder and Stoughton, 1934), 291. 4 Micah offered to pay his household priest ten pieces of silver a year, plus room and board (17:10), so Delilah was being rewarded most generously. If each of the princes of the five Philistine cities was in on the plan, as they probably were, Delilah would have received 5,500 pieces of silver. This shows how important it was to the Philistine leaders that Samson be captured. 5 Judges 16:16 suggests that Samson saw her daily ("day after day," niv). Whether he traveled to her house every day or simply moved in with her, we aren't told. He was playing the fool, but nobody could convince him of it. 6 The Holy Spirit left King Saul because of his sins (1 Sam. 16:14), and he also lost his crown (2 Sam. 1:10). God wants us to "reign in life" (Rom. 5:17), and we will if we walk in the Spirit and yield ourselves wholly to the Lord. Sin makes slaves out of kings; grace makes kings out of sinners. 7 His eyes had gotten him into trouble (Judg. 14:1–2; 16:1), and the "lust of the eyes" had led him into sin. Had Samson walked by faith, he would have ended his career in honor, glorifying the Lord. 8 Since the Philistines knew that Samson's long hair had something to do with his great power, why did they allow it to grow again? Probably for two reasons: (1) They wanted him to be strong so they could both use his power and exhibit his feats; and (2) they were sure that his blindness prevented him from being dangerous to them anymore. However, it wasn't the length of his hair but the strength of his dedication to God that brought about the change. The Philistines had no way of knowing that God had restored Samson's strength. 9 The second word—sahaq—gives us the name "Isaac," which means "laughter." Both Hebrew words carry the idea of entertaining people by making them laugh. The champion is now a comedian. 10 Only two of Samson's prayers are recorded, one for water
In the KJV, two different words are translated "make sport" in 16:25 ("entertain" and "perform" in the niv). The first means to celebrate, frolic, joke, and entertain; and the second means to perform, make sport, and laugh.9 We aren't told exactly how Samson entertained the huge crowd in Dagon's temple, but one thing is sure: He gave them every reason to believe he was harmless and under their control. He was even in the hands of a boy who was leading the blind man from place to place. We've seen previous indications that Samson was a clever fellow with a sense of humor. Thus no doubt he gave the audience just what it wanted.
In previous visits to Gaza, Samson had undoubtedly seen this temple and noted its construction. After all, it housed over 3,000 people, and it would be difficult for him not to notice it. During a break in the day's entertainment, Samson asked his attendant to lead him over to the pillars, and there he uttered his last prayer.10 The fact that God answered suggests that all was right between him and his Lord (Ps. 66:18–19). It's likely that his parents were dead by now, but his relatives on his father's side came and recovered the body and buried it. The word "brethren" in Judges 16:31 in the Hebrew carries a broad meaning of "relatives." As far as we know, Samson was an only child. The phrase "between Zorah and Eshtaol" in verse 31 reminds us of 13:25. Samson is back where he started, only now he's dead. The light has failed.
How do you assess the life and ministry of a man like Samson? I think Alexander Maclaren says it well: "Instead of trying to make a lofty hero out of him, it is far better to recognize frankly the limitations of his character and the imperfections of his religion.… If the merely human passion of vengeance throbbed fiercely in Samson's prayer, he had never heard 'Love your enemies'; and, for his epoch, the destruction of the enemies of God and of Israel was duty."11
His decline began when he disagreed with his parents about marrying a Philistine girl. Then he disdained his Nazirite vow and defiled himself. He disregarded the warnings of God, disobeyed the Word of God, and was defeated by the enemies of God. He probably thought that he had the privilege of indulging in sin since he wore the badge of a Nazirite and won so many victories for the Lord, but he was wrong.
"Whoever has no rule over his own spirit is like a city broken down, without walls" (Prov. 25:28 nkjv).
"He who is slow to anger is better than the mighty,
Judges 17
Grandmother, and she pronounced a curse on the thief, not knowing that she was cursing her own son. It was the fear of the curse, not the fear of the Lord, that motivated the son to confess his crime and restore the money. Then Grandmother joyfully neutralized the curse by blessing her son. In gratitude for the return of her money, she dedicated part of the silver to the Lord and made an idol out of it. Her son added the new idol to his "god collection" in his house, a "shrine" cared for by one of his sons whom Micah had consecrated as priest.
(15:18) and this one for strength to pull down the pillars. I've suggested that Samson turned his prison into a sanctuary and talked to the Lord, but his "prison prayers" aren't recorded. It's unfortunate that his final words still evidenced a spirit of revenge rather than a desire to glorify God, but let's not be too hard on a man who was willing to give his life in one last attempt to serve the Lord. 11 Alexander Maclaren, Expositions of Holy Scripture, vol. 2 (Grand Rapids: Baker Book House, 1975), 256.
Have you ever seen a family more spiritually and morally confused than this one? They managed to break almost all the Ten Commandments (Ex. 20:1–17) and yet not feel the least bit guilty before the Lord! In fact, they thought they were serving the Lord by the bizarre things they did!
CHAPTER ELEVEN Judges 17—18 "THE CENTER CANNOT HOLD" I
The son didn't honor his mother; instead, he stole from her and then lied about it. First, he coveted the silver, and then he took it. (According to Col. 3:5, covetousness is idolatry.)
n his well-known poem "The Second Coming," the Irish poet William Butler Yeats describes the collapse of civilization in vivid and frightening imagery. Each time I read the poem, I feel chilled within, and then I give thanks that I know the One who is coming.
III. Disorder: Israel sinks into anarchy (17—21) A.Religious confusion—17—18
Then he lied about the whole enterprise until the curse scared him into confessing. Thus he broke the fifth, eighth, ninth, and tenth commandments, and he broke the first and second commandments by having a shrine of false gods in his home. According to Proverbs 30:8–9, when he stole the silver, he broke the third commandment and took the name of the Lord in vain. Breaking seven of the Ten Commandments without leaving your own home is quite an achievement!
"Things fall apart," writes Yeats; "the center cannot hold."
The closing chapters of the book of Judges echo that theme: "the center cannot hold." The nation that once marched triumphantly through Canaan to the glory of God now disintegrates morally and politically and brings disgrace to His name. But what else can you expect when there is "no king in Israel" and the people are flouting the laws of God?
The man's mother broke the first two commandments by making an idol and encouraging her son to maintain a private "shrine" in his home. According to Deuteronomy 12:1–14, there was to be but one place of worship in Israel, and the people were not permitted to have their own private shrines. Furthermore, Micah's mother didn't really deal with her son's sins; his character certainly didn't improve by the way she handled the matter. But she was a corrupt person herself, so what else could he expect?
The events described in chapters 17–21 took place earlier in the period of the judges, probably before the forty-year rule of the Philistines. The movements of the tribe of Dan would have been difficult and the war against Benjamin impossible if the Philistines had been in charge at that time. The writer departed from historical chronology and put these events together as an "appendix" to the book to show how wicked the people had become. In three major areas of life, things were falling apart: the home, the ministry, and society.
Micah not only had a private shrine, but also he ordained his own son to serve as priest. Certainly Micah knew that the Lord had appointed the family of Aaron to be the only priests in Israel, and if anybody outside Aaron's family served as priests, they were to be killed (Num. 3:10).
Confusion in the home (17:1–6) God has established three institutions in society: the home, human government, and the worshipping community—Israel under the old covenant and the church under the new covenant. The first of these, in both time and significance, is the home, because the home is the basis for society. When God wedded Adam to Eve in the garden, He laid the foundation for the social institutions humanity would build. When that foundation crumbles, society begins to fall apart. "If the foundations be destroyed, what can the righteous do?" (Ps. 11:3).
Because Micah and his family didn't submit to the authority of God's Word, their home was a place of religious and moral confusion. But their home was a good deal like many homes today where money is the god the family worships, where children steal from their parents and lie about what they do, where family honor is unknown, and where the true God is unwanted. Television provides all the "images" the family will ever want to "worship," and few worry about "thus saith the Lord."
The name Micah means "Who is like Jehovah?" but the man certainly didn't live to honor the Lord. He had a family (Judg. 17:5), although nothing is said about his wife, and we get the impression that his mother lived with him and that she was wealthy. The "extended family" was normal in Israel.
I recall hearing Vance Havner say, "We shouldn't worry because the government won't allow children to have Bibles in school. They'll get free Bibles when they go to prison."
Somebody stole 1,100 shekels of silver from
Judges 17—18
and his idols. Jonathan wasn't a spokesperson for the Lord; he gave people just the message they wanted to hear (Judg. 18:6). When he was offered a place involving more money, more people, and more prestige, he took it immediately and gave thanks for it (v. 19). And then he assisted his new employers in stealing his former employer's gods!
But today our prisons are so crowded that the government doesn't know what to do. If every family would make Christ the head of the home, we could stop some of the nation's crime right at the source. Godly homes are the foundation for a just and happy society.
Confusion in the ministry (17:7–13) Not only did God establish the home and instruct parents how to raise their children (Deut. 6), but He also instituted spiritual leadership in the worshipping community. Under the old covenant, the tabernacle and then the temple were the center of the community, and the Aaronic priesthood supervised both. Under the new covenant, the church of Jesus Christ is the temple of God (Eph. 2:19–22), and the Holy Spirit calls and equips ministers to serve Him and His people (1 Cor. 12–14; Eph. 4:1–16). In His Word, God told the Old Testament priests what they were supposed to do, and in His Word today, the Holy Spirit guides His church and explains its order and its ministry.
Whenever the church has a "hireling ministry," it can't enjoy the blessing of God. The church needs true and faithful shepherds who work for the Lord, not for personal gain, and who will stay with the flock to feed them and protect them. True shepherds don't see their work as a "career" and run off to a "better job" when the opportunity comes. They stay where God puts them and don't move until He sends them.
True shepherds receive their calling and authority from God, not from people (Gal. 1:6ff.), and they honor the true God, not the idols that people make. It must grieve the Lord today to see people worshipping the idols of ministerial "success:" statistics, buildings, and reputation. In today's "consumer society," selfappointed preachers and "prophets" have no problem getting a following and peddling their religious wares to a church that acts more like a Hollywood fan club than a holy people of God. And to make it worse, these hirelings will call what's happening "the blessing of God." Jonathans and Micahs will always find each other because they need each other.
A young Levite named Jonathan (18:30)1 had been living in Bethlehem of Judah, which was not one of the cities assigned to the priests and Levites (Josh. 21; Num. 35). He was probably there because the people of Israel weren't supporting the tabernacle and its ministry with their tithes and offerings as God commanded them to do (Num. 18:21–32; Deut. 14:28–29; 26:12–15). Why live in one of the Levitical cities if you're going to starve? When God's people grow indifferent to spiritual things, one of the first evidences of their apathy is a decline in their giving to the work of the Lord; as a result, everybody suffers.
The sad part of the story is that Micah now thought he had the favor of God because a genuine Levitical priest was serving as his private chaplain. Micah practiced a false religion and worshipped false gods (with Jehovah thrown in for good measure), and all the while he rested on the false confidence that God was blessing him! Little did he know that the day would come when his priest and his gods would be taken from him and nothing would be left of his religion.
Instead of seeking the mind of the Lord, Jonathan set out to find a place to live and work, even if it meant abandoning his calling as a servant of God. The nation was at a low ebb spiritually, and he could have done something to help bring the people back to God. He was only one man, but that's all God needs to begin a great work that can make a difference in the history of a nation. Instead of being available to God, Jonathan was agreeable only to men, and he eventually found himself a comfortable home and job with Micah.
Confusion in society (18:1–31) God should have been the king in Israel and His Word the law that governed society, but the people preferred to "do their own thing." If the people had forsaken their idols, and if the elders of Israel had consulted God's law and obeyed it for God's glory, Israel could have been governed successfully. Instead, "Every man did that which was right in his own eyes" (21:25), and the result was a society filled with competition and confusion.
If Jonathan is typical of God's servants in that period of history, then it's no wonder the nation of Israel was confused and corrupt. He had no appreciation for his high calling as a Levite, a chosen servant of God. Not only were the Levites to assist the priests in their ministries (Num. 3:6–13; 8:17–18), but they were also to teach the law to the people (Neh. 8:7–9; 2 Chron. 17:7–9; 35:3) and be involved in the sacred music and the praises of Israel (1 Chron. 23:28–32; Ezra 3:10). Jonathan gave up all that for comfort and security in the home of an idolater.
Consider the sins of the tribe of Dan as they sought to better their situation in the nation of Israel.
Covetousness (vv. 1–2). The tribe of Dan descended from Jacob's fifth son, born of Rachel's handmaid Bilhah (Gen. 30:1–6). Though not a large tribe (Num. 1:39), it was given choice territory when the tribal boundaries were assigned (Josh. 19:40–48). The Danites, however, weren't able to defeat and dispossess the enemy (Judg. 1:34), thus they decided to go north and relocate. Most of the other tribes were able to conquer the enemy, dispossessed them, and claim
Jonathan's ministry, however, wasn't a spiritual ministry at all. To begin with, he was a hireling and not a true shepherd (Judg. 18:4; John 10:12–13). He didn't serve the true and living God; he worked for Micah
Judges 18
see what they had done.4 But the Danites silenced him by hiring him, and since he was a hireling, Jonathan was ready for a better offer. The Danites not only broke into Micah's shrine and stole his gods, but they also stole his chaplain. Not a bad day's work!
their land, but the Danites coveted somebody else's land instead and took it in a violent manner.
The Lord had assigned the tribal allotments under the direction of Joshua, with the help of Eleazar the high priest and the elders from the tribes (Josh. 19:51). As He did with the nations (Acts 17:26), so He did with the tribes: God put each tribe just where He wanted it. For the tribe of Dan to reject God's assigned territory and covet another place was to oppose His divine will.
The Danites put the women and children in the front since that was the safest place, because any attacks would come from the rear. By the time the Danites had traveled some distance away, Micah discovered that his shrine was out of business, having neither gods nor priest; so he called his neighbors together, and they pursued the invaders. After all, a man must protect his gods!
But isn't that what causes most of the trouble in our society today? Instead of submitting to God's will, people want what somebody else has, and they'll do almost anything to get it (James 4:1–3). The corruption that's in this world is fed by "evil desires" (2 Peter 1:4 niv). Whether it's producing pornography, selling dope, or promoting gambling, money hungry people cater to human desires and end up making money and destroying lives. Thanks to the power of modern media, especially television, the advertising industry creates in people appetites for all sorts of exciting products, services, and experiences. Therefore, people go out and spend money they don't have on things they don't need to impress people who don't really care, but this is the cycle that keeps business going.2
It was useless. Since the Danites outnumbered him and were too strong for him, Micah and his neighbors had to turn around and go home defeated. Micah's sad question "What else do I have?" (v. 24 niv) reveals the folly and the tragedy of religion without the true and living God. Idolaters worship gods they can carry, but Christians worship a God who carries them (Isa. 46:1–7). Violence and murder (vv. 7–13, 27–29). The five spies had traveled 100 miles north from their encampment at Zorah to Laish ("Leshem," Josh. 19:47), a town inhabited by the Sidonians, about thirty miles east of the Mediterranean Sea. These were a peaceful people who minded their own business and had no treaties with anybody. They were "unsuspecting and secure" and "prosperous" (v. 7 niv), an isolated people, who were a perfect target for the warlike tribe of Dan.
The elders of Israel should have put a stop to the men of Dan as they abandoned God's assigned place and headed north to kill innocent people and steal their land. But covetousness is strong, and once people get an appetite for "something more," it's difficult to control them.
With 600 armed men, plus their women and children (Judg. 18:21), they marched north and captured Laish, killing all the inhabitants and burning the city. Then they rebuilt it and proudly called it Dan, after the name of the founder of their tribe. Unfortunately, what Jacob prophesied about the tribe of Dan came true (Gen. 49:17).
Ungodly counsel (vv. 3–6). It was Jonathan's dialect that attracted the attention of the five spies, because he didn't speak quite like a man from Ephraim. When they asked what a Levitical priest was doing in a private home in Ephraim—a very good question, by the way (1 Kings 19:9, 13)—he told them the truth: He was hired to do the job! Since somebody else was paying the bill, the spies thought it was permissible to get "spiritual counsel" from Jonathan, and he told them what they wanted to hear.3
Someone has said that there are only three philosophies of life in today's world: (1) "What's mine is mine, I'll keep it"; (2) "What's yours is mine, I'll take it"; and (3) "What's mine is yours, I'll share it." The Danites followed the second philosophy, and so do too many other grasping people. One of the current booming industries in the United States is the installing of security systems in private homes. The number of shooting sprees in shopping malls and fast-food restaurants has frightened many people into doing their shopping by telephone. The cover story of Time magazine for August 23, 1993, called the United States "America the Violent."5
If the tribe of Dan had really wanted God's counsel, they could have consulted with the high priest. But they were actually rejecting God's counsel by refusing to remain in the land He had assigned to them. Therefore, it wasn't likely God would have revealed anything to them (John 7:17).
Breaking and entering, robbery and intimidation (vv. 14–26). On their way to capture Laish, the people of Dan paused at Micah's house in Ephraim. The spies told the men that Micah had a wonderful collection of gods, hinting, of course, that the collection would be valuable to them as they traveled, warred, and established their new home. While the armed men stood at the gate of the city, the five spies, who knew Jonathan, invaded the shrine and stole the gods.
We don't know how many people lived in Laish, but the wanton murders of even a few hundred innocent people is a crime of gross proportions. I fear that we've been exposed to so much crime and violence in the media that this kind of news doesn't disturb us anymore. "We're seeing a new sort of violence," wrote Arthur Beisser in Sports Illustrated (March 1, 1976). "It's being used not as a means to an end, but for recreational purposes, for pleasure." We might add
When the five men, with their religious loot, arrived back at the city gate, the priest was shocked to
Judges 18—19
that violence is also a means for making money, as both the moviemakers and the television industry have proved.
nal, the nun is found above the line, showing that the letter was added to the text later. Hebrew scholars believe that a scribe, zealous to protect the good name of Moses, changed the text so that there wouldn't be an idolater in Moses' family. The scribe apparently forgot about Aaron. 2 In writing this, I have no intention of indicting the entire advertising industry. Advertising performs a valuable service when it tells us where to find products and services that we really need. It's when advertisers promote unhealthy desires by creating "images" that appeal to the baser instincts of the human heart that I part company with them. Pride, covetousness, and competition for status aren't the healthiest motivations for people who want to build strong homes or a safe and just society. It's good to have the things that money can buy if you don't lose the things that money can't buy. 3 The fact that Jonathan's words came true doesn't absolve either him or the spies from being involved in activities outside the will of God. Jonathan's prophecy came true because the Danites were strong and the people of Laish were weak and unprotected. 4 As serious as their crimes were, I confess I can't help smiling as I envision five brave men stealing gods that can't even protect themselves! The Scriptures that come to mind are Isaiah 40:18–31 and 44:9–20, as well as Psalm 115. 5 However serious the present crime rate may be in the United States, let's not so idealize the past that we get things out of proportion. See Our Violent Past by Irving J. Sloan (New York: Random House, 1970). Violence is rooted in the human heart (Gen. 6:5, 11–12), and only the grace of God can remove it. 6 Bible students aren't agreed as to which "captivity" is meant in Judges 18:30. If it refers to the Assyrian captivity of the northern kingdom in 722 BC, then an editor had to add these words to the text at a later date. But the frequent phrase "no king in Israel" suggests that Judges was written during the early days of the monarchy, centuries away from the Assyrian invasion. This captivity may have been the invasion of the Philistines or perhaps some local war about which we have no information. Jonathan probably married a girl from the tribe of Dan, and his sons continued the false priesthood that he had started, but we don't know for how long. If we knew, we could determine the date of the "captivity."
Idolatry (vv. 30–31). The tribe of Dan was the first tribe in Israel to officially adopt an idolatrous system of religion. Even though there was a house of God in Shiloh, they preferred their images and idols. Years later, when the kingdom divided, Jeroboam I of Israel would set up golden calves in Dan and Beersheba and encourage the whole nation to turn away from the true and living God (1 Kings 12:25–33).6
The account of Micah, Jonathan, and the Danites is more than a story from ancient history. It's a revelation of the wickedness of the human heart and the hopelessness of human society without God. Our modern world has substituted idols for the true and living God and has devised its own humanistic religion, complete with "priests"—the experts who tell us that the Bible is wrong but their way is right. But neither their idols nor their priests have any power against the violence of the human heart.
When Dwight D. Eisenhower was president of the United States, he called a "White House Conference on Children and Youth," hoping to find solutions to the juvenile delinquency problem that was then plaguing the nation. I was supposed to attend that conference but couldn't go because of family obligations.
However, a friend of mine from Youth for Christ International attended and gave this report (I paraphrase): "I sat in the room for hours, listening to psychologists and educators and criminologists talk about teenagers and how to help them, and I got sick of it. Finally, I asked for the floor and told them of our experiences in Youth for Christ, how delinquents had been changed by the power of the gospel. The room became very quiet, and then people got embarrassed and began to clear their throats and shuffle papers. The chairman thanked me for my words and immediately moved to the next item on the agenda. Then it hit me: they didn't want to hear!"
William Butler Yeats was right: "The center cannot hold." The home, the ministry, and society are disintegrating before our eyes, and people don't want to hear the truth! But whether they want it or not, the world must be told that Jesus Christ died for lost sinners, and that the power of Christ can transform hearts, homes, churches, and society if people will only trust Him.
CHAPTER TWELVE Judges 19—21 WAR AND PEACE A
B.Immorality—19
"Christ beats His drum, but He does not press men," said English preacher and poet John Donne (d. 1631); "Christ is served with voluntaries." Are you available?
fter reading these three chapters, if you were to scan your daily newspaper or weekly news magazine, you'd have to admit that times haven't changed too much. For in these closing pages of Judges you find reports of wife abuse, blatant homosexuality, gang rape leading to murder, injustice, brother killing brother, and even kidnapping. It's the kind of narrative that almost makes you agree with British essayist Samuel Johnson, who said back in 1783, "I have lived to see things all as bad as they can be." What would he say today?
Notes 1 In 18:30, Jonathan is identified as "the son of Gershom, the son of Manasseh," which is impossible since Gershom was a son of Moses and didn't belong to the tribe of Manasseh (Ex. 2:22; 1 Chron. 23:14–15). A Levite would come from the tribe of Levi. The addition of the letter n (nun in the Hebrew) to the name "Moses" would change it to "Manasseh." In the Hebrew origi-
Of course, events like these are the daily food of
Judges 19
churches, the laughter of "religious entertainment" has replaced the holy hush of worship. The sanctuary has become a theater. When the saints get together, the most important thing is to "have fun." In order to salve our consciences, we have a "short devotional" before the fun time ends, and we piously thank God that we've had such a good time.
people who enjoy TV violence, and researchers tell us that what happens on the screens is often duplicated on the streets. According to a study by the American Psychological Association, there are five violent acts per hour in prime-time TV programs, and on Saturday mornings when the children watch cartoons, violent acts per hour multiply five times (USA Today August 2, 1993). When a nation is entertained by violence, is there much hope for that nation?
Nobody appreciates laughter and good humor more than I do, but I fear the church is losing its sense of awe and needs to learn how to weep. Had this laughing Levite been walking in the light, praying and seeking God's will, he would have made other plans and saved his wife from shame, abuse, pain, and death.
When evil isn't dealt with properly, it has a tendency to grow. Sin in the city of Gibeah eventually infected the tribe of Benjamin and led to war in the land of Israel.
Hospitality in Gibeah (vv. 10–21). During the period of the judges, it was dangerous to travel in the daytime (5:6) and even more so at night. The Levite didn't want to stay in Jerusalem because it was in the hands of the pagan Jebusites. Thus he pressed on four miles to Gibeah so he could be with his own people. But the men of Gibeah turned out to be as wicked as the heathen around them!
The wickedness of a city (19:1–28) Entertainment in Bethlehem (vv. 1–9). If you thought that the Levite Jonathan (chaps. 17–18) was a reprobate, then you'll probably conclude that this unnamed Levite was an absolute scoundrel of the basest sort. He spent most of his time partying (19:4, 6, 8, 22); he walked in darkness and jeopardized his life and the lives of those with him (vv. 9–14); he treated his concubine in the most shocking manner, while she was alive and after she was dead; and what he did to her precipitated a civil war in Israel.
To begin with, nobody in Gibeah welcomed the visitors and opened their home to care for them. Since the Levite had plenty of provisions for his party and his animals, he wouldn't have been a burden to anybody, but nobody took them in. Hospitality is one of the sacred laws of the East, and no stranger was to be neglected, but only one man in the city showed any concern, and he was an Ephraimite. He not only took them into his home but also used his own provisions to feed them and their animals.
A concubine was a lawful wife who was guaranteed only food, clothing, and marital privileges (Ex. 21:7–11; Deut. 21:10–14). Any children she bore would be considered legitimate, but because of her second-class status, they wouldn't necessarily share in the family inheritance (Gen. 25:1–6). If a man's wife was barren, he sometimes took a concubine so he could establish a family. Though the law controlled concubinage the Lord did not approve or encourage it, yet you will find several Old Testament men who had concubines, including Abraham, Jacob, Gideon, Saul, David, and Solomon.
God's people are commanded to practice hospitality. It's one of the qualifications for a pastor (1 Tim. 3:2; Titus 1:8). "Do not forget to entertain strangers, for by so doing some people have entertained angels without knowing it" (Heb. 13:2 niv).
Iniquity in Gibeah (vv. 22–28). Gibeah had become like Sodom, a city so wicked that God wiped it off the face of the earth (Gen. 19). The men of the city were indulging in immoral practices that were contrary to nature (Rom. 1:24–27) and the laws of God (Lev. 18:22; 20:13; see 1 Cor. 6:9–10). The word "know" in Judges 19:22 means "to have sexual experience with." These sinners were excited because a new man was in town, and they wanted to enjoy him.
This particular concubine was unfaithful to her husband and fled to her father's house in Bethlehem for protection (Lev. 20:10). The longer she was gone, the more her husband missed her; so he traveled to Bethlehem, forgave her, and was reconciled. He and his father-in-law discovered they enjoyed each other's company and spent five days eating, drinking, and making merry. Little did the Levite realize that he really had nothing to be happy about because tragedy was stalking his marriage.
The host courageously and correctly described their desires as wickedness and folly (v. 23) and a vile thing (v. 24), and he tried to prevent them from raping his guest. Like Lot in Sodom, the host offered them his daughter, which shows the low estimate some men in that day had of women and of sexual purity. How a father could offer his own daughter as a sacrifice to the lusts of a mob is difficult to understand. Yet many parents today allow their sons' and daughters' minds and hearts to be violated by what they see and hear in movies, on television, and at rock concerts. Chastity of mind and heart is essential for chastity of the body.
To me, this Levite illustrates the careless attitude of many believers today. They are children of the day, but they act like children of the night (1 Thess. 5:1–8). Judgment is around the corner, but these people think of nothing but enjoying life. When his nation was so far from God, how could this Levite waste his time eating, drinking, and making merry? "Be afflicted, and mourn, and weep: let your laughter be turned to mourning, and your joy to heaviness" (James 4:9).
Yes, there's "a time to laugh" (Eccl. 3:4), and God wants us to enjoy His gifts (1 Tim. 6:17), but for many Christians, that time is all the time! In too many
Since the Levite was afraid the mob would kill him
Judges 19—20
in a city (Deut. 13:12–18) and using that as the basis for their action.
(20:5) he pacified them by giving them his concubine, and she had to endure gang rape the whole night (v. 25). Our hearts revolt at the thought of a man so insensitive to the feelings of a human being made in the image of God, so indifferent to the sanctity of sex and the responsibility of marriage, and so unconcerned about the laws of God, that he would sacrifice his wife to save his own skin. Was he punishing her for being unfaithful to him? If so, the punishment was far greater than the sin.
Whatever law they were obeying, the tribes were concerned to "put away evil out of the land," a phrase that is found at least nine times in Deuteronomy. The men of Gibeah were evil men and had to be punished before the Lord could be pleased with His people and cleanse His land. But the people of Benjamin wouldn't admit that Gibeah had sinned, nor would they turn over the men who had done the wicked deed.
Some people may have interpreted the stubbornness of Benjamin as an act of patriotism: They were only trying to protect their own citizens. But their refusal to cooperate was definitely an act of rebellion against the Lord. When sin isn't exposed, confessed, and punished, it pollutes society and defiles the land. The wicked men of Gibeah were like a cancerous tumor in the body that had to be cut out. "Your glorying is not good. Do you not know that a little leaven leavens the whole lump?" (1 Cor. 5:6 nkjv).
But it gets worse. Not only did the Levite surrender his wife to the perverted appetites of an ungodly mob, but also he was able to lie down and go to sleep while they were abusing her in the street! How calloused can a man become? And how naive was he to expect that she would be alive the next morning?
Finding her dead on the doorstep, but not feeling guilty about it, he put her corpse on one of the donkeys and made his way home. Then he did a despicable thing: He desecrated and mutilated her corpse by cutting it into twelve parts and sending one part to each of the twelve tribes of Israel. Of course, he wanted to mobilize the support of the tribes and punish the men of Gibeah who had killed his wife, but in fact, he was the one who had let them kill her! Surely there were other ways to call attention to Gibeah's crime.1
The result? The tribe of Benjamin declared war on the rest of the tribes of Israel! The eleven tribes had 400,000 men in their army (Judg. 20:2), while the Benjamites had only 26,000 swordsmen and 700 "chosen men" who were experts with slings (vv. 15–16). But in spite of the terrible odds, it was brother fighting against brother!
When God's people refuse to obey God's Word, the results are always tragic. The spiritual life of a church is crippled and eventually destroyed when the congregation shuts its eyes to sin and will not discipline offenders. There can never be unity among the people of God as long as some of them cover up sin and allow it to infect the body.