“And it came to pass afterward, that he loved a woman in the valley of Sorek, whose name was Delilah.” - Judges 16:4
Samson was a man among men. His strength was notorious. He led Israel during the time of the judges. His brute strength brought victory to Israel. He was, in a sense, a one-man army. He was the world's strongest man. Even though he seemed invisible, his weakness brought him down to defeat and death.
Before we can study the rise and fall of this great man, we need to understand his beginning. Samson was born to a couple from the tribe of Dan. Prior to his birth, his mother had been childless. An angel informed her that she was about to have a son. He was to be a Nazarite from his birth. The Nazarite vow is described in great detail in the Old Testament. Under the Nazarite vow, Samson was not be permitted to drink any fermented drink or eat anything unclean. Furthermore, no razor should ever touch his head.
The angelic notification of his birth alerted Samson's parents that their son would be no ordinary man. He would be a great leader in Israel.
Samson grew to become a mighty man. He did extraordinary exploits because of his robust strength. He tore a lion apart with his bare hands. By himself, he slew an entire army of Philistines with the donkey's jawbone. He was respected by his peers and feared by his enemies.
But Samson had his flaws. These flaws brought about his downfall. A man of great strength ended up weak and defeated. Samson would become a prisoner of his enemies. He lost his strength, his eyesight and ultimately, his life. What caused the downfall of such a strong man?
First of all, he had a problem with women. Samson had an eye for females. The first recorded example of his desire was a Philistine woman. This brought his parents great grief. They knew he should marry lady from Israel. Instead, he told his parents, “I have seen a woman in Timnath of the daughters of the Philistines: now therefore get her for me to wife.” Notice, he said, “I have seen a woman.” She was appealing to his eyes. He said nothing about her character or personality. He was just obsessed what her appearance. The marriage turned sour after her betrayal of him.
Even worse, Judges 16:1 says that Samson spent the night with a prostitute. No respectable man should do such a thing. Samson did.
Then there was his relationship with Delilah. She would be his ultimate downfall. She was paid by the Philistines to learn the secret of Samson's strength.
Three women. As a leader of Israel, he had no business being in a relationship with any of these women. His uncontrolled passions led to Samson's defeat and death.
Also, Samson's spiritual life was rather weak. As we just saw, Samson's involvement in wrong relationships were an indication of his anemic spiritual condition. Furthermore, we don't find Samson to be a mighty man of prayer. Perhaps he relied on his physical strength more than divine strength. His parents were God-fearing people. Samson didn't seem fearful of anyone or anything. When we lean on the arm of flesh, we prone to fall.
Next, he became complacent about his blessings. Despite his strength and leadership qualities, Samson took his blessings for granted. His relationship with Delilah revealed his spiritual complacency. The Philistines used Delilah to discover Samson's strength, so they could find a way to prevail against him. Delilah used her female persuasion to get Samson to discuss his strength. At first, Samson gave he false information. Yet as she continued to use her tears and powers of persuasion, he began to get dangerously close to revealing the truth. Finally, he gave in and told her the truth. He was Nazarite and no razor was permitted to touch his hair. As he slept, she had his hair cut. When Samson awoke, the Bible says, “But he did not know that the Lord had left him.” How tragic!
After all this, you may wonder about Samson's faith. Hebrews 11 mentions Samson among the heroes of the faith. This very flawed man was a man of faith. He was an incredibly strong man, whose unguarded weaknesses brought him down to defeat.
There is much for us to learn from Samson. Your weaknesses may not be the same as Samson, but the enemy will target any vulnerable area he can. Although we believe in the same God that Samson did, we need to be fully devoted to Him and never take His blessings for granted. Rather than finishing this life in shame and embarrassment like Samson, let's finish well, living victoriously for Jesus' sake.
We don't need to rely on our physical strength if we lean on a mighty strong God!






