seekeroftruth
Well-Known Member
Judges 14:10 Now his father went down to see the woman. And there Samson held a feast, as was customary for young men. 11 When the people saw him, they chose thirty men to be his companions.
12 “Let me tell you a riddle,” Samson said to them. “If you can give me the answer within the seven days of the feast, I will give you thirty linen garments and thirty sets of clothes. 13 If you can’t tell me the answer, you must give me thirty linen garments and thirty sets of clothes.”
“Tell us your riddle,” they said. “Let’s hear it.”
14 He replied,
“Out of the eater, something to eat;
out of the strong, something sweet.”
For three days they could not give the answer.
15 On the fourth[a] day, they said to Samson’s wife, “Coax your husband into explaining the riddle for us, or we will burn you and your father’s household to death. Did you invite us here to steal our property?”
16 Then Samson’s wife threw herself on him, sobbing, “You hate me! You don’t really love me. You’ve given my people a riddle, but you haven’t told me the answer.”
“I haven’t even explained it to my father or mother,” he replied, “so why should I explain it to you?” 17 She cried the whole seven days of the feast. So on the seventh day he finally told her, because she continued to press him. She in turn explained the riddle to her people.
18 Before sunset on the seventh day the men of the town said to him,
“What is sweeter than honey?
What is stronger than a lion?”
Samson said to them,
“If you had not plowed with my heifer,
you would not have solved my riddle.”
19 Then the Spirit of the Lord came powerfully upon him. He went down to Ashkelon, struck down thirty of their men, stripped them of everything and gave their clothes to those who had explained the riddle. Burning with anger, he returned to his father’s home. 20 And Samson’s wife was given to one of his companions who had attended him at the feast.
12 “Let me tell you a riddle,” Samson said to them. “If you can give me the answer within the seven days of the feast, I will give you thirty linen garments and thirty sets of clothes. 13 If you can’t tell me the answer, you must give me thirty linen garments and thirty sets of clothes.”
“Tell us your riddle,” they said. “Let’s hear it.”
14 He replied,
“Out of the eater, something to eat;
out of the strong, something sweet.”
For three days they could not give the answer.
15 On the fourth[a] day, they said to Samson’s wife, “Coax your husband into explaining the riddle for us, or we will burn you and your father’s household to death. Did you invite us here to steal our property?”
16 Then Samson’s wife threw herself on him, sobbing, “You hate me! You don’t really love me. You’ve given my people a riddle, but you haven’t told me the answer.”
“I haven’t even explained it to my father or mother,” he replied, “so why should I explain it to you?” 17 She cried the whole seven days of the feast. So on the seventh day he finally told her, because she continued to press him. She in turn explained the riddle to her people.
18 Before sunset on the seventh day the men of the town said to him,
“What is sweeter than honey?
What is stronger than a lion?”
Samson said to them,
“If you had not plowed with my heifer,
you would not have solved my riddle.”
19 Then the Spirit of the Lord came powerfully upon him. He went down to Ashkelon, struck down thirty of their men, stripped them of everything and gave their clothes to those who had explained the riddle. Burning with anger, he returned to his father’s home. 20 And Samson’s wife was given to one of his companions who had attended him at the feast.
a. Judges 14:15 Some Septuagint manuscripts and Syriac; Hebrew seventh
The commentary this morning is from https://bible.org/seriespage/14-lion-wench-and-wardrobe-judges-14-15.
No doubt Samson was prompted by a number of factors (including too much to drink) when he proposed a contest in the form of a riddle which he created, based upon his recent experience with the lion and the honey. Samson would give them a riddle to solve. If they solved it by the end of the celebration (7 days), he would give each of the 30 men a set of clothes (from under wear to outer wear); if they failed to solve the riddle, each of them was obligated to provide Samson with a set of clothing
By the time he had been hen-pecked for a week, I suspect that his romantic mood was greatly diminished. But what really set Samson off was having these 30 “friends of the groom” come to him with the answer to the riddle in the final moments of their competition
And so Samson and his wife have their first fight. Samson stomps off in a huff, determined to pay off his debt in a way that would make the Philistines “pay” for their treachery. The Spirit of the Lord came upon him, and he went down to Ashkelon (far enough away that those attending the wedding feast would not easily make the connection), and there he killed 30 Philistines, took their clothing, and returned to present an outfit to each of his groomsmen. He then stalked off to his father’s home (rather than to his wife’s room). One can hardly fault the woman’s father for concluding that this marriage was over before it was consummated. And so he gave his daughter to the best man, thinking that was the last he would see of Samson.
Did you see that last couple of sentences about the last verse of Judges 14? It says the father of the bride gave the bride to the best man.
I'd like for this to end better but I think there are a couple of issues to consider here.
- Samson was conceived and raised a Nazarite. He could not and would not be able to handle liquor.
- Samson had the lion with his bare hands and didn't follow God's law about purification.
- Sampson ate the honey right out of the carcass. Not only was the carcass "unclean" because the lion definitely doesn't chew a cud.... but the carcass had been around long enough for the bees to make enough honey to scoop up with the hand. So Samson was definitely in need of purification.
- Then when the riddle went south.... he robbed thirty men... took their clothes [and left them naked?]
- On top of all that.... he didn't consummate the marriage... the best man got the girl.
Personally.... I've never liked Samson much.... not in any of the stories or the movies.... I think Samson was a lonely stupid bully.... oh, now that I see it in writing.... he's just another one of those dysfunctional humans.... Only this one has a temper that God can control.
