Judges 16:22-27 –By being disciplined, we will avoid needless pain

In the book of Judges, we can see that God would raise and use human instruments in different seasons to execute His plan. Consistent with His purpose and nature, God raised Samson to deal with the troubling Philistines. And even though Samson as His instrument had failings, God’s ultimate plan could not be thwarted. His faithfulness pushed through despite Samson’s failings. He granted him numerous successes in destroying the Philistines. But as God’s instrument, Samson was not serious or diligent. He did not have the disciplines expected of him. He was insensitive to God and did not take care to deal with his personal weaknesses.

In Samson’s failings, God remained faithful. He could not and would not deny Himself. In God, there is no contradiction. He promises and will act according to His promise. He will never do anything that will contradict His own nature of being faithful. In Samson, we will see that when one sincerely repents, He will not reject him, but will again accept and renew His love and purpose in him. In Judges 16:22-27, we see how Samson was rendered powerless. He was rendered permanently blind when the Philistines gouged out his eyes. Bound with chains, he was led to prison in Gaza tied to a millstone to grind grains. But his captors didn’t notice that his hair was beginning to grow. The growing hair was a symbol of his rededication to his Nazirite vows. The impending strength Samson eventually had, to bring greater destruction to the Philistines, was not due to the growth of his hair but his repentance and re-consecration to God.

Meanwhile, the Philistines had gathered in the temple for a grand celebration. They reckoned that it was Dagon, their god who had given Samson into their hands. In their celebration, they decided to make sport of Samson and have some fun at his expense. “So they called for Samson from the prison, and he entertained them. They made him stand between the pillars. Samson urged the boy leading him to the temple to bring him to the pillars of the temple, under the pretext that he wanted to lean on them for support. We know that Samson had the intention to bring the temple down. Verse 27 gives us an estimate of the number of people he would eventually destroy. There were 3,000 men and women on the balcony. This number probably excluded those who were in the temple itself. And Samson was made to amuse them. 

  

These verses challenge us to take our ministry seriously. We all know that the suffering Samson had to endure was needless. Had he put his heart in the work God had assigned him and executed them seriously, his pain and suffering would have been curtailed. His needless experiences call us to take our consecration to God seriously. We cannot make light of God’s calling and expect not to be dealt with. God loves us far too much to leave us where we are. He cares for us too much to leave us undisciplined. It is up to us to walk softly and gingerly before Him. And be mindful that we serve a faithful God who deserves only our very best.