A Dangerous Mix

Then Delilah said, “You’ve been making fun of me and telling me lies!  Now tell me how you can be tied up securely.”  Samson replied, “If you were to weave the seven braids of my hair into the fabric on your loom and tighten it with the loom shuttle, I would become as weak as anyone else.”  So while he slept, Delilah wove the seven braids of his hair into the fabric.  Then she tightened it with the loom shuttle.  Again she cried out, “Samson!  The Philistines have come to capture you!”  But Samson woke up, pulled back the loom shuttle, and yanked his hair away from the loom and the fabric. [Judges 16.13-14]

It is my humble opinion that Samson did not really believe that his strength was in his hair.  He was in fact toying with Delilah on her first two attempts to capture him, but he began to toy with God on this third instance.  And, just as he suspected, he remained strong even though he had "gotten close" (in saying to braid his hair into a loom) and any growing doubts to this point that his strength was not his own were foolishly diminished.  Yes, it seems that Samson succumbed to pride and that pride became his demise.

Now, why a man would stay with a woman even after the very first attempt to capture him (having men hidden in the house to capture him), is beyond me.  The fact that Samson was apparently so wowed by physical beauty could suggest that Delilah was indeed a real 'looker' and that Samson was 'lost' in physical lust to the extent of blindness to the danger he was in.  Hey, I bet Samson was not the first guy this ever happened to and we all know he was not the last.

All being said, Samson's story is certainly an interesting one.  And even though in death Samson was more victorious than in life, I cannot help but wonder if the Delilah thing was ever really God's plan for Samson.  Sure, it is how the story went, but could Samson not have been of greater use alive (with his freedom, eyesight and strength)?

There is a scary amount of reality in Samson's story - just a lot of reality.  Pride and physical attraction are a dangerous mix.

Father, I know we all have weaknesses.  From Samson's story it seems to me that we all have strengths as well that can become our downfall.  Help me - help us - to trust that our strength is from You and never test it as did Samson.