Samson desires a Philistine woman to be his wife and kills a lion on the way to meeting her.

Judges 14:1-7

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“Now Samson went down to Timnah, and saw a woman in Timnah of the daughters of the Philistines. So he went up and told his father and mother, saying, “I have seen a woman in Timnah of the daughters of the Philistines; now therefore, get her for me as a wife.” Then his father and mother said to him, “Is there no woman among the daughters of your brethren, or among all my people, that you must go and get a wife from the uncircumcised Philistines?” And Samson said to his father, “Get her for me, for she is right in my eyes.” Judges 14:1-3

During the days before the coming of Jesus Christ, circumcision was an outward sign of the promise God made to Abraham about his descendants being innumerable, “Every male child among you shall be circumcised; and you shall be circumcised in the flesh of your foreskins, and it shall be a sign of the covenant between Me and you.” Genesis 17:10-11 Any person not circumcised was considered a Gentile, heathen, and not in the family of God. Samson’s father and mother was against the idea of Samson wanting to be married to a woman from a culture that had no use for circumcision, no belief in the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob [Israel]. They tried to convince Samson to marry a Jewish woman of the Jewish culture. Samson insisted on marrying a Gentile, a non-Jewish woman, and from a culture that was an enemy of the Israelites.

Samson was born and lived during a time when the Israelites were corrupt and doing all sorts of evil against the word of God. “Again the children of Israel did evil in the sight of the Lord, and the Lord delivered them into the hand of the Philistines for forty years.” Judges 13:1 Samson’s desire to not marry within the Jewish culture and to marry a Gentile woman is part of the “scarlet cord” pointing to Christ as the Savior of the world. Our Lord Jesus went against the corrupt Jewish culture and His Gospel reached the ears of the Gentiles [you, me, and every non-Jewish person]. Jesus was saying in the Spirit about us Gentiles, “Get her for me, for she is right in my eyes”. “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.” John 3:16 Our Lord Jesus calls us His bride.

When Jesus Christ came, the covenant God made with Abraham was fulfilled so circumcision no longer has any purpose. Today, Abraham’s descendants are innumerable through us born-again Christians. “And if you are Christ’s, then you are Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise.” Galatians 3:29 This is spoken about Jesus, “The Gentiles shall come to Your light, and kings to the brightness of Your rising.” Isaiah 60:3 Paul is known as the Apostle to the Gentiles, “But when [the Jewish people] opposed [Paul] and blasphemed, he shook his garments and said to them, “Your blood be upon your own heads; I am clean. From now on I will go to the Gentiles.” Acts 18:6

“But his father and mother did not know that it was of the Lord—that He was seeking an occasion to move against the Philistines. For at that time the Philistines had dominion over Israel.” Judges 13:4

The parents did not know that Samson marrying an uncircumcised Gentile, and enemy of the Jewish people was of the Lord. Samson intended to use his marriage relationship with a Philistine woman to infiltrate and move against the Philistines. At this time, the Israelites were in captivity to the Philistines.

This is the same as the Jewish leaders and the Jewish people not recognizing that the marriage of Jesus Christ to us Gentiles is the plan of God. The Jewish people had always considered the non-Jewish Gentiles to be contrary and even an enemy of God. Our Lord Jesus moved against the corruption of the Jewish culture by bringing access to God to everyone through the Spirit, from within the heart, soul, and mind. “He came to His own, and His own did not receive Him. But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God…” John 1:11-12

“So Samson went down to Timnah with his father and mother, and came to the vineyards of Timnah. Now to his surprise, a young lion came roaring against him.” Judges 14:5

While Samson and his parents were walking towards Timnah to meet his potential bride, they reached the vineyards, and there a young lion came roaring against Samson. This is what happened to our Lord Jesus Christ, who was preaching about the Kingdom of God, forgiveness, mercy, and grace for everyone, and at the same time preaching against the corruption of the Jewish culture.

The lion that came against our Lord Jesus was the Jewish leaders, Pharisees, Scribes, and the Jewish people themselves. They conspired against Him to have Him crucified on the Cross to try to stop the growth of the vineyards [the massive spread of belief in God that happened without the Jewish culture]. “Therefore My Father loves Me, because I lay down My life that I may take it again. No one takes it from Me, but I lay it down of Myself. I have power to lay it down, and I have power to take it again. This command I have received from My Father.” Therefore there was a division again among the Jews because of these sayings. And many of them said, “He has a demon and is mad. Why do you listen to Him?” John 10:17-20

“And the Spirit of the Lord came mightily upon him, and he tore the lion apart as one would have torn apart a young goat, though he had nothing in his hand. But he did not tell his father or his mother what he had done.” Judges 14:6

While the lion came roaring against Samson, on his way to meet his potential bride, the Spirit of the Lord came mightily on him. Samson tore the lion apart like someone would have torn apart a goat, and he had nothing in his hand. He did not tell his parents what he had done, so obviously they were not walking shoulder to shoulder with Samson.

The Spirit of the Lord was mighty on our Lord Jesus, and as a boy, “…Jesus increased in wisdom and stature, and in favor with God and men.” Luke 2:52 “Now so it was that after three days they found Him in the temple, sitting in the midst of the teachers, both listening to them and asking them questions. And all who heard Him were astonished at His understanding and answers.” Luke 2:46-47 As a man of the age 33, the wisdom and power of Jesus was strong in the Spirit of God, “But after that they dared not question Him anymore.” Luke 20:40 “Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God.” 1 Corinthians 1:24

The lion of the Jewish leadership wanted Christ Jesus dead because He was gathering all people to Him by the will of God, “…that He would gather together in one the children of God who were scattered abroad. Then, from that day on, they plotted to put Him to death.” John 11:52-53

By the wisdom and power that Jesus possessed in the Spirit of God, He tore apart the corrupt lion of the Jewish culture. He did it all by the Spirit and will of God, with no weapon in His hand at all, “‘Not by might nor by power, but by My Spirit,’ Says the Lord of hosts. ‘Who are you, O great mountain?” Zechariah 4:6-7 Jesus’ only weapon was the Cross where He atoned for sin and made the laws of Judaism obsolete. Jesus never bragged about tearing the Jewish culture apart, but He did make it clear that the Jewish culture has no future without Him, “O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the one who kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to her! How often I wanted to gather your children together, as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, but you were not willing! See! Your house is left to you desolate; for I say to you, you shall see Me no more till you say, ‘Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord!’” Matthew 23:37-39

If the Jewish people would have accepted Jesus as their Christ 2000 years ago, the State of Israel would never have existed. That’s because as Christians we do not have a nation on this earth to call our own, our nation is the New Jerusalem in the new heaven and earth. God gathered the Jewish people to the State of Israel in 1948 to unleash His judgment on them, “Therefore thus says the Lord God: ‘Because you have all become dross, therefore behold, I will gather you into the midst of Jerusalem. As men gather silver, bronze, iron, lead, and tin into the midst of a furnace, to blow fire on it, to melt it; so I will gather you in My anger and in My fury, and I will leave you there and melt you.” Ezekiel 22:19-22 Click here for a post on that.

“Then he went down and talked with the woman; and she was right in his eyes.” Judges 14:7

After Samson killed the lion, he met his future bride [the non-Jewish, uncircumcised, Gentile, and Philistine woman], she was right in his eyes. Jesus Christ did more than kill the Jewish culture to give life to Christianity, He defeated death by being raised from the grave after three days and defeated sin by His death on the Cross. He gives life to all of us Gentiles in the Spirit and eternal life in the New Jerusalem. As the children of God, we are the bride of Christ, and we are right in the eyes of God because of our faith in Jesus Christ. Click here to read about the love affair between Christ and the Church in the Song of Solomon. When God sees Christ in us, then we are right in His eyes.

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“….to you who do not hold to her teaching and have not learned Satan’s so-called deep secrets,“
‘I will not impose any other burden on you, except to hold on to what you have until I come.’”
“I am coming soon. Hold on to what you have, so that no one will take your crown.”
Revelation 2:24-25, 3:1