4. After
this it came about that he loved a woman in the valley
of Sorek, whose name was Delilah.
5. The lords of
the Philistines came up to her and said to her, "
Entice him, and see where his great strength lies and
how we may overpower him that we may bind him to
afflict him. Then we will each give you eleven hundred
pieces of silver.''
6. So Delilah
said to Samson, "Please tell me where your great
strength is and how you may be bound to afflict
you.''
7. Samson said
to her, "If they bind me with seven fresh cords that
have not been dried, then I will become weak and be
like any other man.''
8. Then the
lords of the Philistines brought up to her seven fresh
cords that had not been dried, and she bound him with
them.
9. Now she had
men lying in wait in an inner room. And she said to
him, "The Philistines are upon you, Samson!'' But he
snapped the cords as a string of tow snaps when it
touches fire. So his strength was not
discovered.
10. Then Delilah
said to Samson, "Behold, you have deceived me and told
me lies; now please tell me how you may be
bound.''
11. He said to
her, "If they bind me tightly with new ropes which
have not been used, then I will become weak and be
like any other man.''
12. So Delilah
took new ropes and bound him with them and said to
him, "The Philistines are upon you, Samson!'' For the
men were lying in wait in the inner room. But he
snapped the ropes from his arms like a
thread.
13. Then Delilah
said to Samson, "Up to now you have deceived me and
told me lies; tell me how you may be bound.'' And he
said to her, "If you weave the seven locks of my hair
with the web and fasten it with a pin, then I will
become weak and be like any other man.''
14. So while he
slept, Delilah took the seven locks of his hair and
wove them into the web]. And she fastened it with
the pin and said to him, "The Philistines are upon
you, Samson!'' But he awoke from his sleep and pulled
out the pin of the loom and the web.
15. Then she
said to him, " How can you say, "I love you,' when
your heart is not with me? You have deceived me these
three times and have not told me where your great
strength is.''
16. It came
about when she pressed him daily with her words and
urged him, that his soul was annoyed to
death.
17. So he told
her all that was in his heart and said to her, "A
razor has never come on my head, for I have been a
Nazirite to God from my mother's womb. If I am shaved,
then my strength will leave me and I will become weak
and be like any other man.''
18. When Delilah
saw that he had told her all that was in his heart,
she sent and called the lords of the Philistines,
saying, "Come up once more, for he has told me all
that is in his heart.'' Then the lords of the
Philistines came up to her and brought the money in
their hands.
19. She made him
sleep on her knees, and called for a man and had him
shave off the seven locks of his hair. Then she began
to afflict him, and his strength left him.
20. She said,
"The Philistines are upon you, Samson!'' And he awoke
from his sleep and said, "I will go out as at other
times and shake myself free.'' But he did not know
that the LORD had departed from him.
21. Then the
Philistines seized him and gouged out his eyes; and
they brought him down to Gaza and bound him with
bronze chains, and he was a grinder in the
prison.
22. However, the
hair of his head began to grow again after it was
shaved off.
Early in his life, Samson
had decided to thumb his nose at God's laws. His
chronic immoralities blunted the good sense that would
have protected him from Delilah's deceit. Sin has a
way of impairing judgment. Samson's moral downward
spiral concluded with Delilah's total betrayal and his
defeat by the Philistines.
The story hints at a better
ending, though, in verse 22. "The hair of his head
began to grow again....."
God was not through with Samson.
Failure was not fatal for him. The symbol of God's
blessing in his life was his long hair (having long
hair was a part of a vow that had been imposed on
Samson from birth, the Nazirite vow). The growth of
his hair indicated God's continuing willingness to
help him and to use him.
This sad incident in Samson's
life serves as a warning AND a picture of hope for
anyone caught in the "web" of Web porn. Continually
giving in to the temptation to view pornography will
dull your judgment and compromise your wisdom and
could lead to destructive choices. Beware!
However, even if you do make a
destructive choice, the truth of verse 22 can be
yours, as well. Grace is always the last word. Even
after failure, God will not be finished with you yet,
either.
Don't wait for the destructive
choice you might make some day. Why not turn to Him
NOW?