I am using the daily Bible reading schedule from “The Bible.net” for my daily Bible reading.

Today, I am reading and commenting on Judges 14-16.

    I struggle with how to write my thoughts about Samson. His parents apparently raised him to keep the vows of a Nazirite (at the least, he did not cut his hair), but they did not teach him to have good judgment when dealing with women. I am hesitant to lay this blame fully at his parent’s feet. There may have been nothing they could do differently, but every time I read this I think that Samson seems to have the attitude of a spoiled child. First, he demanded that his parents arrange for him to marry a Philistine woman, who immediately wheedled information out of him to use to his disadvantage. Later, he consorted with a prostitute putting himself at risk. Finally, he took up with Delilah, who did the same thing to him that his first wife did, but on a more serious level. I would like to say that I do not understand what Samson was thinking with Delilah, but that would not be true. However, he should have known better. She repeatedly tried to get him to tell her the source of his strength. Samson repeatedly made up lies which he told her, which she then promptly tested.
    The fact of the matter is that most men will give in to the tactics used by Samson’s first wife and by Delilah. That is why it is so important for a man to choose to marry a woman who loves God. Otherwise her interests are likely to diverge from his.