August 8, 2024
I reflected last week on how God was stirring Samson as he was growing up, and how such stirring happens in us as well. Now we come to Samson’s interest in a woman, but not just any woman:Samson went...
July 28, 2024
Last week I described the different parental reactions to the angel who foretold Samson’s arrival and Nazirite expectations. Now we move quickly to Samson’s birth and youth.And the woman bore a son...
July 21, 2024
After Samson’s mother recounts to Samson’s father the visit from the angel, he needs to hear it for himself. So the next time the angel appears, she (her name is never given) gets Samson’s father,...
July 15, 2024
Before Samson is born, his mother knows he’s coming because of her interaction with an angel, and she knows there are great expectations for him. Now she tells her husband, repeating to him Samson’s...
July 8, 2024
Roughly two to three generations after the experiences of Jepthah, we have the story of another Judge, Samson. Israel had predictably followed the pattern laid out earlier in the Book of Judges and “...
June 30, 2024
I’ve spent the first half of 2024 drawing lessons from two of the leaders that “judged” or led Israel, Gideon and Jephthah, during Israel’s cycles of sin, oppression, repentance, and deliverance, as...
June 23, 2024
My last reflection was on Jephthah’s tragic vow and how the negative family cycle is occurring within the broader societal and spiritual cycle of Israel. Now we look at the last significant act of...
June 16, 2024
Jephthah, disowned by his family, is later sought out by Gilead’s leaders and promised the top position — if he returns to fight against the invading Ammonite army. He accepts, has some arguments...
June 9, 2024
Jephthah, the son of a prostitute, who has been kicked out of his family’s house and is living in another country, is now asked by Gilead’s elders to lead the battle against the Ammonities. He points...
June 2, 2024
Sixty years after Gideon, Israel is repeating the cycle of worshipping false gods, and is again in dire straits. In particular, the people living in Gilead are being ruled by the Ammonites, who use...