Delilah: lessons about temptations, sin and its consequences

A person’s greatest achievement may be helping others. Some people may prevent others from achieving great things. The story of Samson and Delilah is a well known one. Delilah is the harlot of an unknown nationality who used her beauty to betray Samson, her lover, and played the fool three times as she tried to find the secret to Samson’s strength, until she ultimately achieved her goal. She played a minor role in Samson’s story; but her minor role had devastating results. Motivated by greed, Delilah used Samson’s infatuation with her to her advantage. Blinded by his love and possibly his pride, Samson was weakened to the warning signs. Their story is told in Judges 16:4-22. Who was Delilah? What is the theme and warning of their story? What lessons can we learn from the story of Delilah and Samson? 

The five Philistine kings hated Samson, the long-haired strongman, who had set their fields on fire (Judges15:4-5) and slain a thousand men (Judges 15:8). Each offered a lot of money to Delilah to find the secret to Samson’s strength. She had her beauty and skills as a prostitute to weaken him, she knew Samson would tell her and eventually he did. Three times, she asked him the secret, and three times he told her lie after lie, until she had enough. She pouted and proclaimed if he really loved her, he would tell her the truth. Her nagging finally wore him down and he told her the truth: his hair. When he fell asleep, she cut his hair and woke him up as the Philistines attacked. He woke up to fight back as he always had but he was unable to subdue them and he was easily overtaken. They gouged his eyes out and imprisoned him. The Bible doesn’t mention Delilah again. But it’s not the end of Samson’s story. He would eventually gain his strength and kill more Philistines with his death than he did in life. 

One main theme in Delilah’s story is temptation and the dangers of an unhealthy relationship. An interesting note: the meaning of her name seems to mean, “night” from the Hebrew word, layla, as Samson’s name, Shimshon, means “sun.” “As night overcomes the mighty sun, so Delilah overcomes the apparently invincible strongman, Samson” (Exum). A clue to the dangers of their relationship? Judges 16:4 states that Samson loved Delilah, but not that she loved him back. Perhaps, a hint that she truly did not care for him and had no qualms about betraying him (Exum). She makes no pretense of her intentions to find out Samson’s secret. Three times she asks and three times there is an attempt to overcome him. So why did he finally reveal the truth? The story of Samson and Delilah is a warning about being careful of the company you keep. As 1 Corinthians 15:33 says, “Do not be misled: Bad company corrupts good character.” Delilah was a bad influence who wore Samson down to reveal his story, despite all the signs, all the red flags (Bolinger, 2020). 

There are many lessons in her story. First, be careful with temptations, especially sexual temptations. Sex creates a “two-becoming-one” bond (Genesis 2:24) which is very difficult and painful to separate (Bolinger, 2020). Second, we need to be careful who we place our trust. We need to make sure that a person is trustworthy. It is a lesson we continually learn throughout our lifetime. We cannot let our guard down. Samson let his guard down and let Delilah impair his judgment to eventually reveal his greatest weakness (Bolinger, 2020). Third, sins have consequences, even forgiven sins. Samson suffered the consequences for his lapse in judgment. According to John Piper (1991), there are many goals for God-sent consequences for forgiven sins, one being the consequences are to humble and sanctify the sinner. As Hebrews 12:6 says, “Because the Lord disciplines those he loves, and punishes everyone he accepts as a son.” When we come to the Lord to confess sins and seek forgiveness, he promises to no longer remember our sins (Isaiah 43:25). We must remember that consequences from sin are not an indication that God is angry.” (Stanley, 2015).

In conclusion, the story of Delilah and Samson is an example to be careful about the people we trust and the relationships we engage in. Not all people have our best interests at heart and not all relationships are good for us. Their story is also another example that God loves us and will not abandon us even when we make mistakes, even when we sin. Delilah was motivated by greed and used her sexual hold on Samson to gain the information she needed. Samson was blinded to the warnings and red flags before his ultimate downfall. While he was physically blinded, he sought his strength one more time, for God to remember him (Judges 16:28). God can help us turn a bad situation to good for his glory. All we need to do is turn to him and seek his guidance. 

References

Bolinger, Hope (January 6, 2020). Who Was Delilah in the Bible?. Christianity.com. https://www.christianity.com/wiki/bible/who-was-delilah-in-the-bible.html. Retrieved March 24, 2021. 

Exum, J. Cheryl (no date). Delilah: Bible. Jewish’s Women Archive. https://jwa.org/encyclopedia/article/delilah-bible. Retrieved March 24, 2021. 

Piper, John (August 26, 1991). Consequences of Forgiven Sin. Desiring God. https://www.desiringgod.org/articles/consequences-of-forgiven-sin. Retrieved March 24, 2021. 

Stanley, Charles J. (January 16, 2015). Forgiveness and Consequences. In Touch Ministries. https://www.intouch.org/read/forgiveness-and-consequences. Retrieved March 24, 2021.