Title: Samson's Revenge (Judges 15:1-8)
Contents Samson was relieved and tried to return to his former wife. Following that type of custom, he took the goat as a gift. But the result is only to discover that his bride has already been given to someone else. The father-in-law admitted his mistake to Samson and tried to appease him by giving him a younger daughter. But Samson was not satisfied with this.
1. Samson went back to his wife. By the time he cooled off his anger and went back, she had already been living with someone else. Not knowing this, I took a goat with me to seek a serious reconciliation. Perhaps at that time there was a custom of doing this as a sign of reconciliation when there was an argument. In fact, it was Samson who suffered the displeasure, so it would have been right for the woman to express reconciliation first and give it this way, but Samson was generous and did it himself first. When you have a quarrel over a close situation, the wisest and best way to reconcile is to first forgive the other and forget the hurt he has inflicted on you.
2. Samson was rejected. The father-in-law did not let her see her. Because it was the father-in-law who married her to another man. The craftsman made excuses. “I thought you hated him very much.” The father-in-law acknowledged Samson the Nazarite as a violent man like the Philistines. However, these words did not comfort Samson, but rather hurt him more. He offered to reward him by giving his younger daughter. He thought that Samson would get it because his younger daughter was handsome. So I tried to appease Samson. How blasphemous is the judgment and conduct of the father-in-law Samson criticized the father-in-law's offer. Because he knew God's law in Leviticus 18:18, "You shall not take your wife's sister".
4. The Philistines were furious with Samson and his father-in-law. When the Philistines knew that Samson was angry because of his father-in-law's mistake, and that this was the result, they burned all of Samson's wives and sisters and burned them to death. They dared not attack Samson, so they took revenge on his wife and father-in-law. Thus, he burned his wife and father-in-law to death and was punished for betrayal.
5. Samson took revenge against the Philistines (vv. 7-8) Now Samson went even further and took revenge on the Philistines for killing his wife and father-in-law. He literally said, “I slapped them in the ass and thighs. ” We can imagine that the wounds he inflicted on them must have been very fatal, so we translate here a great slaughter. They were crippled, like lame horses, or Samson beat them to the point where they couldn't work. Samson hit them with all his might, so they made a mess. Samson then took refuge in a safe place atop the rock of Etham to see what the Philistine's attitude would be toward his actions.