Judges 14

Timnah is now a ruins six miles (10 km) west of Samson’s hometown of Zorah. The ruin is called Tell el-Batashi.

That’s a whopper of an insult, associating Samson’s beloved with her daddy’s unacceptable penis. But that really wasn’t what he was talking about. Israelite boys were circumcised when they were eight days old. Though God made a contract agreement with Abraham to protect and prosper his descendants, every generation of males had to sign the contract like Abraham did—in blood, through the circumcision ritual. “This way, your bodies will carry your signature of the contract” (Genesis 17:13). Philistines were not in on that, and that’s what Sam’s dad was talking about. The Israelites were God’s people, and Philistines were not. Israelite ancestors of today’s Jewish people weren’t the only group practicing circumcision. Some Egyptian mummies from before the time of Abraham show evidence of circumcision. And there are Egyptian pictures of men getting circumcised before entering the priesthood. But Israelite circumcision was a uniquely religious ritual for every male in the nation, including their slaves.

In Israelite culture, marriage wasn’t just about the couple. Perhaps even more so, it was about the families of the couples, and how the marriage could make life better by alliances sealed with the marriage. For Samson to make marriage about his own happiness, he was perhaps more in touch with today’s culture than his own. In his culture, his blunt response to his parents is the first we see of his selfishness, which will continue throughout his story until he dies praying for revenge.

Some scholars say the Philistines more than dominated Israel. They say the Israelite people were in danger of becoming assimilated into Philistine culture. Samson changed that. Israelites were already breaking the laws of Moses by intermarrying with Philistines (Deuteronomy7:1-5). And here, at the first spark of daylight in the Iron Age, Philistines controlled the science of producing iron tools and weapons. Israelites had to get their metal plow tips and other tools made and repaired by Philistines (1 Samuel 13:19-20).

How did his parents miss seeing this? And why didn’t he tell them about it? We can only guess. His parents may have been traveling behind him at a slower pace. Why he didn’t tell them is a tougher question. This story about killing a lion seems to be something a person would brag about—especially someone as self-centered as the stories suggest Samson was. Perhaps Samson feared his parents would take the story as a bad omen, and a sign that God was against it. More guesses are welcome.

Eating honey seems innocent enough. But Samson broke several rules. First, he touched a dead animal, which rendered him ritually unclean. A person ritually unclean was not supposed to touch another person or go to the worship center because they ritually defiled whatever they touched. Israelites were able to get ritually clean again by following a set of procedures that included bathing, washing their clothes, getting sprinkled with “water of purification” (Numbers 19), and waiting for a stretch of time, often seven days. Second, Samson was a Nazirite living by rules that included: “Don’t touch a dead person…Stay ritually clean for as long as you devote yourself to God—for the duration of this special vow” (Numbers 6:6, 8). Third, he contaminated his parents. They presented him to God as a holy child, completely devoted to the LORD. But with a scoop of honey, he turned them unholy, and ritually unfit to worship God.

Samson’s father may have been negotiating or finalizing the marriage details. This often involved agreeing on a gift exchange. A groom would give a gift to his father-in-law to compensate him for the loss of his daughter’s help around the house. And the bride would bring a dowry to the marriage, whatever her father could afford or was willing to part with: jewelry, kitchen utensils, clothing.

Ashkelon was one of the five biggest Philistine cities, along with Ashdod, Ekron, Gath, and Gaza. Ashkelon was on the Mediterranean coast, roughly 20 miles (32 km) southwest of Timnah.

This might suggest the woman was still a virgin, since, in this patriarchal age, men didn’t seem especially interested in marrying used women—perhaps especially freshly used. The bride’s father may have insisted on the couple waiting to consummate the marriage until after the week of celebration. It’s unlikely Samson would have suggested that, given what the story will reveal about the animal instincts that drive him. It’s an odd combination. He’s sometimes driven by the LORD’s Spirit. Sometimes by sex. Sometimes by anger and revenge. And once by the consideration of others (15:11-13).