Delilah: The Woman Who Betrayed Her Husband for Silver

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Delilah
Delilah: The Woman Who Betrayed Her Husband for Silver
A woman like Delilah is the last person a devoted mother would choose for her only begotten man-child.
But if Samson had fallen in love with a nice girl from home, there would have been no story. And my, my,
was there ever a story. (6)
Her names
Key
Scriptures
Promises In
Scripture
Her name means “dainty one”
Judges 16:4-22
Psalm 25:7, Psalm 145:13-14, I Thessalonians 5:24
Her Background, Life and Times
Hair: Samson’s hair obviously plays a key role in the story of his rise to power and his fall from grace.
He had grown it long, plaited in seven braids, as a result of a Nazarite vow (for more on this read
Numbers 6). (1)
Hair: In biblical times the Israelites - both male and female - wore their hair long. Barbers existed
(Ezekiel 5:1), but they apparently trimmed hair rather than cut it short. (13)
Family Connections: The Bible gives us no knowledge of her parentage and background save that
she came from the valley of Sorek which extended from near Jerusalem to the Mediterranean. (2)
Nazarite Vow: An ordinary person could dedicate himself or herself to a life of special holiness,
vowing not to drink alcohol or touch grape products, by letting his or her hair grow uncut, and by
staying away from dead bodies. This vow was for a limited period, at the end of which special
sacrifices were to be offered. The Nazarite vow conveyed several powerful messages to Israel. While
God’s people were all holy, individuals had the opportunity for personal commitment to an even more
holy lifestyle. This opportunity was open to all. The extensive regulations concerning the Nazarite
make it clear that commitment to God is an exceptionally serious matter, not to be entered into or
broken lightly. Today every Christian is holy through is or her participation in Christ. And each of us
is invited to make a personal commitment to live the most holy life possible, in honor of our Lord. (8)
Nazarite: Nazarites were men and women devoted to special service to God, either through their
own vow or that of their parents. There were three special rules observed by nazarites: to abstain
from wine or any fruit of the vine; not to allow one’s hair to be cut; and not to go near a dead body,
even that of a family member (Numbers 6:2-7). Nazarites who accidentally came into contact with a
corpse had to perform an elaborate purification ritual to become reconsecrated. Most nazarites served
for a limited period, both others occupied this holy state for their entire lives. The most famous was
Samson, who was declared a nazarite by an angel before his birth. Samson broke every one of his
vows. He took part in a drinking feast, touched the body of a dead lion, and revealed the secret of his
strength to Delilah by declaring, “If my head were shaved, then my strength would leave me” (Judges
16:17) - thus causing his hair to be cut off. (13)
Banquets: (Judges 14:10)The Hebrew word for banquet is misteh, which means “drink” as well as
“feast.” Ancient banquets were festive occasions, at which the drinking of wine had an important place
(John 2:1-11). While a banquet might be held to mark a child’s coming of age (Genesis 21:8) or a son’s
return (Luke 15:23), the most common occasion for celebration was the wedding. Wedding feast
typically lasted several days, during which the bride and groom were honored with much music,
dancing, and laughter. Good-natured word games were played, riddles asked, and the cares of daily life
were generally set aside. (8)
Money: The price the Philistines offered for the secret of Samson’s strength was princely: some 28
pounds of silver from each of the five Philistine rulers, a fortune in those days. (8)
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Delilah
House of her own: She had a house of her own, a rare distinction unless she was independently
wealthy (meaning the bride that followed wouldn’t have had nearly as much appeal). Or she could
have been a widow. Or a prostitute. (6)
Riddles: (Judges 14:12) The ancient world enjoyed word games and riddles, though in Hebrew
culture riddles seemed to probe life’s more important questions (I Kings 10:1, Psalm 49:4). The wager
made Samson’s riddle serious indeed: linen garments were expensive, and a person usually would have
only one set of “Sunday Best” which the word for “clothes” here implies. Samson’s unfriendly
challenge led to threats against his bride, and ultimately to many deaths. How much better it would
have been if Samson had called out troops and faced the Philistines in battle. (8)
Betrothal and Marriage: ...It should not be surprising to find that within Israel the father was
generally the one who arranged marriages for both sons and daughters. ... Samson asked his mother
and father to get him his bride and the two of them objected to his choice of a Philistine girl. (Judges
14:1-4) (9)
Betrothal and Marriage: (Judges 14:7-8) About a year usually elapsed between betrothal and
marriage, though this was not always the case. The expression “after a time,” literally, after days, is
sometimes equivalent to a year. (10)
Her Character
Harlot: A harlot whose nationality is unknown, she used her beauty to betray her lover and enrich
herself. (1)
Female Judas: Delilah was a woman who used her personal charm to lure a man to his spiritual and
physical destruction, and she stands out as one of the lowest, meanest women of the Bible - the female
Judas of the Old Testament. (2)
Treacherous: She and womanly honor and love had never met, for behind her beautiful face was a
heart as dark as hell, and full of viperous treachery. Her supreme wickedness lay not in betraying
Samson to his enemies but in causing him to break faith with his ideals. (2)
Deluding Samson into believing she really loved him, Delilah sold him to blindness, bondage and
death. The ease with which she betrayed her husband revealed that she belonged to the enemies of
God’s people, the people of whom Samson was the recognized leader at that time. (2)
Unrepentant: There is no evidence that Delilah was deeply repentant for her crime. (2)
Greedy: This Philistine courtesan was a woman of unholy persistence and devilish deceit, who had
personal charm, mental ability, self-command, and nerve, but who used all her qualities for one
purpose - money.
The lords of the Philistines offered an enormous sum as a bribe, namely, 1,100 pieces of silver.
Jesus was sold by Judas for only 30 pieces of silver. Such a fortune was no small temptation to Delilah,
and sharing her tempters’ passion for revenge, she set about, in a subtle way, to earn the price of
blood. (2)
Greedy: Notice that they went to her directly. Not to her father, her brother, her husband, or her son,
as would have been customary. Straight to Delilah. Our 21st century ears don’t perk up at that, but
they should. Women of the time weren’t famous for their financial acumen. Something shady was
going on, and the fewer people involved, it seemed, the better. Notice that they didn’t appeal to her
intellect or her sense of patriotism. They didn’t entreat her with promises of physical pleasure. They
didn’t aim for her tender woman’s heart either. They trained their oil lams on her own weakness greed and took careful aim with a loaded coin. (6)
Outspoken: Give the woman credit for one thing: She didn’t water down her request. Delilah laid
the grisly goal right out there - “so you can be subdued.” (Judges 16:6). (6)
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Delilah
Pawn: Betraying Samson wasn’t Delilah’s idea. Yes, she bought into it - literally - but the money led
directly back to the Philistine heads of state. They were the ones who planted the seeds of betrayal in
her heart. (6)
Vain: The reputation of Delilah as one who could lure a man must have been known far and wide.
The Philistine leaders appealed to her vanity and her confidence in handling the opposite sex. (6)
Beautiful: She must have been quite a looker to capture Samson’s eye and heart. That she was a
fallen woman of loose morals we have not doubt, since Samson spent time alone with her in her inner
chamber - something Good Girls didn’t do. Samson could have had any woman he wanted, and he
wanted Delilah, even though we see no evidence that she had a charming personality, great wit,
boundless compassion, or gentle affection. Only one explanation remains: She was an extraordinary
beauty who knew how to display her body, hair, and face to snare a man’s heart. (6)
Her Sorrow
Samson: We cannot, of course, write of Delilah without mentioning Samson. What a contrast they
present, and how symbolic they are of characters in the world today! Samson was physically strong but
morally weak. Although able to rend a lion, he could not fight his lusts. He could break his bonds, but
not his habits. He could conquer Philistines but not his passions. (2)
Samson: That Samson lied to her, making her look foolish on three difference occasions. (1)
Her Joy
Power: That she overpowered one of history’s most powerful men, handing him over to his enemy,
the Philistines. (1)
Her Promises, Her Lessons, Her Legacy
God’s Ultimate Purpose: The strange story of Samson and Delilah is hardly edifying. It’s tempting
to conclude that the selfish, ill-disciplined Samson had finally met his match in the greedy Delilah. A
visitation by an angel, the gift of supernatural strength, a prophetic destiny - such obvious blessings
could not assure Samson’s devotion. Why would God use such a man, enabling him to become a judge
in Israel? What a contrast to Deborah, who had ruled Israel a century earlier! Perhaps God had little
promising material to choose from, given the state of his people during an era of Israel’s history where
“everyone did as he saw fit” (Judges 21:25). If anything, Delilah’s role in this sordid tale assures us that
God will use anything and anyone to accomplish his purpose. Even our sin. Even our enemies. Our
deliverance is purely a matter of grace. But how much better if we become people set apart for his
service, whose inner strengths match our outer strengths, enabling us to live out our destiny assured of
God’s pleasure. (1)
God’s Love: Even this sordid story of Delilah and her Hebrew lover, Samson, conveys an important
truth: God loves us and will not abandon us even when we make mistakes, even when we sin. Over
and over through the biblical narrative, we see God using people who are great sinners, people who are
less than perfect, people who through their own folly fail and only then recognize their need of him.
He didn’t abandon people like Samson, foolish and sinful though he was, and he won’t abandon us,
foolish and sinful though we might be. (1)
Feminine Charms: True feminine charm and the appeal of love are gifts received from the Creator,
and that when these fairest and most effective of gifts are misused or deliberately trifled with, divine
retribution overtakes those who prostitute such gifts. (2)
The folly of being unequally yoked: Samson married outside his own country, people, and religion.
Had Samson, hero of Israel, married an Israelites maiden, the tragedy overtaking him would never have
happened. But he took to wife a devotee of a heathen god which, for a judge of Israel, was against the
divine decree, and he paid the fatal price of his action. (2)
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Delilah
The love of a man is to be treasured: Proverbs 31:11 (The heart of her husband trusts in her.)
When men declare their love for us, we should handle them with utmost care, even if the feelings aren’t
mutual. (6)
Silver and gold aren’t very good company: Proverbs 22:1 (To be esteemed is better than silver or
gold.) What Delilah gained in goods she surely lost in relationships. The same thing can happen to us
when we pursue a materialistic life style and leave behind dear friends in our frenzy of accumulation. (6)
Weaknesses need to be strengthened, not exposed: 2 Corinthians 12:10 (That is why, for Christ’s
sake, I delight in weaknesses ... For when I am weak, then I am strong.) On purpose of by mistake, the
people we’re closest to eventually reveal their vulnerable spots and weaknesses. We need to fight the
urge to use that knowledge against them as a weapon for public embarrassment, even in jest. (6)
For a happy home, keep your scissors our of reach: Proverbs 14:1 (The wise woman builds her
house, but with her own hands the foolish one tears hers down.) We might not chop off all seven
braids at once, thereby reducing our man’s power to nil, but how many among us have snip-snipsnipped at our man’s sense of worth and value by undermining him with not-so-gentle jabs at his
masculinity? (6)
Bibliography:
Source 1. Women of the Bible: A one-Year Devotional Study of Women in Scripture By Ann
Spangler & Jean E. Syswerda, Zondervan Publishing House, Grand Rapids, Michigan, 1999, ISBN: 0310-22352-0
Source 2. All the Women of the Bible by Herbert Lockyer, Zondervan Publishing House, Michigan,
ISBN 0-310-28151-2
Source 3. she shall be called Woman by Frances Vander Velde, Kegel Publications, Grand Rapids,
Michigan, 1957, ISBN:0-8254-4003-3
Source 4. Women of Character Broadman & Holman Publishers, Nashville, Tennessee, 1998 ISBN:
0-8054-9277-1)
Source 5. Great Women of the Bible by Clarence Edward Macartney, Baker Book House, Grand
Rapids, Michigan, 1942, ISBN: 0-8010-5901-5
Source 6. Bad Girls of the Bible and What We can Learn From Them By Liz Curtis Higgs,
Waterbrook Press, Colorado Springs, Colorado, 1999, ISBN: I-57856-125-6
Source 7: Women Who Loved God By Elizabeth George, Harvest House Publishers, Eugene,
Oregon, 1999, ISBN: 1-56507-850-0
Source 8: The Bible Reader’s Companion By Lawrence O. Richards, Chariot Victor Publishing,
Wheaton Illinois, 1991, ISBN: 0-89693-039-4
Source 9: Man and Woman in Biblical Perspective by James B. Hurley, Academie Books,
Zondervan Publishing House, Grand Rapids Michigan, 1981, ISBN: 0-310-42731-2
Source 10: Manners and Customs of the Bible, By James M. Freeman, Whitaker House, New
Kensington, PA, 1996, ISBN: 0-88368-290-7
Source 11: Archaeology and Bible History, By Joseph P. Free, Zondervan Publishing House,
Grand Rapids, Michigan, 1992, ISBN: 0-310-47961-4
Source 12: 30 Days to Understanding The Bible, By Max Anders, Word Publishing, Dallas, 1994, ISBN: 08499-3489-3
Source 13: Illustrated Dictionary of Bible Life and Times, Barbara J. Morgan, Editor, Reader’s
Digest, The Reader’s Digest Association, Inc. Pleasantville, NY, 1997
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