Day 87: Judges 11-13

The older I get, the more the story of Samson bothers me. Why is so much of Judges devoted to his story, while an earlier judge who kills 2/3rds as many Philistines in a similar way merits only a brief mention? Why is he constantly chasing Philistine women around, when the command not to intermarry is so clear and he's set apart from God for purity before his birth? Why is his mother not named in the narrative, even though she seems to be the parent with any spiritual discernment? Why is the angel so shy about his name? Is it a pre-incarnate appearance of Christ? (He says his name is "secret" which could be translated "wonderful" - see Isaiah 9:6) He's in a short list with Isaac, John the Baptist and Jesus Himself of pre-announced births, but his life seems to mark a severe downturn in the already-depressing story of the Judges.

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