Judges 15 Summary - 5 Minute Bible Study

Judges 15 Summary - A Quick Overview

WHEN:

• Most scholars place the period of the Judges between 1450 B.C. and 1000 B.C.

• Most scholars place Samson’s life between 1175 and 1075 B.C.

CHARACTERS:

• Samson – The 13th judge of Israel. His birth was announced by the angel of the Lord. He was a Nazarite from birth (Num 6).

• The Philistines – God allowed the Philistines to oppress Israel for 40 years when the Israelites broke their covenant with the Lord.

• 300 Foxes – Samson used 300 foxes to avenge himself on the Philistines.

WHERE:

• Samson’s parents lived in Zorah, a city in the territory of Dan.

• Samson’s wife and father-in-law lived in Timnah.

• Samson killed 1,000 Philistines at Lehi.

OUTLINE:

• FOXES AND FIRE (15:1-8):

  • After some days, Samson went to visit his wife at her father’s house, but her father wouldn’t allow it.

  • Evidently, when Samson left the wedding feast in a rage (14:19), his father-in-law assumed he no longer wanted his wife and proceeded to give her to another man.

  • Samson was furious and he went out to get revenge on the Philistine people.

  • He caught 300 foxes and tied their tails together with a torch in-between. He then released the flaming foxes into the Philistines’ crops.

  • When the Philistines found out it was Samson who burned down their crops, they killed his wife and father-in-law.

  • Samson fought with the Philistines and “struck them hip and thigh with a great blow” (meaning he won handily).

• THE SPIRIT OF GOD AND THE JAWBONE OF A DONKEY (15:9-20):

  • The Philistines wanted Samson dead, so they camped in Judah and prepared a raid on the city of Lehi.

  • The Israelites in the area sent 3,000 men to bind Samson and turn him in.

  • Samson allowed them to arrest him, bind him with 2 new ropes, and give him over to the Philistines.

  • As soon as the Philistines came out to meet him at Lehi, the Spirit of the Lord came on Samson, he broke free of his bonds, and killed 1,000 Philistine men with the jawbone of a donkey.

  • After the battle, God provided water for Samson by splitting open a hollow place at Lehi.

  • Samson judged Israel for 20 years (15:20).

APPLICATION:

• When you read the text of the Bible for yourself, you find out that many of the famous Bible characters weren’t anything close to perfect men.

• In fact, you might find their lives shockingly full of shortcomings when compared to the stories you heard about them in Sunday school as a child.

• In this case, Samson got into trouble with the Philistines because he married one of them, which was forbidden by God.

• If you read the record of the life of Jacob, you’ll find out he had plenty of faults.

• The Old Testament records how God used imperfect men to accomplish His will.

• The only perfect man appears in the New Testament. Jesus was the only perfect man.

• Jesus is the man to idolize.

• As much as we admire some of God’s servants in the Old Testament, they were nothing compared to Jesus.