Don't Be Like Samson

There’s a famous scene in Judges chapter 16 where a prisoner who’s lost both of his eyes is standing between two pillars. 

The prisoner’s name is Samson. 

Samson calls out to the Lord, saying, “Lord God, remember me and strengthen me only this once, O God, so that with this one act of revenge I may pay back the Philistines for my two eyes.” (16:28) Then he reaches a hand out to each of those pillars, strains with all of his might, topples them, and brings down the building they supported. Three thousand Philistines died in all the destruction, as well as Samson.

Some people see this moment as Samson’s great act of deliverance for Israel from their Philistine oppressors. Yet, unlike with judges like Deborah, Gideon, and Jephthah, there’s no mention here that the land was at peace or that their enemies were subdued after Samson’s time. I don’t think of this as a great victory for Israel and the Lord. I tend to take the blind judge at his word here. Read his prayer again—this was purely an act of revenge, bloody payback for the people who gouged out his eyes.

There’s another scene, set over 1,000 years later, in Acts chapter 7, that maybe you’ve heard or read about before. A Christian man has been brought to his knees as rocks rain down on him, thrown by a frenzied mob. 

This Christian’s name is Stephen. 

And Stephen calls out to the Lord with one final prayer, too. He cries: “Lord, do not hold this sin against them.” (7:60) Then Stephen, like Samson, dies under a pile of stone.

Because other people exist, you probably find yourself in situations everyday where you can either respond to someone Samson-style, or with the grace of a Stephen. It may be in a fleeting spat, or it could be weeks, months, or years of conflict finally coming to a head. I think we all know that the goal is to be Stephen. But, in the heat of the moment, how are you supposed to overcome the big feelings and impulses inside that are ready to bring the building down on everyone’s heads?

I’m not so sure that Samson’s and Stephen’s last prayers were determined by the heat of the moment. I suspect that Samson’s and Stephen’s last prayers were really determined by the kinds of lives they lived up to that point.

Judges 16:28 was preceded by three chapters of self-indulgence, indifference to others, and casual violence. Samson burns down fields, beats people to death, abandons his wife, eats unclean honey, sleeps around, and does whatever else he wants. It’s no wonder he dies ruthlessly avenging himself.

Acts 7:60, on the other hand, was preceded by two chapters of feeding the hungry, caring for the overlooked, and pointing people to Jesus. Stephen’s life was centered on others, and so I’m not too surprised that his death was, as well. Who we strive to be, day-in, day-out, shapes who we’ll be in the heat of the moment. Stephen lived a life that was forming him into the kind of person who uses his last breath to pray for his murderers.

What kind of person are your routines, schedule, priorities, and lifestyle forming you into?

Do your everyday activities fuel your faith, hope, and love? Do your habits invite the Holy Spirit into your day? Do your goals treat others as more important than yourself?

Or do they reinforce attitudes and inclinations that, in the moment, can hinder your love for God and for your neighbors?

Don't just assume that you can live like Samson and turn out like Stephen. Most of following Jesus happens in the small moments and choices that make up a day. So take a closer look at those moments and choices. Be more deliberate with them. Because they'll decide what kind of person you're becoming.

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