Probably The Chosen One

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As she gently lathered the baby’s body with soap, she must have crooned a soft tune, a song she made up. Its lyrics said her son was a special boy. There’d been a prophecy about his birth. He would stand for freedom. As she generously smeared his chubby body with olive oil, she must have told him, even though he could not understand, that he was a child of promise. Not ordinary, like the son of Machir. Or like Mahlah, daughter of Hepher. Or even like any other child in the clan.

As she carefully combed his long, lustrous locks, she must have chuckled at his impatience, as he shifted on the wooden stool, eager to be done with her so he could go and play. She reminded him of who he was: of the land of Zorah, of the tribe of Dan, the son of Manoah.

The Chosen One.

Hair hanging low, way past his back. Unable to drink as his friends did. Strict diet—no unclean thing. These words must have reverberated in his head as the boy grew into a man. Sometimes, I wonder about him. They tell us he was a careless man. That he had all the power and the opportunity but he squandered them on women and fornication; loose talk and pride. But I think there was more to him.

I see Samson.

A man on whose shoulders rested a great responsibility, long before his birth. Yes, he was given the ability but he was still a man. I see the heaviness that came from all that expectation.

His parents.

His extended family.

His clan.

His government.

They all wanted something from him. To be their freedom fighter. Liberator. Judge. I see the weight of those expectations making him bow. He must have felt he wasn't his own man, allowed to be himself. Maybe he wanted to be a musician not a judge. Maybe he didn't really want to obey this Yahweh who had chosen him. Maybe he just wanted to be left alone.

Maybe this is why Samson rebelled.

Ate honey from a dead animal. Unclean, forbidden.

Consorted with and married a Philistine woman. Heavily frowned upon.

Slept with prostitutes. How disappointed, his parents must have been.

And finally, he willingly gave up to the Philistines not just his power but his sight and Israel’s hope of independence from oppression. They say he was reckless, wanton, unwise. I say he was...yes. He was also a man trapped, possibly misunderstood, maybe acting out. And just as flawed as the rest of us.

Probably.



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