There are a few directions I could go on Samson, first, I think this is the first time we have seen an angel of the Lord deliver a message. When Manoah asked his name the angel basically said you don't need to know is it is beyond your understanding. Interesting.
Second, Samson seems to have a few character flaws, he likes prostitutes, his picks for marriage are questionable, one was given to another by her family because they thought he didn't love her because he fooled them all with a riddle. A riddle? Then there's Delilah. She basically badgered him wanting know ways she could harm him and make him weak. It almost seemed like a cat and mouse game. Who was the cat and who was the mouse? After Delilah I wonder how smart he really was.
Third, there almost seems a message in here about talent. If you use your God given talent correctly, God can overlook some of those character flaws? Are we in charge of our own destiny? I am just questioning the fact that once Delilah cut his hair, God left him. But, Samson didn't cut his own hair, it wasn't his fault. Or do you think God thought "what a dumbass. he deserves what he gets"? I think Samson must have been a challenging person to deal with. One of those bad boys of the Bible.
Very interesting thoughts on poor old Samson. Remember as kids you were regaled with stories about this strong guy? The stories never mentioned his character flaws. He was not the perfect leader, but then Abraham wasn't either nor was Jacob and Gideon. I guess this all means that God isn't looking for perfection, merely obedience. You did mention that God left Samson once his hair was cut (which you said wasn't his fault. I beg to differ with you there. Of course it was his fault. He just had to tell from whence his strength came. Tsk tsk.) God really didn't leave Samson. He was there all along as his hair grew back. Would Samson have become the hero in the end, if he wasn't such a scoundrel?
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