Samson's Hair (part 2 of 2)

Samson’s hair becomes a mark of the Creator God’s covenant with him and with his parents.  Like Israel’s covenant markers, not cutting his hair was to be taken as a signal of their collective faithfulness to the covenant that their God had taken the initiative to enter into with them.  If Samson is a microcosm of Israel, then there should be other points of contact between his story, especially related to his covenant marker, and that of Israel.  What happens when Samson’s hair is cut?  The story reports that the Lord left Him, he had his eyes gouged out, he was bound in chains, and he was deported to the land of the Philistines. 

How does this relate to Israel?  The nation to which the Creator God referred as His firstborn son, that had been so improbably brought to birth through the events of the Egyptian exodus (as improbably as Abraham and Sarah having a child in their old age and as improbably as an infertile woman giving birth), was given instructions as to how to live so that they may appropriately represent their God to and in and for the world.  Though there is a large number of specific instructions to Israel, the primary instructions that will mark them out as the people of the Creator God are recorded in Leviticus.  There they are instructed: “You must not make for yourselves idols, so you must not set up for yourselves a carved image or a pillar, and you must not place a sculpted stone in your land to bow down before it, for I am the Lord your God.  You must keep My Sabbaths and reverence My sanctuary.  I am the Lord” (26:1-2).  

As Samson’s hair was the response of his parents and himself to the Creator God’s covenant, so too was following these basic provisions laid out in Leviticus Israel’s response to God’s covenant with them.  It demands to be noted that it is neither a refrain from hair cutting nor the adherence to what is detailed in Leviticus that brings one in to covenant with the Creator God of Israel, but rather, it is the keeping of these things that is the glad response to the covenant activity of that God. 

What would happen to Israel if they failed to keep that which was their required response?  What if they worshiped idols, violated the Sabbaths and did not reverence the sanctuary?  Would their God cut them off and have nothing to do with them?  No, such would not be the response.  Rather, the Creator God promised that He would execute disciplinary judgment according to His covenant requirements and in accordance with the fact that He was recognizing them and establishing them as His covenant people. 

This is detailed in the same chapter in Leviticus, wherein the Creator God promises that horror, consumption, and fever will be visited upon His covenant people if they fail to live up to their obligations.  He promises that seed will be sown in vain and that enemies will eat whatever happens to be produced through that vain sowing.  He promises to set His face against His people and to strike them down before their enemies, as they are ruled over by those who hate them (26:16-17).  The afflictions go on and on and culminate with “You will perish among the nations; the land of your enemies will consume you” (26:38).  Israel is also promised that the horrors that their God will inflict will serve to “diminish eyesight and drain away the vitality of life” (26:16b). 

Is this not, along with the fact that Samson was ruled over by his enemies, almost precisely what is reported to have happened to Samson when he forsakes (though he did not actually cut off his own hair) the mark of his God’s covenant with him?  However, that same God also promises that “I will remember for them the covenant with their ancestors whom I brought out from the land of Egypt” (26:45a), doing so “when they confess their iniquity and their ancestors’ iniquity which they committed by trespassing against Me” (26:40a). 

In the end, Israel’s God promises to bring them back to their promised land.  In much the same way, even though Samson has been bound, and even though the Levitical curses have devolved upon him, “His hair began to grow back after it had been shaved off” (16:22). As the Creator God would not forget His people, so He had not forgotten Samson.  With words that hearken back to the Creator’s remembering of His covenant with Israel, Samson, having been placed before the Philistines, having apparently and to some extent realized his failures, and having devised a rather interesting “exit strategy,” cries out “O Master, Lord, remember Me!  Strengthen me just one more time, O God, so I can get swift revenge against the Philistines for my two eyes!” (16:28) 

With that, Samson brought the house down upon himself and the Philistines.  Thus he perished among the nations, and was consumed within the land of his enemies; and thus, though a deliverance from the Philistines is brought about through his actions, the note of personal revenge has been struck, and Samson, though the symbol of his God’s covenant with him had begun to reappear (his hair growing back), dies along with the Philistines.  He does not experience a return to the land, but dies in his bondage.  Maddeningly and enigmatically, so ends the story of Samson.     

Justified By Faithfulness (part 3)

In turn, the people of the Creator God would point to their covenant-making-and-keeping God as the source of all blessing, bringing Him glory through reflecting His glory into the world, and causing all peoples and all of creation to desire the blessings of His covenant as well.  It would be communicated and understood that these blessings could be had by submitting to the requirements of the covenant and thereby joining with the covenant people.  This submission to and adherence to the requirements of covenant would confer a positive covenant status.  Therefore, a person would be justified.  That person would be looked upon, by the Creator God, as being righteous.  That person would have received his or her justification.  

What were the additional requirements that were put upon the Creator God’s covenant people in association with the law that was delivered to them with a charge to keep?  The requirements are summed up quite nicely and succinctly in the twenty-sixth chapter of Leviticus.  There the covenant God says, “You must not make for yourselves idols, so you must not set up for yourselves a carved image or a pillar, and you must not place a sculpted stone in your land to bow down before it, for I am the Lord your God.  You must keep My Sabbaths and reverence My sanctuary.  I am the Lord” (26:1-2). 

So to break it down to basics, and realizing that the requirements of the law were expected to be kept (and probably could be met), the covenant people of the Creator God (reiterating here) are instructed to avoid idolatry, to keep the Sabbaths (feasts/set times), and to reverence His sanctuary (tabernacle and temple).  Following that, for the remainder of the same chapter, their God outlines curses and blessings to be experienced for either obedience or disobedience to these basic principles.  This can be observed again in the later chapters of Deuteronomy.  This repetition is far more extensive, though it comes without a repetition of the three fundamental issues that prefaced the Levitical presentation.  There, the Creator God simply speaks of following His commandments that He had delivered to those that had been charged to carry out His will in and for the world.             

It must be said that, in each instance, the covenant that is set forth by the Creator God is based upon a belief in that God, in His power to perform, and in His faithfulness to carry out these covenants.  This belief, naturally, is set within a trust in that God.  Adam is presented as one that did not believe.  He is shown to be one that was faithless in regards to the first covenant.  With the Scriptural record as it is, one is left only to wonder at Adam’s response to the second covenant.  However, as Adam would begin to experience the corruption of his physical body as it moved towards the inevitable and promised death, along with the labor and toil with which he had to deal throughout his life because of the curse that was said to be placed upon the ground, it can be imagined that he was moved to a position of trusting belief in the God of covenants. 

Noah, in contrast to Adam, is said to have been righteous, somehow believing in the word of the Creator God before the promised flood would come, so it is reasonable to presume that he believed his God and took Him at His word, with this being especially so after the promise had come to pass.  It is said that Abraham believed God, and that this was counted for him as “righteousness” or “justification.”  As it would ultimately be the case for Israel and renewed Israel post-Christ, it was his belief that brought Abraham into a positive covenant standing, as this was the mark of the Creator God’s covenant with Him (though circumcision would be added).  This can basically be said to be true of Isaac and Jacob as well. 

Justified By Faithfulness (part 2)

Moving forward to Noah, one finds the actual first use of the word “covenant” (at least in terms of an English translation of Scripture).  The Creator God is reported to have judged the earth with a worldwide flood.  This actually allows an observer to see the two-fold nature of judgment.  In one sense, the judgment brought destruction, in that the God of creation destroyed all but eight people.  In the other sense, the positive side of judgment can be considered, as the same God’s judgment liberated the world (albeit temporarily) by purging from what was said to have become the overwhelming wickedness of man, and its effects, that had abounded upon it. 

So yes, the judgment of the covenant God can be both destructive and liberating, and every attempt should be made to see what type of judgment is being presented when read about in the Scriptures.  Following the flood, the Creator God is said to have made a covenant with Himself, with a man (Noah) presumably standing as witness, that He would never again bring about His judgment with a worldwide flood.  As there have been no additional worldwide floods, the history of mankind sets itself forth as clear demonstration that the Creator God has been faithful to this covenant.  Thus, the Creator God is righteous (faithful to His covenants).      

The next covenant to be found in Scripture was the one that is reported to have been struck with Abraham.  In that story, the Creator God entered into history and chose a man for Himself to bear the light of His glory to the world, to represent Him to all nations, and to be the progenitor of a people that would do the same.  The one that would eventually be known as the God of Israel (and often as the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob) said to Abraham (paraphrasing), “I will do this, and you will do that, and this will be the result.”  Additionally, his God gave to him (Abraham) the sign of the covenant, which was circumcision.  This covenant would be passed along through Abraham’s son Isaac, on to Isaac’s son Jacob, and on to Jacob’s progeny, which came to become known as the nation of Israel. 

In each instance, the passing along of the covenant included the Creator God’s foundational (again, paraphrased) statement of “I will do this, and you will do that, and this will be the result.”  With the nation of Israel itself, in its receipt of their God’s law at Mount Sinai following their exodus from Egypt, their God expanded and expounded upon what it was that He was requiring of His covenant holding, light-bearing and glory-reflecting people, asking them in no uncertain terms to take measures to dramatically set themselves apart from the peoples that they were going to encounter in the land that had been promised to Abraham and to them. 

These additional expectations were put in place because, presumably hearkening back to His covenant with Abraham, the Creator God desired to bless all peoples through His covenant people.  “Blessing” was a major component of the Abrahamic covenant.  This blessing of all peoples would be accomplished because the covenant God of creation was going to bless His covenant people if they fulfilled their end of the covenant.  If they fulfilled their end of the covenant by meeting the requirements that were set forth (primarily the issues of being circumcised, reverencing the sanctuary, keeping the Sabbaths, and not worshiping other gods), this would mean that they were “justified” before God.  They would be in right standing in relation to the covenant.  They would be considered to be righteous, and all peoples would then be able to see the blessings upon God’s covenant people and in turn be drawn to those same people.  

What Would God Have Me Do? (part 2 of 3)

It is possible then to see a picture of that God, entering into the pantheon of gods that are worshiped by the nations surrounding His people, all of which would, at some time, be worshiped by His people.  He stands in the midst of representations of these gods, looks around, holds out His arms and says, “How long will you continue showing favoritism to what is wicked?  How long will you worship these gods?” 

To the leaders of His people, the Creator God of Israel can be heard saying, “How long will you attempt to live and rule based on the subjective whims presented in the stories of these fickle and always changing gods?  If you are attempting to honor these gods, and to live and rule and judge by precepts that you believe will be pleasing to them, rather than based on the firm foundations of the covenant God that does not change, then you will forever be making legal decisions that are not just, but rather, unjust and capricious.  Because these gods represent wickedness, with stories of their rule full of pragmatism and a self-serving ethic, then your decisions will favor that which is wicked, because you are doing nothing more than following in the patterns of the myths of man-created gods, who have sprung from the imaginations of men that have been corrupted by evil.”  Clearly, this will not do for the people of the covenant God.  That God demands that His people act in justice. 

So much time and energy in wasted in the quest for an answer as to how the covenant God expects His people to live, when that God provides a straightforward response and merciful direction for the people that He chooses to carry out His plans and purpose for the creation.  After doing away with that which is purely pragmatic and self-serving, and by rendering His clear judgment on the gods that have been providing a faulty foundation for His people’s ongoing justification for not carrying out His purposes for them, Israel’s God sets forth His plan. 

Quite simply, He says, “Defend the cause of the poor and the fatherless!” (Psalm 82:3a)  Defend the cause of the poor and the fatherless.  Though poor is a highly fluid and relative term that is dependent on a number of subjective factors (though access to basic life necessities would be largely determinative of status in this area), “fatherless” is easily understood.  The Creator God expects His people to be an advocate for the orphaned and abandoned.  Orphans are extraordinarily close to the heart of the Creator God, an assertion which is borne out by the repetition of Scripture concerning the fatherless, and of the God of Scripture being their supporter through His people. 

This can be taken a step beyond the understanding of “fatherless” as referring to those that are orphans because they do not have an earthly father, with this conception carried into the spiritual realm as well.  Because Israel (and renewed Israel through the covenant of belief in Jesus) can look to and speak to the Creator God as their Father, those who stand outside of the covenant could be considered to be “fatherless.” 

How do the Creator God’s people defend the cause of and support and show concern for such fatherless ones?  They do so, naturally, both then and now, through the preaching the Gospel (Jesus is Lord) in both word and deed.  Prior to Jesus, Israel preached the Gospel (their God is Lord) by avoiding idolatry, reverencing their God’s sanctuary, and by keeping their God’s Sabbaths as they eventually came to look forward to a messiah through whom their God would put down evil and restore His creation.  In doing this, they were a light to all peoples for their God’s glory, and were blessed by their God in a way that was designed to draw people to Israel and to their God. 

Stop Sinning

Wash!  Cleanse yourselves!  Remove your sinful deeds from My sight.  Stop sinning! – Isaiah 1:16  (NET)

Earlier in this chapter, Isaiah writes that “The sinful nation is as good as dead, the people weighed down by evil deeds” (1:4a).  Furthermore, it can be learned that “They are offspring who do wrong, children who do wicked things” (1:4b).  This is clearly not good.  What’s more, “They have abandoned the Lord, and rejected the Holy One of Israel” (1:4c).  The result of this is that “They are alienated from Him” (1:4d).  Isaiah goes on to write about a dreadful and ghastly situation, in which it is said that the Creator God’s people “insist on being battered” (1:5a), while adding that it is as if their head has a massive wound (1:5b), and their whole body is weak (1:5c) with bruises and cuts and open wounds that have been left unattended (1:5d).  Worse than that, the devastation and desolation that has been brought about by their evil deeds, wicked things, abandoning and rejecting and being alienated from the Lord, means that their land has been devastated and burned with fire, that their crops have been destroyed by foreigners” (1:7). 

It is the midst of this that Israel’s God, through His prophet, tells His people to “Wash!  Cleanse yourselves!  Remove your sinful deeds from My sight.  Stop sinning!” (1:16)  A few lines later, their God gives His people comforting assurance, saying that “Though your sins have stained you like the color red, you can become white like snow; though they are as easy to see as the color scarlet, you can become like white wool” (1:18b). 

Furthermore, their God extends His mercy, telling His people that if they will simply “Stop sinning,” and rather, “have a willing attitude and obey, then you will again eat the good crops of the land” (1:19).  With such a will to obedience, God promises to reverse the curse on the land and the crops.  Though the covenant God has said “When you spread out your hands in prayer, I look the other way; when you offer your many prayers, I do not listen” (1:15a), we can imagine His reversing promises to extend to this as well. 

Here, one remembers God’s promise to Solomon at the dedication of the Temple, in which He is reported to have said, “if My people, who belong to Me, humble themselves, pray, seek to please Me, and repudiate their sinful practices, then I will respond from heaven, forgive their sin, and heal their land” (2 Chronicles 7:14).  This can be neatly harmonized with what is being said here in this first chapter of Isaiah.  Even though the Creator God has said that He will not hear His people’s prayers “because your hands are covered with blood” (1:15b), that He will wash away the stain to make them appear as white as wool.  Conversely, in the midst of the merciful extension of His grace, this God also warns His people, saying “But if you refuse and rebel, you will be devoured by the sword” (1:20a).  To this is appended the ominous and punctuating statement of “Know for certain that the Lord has spoken” (1:20b). 

Now, following the story arc of Scripture, one cannot help but know that the judgment that is promised to fall upon God’s people, according to the books of Deuteronomy and Leviticus, comes first and foremost because of idolatry (coincident with a failure to keep the Sabbaths and reverence the sanctuary, which would certainly be a by-product of idolatry).  Isaiah is apparently alluding to this here in this chapter.  Along with failing to keep the Sabbaths and reverence the sanctuary, idolatry (the divine-image-bearer worshiping the creation and therefore giving over his rightful dominion) most clearly represents their abandoning of their Lord and their rejection of their God.  However, here in Isaiah, there is more to be found. 

When the Creator God instructs His people to remove their sinful deeds and to stop sinning, calling them a sinful nation, saying that they are weighed down by evil deeds, doing wrong and wicked things, He goes on to give them and all that would read or hear these words an insight into what He had in mind.  Thus, one might be more than a bit surprised to read, “Learn to do what is right!  Promote justice!  Give the oppressed reason to celebrate!  Take up the cause of the orphan!  Defend the rights of the widow!” (1:17) 

Those are the words that follow the exhortation to stop their sinning.  That is what precedes the Creator God’s speaking about their being stained red with their sins that are red as scarlet.  It would seem that it is the failure to do these things that covered their hands with blood, that made their God refuse to hear their prayers, to hate their keeping of the feasts that He Himself had ordained and given to them, and to reject their sacrifices (1:11-15).  Apparently, it was the failure to do these things that caused their God to compare His own people to Sodom and Gomorrah (1:10) (the sin of Sodom and Gomorrah being oppression of orphans and widows, and the denial of justice, which is certainly well implied by the story of Lot as recorded in Genesis). 

The covenant people of the Creator God, according to Isaiah and their circumstances, were not doing what was right, in that they were defeating justice, causing the oppressed to mourn, turning away from the orphan, and casting off the widow.  In stark contrast to those things that so many generally want to classify as sins, it was these things that were their evil deeds.  This was their sin.  Ultimately, in this, they were failing to be God’s light.  Israel was failing to bear the image of their God.