At the time before there was a king in Israel, Samson arose as a judge and spent his life wiping out the Philistines, one episode after another. After having killed a lion with his bare hands, he later came upon the carcass and it was full of bees which had made honeycomb and was dripping with the sweet honey. From this experience he thought of a riddle with which to trick the Philistines that should attend his wedding to a beautiful Philistine woman.
“…Out of the eater came forth meat, and out of the strong came forth sweetness…” Judges 14:14
Do we remember that the Philistines occupied in part what today is called Gaza? The town of Timnah, where the wedding was to take place, was located a few miles east of what today is Gaza.
It comes to mind that Judah was called a lion in the blessing given to him by his father, Jacob. Judah was to hold the kingship of Israel and rule like a lion. But what we see today is appearing to be an almost dead lion. What will happen if the lion is killed? What then? Will sweetness come from the carcass? Let’s look a little deeper.
What we see in modern Israel is a political government that is not concerned with its mandates from its covenant the God of Heaven. This is the lion we see trying to fight with all the worldly power it can muster, trying to satisfy the different nations that supply weapons and yet subjugate themselves to the foreign policy of nations who care nothing for Israel–those who wield world power at the touch of a switch, and we see our nation “going along to get along.” Perhaps this lion will die. Then what?
Could we even imagine that something could happen then to help Israel in its most trying time? Is there Anyone watching this struggle? Anyone in the Heavens who might just be ready to take the reins when all seems lost? Will there yet be a sweetness that exudes from this dead lion? Wouldn’t it be better if we were not looking to might and power but to something else?
“Then he answered and spoke unto me, saying, This is the word of the LORD unto Zerubbabel, saying, Not by might, nor by power, but by my spirit, saith the LORD of hosts.” – Zec 4:6
Few know what it means to depend on El Shaddai, and even those may wring their hands in fear of what is coming upon the world and especially what will happen to those in this land given and promised to God’s people. It is mandatory that we take heart at this time.
It will get very ugly before it gets over. Maybe it should get over, the sooner the better. We need to stop being led by those who think like the world thinks, however wise that may seem. What if we had pure faith (Emunah if you will) in YHVH and His great power? Will He let us down? Where are we in the line up of what is happening to bring about the Divine plan for this world? How does Israel play a part in this? Do we fight like the nations, or do we march out with trumpets blowing when we hear a sound in the mulberry trees?
“And it shall be, when you hear the sound of marching in the tops of the mulberry trees, then you shall advance quickly. For then the LORD will go out before you to strike the camp of the Philistines.” – 2Sa 5:24.
But we are a long way from that type of trust. Why do we tremble? Is it because we have never seen the Hand of Providence guiding our lives? Is it because we remember pogroms, Holocaust, and the Kristanacht? Where was God during those times? Maybe somehow we were in the wrong places or worse yet, that we were not listening to Him?
Maybe these terrible tragedies should tell us something. Maybe we need to step back and ask who we are following in our religion? Who wrote the instructions? When did we deny our Creator to go after a strange doctrine?
The way I see it is that we follow the nations because we believe there is more wisdom and skill than that offered by the ONE who made a Covenant with us about land and protection and about raising us up to be a Holy Nation.
What would happen if we really knew the God of Israel? Would He come alongside and win the war for us so that we could go out with tambourines and march (dance perhaps) to the sound in the myrtle trees?
Judah, “you’ve come a long way, Baby” but maybe in the wrong direction.
In hopes of a new day after the storm…
Ariella
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