“His father went down to the woman, and there Shimshon gave a banquet — this is what the young men used to do. When the P’lishtim saw him, they provided thirty companions to be with him.”-Judges 14:10-11
It’s WEDDING time!
Except this was a wedding that never should have been.
In verse 10, we’re told the ceremony kicked off when Samson’s dad went down the aisle to greet and extend a hand of congratulations to Samson’s future bride.
Again, try to clearly imagine what’s going on here.
We have an Israelite family and a Philistine family coming together to celebrate a union forbidden by the Lord.
There was zero hint of tenseness in the air or that either of the two families were uncomfortable about the situation at all.
This absurd state of ease between Israel and her sworn enemies was the reason why the Lord was about to shake things up.
So we’re told a huge banquet was served and that “this is what the young men used to do”.
The “young men” here are NOT referring to Israelites.
Samson was in Philistine territory marrying a Philistine girl.
So this banquet was a Philistine thing, not Hebrew.
None of Samson’s Hebrew pals would have been present.
So to ensure the banquet wouldn’t be a lonely affair, out of hospitality the bride’s side of the family sent 30 Philistine male companions to attend.
Given all of the mixing going on between the Israelites and the Philistines, I think it’s safe to say Samson probably knew some of these men and no doubt would have been good friends with the best man.
Again, picture what’s going on here folks.
A large banquet…
Lots of delicious and probably un-kosher food…
Alcohol flowing like Niagra Falls…
It was the equivalent of a full-blown bachelor’s party in our day!
Except it didn’t just last for one day.
We’re talking about a 7-day long party here.
Now I know that sounds like a lot of fun.
But remember we’re talking about the ancient Middle East here folks.
There wasn’t some DJ spinning discs of the latest hot tunes for the people to boogie woogie to…
Nor was there a some big screen TV showing movies, sporting events or any other form of exciting entertainment.
And also consider that the nearest city was Ashkelon which was located miles away.
So it wasn’t like the party guests traveled back and forth from home every day over the 7-day period.
No, everyone was stuck with each other the whole time…which meant things could get a bit boring.
So what did the people in those days do for fun?
The answer in one word is…RIDDLES.
That’s right.
This was actually a popular party activity in those days.
People would kick back on their cozy cushions, get super drunk and entertain each other by telling riddles.
Speaking of getting drunk, the Scripture doesn’t specifically say that Samson drank alcohol.
Plus being a Nazarite, tradition forbade him from drinking any type of alcohol.
But that’s just tradition.
According to the Torah, a Nazir is only forbidden from drinking grape-based alcohol…like wine for instance.
Most Rabbis and some scholars will say Samson completely avoided alcohol.
But seriously folks, knowing what we know about Samson and his wild and wacky behavior, is it really safe to assume he didn’t drink alcohol at all?
I mean this was a man who just entered into an unholy union with a Philistine girl, ate honey from a dead lion and even gave some to his parents and later is going to sleep around with prostitutes.
Is it really logical to think he didn’t drink at all?
Especially at a party like this?
I highly doubt it.
We’ll continue with this saga the next time we meet.
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