Back to full study

Judges · Men's Leadership Study

Week 14: She Pleases Me Well

Judges 14

Name:  

Date:  

Read Together

Judges 14

Read the whole chapter aloud before discussing the handout.

Hidden in the Text

Weekly Devotional

Bees had made honey inside the dead lion. That gave Samson his riddle, but it also exposed his secret sin. A Nazirite was not supposed to touch a dead body. Samson reached into the dead lion for something sweet, then gave some honey to his parents without telling them where it came from. What seemed harmless had to be hidden. Secret sin often affects the people we love. Do not judge a choice only by how good it feels. Ask what line you crossed, what truth you must hide, and who else may be hurt by it.

Discuss Honestly

Hard Questions

  1. 01

    Be specific: what does 'she pleaseth me well' look like in your decision-making — in money, food, screens, women, respect?

  2. 02

    Samson broke his vow for honey. What small, non-dramatic compromise have you made recently that cost you more than it was worth?

  3. 03

    He didn't tell his parents where the honey came from. What are you right now not telling the two men in this room?

  4. 04

    The Spirit's power operated in a man whose private life was a wreck. How does that reality change how you evaluate anointing in yourself and others?

  5. 05

    What is your first move when you are humiliated or outmaneuvered? Samson's was violence. Name yours honestly.

  6. 06

    His parents objected and he overrode them. Whose counsel have you overridden lately, and what was your justification?

  7. 07

    God used it 'of the LORD' — and Samson still reaped everything. Why is God's sovereignty never a reason to relax about sin?

Look Them Up

Cross-References

  • 1 John 2:16

    The lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, the pride of life — Samson's biography in one verse.

  • Genesis 3:6

    She saw, it was pleasant to the eyes, she took. The original 'pleaseth me well.'

  • Job 31:1

    'I made a covenant with mine eyes.' The discipline Samson never adopted.

  • Proverbs 5:3-8

    The strange woman's honey — the imagery Judges 14 makes literal.

  • Romans 13:14

    Make not provision for the flesh. Samson provisioned constantly and prayed occasionally.