4 Theological Flaws of Joseph Prince

Joseph Prince, Pastor of New Creation Church in Singapore, is becoming extremely popular in the Word of Faith movement. His popularity comes because of his teaching on grace. Even Word of Faith heretic Creflo Dollar seems to be jumping on the grace wagon lately.

The problem with Prince is not his teaching on grace. He teaches correctly that it is only the work of Christ on our behalf that saves, not our works. He also makes it clear that the Law has no power to to make us holy. However, there are huge theological problems with his teaching. The main problem is that he teaches the heretical Prosperity Gospel, mixing Word of Faith Theology with grace. The Prosperity Gospel is a false gospel. So even though Prince is clear when it comes to the work of Christ for sinners, he teaches that because of Christ's work, the sinner is not only forgiven, accepted and loved by God, but is entitled, and should pursue health, wealth, and prosperity. This is heresy. This is mixing the Word of Faith prosperity heresy with the gospel. Not only is this a problem, but there are other theological problems with his teaching as well. Here are four that you need to be aware of.

1. The problem with repentance

In his book Destined to Reign Prince says this about repentance
"For all of you who feel that there should be more preaching on repentance, do you know what the word ‘repent' means in the first place? The word ‘repent' is the Greek word matanoeo, which according to Thayer's Greek Lexicon, simply means ‘to change one's mind.' But because we have been influenced by our denominational background as well as our own religious upbringing, many of us have the impression that repentance is something that involves mourning and sorrow. However, that is not what the Word of God says. Repentance just means changing your mind."
Prince is not being honest with the Greek word metanoeo. Here are the Strong's definitions of the word
Greek Definition
g3341. μετάνοια metanoia; from 3340; (subjectively) compunction (for guilt, including reformation); by implication, reversal (of (another's) decision): — repentance.AV (24) - repentance 24;a change of mind, as it appears to one who repents, of a purpose he has formed or of something he has done
Notice the word compunction in the definition. Here is the English definition for compunction:
Webster -Compunction: a feeling of guilt or regret ( chiefly US)
Full Definition
1 a : anxiety arising from awareness of guilt b : distress of mind over an anticipated action or result 2 : a twinge of misgiving : scruple synonyms see penitence, qualm com·punc·tious -shəs adjective
So, to repent does not just simply mean "to change ones mind." There is much more to it than that. The word that Prince used in his above statement makes this even more clear.
Repent: metanoeo: "to think differently or afterwards to reconsider (morally feel compunction) To change ones mind. To change ones mind for the better, heartily to amend with abhorrence of ones past sins."
As you can see, this definition means more than simply "to change ones mind.

How did Christ define the Gospel?

Luke 24:45-47 Then he opened their minds to understand the Scriptures, and said to them, "Thus it is written, that the Christ should suffer and on the third day rise from the dead, and that repentance and forgiveness of sins should be proclaimed in his name to all nations, beginning from Jerusalem.
Christ makes it clear that repentance and the forgiveness of sins is to be preached. In other words, we must preach Law and Gospel. No one can be saved without repentance. A gospel without repentance is no gospel at all.

Examples of repentance from Scripture

Matthew 11:20-24 Then he began to denounce the cities where most of his mighty works had been done, because they did not repent. "Woe to you, Chorazin! Woe to you, Bethsaida! For if the mighty works done in you had been done in Tyre and Sidon, they would have repented long ago in sackcloth and ashes. But I tell you, it will be more bearable on the day of judgment for Tyre and Sidon than for you. And you, Capernaum, will you be exalted to heaven? You will be brought down to Hades. For if the mighty works done in you had been done in Sodom, it would have remained until this day. But I tell you that it will be more tolerable on the day of judgment for the land of Sodom than for you."
Acts 26:19-20 "Therefore, O King Agrippa, I was not disobedient to the heavenly vision, but declared first to those in Damascus, then in Jerusalem and throughout all the region of Judea, and also to the Gentiles, that they should repent and turn to God, performing deeds in keeping with their repentance.
Matthew 12:41 The men of Nineveh will rise up at the judgment with this generation and condemn it, for they repented at the preaching of Jonah, and behold, something greater than Jonah is here.
Acts 3:19 Repent therefore, and turn back, that your sins may be blotted out,
2 Corinthians 12:21 I fear that when I come again my God may humble me before you, and I may have to mourn over many of those who sinned earlier and have not repented of the impurity, sexual immorality, and sensuality that they have practiced.
Revelation 3:19 Those whom I love, I reprove and discipline, so be zealous and repent.

2. The problem with discipline

Joseph Prince says that Believers are never punished for their sins
"You will never find an example of God punishing a believer for his sins in the new covenant." ( chapter 5, p 57, Destined to Reign)
There is no tension between temporal and eternal punishment. The Scriptures speak of both. The eternal punishment for sins has been taken care of by Christ at the cross. However there are several examples of God's discipline of His children in the NT.

Examples from Scripture

Hebrews 12:5-6 And have you forgotten the exhortation that addresses you as sons? "My son, do not regard lightly the discipline of the Lord, nor be weary when reproved by him. For the Lord disciplines the one he loves, and chastises every son whom he receives."
"chastise" in the Greek means "to scourge"
Acts 5:3-6 But Peter said, "Ananias, why has Satan filled your heart to lie to the Holy Spirit and to keep back for yourself part of the proceeds of the land? While it remained unsold, did it not remain your own? And after it was sold, was it not at your disposal? Why is it that you have contrived this deed in your heart? You have not lied to man but to God." When Ananias heard these words, he fell down and breathed his last. And great fear came upon all who heard of it. The young men rose and wrapped him up and carried him out and buried him.
1 Corinthians 11:28-30 Let a person examine himself, then, and so eat of the bread and drink of the cup. For anyone who eats and drinks without discerning the body eats and drinks judgment on himself. That is why many of you are weak and ill, and some have died.

3. The problem with suffering

Being a Word of Faith teacher, Prince has made, and continues to make numerous statements about God's desire for Christians to be healthy.
The problem with this thinking is that Scripture is replete with passage that state the opposite. What about passages that actually promote suffering in the Christian life? There are also passages that speak of Christians suffering sickness.

Examples from Scripture

Suffering in general
Romans 8:16-17 The Spirit himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God, and if children, then heirs—heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, provided we suffer with him in order that we may also be glorified with him.
Philippians 1:29 For it has been granted to you that for the sake of Christ you should not only believe in him but also suffer for his sake,
James 1:2-4 Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds, for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness. And let steadfastness have its full effect, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing.
1 Peter 2:20 For what credit is it if, when you sin and are beaten for it, you endure? But if when you do good and suffer for it you endure, this is a gracious thing in the sight of God.
1 Peter 4:19 Therefore let those who suffer according to God's will entrust their souls to a faithful Creator while doing good.
Revelation 2:10-11 Do not fear what you are about to suffer. Behold, the devil is about to throw some of you into prison, that you may be tested, and for ten days you will have tribulation. Be faithful unto death, and I will give you the crown of life. He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. The one who conquers will not be hurt by the second death.’
Suffering because of sickness
2 Timothy 4:20 Erastus remained at Corinth, and I left Trophimus, who was ill, at Miletus.
Why didn't Paul heal Trophimus? Is it not God's will that all of His people be healed?
1 Timothy 5:23 (No longer drink only water, but use a little wine for the sake of your stomach and your frequent ailments.)
Why didn't the Apostle Paul have someone lay hands on Timothy to heal him from his frequent ailments? Also notice Timothy's ailments were frequent.
Galatians 4:13-15 You know it was because of a bodily ailment that I preached the gospel to you at first, and though my condition was a trial to you, you did not scorn or despise me, but received me as an angel of God, as Christ Jesus. What then has become of your blessedness? For I testify to you that, if possible, you would have gouged out your eyes and given them to me.
Certainly of all people, the Apostle Paul could have healed his own "bodily ailment" right? Wasn't it his handkerchief that brought healing to the sick in Acts 19?
Acts 19:11-12. And God was doing extraordinary miracles by the hands of Paul, so that even handkerchiefs or aprons that had touched his skin were carried away to the sick, and their diseases left them and the evil spirits came out of them.

What about our brothers and sisters around the world suffering persecution

Dozens of Christians in the village of Attagara, Nigeria, were killed in two separate attacks carried out by Boko Haram militants on June 1 and 3. Militants dressing in army clothing shot and slashed people while bombing and burning homes. One of the assaults lasted for more than five hours.

4. The problem with money

In chapter one of Destined to Reign, Prince states that God calls His people to enjoy wealth.
"You are destined to reign in life. You are called by the Lord to be a success, to enjoy wealth, to enjoy health and to enjoy a life of victory. It is not the Lord's desire that you live a life of defeat, poverty, and failure."
This is heresy. The Bible is against storing up treasures on earth, and seeking worldly pleasure.

Examples from Scripture

1 Timothy 6:10 For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evils. It is through this craving that some have wandered away from the faith and pierced themselves with many pangs.
Hebrews 13:5 Keep your life free from love of money, and be content with what you have, for he has said, "I will never leave you nor forsake you."
1 Timothy 3:2-3 Therefore an overseer must be above reproach, the husband of one wife, sober-minded, self-controlled, respectable, hospitable, able to teach, not a drunkard, not violent but gentle, not quarrelsome, not a lover of money.
Matthew 6:19-21 Lay Up Treasures in Heaven "Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal, but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.
Luke 12:15 And he said to them, "Take care, and be on your guard against all covetousness, for one's life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions."
Jude 1:11 Woe to them! For they walked in the way of Cain and abandoned themselves for the sake of gain to Balaam's error and perished in Korah's rebellion.
Keep in mind, Joseph Prince has no problem calling himself a Word of Faith preacher. Here are some of the heretical teachings of the Word of Faith movement.
1. Adam was created a little god.
2. God used the "force of faith" to create the universe, and continue to use the "force of faith" to accomplish His work on earth today.
3. Man sold his godhood to Satan when he fell, making Satan the god of this world.
4. Because of this God lost all control in the earth realm and is reliant on man. God needs an invitation by man in order to work out His plans.
5. According to Kenneth Copeland, this made God "the biggest failure in all the Bible."
6. The reason it took Christ so long to come is because it took God this long to find people to cooperate with His plan to take back control of the earth from Satan.
7. Christ's atoned for our sins in hell and not on the cross.
8. Jesus ceased to be the Son of God at the cross, taking on the nature of Satan.
9. Jesus was born again in hell, in other words, He had to be saved just as we do today.
10. Because God conquered Satan through the death of Christ, we are entitled to health, wealth, and prosperity.
11. The Christian is now a little god.
As you can see, these are dangerous teachings. Does Joseph Prince believe these teachings? I must assume so since he calls himself a Word of Faith preacher. Even if he doesn't believe the majority of these teachings, he's still guilty by association since he promotes and preaches in their churches.




Here is a PDF paper on Joseph Prince written by Lisa Cooper entitled ,"The Law is Holy, Just, and Good." Lisa Cooper does a fantastic job showing through her extensive research how Joseph Prince is not only a Prosperity Preacher, but also an antinomian.

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4 Things To Do When You've Blown It

How many times have you seen the bumper sticker that says "Christians aren't perfect, just forgiven?" I understand what the first part of that phrase "Christians aren't perfect" is trying to say, but the second part, "just forgiven" really bothers me. "Just forgiven?" As if forgiveness is thrown in as an, "Oh, and by the way." Forgiveness is a big deal, not an afterthought. It’s how the believer stands before God. Our sins have been taken away through the death of Christ. We stand perfectly righteous before God because we have been given the righteousness of Christ. That being said, we aren't perfect. We do blow it. We sin everyday, multiple times a day. This can bring guilt, shame and doubt into our lives and can often times cause us to despair. So what should we do when we've blown it? Here are four things.

 

1. Confess

 

1 John 1:9 If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.

Once we have been born again God is no longer our Judge but our Father. So John is speaking of parental forgiveness not judicial forgiveness. Judgement for all our sins is past tense. It has already taken place at the cross. Through faith we have been adopted into the family as sons and daughters of God. Now when we sin we go to God our Father and ask for forgiveness, not because if we don't we will be judged by Him, but because sin hinders our fellowship with Him.

 

2. Repent

 

Proverbs 28:13 Whoever conceals his transgressions will not prosper, but he who confesses and forsakes them will obtain mercy.

Holding on to sin brings chastening. After David sinned by committing adultery with Bathsheba and then murdering her husband Uriah to cover it up (2Samuel 11-12) he describes how the heavy chastening hand of God was upon him sapping his strength:

Psalms 32:3-4 For when I kept silent, my bones wasted awaythrough my groaning all day long. For day and night your hand was heavy upon me; my strength was dried up as by the heat of summer.Selah

But after he confessed and repented of his sin he found forgiveness (yes, even for adultery and murder) and the joy of his salvation returned:

Psalms 32:5 I acknowledged my sin to you, and I did not cover my iniquity; I said, "I will confess my transgressions to the Lord," and you forgave the iniquity of my sin. Selah

3. Remember

I believe this is the most crucial point. Because we are fallen creatures we tend to go back to our default mode of trying to make up for our mistakes. Guess what? We can't. One sin is enough to condemn us to eternal judgement in hell. This is why remembering is so important. Christ was our Worker. He did all of the work that God requires of us. We need perfection in order to be saved and Christ was perfect for us. There must be a penalty for every sin we commit and Christ paid the penalty, absorbing the wrath of God for every time we've sinned. All of our sins have been dealt with at the cross our past, present, and future sins have been punished.

4. Preach

In his book The Gospel for Every Day Life Jerry Bridges speaks of the importance of preaching the Gospel to ourselves every day. He reminds us that the Gospel of Jesus is not just good news for the unbeliever, but for the believer as well. Because we blow it every day the Gospel must be preached everyday, to ourselves. This is why it is so important to know the Gospel. Start by reading the epistle of Romans. It's only 16 chapters so it can be read straight through in a about an hot and a half. Make it your goal to read Romans every day, even if it's only 3 or 4 chapters a day. Know the Gospel and know it well. This way you will have the content to preach to yourself.

In this video John Piper speaks of the importance of preChing the Gospel to yourself:

 

 

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The Gay Burger: A Celebration of Evil

Someone on Facebook shared this link yesterday. I was skeptical when I first saw it, but googled it and found other websites affirming its validity.

The Proud Whopper

Yep it's true. Burger King has decided to join the gay bandwagon and celebrate homosexuality by adding the "Proud Whopper to their menu. I can't say I'm not surprised because I was. I guess I shouldn't have been since it's just a matter of time before stuff like this will be going on everywhere. Now, some might say, "It was only sold at the Gay Pride Parade in San Francisco." But I'm telling you this is only the beginning. In my opinion Burger King has opened the door for other restaurants and businesses to act in similar ways.

Celebrating Sin

Folks, this is nothing more than a celebration of sin, what the Bible calls calling good evil and evil good-

Isaiah 5:20-21 Woe to those who call evil good and good evil, who put darkness for light and light for darkness, who put bitter for sweet and sweet for bitter! Woe to those who are wise in their own eyes, and shrewd in their own sight!

Isaiah is pronouncing judgement on the nation of Israel for their idolatry. The word "woe" here is an oracle of judgement. Whenever an Old Testament prophet would pronounce judgement on a nation he would use this oracle of woe.

Judgement is coming

Judgement is promised for those who celebrate sin. This is what the "homosexual community" and those outside who embrace it are doing. When even those inside the church can call themselves "Christians" and yet at the same time live a gay lifestyle, all the while claiming that the lifestyle is blessed by God, the only thing that remains for our nation is judgement.

 

 

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Benevolent Chastisement Steven Long 8/12/13

Benevolent Chastisement

Judges 16:21-31

This is the written transcript of the sermon preached at Albemarle Reformed Church on Sunday, July 28, 2013. The audio portion can be heard here.

At last we come to the concluding event of Samson's life. The mighty has been seized and his enemies mean to make sport of him. He is in the throes of misery as he is no longer the “top dog” in his own world. The consequences have taken their full effect and he is left helpless to face the Philistines on his own. His ego has been cut in half and his captivity has now shattered his pride and boastfulness. The man who could do anything physically was now as 'human' as the rest of his peers.

The tragedy of Samson's life was not so much that he squandered what God had given him. It was that he failed to recognize, at least until the very end of his life, that God was Supreme Ruler and that he himself was not the captain of his own destiny. God had set him apart from the womb to be a Nazarite and God's plan could not, nor would not be led off course by a selfish, sinful, and fleshly man. In fact, God directed Samson exactly where he needed to be. Though Samson believed he was his own man and doing what he thought he wanted to do God still controlled is path and caused him to be the deliverer of Israel—despite his sin!

But we see a much different Samson, now. Because he is brought low he now realizes that he must rely on the very God who gave, and took away his mighty strength. Just as it will be for all who rage against their Creator, so Samson also bowed his knee before the God of Heaven and Earth. But it was not maliciousness on the part of God that brought Samson to this place. No! It was His wonderful plan to bring His servant, who had gone far astray, back to repentance. Though we may be low; though God may crush us; though our very bones feel the weight of sin, it is God's good intention to bring His sons and daughters to a place of peace and safety in order that they might give Him glory and honor that is due. When God deals with His people it is always to their profit. Even in the midst of chastisement it is because His plans are “for good and not for harm; to give [us] a hope and a future.” (Jer 29:11) Sometimes the benevolence of God comes in the form of chastisement. It is this benevolence that is most times successful in leading His children back to the path of holiness. As we will see this morning, it is this very thing that leads to Samson's repentance.

v.21 The Mighty Has Fallen. We have previously read that Samson played his little games with Delilah for some time. He tricked her on three different occasions as to what the source of his strength was. Delilah played the victim by whining and moaning to Samson that he did not really love her. Samson finally gives in and tells her about his Nazarite vow. Delilah puts him to sleep and has his hair shaved. When Delilah calls Samson believes that he will be able to free himself just like the other three times. But we read the tragic phrase, he did not know that the LORD had left him.

We are now left with him seized and shackled. At last the Philistine lords have the enemy in their hands. And they do with him what was common to do in that day: they cut out his eyes! This practice was done to ensure that the enemy, even if escaped or set free, would be helpless. He could no longer fight or retaliate against his captors if he had no eyes with which to see. It is clear what the intention for Samson is: the Hebrew word 'gouge' is a Piel verb which, according Gesenius' Hebrew Grammar, serves to strengthen the actual verb.ⁱ It is much like the difference in intensity between the words 'break' and 'smash.' Clearly, one is stronger than the other and conveys a much more vivid picture. The same is true here. The Philistines did not just put out his eyes. They probably indulged and inflicted as much pain as possible during the process. And after having put out his eyes they then led him to Gaza, one of their chief cities. And there in Gaza they set him to grinding at the mill. This was a menial task; the lowest of low jobs, and it was their intention to do this in order to show the people how the mighty man was now reduced to this slaves task. Keil and Delitzch, Old Testament commentators enlighten us by saying,

The Philistines then seized him, put out his eyes, and led him to Gaza fettered with double brass chains...There Samson was obliged to turn the mill in the prison, and grind corn (the participle טֹחֵן expresses the continuance of the action). Grinding a handmill was the hardest and lowest kind of slave labour (compare Exo 11:5 with Exo 12:29); and both Greeks and Romans sentenced their slaves to this as a punishmentⁱⁱ

After being the mighty and strong man he is now reduced to the menial task of the lowest slave. How the mighty has fallen!

v.22 Not Forgotten. But God has not forgotten him. The author reminds us of this one thing: but the hair of his head began to grow again after it had been shaved. It is easy for us to overlook such a simple statement. More so, it is easy for us to assume that Samson's hair was the cause of his strength. True, he had lost his strength when his head had been shaved, but was he not mighty in his youth before his hair had reached it current length? It was because God had set him apart from the womb to be mighty, that he was, and no other reason! To think that God left Samson simply that his head had been shaved, or that He would return to him after his hair had grown back is to miss the entire point. The Nazarite was only holy because God made him holy; he was only fitted for the task that God had fitted him for. Though Samson may have shirked his task as a judge God's purpose for him was still as a judge. God would fulfill it even at the cost of His servant's own life. Hence, the hair on his head began to grow again.

vv.23-26 A Grand Party! Now that the evil Samson has been caught the Philistines can rejoice! They gather themselves together, as the author tells us, to offer sacrifices to their pagan god, Dagon. But their guise is not really worship as much as it is a party; a chance for them to engage in drunken revelry and commit atrocious fornication. Canaanite worship was always accompanied by such things and there is no reason to believe that this celebration would have been any different. Notice, too how they falsely attribute Samson's capture to their deity. At the height of their festival, probably when they are the drunkest (as the author tells us that their hearts were “merry”) they call for Samson out of the prison in order to entertain for them. The author does not reveal how or what Samson did to entertain them. It could not have been any feats of strength for at this time he was as weak as any other man. Quite possibly, it simply could have been for him to stand their, helpless, so that they may have gazed upon him to laugh and jeer at him. We know that Samson could not have done much more than stand in one place, as the text tells us that he was led by a young man, and that his request to the young man was that he be led to rest, as it were, on the main pillars that held up the house. This may seem like an odd request and we may at once suspect that this could not be true, lest the Philistines become suspicious. But Bible Scholar, John Lange comments about this:

Much has been written concerning the architectural style of the building in which the occurrence took place. Bertheau is not wrong in saying that it is impossible to come to any particular determination in this matter. It was not essential to our narrator’s purpose to give an architectural description...The hero [Samson] would be visible to all, only if he stood in the lower space, between the pillars on which the house was supported, the gallery extending around the sides of the, house, and fastened to them; and there is nothing at variance with this in his request to the lad to be allowed to lean upon the pillars.ⁱⁱⁱ

Lange points out that it was actually quite common for Samson to stand between those pillars, as that would have been the prime spot for all the people present to view him.

vv.27-30 Samson's Prayer. In these next few verses we see Samson's change begin to take place. He is weak, worn, frail, and at the very least, hopeless. He has been reduced to nothing more than a showpiece to be gawked and laughed at; and this by the very ones he was supposed to defeat. All the Philistine lords have gathered for this great feast, and many prominent men and women, about 3,000 as we are told, looking on while Samson entertains. But in the midst of all this we see Samson call out to the Lord in prayer. There are a few notable things about this prayer that I would like to briefly point out:

1. Samson begins his prayer by addressing God by His three proper names. He begins by saying, “Adonai, Yahweh. Remember me this once, O, God” We may be tempted to say that even his prayer was selfish as he prays that he may take vengeance for his eyes, but Charles Hervey, author of Judges-Pulpit Commentary states this about Samson's prayer: The language is very earnest. "O Lord, Jehovah, remember me strengthen me only this once, O God!" The threefold name by which he addresses the Almighty implies great tension of spirit ^iv
2. Samson's plead for God to remember him. Samson is asking for more than a simple remembrance. The Hebrew word is one that means 'to mark.' In essence, to call to mind. If one wishes to remember something or someplace they mark it so as to come back to it. This same word is used by Moses in Ex 32:13 when the people rebel against God and God wants to destroy them. Moses asks God to remember His covenant with His people to make them into a great nation. Perhaps Samson is in fact asking God to remember the Nazarite fulfilling He originally had on Samson's life. If this is true, then Samson has finally come full-circle to his calling.
3. Samson's calling on the Lord. Again, I want to remind us that while we are tempted to think of Samson's prayer as selfish the author himself uses a word that seems to imply genuiness. We are told that Samson 'called out to the LORD. The word 'call,' quara, can mean to cry out in earnest. But it is in the LXX that we really see the intended meaning behind this word. The LXX uses the word 'boao' which means to cry out for help in a tumultuous way. In other words, Samson has reached the point of absolute desperation.
4. He pleads to the LORD for strength. Notice that he no longer relies or boasts in his own strength, much as he did in killing 1,000 Philistines with the jawbone of a donkey. He now surrenders the idea that his strength has all along come from Jehovah, for now he cries out, “Please strengthen me only this once.” It is clear that he is now fully reliant upon God in order to accomplish what he is about to do.

The prayer of Samson, I believe, was a true prayer of penance. But only at the end of his life did he realize what he should have all along. Now, supernaturally strengthened once again, he pushes with all his might, praying that he would die along with his enemies. And with this push then entire building collapses. So much carnage ensues that the author tells us that there were more Philistine deaths in this one event then the entire time Samson was alive. How can we not see this as God's master plan for delivering Israel out of the hands of the Philistines? With the five lords dead there would no doubt be a panic at the least, and chaos at the most. The time was now ripe for the beginning of Israel's freedom.

v.31 Samson's Death & Burial. Samson's family comes to take him away for burial. We are told that he is buried between Zorah, his hometown, and Eshtaol. And then the author adds one more piece of information: he had judged Israel for twenty years. This statement should remove all doubt about whether God fulfilled Samson's purpose in life. Though he did not take on the traditional role of the judge he no doubt, through God's chastisement completed the role of a judge. When God means to accomplish His tasks nothing can stand in the way of it—not even the sinful actions of men.

God's chastisement on us is never out of malicious intent. It is always for the purpose of bringing us back into a place of repentance. Hebrews 12:5-6 says, And have you forgotten the exhortation that addresses you as sons? ​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​“My son, do not regard lightly the discipline of the Lord, ​​​​​​​nor be weary when reproved by him. ​​​ ​​​​​​​​For the Lord disciplines the one he loves, ​​​​​​​and chastises every son whom he receives.” ​​​

He must chastise us in order to prove that we are not illegitimate children. The chastisement we receive is nothing in comparison to that which the Lord received: the chastisement of our peace was upon Him and by His stripes we are healed (Isa 53:5). It is for our peace and our well-being that when we sin we are duely punished. For in doing so, a twofold purpose is accomplished: first, we are brought back to a place of holiness. The price which Christ paid for our redemption is much too high to allow us to stay the same. We have been bought with a price (1Cor 6:20), and we have bought with the purpose of being conformed into the likeness of Christ (Rom 8:29). In order to be like Christ we must be disciplined so that our souls may rid itself of impurities and be refined in the fires of His perfection. Second, We are saved from the eternal consequences of sin. Paul, in his first epistle to the Corinthians deals with believers who have been put to death by God for eating the Lord's supper in an unworthy manner: 32 But when we are judged by the Lord, we are disciplined so that we may not be condemned along with the world. In that church, God's discipline was to show the distinction between His church and the rest of the world. That is why Paul told the Corinthians that they were judged by the Lord. This is not to say that every believer who sins will die! But simply to say that some who stray that far away are judged by God in order to separate them from the rest of the world.

The point in all this is to show that the chastisement of God is not always a bad thing. No matter what sin you have committed, or how far you think you may have strayed, when you cry out to God, “REMEMBER ME!” He will indeed come to visit you and to guide you back into His presences. But be warned! The way in which He accomplishes this may be painful. But also know that pain will ultimately lead to your peace.

​​For his anger is but for a moment, ​​​​​​​and his favor is for a lifetime. ​​​​​​​Weeping may tarry for the night, ​​​​​​​but joy comes with the morning. ​​​ (Psalm 30:5)

iGesenius Hebrew Grammar, pg. 139

ii Keil, Carl Friedrich, and Franz Delitzsch. Joshua, Judges, Ruth, pg 423 T. and T. Clark, 1869.

iii Lange, John Peter. Commentary on the Holy Scriptures, vol 4, pg 223. Scribner, 1886.

iv Hervey, Arthur Charles. Judges, pg 174. Kegan Paul, 1881.