A Donkey’s Jaw
A Donkey’s Jaw
Judges 15:14-15
When he came to Lehi, the Philistines came shouting to meet him. Then the Spirit of the LORD rushed upon him, and the ropes that were on his arms became as flax that has caught fire, and his bonds melted off his hands. And he found a fresh jawbone of a donkey … and with it he struck 1,000 men.
As Samson sweeps through the Philistine ranks with a donkey’s jawbone, does it occur to him that this is precisely a picture of what he is in the fields of the Good Shepherd?
Brian, my farmer friend from church, is in the process of buying a few more cows for his field along with some goats and possibly a sheep, and he recently explained to me that he’s also searching the market for a good donkey to protect them. Now, I already knew that donkeys serve as vital protective forces for pasturelands, but Brian illumined me on the fact that not all donkeys are built for guardianship—some are temperamental, or passive by nature, and they remain unmoved even when a nearby flock is under attack. He said you never really know which kind of donkey you’ve got until push comes to shove, and by then your money’s already spent! Well friend, God has effectively placed Samson in these pasturelands for just that purpose, to be a donkey for His beloved flock—a buffer against the prowling predators—and to put his tough jaw and his hard head and his powerful muscles to work on behalf of the people. And we’re only now finding out if he’s got the temperament for it.
For the very first time, Samson isn’t merely fighting for his own self-interest, but he’s fighting for the welfare of his brothers and sisters whose place and prosperity in the promised land is under severe threat. You could say he’s finally fighting the good fight, finally putting those years of Nazirite ceremony to noble use, finally teaching the roaring lions of Philistia that his kick is more powerful than their bite.
Yet, consider another side of this metaphor, friend. Consider that Samson doesn’t win this decisive battle merely by landing a thousand blows, but by absorbing a thousand blows without getting knocked out. He’s got an iron chin to match an iron fist. Oh, what wonderful irony, friend! Samson’s got a donkey’s jawbone in two senses!