Falling Prey to Deception

Then she let him fall asleep on her lap and called a man to shave off the seven braids on his head. In this way, she made him helpless, and his strength left him. Then she cried, “Samson, the Philistines are here!” When he awoke from his sleep, he said, “I will escape as I did before and shake myself free.” But he did not know that the Lord had left him.” Judges 16:19-20 HCSB

There are many stories of senior citizens who have been deceived or scammed in some way. One is when people dressed as employees of a utility company tell the homeowner that a pipe has burst down the street and they need to come in and check their pipes. While inside they distract the person and take valuables. Another scam involves people falsely representing drug companies or health insurance who sell the senior citizens drugs that are nothing but bogus pills or insurance policies that really do not provide any additional benefits beyond what Medicare already provides. Telemarketing scams tell a person he has won a gift but the caller needs his personal information to send the gift. Such deception can destroy the financial and medical security of innocent people.

Delilah deceived Samson and took advantage of him. She sweet-talked him into revealing the secret of his strength. Just as those who deceive senior citizens are only looking for personal gain, Delilah pretended to love Samson while only looking for personal gain. She was cold and calculating in her deception. Samson appears to be foolish and falls for the deception much like many senior citizens fall for the deception of scammers. It seems Samson would have learned his lesson after three times, but he allowed flattery to lead him into temptation and destruction.

Challenge: How many times have we allowed ourselves to be deceived by flattery? Pray that God will help you to distinguish between deception and truth.

Read The Bible Through In Two Years: Genesis 45:1-28; Acts 2:1-41

Saturday: Psalms 10; Acts 2:42 – 3:26

Sunday: Genesis 46:1-34; Acts 4:1-22

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