Moses and Aaron, Treatise · Chapter 9
CHAP. IX.
8. Sampson a type of Christ.
I. IN person and condition. 1. His conception foretold Sampson a type in 4. respects. 1. Conceptionby the Angel of God, Judg. 13. 5. So was Christs. His office foretold, he must be a Saviour: So Christ. Borne beyond strength of nature, of a mother long before barren. Iudg. 13. 3. So was Christ. His mother saluted by the Angel as Mary was, that though she was barren she should conceive a sonne, a saviour; the one shall begin to save Israel out of the hand of the Philistims, verse 5. the other must save his people from their sinnes. And this promise confirmed by a signe to both the mothers, Iudg. 13. 4. Luke 1. 30. 2. Both must be Nazarites, Sampson by the Law of Nazarites, Nazarite.Numb. 6. 2. Christ by occasion of the place in which he was educated, not by that law. But as a Nazarite signified one that was separate and severed from the common course of men to a more holy profession of sanctity, and to a stricter care to avoid all manner of impurity, such a one the Prophets signified Christ should be; not onelyonly holy and seperate from sinners, but the author of holinesse. And as Sampson was sanctified from the womb: So was Christ much more. So the Angel, The holy thing that is in thee is of the holy Ghost. And herein beyond Sampson, for in Christ are all sanctified. 3. Sampson grew, and the spirit waxed Growth in Spirit.strong in him, so as he became a Saviour of incomparable strength. So Christ grew every way; in stature, in favour with God and man; and the Spirit was so strong in him (because it was not measured unto him as unto Sampson) as he became a Saviour stronger than the strong armed man. He was the true Sampson that overcame many enemies, and slew heapes upon heapes. And although Sampson the type was at last overcome by his enemies: our true Sampson is invincible, and hath gloriously triumphed over them all. Both of them were great deliverers; the one from great thraldome and temporall misery: the other from a greater spirituall and eternall thraldome under sinne, the Law, Satan, hell, &c.
II. Sampson was a type of Christ in three especial actions. 2. Actions.1. He found meat in the eater, and from the strong sweetnesse, and brought some of it to his parents: Christ by his death (which seemed to eat him up) brings us meat, the bread of life, sweeter than honey: and out of this dead Lyons mouth, that is, Christ dead, comes sweetnesse. Thence Christianorum processit examen instar apum. August. ser. 107. de temp.sprang whole flocks of Christians, like so many swarmes of bees. 2. Sampson loved strange women, and went among the enemies of God for a wife; which might seeme a sinne in him, but that the text saith, It came of God, Iudg. 14▪ 4. A type of Christs love to the Gentiles, casting his love on her that was not beloved, to make his despised and dispersed of the Gentiles his spouse and wife: as Hosea 2. 23. I will have mercy on her, &c. Where the whole contract on both parties is set down at large. 3. Sampson put forth his minde in parables and riddles: So did Christ his doctrine to the Pharisees, Matth. 13. 34.
III. In passion and suffering they were very like in many 3. Sufferings.passages. 1. Both sold for money, Sampson by Dalilah to the Princes of the Philistims, Iudg. 16. 5, Christ for thirty pieces of silver unto the chiefe Priest. Both betrayed by their most familiar; the one to the Philistims, the other to the Pharisees. Both under pretence of love, Sampson by Dalilah, Iudg. 16. 15. Christ by Iudas with a kisse; both apprehended by their enemies, both led away, both bound, both brought forth at a great feast, both blinded, both scorned, both fastened to a post, the one of the house, the other of the Crosse. 2. As Sampson offered himselfe freely unto death among wicked men, as a most valiant Captaine being called to be a revenger of Gods enemies; and therefore it it is said, Heb. 11. he dyed (not as a self-murtherer, but) in faith; that is, as a faithfull servant of God adventured his owne life for the destruction of the enemies of God and his Countrey, as every good subject and souldier (pressed to the field) ought to do. So Jesus Christ voluntarily offered himselfe to death, and went out to meet the apprehendors, and was content to dye among wicked men, and to be hanged between two theeves, that he might destroy and scatter the powers of the enemies of his Churches salvation.
IV. In victory and fortitude. 1. His first stratagem (which was as a praeludium to his calling) in which he assayed his Stratagems and victories.power, was that he overcame a stout Lyon in the desert, and slew him with his own hand, Chap. 14. 6. and tare him as one should have rent a Kid: So the first powerfull worke in which our Sampson shewed himselfe, was the conquering of the devill that roaring Lyon hand to hand, who assaulted him in the wildernesle by three horrible and hellish temptations. 2. Sampson flew with his owne hand (being alone) above a thousand men at once, having nothing but the jawbone of an Asse; a weake, base, and insufficient weapon for so great a warre and victory; and as it was unfit, so it was an unclean weapon of an unclean beast by the Law, which his strict profession of a Nazarite should not have touched, had it been out of case of necessity: So our true Sampson by as weake instruments, and as contemptible in the eyes of flesh, conquers thousands daily; while by the foolishnesse of Preaching, by the doctrine of the Crosse, by weak earthen vessells he subdues whole countries and kingdomes unto him; that the work may be knowne to be his own hand and power, and not the instruments. 3. Sampson slew more of Gods enemies at his death than in all his life, Iudg. 16. 30. And this was the effect of the death of Christ, when sinne, Satan, hell, the grave, and his enemies seemed to triumph over him, and make themselves merry (with the Philistims) as having in their power their greatest enemy; but suddenly he afflicted them more in his death than in all his life. This death of Christ pulled Satans house over his head; it was the death of death, and squeasing of all enemies at once. 4. Sampson being in the City Azzah, and the Citizens nowlying in wait to kill him, and to make an end of so furious an enemy whom they had sure within their gates, he arose at midnight, and tooke the doores of the gates of the City, and the two posts, and lift them away with the barres, and layd them on his shoulders and departed, Chap. 16. 3. So when satan and sinners had buried Christ, laid a stone on him, sealed it, and watched him, thinking they had him sure enough, never to molest them more; he like another mighty Sampson rose in his might, carried away the gates and barres of death from himself and all his members. All the bonds of death and sinne, with which he was bound in our steed, he shooke off, as Sampson did the seaven green cords, and broke their power as towe is broken when it feeleth fire. 5. Sampson never had help from any other, in slaying the Lyon, the enemies; but with his own hands, without any other second or weapon: So Christ in the wildernesse alone; in the garden at prayer alone; before Pilate alone, all the disciples fled; on the Crosse alone. No other must tread the winepresse; none must share in the honour, nor conquest with him.
1. Not to judge of the piety or impiety of Gods children Use. 1. Judge none by outward calamities.by their calamities. Sampson hath many enemies, many conslicts, many dangers; by the Lyon, the Philistims, the Azzhites, and his own wife; his life painfull, his death violent: Jesus Christ himselfe beset with enemies on all sides, as the sunne with moats; never free from conflicts with the Lyon, the devill, with his owne Jewes, with Pharaoh, Sadduces, Herodians; his person despised, his miracles traduced, his life painfull, his death shamefull and accursed. Yet may we not judge either of them forsaken of Or inward.God, who still assisted them with his own strength, and was strongest in them when they seemed weakest. Neither may we mis-judge the generation of Gods children in their conflicts Psal. 37. 15.with satan, with temptations, with sinners, or with the terrors of their own hearts. If they shall cry out, My God, 22. 1.why hast thou forsaken me? waite a while and Gods strength shall do great things in their weaknesse.
II. God can and usually doth use strange, weake, and unexpected Use. 2. Strange means used by God for the Churches good.meanes to overthrow his enemies, and the enemies of his Church; his strength is most seen in weake things, his wisedome working by the most foolish. When a thousand enemies set upon Sampson at once without any weapon or meanes of defence, he can use a jawbone to kill a thousand of them when they thinke him farre enough from any weapon; and if Sampson wants a better and readier meanes against Gods enemies, he can by two hundred Foxes (a most unexpected meanes) burne up their graine and fields at harvest time: Our Lord by the foolishnesse of preaching can & doth overcome his enemies; nay God can and doth by contrary meanes wrack his foes. Sampson shall marry a wife among the Philistims to be an occasion of warre and revenge, and this came of God: whereas marriages among Princes ordinarily are made to compose and make up differences, not to make them. Our Lord Jesus overcomes sinne, death, hell, grave, by suffering, by death, by descending into hell, by lying in the grave, most unlikely or contrary meanes. Let Gods enemies fear revenge by every thing, even where no fear is. An enemy of God and his Church is never safe, seeme he never so secure. An Army of frogs shall drive Pharaoh out of his bed chamber in the middest of his greatnesse; a fly shall choake Pope Adrian, if other meanes be wanting; and proud Herod shall be eaten up, not by any army of men but of lice.
III. The greatest victory against the enemies of the Use. 3. Our victory stands in patience & passion.Church is by passion and patience, submitting our selves meekly unto God in obedience, walking in our callings, and doing the work of God. Thus did these two mighty Sampsons most overcome their enemies when they seemed most Illic' qui caedit & superat; hic qui caediur & perfert, I llic qui vicissim ferit; hic qui alteri maxillam praebet: non in ultione, sed patientia victoria ponderatur.overcome by them. Our warre (saith Isidore) is contrary to the striving of the Olympicks. There he gets the garland which striketh and overcommeth; here he which is strooke and suffereth. There he which being strooke striketh againe, here he which offereth his cheeke to the striker. And thus he concludeth; Our victory consisteth not in revenging but in suffering. Oh let the children of the Church lay aside worldly weapons, clamour, reviling, revenging speeches or actions; and betake themselves to the weapons of the Church, prayers, teares, patience, weapons mighty under God. The power of a Christian is patience, who must overcome evill with goodnesse.
IV. In that Christ is the true Sampson, here is much consolation, Use. 4. Fourfold comfort to Gods people.and many comforts to the Israel of God. 1. Comfort. As Sampson revenged the wrong offered him in his wife: So will Christ: Matth. 25. In that ye did it to one of these little ones, ye did it to me. And though Sampsons wife may be taken from him and given to another: Christs cannot. Ioh. 10. 28. none shall pluck them out of my hand. 2. Comfort. A mightier deliverer is here than Sampson for Israel. For, 1. Though Sampson was strong to overcome a Lyon: our Sampson is stronger to overcome the Devill; not in himselfe Christ a mightier and better Deliverer, than Sampson, in six things.onelyonly, but for us, in us, and by us. 2. Sampson was stronge, but might abuse his strength, as he did in whoring and wantonnesse, which in prison he repented: But Jesus Christ used all his strength for God, against sinne and his enemies. 3. Sampson abusing it, might loose his strength, for it was not the parting with his haire, but his sinne grieving the Spirit, that weakned him: but Christ could not loose his strength, because he could not loose his obedience. 4. Sampson was so strong, as the Philistims thought it bootlesse to assay him with power, but by pollicy and indirect meanes they conquer him: but our Sampson cannot be conquered, neither by power nor by pollicy: for he is stronger than all, and in him are treasures of wisdome. 5. Sampson overthrew the enemies, but that was his owne overthrow: but Christ not so; his conquest was to his most glorious exaltation. 6. Sampson as a type onelyonly began the deliverance of the Church, but hindered by death could not perfect it: Our Sampson perfected the deliverance and salvation of the whole Church, and did more after death than in his life or death, and will most fully perfect it for all his members in the resurrection. 3. Comfort. The glory of Gods children appeares not yet, but shall when he shall appeare, 1 Ioh. 3. 2. Sampsons strength for a time lurked in the prison: the glory of Christs Deity lay hid a while in the grave, but both most powerfully brake forth: So shall the glory of the despised Saints, Psal. 37. 6. 4. Comfort. We shall never doubt of meanes to comfort and supply us in want. The same God that supplied Sampson a jawbone against his enemies, supplied him out of the same jawbone a well of water to drinke when he was ready to faint. Trust thy selfe with God in thy wants, reserve to him all meanes, instruments, and wayes Psal. 37. 9.of bringing thee help. If thou see no apparant or great meanes of thy comfort and supply, he can use weak and unexpected meanes; onelyonly walk in thy calling, and the rock shall yeeld thee water rather than thou shalt be destitute in Gods way, or work.
V. In both learne to contemne the greatest and extreamest Use 5. In Gods cause contemn▪ greatest perill.perill in Gods causes. Sampson offered himselfe to death, so did Christ; he went out to meet his enemies, so must thou, learne not to love thy life to the death, Revel. 12. 11. and with Paul, not count thy life dear to finish thy course with joy. For a man to thrust himselfe in hazard, or venture his life without warrant from God, or by his own private motion, is rash: Injussu Dei, privato affectu. And prepare for death approaching▪but God calling, in standing against the enemies of the Church, it is honourable. In both, learn to prepare for death approaching, by faithfull and fervent prayer. So did both these Sampsons. And the issue will be comfortable as theirs; that all thy life and combate shall not give such an overthrow to thine enemies as such a death, though enemies seem never so much to prevaile.