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| Samson and the Lion Bible Story Photo courtesy of Joachim Huber, Wikimedia Commons |
In this Sunday school lesson, we will cover what it means to be a Nazarite and tell the story of Samson and the lion. This story sets the scene to show children just how strong Samson was.
To read this story in full, turn to Judges 13 and 14. Use this time to study the bible for yourself as it is very important not only as Sunday school teachers, but as Christians to study God's word.
Samson and the Lion Sunday School Lesson
Before Samson was born, the Angel of the Lord appeared to the wife of a man named Manoah. The bible does not tell us her name, but it does tell us that she had been unable to have any children.
When the Angel of the Lord appeared to Manoah's wife, he said, "You have never been able to have children, but now you are going to. You are going to have a son."
Can you imagine what it must have been like to have an angel appear out of nowhere to give you a message?
Ask the kids, "Do you think you would have been scared? What about excited? Maybe you would have thought you were dreaming."
Wait for the kids to think about this. Let them talk about this for a moment, then begin again.
Before the Angel of the Lord left, he gave Manoah's wife a few rules to follow as she raised her son.
- She was not allowed to cut his hair.
- He wasn't allowed to eat anything that was unclean.
- He was not allowed to drink wine or other strong drinks.
What Is a Nazarite?
Samson was to be a Nazarite from birth. A Nazarite did not cut his hair at all, eat anything that was unclean (or touch anything that was dead), or drink alcohol.
A Nazarite's long hair let people who saw them know that they were doing God's will and that they were a Nazarite.
The Angel of the Lord even told Manoah's wife that she was not allowed to drink certain things while she was pregnant with the baby.
After the Angel of the Lord left, she ran to tell her husband what the angel had said to her.
Then, Manoah asked God to let the Angel of the Lord come back again to teach them how to raise their son. God heard Manoah.
One day when Manoah's wife was sitting in a field, the Angel of the Lord returned but Manoah wasn't with her this time either.
Quickly, she ran to get her husband and he followed her to back to the angel and he said, "While your wife is pregnant, she is not allowed to drink anything containing grapes. When she has the baby, he is not to drink anything containing grapes, he is not allowed to touch anything dead, and he is not to cut his hair."
Get the Samson and Lion Maze.
Get the Book of Judges Coloring Page.
Samson is Born
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| Samson - Nazarite Peter Trimming, Wikimedia Commons |
They did not allow Samson to eat or drink anything that had grapes or grape juice in it, he did not touch anything that was dead, and he never cut his hair.
Samson grew into a man still following these rules from God.
Samson and the Lion
One day, Samson was walking along and came to a vineyard (where grapes are grown). Samson didn't know it, but there was a lion in the vineyard.
As Samson came near, the Spirit of the Lord came to Samson making him very, very strong.
You see, Samson didn't have a sword or a staff that he used to fight off the lion. Instead, when God made him extremely strong, he used only his hands to kill the lion.
Imagine, being so strong that you could take on a lion all by yourself and with no weapons at all!
Of course, without God's help, Samson couldn't have beat the lion. The bible tells us that:
Philippians 4:13 KJV
I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me.
As the years passed, Samson's hair grew. As long as Samson did not cut his hair, he stayed strong. If he ever cut his hair or his hair was cut at all, he would become weak and his strength would leave him.
Guess what.
There was one time when a girl tricked Samson and his hair was cut! But, that is another Sunday school lesson for another day.
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