“Of No Redeeming Value”?

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By David Brand

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And what more shall I say?

For time would fail me to tell of Gideon, Barak, Samson, Jephthah,

 of David and Samuel and the prophets–who through faith conquered kingdoms,

enforced justice, obtained promises, stopped the mouths of lions . . . (Hebrews 11:32-33a)

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Of Foxes and Moral Lapses

There it was!  “No wonder the author of Peloubets Notes [1] had left the seminary!”  The professor had just ridiculed the account of Samson in the book of Judges and stated that, as far as he was concerned, it was “of no redeeming value.”  Not surprisingly, when the first-year student approached him about the matter immediately after class, the professor called attention to their respective levels of academic degrees thinking to shame the student into submission.  As far as the professor was concerned, that settled the matter.  But there were larger issues at stake: (1) the biblical doctrine of the divine inspiration of Holy Scripture; [2] and (2) the reputation of the 17^th-century Puritan stalwart, John Milton, author of the classic epic poem Paradise Lost.

Milton’s Samson Agonistes [3] represents a magnificent poetic vindication of Samson’s reputation as a man of faith.  Just as Samson used his enormous God-given strength to bring judgment upon the Philistines ultimately destroying them by bringing down the building in which they were partying, so Christ destroyed Satan’s kingdom through the cross by becoming sin for every man. [4]  “Death of death and hell’s destruction,” was the way the hymn writer expressed it! [5]  While the professor did not immediately concede the issue–that would have been too much to expect, he knew better than to throw overboard the reputation of the scholarly Milton.  More importantly, the author of the book of Hebrews included Samson in his list of heros of the faith.

Of Form Criticism and Scripture

Had Solomon written the book of Proverbs which Scripture assigns to him, or were these wise poetic sayings written during the fourth century and simply read back into the record of the 10^th-century royal son of King David?  The president/professor had already expressed his agreement with Otto Eissfeldt who argued that the biblical book of Proverbs could not have been written prior to the fourth century B.C. [6]  His arguments based on literary genre were not convincing.  There was no compelling reason to question the plain testimony of Scripture.  God had answered Solomon’s prayer for wisdom and given him wealth and honor as well (2 Chron. 1:7-12; 9:22-23).

And God gave Solomon wisdom and understanding beyond measure, and breadth of mind like the sand on the seashore, so that Solomon’s wisdom surpassed the wisdom of all the people of the east and all the wisdom of Egypt.  For he was wiser than all other men, wiser than Ethan the Ezrahite, and Heman, Calcol, and Darda, the sons of Mahol, and his fame was in all the surrounding nations.  He also spoke 3,000 proverbs, and his songs were 1,005. (1 Kings 4:29-32).

Gleason L. Archer, Jr.’s Survey of Old Testament Introduction provided an alternative position to that of Eissfelt.  Citing the renowned W. F. Albright, Archer offered poignant criticism of the late dating of Proverbs :

In the course of the past century a curious myth has arisen: that the Age of wise Men, who are supposed to have flourished in the Achaemenian and Hellenistic periods, dates to about the fifth to third centuries B.C.  We may freely admit that the Book of Proverbs was not edited in its present form until about the fifth century B.C. without assuming any material of post-Exilic date is included in the book.  But the content of Proverbs is considerably older, and it is entirely possible that aphorisms and even longer sections go back into the Bronze Age in substantially their present form. [7]

. . . a “Samson Moment”

“ I do not understand why you are doing this!  You remind me of Samson about to bring the entire house down over this matter!”  The biblical record of Samson was important to this distraught colleague.  Ironically, by taking issue with “Samson” in an effort to protect that  gathering (“house”) which violated God’s specific directive (“this matter”), his comment actually discredited that gathering likening it to the house of the Philistines.  Further, he unwittingly honored the faith of that colleague (whom he intended to chasten) by likening him to Samson.

Did the entire house come down as the colleague feared?  History is recording the collapse of the house under its own weight.  As for the faithful remnant, “the gates of Hades will not prevail against it!” [8]  The man likened to “Samson” was abruptly excused from the gathering in order that he might minister to one undergoing emergency surgery.

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Endnotes

[1]. http://www.amazon.com/Peloubets-International-Lessons-Christian-Teaching/dp/B002BUYHC4

[2]. Isaiah 8:16-20; John 10:35; Rom. 3:2; 2 Tim. 3:16; 2 Pet. 3:15-17

[3]. Samson Agonistes, Douglas Bush, ed., The Portable Milton. pp. 610-664; John Milton. (1608–1674).  Complete Poems. The Harvard Classics.  1909–14. http://www.bartleby.com/4/603.html

[4]. 2 Cor. 5:21; Heb. 2:14-15

[5]. William Williams, Hymn: “Guide Me O Thy Great Jehovah” http://cyberhymnal.org/htm/g/u/guideme.htm

[6]. Otto Eissfeldt, The Old Testament: An Introduction, pp. 470-477

[7]. W. F. Albright, Wisdom in Israel and in the Ancient Near East, 1955, p. 4, quoted in Gleason L. Archer, Jr., A Survey of Old Testament Introduction, p. 456.

[8]. Matt. 16:18

Sources

Archer, Gleason L., Jr. 1964.  A Survey of Old Testament Introduction. Chicago: Moody Press

Bush, Douglas, ed. 1949. The Portable Milton. New York; The Viking Press

Cyber Hymnal  http://cyberhymnal.org

Eissfelt, Otto. 1965. The Old Testament: An Introduction. Translated by P.R. Ackroyd. New York: Harper and Row, Publishers

Milton, John.  John Milton. (1608–1674).  Complete Poems. The Harvard Classics.  1909–14. http://www.bartleby.com/4/603.html

Smith, Wilbur. 1953. Peloubet’s Select Notes on the International Bible Lessons for Christian Teaching http://www.amazon.com/Peloubets-International-Lessons-Christian-Teaching/dp/B002BUYHC4

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About the Writer

David Clark Brand is a retired pastor and educator with missionary experience
in Korea and Arizona. He and his wife reside in Ohio. They have four grown children
and seven grandchildren. With a B.A. in the Liberal Arts, an M. Div., and a Th.M. in
Church History, Dave continues to enjoy study and writing. One of his books, a
contextual study of the life and thought of Jonathan Edwards, was published by the
American Academy of Religion via Scholars Press in Atlanta.