The birth of Israel's most famous judge has many parallels with the birth of Christ: An angel announces his coming to a woman who has never born any other children; the angel makes an additional announcement to the woman's husband, the boy is destined to be a chosen leader of his people, and the Spirit of God was destined to work powerfully in his life.

But unlike Jesus, Samson was a flawed human who repeatedly struggled to act righteously and follow God. But even though Samson was an imperfectly flawed sinner, GOD was able to make Samson righteous and work through him to fulfill his holy plans in the world. We can learn an important lesson from Samson by realizing that God can do amazing things through anyone...no matter how flawed or broken we are.

Remarkably, a huge stash of ancient clay writings have been found that date to the period of the judges and confirm that a group of people called the "Apiru" (possibly "Hebrews") were active in Canaan during this period and were fighting against the allies of Egypt. These "Amarna Letters" provide evidence corroborating the Biblical account of Canaanite tribes attempting to consolidate their power and drive their enemies from the land.