I can’t help but wonder what it was about Samson that permitted him to be mentioned as an example of faith in Hebrews 11:32. I know that we call Hebrews 11:4-38, “Faith’s Hall of Fame.” I do not know where the designation originated. We will often refer to the people in Hebrews 11 as “heroes” of the faith. They were those “of whom the world was not worthy” (Vs. 38). They, in one way or another, exemplified faith in their lives. The writer said that “all these” were commended through their faith (Vs. 39).
            I wonder if we have not done an injustice by designating Hebrews 11:4-38 as “Faith’s Hall of Fame.” A hall of fame is a recognition of people who excelled in whatever it was that put them in that place of honor. It memorializes people who were the best at what they did. Their talents were exceptional, and history has taken note of them as being among the best at what they did.
            Your eyes must squint when you read the list of names from the extremely chaotic period of the judges: Gideon, Barak, Samson and Jephthah (Vs. 32). As we scan this short list there are few heroic qualities that stand out in their lives. They were examples of faith with feet of clay.
            In the book of Judges you may fail to see anything exceptional in the life of Samson. You may not see anything even remotely positive about him. Samson had his faults. It is a mistake to measure any person’s life by a handful of their worst days over a lifetime. Samson certainly suffered the consequences of his foolish decisions, but he did not blame God for his problems. Samson risked his life many times as he fought the enemies of Israel; he was deeply conscious of God’s work in his life, and his own place as God’s instrument against the enemy (Judg. 14:4).
            We somehow imagine that the persons mentioned in Hebrews 11 are grand examples of spirituality. With that thought in the back of our minds, we come to the book of Judges, and we try to read that quality into the life of Samson. We somehow equate faith with a God-like spirituality, but that element is starkly absent in Samson. It may be that what we have in Judges 13-16 is really only his life in a nutshell. If so it is unfair to judge him based on such a limited criterion, but that is all we have by which to go.
            We must remember that the inspired writer to the Hebrews was not making evaluative statements of the people mentioned. His point is that they were examples of faith. That is all. He was not giving any assessment of their spirituality, moral character or sensitivity to people’s needs. The point is not that these people lived a hall of fame level of piety, but that they demonstrated faith in some way.
            The lesson from all of this is quite simple. It is good that the examples of faith contained in Hebrews 11 are of God’s choice, and not mine. Yet, more importantly, this teaches me that God can and will use flawed people to accomplish his ends. That may well include the rest of us!